PAGE A6, KEIZERTIMES, APRIL 5, 2019
Opinion
HB 2797: The defi nition of insanity
One of the many bills under con-
sideration in the Oregon Legislature
this year would erect a giant barrier
to seeking help when a drug over-
dose occurs, and more dishearten-
ingly, it is a backslide into anti-drug
policy proven not to work.
Oregon House Bill 2797 would
establish a mandatory
minimum prison sen-
tence of four to 10 years
—and a maximum of 20
year—for anyone who
manufactures or deliv-
ers illegal drugs that re-
sult in an overdose and
death.
Passage of this bill
could result in more Oregon resi-
dents in prison for the crime of at-
tempting to save a life. In one po-
tential scenario, let’s assume that one
user gives drugs to another to help
them “get better” while suffering
through withdrawal. If the second
user overdoses and the fi rst one calls
9-1-1 for help, the caller could get
up to 20 years in prison for supply-
ing them the drugs that allowed the
friend to overdose.
Proponents of the measure con-
tend it would only be deployed to
put high-level dealers and suppli-
ers behind bars. However, passage
would give prosecutors the oppor-
tunity to pursue charges against any-
one regardless of lawmakers’ intent.
Any further consideration of this
legislation would be a
colossal act of folly. The
United States already
holds the record for the
highest rates of incarcer-
ation in the world, and
paying for a new wave of
inmates as a result of HB
2797 will only increase
the burden on the exist-
ing penal system while siphoning off
funding from other projects.
The existence of mandatory min-
imum sentences do little to reduce
crime. Reforms aimed at eliminat-
ing these penalties in 33 states are
expected to save billions of dollars in
the long term, according to a study
by the U.S. Justice Department’s
Bureau of Justice Assistance and
The Pew Charitable Trusts along
with other organizations. Moreover,
editorial
states that have reformed mandato-
ry minimum laws reduced the strain
on correctional facilities and overall
crime rates continued a long-term
decline with the reforms in place.
The hard truth is that drug suppli-
ers are not the problem. If someone
in Oregon wants to use drugs, some-
one else will fi nd a way to meet the
demand. Instead of spending more
money chasing boogeyman drug
dealers and then locking them up
for years at a time, the money spent
prosecuting such cases and incar-
cerating the guilty would be better
utilized in treatment programs and
alleviating the socioeconomic and
societal pressures that contribute to
drug use. As a community, a state and
a nation we have to accept that pun-
ishing an addict is not the same as
caring for one. Only the second path
leads to healing.
HB 2797 is another in a long
line of failed mandatory sentencing
policies and laws. Trying to achieve
different results with the same tool
only serves to add more credence to
the old axiom regarding the defi ni-
tion of insanity.
There was no collusion Rep. Schiff
By DEBRA J. SAUNDERS
President Donald Trump called
on House Intelligence Committee
Chairman Adam Schiff to resign
from Congress. That, of
course, is not going to
happen.
Even after special
counsel Robert Mueller
found no conspiracy or
coordination between
Trump’s 2016 campaign
and Russian actors,
Schiff told The Washington Post,
“Undoubtedly, there is collusion.”
That establishes Schiff as a facts-
don’t-matter chairman who makes
fellow Democrats seem immune
to reality. But that’s their right, and
Schiff did win his Southern Califor-
nia district with 78 percent of the
vote.
So instead of resigning, Schiff
shrewdly started fundraising and
campaigning on the heels of
Trump’s demand. “Adam won’t be
intimidated,” a campaign tweet said,
“Show Adam you have his back: add
your name now.”
Last week, all nine Republicans
on the committee called on Schiff
to resign his chairmanship because
he continued to argue
there is evidence of col-
lusion between Team
Trump and the Russians.
As House Speaker Nancy
Pelosi called GOP mem-
bers “scaredy cats,” Schiff
doubled down on his col-
lusion claim, with sound
bites about his high standards that
soar above the low-ball behavior of
the Trump campaign and Republi-
cans who defend the Trump team.
“You may think it’s OK how
Trump and his associates interact-
ed with Russians during the cam-
paign,” Schiff said to his colleagues.
“I don’t. I think it’s immoral. I think
it’s unethical. I think it’s unpatriotic.
And yes, I think it’s corrupt.”
When interacting becomes syn-
onymous with colluding, you’re in
guilt-by-association territory. And
that’s worse than having a pencil
other
voices
neck.
Trump ignores the truth when
he says Mueller absolved him of ob-
struction of justice, when Mueller
expressly did not.
Schiff ignores the truth when he
fi nds guilt where the dogged Muel-
ler, after 22 months, issuing more
than 2,800 subpoenas and inter-
viewing some 500 witnesses, found
none.
Attorney General William Barr
reported to Congress that Mueller
“did not fi nd that any U.S. person
or Trump campaign offi cial or as-
sociate conspired or knowingly co-
ordinated with the IRA (Russian
Internet Research Agency) in its
efforts.”
Did Trump associates talk to
Russians? Yes. Did they collude with
Russians to win in 2016? No.
