Good article, In a deer blind in south Tx so hope I can string a couple of coherent thoughts together before distracted. I certainly agree with your assessment but I am significantly less hopeful on the turn around. Voters say ( when I refer to voters I guess I shall refer to the subset of the geographic population that swings the state) they are fed up with crime, disorder and rampant homelessness and abuse of the public space, failed public initiative and corruption and failing schools. Their solution is to vote for a Donny Osmond clone for AG whose main claim to fame is a machine politician that brought the afore mentioned chaos. A neophyte mayor for Portland who owns a trucking company based in Clackamas County who presents like a cross between Pee Wee Herman and Mr Rogers but with out their toxic masculinity and a new city council chock a block full of progressives so far left that Steve Novick is mentioned as a moderate. To Paraphrase Pogo the Voters have met the enemy and dey are dem. Now back to the business at hand
It's the voters. Oregon voters have elected politicians that support what you have accurately criticized. Until that changes, the decline in livability in Oregon will continue to decline.
"The truth is that Oregon is failing." I came to Oregon from Washington, D.C. in 1984. I was enthralled with its natural beauty, the "niceness" of its citizens, its openness, its welcoming nature. It has been depressing as hell to see its decline and it's hard to be optimistic, particularly with the voting patterns of its urban population, which, for some unexplainable reason, continue to favor policies detrimental to the state's well-being.
Not all the urban votes are legitimate William. The voter rolls are packed to the gills with phantom voters. But your point is well taken, enjoy the beauty of Oregon, just watch your back and your wallet.
I think the key to change is to be able to identify and name those who are benefiting from the the current situation. Who are those? Public employees, represented by their unions, and the blob of Quangos who feed off the homeless problem, particularly in Portland. FAILURE BREEDS FUNDING. And much of that funding is kicked back to the DPO through the unions.
Yeah but let’s not worry as our new AG has convened a committee of public employee unions and the ACLU to guide his performative lawsuits against Trump.
It’s over. The state is done. It is hopeless and cannot return. Portland is Baltimore - a once great city that will never again be anything but a disaster. And the rest of the state is following. There are supermajorities in the legislature,there are no moderates (Beaverton is represented by a proud Marxist) and the leftist elites control every institution, laundering our money through SEIU and a vast array of non profits to cement their totalitarian grip. It’s too late. The entire west coast is the same.
I walked on your comment Dx, my apologies. I did provide a link to an article about the select committee in my post. Thank you for being on top of the story.
I wouldn’t say I’m on top of anything - just happened to read that story. Real question for the AG though. SEIU and AFSCME represent state workers. The DOJ represents that state in a management capacity in labor relations. So isn’t this a hug conflict for the AG to be treating these unions like his client/board of directors? Is he going to firewall himself off from that entire book of the states business that is a core function of DOJ? All so he can file press release lawsuits against bad orange man? Or should we just assume that management will always settle now?
It is a huge conflict, as is the Gov’s since she takes millions from public unions and is in charge of the team that is supposed to negotiate contracts with those unions. You should assume management and labor are on the same team in OR. Just us taxpayers on the other side.
“Our elites abuse their power to an astounding degree, as anyone who reads this here Oregon Roundup knows. They serve themselves, and a destructive ideology. They do not serve us.”
I know of no one covering Oregon politics who comes close to Eager’s dead on appraisals of Oregon’s current state of disrepair. Oregon is indeed committing state suicide with failed policy after failed policy. But while it would be natural to attribute this accelerating disintegration to the corrupt programs of the ruling party (who certainly are mostly to blame) they are far from alone.
Clearly a significant number of Oregon voters (given our questionable voting practices we cannot say for sure it’s a majority) are willing to continue to live in danger and filth. One look no further than the recent election of a State Treasurer who once bragged to the Oregonian that she is so mentally incapacitated that she cannot begin her day without being heavily medicated. Or the election of an Attorney General who just announced the formation of a task force of leftist activists to ensure that Oregon remains at the bottom of ever metric.
But let’s not overlook that our new, far left, Democrat Secretary of State was endorsed by…. the REPUBLICAN House Whip, Kim Wallan.
Let’s recall that a“Republican” senator funneled tax payer money into a“non profit” that pays him tens of thousands of dollars a year.
