I ♥ New York . . . Economists Times (The Sequel)
Just before the Christmas break, I blogged about the hundred-plus New York economists who wrote to their governor rejecting his cut services-first approach to balancing the state budget. They argued that such a move would exacerbate the economic downturn while harming vulnerable New Yorkers. A better option, they said, would be to raise taxes on those with high incomes. They noted the important role that government plays in the state economy and that state government spending is crucial to turn around the recession.
Yesterday, The New York Times elevated the “raise taxes, don’t cut services first” argument to the national level. The Times’ editorial (PDF) was addressed to the incoming Obama administration, urging it to stick to its campaign promise to raise taxes on the richest Americans:
[N]ot all tax increases are damaging in a recession. An increase could help if it raised more in revenue than it subtracted in consumption and if that revenue was used for stimulus.The Times rejected the “conventional wisdom that raising any taxes during a downturn is wrong,” acknowledging that its view “is hard to explain and easy to demagogue.” Still, it argued, “the fight for tax fairness” should trump those concerns.That sounds like the very definition of a tax increase for the richest Americans. The wealthy are unlikely to slow their consumption much if their income tax rates return — as Mr. Obama has proposed — to their pre-Bush levels (an increase from rates of 33 and 35 percent to 36 and 39.6 percent).
As the Times noted, stimulus spending is and should be front and center, but “the nation needs far more tax revenue, generated more progressively,” as well.
The need to raise revenue to avoid slashing services and to maintain government spending in the economy is even more important for states like Oregon that, unlike the federal government, cannot run a budget deficit.
Make no mistake about it. Addressing Oregon’s revenue shortfall with smart revenue solutions is the most pressing issue that the 2009 Oregon Legislative Assembly will face.
Let’s hope Governor Kulongoski and our lawmakers read the Sunday New York Times.
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January 5, 2009 |
Chuck Sheketoff | Comments (0 so far)
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Things Change (For Some of Us)
I was listening to a podcast of a batch of talking heads recently. It doesn't actually matter which heads are talking, of course--they all say the same things. The left-wing talking heads (who are really center-right Democrats) talk about the very dire circumstances the country is in and how it will take drastic, radical action to change it. The right-wing talking heads continue to invoke incantations that once fooled the media types who hired them (if not the languishing middle class, falling ever closer to lower-middle): mumble mumble "tax cuts," murmur murmur "spending cuts" grumble grumble "damn unions." I'm not sure if it's because the talking heads still think the bankrupt ideas have the power to move opinion or because they got nothin' else, but it's always the same. Usually delivered with the derision that carried them through the bullying early aughts.
But things do change. Pew has a rather shocking report out on just how much. Some of this is blatant contraction to the talking heads' prattle:
2000 2008
(Clinton) (Bush)
Satisfied with how things are going 55% 13%
Approve of President's performance 61% 24%
Think history will judge pres favorably 44% 11%
But there are a few facts here so stark no amount of demagoguing can erase them. These aren't opinion, but the kind of statistics that tell the tale of the Bush catastrophe. Every time a conservative talks about the massive growth of prosperity under Bush, recall these stats:
2000 2008
US GPD (2000 dollars) $9.8 trillion $11.7 trillion
Per capita GDP (2000 $) $34,700 $38,500
Median income (2007 $) $50,557 $50,233
Unemployment rate 3.9% 6.7%
Consumer debt $1.7 trillion $2.6 trillion
National debt $5.7 trillion $10.0 trillion
Bushonomics wrought this: vast wealth for the very rich through deficit spending and huge debt for the rest of us. While the rich got richer (citing rising per capita incomes is a favorite lie of the right), the middle class got poorer (a fact falling median incomes explains).
Until the media can find some conservatives with opinions that are not verifiably insane, I've listened to my last podcast. Things have changed so dramatically that we now face a crisis not seen since the 1930s. Yet for Republicans, it's 2001 all over again.
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January 5, 2009 |
Jeff Alworth | Comments (4 so far)
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2010: Atkinson for Governor?
The Medford Mail-Tribune reports that Sen. Jason Atkinson (R-Central Point) is considering another run for Governor. In 2006, he placed third behind Ron Saxton and Kevin Mannix, but impressed the conservative base with his campaign.
