PAGE A4, KEIZERTIMES, AUGUST 7, 2015
KeizerOpinion
KEIZERTIMES.COM
Ban smoking in city parks
Smoking in Keizer city parks was
a topic at this week’s city council
meeting. Two citizens asked the
council to ban smoking in parks—
for quality of life reasons and for
fi re danger reasons.
The Keizer Parks and Recre-
ation Advisory Board has decided
not to advise for a smoking ban in
city parks in part because of Con-
stitutional issues. That’s political
correctness gone all whacky.
Salem, Marion County and the
state of Oregon have banned smok-
ing in all their respective parks.
Keizer usually fashions ordinances
on what surrounding jurisdictions
have imposed. It’s hard to under-
stand why this particular issue is
hard for the Parks Board and the
city council to swallow.
At Monday’s council meeting
several councilors said such a ban
ordinance needs to go through the
process—meaning public hearings,
legal opinions and on and on.
Some Parks Board members
are concerned about stepping on
the rights of citizens who want to
smoke out of doors in our parks.
The parks are public spaces. Keiz-
er does not allow smoking in the
civic center. Smoking is banned in
Oregon restaurants and lounges. A
citizen cannot light up in the state
Capitol building. There is enough
precedence on this issue that the
city council should move forward.
Making public spaces off-limits
in parks is just expanding the no
smoking rules in place. In a civil
society people should get mindful
of their surroundings and how their
actions are affecting others. Just as
some say it is their right to smoke
in a park, others would say it is their
right not to be subject to second-
hand smoke.
The city council needs to step up
and ban smoking in all city parks.
It is a quality of life issue; it is also
a safety issue. With our parks tinder
dry due to our hot weather this
summer it would take just one un-
extinguished cigarette butt to cause
a devastating fi re. While the Keizer
Fire District can respond quickly to
a report of a wildfi re, we are at the
mercy of our afternoon winds that
whip in off the Willamette River. A
small grass fi re can quickly explode
into a uncontrollable rampage that
would threaten homes that sur-
round our parks.
Do the right thing and place a
smoking ban on our parks.
—LAZ
Are we all Cecil?
The killing of a lion in Zimba-
bwe by an American is a story that
won’t go away. Outrage was reg-
istered on social media. There are
those who are baffl ed by the uproar
of the killing of Cecil the lion but
not over the deaths of improver-
ished children around the world,
soldiers and others.
Anytime there is a single or mass
killing anywhere in the world that
is response on social media—some
are profound, others not so much.
Should we care about the kill-
ing of one lion in Africa by a big
game hunter? Absolutely. We should
care about the premediated killing
of any living being be it human or
animal.
According to reports Cecil, who
was known to locals for 13 years,
was lured out of his protected habi-
tat by guides. The American hunter
shot Cecil with an arrow, but that
did not kill the lion, who survived
for almost two days, most likely
suffering. The lion was killed by a
gun after the hunter and his guides
tracked him down.
Are people upset because Cecil
was a lion? An animal? Beautiful?
We should be upset because the
killing of Cecil reveals once again
the hunting and poaching of ani-
mals, some of them endangered, or
whose populations have declined
over the years.
Hunting deer and elk in Amer-
ica doesn’t ellict the same universal
response; hunting is an ingrained
sport. But there are laws that gov-
ern hunting regulating when and
where it can be done and what is
done with the carcasses.
Hunting endangered big game is
a whole different story. People get
upset when they hear or see the
bodies of prey rotting because the
hunters retrieved the trophies they
were after: head, tusks, hoofs, etc.
It is hard to believe that society
would cotton to the idea of cut-
ting down the last tree, or using the
last gallon of fresh mountain water.
Natural resources are fi nite and it
needs man’s protection especially if
there is not enough remaining to
sustain itself.
Hunting is not bad. Killing en-
dangered or limited species for
sport alone and leaving most of the
body behind is bad. Too many walls
in the world are adorned with the
trophies of the desire to be in con-
trol of the animal kingdom.
The death of a child, a cop, a
mother, an innocent bystander are
all tragic and should be marked as
such. It doesn’t have to come down
to man vs. animal; all living beings
share this one planet. Man has the
power to see that all live the life
their creator deemed for them.
