Newsroom: (541) 346-5511
Suite 300, Erb Memorial Union
P.O. Box 3159, Eugene, OR 97403
E-mail: editor@dailyemerald.com
Online: www.dailyemerald.com
Oregon Daily Emerald
Editor in Chief:
Brad Schmidt
Managing Editor:
Jan Tobias Montry
Editorial Editor:
Travis Wi Use
Wednesday, May 12,2004
EDITORIAL.
Goldschmidt's
private woes
won't diminish
public success
Former Oregon Gov. Neil Goldschmidt has led a po
litical career rivaled by few Oregon politicians. 1 lis ac
complishments are numerous, and his dedication to the
public's interest over his lifetime has been commend
able.
But, unfortunately, his record came crashing down on
top of him when he resigned from his two public and
private posts — chairman of the State Board of Higher
Education and chairman of the Oregon Electric Utility
Company — amid the revelation that he had sex with a
14-year-old girl while he was the mayor of Portland near
ly 30 years ago. He was 35 years old at the time.
Such an indiscretion can't be forgiven with a mere
apology and relinquishment of his offices. The girl with
whom he had sex has since suffered severe emotional
trauma and had problems with drugs and alcohol, ac
cording to several media reports. Furthermore, the girl
had been molested by her grandfather for years before
he died — and then Goldschmidt came along, the girl's
cousin told The Register-Guard.
In a time when the girl should have been healing and
seeking to alleviate the pain of the crime against her, an
other man came along to once again take advantage of
her.
Still, disgusting as the act was, it's important to ac
knowledge Goldschmidt's service to this state rather than
automatically dismiss it in light of his private indiscre
tions.
In his political life, Goldschmidt, a University gradu
ate, began as a Portland city commissioner in 1971. In
1972, he became the youngest mayor of Portland at age
32. From 1987 to 1991, Goldschmidt served as Oregon
governor. Goldschmidt also served as transportation sec
retary under the Carter administration and was an exec
utive for Nike during his career. Before throwing his hat
in the political ring, Goldschmidt used his law degree to
aid the public as a legal aid attorney from 1967 to 1969.
Conversely, in his personal life, Goldschmidt has a re
ported history of infidelity. Were Goldschmidt to be tried
for his sexual crime in 1975, the charge would have been
third-degree rape. The perversity of his actions and his
subsequent attempts to cover it up have dishonored him
in the worst possible way.
But are his political accomplishments materially di
minished by his private actions? No.
Goldschmidt is living in shame for what he has done
and has resigned in disgrace from his political positions.
He's paid monetary compensation to the girl — now a
grown woman — and continues to face his own demons,
as he has indicated to the media. If the public wishes to
crucify him, which it inevitably will, we hope it will keep
in mind his immense contributions to the public good
and separate them from the indiscretions of his private
life.
EDITORIAL POLICY
This editorial represents the opinion of the Emerald
editorial board. Responses can be sent to letters
©dailyemerald.com. Letters to the editor and guest
commentaries are encouraged. Letters are limited
to 250 words and guest commentaries to 550 words.
Authors are limited to one submission per calendar
month. Submission must include phone number and
address for verification. The Emerald reserves the right
to edit for space, grammar and style.
EDITORIAL BOARD
Brad Schmidt
Editor in Chief
Jan Tobias Montry
Managing Editor
Travis Willse
Editorial Editor
Jennifer Sudick
Freelance Editor
Ayisha Yahya
News Editor
In the 1960s, a young generation of
post-war baby boomers came of age and
wrought extensive changes in the politi
cal, social and sexual arenas. Long
haired and radical, they led the charge
for women's rights and gay rights and
they added urgency to the civil rights
movement.
Then they aged and decided taxes were
the real enemy. They elected Ronald Rea
gan president and the conservative resur
gence began. But the baby boomers were
not unique in abandoning liberalism.
Generally speaking, people become
more conservative as they age.
For example, Americans age 65 and
older support the death penalty by a 71
percent majority; only 59 percent of
those age 18-24 feel the same. Older
Americans are also less likely to support
stricter gun control and less likely to say
abortion should be "always legal," ac
cording to the Bureau of Justice Statistics.
In 1970, the median age of the popu
lation stood at 28.1 years, the youngest it
had been in four decades, according to
the U.S. Census Bureau. The prevalence
of youth directly contributed to the burst
of social advancements.
In 2000, the year George W. Bush won
the presidency, the population reached a
median age of 35.3 years, the oldest it
has ever been. Clearly, old age and con
servatism have correlated strongly in re
cent decades.
The United States' population as a
whole continues to age, and fast. By
2025, the number of Americans age 65
Chuck Slothower
Taking issue
and over is expected to jump nearly 80
percent, while the population of
younger Americans will grow at a rela
tively paltry 15 percent, according to the
Census Bureau.
Besides changing how we think about
old-age entitlement programs, the gray
ing of America indicates that the current
conservative vogue in American politics
is in fact a long-term fixture. Progressives
better steel themselves for decades of
playing defense.
The older population might bring
about vast changes in American politics.
Watch out for further solidification of
the tax revolt, attacks on public educa
tion and abortion rights, militarization
and an ever-increasing privatization of
government services.
It's an open question as to why people
grow more conservative as they age. Per
haps it's because older Americans have
more income to protect from taxation
than younger Americans. Perhaps people
care less about supporting public schools
when their kids have grown up. Maybe
it's just a simple loss of idealism.
In any case, it's pretty sad. Increased
selfishness may lead to greater personal
wealth, but it also contributes to the de
cay of civil society.
1 wish more old adults would realize
that supporting education — higher edu
cation in particular — benefits everyone.
It leads to higher wages, which results in
greater government revenue.
Every government dollar that gets
someone into and through college
comes back to the Treasury in spades. Ac
cording to the Census Bureau, a high
school graduate can expect to earn $1.2
million over the course of his or her
working lifetime. Those with a bachelor's
degree earn an average of $2.1 million,
and it gets even better with advanced de
grees: Those with a master's earn an aver
age of $2.5 million, doctoral graduates
earn an average of $3.4 million, and
those with professional degrees earn an
average of a whopping $4.4 million.
A conservative might argue that higher
tax revenues result in bigger government,
which is what true conservatives object
to in the first place. However, having fi
nancially self-reliant citizens instead of
citizens dependent on public assistance
lowers the tax burden for everyone.
The value of other commitments to
government are less quantifiable, but just
as real. Older Americans should keep in
mind that their declining support for
government harms us all.
Contact the columnist
atchuckslothower@dailyemerald.com.
His opinions do not necessarily
represent those of the Emerald.