Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 4, 2017)
OPINION 4A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2017 Photos by Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian LEFT: Workers navigate scaffolding underneath the Astoria Bridge as repairs which began in 2009 continue to be made to the structure. MIDDLE: Jesse Trott, with the Haystack Rock Awareness Program in Cannon Beach, is just one of a group of volunteers who spend time providing information to visitors about how to responsibly admire the iconic location. RIGHT: Joe Sheamos makes repairs to boat parts at West Coast Propeller Service in Warrenton. Workplaces change, but labor makes the world go ’round W hen Labor Day was born in 1883, the holiday was a big deal for work- ers. And that was an America rife with large factories and their assembly lines. In ways we can hardly imagine, industrialists including Henry Ford and Thomas Edison introduced innovations and new techniques that transformed an essentially agrarian society into an urban one. Compare old photographs of workers from a century ago with people today and it becomes apparent that Americans our- selves have changed in amazing ways, growing both upward and in circumfer- ence. Today, even the poorest among us are better fed and far more advantaged than average citizens were at the start of the modern labor movement. Positive changes don’t occur spon- taneously. Individual men and women, working with intelligence and tenacity, deserve our gratitude for incrementally making the United States a nation which, for all its flaws, is still the wonder of our age. Last year’s contentious election, what- ever one thinks of the outcome, brought a sharp focus on problems faced by work- ing Americans and the ways in which we need to renew our commitments to ensur- ing decent pay for decent work. While all manner of things have changed, the idea of honoring labor remains an honorable aspect of this nation. Ultimately, those toiling in anonymity are far more worthy of our thanks than the famous captains of industry. Our families exist because of the labor of our parents and grandparents. H ere on the Lower Columbia River, the Columbia River Fishermen’s Protec- tive Union was perhaps the most visible of several active organizations that struggled to level the scales of economic and politi- cal power on behalf of laborers. It wasn’t unusual for multiple men to die each sea- son in the small, open fishing boats of that era. Meanwhile, fishermen vied with salmon packers over a penny or two per pound for the big Chinook that were the foundation of our economy. The power of local companies and workers ebbed and flowed over the years. In bad times like the 1930s, many compa- nies failed and the jobs they provided dis- appeared. Firms that survived were often the ones with the best long-term partner- ships with fishermen and canning workers. These companies looked after employees and their employees returned the favor. This collaboration between labor and capital in bringing about success is still robust in places like the communities of the Lower Columbia. The owners of com- panies on the scale that prosper here under- stand that good workers are absolutely indispensable. And workers here are close enough to the front lines of capitalism to seldom take their jobs for granted. These partnerships between employ- ers and employees are at risk in the giant corporations that wield so much power in the nation beyond our cherished coast. The thought of companies transferring their real or symbolic headquarters to foreign nations in order to deprive the U.S. of tax revenue should revolt us all. Citizenship — whether by individuals or corporations — is a two- way street. Those who prosper thanks to the advantages created by our great nation must in turn be willing to help pay for it. Corporations that enjoy the protections of American laws, shouldn’t wiggle out of tax obligations by moving their symbolic legal residence to another nation. President Don- ald Trump and other leaders are right to speak out about the need for better corpo- rate citizenship — but must match mean- ingful actions with their stirring rhetoric. O ur economy has been transformed in recent decades. Economic recov- ery has been uneven, delivering far more wealth to a few, while most Americans work within the context of a globalized labor market that tends to keep wages down. This has created feelings of anger and insecurity that were greatly reflected in last year’s presidential politics. Now, we must take steps to address these concerns. Even so, working conditions and job fair- ness are a quantum leap better than they were in our grandparents’ time. All Amer- icans living today still benefit from the transformations in labor laws and attitudes that came to permeate 20th-century society. Although you don’t have to look far to uncover derogatory attitudes toward unions, the fair-employment initiatives that were led by organized labor groups are key to everything from minimum wages, bars on child labor, safe working conditions, employer-provided health insurance and a host of other things we take for granted. In good times, some Americans con- sider labor rights and organizations to be sort of expensive extravagances. But even as the overall economy continues to improve, it still behooves Americans and our leaders to empower labor in ways that ensure future economic health, and a bal- ance of power between corporations and everyday citizens. Families struggle to pay for the educa- tion children require for the technologically demanding jobs of the future. Health care, once one of the near-certainties of mid- dle-class employment, remains a source of worry. In the aftermath of the Great Reces- sion, personal financial well-being still seems less secure than it was half a cen- tury ago. For these reasons and more, it’s important we always pay attention to the details of working life. The victories of the past can leak away when we’re not watching. SOUTHERN EXPOSURE Traveling is easy, escaping is hard By R.J. MARX The Daily Astorian F olks love to remember the words of former Mayor Don Larson, who shaped the tone and tenor of Seaside during his long