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THE ASTORIAN • TuESdAy, JuNE 14, 2022
OPINION
editor@dailyastorian.com
KARI BORGEN
Publisher
Founded in 1873
DERRICK DePLEDGE
Editor
SHANNON ARLINT
Circulation Manager
JOHN D. BRUIJN
Production Manager
GUEST COLUMN
Oregon can learn from Scandinavia
I
magine a community where home-
less individuals aren’t living down-
town, in parks and along busy streets
and freeways.
That might be reality in parts of Ore-
gon, but not in Salem, where I live, or in
Portland, Eugene, Bend or many other
cities.
Yet there are cities without visible
homeless encampments and without pan-
handlers, without street-
side trash and with lit-
tle if any graffiti. There
are cities where trust is
so ingrained in the public
psyche that bicycles can
be left unguarded, and
where outdoor cafes and
DICK
public plazas have chairs
HUGHES
with pillows for public
use with nary a security
device in sight.
It was a shock last month – a wel-
come one – to discover these cities are the
norm in Scandinavia. It was with sadness
that our drive home from Portland Inter-
national Airport showed we indeed were
back in the State of Homelessness.
That is why I am writing this col-
umn, the second and presumably final
one related to my May trip to Northern
Europe, primarily Scandinavia. It’s not
to say, “Look at me. I spent almost three
weeks in Europe and came home with the
answers to Oregon’s problems.”
Not at all. My look was cursory. How-
ever, one value of travel is it can shake us
out of ruts and broaden our perspective.
If the Nordic countries can substan-
tially reduce homelessness, they give hope
for the rest of us. We must figure out what
works best in our situations and be fully
committed.
Two things stood out: 1. Finland and
Norway took concrete steps and didn’t let
up. 2. They addressed homelessness as a
housing issue, not a moral failing. That
should give reassurance to public officials
who doubt the housing first model and
who believe homeless individuals who are
drug or alcohol-dependent or mentally ill
should first be “cured” before receiving
housing.
I’m not suggesting Scandinavian sys-
tems could or should be transferrable to
other countries, particularly the United
States. But our minimal progress through
Y-Foundation
Homelessness has decreased in Finland through an emphasis on housing.
IF THE NORdIC COuNTRIES CAN
SuBSTANTIALLy REduCE HOMELESSNESS,
THEy GIVE HOPE FOR THE REST OF uS. WE
MuST FIGuRE OuT WHAT WORKS BEST IN OuR
SITuATIONS ANd BE FuLLy COMMITTEd.
the decades – despite thousands of com-
mittee meetings, umpteen bookshelves of
plans we’ve written, and millions or bil-
lions of dollars we’ve spent – is a local,
state and national disgrace.
This is not to disparage the boots-on-
the-ground work being done in my com-
munity and elsewhere by many excellent
organizations. But where is the over-
whelming public leadership and politi-
cal will to match Oregonians’ belief that
homelessness is the state’s No. 1 issue?
Some ideas can be transferrable. For
example, visits by Oregon legislators and
corrections officials to Norwegian pris-
ons a few years ago inspired prison reform
here. The Department of Corrections has
launched initiatives on employee wellness,
the institution environment and rehabilita-
tion of adults in custody.
However, Scandinavian society is
unique. The countries are smaller in pop-
ulation than the large U.S. states. Trust in
government, in the private sector and in
collaborative decision-making is woven
into their societal fabric. Though Scan-
dinavians have an exceedingly high cost
of living, they report a high quality of life
and rank high on the global happiness
scale. In contrast, Oregonians and our fel-
low Americans remain distrustful of gov-
ernment … and of one another, it seems.
Scandinavia and the other Nordic
countries also embrace an unusual wel-
fare system: Everyone receives services
regardless of household income. To sup-
port that system, Scandinavians pay far
higher taxes and have a far larger pub-
lic sector workforce than in America. Cit-
izens receive mostly free universal health
care; free education from preschool
through college; and generous old-age
pensions. Many of the benefits enhance
participation in the workforce, such as
highly subsidized child care and after-
school programs.
