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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 24, 2015)
OPINION 6A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2015 Anti-Muslim is anti-American Founded in 1873 STEPHEN A. FORRESTER, Editor & Publisher LAURA SELLERS, Managing Editor BETTY SMITH, Advertising Manager CARL EARL, Systems Manager JOHN D. BRUIJN, Production Manager DEBRA BLOOM, Business Manager HEATHER RAMSDELL, Circulation Manager Life looks different at Tongue Point Job Corps The unrelenting ethic is about results. G raduation at the Tongue Point Job Corps Center is an emotionally charged event. The day marks completion of a demanding program that’s aimed at equipping a group of young people for entry into the economy. Seeing these young men and women walk to receive their di- plomas is a reminder not to take one’s good fortune for granted. One of last week’s graduates was Gabriel Chavez, whose life story of setback after set- back was described by Edward Stratton. Of his Job Corps ex- perience, Chavez told Stratton: “I thought I would fail, because nothing good ever happened in my life.” Imagine the challenge facing Thamar Baker, a refugee of the Haitian earthquake who came to Colville, Washington, speaking only French and Creole. Baker learned English and graduated from high school with her con- temporaries. The unrelenting Job Corps ethic is about results. Students must master professional skills and attain social skills. The center itself is measured on outcomes. The Tongue Point Center ranks sixth out of 127 centers in the job placement of its graduates. Job Corps is one of the best training programs the federal government has fostered. Fifty years on, the Tongue Point Job Corps Center delivers tangible results of which we can be proud. Crab season brings environmental message Closures are also a blow to the economy T here are parts of the world, even parts of the U.S., where eating crab is not for the weak of stomach. Thankfully, this de¿- nitely isn’t one of them. $ product of cold north Paci¿c water, our local Dungeness crab are predators that eat clams and other shell¿sh, as well as small ¿sh and scavenged meat. Here at the mouth of the Columbia River, they particularly love razor clams — a preference they share with the many human fans of clams. Thanks to their diet, Dungeness crab have a sweet and mild Àavor and aroma. Served up with bowls of melted butter, they are one of the West Coast’s favorite seafood treats. All this goodness adds up to a reputation that is important to pro- tect. So last week’s news that the Dungeness season’s start will be delayed beyond its traditional Dec. 1 start was greeted with somewhat less disappointment than might have been expected. John Corbin, a ¿sherman whose company has two Dungeness crab boats in Warrenton, was quoted, “This year they’re full enough, but we want to make sure the crab is good qual- ity and safe for the public. When things are right, we will go at it.” Delays in crab season, for other reasons, are not a surprise. Not in- frequently, testing ¿nds they have not yet become meaty enough to justify harvesting. The start date is pushed back — sometimes by a month. Boat owners factor this into their budgets, while crab frozen the year before typically addresses immediate consumer demand. Delays are harder news for boat crews, who often rely on pre-Christmas paychecks for a good deal of holiday shopping and bill paying. Crab money also circulates through our communities, help- ing keep many others employed. Few ¿sheries in the world ap- proach Dungeness crab in terms of local economic importance. This closure, especially if it drags on much beyond the start of the new year, will hurt. Domoic acid, the cause of this closure, was unknown on the West Coast before the 1990s. Like other toxins produced by ma- rine microorganisms, it has been on the upswing, possibly due to warming ocean waters, low-oxy- gen zones or other changes in the ocean environment. Absorbed by razor clams and other ¿lter-feed- ers, domoic acid typically does them no harm, and they process the algae that contain the toxin like any other food. When crab eat the clams, they also become contaminated with toxin. The ongoing closure of recre- ational clam seasons are another blow to the local economy, espe- cially in Washington state. Clams are rather slow to clear the toxin from their systems. Recent clam testing ¿nds toxin levels still above safety limits. The onset of winter, with cold- er air and water temperatures, should begin clearing toxins. Even now, crab off the central and northern Washington coast are considered safe — but are only available to tribal-af¿liated ¿shermen. This issue warrants seri- ous attention from the Paci¿c Northwest’s congressional del- egation and by federal and state agencies. A long and drawn-out closure will justify disaster assis- tance — every bit as much as any other natural catastrophe. Going forward, we need re- search into how human interven- tion might inÀuence algal blooms and mitigate toxin production. Beyond this, humanity as a whole must concentrate on repairing ocean habitats and keeping mat- ters from getting any worse. merely because of my race, ican survey found that just 11 