Let’s not ignore that “Republican” campaign consultants, married to Republican House leaders rake in HUNDREDS of thousands of dollars, viciously and falsely attacking conservative Republican candidates.
And let’s not forget that two REPUBLICAN Senators joined forces to introduce legislation to turn two other Republican Senators into criminals because they also served as party officers. Trust me, you tell these stories to activists in other states and they are sure you are heavily into that fine Oregon weed that bankrolls Democrats whether grown legally or not.
No matter how bad things get, the majority of elected Oregon Republicans (virtually the entire House) refuse to accept that things are bad enough to fight back. One actually told me she would never walk out because she did not want to “endanger her good relations with Democrats.” A (thankfully failed) Senate candidate told me he would never walk out because his job was to stay and fight, never mind that he had exactly one tool with which to fight. The one he refused to use.
And while the establishment Republicans repeat endlessly their mantra that they cannot walk out because “the people” don’t like it, every single Republican House Rep who walked out in 2020 was re-elected. And now, in spite of the vicious attacks by operatives of their own party, Oregon voters elected two clear surrogates for Republican Senators who walked out. (Noah Robinson and Diane Linthicum.)
The left is determined to destroy what’s left of Oregon. Problems are profitable. Chaos pays when you’re in charge. But nothing changes when their is no opposition . The Oregon consulting class preaches endless moderation and “bi-partisanship” in spite of it failing decade after decade. The Oregon Republican Party is waist deep in the quicksand of infighting and outdated rules, and the Oregon Caucus refuses to acknowledge that sometimes a barstool is the best answer.
When the only tool you have is a hammer, you better start breaking stuff.
Thanks, Kevin! Part of why Oregon is in the position it's in is Republicans have failed to consistently provide a politically viable electoral alternative to the progressive machine.
As a despairing citizen of your next door neighbor to the north, I can’t decide which state GOP is more dysfunctional or incompetent. Or which one enjoys playing Charlie Brown to the Dems’ Lucy more. WA is street racing with OR to see who can hit bottom first. I’m not at all persuaded by the argument that so-called centrist Democrats would be the solution to either state’s problems, because they would be just as beholden to the entities who profit off of the deliberate chaos as the far left does; they just sound more rational. At this stage, it seems like both states need to deal with the consequences of their urban voters’ decisions, and bleed conservative voters and tax base until reality hits hard.
I don't know which state GOP has a worse record, but I do think WA is better-governed than Oregon. Just look at cross-Columbia migration to WA. And Republicans have recently been close to or in charge of one house of the WA legislature. Not so in Oregon.
I would be interested in knowing how many people earn a living from the homeless industrial complex and how many truly have an incentive to end homelessness.
I am, until very recently, a lifelong liberal Oregonian. I agree with much of what you write, especially the part about bringing in and voting for moderate liberals and republicans who are not hard-core DEI clones with suicidal empathy, rather those that support meritocracy and a civilized society. Tough row to hoe in heavy blue counties, but we need to do better as a state.
Having just returned from a three week vacation in Florida and Louisiana, I have a suggestion for our own leaders, “copy everything that is happening in the Southern States”, and do it now! Build wide roads with higher speeds. Aggressively remove all graffiti and vigorously punish those who have no respect for the beautiful landscape we all enjoy! Graffiti artists who are practicing their art on other peoples property without permission are criminals, bent on becoming famous by destroying the community they live in. Graffiti for art’s sake, in designated places, is a valuable asset for any community, allowing new forms of painting , creating, and building art to add to our enjoyment of life! Graffiti vandalism and tagging do exactly the opposite 😠.
Create parks and rivers and lakes for the enjoyment of even the smallest local communities and keep them safe and clean. Encourage and teach your children to pick up their own litter as Oregon was once famous for and everyone benefits by living in beautiful surroundings, the complete opposite of what we are now infamous for! Teach good manners and good citizenship in every grade of public school. Encourage individuality and weirdness in personal thought and behavior, but establish clear boundaries that keep these values from being a problem for society in ways that harm others or take away from other people’s own enjoyment of life.
