Il,r ^lortlanh (Observer Page 6 July 20. 2011 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. New Prices Effective May 1,2010 Martin Cleaning Service Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning Residential & Commercial Services Minimum Service CHG. $45.00 A small distance/travel charge may be applied CARPET CLEANING 2 Cleaning Areas or more $30.00 Each Area Pre-Spray Traffic Areas (Includes: 1 sm all H allway) 1 Cleaning Area (only) $40.00 Includes Pre-Spray Traffic Area (Hallway Exira) Stairs (12-16 stairs - With O th e r Services): $25.00 Area/Oriental Rugs. $25.00 Minimum Area/Oriental Rugs (Wool): $40.00 Minimum Congo Mining, Worker Suicides and Tax Dodging Heavily Soiled Area: The three strikes against Apple Additional $ 10.00 each area by P eter (Requiring Extensive Pre-Spraying) UPHOLSTERY CLEANING Sofa: $69.00 Loveseat: $49.00 Sectional: $109 - $139 Chair or Recliner: $25 - $49 Throw Pillows (With Other Services): $5.00 % ADDITIONAL SERVICES • Area & Oriental Rug Cleaning • Auto/Boat/RV Cleaning • Deodorizing & Pet Odor Treatment • Spot & Stain Removal Service • Scotchguard Protection • Minor Water Damage Services SEE CURRENT FLYER FOR ADDITIONAL PRICES & SERVICES Call for Appointment (503) 281-3949 C erto In college, I c o n sid e re d my A pple laptop a faithful, effective and occasionally even fun machine. A year past gradu­ ation, this co n ­ stant companion to late nights spent studying, working or wasting time has aged into a decrepit device. Like the old Windows hourglass, its col­ orful pinwheel cursor consistently heralds interminable delays. Similarly, my prehistoric mobile phone frequently freezes, drops calls, or prematurely runs out of battery power. Even in those trea­ sured moments when it operates at capacity, it lacks the touch screen, em ail and Internet capabilities today's savvy consumers suppos­ edly demand. By all indications, I'm ripe for an upgrade to a new MacBook, iPhone or iPad. Here's why I'm taking a pass. Apple, like most other electron­ ics companies, makes liberal use of an ore called columbite-tantalite — widely known as coltan — whose electrical retention properties im­ prove the battery lives of electronic devices. While Australia is the world's largest coltan producer, suppliers for Apple and its competitors often prefer to buy their coltan at lower cost from mining operations in war-ravaged eastern Congo. The money from these trans­ actions rarely reaches the min­ ers themselves. Rather, it's fun- neled to Rwandan- and Ugan­ dan-backed rebel groups inside the Congo who control the mines and use the revenues to fund their operations in the world's deadliest conflict since World War II. Promises by the Congolese gov­ ernment to shutter such mines and by Apple to scrutinize its supply chains have rung ineffectual and hollow. This "blood coltan" and other components make their way to China, where contractors assemble products for Apple and virtually every other major electronics com­ pany. Journalist and playwright Mike Daisey visited the Shenzhen, C hina base o f o p e ra tio n s for Foxconn, a Taiwanese manufactur­ ing behemoth who reportedly as­ sembles half of the world's electron­ ics. He reported interviewing work­ ers who often labored for anywhere from 12 to 16 hours straight or longer, standing interminably and finding little compensation for the inevi­ table health problems and unpaid overtime that result from such treat­ ment. He also met dozens of child laborers, who often lived with their coworkers in cramped company dormitories under constant surveil­ lance for any hint of complaint or worker organization. The facility made news last year for a ghastly streak of worker sui­ cides. Today's Foxconn employees are mildly better compensated, but they must agree to sign "no-sui­ cide" pacts with the company — although the complex now features a network of "suicide nets," just in case. Finally, inside the United States, where Apple reaps the benefits of America's taxpayer-funded physi­ cal and legal infrastructure — and makes billions off U.S. consumers — the company has lent its support to the ironically nam ed "Win America" campaign. Supported by several other tax- dodging corporations, Apple is lob­ bying Congress to let the company repatriate and keep some $4 billion in profits currently stashed in off­ shore tax havens. This is money that would otherwise be owed to the U.S. government. At a moment of fiscal austerity, when Congress and state legislatures are gutting pro­ grams that assist our most vulner­ able citizens, Apple— like all corpo­ rations and billionaires that have benefited handsomely from the U.S. system — should pay its fair share. Industry analysts have estimated the total production costs for iPhones and iPads at a small fraction of the company's revenues, espe­ cially in light of those lucrative m onthly contracts and endless "app" sales. Apple can hardly argue that such abusive practices are necessary to its bottom line. But even if they were, do you really want blood on your phone, laptop, or tablet? Apple, of course, makes any num­ ber of innovative products. But being an innovator in technology shouldn't require being a reaction­ ary on human rights — or being a shameless tax cheat. As an industry leader with bal­ looning profit margins, Apple can afford to get its coltan from Austra­ lia. It can shoulder the costs of a living wage and basic labor stan­ dards for its workers. And it can surely pay its taxes. But for now, Apple has perpetu­ ated the relentless violence in the Congo, abused hard-working and disenfranchised laborers in China, and, for good measure, sought to stiff the American taxpayers who have made it so wealthy. Sorry, Apple. That's three strikes. Peter Certo is an editorial assis­ tant fo r OtherWords and Foreign Policy in Focus at the Institute for Policy Studies.