They can keep holding hearings
trying to fi nd collusion, but it’s not
going to happen. Trump won, and if
they want to get to the truth, may-
be they should ask American voters
what happened.
(Creators Syndicate)
Turkey’s president is a case study
History shows that when rev-
olutions occurred in human civ-
ilizations—recent and ancient—a
huge number of people involved
believed the outcomes would ad-
vantage them. However,
the specifi cs in many ex-
amples reveal that, after
peace returned, one man,
sometimes a woman, es-
tablished a stranglehold
that resulted, save for a
few confi dants, in wide-
spread loss of rights and
freedoms.
The creation of the United States
has been an exception where, other-
wise, the last 100 years, when strong-
men led revolutions, afterwards they
demanded absolute allegiance and
unquestioning loyalty by one and all.
What became the U.S. Constitution
has worked well enough to survive
breakdowns, although former Pres-
ident Richard M. Nixon tried to
overthrow it while current President
Donald J. Trump is apparently busy
trying to subvert and emasculate it.
Turkey provides a case study. In
2014, its authoritarian President
Recep Tayyip Erdogan fi red four
prosecutors leading an investigation
into alleged corruption involving
Erdogan, whereupon he blatantly
interfered, demanding the scandal
disappear. It was within his author-
ity to do so but his action resulted
in widespread protests
based on rule by law
in Turkey. Erdogan
claimed a conspiracy,
threatened his oppo-
nents, and dismissed
the charges.
A mere two years
ago, in the fi ring of FBI
Director James Comey,
we observed a parallel. In ousting
the man leading the FBI’s investiga-
tion into Trump’s alleged collusion
with Russia, he has behaved mono-
cratically. While “no one” has seen
the Mueller probe, Trump has de-
clared “no collusion.” Yet, his direct
associates have been indicted and
convicted while accompanied by
the “funny business” of Trump fam-
ily members. Meanwhile, he’s after
our constitutionally-established free
press, other political parties and any-
one who questions him, all having
become “enemies of the people.”
Trump is damaging America’s
democracy as he pushes hard against
gene h.
mcintyre
Keizertimes
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Lyndon A. Zaitz, Editor & Publisher
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its limits. Things damaged will en-
dure beyond his presidency and will
predictably be diffi cult to repair.
Trump’s abuses of power and his as-
sault on truth are now heightened
to extreme levels while the behavior
of newly appointed U.S. Attorney
General William Barr leads one to
believe he’s a Trump employee and
Trump’s latest private “fi xer.” Mean-
while, for re-election’s sake, Re-
publican members of Congress are
breaking their oaths of offi ce by sur-
rendering to Trump rules, launching
a new America where one man gov-
erns alone and GOPers obey.
All along, Trump has used a
“smoking gun” on behalf of sav-
ing himself, breaking federal law
and tradition. His behavior has per-
versely resembled a lawyer giving his
closing arguments only to have the
defendant rise to say, “Actually, I did
it. And when you’re a star,’ they’ let
you do it.”
Daily press briefi ngs inside the
White House have ended, replaced
by Trump talking to reporters while
walking to the White House heli-
copter. When questions irritate him,
a regular feature, he signals the props
to spin noisily, drowning out fur-
ther dialogue. The transparent gov-
ernment of past times is moribund.
FOX News is Trump’s exclusive
source of information and his offi -
cial news agency while he works to
close down other news outlets.
Americans who continue to sup-
port and believe in Donald Trump
are encouraged to read the 1930s
Germany story where millions be-
lieved Adolph Hitler’s promise of
a glorious future in his Third Re-
ich. Hitler’s thinly-disguised plans
for one-man rule were duplicated
by Italy’s Benito Mussolini, China’s
Mao Zedong, USSR’s Joe Stalin,
France’s Napoleon Bonaparte, and
Spain’s Francisco Franco, to name
but fi ve former dictators whose
nations were destroyed under their
rule.
(Gene H. McIntyre shares his
opinion regularly in the Keizer-
times.)
Correction
Brittany Ruiz, author of the guest
opinion, Measles panic or Pharma mar-
keting? in the March 22 issue of the
Keizertimes is not an administrator
with Oregonians for Medical Free-
doms. We regret the error.
Birthday Expo at
Kroc Center April 13
Honey Mustard Lane, a local busi-
ness, will host the Salem Birthday
Expo. The event will debut at the Kroc
Center 1865 Bill Frey Drive on Sat-
urday, April 13 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The Expo will host over 50 birth-
day vendors including local shops such
as Pink Mama’s Ice Cream, My Pink
Princess Cakes, Piñata Palace, and
more.
Visitors to this family event will
learn how to throw great Pinter-
est-worthy parties or have a chance of
getting the kids out of the house.
Nikki Paxton, the event coordi-
nator and owner of Honey Mustard
Lane, said “This will be a great way to
kick off the spring.”
The event is free to attend and
birthday themed food will be available
for purchase. The fi rst 50 families will
receive a goodie bag, and there will be
drawings held for prizes every hour.