Last summer, he suffered an accidental gunshot wound to the leg.After the ride, he likened preparing for the ride to the mental training he is going through as he considers a possible gubernatorial run in 2010.
"It was a lot more pain than I thought it would be," said the 38-year-old Central Point Republican, who was also a candidate for governor in 2006. "It was raining and it was cold out there, but I loved it." ...
During his convalescence, Atkinson said, he's thought a lot about running for governor. He has yet to officially throw his hat in the race, but he's preparing for it.
"I'm training for a big race in 2010," he said.
He said the grassroots organization for his 2006 primary campaign is still intact and will help if he decides to run again.
"I've kept our work alive," he said. ...
[Rep. Dennis Richardson (R-Central Point)] said Atkinson is well-positioned if he decides to run again for governor, provided he's able to raise enough money to win.
"I think that Jason has ever-increasing name recognition," he said. "He has tremendous determination and tenacity. He has the burning in the belly that it takes to go through a statewide campaign."
If it's Smith or Walden, I don't see Atkinson having a chance. (And frankly, if it's Walden, I expect Atkinson to run for Congress.)
But he's a dynamic and charismatic guy, and would give our candidate a tough run.
I know there are folks out there that don't want to think about 2010 until 2010. But if we're going to beat Gordon Smith, Greg Walden, or Jason Atkinson in a governor's race - we need our candidates to get started in the next few months.
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January 5, 2009 |
Kari Chisholm | Comments (13 so far)
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Welcome to the Show, Ms. Hovde.
By Patch Adam Perryman of Milwaukie, Oregon. Patch is a novice writer, health care professional and native Oregonian with rural roots.
I knew that my weekly reading of the Sunday morning Oregonian (now starting the post-David Reinhard era) would hastily welcome a mantle-carrying neophyte as the editors sought out some new dexterity for their "even-handed" publication. So, in her opening sentence, Elizabeth Hovde couldn't wait to high-five the public before she started swinging away with an anti-rhetoric Oberammergau at a readership akin to a major-league slider.
Stating that she'll happily take "[Reinhard's] hate mail", Hovde's inaugural column offers a diatribe in backpedaling rather than a start from scratch. She brings attention to her undefined identification as a conservative and instead writes that she's a long-time PNW resident (Western Washington's Bellingham and the 'Couv), a two-time W. voter, being spent from a Palin nonsense, and offers a redundant pack of GOP neologisms.
Ms. Hovde's writing, frankly, depicts her as an armour-clad warrior of the Right. Riding boldly into Stumptown with humility and verve after a decade of for The Columbian where she tag-teamed with Michelle Malkin. What she expects in her new role is a dragon of contention and an opposing army of foam-at-the-mouth "haters". What I suggest she'll find upon dismount is that once she lets her past commentaries subside and realize that her gossamer tunic is as tenuous as W. legacy, conversation in Oregon will not be difficult to initiate, mediate, tolerate or resuscitate.
Many are the number of heated comments I have read concerning the frailty of The O's past opining, but only a handful could be considered as hateful. So let me one of the first to accept Elizabeth's invitation for a robust conversation and make her (increasingly) think.
One word of advice though: Don't play the victim on your introductory pitch. Start with who you are, not with who you're trying to be.
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January 5, 2009 |
guest column | Comments (20 so far)
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More than 500 killed so far in Gaza
I don't really know what to say or do about the over 500 people who have been killed so far in Gaza. But I think we at Blue Oregon should acknowledge that it is happening. And we should think about how to stop it. And we must all act in accordance with our own consciences to stop the killing now.
To begin the debate, here's a news clip from the alternative media source Real Network News to provoke some thought and discussion:
Josh Marshall at TPM says the heart of the issue is the exponential growth of settlements in the West Bank. His post on the subject is here.
But what do you think the U.S. should do now? What are you willing to do now?
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January 5, 2009 |
Chip Shields | Comments (33 so far)
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Meet the new boss....
(Via The Vig).