From 1990 to 2024 the Portland metro area almost doubled in population. The majority of the increase was not “Oregonians” having more children, or living longer lives, it was the influx of people from other Cities, States, and Countries who moved here because of our unparalleled geography that provided beauty and opportunity to “get out” and enjoy it. The majority of the newcomers are college educated (52.5% holding bachelor or advanced degrees and an additional 19% with some college). They came with radically different values than their predecessors, often seeking a life balance that was based on more free time to enjoy the benefits of living in Portland, and less of the drive to succeed in their respective careers. They also have a markedly different set of values than the people who created this community, leaning more towards providing more services to the less fortunate and minimizing their responsibilities for bettering themselves through personal effort and sacrifice.
Voters have replaced the laws and social responsibility that provided so much for so many, with a more selfish attitude towards their own time and income, and a new ethic that “They!” don’t deserve the money they have earned, and establishing the power to take the wealth of the highest earners and give it to those who contribute little or nothing of value to the community. The greatest damage has been done by those voters and their elected officials that have turned the acceptance of unacceptable behavior into an art form. The damage this has caused can be seen in every part of our community and has resulted in inhumane conditions for such a large group of people that 5% of Portland’s highest earners have moved away leaving hundred million dollar holes in both City and County budgets!
These budget holes end up being holes in our streets, holes in our ability to educate our children, holes in our provision of health services to our poor, holes in the ability to hire and retain a police force capable of protecting its citizens and their belongings. Portland is indeed dying, and the recent election appears likely to increase the losses in a very, very, short amount of time!
hopefully, this article will reach those whose minds are still open (to even the least extent) and persuade them to realize that an active presence is required to reverse the direction the state, in general, and the urban areas, in particular, are speeding toward.
One immediate remedy is to vote for balance within the system.
Unfortunately, Oregon Democrats will never choose to do that "because my grandfather and father were both union democrats". They will continue to vote Democrat and "there just are not good enough candidates" (quotes both from a liberal cousin). I tried to explain that our system works better with compromise from the middle verses strongarm tactics from the majority on either side. *crickets*
The elites, government class, public unions (unions in general), and the non-profits love the current status quo because they get to gorge at the taxpayer trough first.
Pay your friends and small businesses in cash, it is the only way for them to opt out of the current system.
This is Leftism in prime, front-line action. Ideas, not based in common sense. I lived in San Francisco for 31 years and they did and do the same thing, to DISASTROUS results, for the people on the street and the "normals" who pay the bills. I am not a high income person and I absolutely feel the despair of poverty...but some line has to be drawn, for basic behavior. Glad I departed from SF in 2016. I pray for my home state of Oregon...to put the brakes on this madness. Wendy
"Democrats could take us in a different direction by voting for liberals who wish to preserve a functioning society, not try (and inevitably fail) to remake it to achieve their view of perfection."
This Democrat would walk over glowing coals to vote for centrist Democratic Party candidates in primary contests against the woke progressive House and Senate incumbents in my inner northeast Portland district. However, if centrist Democrats are organizing to break the progressives' stranglehold on the legislature and governor's office, they're keeping a very low profile. There has been no mention of it in the media that I know of.
Reversing Oregon Democrats' the leftward march would certainly require bold political will and great expertise backed by tons of money. But all the bench strength and money in the world can't accomplish anything without political leaders. This would be a good time for determined reformers not named Sam Adams or Rene Gonzalez to step forward.
"My fellow Republicans could right the ship by going hard and directly at the ethos that is ruining our state and welcoming non-Republicans who believe similarly, even if they don’t buy into the full conservative agenda."
From your lips to God's ears. Those Republicans would need to belong to the Betsy Johnson school of pragmatic politics. It would be sufficient if they just focused on the facts, told voters what the progressives' ideology is actually all about the way Mr. Eager does here and let the horror stories from their period of misrule speak for themselves. If they want to expound on conspiracy theories about stolen elections, COVID-19 and the like, they're welcome to do so in the shower or while walking the dog, but for Pete's sake not on the campaign trail. There's too much at stake.
If a well-spoken, moderate Hispanic Democrat with deep community ties, a successful legal career and a successful business, and a strong track record on city council can't win a mayoral race—and instead faces unwarranted attacks—what hope is there for other qualified candidates to step forward?"
