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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 8, 2000)
N o v e m b e r 8, 2 00 0 Page A 4 (The ^lortlauò ©baeruer ® Opinion ■MS Articles do not necessarily reflect or represent the views of 3T4|e ^lortlattb (i)liBertier MMM Blame the Government for the Great Depression B y L awrence W. R eed Wlje o rtla n h © b seru er The bottom dropped out o f the stock market on October 24, 1929, thereby earning that date the histori cal moniker "Black Thursday.” Thus began the longest and deepest eco nomic decline in U.S. history. Oregonians endured the hard ships ofthe economic malaise, though the state was not hit to the same degree as others whose dominant employers were auto, textile, and steel companies. Even so, Governor Meier summed it up in 1934, “Oregon is dead broke.” As we approach the anniversary o f Black Thursday, the question USPS 959-680 Established 1970 looms: could we experience another economic calamity o f such magni tude? The answer: only if we allow government to pursue the same ruin ous policies it imposed during the 1920s and 1930s. Throughout the 1800s and prior to the Great Depression, Americans experienced at least six major eco nomic downturns. Most were over in two years, none lasted more than four. The common thread linking them : disastrous manipulation o f the money and credit supply by govern ment. Most economists now under stand that the stock market did not cause the 1929 crash. The crash was a symptom o f wildly erratic shifts in the nation’s money supply. The Fed eral Reserve System was the primary culprit, having stimulated a boom with dirt-cheap interest rates and easy money in the early‘20s. By 1929, the central bank had jacked up rates so high that it choked o ff the boom and forced a reduction in the money sup ply by one-third between 1929 and 1933. Like the serious economic down turns before it, disastrous manipula tion o f the money supply sparked the Great Depression. However, theGreat Depression lasted 12 years - three times longer than any o f its predeces sors - because the government com pounded its monetary errors with a series o f harm fill interventions. In 1930, Congress took a reces sion and turned it into the Great De pression. The Smoot-Hawley T ariff Act, the most protectionist legisla tion in U.S. history, raised tariffs so high that A m erica’s borders were virtually closed to foreign goods. A vicious international trade war com menced, setting the stage for World W arll. President Hoover signed the Revenue Act o f 1932, which doubled the income tax for most Americans. To make matters worse, exemptions were lowered; the earned income tax credit was abolished; corporate and estate taxes were raised; and new gift, gasoline and auto taxes were imposed. Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt campaigned against the Republican Hoover on a platform o f less govern ment. Unfortunately, when the victo rious Roosevelt took office he gave America much more. His New Deal enacted new taxes, raised old ones (he once proposed a 99.5 percent tax rate on incomes over $ 100,000), pun ished investment, and smothered business with red tape and regula tions. STA FF E d it o r P C in h ie f , u b l is h e r Charles H. Washington Close The Book On Hate B y M arian W right E delman E d i T o R Larry J. Jackson, Sr. B u s in e s s M anager Gary Ann Taylor A sst . P ublisher Michael Leighton C o py E d it o r Joy Ramos C r e a t iv e D ir e c t o r Robert Parker 4 7 4 7 NE M artin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. Portland, OR 9 7 2 1 1 5 03 -2 8 8 -0 0 3 3 Fax 5 0 3 -2 8 8 -0 0 1 5 e-mail news@portlandobserver.com sdbecdption@portlarxiobeerver.com ads@portiandobserver.com P ostmaster : Send address changes to Portland Observer PO Box 3 1 3 7 Portland, OR 9 7 2 0 8 Periodical Postage paid in Portland, OR Subscriptions are $60.00 per year E A D L I N E S OR ALL SUBMITTED MATERIALS: ARTICLES: Monday by 5 p . m . ADS: Friday by noon rhe Portland ( «»server w c Icomes tree lance submissions M anuscripts and photographs should be c learly labeled and w ill be returned faccom paniedbyaself addressed envelope All created design d isplay ads becom e the sole property o f the new spaper and cannot be used in other publ ications or persona I usage w ithout the w ritten consent o f the general m anager, unless the client has purchased the com position o f such ad © 1 9 9 6 T H E P O R T L A N D O B SERVER A LL RIGHTS RESERVED, REPRODUCTION IN W HO LE OR IN PART W ITHO UT PERMISSION IS PRO HIBITED. The Portland O bserver -O regon s O ldest M u lticu ltu ral P u b lic a tio n -is a m em ber o f the N ational N ew spaper Association-Fou nded in 18 8 $ ,and The N ational Advertising Represen tative Am algam ated Publishers. Inc. N e w Y o tk . N Y . and The W est f'o a s t B lack Publishers Association- Serving Portland and Vancouver Barnes &Noble, Inc. and the Anti- D efam ation League have begun “Close the Book on Hate," an innova tive joint campaign meant to help break the cycle o f hate through read ing. The