Portland Observer July 10.1081 Page 3
From the Capitol
Congressman Ron Wyden
Q. This week trustees fo r the
Social Security System said the
system will go belly-up by the end o f
next year if we don't drastically cut
benefits or hike taxes. Do you
agree?
A. First, l think it is important
to remember who -- and what -- we
are really talking about here. Those
Social
Security
beneficiaries
everyone is ta lkin g about are not
some unknown quantity -- they are
our own mothers and fathers -- the
ones who provided us with the prop-
serity we now enjoy.
There is no call to subject these
people to a campaign o f terror - to
frighten them bv telling them they
w ill lose the benefits they depend on
to meet their daily expenses. Rather,
what we need is to sit down and
come up with a well-reasoned ap­
proach that w ill guarantee a sounder
economic future fo r the system --
and s till give today’ s retirees their
due.
The best available estimates in ­
dicate we need to come up with $3 to
$5 b illio n in savings in the near
future i f we are to keep the Social
Security system afloat. To achieve
that goal, I would:
• A llo w in te rfu n d borrow ing
between the Old Age and Survivor
Fund, the Health Fund and the
Disability Fund.
From the Courthouse
By Donald E. Clark
Multnomah County Executive
A fte r analyzing the results o f
M ultnom ah C ounty’ s three-ycar,
$5.1 m illio n serial levy election, it
was very apparent that voters in the
inner Northeast neighborhoods
strongly supported both measures. I
was very heartened by this positive
response to the County and to the
important services we provide in the
community.
Voters overall supported part of
the serial levy, providing some im ­
portant revenues which w ill
allow the C ounty to m aintain a
number o f basic services that were
in jeopardy.
Measure 3, which w ill provide
$2.13 m illion was passed. Measure 4
o f $2.94 m illio n however, was
narrowly defeated.
A lthough passage o f both
measures was necessary to restore
most o f the program cuts in the
1981-82 budget, the passage o f
Measure 3 makes those reductions
less severe, and provides for an im­
portant two years o f fiscal stability.
It does not however, make up fo r
the loss o f funds at the State and
Federal levels for services that con­
tinue to be desperately needed.
In the N orth/N ortheast areas o f
the County, passage o f Measure 3
kept the A lb in a Branch and fo u r
other branches o f the M ultnom ah
County library from closing. In ad­
d itio n , services provided through
the North/Northeast mental health
clinic, the Albina Multiservice Cen­
te r’ s fa m ily planning c lin ic , and
C ounty dental clinics such as the
Buckman, will not have to shut their
doors to a substantial number o f
community’ s residents.
Failure o f Measure 4 however,
w ill reduce services provided
through A nim al C o n tro l and
Project H ealth, and make it
necessary for the Central Library to
close all day each Monday.
The C ounty’ s revenue sh o rtfa ll
forced the County to eliminate 237
positions for the 1981-82 fiscal year.
One o f my principal concerns was
the impact those reductions would
have on our employees - especially
m in o rity employees. W ith that in
mind, we created “ Project Save” to
c o n tro l hirin g u n til we could at­
tempt to transfer existing employ­
ees, whose jobs were in jeopardy,
into vacant positions maintained in
the budget.
The jobs o f 133 employees were
endangered by the budget cuts, and
they were actually given termination
notices in m id-June. (The other
positions cut were already vacant.)
O f those 133 employees, 21 were
minorities. I was extremely pleased
that the considerable efforts o f the
D ivision o f Employee Relations
made it possible to save jobs fo r
20 of those minority employees. The
one m inority employee who left the
County did so voluntarily to exer­
cise other job options.
Thanks to your support, the
C ounty was able to m inim ize the
im pact that our fiscal problems
presented to the well-being o f our
employees, as well as ensuring two
years o f programs and services to
those who truly need it.
It is important to note, however,
that the serial levy is only a tem ­
porary re lie f. The fa ilu re o f
Measure 4 and the continuing fiscal
conditions which affect C ounty
government w ill require a long-term
solution in the very near future.
I hope that we can continue to
rely upon the support o f many o f
you so that Multnomah County can
provide a level o f services that ad­
dress the quality o f life we want for
our community.
Life on the street
(Continued from Page 1 Col 5)
because when i t ’ r ra ining or
snowing they're not out because you
have no one to tell you when to get
out. WonIFn who have a man do not
like women who don’ t have one. To
them they’ re just taking up tim e.
They are there fo r a m inute so
they’ re not dedicated to the life. I
was out there fo r five years and
made thousands, and gave it to
the fo o l I was w ith. A pim p is
somebody who is stuck on them ­
selves. I doubt i f they have any
feelings for you, and if they do, they
can’ t show it because they have to
stay hard hearted.”
