[Words From Webster] Medford Oregon | KOBI-TV NBC5 / KOTI-TV NBC2

[Blogger]

Medford Oregon | KOBI-TV NBC5 / KOTI-TV NBC2

---

• Medford Police Release Thanksgiving DUII Stats
• Re-Dedication Ceremony For Zion Lutheran Church
• Medford Lights Up The Holiday Tree
• Earthquake Strikes of Oregon Coast

Medford Police Release Thanksgiving DUII Stats Posted: 02 Dec 2013 07:55 AM PST Numbers are out, following the holiday weekend DUII saturation. Police say five DUII arrests were made in the Medford area on Friday. The Medford, Central Point, and Talent Police Departments all participated in the saturation, as well as the Jackson County Sheriff's Office. The full report is expected to be released later this week.

Re-Dedication Ceremony For Zion Lutheran Church Posted: 01 Dec 2013 06:30 PM PST Author: Roma Villavicencio MEDFORD, OR Service at Zion Lutheran Church Sunday meant more than just the message of the sermon, it was a fresh start. Words of gratitude from Pastor Cyril l Hunkler after someone set the church's cross on fire in July which then spread into the chapel. Five months later the church is still standing strong. "It almost made me cry because i have been here many times and I hated to see it broken and dusty but its cleaner then before."  Parishioners say that even though whoever did this to their church is still out there in an odd way the fire brought a lot of good. "They say no bad thing lacks some kind of a blessing so we have been crammed together in our fireside room and meeting there nobody left nobody gave up we just hung in and kept going."   It's the community support that Nancy Swan says made Sunday's re dedication ceremony possible. "We are just so blessed to be back in our sanctuary after our terrible fire in July and it just means that we can look at our window about marching to Zion since we are Zion and just share all of our happiness with all of our friends in the community."  Including Vera Sherman who's been with the church since 1919. "I'm just so grateful to be here."     And so are the other members of the congregation.

Medford Lights Up The Holiday Tree Posted: 01 Dec 2013 12:00 AM PST The holiday celebrations began Saturday evening at the Pear Blossom Park in downtown Medford. There were christmas carols being played by a live band. Santa Claus made an appearance, and the 20 foot norway spruce was lit. "It was a surprisingly big turnout, it's the biggest one i've ever seen and this is my fifth year doing this event, so it was exciting to see all the bodies here," said organizer Quinnin Picton. This is the first time the event was held at the Pear Blossom Park,  the tree's new location.

Earthquake Strikes of Oregon Coast Posted: 30 Nov 2013 08:00 PM PST It wasn't very noticeable but a Magnitude 5.4 earthquake struck off about 133 miles southwest of Gold Beach Saturday evening. The quake struck at a depth of 6.8 miles, so no tsunami warning was issued. The Pacific Northwest sits on a major fault line and geologist predict that there is a 37 percent chance that a catastrophic earthquake will hit southern oregon in the next 50 years. There was no reports of any land damage.

You are subscribed to email updates from News RSS Feed | KOBI-TV NBC5 / KOTI-TV NBC2 To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

--
Posted By Blogger to Words From Webster at 12/02/2013 09:16:00 AM

[Blogger]

Medford Oregon | KOBI-TV NBC5 / KOTI-TV NBC2

---

• Coos Bay Man Found Guilty of Posession of Explosives
• Ashland Faith Community Opens Doors To Homeless
• Wimer Residents Lose Everything in House Fire
• Sandy Hook Massacre Computer Game Sparks Outrage
• Governor, Senators Applaud Klamath Task Force

Coos Bay Man Found Guilty of Posession of Explosives Posted: 05 Dec 2013 08:05 AM PST A Coos Bay man who was on the run from police has been found guilty of possessing explosive devices. Jay Yarbrough has been found guilty of charges including possession of a short-barreled rifle and pipe bombs. Police say the man's wife alerted police of a domestic dispute while Yarbrough was in the hospital for a lung infection and sepsis. That's when police say she showed them a bunker under the house, containing multiple firearms, and large co2 canisters filled with gunpowder. Sentencing is set for December 12th.

Ashland Faith Community Opens Doors To Homeless Posted: 04 Dec 2013 11:06 PM PST Author: Roma Villavicencio ASHLAND, OR The City of Ashland doesn't have a permanent homeless shelter but during these cold nights they do have over night shelters thanks to the faith community and their volunteer time. NBC 5's Roma Villavicencio files this report.

Wimer Residents Lose Everything in House Fire Posted: 04 Dec 2013 07:00 PM PST Author: RaeAnn Christensen Just a few days ago Cameron Selva and Jon McCann had all their belongings packed up and were ready to move to California for new opportunities.  But Tuesday morning they got a rude awakening. "Woke up to smoke and crackling sounds," says Jon. Cameron says "he woke me up and the house was full of smoke and we just had no time ran out of the house." The two escaped with only the clothes on their backs. Cameron says "we ran down the street to get away from it we didn't have any shoes on, I don't think we even had a sweater." Fire officials say the fire started in the flu of the chimney and there were no working fire alarms.  Jim Webb of the Rogue River Fire District says "check your smoke detector, make sure it's operational first. Make sure your chimney is clean and inspected yearly by a certified chimney sweep. Burn only season dried firewood." For Cameron and Jon, their wallets with their ID's and money they saved to make their way to California were torched, all their belongings burned, and they both have to start over, but how? "I don't know how I am going to get back now cause I am out of money," says Cameron. Jon says "we are in limbo now, we're just kinda going with the flow and hope something helps us out somehow." But as they go back to visit what's left of their home, one little spark of hope made her way out of the rubble. And they are grateful that they and Bobby Finkel, the cat, are alive. "I mean our life is the most important, so we are really grateful that we are alive and not even hurt." Many local fire departments offer a do-it-yourself free chimney brush rental service, if you can't hire a professional. If you would like to help Cameron and Jon with any type of donations, furniture, clothing, etc. you can email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or a bank account has been set up under the name of Jon McCann at Chase Bank.