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January 4, 2009 |
Carla Axtman | Comments (7 so far)
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Your Abbreviated Editorial Roundup
Daily Kos has a regular feature entitled Your Abbreviated Pundit Roundup. Its a boiled-down and sometimes snappy synopsis of various pundit analysis and opinions. I'm stealing the idea and adapting it here today using various newspaper editorials from around the state. This is obviously a small selection, but it gives you an idea of what some of our fellow Oregonians have on their minds.
Daily Astorian (Thursday):
Even Bush has stopped denying global climate change. In this lousy economy, the opportunity is prime to juice up alternative energy sources.
Albany Democrat-Herald (Saturday):
The folks who've got their knickers in a twist over the Guv's floating a mileage tax need to untwist themselves. The gas tax will eventually outlive its usefulness. With some tweaking, this experiment could be another link in Oregon's chain of forward thinking problem solving.Baker City Herald (Friday):
The gubmint is keeping me from replacing my contact lenses without oversight, but they'll let me cut my leg off with a chainsaw.Clatskanie Chief (Thursday)
Yeah, snow sucks. A lot.East Oregonian (Sunday)
We met former World Bank Russel Cheetham this week. He tells us that the best way to get the economy moving is massive government cash infusions that invest in infrastructure. Just like Obama says. So everybody better get on the train, as soon as its builtOntario Argus Observer (Sunday):
We want in on that massive chunk of change that the gubmint is doling out. Eastern Oregon has been in an economic abyss for ages. Give us some of that infrastructure!
Eugene Register Guard(Sunday): Aren't you glad your Social Security isn't in the stock market? Too bad we can't say that about the Oregon College Savings Plan, eh?
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January 4, 2009 |
Carla Axtman | Comments (5 so far)
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Why I'm not going to see "Frost/Nixon"
To use an old, tired cliché: Been there, done that.
I remember Watergate, Nixon's resignation, the pardon. Good times. I was just barely beginning to pay attention to the world, but I was aware of a number of things. And I was a Democrat. So not only was I aware of what was going on in Washington, DC, regarding Watergate, I understood the President had done wrong.
Being a Democrat: that was my mom's doing. She didn't actively recruit me — I don't recall that she ever volunteered with the party — but I do know she was a Democrat. During the 1972 campaign, she took me to the Billings, Montana, airport to see Democratic nominee George McGovern. We waited two hours in a stifling concourse with thousands of other excited supporters (and many who were just curious to see a "someone" — this was Billings, after all, and until Obama made his visits last year, not a place known for attracting big names). I got to shake the Senator's hand, get an autograph and a bit of teasing about the pen; in the midst of a campaign when he knew he was going to lose big, he was still able to be friendly to a young non-voter.
I don't even want to think what Nixon would have done to me.
It's now Common Wisdom that Dubya is the Worst President Ever. Hard to argue, given all he's done, but don't ever forget this: He was been aided and abetted at every step by Congressional Republicans happy to rubber-stamp the Rove-Cheney plan to eradicate Democrats and liberals, and by Congressional Democrats so terrified of being accused of being Democratic or liberal that they should have switched parties years before just to make their surrender official. Almost as bad, the mainstream media did done nothing — worse than nothing — to shed light on the dark pit that is the Bush White House. So when we say Bush is the worst president ever, let's not forget his worstestness was enabled by a coalition of the willing.
Nixon's horrendous record was, for the most part, a solo act. Strangely, for how terrible he ultimately proved to be, he was a good president in many regards. Nixon and the Congress accomplished important goals, such as passing and implementing the Clean Air, Clean Water and Environmental Policy Acts. When Nixon "opened up" China and Russia, he was able to overwhelm any opposition with his own proven touch-on-commies history. The press, as they were known then (newspapers were still viable concerns in those days, and both print and broadcast media hired many people known as "journalists" who did research and then reported the results), had not yet gone to war with Nixon, but they were his buddies in the way the 2000 media lapdogs sold their souls, not to mention their professionalism, for a nickname and friendly pat on the head.
But when it came to his efforts to eliminate the rule of law in his vain attempt to eradicate political enemies, Nixon worked without aid from Congress or the media, just a staff of like-minded criminals. Of course, he was also a paranoid, drunken nutjob (not that I like believing anything Henry Kissinger says, but we have other sources as well). He trusted no one, and certainly not the Congress or the press; his enemies list contained many from both groups. He did not need their capitulations to function on the dark side; he was far more intelligent and independent than Dubya. He was his own Cheney, his own Rove.