The smear campaign to torpedo Rene Gonzalez’s run for higher office smacked of the same far-left trickster badassery that marked the anarchists’ war on downtown real estate in 2020-21.
They were relentless in their baseless criticism of Gonzalez’s reforms. The Oregonian echoed them. Both went against the will of most of the 600,000+ residents of this city who don’t think the phrase “law and order” is a fascist battle cry.
Gonzalez really shot himself in the foot with his Wikipedia fiasco. That probably cost him votes among moderates. But the business community deserves a huge share of the blame for not mounting a vocal and biting messaging campaign in support of the very few candidates who were moderate reformers.
“That probably cost him votes among moderates.” Well, maybe amongst the Portlandia version of a “moderate” which is just a smidge to the right of Alexadria Ocasio Cortez.
Good point! There are moderates in this state; they just lack much political influence. I recommend the podcast "Rational in Portland" as a forum for moderate voices. The host is Portland lawyer Kristin Olson.
welcome to the real world. Paul Walden's little boy, Greg, although a republican, was a consummate citizen and an excellent legislator, but he was driven from office by a hateful group of harridans who stopped at nothing to muddy his record and impugn his values.
A few in Portland support your view but not enough to change the trajectory of Oregon. As more ideological immigrants come to Portland as a "safe haven" the far left votes of the dominant voice in Oregon politics (Portland) will only become further polarized. My moderate Democrat voice will not be long in Portland (or Oregon). I'm not predicting a correction anytime soon. I did see this recent opinion article in the Oregonian. It was good…but it's a lost voice in a sea of extreme far left politics controlled by the nonprofits and the far left unions (PAT, SEIU, etc). https://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/2024/12/readers-respond-break-the-doom-loop.html
The major issue in homelessness is not the lack of housing. It's the refusal of society to say no. No, you can't camp in this city. No, you can't shit in the streets. No, you can't panhandle aggressively. No, you can't shoot up publicly and leave your used needles lying around. The fact that we are not going to allow you to destroy our city by doing these things is not our problem. It's your problem. You can solve your problem by not doing drugs, getting help for your mental problems, getting a job, and sharing rent with others so inclined until you can afford a place of your own, probably in a lower cost community. This is not going to happen because the people we have elected allow the homeless to wallow in their victimhood rather than accept personal responsibility for their self destructiveness.
What specific steps should be taken by cities to deal with the problem? Cities should use all existing shelters and further provide simple shelter space with surplus military tents with mess and recreational tents, a medical tent and restroom and shower facilities (the way I lived in the army) on leased or purchased unused commercial or industrial sites on the outskirts of the city. As many who want to and are able to work should be hired to help feed others and to maintain the facilities. Individuals could use surplus military squad tents or their own for sleeping. When those facilities were available they should send in crews to clean up existing encampments, without arresting anyone who did not physically resist.
They should require custodial care for those who are so mentally or drug addicted that they cannot care for themselves. We did a huge disservice to the mentally ill when we closed rather than reform our state mental hospitals. We need them back. This approach actually would cost far less and be far more effective than the current housing first attempts to fix the problem. Most of our homeless lack the capacity to live unassisted in modern society but that is not an excuse to destroy our beautiful cities for the rest of us.
Homelessness is a problem of lack of political will. If our leaders wanted it cleaned up (or at least materially cleaned up) they could. See, e.g., any city of size in the U.S. midwest and south.
Good article, In a deer blind in south Tx so hope I can string a couple of coherent thoughts together before distracted. I certainly agree with your assessment but I am significantly less hopeful on the turn around. Voters say ( when I refer to voters I guess I shall refer to the subset of the geographic population that swings the state) they are fed up with crime, disorder and rampant homelessness and abuse of the public space, failed public initiative and corruption and failing schools. Their solution is to vote for a Donny Osmond clone for AG whose main claim to fame is a machine politician that brought the afore mentioned chaos. A neophyte mayor for Portland who owns a trucking company based in Clackamas County who presents like a cross between Pee Wee Herman and Mr Rogers but with out their toxic masculinity and a new city council chock a block full of progressives so far left that Steve Novick is mentioned as a moderate. To Paraphrase Pogo the Voters have met the enemy and dey are dem. Now back to the business at hand
Happy New Year
LOL!