There will also be expo shows featur-
ing local dancing, gymnastics and ka-
rate clubs.
traffi c court
NO INSURANCE
Casey Joe Fields, $265; Alexus Ni-
cole Todd, $245; Jonathan Jamesa
Childers, $265; Javier Hernandez
Sanchez, $235.
NO PROOF OF INSURANCE
Irma Salinas Guerrero, $235; Christy
Ann Hernandez, $245.
DRIVING WHILE SUSPENDED
Casey Joe Fields, $492; Martin Eu-
gene Simons, $260; Jason Scott Du-
bois, $260; Alexus Nicole Todd, $452;
Jayleen Ann Stewart, $440; Jonathan
Jamesa Childers, $440; Christian
Cervantes, $440.
USE OF MOBILE DEVICE
Craig Allen Turner, $235; Jeremy Jo-
seph Centeno, $235; Nicole Rennee
Piete, $235.
SPEEDING
Jennifer Elaine Carmack, $145; Jar-
ed Duenas, $75; Dominic Zenaido
Meza Cervantes, $135; Kyle Ma-
son Connery, $135; Mark Andrey
Brichuk, $145; Nicholas Patrick
Watkins, $135; Alexus Nicole Todd,
$135; Juleah Adaline Groves, $100;
Jay Kendrick Burch, $135; Lillien
Anna Laetzsvh, $75; Ishmael Delapp
Johnson, $75.
OTHER
Rick Thomas Phillips, $100, no mo-
torcycle lights; Caitlin Elanie Blair,
$100, wrong way around traffi c is-
land; Kaitlynn Anne Watts, $40, im-
proper display of validating stickers;
Amy Noel Bauldree, $135, fail to
yield right of way within roundabout;
Angel Miguel Silverio Navarro Jr.,
$40, failure to renew vehicle regis-
tration; Christopher Campbell Cary,
$40, failure to register vehicle; Alex-
is Gutierrez, $115, failure to use seat
belts; Debra Jean Means, $40, failure
to renew vehicle registration; Christy
Ann Hernandez, $115, failure to re-
new vehicle registration; Titus Daniel
Meaders, $40, illegal window tinting;
Melva Pearl Pollock, $40, failure to
renew vehicle registration; Mark
Stuart Binkley, $40, failure to renew
vehicle registration; Judah David
Banke, $40, failure to renew vehicle
registration; Samual Tyrel Williams,
$115, failure to use seat belts.
GRASSROOTS
GOVERNMENT
The Keizer Long Range Planning Task Force, a group that will be the city’s
offi cial budget committee, met Monday, March 11, to discuss what’s on deck
regarding the city budget. A recording of the meeting was unavailable due to
technical problems at the city, what follows is based on a draft of the meeting
minutes.
• Stormwater – Videotaping of the system inherited from Marion
County is approximately 80 percent complete. Once fi nished, a new
master planning effort will be launched. A .55 cent increase to water
bills is planned and will take effect Jan. 1, 2020.
• Water – The city is planning a 4 percent increase to water bills,
which will amount to about one-third of a cent per gallon for city
residents, the cheapest around according to Keizer Finance Director
Tim Wood.
• General Fund – Funds in the city’s account that pays for most
personnel remains stable with an expected savings of about $300,000
throughout the year to keep it stable. The city continues to investigate
alternate revenue streams like leasing city-owned property.
• Park services fee – The fi rst year of fee collection for parks ser-
vices has been stronger than anticipated. The effects of the fee can be
seen throughout the city’s park system in the form of better mainte-
nance and replacement of end-of-life amenities.
• Police services fee – Receipts on the police services fee are also
stronger than anticipated and fi ve new offi cers have been added to
the Keizer Police Department. With no dramatic changes the city
will need to consider increasing the fee or reduce the number of
offi cers in the 2022-23 budget year.
The Keizer Budget Committee will meet April 30 and May 2 and
9 to hammer out all the details of the 2019-20 fi scal year. Meetings
are held at the Keizer Civic Center at 6 p.m.
Pentacle Theatre to stage Yellow
Pentacle Theatre will be present
the musical, Yellow by Del Shores
starting on Friday, April 12 at Pentacle
Theatre 324 52nd Ave. NW. The
show will continue through May 4.
Yellow is a musical that explores
the themes of cowardice, intolerance,
family secrets and forgiveness. The
musical will also feature the music of
the Salem band, True North.
This comedic drama contains
profanities,
sexual
references,
religious epithets, derogatory terms
and a depiction of family violence
and may not be suitable for children.
Showtimes are on Wednesdays
through Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and
on Sundays at 2 p.m.
Ticket prices vary and can be
purchased at pentacletheatre.org, or
at the Pentacle Theatre Ticket Offi ce
at 145 Liberty Street NE, Suite 102.
Athletic boosters to host
informational meeting
The McNary Athletic Booster
Club meeting will host an informa-
tional meeting on Monday, April 15.
for anyone in our community that
would like to attend.
There will be a PowerPoint pre-
sentation that will go over what the
booster club does and how people
can get involved.
There will also be refreshments
available.
The meeting will take place the
College and Career Center at Mc-
Nary High School at 6 p.m.