September 24, 2008
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Opinion articles do not necessarily represent the views o f the
Portland Observer. We welcome reader essays, photos and story
ideas. Submit to news@portlandobserver.com.
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Bail Out the
Unemployed
Time to give average
Americans some support
by J udge G reg
‘o & H .
f
E C o tto tff iS T s ^ o R S T
S waps Since -rue
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who drive our economy.
The unem ployment rate in this country is just over 6 percent; the
highest it has been since 2003. Since January, more than605,000jobs
have been cut from the economy. Because the jo b market is tight,
many job seekers find themselves out o f work for many months.
Unemployment benefits typically last 26 weeks, or six months.
In June, Congress extended the length o f time a recipient may
collect benefits to 39 weeks. For those who find themselves out of
work much longer, losing what may be their only source o f income
could result in financial disaster.
Considering the number o f currently unem ployed people in this
country, it is not unlikely that this could create a chain reaction that
not only affects individuals and families but also the nation's
economy.
National lawmakers must work quickly and extend the length of
unemployment benefits for out o f work Americans. If there is no
extension in place by October, 8(X),(XX) unemployed people will stop
receiving their much-needed benefits.
There is currently a bill in front o f Congress that would extend
unemployment benefits for up to 46 weeks. States with high unem
ployment rates, like Michigan and California, will have the pow er to
extend benefits for up to a year.
W hen large companies like AIG. Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and
Bear Stearns started to crumble, the feds stepped in and either
facilitated or sponsored their bailouts. The American people are
faltering and need the federal government to step in and throw them
a life line.
African Americans, in particular, need support. U nemployment
has risen dramatically among our women. Since most of our families
are run by single women, we need to work to ensure that they - and
theirchildren-have some incomecoming in while they look for work.
Lift your voice and exercise the poweryou haveasavotingcitizen.
Contact yourelected officials and dem and they support an extension
of unem ployment benefits. Tell your family and friends to do the
same.
Judge Greg Mathis is vice president o f Rainbow PUSH and a
board member o f the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.
R
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NORTH PORTLAND
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‘More of the Same’ Isn’t Change
by D onai . ii
K a il
John M cCain is running for
the presidency because, he says,
it’s tim e for a change.
On the face o f it, th a t's bizarre.
After all. McCain is a Republican.
Republicans have occupied the
W hite House 20 o f the past 28
years. During much, if not most,
o f that tim e they’ve also co n
trolled the House and Senate.
So if you believe it’s lime fo ra
ch an g e, it’s R ep u b lican s you
should w ant to ch an g e from.
Right?
Apparently not. Mr. McCain
says the country is in trouble And
has gone so far as to run an ad
saying, "w e ’re worse o ff than we
were four years ago.”
M akes your head spin, d o esn ' t
it? Som ehow aeam paign rallying
cry o f "W e’ve done a lousy job;
re-elect us" doesn’t seem to make
a lot o f sense.
Which would be true if McCain
were running as a Republican, but
he's not. H e’s running as a “mav
erick," that is, a candidate who
carries no man’s (or party’s ) brand.
And a m averick M c C ain ’s
been. H e’s often opposed Presi
dent G eorge W. Bush.
Except, o f course, on the inva
sion o f Iraq, w hich he prom oted
before the fact and has supported
w ithout fail ever since.
And Bush tax cuts that How
We need answers and action
by M.
L inda J aramillo
N e w s re p o r ts are
Hooded with information
about the econom ic im
pact o f the collapse o f
m ajorW all Street firms.
As I read and listen to
com m entaries by econom ic ex
perts, 1 am struck by the m agni
tude o f the losses that may reach
the trillion-dollar mark. It goes
way beyond the usual stock m ar
ket bedlam on Wall Street. For
exam ple, this m orning I listened
to a public radio report about the
huge econom ic impact being felt
in places as far aw ay as China as
well us on main streets in cities
across the U.S.
We have only begun to learn
how the collapse o f these major
giants will affect the average
A m erican. R egulations were in
place and m eant to protect us
from a repeat of the crash that our
In Gratitude
To my family, friends and con
stituents who. in so many wonder
ful ways, shared their heartfelt ex
pression o f love and concern be
fore and after my husband's pass-
parents and grandparents
ex p e rien c ed d u rin g the
G reat Depression. W hen
many o f these regulations
were dropped and the m ar
ket was allow ed to reign
unchecked, eco n o m ists'
w arnings were ignored.
Thecom plexitiesof Wall Street
finances are not something that
most of us are familiar with. How
ever, millions o f Americans have
and will experience first hand the
far reaching damage of the sub
prime mortgage collapse that is
now extending into prime mort
gages.