How do you really feel Kendall? Good luck and safety on the hunt.
It's the voters. Oregon voters have elected politicians that support what you have accurately criticized. Until that changes, the decline in livability in Oregon will continue to decline.
That’s why we need to tell voters what’s really going on in this state.
Yep, and you’re doing that which I applaud.
"The truth is that Oregon is failing." I came to Oregon from Washington, D.C. in 1984. I was enthralled with its natural beauty, the "niceness" of its citizens, its openness, its welcoming nature. It has been depressing as hell to see its decline and it's hard to be optimistic, particularly with the voting patterns of its urban population, which, for some unexplainable reason, continue to favor policies detrimental to the state's well-being.
Hey, William. I moved back to Oregon from DC in 2001. Agreed on all points. Gotta keep slogging!
Not all the urban votes are legitimate William. The voter rolls are packed to the gills with phantom voters. But your point is well taken, enjoy the beauty of Oregon, just watch your back and your wallet.
What’s your source or evidence for stating “the voter rolls are packed to the gills with phantom voters”?
Just some sources to research: https://justthenews.com/nation/states/judicial-watch-sues-oregon-force-state-remove-ineligible-voters-voter-roll. IV3.us In Clackamas County 3850 names on the voter rolls were found to be registered in other states/counties. This is occurring throughout the nation. ERIC is a scam organization that perpetuates the situation. https://www.judicialwatch.org/the-truth-behind-eric/. Oregon analysis of 2020, trends are consistent. https://electionfraud20.org/seth-keshel-reports/oregon/
I think the key to change is to be able to identify and name those who are benefiting from the the current situation. Who are those? Public employees, represented by their unions, and the blob of Quangos who feed off the homeless problem, particularly in Portland. FAILURE BREEDS FUNDING. And much of that funding is kicked back to the DPO through the unions.
Bingo.
Yeah but let’s not worry as our new AG has convened a committee of public employee unions and the ACLU to guide his performative lawsuits against Trump.
It’s over. The state is done. It is hopeless and cannot return. Portland is Baltimore - a once great city that will never again be anything but a disaster. And the rest of the state is following. There are supermajorities in the legislature,there are no moderates (Beaverton is represented by a proud Marxist) and the leftist elites control every institution, laundering our money through SEIU and a vast array of non profits to cement their totalitarian grip. It’s too late. The entire west coast is the same.
I walked on your comment Dx, my apologies. I did provide a link to an article about the select committee in my post. Thank you for being on top of the story.
I wouldn’t say I’m on top of anything - just happened to read that story. Real question for the AG though. SEIU and AFSCME represent state workers. The DOJ represents that state in a management capacity in labor relations. So isn’t this a hug conflict for the AG to be treating these unions like his client/board of directors? Is he going to firewall himself off from that entire book of the states business that is a core function of DOJ? All so he can file press release lawsuits against bad orange man? Or should we just assume that management will always settle now?
It is a huge conflict, as is the Gov’s since she takes millions from public unions and is in charge of the team that is supposed to negotiate contracts with those unions. You should assume management and labor are on the same team in OR. Just us taxpayers on the other side.
“Our elites abuse their power to an astounding degree, as anyone who reads this here Oregon Roundup knows. They serve themselves, and a destructive ideology. They do not serve us.”
I know of no one covering Oregon politics who comes close to Eager’s dead on appraisals of Oregon’s current state of disrepair. Oregon is indeed committing state suicide with failed policy after failed policy. But while it would be natural to attribute this accelerating disintegration to the corrupt programs of the ruling party (who certainly are mostly to blame) they are far from alone.
Clearly a significant number of Oregon voters (given our questionable voting practices we cannot say for sure it’s a majority) are willing to continue to live in danger and filth. One look no further than the recent election of a State Treasurer who once bragged to the Oregonian that she is so mentally incapacitated that she cannot begin her day without being heavily medicated. Or the election of an Attorney General who just announced the formation of a task force of leftist activists to ensure that Oregon remains at the bottom of ever metric.
But let’s not overlook that our new, far left, Democrat Secretary of State was endorsed by…. the REPUBLICAN House Whip, Kim Wallan.