Sandy Hook Massacre Computer Game Sparks Outrage Posted: 04 Dec 2013 06:11 PM PST Author: Christine Pitawanich Medford Shocking, disgusting and outrageous. Those are words many people are using to describe a new controversial computer game that allows people to reenact the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in Newtown, Connecticut. Some people are even calling for it to be taken down because of its offensive and insensitive nature. "The Slaying of Sandy Hook Elementary" The game is available free online but has reportedly been taken down off various websites due to complaints. It starts off like this: instructing the player to grab a gun, walk into the next room then shoot and kill their sleeping mother. "I'm appalled by that," said Medford resident, Curtis Lewis. "That's horrible! Why would anyone glorify that sort of behavior?" asked Paula Baca who lives in Ashland. But it doesn't end there. The rest of the game directs players in the footsteps of Adam Lanza. He's the man police say massacred 26 people at Sandy Hook Elementary last year...20 of them, children. Then Lanza turned the gun on himself. "That's horrifying, there's no way they should allow that game," said Baca. "I think it's a sin and a shame," said Lewis. "It shows how far we've fallen as a culture. I think it's definitely sad," said Medford resident Jared Foy. Game Creator Attempts Gun Control Message However, in what some would call an odd twist, the creator of the game -- in an audio recording on the game's website -- encourages players to contact representatives in order to enact stricter gun control laws. "Here we are nearly a year after the Sandy Hook shootings [...] and absolutely nothing positive has come out of it," said the game's creator Ryan Jake Lambourn. Lambourn says he grew up in Houston, Texas. In 2001 he moved to Sydney, Australia where he said there's an emphasis on gun control after a 1996 mass shooting. "Back in America though, all these massacres don't seem to have any similar effects on regulation," he said. "If you're a middle-of-the-road person who believes firearms should at least have the same amount of safety regulations as a car, then it's really on you because your absolute apathy is why the news is unbearable to watch," continued Lambourn. A Message Lost in Translation? However, to get to the information where Lambourn encourages people to contact their representatives, players must first click a button in the top right corner of the screen. It's something players may not do. "I would say it would be highly problematic because if the message is lost and these individuals don't even get to the point of seeing the message," began Dr. Eric Morrell who works as a forensic psychologist. "What they will take home is the experience of going up, shooting one's mother, seeing blood and then going and killing children. That's almost so outrageous that it's hardly worth commentary." He said a big concern is the idea of modeling. When a child or adolescent sees violence and start taking on similar behaviors. Another potential problem society's constant consumption of violence. "I think the big problem is if we don't develop a sense of conscience that when you strip away things that [...] allow us to have natural shock reactions and they're not there anymore, then we really don't have too much more to rely upon in terms of developing a sense of conscience or having brakes put on destructive and killing behavior," said Morrell. Meanwhile, many people are skeptical about Lambourn's message that seems to have been lost in translation. "How can you be for gun control when you're glorifying killing people," asked Baca. Other people we spoke with said they don't think the people who decide to play the game care about a message promoting gun control. It's been reported that Adam Lanza was known to have played a similar computer game called "School Shooting."

Governor, Senators Applaud Klamath Task Force Posted: 04 Dec 2013 04:18 PM PST Author: Lyle Ahrens Governor Kitzhaber, Senators Wyden and Merkley, and Reclamation Commissioner Mike Connor are celebrating an agreement tonight they claim will deliver water to parched farms in the Klamath Basin. But, there are still plenty of questions... Senator Ron Wyden notes that the agreement promises more certainly of water for farmers... "Through voluntary measures in areas above the Upper Klamath Lake.  This is done through the sale of water rights by willing owners." But - the agreement doesn't identify which sellers are willing to give up ranching. Getting cheaper power rates for farmers is another challenge. Wyden says he can help to clear some of the federal red tape...but it's unclear how low those rates can be cut, or what cost will be acceptable. The task force was also charged with cutting costs of the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement, or KBRA, by up to a third. Some of that financial burden will now fall to the state... But Governor John Kitzhaber believes he can help... "This is a remarkable testament to the good will and commitment of the people of this region, and the State of Oregon is going to back this up." While questions may remain, Senator Jeff Merkley says the agreement represents a lot of hard work by a diverse group... "If the stakeholders can do that, I want to do everything that I possibly can to help back that up." And while the agreement may not solve all the water problems, Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Mike Connor notes that it may have laid a foundation for future dialog... "I think meaningful progress is what we're trying to achieve, and long term solutions on the horizon are worth this effort." The draft report by the Klamath River Basin Task Force will now undergo a review period. Senator Ron Wyden hopes to introduce legislation based on the group's recommendations in mid-January.

You are subscribed to email updates from News RSS Feed | KOBI-TV NBC5 / KOTI-TV NBC2 To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

--
Posted By Blogger to Words From Webster at 12/05/2013 09:29:00 AM