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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 25, 2002)
December 25, 2002 (Ehe ^ortlaith (ßbseruer Page A 4 O pinion Opinion articles do not necessarily reflect or represent the views o f The Portland Observer 3 E o i T o The Portland Observer S USPS 9 5 9 -6 8 0 T Established 1970 A 4 7 4 7 NE M a rtin Lu ther King, Jr. Blvd., F F Portland. OR 9 7 2 1 1 k - i n - C h i c f , P C K E u b l is h e r A T I V E E d it o A » s s o c ia t e M 4 n E d it o » Wynde Dyer Michael Leighton D is T iim r itu i The Portland Observer welcomes freelance submissions. Manuscripts and photographs should be clearly labeled and will be returned if accompanied by a self addressed envelope. All created design display ads become the sole property of the newspaper and cannot be used in other publications or personal usage without the written consent of the general manager, unless the client has purchased the composition of such ad. © 1996 THE PORTLAND OBSERVER ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART W ITHOUT PERM ISSION IS PROHIBITED. D I » E C T O K Paul Neufeldt Charles H. Washington W » IT E K , 4 c f. * P H O TO G R A P H E » David Plechl Mark Washington The Portland Observer-Oregon’s Oldest Multicultural Publication--is a member of the National Newspaper Association-Founded in 1885, and The National Advertising Repre sentative Amalgamated Publishers, Inc, New York, NY, and The West Coast Black Publishers Association • Serving Portland and Vancouver. P osthastcr : Send address changes to Portland Observer PO Box 3 1 3 7 , Portland, OR 9 7 2 0 8 __________P e rio d ic a l Postage paid In P o rtla n d , OR 1 S u b scrip tio n s are $ 6 0 .0 0 p e ry e a r__________ 5 0 8 2 8 8 0 0 3 3 • FAX 5 0 8 2 8 8 0 0 1 5 • EMAIL: news@poitlandobserver.com subscriDtion@Dortlandobsenrer.com ads@eQrtlandQbsbiVbr.CQm R e s o lv e to b e a M e n to r F ig h tin g H igh A u to In su ra n ce Pay as you drive plan could low er rates for m any by C hristine H agerbaumer Share what you know with the next generation T om N elson W hen you were grow ing up, was there som eone— a fam ily m em ber, teacher, coach, clergy, or neighbor— who encouraged you, showed you the ropes, and helped you become who you are today? You can share what you know w ith the n ex t g e n e ra tio n by m entoring a young person. W hat better way to start the New Year? If you’ve previously considered volunteering as a m entor, why not kick o ff 2003 by taking the step? With so many Oregon families under economic stress, we need everyone’s help to prepare all of our children for productive and fulfilling lives. To those o f you who already by nies could offer similar payment options. A single working mother who takes her children to daycare, does the grocery shopping, and lugs her clothes to the laundromat has a tough decision. She can try to make do without a car or she can buy a clunker and risk driving it uninsured because coverage is expensive. The pay- as-you-drive option would make insur ance more affordable for her. A pay-as-you-drive option would also reward people for doing the right thing. Driving less reduces accidents, cuts pol lution, and diminishes the need for expen sive new road capacity. Anyone driving less than the Oregon average of 12,000 miles per car per year might save money with mileage-based insurance. Drivers in a usage-based pilot program offered by Progressive Insur ance in Texas saved an average o f 25 percent on their premiums. Even heavy drivers might consider cutting miles if they reaped greater The average household spends more than $ 1,000 annually on auto insurance. Many lower-income households find this high price tag unaffordable, forcing them to forego owning an automobile altogether, drive uninsured or shift scarce dollars away other important needs, like housing and food. A new insurance concept - pay-as- you-drive insurance - could help increase insurance affordability. Many lower-in- come Oregonians simply don’t put a lot of miles on their cars. An analysis by financial benefits. the Oregon Depart i Low-mileage drivers A low-income in ment of Transporta often receive small dividual who leaves tion found that as the car at home ends incom e in creases, discounts for driving less, up paying the same driving increases. In hut these discounts don’t as a heavy driver for the Portland metro politan area, for ev adequately account for the calendar-based in surance. Why sock ery a d d itio n a l fact that low-mileage it to light drivers who $ 10,000 a household drivers are less likely to he are not on the road at earns each year, that risk of an accident? household drives, on in an accident. That’s the question. averag e, an a d d i — Christine Hagerbaumer, A nd p a y -a s-y o u - tional five miles per Oregon Environmental Council. drive insurance is the day. answer. Low-mileage drivers often receive small You can help bring pay-as-you-drive discounts for driving less, but these dis insurance to O regon. V isit the O regon counts don’t adequately account for the E nvironm ental C ouncil’s w ebsite at fact that low-mileage drivers are less likely w w w .o r c o u n c il.o r g /P o llu tio n / to be in an accident. According to the PA Y D .htm to learn more and pledge Casualty Actuarial Society, reduced mile your support. OEC is talking to the age reduces crash risk, all else being equal. insurance industry and will seek a tax There’s an alternative. credit for com panies that offer mileage- Auto insurance companies could price based insurance in the upcom ing legis coverage in two ways - a yearly rate and lative session. a cents-per-mile option. Like long dis Christine Hagerbaumer is the pro tance telephone companies, which offer gram director fo r the Oregon Environ “unlim ited” calling plans and “per- mental Council. minute” calling plans, insurance com pa are contributing your tim e, energy, and talents to m entor or tutor a child, thank you. Please keep up your good work. And, one more thing: encourage a friend to do the sam e. Mentoring doesn’ t require any spe cial skills. Are you able to listen and empathize? Are you willing to offer friendship, guidance and encourage ment to a kid? If so, then volunteering with a mentoring program may be right for you. A cross the sta te , a g ro w in g num ber o f co m p an ies are sp o n soring program s in w hich em ploy ees serve as m entors and m eet reg u larly w ith young people. E n c o u rag e your com pany to do the sam e. L ikew ise, faith -b ased and civ ic groups are m o b ilizin g their m em bers to w ork w ith children and all m entoring program s are s e e k in g v o lu n te e rs from the larg er com m unity as w ell. Typically, mentoring programs ask for a one-year commitment and require an average of about an hour a week. In choosing a program, be sure to inquire about the amount of training and ongoing support that you will receive. To become a mentor, or to learn more about more than 125 mentoring programs throughout Oregon, con ta c t O reg o n M en to rs at w w w .o rm e n to rs .o rg . O r, call tollfree, 1-866-450-4040. And, by the way, who mentored you? Tom Nelson is the executive director for Oregon Mentors r--------------------------------------I ! 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