Let’s recall that a“Republican” senator funneled tax payer money into a“non profit” that pays him tens of thousands of dollars a year.
Let’s not ignore that “Republican” campaign consultants, married to Republican House leaders rake in HUNDREDS of thousands of dollars, viciously and falsely attacking conservative Republican candidates.
And let’s not forget that two REPUBLICAN Senators joined forces to introduce legislation to turn two other Republican Senators into criminals because they also served as party officers. Trust me, you tell these stories to activists in other states and they are sure you are heavily into that fine Oregon weed that bankrolls Democrats whether grown legally or not.
No matter how bad things get, the majority of elected Oregon Republicans (virtually the entire House) refuse to accept that things are bad enough to fight back. One actually told me she would never walk out because she did not want to “endanger her good relations with Democrats.” A (thankfully failed) Senate candidate told me he would never walk out because his job was to stay and fight, never mind that he had exactly one tool with which to fight. The one he refused to use.
And while the establishment Republicans repeat endlessly their mantra that they cannot walk out because “the people” don’t like it, every single Republican House Rep who walked out in 2020 was re-elected. And now, in spite of the vicious attacks by operatives of their own party, Oregon voters elected two clear surrogates for Republican Senators who walked out. (Noah Robinson and Diane Linthicum.)
The left is determined to destroy what’s left of Oregon. Problems are profitable. Chaos pays when you’re in charge. But nothing changes when their is no opposition . The Oregon consulting class preaches endless moderation and “bi-partisanship” in spite of it failing decade after decade. The Oregon Republican Party is waist deep in the quicksand of infighting and outdated rules, and the Oregon Caucus refuses to acknowledge that sometimes a barstool is the best answer.
When the only tool you have is a hammer, you better start breaking stuff.
Thanks, Kevin! Part of why Oregon is in the position it's in is Republicans have failed to consistently provide a politically viable electoral alternative to the progressive machine.
As a despairing citizen of your next door neighbor to the north, I can’t decide which state GOP is more dysfunctional or incompetent. Or which one enjoys playing Charlie Brown to the Dems’ Lucy more. WA is street racing with OR to see who can hit bottom first. I’m not at all persuaded by the argument that so-called centrist Democrats would be the solution to either state’s problems, because they would be just as beholden to the entities who profit off of the deliberate chaos as the far left does; they just sound more rational. At this stage, it seems like both states need to deal with the consequences of their urban voters’ decisions, and bleed conservative voters and tax base until reality hits hard.
I don't know which state GOP has a worse record, but I do think WA is better-governed than Oregon. Just look at cross-Columbia migration to WA. And Republicans have recently been close to or in charge of one house of the WA legislature. Not so in Oregon.
I would be interested in knowing how many people earn a living from the homeless industrial complex and how many truly have an incentive to end homelessness.
To the first part - probably 1/2 of Portland in one form or another. The second part is not enough.
I am, until very recently, a lifelong liberal Oregonian. I agree with much of what you write, especially the part about bringing in and voting for moderate liberals and republicans who are not hard-core DEI clones with suicidal empathy, rather those that support meritocracy and a civilized society. Tough row to hoe in heavy blue counties, but we need to do better as a state.
Thanks, Jorge!
Having just returned from a three week vacation in Florida and Louisiana, I have a suggestion for our own leaders, “copy everything that is happening in the Southern States”, and do it now! Build wide roads with higher speeds. Aggressively remove all graffiti and vigorously punish those who have no respect for the beautiful landscape we all enjoy! Graffiti artists who are practicing their art on other peoples property without permission are criminals, bent on becoming famous by destroying the community they live in. Graffiti for art’s sake, in designated places, is a valuable asset for any community, allowing new forms of painting , creating, and building art to add to our enjoyment of life! Graffiti vandalism and tagging do exactly the opposite 😠.
Create parks and rivers and lakes for the enjoyment of even the smallest local communities and keep them safe and clean. Encourage and teach your children to pick up their own litter as Oregon was once famous for and everyone benefits by living in beautiful surroundings, the complete opposite of what we are now infamous for! Teach good manners and good citizenship in every grade of public school. Encourage individuality and weirdness in personal thought and behavior, but establish clear boundaries that keep these values from being a problem for society in ways that harm others or take away from other people’s own enjoyment of life.
