A familiar sound at our house recently has been the screech of electrical gadgets sending out one last desperate distress call, as they die from another Portland General Electric (PGE) power failure. “How long will it last this time,” we wonder? Calls to PGE are infuriating, because they rarely provide essential information as to what […]
It’s budget season for local governments in Oregon. Budgets may sound boring. In reality, they are the best demonstration of what politicians truly prioritize. Forget the campaign promises and the press releases. The budget is where the action is. This year, there is a line item tucked into the City of Portland budget for Prosper […]
Children are very vulnerable, because of limited life experience. They inherently trust their parents, teachers, and other adults who may not live up to that trust. And their desire to be accepted by others is too often an invitation to risky behavior, involving alcohol, drugs, sex, radical ideas, and fear. In a word, they are […]
The rapid collapse of Afghanistan under an onslaught of religious fanatics with primitive weapons was completely predictable. Yet President Biden maintained that it would not happen, as we closed our largest military base (Bagram air base), reduced our military presence, and eliminated our offensive capability in the middle of Afghanistan’s summer fighting season. We have […]
Because the global temperature has been very close to normal for several months, most people will wonder about a “Great Heat Wave,” except those who live in the Pacific Northwest. At the end of June, Western Oregon and Washington experienced one of the most extreme heat waves ever observed. For three days, temperatures rose to […]
By adopting a near-zero assumed rate of return, PERS can become solvent in the next decade No one wants to talk about the biggest problem facing Oregon. It’s not the pandemic. It’s not homelessness. It’s not racial justice. The biggest crisis facing Oregon is its public employee retirement system, or PERS. No one wants to […]
As Oregon students return to the classrooms, watch out for a new fad that could make our state’s academic performance even worse. That fad is known as the “four day school week.” Oregon is one of only nine states that allows four day school weeks and more than 130 districts operate on a four-day schedule. […]
With the clock ticking down to midnight on December 31, my family was looking forward to putting 2020 behind us. The New Year held at least a small hope that the pandemic would subside, vaccines would be distributed, schools would re-open, and the chaos and violence would taper off. While the year didn’t kick off […]
Voters approve Measure 110, decriminalizing drugs while creating an unaccountable bureaucracy Oregon voters recently approved a ballot measure that decriminalizes possession of small amounts of “hard” drugs, including heroin, cocaine, LSD, and methamphetamine. Supporters see the measure as a big step toward ending the failed 50-year “War on Drugs.” Opponents fear the measure will lead […]
President Trump is frequently accused of lying. But he doesn’t have a monopoly on falsehood. Look around the Portland region and you’ll see our local politicians lying to us. We live in our own Pinocchio-land. Metro’s “Get Moving 2020” ballot measure is a $5.2 billion tax increase disguised as a transportation measure. It’s a permanent […]