—LAZ
A Trump-led GOP will fail, and deserve it
By MICHAEL GERSON
At this point in the 2016 presiden-
tial campaign, the noble, elusive stag of
political rhetoric is pretty much road
kill.
This judgment is unfair to a few
candidates—Rick Perry, Jeb Bush and
Marco Rubio come to mind—de-
livering thoughtful speeches. But in
portions of the Republican fi eld, the
normal limits of civility have been
crossed and recrossed in the relentless
search for viral attention. Mike Huck-
abee compared the sitting president to
a Nazi prison camp guard. Ted Cruz
accused the Senate majority leader
of being a liar. Donald Trump, well,
opens his mouth. His opponents are
invariably “clowns” and “stupid” and
physically ugly. He mocks a war hero
and reveals the cellphone number of
another candidate.
In the current practice of popu-
lism, spontaneous expressions of anger
and outrage are considered the most
authentic form of communication.
Apologies are for wimps. “Doubling
down” is the trademarked motto of
the 2016 campaign.
American elections have never
been a stroll in the park. But attempt-
ing to put Trump’s hot mess of abuse,
pettiness, egotism and bombast in any
historical context is diffi cult. Imagine
Abraham Lincoln making fun of Ste-
phen Douglas’ height (he was 5-feet-
4) and handing out his opponent’s pri-
vate telegraph address.
Trump’s success is clarifying about
the nature of the populism we are see-
ing. If he leads the revolt, it has little
to do with constitutionalism or lim-
ited government. Trump is a recent
heretic on nearly every issue impor-
tant to conservatives, from taxes (raise
them on the rich) to immigration
(Mitt Romney
was too harsh)
to health care
(more
liberal
than President
Obama). Before
ambition
re-
vised his views,
Trump was far to the left of, say, Jeb
Bush, or even Jon Huntsman. So
Trump’s candidacy can’t primarily be
about ideological purifi cation.
Trump’s appeal is pure style. His
emptiness makes him a perfect vehicle
for rage. He is angry about everything
that makes you angry—because that is
why he chose his views. He is a mega-
phone of resentment against elites and
foreigners who are ruining our coun-
try, taking our jobs, raping our women
or eating our lunch. And he promises
to fi x it all.
“I don’t care what his actual posi-
tions are,” says supporter Mark Cu-
ban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks. “I
don’t care if he says the wrong thing.
He says what’s on his mind. He gives
honest answers rather than prepared
answers.”
This is the cult of spontaneity taken
to its logical conclusion. In choosing a
president, policy positions are held to
be irrelevant. Only authenticity mat-
ters. And Trump, who has changed his
entire political worldview to capture
the political moment, represents the
brand of authenticity. Whatever his
opinions, he delivers a very genuine
Blank You.
The Trump candidacy has revealed
a huge attitudinal division in Ameri-
can life. Some of us have found it ap-
palling that he should gain any trac-
tion in presidential politics. It seems as
if World Wrestling Entertainment has
conducted a hostile takeover of CNN.
But there are plenty of people I
know who have a totally different re-
action. They are puzzled by my com-
placency. The ruling elites stood by
as Obama transformed America. The
Republican Party’s feckless leaders
could have won the funding show-
down. They could have overturned
Obamacare. In Trump, we have some-
one who scares and humiliates the
elite, exactly as they deserve.
I’m not sure how a divide this deep
can be bridged. But here is what I
know:
I know that incivility is immoral
and dangerous to democracy. People
of faith in particular are called to speak
and act on the assumption of shared
human dignity. This does not rule out
vigorous disagreement, but it forbids
the cultivation of contempt and the is-
suing of threats.
I know that Trump is encouraging
political fantasies. He is not preparing
people for diffi cult choices, on, say,
entitlements; he is assuring them that
our problems could be easily solved if
elites were not so corrupt. And he is
wrong. Our problems are not easy.
And I know that the success of
Trump would be the downfall of the
GOP. Any party captured by rage and
resentment will fail, and deserve it.
Republicans should stand for respon-
sible reform, not reckless populism.
During the Revolutionary War, ac-
cording to historian Ron Chernow,
George Washington had two offi cers
review all of his speeches and much of
his correspondence to make sure he
avoided hasty language and off-the-
cuff enthusiasm. The distance from
Washington to Trump is not merely
change but descent.
