April 2. 2008
Page A4
O pinici
Opinion articles do not necessarily reflect or represent the views o f The Portland Observer
U S Citizens Need
Financial Bail Out, Too
Government's
not just for
corporations
Bt Ji ix ; e G reg M a i his
In an unprecedented
m ove, the Federal Re­
serve Bank re ce n tly ap­
proved a loan o f up to
$30 b illio n to fin a n c ia l
in s titu tio n JP M o rg a n
Chase fo r the purchase
o f s tru g g lin g in v e s t­
ment house Bear Sterns. T his is
believed to be the largest g o v ­
ernm ent advance on record to a
single com pany.
By b a ilin g out Sterns, the Fed
As the economy
remains stagnant,
more and more
Americans are
losing their jobs
and struggling to
keep their homes.
has, p o te n tia lly, stopped a total
collapse o f the c o u n try 's fin a n ­
cia l market. N ice ly done. But who
w ill rescue the m illio n s o f A m e ri­
cans stru g g lin g in this slowed-
dow n econom y?
A ll signs are p o in tin g to a re­
cession. The question is not i f it
w ill happen, but when and how
long it w ill last. W e ’ re already
seeing signs; the real estate m ar­
ket has stalled, the home fo re c lo ­
sure rate is up 57 percent from
2007 and the unem ploym ent rate
sits at ju s t under 5 percent o v e r­
all. For blacks, that num ber jum ps
to 8.3 percent.
As the economy remains stag­
nant, m ore and m ore Am ericans
arc losing th e ir jo b s and strug­
g lin g to keep th e ir homes. The
o n ly support the average c it i­
zen has received is a la cklu ste r
e c o n o m ic 's tim u lu s '
package that w ould put,
on average, $600 hack
in to th e ir hands. That
c e rta in ly is n 't enough
to keep the bank from
fo re clo sin g on a home.
E xactly w ho is the
g o v e rn m e n t lo o k in g
out for?
H is to ric a lly , national reces­
sions take black A m e rica fro m
bad to worse. Even when the
econom y is on high, the A f r i ­
c a n -A m e ric a n un e m p lo ym e n t
rate is d isp ro p o rtio n a te ly higher
than that o f w hites. Some ana­
lysts predict that a recession
w o u ld k ic k the o ve ra ll unem ­
ploym ent rate up more than six
percent in the next year. For
A fric a n A m ericans, that n u m ­
ber w o u ld be expected to s k y ­
rocket to 11 percent.
T o be fa ir, the Fed needed to
step in to save Sterns; its c o l­
lapse co u ld have set o f f a chain
o f events that w o u ld have nega­
tiv e ly im pacted the fin a n c ia l
m arket and, u ltim a te ly , you.
H ow ever, saving big business
should not be this g o ve rn m en t’ s
Umm, Maybe I’ll Pass on the Hamburger
Food-safety system needs fixing
nv S teve S i
itan
In late February, the U.S. Dept.
o f A g riculture recalled 143 m illio n
pounds o f frozen beef from H all-
mark/W estland Meat Company in
C alifornia— the largest beef recall
o n ly goal.
In the c o m in g weeks and
months, the federal governm ent
must q u ic k ly w o rk to develop
and im plem ent 'b a il out" plans
that serve the average A m e ri­
can. F o re c lo s u re p ro te c tio n
plans that b e n e fit the hom e-
ow ner, not ju s t the loan c o m ­
pany, are a good place to start.
in U.S. history.
The recall came after the H u­
mane Society posted a graphic
video o f cattle abuse at the plant, a
supplier to more than 100,000
school lunch and ch ild care pro­
grams in 36 states.
The abuse included beating and
shocking anim als w ith electric-
prods to force them to stand fo r the
b rie f time that U SD A inspectors
were in the plant to ce rtify them as
"healthy" fo r slaughter.
The U S D A is now investigating
to determine whether Westland
meat iscontaminated by pathogens,
including salmonella, E.coliO 157:H7
and BSE (mad cow), that occur more
frequently in animals unable to walk.
Judge Greg Mathis is national
rice president o f Rainbow PUSH
and a national board member o f
the Southern Christian le a d e r­
ship Conference.