From 1990 to 2024 the Portland metro area almost doubled in population. The majority of the increase was not “Oregonians” having more children, or living longer lives, it was the influx of people from other Cities, States, and Countries who moved here because of our unparalleled geography that provided beauty and opportunity to “get out” and enjoy it. The majority of the newcomers are college educated (52.5% holding bachelor or advanced degrees and an additional 19% with some college). They came with radically different values than their predecessors, often seeking a life balance that was based on more free time to enjoy the benefits of living in Portland, and less of the drive to succeed in their respective careers. They also have a markedly different set of values than the people who created this community, leaning more towards providing more services to the less fortunate and minimizing their responsibilities for bettering themselves through personal effort and sacrifice.
Voters have replaced the laws and social responsibility that provided so much for so many, with a more selfish attitude towards their own time and income, and a new ethic that “They!” don’t deserve the money they have earned, and establishing the power to take the wealth of the highest earners and give it to those who contribute little or nothing of value to the community. The greatest damage has been done by those voters and their elected officials that have turned the acceptance of unacceptable behavior into an art form. The damage this has caused can be seen in every part of our community and has resulted in inhumane conditions for such a large group of people that 5% of Portland’s highest earners have moved away leaving hundred million dollar holes in both City and County budgets!
These budget holes end up being holes in our streets, holes in our ability to educate our children, holes in our provision of health services to our poor, holes in the ability to hire and retain a police force capable of protecting its citizens and their belongings. Portland is indeed dying, and the recent election appears likely to increase the losses in a very, very, short amount of time!
Great stuff, Timothy. Thanks!
hopefully, this article will reach those whose minds are still open (to even the least extent) and persuade them to realize that an active presence is required to reverse the direction the state, in general, and the urban areas, in particular, are speeding toward.
One immediate remedy is to vote for balance within the system.
Unfortunately, Oregon Democrats will never choose to do that "because my grandfather and father were both union democrats". They will continue to vote Democrat and "there just are not good enough candidates" (quotes both from a liberal cousin). I tried to explain that our system works better with compromise from the middle verses strongarm tactics from the majority on either side. *crickets*
The elites, government class, public unions (unions in general), and the non-profits love the current status quo because they get to gorge at the taxpayer trough first.
Pay your friends and small businesses in cash, it is the only way for them to opt out of the current system.
This piece hits the bullseye!!! Somehow Oregon’s leaders have lost belief in personal responsibility
Makes you wonder if they ever had it?
Russell & JR, As El Rushbo taught for years, the left believes in cradle to grave.
Thanks, Jack!
This is Leftism in prime, front-line action. Ideas, not based in common sense. I lived in San Francisco for 31 years and they did and do the same thing, to DISASTROUS results, for the people on the street and the "normals" who pay the bills. I am not a high income person and I absolutely feel the despair of poverty...but some line has to be drawn, for basic behavior. Glad I departed from SF in 2016. I pray for my home state of Oregon...to put the brakes on this madness. Wendy
Thanks, Wendy!
"Democrats could take us in a different direction by voting for liberals who wish to preserve a functioning society, not try (and inevitably fail) to remake it to achieve their view of perfection."
This Democrat would walk over glowing coals to vote for centrist Democratic Party candidates in primary contests against the woke progressive House and Senate incumbents in my inner northeast Portland district. However, if centrist Democrats are organizing to break the progressives' stranglehold on the legislature and governor's office, they're keeping a very low profile. There has been no mention of it in the media that I know of.
Reversing Oregon Democrats' the leftward march would certainly require bold political will and great expertise backed by tons of money. But all the bench strength and money in the world can't accomplish anything without political leaders. This would be a good time for determined reformers not named Sam Adams or Rene Gonzalez to step forward.
"My fellow Republicans could right the ship by going hard and directly at the ethos that is ruining our state and welcoming non-Republicans who believe similarly, even if they don’t buy into the full conservative agenda."