Who knows, but Jeb Bush is sim-
ply following orders from his wealthy
benefactors when he announced
the other day that the U.S. ought
to phase out Medicare. Medicare is
the federal program established in
1965 that provides health insurance
to Americans once they’re 65 years
of age and that has and continues to
keep senior Americans from the cost
of medical services that would surely
bankrupt and send them into poverty
without it.
While he says that “we need to
make sure we fulfi ll the commitment
to people that have already received
the benefi ts, that are receiving the
benefi ts, we need to fi gure out a way
to phase out this program for others
and move to a new system that allows
them to have something.” Once tin-
kering with Medicare gets underway,
one wonders how long the current
recipients would remain harmless
while those to reach 65 later would
most likely be at the mercy of private
insurance companies with a return
to the way things were before Medi-
care: Exorbitantly high premiums
with the right of private insurers to
withhold coverage for pre-existing
conditions and a direct path to an
early death for those who cannot pay
the price.
The way this could take place is
by the rich putting up the big bucks
to elect a Jeb Bush—or several other
GOP hopefuls—who agree with the
end to Medicare. The Koch broth-
ers, Sheldon Adelson and many oth-
ers have had the limits on campaign
spending removed by the Supreme
Court’s Citizens United ruling. There-
by, they can spend any amount nec-
essary to get their man elected, who,
due to promises for big campaign
chest money will return favors and
do what they were asked to do: In
this case, place
Medicare into
terminally
ill
status.
B u s h ,
and
several
other
GOP
contenders,
the nominee selected at the 2016
Republican nominating conven-
tion, will argue that major overhauls
of Medicare are necessary because of
rising spending. However, the latest
report on the fi scal health of the pro-
gram, which Medicare trustees issued
in July, did not communicate such a
sense of urgency. The trustees report
that the part of Medicare that pays
for hospital care and related services
will remain solvent until 2030 even as
more and more retiring Baby Boom-
ers sign up. Further, they predict that
Medicare costs will rise more slowly
than previously believed. In other
words, left alone without the tinker-
ing factor, Medicare will continue to
do well for America’s seniors.
Another fact on Medicare that has
come to light is a new study in the
Journal of the American Medical Asso-
ciation (JAMA) that reports mortality
rates among Medicare patients fell
16 percent from 1999 to 2013. Re-
searchers based the study on records
from more than 68 million Medicare
patients. The improvements are due
to hospital and staff effectiveness but
also in a major way due to Medicare
recipients receiving timely care.
Would a majority of Ameri-
cans fall for an “overhaul” of Medi-
care that’s really all about burying it
so deep in limitations it cannot be
found to work for tens of millions
of older Americans? Jeb Bush and
others of similar thinking apparently
do not care as long as the big money
interests, the notorious one percent,
can pay fewer taxes or no taxes at all.
Meanwhile, Jeb Bush and his family
have made billions by their political
connections and don’t seem to care
what happens to those Americans
on Main Street. Vote Bush into the
presidency, then sit back, without the
ability to pay for medical services, and
wait for your early call to the Pearly
Gates.
Meanwhile, there are candidates
among the 17 Republicans declared
who have a reputation for looking af-
ter the welfare of U.S. citizens. One
of those is John Kasich, governor of
Ohio and a former member of Con-
gress. Kasich can be tough but he’s
also fair. In Ohio he has stood by to
protect Medicaid, embraced Com-
mon Core educational standards and
has been willing to consider a path-
way to citizenship for illegal immi-
grants. Further, he has been at least
tolerant of same-sex marriage and
open-minded on abortion. Experi-
ence in government work has in-
cluded a successful effort to balance
the budget as chairman of the House
Budget Committee when Bill Clin-
ton was president and can deal with
Democrats. Ohio under his leadership
has realized recovery from the reces-
sion to realize a $2 billion surplus for
Ohio during his tenure as governor
there. This guy can get things done
for all Americans, including those
whose very existence nowadays, the
nation’s elderly, who depend solely on
Medicare and Social Security.
other
views
(Washington Post Writers Group)
How many candidates ready to end Medicare?
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