percent of Muslims he is saying consciously or identify with or lean toward unconsciously that I do not Republicans, while 70 per- here seems to be no bottom to deserve to exist.” cent do likewise for Dem- Whereas these candi- the cesspool of Islamophobic ocrats. dates may not be conscious rhetoric coming from Republican of this “ultimate logic” or Furthermore, a 2013 candidates. paper co-published by the in any way approve of it, it Center for American Prog- The tone of anti-Muslim musings doesn’t make their language ress and the New York any less dangerous when it post-Paris attack has become so poi- University School of Law’s lands on the ears of the mi- Charles sonous that it cannot portend anything Brennan Center for Justice norities on the margins, or Blow positive. found: those looking for a reason to In the latest, the Republican gussy up their wrongheadedness with “A troubling trend is quickly devel- front-runner said the United States righteousness. oping in state legislatures across the would have “absolutely no choice” A 2013 Carnegie Mellon Univer- country: In a thinly concealed attempt but to close some mosques. And, when sity study “found that in the most Re- to inÀame anti-Muslim attitudes, law- asked by a reporter, he seemed to sug- publican states in the country, employ- makers in 32 states have moved to ban gest he wouldn’t have a problem reg- ers may be less likely to interview job foreign or international law. The bans istering Muslims, which many have candidates whose social networking are based on model legislation de- condemned, comparing it to the way pro¿les indicate that the applicants are signed by anti-Muslim activist David Yerushalmi and promoted by activists Jews were once treated. (After heavy Muslim,” according to Pew. bipartisan criticism, As Pew explained: who have stirred up fears that Islamic he tried to walk back “In the 10 states laws and customs — commonly re- This his remarks about the with the highest pro- ferred to as ‘Sharia’ — are taking over registry.) portion of Republican American courts. Although propo- And then Dr. Ben demonizing presidential candidate nents of these bans have failed to cite a Carson drew a tor- Mitt Romney vot- single instance where a U.S. court has a single tured parallel between ers in the 2012 elec- relied on Sharia to resolve a dispute, Syrian refugees, who tion, 17 percent of foreign law bans have been enacted in religious are mostly Muslim, Christian applicants Oklahoma, Kansas, Louisiana, Ten- faith is a and “a rabid dog run- received interview nessee, and Arizona, while a related ning around your calls, compared with 2 ban on religious law has been enacted slippery neighborhood.” percent of the Muslim in South Dakota.” As the ACLU has written of these Robert McCaw, job candidates. There slope. spokesman for the were no differences laws: “Efforts to single out Muslims and Council on Ameri- in callbacks received It feeds can-Islamic Relations, by the Christian and to advance the ugly idea that anything something Muslim candidates in Islamic is un-American are unjust and told Al-Jazeera that Carson’s remarks the 10 states with the discriminatory and should be rejected. that is at were “unthinkable,” lowest proportion of Laws that single out Sharia violate the First Amendment by treating one be- saying, “There is only Romney voters.” odds with one thing you do with Late last month, lief system as suspect.” This demonizing a single religious a rabid dog — and Lawrence Downes the most that’s put it down.” reported on a poll in faith is a slippery slope. It feeds some- noble Indeed, this is the a red state with this thing that is at odds with the most no- ble ambition of this country’s better problem with reckless, caveat: ambition racist rhetoric: Each “It’s just one poll angels: equality. The 2011 Pew survey found that utterance tosses one in one Southern state, of this more log onto the bon- North Carolina, by among Muslim Americans: “Signif- ¿re that can burn out a one polling out¿t icant numbers report being looked at country’s space for the unimag- (Public Policy Poll- with suspicion (28 percent), and being better inable. ing, or PPP) with called offensive names (22 percent). The Rev. Mar- Democratic Party ties, And while 21 percent report being angels: tin Luther King Jr. asking questions of a singled out by airport security, 13 per- warned in his 1967 few hundred Repub- cent say they have been singled out by equality. “The Other America” lican primary voters.” other law enforcement. Overall, a 52 speech: “Racism is “But still,” Downes percent majority says that government evil because its ultimate logic is geno- continued, these were the results: 72 antiterrorism policies single out Mus- cide.” As King put it: percent believed a Muslim should not lims in the U.S. for increased surveil- “If one says that I am not good be allowed to be president of the Unit- lance and monitoring.” We must put a lid on this corrosive enough to live next door to him; if one ed States, and 40 percent believed that language. Simply put, being specif- says that I am not good enough to eat Islam should be illegal in this country. at a lunch counter, or to have a good, It is no wonder, then, that a 2011 ically anti-Muslim