Page 4A
OPINION
East Oregonian
Wednesday, May 17, 2017
Founded October 16, 1875
KATHRYN B. BROWN
Publisher
DANIEL WATTENBURGER
Managing Editor
TIM TRAINOR
Opinion Page Editor
MARISSA WILLIAMS
Regional Advertising Director
MARCY ROSENBERG
Circulation Manager
JANNA HEIMGARTNER
Business Office Manager
MIKE JENSEN
Production Manager
OUR VIEW
The big one
or a little one
There is a gambler’s chance that
in the next half century the Pacific
Northwest will suffer the largest-
scale natural disaster in North
American history.
Scientists put the odds between
20-30 percent that the “big one”
will shake sometime in the next
50 years — about the same odds
Donald Trump was given to win the
presidency and the Cubs were given
to win the World Series in 2016.
In other words, within the realm of
possibility.
The Cascadia subduction zone
shifts violently deep inside the earth
approximately every 500 years,
but that’s a very rough timeline.
Scientists have based their odds-
making on the fact that it has been
317 years since the last time the fault
line shuddered.
Whenever it strikes, the
earthquake will be the real deal
— somewhere between 8.0 and
9.0 on the Richter scale, extending
from northern California to British
Columbia and shaking the ground
for five minutes straight. It will also
unleash a tsunami with no warning
that will devastate the coast.
The disaster cannot be averted,
but it can be addressed. A summit
held last week in Pendleton was
the first local effort to bring leaders
together to talk about the potential
earthquake and what we can do to
prepare. Firefighters, police, pastors,
educators, health care providers,
business owners and others gathered
to hear emergency planners from the
state and federal government talk
about the efforts being made now to
expand an emergency playbook for
such an occasion.
But while the government
prepares for the worst on the
west side of the state, we have an
obligation to be ready out east, too.
Things will be difficult here —
supplies of food, fuel and electricity
cut off for weeks to months — but
everything to the west of Interstate
5 could well be “toast,” according
to FEMA regional director Kenneth
Murphy in a well-circulated
piece in The New Yorker. In these
scenarios, Eastern Oregon will be an
afterthought.
The good news: We’re kind of
used to it. We’re also well-versed
in the art of survival and should
take this opportunity to get even
better. There are things we take for
granted like clean water, cellphone
connections and fuel in our gas
tanks. But we should be mindful that
these are not guarantees.
Another takeaway from the
summit is that each person can play
their part. From the household to
the neighborhood to the small town,
we will all be asked to contribute
to a solution. It’s something we
have perhaps lost in an era of
convenience, but if you think
about the people you see every day
who struggle to put food on the
table in the best of circumstances,
you’ll understand the risk once the
power goes out and resources are
scrambling to deal with devastation
elsewhere.
The city of Weston, one of
the smallest in Umatilla County,
is developing an emergency
management plan. The Hermiston
Safety Center is creating a store of
food for not just employees but for
their families as well. Local ham
radio operators are reaching out to a
younger generation to make sure the
skills aren’t lost.
There is better chance than not
the earthquake will not hit in most of
our lifetimes. But that does not let us
off the hook.
Preparation, and passing those
lessons on to our children, is as
important as ever. Whether in the
extreme case of Cascadia or in a
lesser emergency, keeping calm
and being able to assist others is
imperative.
———
If you’re interested in learning
more about the Cascadia subduction
zone earthquake, how local agencies
are preparing and what we could
expect after the event, the East
Oregonian published a series of
articles in February and will turn
it into an e-book available for
download in the coming weeks.
Unsigned editorials are the opinion of the East Oregonian editorial board of publisher
Kathryn Brown, managing editor Daniel Wattenburger, and opinion page editor Tim Trainor.
Other columns, letters and cartoons on this page express the opinions of the authors and not
necessarily that of the East Oregonian.
OTHER VIEWS
Can Oregon legislators find
compromise on transportation bill?
The (Medford) Mail Tribune
L
awmakers hashing out the details
of a massive transportation
package are divided over how
large it should be, and whether voters
would accept the tax increases necessary
to pay for it. Taxes are never an easy
sell, but if shippers, business interests
and motorists can be brought on board
and legislators agree to campaign for it,
we believe Oregonians will go along.