Make no mistake. This is not a paean to
how wonderful Scandinavia is.
For example, the region lags the U.S.
on accessibility for the mobility impaired.
The absence of ramps around steps, the
lack of curb cuts, and the ubiquitous cob-
blestone streets and paths made wheel-
chair use difficult.
I experienced this first hand. I’m still
regaining strength from my breakthrough
COVID-19 case last fall and wound up
breaking a wheelchair on Stockholm cob-
blestones. And at one museum, the ele-
vator didn’t work. At another, there were
escalators but no elevator.
In contrast, it was good to read that
Lincoln City is following other commu-
nities by providing rollout pathways and
free beach wheelchairs at three beaches.
A few other things that struck me about
Northern Europe:
• Patriotism, participation in national
holidays and reverence for history were
evident throughout the culture.
• Scandinavian students are required
to learn English in school and often must
take a third language.
• Movement among countries is nor-
mal. Our Stockholm minibus driver was
from Estonia. Our Copenhagen driver was
a Brit who lives in Denmark with his Dan-
ish wife and their family. They also have a
vacation home in Spain.
• Public university in Poland is free to
students who earn high enough scores in
high school. Students whose scores are too
low can pay to attend private universities.
• Norway, Denmark and Sweden are
democracies with monarchies. People
apparently like having royalty, although
their government runs on a parliamentary
system.
• Scandinavia is becoming more reli-
giously diverse, including an increasing
number of Muslim residents. The popula-
tion as whole is turning more secular, like
the Pacific Northwest.
• Norway has a love-hate relationship
with the fossil fuel industry. North Sea oil
drilling has saved the economy and the
national treasury. Yet a majority of new
passenger vehicles sold are electric and
are heavily promoted by the government.
Fuel prices are so high that many com-
muters rely on bicycles. Everywhere we
went, pedestrians were alerted to watch
out for bicyclists.
• Drivers seemed less aggressive than
in the U.S.; a recent report by Insurify said
Oregon motorists rank sixth nationally
for rude driving. Meanwhile, Oregon is
ranked as our nation’s second-most bicy-
cle-friendly state, trailing only Massachu-
setts in the League of American Bicyclists’
annual report.
dick Hughes has been covering the
Oregon political scene since 1976.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
A call to fathers
wonder how the grieving fathers in
Uvalde, Texas, would have reacted if,
a few days after the shooting, their local
newspaper ran an ad for the same style
assault weapon that killed their children?
Certainly there would have been outrage,
angry calls to the newspaper, maybe some
subscription cancellations.
Though far from Texas, how should the
fathers of Astoria react to our local news-
paper running such an ad? Shortly after the
Uvalde tragedy, the front page of an adver-
tising insert in The Astorian featured a Sig
Sauer M400 Tread, described online as a
very affordable, “starter AR-15.”
The fathers of Astoria should not
become complacent just because Astoria’s
schoolchildren have not yet been targeted.
With the number of AR-15s in the coun-
try, it’s certain that there are quite a few in
our county. There are also plenty of men-
tal health disorders. The combination is
lethal, and shouldn’t be downplayed. It can
happen here.
What are you fathers to make of a com-
munity newspaper’s putting advertising
dollars ahead of helping reduce the pro-
liferation of assault weapons? Advertis-
ing AR-15-style weapons increases the
sale of the weapons, which increases the
chances of your kid being killed in school.
They can blame the corporate advertis-
ing department, or a deranged individual,
but newspapers that advertise AR-15-style
weapons share a portion of the shooter’s
culpability.
ROGER DORBAND
Astoria
I
Swimmingly
avid and Goliath makes for a great
story … as a fable. So, David, the Port
of Astoria, trying to extract $300 per pass-
ing ship, gets embroiled in a predictable
lawsuit with Goliath, some of the most
powerful shipping companies in the world.