and productive time in city government. A “Don Larson meeting,” for example, is a city meeting run with efficiency and timeliness, without the baggage and verbiage some cities endure. I remember the former mayor commenting that although he loved Seaside’s events — Hood to Coast, the beach volleyball championship — the crowds here in Seaside set his vacation time in motion. I can relate. After settling in Seaside this spring, I saw firsthand the transition the city takes when June turns the corner into July and visitors swell the city’s streets and fill the local eateries. A confluence of events — including the 90th birthday of my father — took me out of Seaside for my summer vacation, a vacation bookended by national, local and planetary events. I arrived in Saugatuck, Mich- igan, a little tourist town on the eastern side of Lake Michigan, as events in Charlottesville, Vir- ginia, were unfolding. My father, a longtime civil rights activist, was surprisingly calm as we shuffled from the news channels — CNN, MSNBC, Fox — and watched the hate unfold, culminating in the violent death of Heather Heyer. I think I was more worked up about it — he a veteran of the March on Washington for Jobs and Free- dom in August 1963 and at the side of Martin Luther King Jr. again in Selma, Alabama, in 1965. My father was immersed in a book on the French Revolution and as the latest words of our presi- dent wound up my internal coil of outrage, I was surprised by his rel- ative calm. “People shouldn’t be surprised,” he said, only barely raising his eyes above the top of his book. “They knew what they were getting.” Juggling act After a bit of pique, I decided to follow his lead and enjoy the vaca- tion, which with every political turn seemed to be more and more of a juggling act. My most recent Seaside Signal piece showcased Seaside’s newest entertainment venue, the Inverted Experience, subtly influencing me to feel that the world right now is somewhat upside down. Even the beach book I had chosen, “Submission,” by Michel Houellebecq, was painfully intense and profoundly political, a dark comedy about a world where the Muslim Brotherhood accede to power in contemporary France. Yet vacation time it was and time to soldier on. Fortunately, Sau- gatuck — a sort of amalgam of beach tourist communities from Cape Cod to Cannon Beach, with a heavy emphasis on weekenders from Chicago — offered the per- fect respite, in fact, one of the local coffee bars in nearby Douglas was called Respite. Acclimating myself to humid summer clime for the first time since my debarquement on the Oregon Coast, I put down my dou- ble shot Americano and strolled the streets, bouncing from boutiques to sandwich joints and always looking for an authentic Chicago-style hot dog. I took a riverboat with 80 of my new best friends up the Kalam- azoo River to the mouth of Lake Michigan, drinking a Leinenkugel Lemon Shandy under the beating sun. I found a hot dog place in Hol- land, Michigan, that served the Chi- cago dogs, but these couldn’t hold a candle to Ruby’s in Seaside or Mudd Dogs in Manzanita. Dad had the TV tuned to the Detroit Tigers games; they were dropping a series to the Rangers. Apparently they’re not having much of a season. I read the local paper, The Com- mercial Record, which was headlin- ing a spat between the city govern- ment and the district fire chief over concerns from the that city officials were “subverting” his authority. In turn, officials responded: “There was no give and take on anything.” And world news kept seeping in as I lingered on the deck of the Uncommon Coffee Roasters drink- ing Americanos and reading the Chicago Tribune and Grand Rap- ids Press. Reconnecting As family began to arrive for a celebration of Dad’s 90th, I recon- nected with John, an in-law and former suburban cop injured in the line of duty. He had been patrolling Highway 41 in Lake County, Illi- nois, and pulled over a suspect who attempted to flee. The suspect was apprehended, but not without resis- tance; John was to face three back surgeries, and remains on disabil- ity. After my own running accident in May, I was familiar with the pain scale. I asked John what his pain level — a scale from one to 10, with 10 being the highest — was on a day-to-day basis. Was it a two? No, he said. Four? He shook his head. Six? He nodded. I couldn’t imagine living with that kind of pain on a daily basis. He blamed illegal immigrants and lax policy DAVID F. PERO, Editor & Publisher for his pain — the suspect had been an undocumented immigrant. The conversation stirred some complex if controlled discussion from other visitors, including family mem- bers Bill and Susie from Charlotte, North Carolina, who had lived through riots after the shooting of 20-year-old Keith Lamont Scott was killed by a city police offi- cer. Both the victim and the officer were black. The shooting led to two nights of increasingly violent pro- test. Protesters threw rocks and bot- tles; police deployed tear gas. Three TV reporters were assaulted, one of whom ended up hospitalized. As in Charlottesville, the narra- tive becomes increasingly clouded depending on what news chan- nel you have on. Bill urged a more nuanced view than John, but clearly no minds were going to be changed. It was a good thing the tele- vision remained muted as we all gathered together to salute my dad. Among his guests was a 104-year- old woman: “And she came to visit me,” he later said sheepishly. I closed out my visit with some St. Louis style baby back ribs at Smokey Bones Bar & Fire Grill before setting the alarm for 4:30 a.m. to board the Delta flight from Grand Rapids to Portland, with a layover in Minneapolis. I felt momentarily relieved — I had accomplished my mis- sion. It hadn’t been easy but I had lost myself for a week and finally turned off the cable news. There was an eclipse here in Oregon, and with it, I knew, the sun would shine again. R.J. Marx is The Daily Astori- an’s South County reporter and edi- tor of the Seaside Signal and Can- non Beach Gazette. • JIM VAN NOSTRAND, Managing Editor JEREMY FELDMAN, Circulation Manager • DEBRA BLOOM, Business Manager JOHN D. BRUIJN, Production Manager Founded in 1873 • CARL EARL, Systems Manager
