Page 2 Portland Observer, November 3, 1962
Liberal opposition short on political courage
by John Blank
T im id ity seems to be the main
feature o f the p o litic a l landscape
this year. This lack o f courage can
be seen in the major “ opposition"
campaigns in the state: in Ted Ku
longoski’ s race to unseat Governor
Vic Atiyeh, and in the opposition to
Ballot Measure 3.
Kulongoski ths meek
While Ted Kulongoski puts on a
show o f ferocity in attacking A ti-
yeh’s administration, when it comes
to Oregon’s economy—the main is
sue in this election—Kulongoski’ s
roars turn into a meek purr directed
at the local and national big busi
ness community.
The main thrust o f Kulongoski’s
economic program is that Oregon
has to be nice to big business, in or
der to “ attract” investment capita,
and jobs to the state. In essence this
line is no d iffe re n t than A tiye h ’ s,
though there are differences in de
tail.
O f course, both p oliticia ns are
correct in a ttribu tin g Oregon’ s re
cession to the unwillingness o f big
business to part w ith investment
capital. Big business—for example,
Georgia-Pacific, and the owners o f
the Hines m ill (near Burns)— has
been closing its operations here be
cause they have not been “ p ro fit
able enough” — note, not because
they are losing money, but because
their rates o f p ro fit are not as high
as they might be in other parts o f the
U.S. or in the Third World.
In short, we in Oregon are being
faced with a “ capital strike” — the
owners o f capital are w ithholding
their ca pital, ju st as, in a strike,
workers withhold their labor.
And how do our politicians pro
pose to deal with this capital strike?
Do they advocate strong govern
mental measures, on the grounds
that withholding capital is a danger
to the public interest? N o—they
leave the strong measures to the
Reaganites, who certainly have dealt
harshly with strikes on the part o f
the air controllers and the railway
workers.
Instead, our politicians— Demo
crats as well as Republicans—fill the
air with sweet talk about “ attracting
business” with all sorts o f “ incen
tives,” at the same time as they soft
en to meaninglessness any measures,
such as the plant closures b ill, de
signed to hold business accountable
for the effects on the community of
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TED KULONGOSKI
PUT
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$3.12
VICTOR ATIYEH
Measure 3 opposition
ly on the people and to fight back
offers no alternative
against big business.
Nowhere is our politicians’ timid
Perhaps such courage is too much
ity more evident than in the way
to expect from our current crop o f
they oppose Ballot Measure 3 (the
politicians, even our “ liberal” and
1 (6 percent property tax limitation).
“ progressive” Democrats. After all,
Alm ost every p o litic ia n , from
as Russell Sadler points out (Ore
school superintendents to both can gonian Forum, Oct. 25). "D u rin g
didates for governor, has pointed,
the 1970s, the supposedly.. .a n ti
correctly, to the devastating effect
business Democrats controlling the
o f Measure 3 on social services. A ll
Legislature gave a measure of tax re
well and good. Yet no politician has lief to nearly every class o f business
come fo rth w ith a program that
and commercial property owner”
would provide greatly needed tax re through various loopholes, with the
lie f to residential property owners
result tha t, during the ’ 70s, “ the
and money fo r needed social ser share of property taxes paid by busi
vices.
ness and commercial property own
It is obvious where needed monies ers declined from 67 percent o f the
should come from —from those who levies to 58 percent. Residential
have the most o f it. Tax the rich. I f property taxes jumped from 33 per
you’ re worried that the rich—who cent o f the levies to 42 percent.”
run businesses—would simply raise
Perhaps it is too much to expect
prices, then tax p ro fits , tax d iv i political courage from politicians
dends. (Tax them even more if they
and parties who have b uilt careers
go out-of-state.)
by catering to business—particular
It doesn’ t take a genius to under ly big business—interests. Maybe
stand these basic principles. And
what is needed is a new political vi
surely there is enough legal savvy
sion: o f a politics free from corpor
amongst the politicians to work out
ate domination, and willing to rely
the details. What it does take is on the people in a struggle against
courage—the political courage to re- big business.
Between 5pm ;wd 8am, long distance
rates take a big dive. Which means you can
save yourself a good
A (OMISI I H Al l '
sized chunk of money.
So reach out to
Atlanta tonight.
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(n u r a p S o iM M
Prison overcrow ding explosive
by Asmar Seifuliah
Prison overcrowding in Oregon
has reached massive proportions.
The effective administering o f crim
inal justice and rehabilitative pro
grams has been impeded by the ris
ing number o f felons awaiting trial
and those housed in state in s titu
tions. W hile concern has been
voiced for the need to maintain pub
lic safety through incarceration and
maintenance o f adequate ja il space,
the simple fact o f the matter is that
there isn’ t any room available fo r
new commitments. County jails are
filled across the state, court dockets
are backlogged and many counties
are not prosecuting certain crimes.
Nationally, prison populations in
creased by a record 12.1 percent in
1981. Recent reports conclude that
over 385,000 individuals are pre
sently confined in state and federal
institutions, a figure in addition to
the estimated 158,000 persons who
are held in custody in A m erica’ s
3,500 local jails on any given day.
The record number 385,000 repre
sents an astonishing 70 percent in
crease in just twelve years. Current
ly there are 154 individuals serving
time in prison fo r every 100,000
U.S. citizens, a figure which repre
sents the highest imprisonment rate
in the 56 years data has been com
piled in this area. During the first
quarter o f 1982 the annual growth
rate in state prisons increased 18 per
cent; nationally a 13.7 percent in
crease is expected which represents a
13.2 percent increase in 1981 ’ s rec-
ord growth rate.