cam paign’s goal is to gain respect for all types o f differences, and especially to fight racism, anti- Semitism, and homophobia. “Close the Book on Hate” is using books and related programs held at Bames & Noble store to give children, parents, teachers, caregivers, and civic lead ers new resources to combat preju dice and discrimination in America, and in doing this, the campaign is finding new ways o f teaching one of the crucial lessons all o f our children need to learn. Black parents and parents o f chil dren from other minority groups have always understood first-hand just how pervasive hatred and prejudice still are in our culture. What Black adult cannot regurgi tate the feelings o f rage and resent ment we often felt from having to “stay in our place,” watch our words, cover our backs, and hide our fear in segregated America? W hat parent is not utterly devastated by being forced to watch his or her child un dergo similar experiences? Any adult who has comforted a child who was teased or hurt because something about her is “different” understands how early prejudice and hate can leave emotional and physical scars. And anyone who has seen these hurtful behaviors coming from chil dren knows how early children can absorb the prejudice and hate from the adults around them. Fortunately, the opposite is also true: just as children learn negative lessons about difference in their homes and communities, they can leant acceptance, tolerance, and cel ebration o f diversity the same way. Teaching tolerance and respect early and repeated is so important. The “Close the Book on Hate" campaign is showing children how they can learn to appreciate and respect the differences between themselves and others. A Key feature o f the campaign is the leauge's innovative new book "Hate Hurts: How Children Learn a n d U nlearn P re ju d ic e ." c o authored by Caryl Stem La-Rosa and Ellen Hotheimer Bettmann and pub lished by Scholastic, Inc., the book is a guide for adults and children. It contains practical tips, role-playing suggestions, and other advice for teaching children o f all age levels on how to respond to di fferences in posi tive, constructive ways; how to iden tify and address unacceptable be havior; and how to respond to other people’s prejudice in ways that pre serve their own well-being and self esteem. Hate Hurts is available in book stores. Bames & Noble stores around the county will have special displays featuring Hate Hurts alongside other works o f fiction, non-fiction, photog raphy, and poetry for children and adults emphasizing the importance o f valuing diversity. Bames & Noble stores will also be distributing the campaign’s free brochure Close the Book on Hate; 101 Ways to Combat Prejudice which gives tip on how to fight prejudice at home, in schools, at the workplace, in religious congrega tions, and in the larger community. It also includes response strategies that can be used when acts o f bigotry happen and suggestions for how communities can plan ahead to see that these incidents are recognized and are never tolerated. Finally, it features a reading list o f books for children and adults-the same kinds o f excellent books, which will be fea tured on the store displays. The Children’s Defense Fund is just one o f many national allies sup porting this important campaign, and we applaud Bames & Noble and the Anti-Defamation League for their partnership and vital work. Teaching our children to treat others as they wish to be treated is one o f the most fundamental values we adults can pass on. We would have a different country and world if this lesson was learned and followed. This campaign is a wonderful step in teaching this lesson and closing the book on hate for good. Implications of the Middle East Crisis B y T he R ev , J esse L. J ackson Innocent lives have already been lost in the Middle East. The escalat ing spiral o f violence and hatred has begun again. Even as we urge the leaders o f the region and the world to act now to end the violence before it is too late, we must not ignore the implications o f this crisis. The human tragedy that would occur if this crisis escalates is be yond estimation. In the modern world, this is not simply a regional crisis, but a global one. Oil prices are already spiking across the w orld. If the violence escalates, it will take a toll not only on those directly involved, but also on people across the world. As economies are hit with the in creased price o f fuel, the poorer coun tries and the poorer people in all coun tries will suffer the most. Our country needs to make a fun damental commitment to develop ment o f alternative energy sources, greater energy efficiency and con servation. For too long, the Congress has blocked sensible progress in this area. And surely, the nation needs investment in alternative energy and conservation, far more than the wealthy few need another tax break. Second, if yesterday, one-sixth of our Social Security savings were in the market, the losses would have been staggering. 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