From your lips to God's ears. Those Republicans would need to belong to the Betsy Johnson school of pragmatic politics. It would be sufficient if they just focused on the facts, told voters what the progressives' ideology is actually all about the way Mr. Eager does here and let the horror stories from their period of misrule speak for themselves. If they want to expound on conspiracy theories about stolen elections, COVID-19 and the like, they're welcome to do so in the shower or while walking the dog, but for Pete's sake not on the campaign trail. There's too much at stake.
If a well-spoken, moderate Hispanic Democrat with deep community ties, a successful legal career and a successful business, and a strong track record on city council can't win a mayoral race—and instead faces unwarranted attacks—what hope is there for other qualified candidates to step forward?"
The smear campaign to torpedo Rene Gonzalez’s run for higher office smacked of the same far-left trickster badassery that marked the anarchists’ war on downtown real estate in 2020-21.
They were relentless in their baseless criticism of Gonzalez’s reforms. The Oregonian echoed them. Both went against the will of most of the 600,000+ residents of this city who don’t think the phrase “law and order” is a fascist battle cry.
Gonzalez really shot himself in the foot with his Wikipedia fiasco. That probably cost him votes among moderates. But the business community deserves a huge share of the blame for not mounting a vocal and biting messaging campaign in support of the very few candidates who were moderate reformers.
Where the hell are the grownups?
“That probably cost him votes among moderates.” Well, maybe amongst the Portlandia version of a “moderate” which is just a smidge to the right of Alexadria Ocasio Cortez.
Good point! There are moderates in this state; they just lack much political influence. I recommend the podcast "Rational in Portland" as a forum for moderate voices. The host is Portland lawyer Kristin Olson.
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rational-in-portland/id1579198261
Absolutely. Great podcast.
That’s a great podcast! I do wish she would edit it more though…I just don’t have enough time to listen to an hour plus interview.
welcome to the real world. Paul Walden's little boy, Greg, although a republican, was a consummate citizen and an excellent legislator, but he was driven from office by a hateful group of harridans who stopped at nothing to muddy his record and impugn his values.
Who would that have been?
A few in Portland support your view but not enough to change the trajectory of Oregon. As more ideological immigrants come to Portland as a "safe haven" the far left votes of the dominant voice in Oregon politics (Portland) will only become further polarized. My moderate Democrat voice will not be long in Portland (or Oregon). I'm not predicting a correction anytime soon. I did see this recent opinion article in the Oregonian. It was good…but it's a lost voice in a sea of extreme far left politics controlled by the nonprofits and the far left unions (PAT, SEIU, etc). https://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/2024/12/readers-respond-break-the-doom-loop.html
The major issue in homelessness is not the lack of housing. It's the refusal of society to say no. No, you can't camp in this city. No, you can't shit in the streets. No, you can't panhandle aggressively. No, you can't shoot up publicly and leave your used needles lying around. The fact that we are not going to allow you to destroy our city by doing these things is not our problem. It's your problem. You can solve your problem by not doing drugs, getting help for your mental problems, getting a job, and sharing rent with others so inclined until you can afford a place of your own, probably in a lower cost community. This is not going to happen because the people we have elected allow the homeless to wallow in their victimhood rather than accept personal responsibility for their self destructiveness.
What specific steps should be taken by cities to deal with the problem? Cities should use all existing shelters and further provide simple shelter space with surplus military tents with mess and recreational tents, a medical tent and restroom and shower facilities (the way I lived in the army) on leased or purchased unused commercial or industrial sites on the outskirts of the city. As many who want to and are able to work should be hired to help feed others and to maintain the facilities. Individuals could use surplus military squad tents or their own for sleeping. When those facilities were available they should send in crews to clean up existing encampments, without arresting anyone who did not physically resist.
They should require custodial care for those who are so mentally or drug addicted that they cannot care for themselves. We did a huge disservice to the mentally ill when we closed rather than reform our state mental hospitals. We need them back. This approach actually would cost far less and be far more effective than the current housing first attempts to fix the problem. Most of our homeless lack the capacity to live unassisted in modern society but that is not an excuse to destroy our beautiful cities for the rest of us.
Homelessness is a problem of lack of political will. If our leaders wanted it cleaned up (or at least materially cleaned up) they could. See, e.g., any city of size in the U.S. midwest and south.
Jeff: Totally agree.