The surrounding causes fo r th io
c o u n try’ s prison p opulation in *
crease are the trend toward manda
tory sentencing laws. D uring the
past 5 years, 37 states have adopted
mandatory sentencing laws and 11
have enacted determinate sentencing
statutes. Others have adopted a no
prisoner-parole policy. More people
are being arrested and convicted,
longer prison time served, judges
are assessing stiffer penalties as an
interpretation o f public opinion. A
poll conducted in 1980 showed that
Analysis
83 percent o f the people questioned
fe lt that the courts were too soft
with criminals, which represents a
30 percent increase of those answer
ing in the affirmative in 1972.
The Oregon prison scene is reflec
tive o f the national picture. State in
stitutions are at maximum capacity;
prisoners are being housed in every
possible space. Normal designed ca
pacity (476) at the Oregon State
Correctional In stitu tio n has been
exceeded by twice the number (1032)
o f prisoners. Oregon State Peniten
tiary has a designed capacity o f 1107
and its count floats at 1500 plus.
The effects o f prison overcrowd
ing are accelerated rates o f prisoner
suicide, inmate violence in the form
o f murder or homosexual rape, and
a general breakdown in service,
treatment and discipline. The tragic
The Liberty Bell was cast in England in 1752 for the
Pennsylvania Statehouse.
1980 prison rio t in New Mexico is
indicative o f what could happen in
Oregon and elsewhere—i f answers
aren’t found soon.
In 1980 Federal Judge James
Burns ruled that Oregon’ s prison
system was unconstitutionally over
crowded. His ru lin g was subse
quently appealed by the state and
the case was returned to Judge
Burns for reconsideration. The sec
ond tria l—Gapps vs. Atiyeh/W est
vs. A tiyeh—is nearing completion.
November 4, 1982 w ill be the last
hearing in a litigation that spans two
years. State Corrections officials
and prisoners await Judge Burns’
decision. The need for a population-
reduction order is apparent to all
concerned. I f Judge Burns rules that
everything is a ll rig h t w ith in the
Oregon prison system then there will
certainly be chaos and violence in
the future. Public concern fo r the
premature release o f dangerous
criminals is justified, but that con
cern must not lead us down the road
o f dehumanization through incar
ceration. We don’ t need crime fac
tories or warehouses for blacks and
poor people. While public concern
and safety are priorities for any civi
lized n atio n — the ideals and stan
dards that this country has set as its
mandate must not be denied to seg
ments o f society. To work toward
anything less is beneath the dignity
o f Am erica. Solutions must be
found, but initially we must all con
cede that what we have isn’ t w ork
ing.
e
Maracas were invented by the Taino Indians, Puerto
Rico’s first inhabitants.
About 57 percent of Americans say they believe in
UFOs.
A cold spot — Mount Washington in New Hampshire
—clocked winds at 231 miles per hour one April day in
1934.
We do not do business with South Afrlce.
American State
Bank AN INMPENOENT BANK
Head Office
2 7 37 N. E. Union
Portland. Oregon 97212
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I CHRISTMAS SPECIAL
¡8
§
The Board o f the Legal Services
Corporation, the agency that pro
vides legal services to the poor, has
named Donald P. Bagard, the law
yer o f a food processing co rp ora
tion, its president. A fter a long and
heated meeting, in which the board
was accused of not meeting its duty
to serve the poor, the board chose
Bagard, 41, director o f litigation o f
Stokely-Van Camp, Inc.
Nearly 150 legal aid supporters at
the meeting voiced outrage at the se
lection. “ He may be an expert in
pork and beans law, but what the
hell does he know about poverty
law?” shouted Denison Ray, direct
or o f Legal Services o f North Caro
lina.
Bagard was one o f five finalists
from 150 applicants. He had been
elim inated fro m consideration in
June but his application was revived
when rumors that Robert J. D'Ago
stino or A lfre d Regnery would be
selected. D ’ Agostino, a University
o f Delaware law professor, caused
an uproar when, while working in
the Justice Department, he wrote a
memoraandum called racially insen
sitive. Regnery, a Justice Depart
ment lawyer, wrote a report in 1980
that the corporation should be abol
ished.
The eleven-member b o a r'' was
appointed by Ronald Reagan, who
has unsuccessfully urged Congress
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to abolish the corporation. AU were
appointed while Congress is in re
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closing plants.
Our politicians seem to be ignor
ant o f the truth that when you are
being attacked, you need to fight
back.
I t ’s not as if there aren’t ways to
fight back against the capital strike:
•Strong plant closure legislation
—involving long advance-notice re
quirements (before a plant closes),
making funds available for buy-outs
o f closed plants by their workers
and communities, and opening o f
corporate books to prove the un-
p ro fita b ility big business often
claims as reasons for shutting down
—has been proposed. But our politi
cians—notably Kulongoski— have
backed away from such measures as
too tough on business.
•M illions o f dollars leave the state
every year in the form o f dividends
to the east coast finance houses who
own the “ public” utilities: not one
peep out o f the politicia ns do we
hear in protest; not one suggestion
that the people of the state, who af
ter all pay the rates, have a right to
have that capital reinvested in the
state.
•A state bank, using capital d i
verted fro m out-of-state finance
houses as suggested above, state re
tirem ent funds, and our tax pay
ments (which are deposited in some
bank while w aiting to be spent),
could invest millions in the state and
undercut the capital strike. But our
politicians—again notably K ulon
goski—have backed away from such
plans, no doubt out o f fear of alien
ating banking interests who
contribute to their campaigns.
The irony in this policy o f coaxing
capital out o f big business through
“ incentives” is that it has little
chance o f success. Nine states out o f
ten, from Georgia to Texas, ninety
countries out o f 100, from South
Korea to South Africa, are compet
ing for that same investment capital.
Very few w ill win it. Those are aw
fully long odds to base an economic
recovery on.
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