It hit those who invested in
their first hom e with the prom ise
o f affo rd ab le housing. W hile
som e m ortgage com panies over
ex ten d e d th em selv es as they
sought big profits by making loans
to unqualified buyers, many bor
rowers were qualified and simply
ingonA ug.26. The Outpouring of
support during this time has been
amazing. Thank you all from the
bottom of my heart.
As most of you know, Ted was
my partner and friend in life forover
37 years. Sometimes we do not
A REACH Community Development Property
5204 N. I nterstate A ve .
97I.2S S .4444
V
Patton
term im pacts are still unfolding.
It is a bleak picture indeed and
I must adm it that thinking about it
can thrust us into despair. Rather
than giving way to our discour
agem ent. we must rise to the chal
lenge and educate ourselves so
that we can ask critical questions.
During this m ajor election sea
son. these are questions we should
ask candidates running for state
and federal public office:
How w ould you restore stabil
ity to the financial'system ?
W hat safeguards are needed
to p rev en t the rec u rren c e o f
crashes like this one?
How would you prom ote home
ow nership w hile m aintaining a
sound m ortgage industry?
Wall S treet’s business is our
business. We need answ ers and
action.
realize how many lives one person
has touched in their lifetime and
Ted touched many. I see that more
each day. I appreciate beyond
words the prayers, donations to
Ted's choice o f charitable organi
zations, cards, flowers, emails,
phone calls and to Cafe Today for
an abundance of wonderful ftxxl
served after the service, many
thanks.
To my angels who provided
transportation, ran errands and
provided me a soft shoulder, my
utmost gratitude. And to the un
sung heroes who cleaned the Sen
ate Cham ber afterthe fire andorga-
nized and participated in Ted's m e
morial service, my deepest thanks.
M. Linda Jaramillo is execu
tive minister for Justice and Wit
ness ministries in the United
Church o f Christ.
Sen. Jackie Winters
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doing thei r best to work out ways
to realize the A m erican dream.
Some have had their hom e values
drop so dram atically that they no
longer even hope to sell them.
This whole situation began with
a serious impact on lower income
people. It has now extended into
the middle class and upper class.
E ntire h o u sin g d ev elo p m en ts
across the country - from Califor
nia to New York and Florida to
A lask a-areem p ty . Com munities
are in transition while families of
every income bracket are facing
job loss and home foreclosures.
H undreds o f th o u sa n d s o f
w orkers are losing their jo b s as
com pany after com pany is im
pacted by the crisis; unem ploy
ment is rising across the economy.
Not only are jo b s lost, people are
losing their investm ents in hard
earned retirem ent funds and other
benefits such as health care. As
the econom y slow s and jo b s dis
appear, the broader and longer
•
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surplus.
- T h e stock m arket was at an
all-time high.
-P ro sp erity bloom ed, even for
the m iddle class.
—O ur elected officials were
expected to honor the C onstitu
tion.
- W e d id n ’t torture people. W e
had the respect o f the world.
The Republicans changed all
o f that. Perhaps their cam paign
slogan should be:
“Elect us and y o u ’ll have it as
good as you had it w hen D em o
crats ran the country.”
T hat w o n ’t be the slogan, of
course. The Republicaneampaign
m achine is too slick for that.
Catering
This brand new apartment community
is now accepting applications.
Income restrictions apply.
t=)
Opening January 2009.
m ost copiously to the richest
am ong us.
And energy policy where his
"drill here,drill now ,drill forever”
appro ach is in d istin g u ish ab le
from the Bush-Cheney philoso
phy.
A n d a w o m a n ’s r ig h t to
choose, w hich he denies.
And stem cell research, which
he opposes.
O utside o f those few trivial
issues, h e 's gone his ow n w ay—
-nearly 10 percent o f the time.
A ctually, R epublicans have a
track record as agents o f c hange.
C onsider the nation when G eorge
Bush was elected in 2000:
- W e had an annual budget
The Far Reaching Effects of Wall Street
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The federal governm ent has spent billions of
taxpayer dollars bailing out or assisting in the bail
outs o f some o f the country's largest corpora
tions.
Insisting their support was intended to stop a
complete collapse o f the nation's financial market,
the feds dipped into its reserves, despite criticism
from experts that the bailouts were only prolonging the inevitable.
Where, then, is the federal governm ent's support of the average
American'.’ In these tough econom ic times, people in this country are
greatly in need assistance. It is time for our nation's leaders to stop
acting on behalf o f corporate interest and work for those individuals
Now
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SUMMERS WINTER
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Get it while
its hot!
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Providing Insurance and Financial Services
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Michael E Harper
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503-221-3050
Fax 503-227-8757
I