In the street life the pim p is the
most over-glamorized o f all. There
appears to be two kinds o f pimps;
the street pimp and the professional
pimp. The street pimp deals mainly
w ith petty hustling and does not
depend on the e xp lo ita tio n o f
women to maintain his lifestyle. The
professional pim p m aintains his
lifestyle entirely on the ability o f his
women. Despite the glamorous
image the pimp conveys, his life is
far from being colorful. It's a con­
stant struggle to outw it his women
and keep one step ahead o f the
police. Their lives are erratic and
their fortunes disappear as soon as
they are made.
Another type o f street lady that
is seen often is the teen-prostitute.
A ccording to Janice B u rre tt, a
Juvenile C ourt Counselor, some
teenage prostitutes are turned on to
the life because they’ re runaways.
‘ ‘ They become involved after run­
ning away from home. They are out
on the streets and they need some
way to support themselves. Many go
to a pim p because they’ re there.
H a lf the girls who come are out
there by themselves.”
Whatever the glamour, whatever
the glitter, most street ladies end up
w ith no marketable tra in in g , and
with counterfeit golory in their past
and no foreseeable future.
Phon«jJt4-1007
H O T C U T S S P E C IA L
<
Congressman Ron Wyden reads to children at
"The Reading Tree," reading and tutorial program
held each summer at Irving Park. The program en­
courages children to read through demonstrating
the value and pleasure to be found in books.
(Photo: Cleo Franklin)
Save and you
shall receive.
ne of our two hard bound
books, free Oregon Coast
or Oregon Country ts yours for
depositing just $10,000 or more *Or
buy one for $7 50 with a $1,000
deposit to any account or $10 with
a smaller deposit
So take your pick from these
checking or savings plans and get the
highest interest allowed by law Plus
72 pages of spectacular full -color
photography, free or at low cost
O
An investment that pays off big.
Sign up for The Benj Franklin's
Money Market Certificate Account,
and you'll earn highest guaranteed
interest allowed by law And your
money is insured by the Federal Sav
ings and Loan Insurance Corporation
Check and save.
Open an interest paying NOW
account at The Benj Franklin You 11
get 200 free personalized checks and
earn 5 25% interest on dollars which
until now were idle in a
bank checking account
And interest on
your Benj Franklin NOW is com
pounded constantly for an effective
annual yield of 5.47% When you
maintain a $300 balance, there’s no
service charge1
Checking with no service
charge! Ever.
Whether your balance is $10 or
$100, you 11 never pay a service
charge with The Benj Franklin's new
No Charge Checking account
You'll also get your first 200 per
sonalized checks, free And if you
want to keep your balance at $1,000,
you'll earn interest, too
Get a VISA card with no annual ser­
vice fee and charge worldwide Use
Ben s Banker, our network of 24-hour
automatic teller machines And make
deposits, withdrawals, transfer funds
Plus get VISA cash advances Any
time any day We want to be your
family financial center So save with
us, and you shall receive in more
ways than one
Bank and save with an old friend.
Get richer. Quicker.
Ben s Money Fund is a great way
to earn high interest on a short term
investment Unlike money market
funds, there's no brokerage fee or
service charge You can invest as little
as $2,500 from eight to 89 days
And it s backed by U S Government
or Federal Agency secunties
Franklin
F E D tH A l SAVINGS AND LOAN ASSN
$1 billion strong Serving Oregon
since 1925 More than 50 offices
throughout Oregon
Bank and save in one place.
At The Ben| Franklin, you'll find all
the family financial services you need
' Federal regulations allow no more than two free
gifts per account during any 12 m onth period
lir n u tiiu l
O re g o n C o u n try
St
(E d ito r’ s Note: Lanita Duke is
News D irector o f Grassroot News
N.W ., a newservice reporting Black
news o f the Northwest)
butch caar<;
fr»-«
• Pick up part of the financing for
Social Security w ith general fund
dollars -- secured by making cuts in
some o f the sacred cows, such as
tobacco subsidies and synthetic
fuels.
• L ift the outside earnings
lim ita tio n that prevents retirees
from earning more than $5,500 in
outside income each year w ithout
having their benefits reduced.
• Consolidate some o f the social
components o f Social Security
within other agencies. For example,
educational benefits should be com­
bined w ith other program s under
the Department o f Education -- thus
e lim inating extra costs and
duplication of services.
No one can pretend to have the
magic solution to all the ills o f the
Social Security system. But it is im ­
portant that we all begin to pull
together to solve its problems -- in­
stead o f allow ing the stresses o f
hard economic times to p it us
against each other.
w w s y trt»eV T W «r»t w t t H p y p r ’ y r u t
$15.
1406 NE B roadw ay, Portland. Oregon 97212
-I
j *