In the real world realm of endless litiga-
tion, our David has nowhere near enough
rocks to ever cast to slay Goliath. Also,
they alienated all the companion upriver
ports that opposed this stretch of the imag-
ination from the outset.
Who are the lawyers who are promot-
ing this red herring? How much is their
fee? How much money also must be
D
reimbursed?
If you ask the Port Commission, they’ll
say everything is going swimmingly. I
guess it is … if you live in a fairy tale
world.
CHRIS CONNAWAY
BILL HUNSINGER
Astoria
Transparent
s a Seaside resident, I am concerned
that a new planning director and con-
vention center director were hired without
a professional candidate search; the pro-
cess lacked transparency, as well. A pro-
fessional candidate search is important not
only to assure qualified persons are hired,
but also to avoid cronyism and political
patronage.
The City Council recently conducted a
professional candidate search in replacing
the city manager. There is no reason why
the city manager or assistant city man-
ager could not have used the same, or sim-
ilar, transparent process to conduct a pro-
fessional candidate search for positions as
important as planning director and conven-
tion center director.
It is also puzzling why the outgoing city
manager filled these positions so quickly,
rather than leave it to his successor, who
has already been named to conduct a
proper professional search. Taxpayers fund
these positions, and the process to fill them
should be transparent and professional.
LAURA ALLEN
Seaside
A
Important observations
he June 4 writer’s notebook, “Astoria’s
historic buildings are our high card,”
celebrated historic structures.
As one of the “bevy of residential res-
torations” in Astoria’s renaissance, I have
important observations after four years of
work at the circa 1915 Forsstrom House.
We have rescued the structure by con-
structing its third foundation to take it
safely into the next century. It is a true
labor of love, and we adore this beautiful
old house.
I would like to share the concerns of
many owners of Astoria’s historic struc-
tures. The city, specifically the plan-
ning and engineering departments, do
T
not encourage or assist owners in saving
properties. We have experienced repeated
obstructions, complexity, confusion and
fees on our projects, over and above what
is reasonable, from a city that is known for
its historic structures.
I find that I cannot recommend Asto-
ria as a locale to work on historic homes.
In addition to difficulties we and our con-
tractors have experienced, it is known that
some contractors will not work in Astoria
due to the city’s difficult reputation. This
makes progress problematic and costly,
due to additional time, waste and legal
fees.
With an election approaching, it is
essential to query new candidates on their
plans as to making the building permit
application process less dysfunctional, and
the development codes more transparent.
It needs to be a part of the election conver-
sation to continue and encourage preserva-
tion of our historic structures.
We can bring these questions to can-
didate forums and facilitate positive
changes.
LAURI SERAFIN
Astoria
I fear
ecent letters to the editor have
strongly criticized former state Sen.
Betsy Johnson for her position on gun
control. I am in favor of any laws that
R
make it more difficult to obtain a firearm.
I have no objection with more restrictions
to obtain a firearm, if qualified people can
ultimately purchase one after they have
complied with all background checks or
other restrictions required.
However, I object to government ever
passing any law that restricts me from
continuing to possess an AR-15, which I
own, and am fully qualified to use because
of my past military service.
The current Democratic Party leader-
ship fell short of being able to pack the
Supreme Court, eliminate the filibuster
and make other major changes in the U.S.
Senate by changing the historic rules of
that group. This was an attempt at a ruth-
less, unprecedented power grab. Democ-
racy is never safe from fanatical political
minorities forcing their will on all.
The filibuster exists to protect the
minorities when very small majorities
wish to jam their political desires down
everyone else’s throat. Dictatorships come
into place because dishonest people mis-
represent their intentions, bend the rules to
their desire and then rule ruthlessly.
I fear all levels of my government
more than anything else, and I will never
give up my right to defend myself (even
against the government). My weapons
never leave my home, but I will use them
to protect myself, and my interests, for the
future.
SCOTT WIDDICOMBE
Warrenton