C lear C hoice D ebt R elief
Oregon Based Company
The Westland incident, u nfor­
Credit Cards • Collections • Medical Bills
Unsecured Loans • Judgments
by
M artha B i
rk
I live in New Mexico,
where every other person
is running fo r political o f­
fice, thanks to the fruit-bas­
ket-like turnover created by
503-594-1560 o r
1-888-594-1560
the retirement o f Republi­
can Sen. Pete Domenici. w ho's been
aging in place on Capitol H ill since
1973.
The debate between Republican
aspirants for the Senate - both cur­
rent members o f the U.S. House — is
already heating up. In their first en­
counter. they predictably tried to
"outconservative" each other.
Heather W ilson, representing ur­
ban Albuquerque, labeled herself a
“ commonsense" conservative. She
attacked Steve Pearce, a downstater
with more rural constituents, for his
www.ClettrChoiceDebt.ct ,m
Steve Crawford
“The State of Hip Hop:
Hip Hop's Influence on Society"
Guest Lecturer: Marc Lamont Hill, Phi)
Thursday, A p ril 10,2008
•
7:00 p.m.
Reed C o lle g e -V o llu m Lecture Hall
3203 SE Woodstock Blvd.
SJ r L
IB
V
Parents shouldn Y have to
worry about the meat their
children are eating in school. |
As the industry has co n so li­
dated, larger plants process more
cows than ever before. In the case
o f ground beef, one sick cow can
contaminate thousands o f pounds
o f hamburger. O lder dairy cattle,
more prone to disease, are often
used fo r ground beef. Contamina­
tion in a single plant can affect
consumers all over the country.
W h ile contamination outbreaks
It’s not ‘socitilized medicine’
If you would like to learn more about
eliminating you're debt within 24-36
months call for a free consultation
Ron Rasberry
dation.
Last year, more than 30 m illio n
pounds o f ground beef were pulled
o ff the market in 20 recalls because
o f possible E. coli contamination.
nerabilities, the U S D A wants to
implement a "risk-based" system.
The agency w ould send inspectors
to plants where management be­
lieves contam ination is most like ly
to occur, and reduces inspections
Steve Suppan is a policy ana­
lyst at the Institute fo r Agriculture
and Trade Policy, an organiza­
tion that promotes “resilient fa m ­
ily farms, rural communities and
ecosystems. ”
What Would ‘Universal’ Be Like?
Over whelmed by debt?
Debt Relief
tunately, is emblematic o f a food-
safety system cracking at its foun­
have increased, our food safety elsewhere.
But fo r this approach to have
inspection system has declined.
In a nutshell, the current system any chance o f success, the U SD A
has not invested in an adequate needs not o n ly more inspectors
number o f inspectors and has not and better technology, but more
equipped those inspectors w ith .knowledge o f possible risks. In
December, the O ffice o f the Inspec­
state-of-the art technology.
But perhaps most im portantly, to r G eneral re p o rte d that the
the U S D A relies on the meat and U S D A ’ s Food Safety Inspection
Service had neither sufficient data
nor enough food safety assess­
ments o f slaughterhouses and meat
processors to implem ent a risk-
based inspection program.
Parents shouldn’ t have to w orry
about the meat their children are
eating in school.
The horrors revealed in the H u­
poultry processors, instead o f fed­
eral o fficia ls, to control the sam­ mane Society video and the anxiety
pling o f meat products to detect o f parents must not become w ide­
spread and recurrent features o f
contamination.
To remedy these systemic v u l­ our food-supply system.
M a n 111mom llill. I'll I > a ssista n t p io tc sso i .7 I rban I ,ln, m um at Ic in p lc
I
University, is one o f the youngest members o f the growing body o f “Hip-Hop
Intellectuals” in the country His work, which covers topics sin It as hip-hop culture, politics,
sexuality education, and religion, has appeared in numerous journals, magazines, books, anti
anthologies. He has lectured widely and provides regular commentary for media outlets like the
Washington Post, New York limes. Essence magazine, NPR. CNN. MSNBC. Court TV. and Pox
News. Hill is the author o f the forthcoming book Beats, Rhymes, and Classroom l.ife: Hip-Hop.
Pedagogy and the Politics o f Identity and is co-editor o f Media. I.earning, and Sites o f Possibility
In 2005, Ebony magazine named him one of Am ericas top .U) Pluck leaders under d() years old.