is, in a way, an- decent job, or to go to school with him Pew Research Center Muslim Amer- ti-American. By CHARLES BLOW New York Times News Service T Healthcare reform lives! cannot discriminate based Second, some Ameri- on medical history; these cans who bought low-cost insurance plans have been policies are supposed to be unpleasantly surprised by o the right’s dismay, scare made affordable by subsi- high deductibles. This is a dies that depend on your tactics — remember death real issue, but it shouldn’t income. panels? — and spurious legal be exaggerated. All al- Nobody ever expected challenges failed to protect the Obamacare to cover all the lowed plans cover pre- ventive services without nation from the scourge of guar- uninsured. In fact, Con- a deductible, and many gressional Budget Of¿ce anteed health coverage. Still, plans cover other health projections made in 2013 Paul Obamacare’s opponents insist- suggested that about 10 services as well. Further- Krugman more, additional ¿nancial ed that it would implode in a percent of nonelderly U.S. “death spiral” of low enrollment residents would remain uncovered: aid is available to lower-income some because they are undocument- families to help cover such gaps. and rising costs. ed immigrants, some because of the Some people may not know about But the law’s ¿rst two years of gap created by red-state Medicaid these mitigating factors — that’s full implementation went remark- rejection and some because they the problem with a fairly complex ably well. The number of uninsured would fall through the cracks of a system — but awareness should im- complicated sys- prove over time. Americans dropped Finally, UnitedHealth Group tem. But the law sharply, roughly in made a splash by announcing that was nonetheless Sooner or line with projec- projected to pro- it is losing money on the policies tions, while costs duce a sharp reduc- it sells on the Obamacare exchang- later, of came in well be- tion in the number es, and is considering withdrawing of Americans with- from the market after next year. low expectations. course, there insurance, and There were some puzzling things Opponents of re- were bound out it has, especially in about the announcement, leading to form could have states like Califor- speculation about ulterior motives, to be some reconsidered their nia that have tried but the main thing to realize is that position — but that UnitedHealth, while a huge provider to make it work. negative M e a n w h i l e , of employment-based insurance, is hardly ever happens surprises. both insurance actually a fairly small player in this in modern politics. premiums and the market, and that other players are Instead, they dou- And we’re cost of subsidies sounding much more positive. bled down on their Oh, and of¿cial projections now to make now, finally, designed forecasts of doom, them affordable say that fewer people will enroll in and hyped every getting a bit came in far be- those exchanges than previously low expectations predicted. But the main reason is hint of bad news. of bad, or in both 2014 and that surprisingly few employers are I mention all dropping coverage; overall projec- at least not- 2015. of this to give you Sooner or lat- tions for the number of uninsured some perspective er, of course, there Americans still look pretty good. great, news So where does that leave us? on recent develop- were bound to be ments that mark a about health some negative sur- Without question, the run of unex- break in the string prises. And we’re pectedly good news for Obamacare reform. of positive surpris- now, ¿nally, get- has come to an end, as all such runs es. Yes, Obamacare ting a bit of bad, or must. And look, we’re talking about has hit a few rough patches lately. at least not-great, news about health a brand-new system in which every- one is still learning how to function. But they’re much less signi¿cant reform. than a lot of the reporting, let alone First, premiums are going up for There were bound to be some bob- the right-wing reaction, would have next year, because insurers are ¿nd- bles along the way. But are we looking at the begin- you believe. Health reform is still a ing that their risk pool is somewhat huge success story. sicker and hence more expensive nings of a death spiral? Some people Obamacare seeks to cover the un- than they expected. There’s a lot of are indeed saying that, but as far as I insured through two channels. Low- variation across states, but the aver- can tell, they’re all people who have er-income Americans are covered age increase will be around 11 per- been predicting disaster every step via a federally-funded expansion of cent. That’s a slight disappointment, of the way, and will still be predict- Medicaid, which was supposed to but it’s not shocking, given both the ing imminent collapse a decade from be nationwide but has been reject- good news of the previous two years now. The reality is that Obamacare is ed in many Republican-controlled and the long-term tendency of insur- states. Everyone else has access to ance premiums to rise 5-10 percent an imperfect system, but it’s work- able — and it’s working. policies sold by private insurers who a year. By PAUL KRUGMAN New York Times News Service T
