Editorial for Friday, July 25, 2008

ROSE (roz) n. One of the most beautiful of all flowers, a symbol of fragrance and loveliness. Often given as a sign of appreciation.

RASPBERRY (raz’ber’e) n. A sharp, scornful comment, criticism or rebuke; a derisive, splatting noise, often called the Bronx cheer.

We hereby deliver:

• ROSES to Jaimee Colbert, 24, who is fighting to do what she said she would do: Serve her country once she finished her training with the Naval ROTC program at Oregon State University.

Ideally, Colbert would have liked to fulfill her dream of flying F-18s for the Navy. Despite debilitating medical problems, she completed her ROTC training and graduated from OSU in 2007 with a political science degree. But the military discharged her because she suffers from endometriosis and thyroid problems — and then billed her for the $20,000 tuition waiver she received as part of her ROTC training.

After some intervention from Capt. James R. Sullivan of OSU’s Naval ROTC program, the military rethought that request and waived tuition.

Well, we see it as a winning move if the powers that be do the same regarding allowing Colbert to complete her military service. She has been able to keep a desk job at Gill Coliseum. So why not allow her to do the same for the Navy? Or are all those stories out of the Pentagon about the military being short-handed untrue?

• RASPBERRIES to a bad new trend for which there is no good time — certainly not now: Icing shots.

Yeah, they’re just like Jell-O shots (Jell-O made in a small paper cup with vodka or gin instead of water, for those who haven’t had this nauseating shortcut to blotto-ville). Equally icky, these are tiny white paper cups of pure sugar, butter and maybe chocolate or other flavor and some sprinkles. They’re all the rage in Southern California.

But this is not a trend to celebrate, particularly since the news of this latest fast-track to a triple chin broke about the same time that the Centers for Disease Control released its annual list of the fattest cities in America and noted that America’s obesity epidemic remains alive and ... unwell.

The fattest region remains the southeast and Colorado and the West in general is the leanest. But hey, if those icing shots ever become a popular as, say, fried okra ... we might give the South a bit of a contest next year.

• ROSES to the family and many friends of Awad Mohamed Elgarguri, 41. He died at the scene of a head-on collision in the wee hours a week ago on Highway 99W near Peavey Arboretum Road. His son, who was a passenger, suffered injuries but is expected to recover. The 21-year-old driver in the other vehicle was treated for nonlife-threatening injuries.

The Imam of the Corvallis Mosque for 15 years, he was a man known for working to increase understanding between the Muslim and non-Muslim communities of Corvallis. He will be missed.

• ROSE-BERRIES to a fight over location of wind turbines in Idaho. We can sympathize, to an extent, with the movement to oppose installation of the huge propeller-like whoop-whooping generators in the scenic area of Blackfoot, Idaho. But for those who also oppose offshore oil drilling (and we do) and new nuclear reactors (we don’t) and find solar power too expensive, we have to ask: How will we stay warm in winter?

The thing to remember is that we need some interim and immediate power sources to transition us from our century-long binge with oil. Although not perfect, wind turbines can provide a reliable source of power in wind-swept regions. And when (we hope soon) we do harness a more feasible form of solar energy, those turbines can be dismantled and the landscape left none the worse for wear.

Besides, given the choice of a woman in Blackfoot, Idaho — Install a whole bunch of the turbines on 9,000 acres of a cattle ranch left to her and sell the power to a Seattle-based wind energy company or sell of the land for ranchettes — we say, put up those turbines.

Come to think on it, that wouldn’t be so bad for the area around Baker ...

• ROSES to all of the organizers, artists, scientists and other participants who made the 20th anniversary of the da Vinci Days celebration. Speaking of proof that human innovation is thriving, we saw ample evidence of that during last week’s festival. So many clever minds combined science, whimsy, artistry and rampant creativity to make it a memorable event. The weather was perfect.

Although we’ve been told time and time again that there is no way we can bring back any medieval siege weapons and hurl computers or TV sets during Corvallis festival, hope springs eternal. In the meantime, we were gratified by all of the displays and reveled in the Kinetic Challenge, with the mud bog course adding some belly laughs into the mix.

Now, of course, we’re looking forward to next week’s Benton County Fair and Rodeo ...

• ROSE-BERRIES to a classic good news/bad news cliche. The bad news? Oregon State University has released about 151,287 metric tons of carbon dioxide in fiscal year 2007, which means its “carbon footprint” has increased 9.4 percent in the past three years. However, the good news is that OSU is on top of how to reverse the situation.

Not only has the university released the findings, it has taken tangible steps to halve that figure in the next few years, thanks in large part to the student-funded purchase of a $39 million renewable energy center. Overall, this news is rosier than a raspy.