Oregon Strategist

Reinventing the Oregon Dream

On Independence

by

FlagAs Oregonians, divided by the I-5 corridor, by the Cascades and the Willamette, by the interests of Nike and the interests of a democracy, by Beavers and Ducks, by two fiercely opposed political parties and their ideologies, and the varied idiosyncrasies of our farms, cities, markets, culture and climate, we understand one principle in common: the right and dignity to hold one’s differences in equal legitimacy to another’s. 

The forces of opposition to this principle are stealthy in the corrosion of its foundation in the Constitution. A vote is no longer a vote but competes now with the dollars of special interests packing the hallways outside of our legislative sessions, and colleges of election that spit on a Declaration. It begs the question how must we oppose such a daunting force? We answer by changing the game.

John Locke coined “the pursuit of happiness” to describe each human being’s path to fulfillment and self-determination. But when dependency is forced upon us by an organism larger than ourselves we lose the ability to determine our path – instead we are guided by the shackles of a creature empowered not by a citizenry united but a conquered one. And now our actions must be tempered in accordance with what we owe.

How does our burden break? Are we to believe that the current bifurcation of power in government and the precedence of the two-party platform will yield a solution that will allow the torch of entrepreneurialism and the fire of free-spirited endeavors which have sustained our nation, to carry on? Or are we merely selling out now, foregoing an inspirited future? There is no golden parachute waiting for us on the other side.

The monuments we have built in the name of progress were once named for the achievements of our history and personhood. They now bear the mark of collusion and oligarchy. Our landscape is burned with billboards – a conditioning by the top to us, telling us to vote the party line. And so we register, as Democrat and as Republican progressing our way ever closer to a future obsolete. Where is the voice of a single human being in that?

“The right to hold one’s differences in equal legitimacy to another’s” is an expression not of compromise but of reason of mind. Each point of view is a legitimate whole. We should not be asked to sacrifice a core belief in adoption of a compromised ethic, in a compromised American Dream. That will merely degrade our sense of humanness and that has been happening for too long. No. Liberation begins in the mind.

Politics is the marriage of each of us to our unity. Practiced properly it is the cornerstone of revolution. Abused and it is the pedestal of tyranny. We must resolve ourselves to seek peace instead of pork, dignity instead of derision. And when we do we will know we have buried the forces of opposition for a path clear to revival and suffrage.

Timothy Crawley

Immigration Reform: Preserve and Protect

by

Gang of EightThe Border Security, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013, or the “Gang of Eight” bill, made significant headlines this week as the Senate proceeded to debate, amend, and pass the most significant overhaul of U.S. immigration law in over a generation. The bill will now proceed to the House of Representatives where it stands a difficult test.

The Gang of Eight bill would grant citizenship to over 11 million undocumented individuals. Success in the Senate hinged on a compromise amendment brought forward by Republicans to increase border security spending by $38 billion which would add an additional 20,000 border security agents, new fencing, electronic surveillance and unmanned drones.

What does this bill mean for Oregon? According to the Pew Hispanic Center, Oregon is home to 160,000 undocumented individuals. Providing a path to citizenship for these folks will help ensure the integrity of their families, will potentially lower crime, and will enhance their access to justice as they will no longer feel the need to hide in the corners of our society.

Immigration reform has long been overdue. Oregon’s north-south Willamette Valley stretch and the rolling grainfields and orchards east of its Cascades employ between 90,000 and 150,000 farmworkers – many of them undocumented. Immigration reform will bring them into the legal, competitive market. Their full citizenship will correspond with full taxpayer status.

The Senate’s passage of the Gang of Eight bill follows the passage of Oregon Senate Bill 833 on May 1st that legalized short-term driver’s licenses for folks illegally residing within the state. The law was passed with rapid fanfare (three weeks after the first public hearing was held), and while critics claim it has the potential to attract more undocumented immigrants to the state, the downsides to the law are significantly ameliorated by the upsides, especially in the event that the Gang of Eight bill is passed by the U.S. House of Representatives.

Consider the citizen-children of undocumented individuals. Many of these citizens would not be able to attend school or other community activities. Providing these citizens with the opportunities afforded to other citizens is crucial for creating a strong and diverse economy and society. Allowing undocumented individuals short-term drivers licenses increases taxes, puts money into the economy through insurance and gasoline purchases and enhances access to many other Oregon businesses. Issuing drivers licenses to undocumented individuals does little harm to our state and addresses an immediate need felt by their citizen-children who rely upon this legislation to realize the Oregon Dream.

Additionally, a buttressed border and enhanced guest worker program (the former provided by the Gang of Eight bill) is essential to ensuring that immigration occurs through the proper channels. In offering shelter to the homeless, churches and non-profits that provide such services go through a process of registration and procedure. Likewise, the government must ensure the protection of its citizens and the procedure of its immigration.

Finally, this legislation must be accompanied by stronger penalties for hiring undocumented workers. While this will undoubtedly raise the price of our food, such is the cost of ensuring that human rights are protected. If no one is hiring undocumented workers to begin with, the problems that flow from the inherent inequality in their labor are ameliorated.

Our Labor and Our Laws

by

gaspumpsJob creation is a central theme in today’s economy as stock price indexes, housing markets, and construction have all risen while jobs have remained relatively stagnant. This point alone makes difficult the task of having an honest discussion surrounding ORS 480.330, the law that prohibits self-service dispensing of Class 1 flammable liquids at retail – namely, gasoline at fill stations.

Mandating attendants to dispense gasoline into one’s vehicle is an example of the state overstepping its authority into the regulation of private enterprise. Imagine a scenario where the government regulates how many clerks should staff a grocery store, or mandates that no one may change their own oil on their vehicles. The costs of these policies would be born not by behemoth oil companies and other corporations but, rather, by the citizens. This is simple economics.

While the folks behind the nozzles at service stations are quite often hard-working and diligent and will even show such dedication to the task as to wash a driver’s windows while one waits for a fill, we must continue to ask the difficult questions in order to shape our society into one where jobs are based on society’s demands – not one where jobs are created for the sake of job creation because a group of politicians have gathered together to create a purpose for themselves.

Currently, New Jersey is the only other state to mandate gas station attendants. The government set forth numerous declarations in ORS 480.315 in an attempt to justify the law’s passage. Among them are the theories that exposure to toxic fumes represents a health hazard to customers dispensing Class 1 flammable liquids and that small children left unattended when customers leave to make payment at self service stations creates a dangerous situation.

These justifications point to the irrationality of the law and are a prime example of an “empty carbohydrate” for the economy. First, would gas station attendants not be subject to the same fumes as drivers considering no masks or other breathing devices are required for dispensing fuel? Second, is the state again setting the boundaries for what are acceptable parenting practices? Virtually all of the declarations set forth in ORS 480.315 cover similar Big Brother territory.

From a more global perspective, it is rare that a politician marches with the torch of deconstructionism, the aim being that she or he rallies support to dismantle some of the more overbearing elements of our government. At the moment, working Oregonians support a Social Security disability program that handed out nearly $45 million in 2012. Many of these applications are promulgated by economic woes versus actual disability.

The government’s excessive regulations and ever-expanding programs are complicating our society’s function. Imagine a tax code with no loopholes and deductions. Imagine a tax code limited to twenty pages. Imagine no pork barrel spending, bridges to nowhere, and fallow prisons. Such efforts take support from a voting citizenry – a citizenry not in decline but one willing to make the bold effort to deconstruct in order to reconstruct based on simple enduring laws that provide necessary protections and allow society to function unencumbered by the baggage of over two centuries of legislation layered by legislation.