This event is sponsored hy Reed College Black Men's Group iltM G )
vo te ag a inst e xp a n d in g
children’ s health insurance.
Pearce countered that he is
the “ true" conservative, and
said giving poor kids insur­
ance would be "H illa ry Care
Lite .. .the beginning o f so­
cialized medicine."
W -a-a-i-t a minute. Socialized
medicine? W ith that remark, Pearce
shows he’ s clueless about medical
care, and so are a lot o f other candi­
dates. Not to mention conservative
Rush Limbaugh clones who are out
o f control in the blogosphere, raving
about the government controlling
your private medical decisions.
Maybe they need a little lesson
on what “ socialized m edicine" is -
and is not. And maybe they’ d be
surprised to learn that the United
Stales already has one form o f so­
cialized medicine. But I ’ m jum ping
Choice o f doctors and hospitals
under universal coverage w ould
remain much as it is now - con­
trolled by the type o f plan the in d i­
vidual is covered under —and in no
small part dictated by insurance
companies. In some scenarios, in ­
surance companies w ould be re­
quired to cover pre-existing condi­
tions. stopping the practice o f
“ cherry-picking” only the healthi­
est patients fo r inclusion in their
plans.
Another term we hear a lot about
is “ single payer." Single payer
means a system o f healthcare that
provides universal and comprehen-
sive coverage, w ith the govern­
ment as the insurer issuing the pay­
ments. Everyone's healthcare would
too poor to foot the fu ll b ill.
U niversal coverage does not
mean the government w ould pro­
vide healthcare as a “ w elfare” or
“ entitlem ent" benefit to everyone,
regardless o f income or em ploy­
mary payer. There w ould still be
freedom to choose doctors and
other healthcare professionals, fa­
cilities, and services.
Doctors would remain in private
be mandatory, type o f coverage
w ould be up to the in d ivid u a l.
I
more hassles w ith gatekeepers,
denied coverage, and tryin g to fin d
doctors “ in n etw ork." Ask any se­
nior who has been liberated from
H M O hell and yo u ’ ll see how easy
and popular single payer w ould be
i f everyone had it.
I f “ socialized m edicine" is none
o f these - ju st what the heck is it?
Simple. It's a system o f healthcare
in w hich all health facilities are
owned by the government. D oc­
tors and other healthcare person-
The next time you hear a candidate
hurling “socialized medicine ” around like
a flame-thrower, ask them if they have any
idea what they 're talking about.
ahead.
M any people, including Pearce,
evidently equate “ universal cover­
age," w hich H illa ry C linton does
advocate, w ith the dreaded “ so­
cialized m edicine." Universal co v­
erage means just that - everyone
w ould have health insurance. Some
w ould have it through employers,
some through privately purchased
plans, and some through govern­
ment-subsidized programs i f they're
ment status.
Though having insurance would
m edical practices o r hospitals.
Single payer is what we have now
w ith traditional Medicare. Insur­
ance companies are e lim in a te d -n o
be paid fo r out o f one p u b licly ad­
ministered trust fund (paid fo r by
taxes on both individuals and busi­
ness) w hich w ould replace our cur­
rent m ulti-payer insurance com ­
pany system and its premiums.
In single payer, the government
w ould not be the prim ary provider
o f healthcare. It w ould ju st the p ri­
practice and be paid on a fee-for-
service basis from governm ent
funds, ju st as they're paid now by
insurance companies. The govern­
ment w ould not own o r manage
nel w ork fo r the government and
draw their salaries from the govern­
ment. This is the model used in the
U.S. Veterans A dm inistration and
the armed services, where the gov­
ernment owns the hospitals, and
medical professionals are govern­
ment employees. It works pretty
w ell fo r vets, but red-hot rhetoric
notwithstanding, none o f the can­
didates - nor either po litica l party -
- advocates socializing the entire
medical system o f the United States.
So the next tim e you hear a can­
didate hurling “ socialized m edi­
cin e " around like a name-thrower,
ask them i f they have any idea what
they're talking about.
Martha Burk is author o f “ Your
Money and Your Life: What's at
stake fo r women in 200N and be­
yond. ”
I