And he nearly destroyed the Constitution.
Continue reading "Why I'm not going to see "Frost/Nixon""
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January 4, 2009 |
T.A. Barnhart | Comments (19 so far)
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A parting shot from Linda Flores
By Walter Hopgood of Damascus, Oregon. Walter describes himself as "a progressive, out gay man living in the country with his partner, two Great Danes, a chicken, and a cat that rules the house."
It is great to be in newly blue Clackamas County, where Linda Flores was defeated by incoming State Representative Brent Barton. But you can't quite count Linda out yet. Her parting shot "Legislative Update" one page mailer made sure of that. The only thing is, I'm not sure if it is a true legislative update, or us taxpayers footing the bill for mudslinging against Democrats.
There have been defeated politicians that have slowly sunken into history with their head held high. Indeed, the endearing image of Richard Nixon climbing aboard Marine One for the last time, still positive after giving up the most powerful office to resignation is what always comes to mind.
But what Linda Flores did, lashing out at those who helped defeat her with random accusations, puts her in a class by herself. Perhaps what pulls together the entire celebration of horror is the picture of an angry man on the phone, with large print "Contact your legislator and tell them how you feel about issues important to you!".
(Click to zoom.)
Well done, Linda. You showed during your campaign that you could not be honorable. This is just the proverbial frosting on your going-away cake. Now go away already!
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January 4, 2009 |
guest column | Comments (17 so far)
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State of Emergency declared in Clackamas County
Its apparent that there's a pretty ugly mess in Clackamas County. Governor Kulongoski has now declared a state of emergency. From the press release: (not yet up on the website):
Governor Ted Kulongoski today declared a state of emergency for Clackamas County due to flood levels and authorized the use of state resources to help the county respond to the effects of severe weather.The Governor declared a state of emergency, pursuant to ORS 401.055 due to large amounts of rain and snow melt that is causing flooding in Clackamas County in low lying areas.
“My priority is to ensure the safety of Oregonians,” the Governor said. “The state will continue working with local and county officials to identify specific needs and how we can be helpful in recovery and restoration efforts.”
The Governor issued this proclamation verbally and will formalize it with an Executive Order later this afternoon. At the Governor’s direction, state officials have been monitoring the conditions since Thursday.
Oregon Emergency Management (OEM) is in close contact with Clackamas County officials and will continue to meet their needs as additional resources are required. OEM is the state coordinating agency for emergencies.
The Oregon National Guard, at the direction of OEM, is standing by to provide additional support as requested by the county.
The Oregon Department of Transportation has been assisting with de-icing efforts during the first storm that hit Northwest Oregon in December. ODOT remains ready to assist with further restoration and recovery efforts as needed by the county.
It's seems pretty messy around much of the tri-county area, but Clackamas appears to be getting the brunt.
A good-sized mudslide has destroyed a home in Lake Oswego, with 21 more under evacuation. Johnson Creek has also gone over its banks.
In Estacada, the public library is now flooded with waters from Wade Creek. Numerous landslides in the area are causing issues from houses being knocked off foundations to blocked roads.
In Damascus, a mobile home park was evacuated early this morning due to flooding from the Clackamas River.
It's wet and still a bit icy in my part of Washington County, but that seems to be it. How is it looking where you are?
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January 2, 2009 |
Carla Axtman | Comments (35 so far)
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New laws for 2009
There's a bunch of new laws that went into effect yesterday. Here's a brief rundown:
- Almost all Oregon workplaces are now smokefree - in particular, bars and taverns. This puts Oregon on par with Washington and California. There's a nice discussion about it at the Oregonian, and a snarkier version at the Mercury. My thoughts below.
- There's also no more smoking within 10 feet of doors, windows, and ventilation systems. Personally, I would have gone with 25 feet, but OK.
- You can't landfill your old TVs and computers anymore. But you can recycle them, for free.
