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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 19, 2012)
a'l’c jportlanh (©baeruer Page 6 September 19, 2012 Opinion articles do not necessarily represent the views of 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 C H G $45.00 A sm all distance/travel charge m ay be applied C A R PE T CLEAN IN G 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 Extra) Stairs ( 12-16 stairs - With Other Services): $25.00 Area/Oriental Rugs: $25.00 Minimum Area/Oriental Rugs f Wool): $40.00Minimum A Glimmer of Military Budget Sanity Rejecting a $17,000 drip pan Heavily Soiled Area: Additional $10.00 each area (RequiringExtensive Pre-Spraying) U PH O LSTERY C LE A N IN G Sofa: $69.00 Loveseat: $49.00 Sectional: $ 109 - $ 139 Chair or Recliner: $25 - $49 th * 9 Throw Pillows (With Other Services): $5.00 A D D ITIO N A L SE R V IC E S • Area & Oriental Rug Cleaning • Auto/Boat/RV Cleaning • Deodorizing & Pet Odor Treatment • Spot & Stain Removal Service • Scotchguard Protection • M inor Water Damage Services SEE CURRENT FLYER FOR ADDITIONAL PRICES & SERVICES Call for Appointment (503) 281-3949 M iriam P emberton G abriel I. R ossman by and committee in charge of spend- ing, from steering a contract to his district in Kentucky to buy $17,000 drip pans for Black Hawk helicopters. $17,000 whats? You know, pans that catch leaking trans- mission fluid. As The New York Here's a milestone of sorts. In July, for the first time since 1998, / the House o f Representatives voted to maintain the current military budget rather than in- . crease Pentagon spending. It's t h e K l T l d f O U on. So why did they axe this particular sweet deal? Maybe they were a little worried that it would become the next $800 toilet seat. Back in the 1980s, this fixture on a Navy plane — we're not talking the price of a toilet mind you, just the seat — epitomized military waste. As a symbol the Other egregious examples emerged: a $436 claw hammer that looked like C O U ld p i C K U p a t th e the first step toward bringing the budget down. w ithin the bill, which included more than $600 billion for the military, the House embedded a hardware store for $15, and a $7,622 J coffee maker before espresso bars » v r became commonplace, to name a few. few gestures toward fiscal san- ity. Most important was the de- cision o f 89 Republicans to join most Democrats in shaving a billion bucks off the budget that House Republican leaders had proposed. That's mostly a sym- bolic move in a budget o f this size, but worth celebrating nev- ertheless. Less publicized was a much smaller gesture. Congress voted to block Rep. Hal Rogers (R- K Y), the chair o f the House --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ™ Times reported in May, other public could really visualize, its Army helicopters do fine with a discovery expedited contracting $2,500 model. Congress ruled reform . O ther egregious ex that the chair of the spending amples emerged: a $436 claw committee couldn't reward a fre- hammer that looked like the kind quent campaign contributor with you could pick up at the hard- a contract that somebody else ware store for $15, and a $7,622 could fulfill at 1 /8 th the cost to coffee maker before espresso the taxpayer. bars became commonplace, to Rogers' drip pans deal would name a few. have cost about $5 million over A pan that catches transmis- three years — chum p change in sion fluid might not trigger the the budget Congress was voting same outrage as that pricey toi V let seat. But with the nation ca reening toward the edge of a fiscal cliff, the timing is right. As conservative lawmakers make speeches in the coming months about their belief that Pentagon spending must be preserved at the expense of everything else, the $17,000 drip pan offers a handy rebuttal. So Congress tried to head this particular program off before it got too much publicity. Of course, at the same time it rejected other modest, sane, cost-cutting ges tu re s, su ch as n ix in g th e Pentagon's $72 million advertis ing budget for NASCAR races. We won't get too carried away with this glimmer of hope that a sane approach to military spend ing is around the comer. Still, 89 Republicans and most Demo crats did say no to Rep. Rogers, the "Prince of Pork." And for the first time since before the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Congress voted to trim its leaders' aspirations for the overall military budget. It's a start. Miriam Pemberton is a Re search Fellow at the Institute fo r Policy Studies. Gabriel Rossman is a student at Wesleyan University.