- Water bottles now come with a nickel deposit. Finally! (Should be a dime, though.) Jack Bog likes it, but expresses some consternation about the failure to boost minimum standards for the retailers that redeem the deposits. He's right.
- If you're getting a driver's license, you'll have to prove that you're a citizen or a legal resident. Of course, this just means that people who aren't legally here will now be driving with licenses - making it harder for them to get insurance, which in turn hurts the rest of us in the event of a car crash. It sure as hell won't stop anybody from driving. The Oregonian is right - we need an alternative mechanism for getting these folks in the system.
- Passed by voters, Measure 57 goes into effect, boosting sentences for property crimes and funding for rehab programs.
So, about that smoking ban. It seems that a bunch of the blogging and reporting out there is about the effect it has on bar patrons. To be honest, if it were only about bar patrons, I wouldn't care that much. People who want smoky bars could go to smoky bars, and the rest of us could go elsewhere.
But the smoking-in-bars ban isn't about bar patrons. It's about the staff working in an unsafe workplace.
Now, once in a while, you'll see an argument that goes something like this: "I worked in a smoky bar for a few years after college. My clothes stank, but the money was good. If you don't like it, don't work there. Freedom of choice, man."
And if the smoking-in-bars ban were exclusively about unemployed college grads pulling down a few hours at the local college bar to make ends meet, I wouldn't care that much either.
Here's the crux of the matter: It wasn't that long ago that working as a waitress was one of the only living-wage jobs available to women without a college degree. There are thousands of women in our state who've spent decades working in working-class bars and taverns (you might call them "dive bars") paying the rent and raising their children with the tips they earn there. For those women, especially, this is a workplace safety issue that shouldn't be - and thanks to Oregon's new law - isn't being ignored.
This isn't about your favorite meat-market dance club downtown. It isn't about that swanky new sports bar with the big high-def screens. And it's not even about those faux dive bars in the Pearl District. It's not about any bar you'll find reviewed in a tourist guide or local media outlet.
It's about the hundreds of neighborhood taverns throughout our state - and it's about the women (and men) who've worked there forever.
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January 2, 2009 |
Kari Chisholm | Comments (53 so far)
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Learning from the Kingston disaster; shut down Oregon's Boardman coal plant
By Nick Engelfried of Hillsboro, Oregon. Nick is a senior at Pacific University, graduating with a degree in Environmental Studies. He describes himself as a clean energy activist and a volunteer for the Cascade Climate Network.
At a time when the future of Oregon’s only coal plant – the Boardman facility – is making Oregonian front-page news, we can draw a lesson from recent events in Kingston, Tennessee. On the 23rd of December, a retaining wall broke at a Tennessee Valley Authority coal plant in Kingston, spilling more than a billion gallons of coal sludge and slurry over 400 acres. By sheer volume of material spilled, this environmental catastrophe rates far above the Exxon Valdez oil spill of 1989.
Politicians of both political parties are touting “clean coal” as a solution to our global warming problems. But the Kingston spill raises the question of how clean coal can ever actually be. It’s not just a theoretical problem here in Oregon: the Oregonian recently highlighted the debate taking place over the Boardman Plant, which will almost certainly either be “cleaned up” or shut down within the next decade. Proposals to clean up Boardman include the installation of equipment to scrub nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and other pollutants from the plant’s effluents. However, such efforts would do nothing to prevent accidents like the one at Kingston. Currently available pollution-control technology also does not address carbon dioxide – the most important greenhouse gas.
As the Oregonian points out, the worst possible thing would be for PGE, Boardman’s owner, to commit to spending millions of dollars on cleaning up the plant, then decide to close it down anyway because of carbon dioxide emissions or other environmental problems not addressed by the cleanup plan. What’s certain, though, is that carbon dioxide will be regulated soon on the federal level; and if the cost of polluting becomes too much, PGE will end up shutting down Boardman.
The problem can be avoided if Oregon commits to decommissioning its coal plant now. Instead of spending millions of dollars on a plan that attempts to make coal “clean,” Boardman should simply be taken off-line. It’s the only viable way to address the plant’s contribution to global warming. One thing we can learn from Kingston is that coal will never be clean.
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January 2, 2009 |
guest column | Comments (38 so far)
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