Oregon lawmakers haven’t passed
a major transportation package since
2009, and nearly everyone agrees the
state is overdue for another one. Bridges
are crumbling, public transit districts
need help, and freeway congestion
in the Portland area costs shippers
across the state time and money. But
time is running out in this session, and
bipartisan support is needed to enact
the tax portions without referral to the
voters.
Lawmakers had a deal in the 2015
session, but Republicans pulled their
support over a clean fuels bill they said
would increase gas prices on top of the
gas-tax hike in the transportation bill. A
last-minute, closed-door negotiation by
the so-called “gang of eight” failed to
craft a compromise. Democrats should
be prepared to give ground on the fuel
standards issue if they want this package
to pass.
After the 2015 failure, lawmakers
responded with a joint, bipartisan
committee that has worked for more
than a year, traveling the state to hear
from voters and interest groups and
holding hearings. The result, which has
yet to be drafted into bill form, calls for
$8.2 billion in projects over 20 years,
paid for over 10.
Major elements of the plan include
three big projects in the Portland area,
fixing bottlenecks on Interstate 5,
Interstate 205 and Oregon 217, paid for
in part by tolls. Portland-area residents
would pay more in taxes than other
Oregonians.
As currently envisioned, the package
would be paid for with increases in the
gas tax, phased in over 10 years. The
first year would see a 6-cent increase,
reaching 14 cents by the end of 10 years.
The tax currently stands at 30 cents, and
has increased only once in 20 years. In
addition, every worker in Oregon would
pay a 0.1 percent payroll tax, which
would go to mass transit throughout
the state. Oregonians also would see
a 1 percent excise tax on new cars, a
4 percent tax on bicycles (excluding
children’s bikes) and higher auto
registration fees.
Supporters want to pass those
increases with the required 60 percent
majority so the measure won’t need
voter approval. Of course, opponents
may try to place a referendum on the
ballot to overturn the new taxes — a
possibility skeptical lawmakers have
raised as the measure is being discussed.
Taking a piecemeal approach, as
some lawmakers have suggested, might
be easier to pass this year, but there is no
guarantee future legislatures will stay the
course. A 20-year package also allows
local governments to plan their own
improvements.
Oregon cannot afford to wait
any longer to begin addressing its
transportation needs.
OTHER VIEWS
Help for the working class
T
he great new dividing line in
America,” echoing the program that
American life is the four-year
rebuilt postwar Europe. “Progressives
college degree. The line runs
have not done enough about job
through virtually every part of society.
conditions and the dignity of work for
The pay gap between college
people who don’t go to college,” says
graduates and everyone else has soared
Neera Tanden, the center’s president,
in recent years. The unemployment
who previously worked for Hillary
gap has, too. So have gaps in physical
Clinton and Barack Obama.
and social health. College graduates
The effort is in only its conceptual
David
are living longer than they used to,
Leonhardt stages. But it’s worth attention, both
getting divorced less and eating better.
because of the center’s history of
Comment
All of these trends are darker for
influence on Democrats (including
non-graduates.
on much of the Obama agenda) and
Then there is politics. Americans without
because this particular idea gets a few big
a college degree are today’s swing voters.
things right.
White non-graduates shifted sharply to
It avoids some elitist strains in today’s
Donald Trump last year, relative to 2012,
liberal politics. One of those strains dismisses
and black non-graduates affected the result
the white working class as irredeemably
by staying home in larger numbers. Both
racist. In truth, many of these voters backed
decisions — voting for Trump or not voting at progressive ideas before and are open to
all — stemmed in part from
doing so again. Anyway,
alienation.
Democrats don’t have much
In an alternate universe,
of a choice. “You can’t
Trump would devote his
construct a solid majority
presidency to a conservative
coalition for Democrats
agenda that improved the
unless you reach more of
lives of the people who
those voters,” the political
elected him. Remember
scientist Ruy Teixeira says.
when he proclaimed, “I love
Even as the new effort
the poorly educated”? In
avoids some excesses of the
this universe, he sure has a
left, it also steers clear of the
funny way of showing his
fallacy that out-of-power
love. He is trying to take
political parties must tack
health insurance away from
toward mushy moderation.
millions of Americans, while lavishing tax
And I say that as a self-identifying mushy
cuts on the affluent.
moderate on many issues. Sometimes, though,
But his real-world disdain for the working
the best policy solution, not to mention the
class creates an opening for the Democratic
best way to win votes, is on one side of the
Party.
political spectrum. Franklin D. Roosevelt and
Democrats have to find a way to win more
Ronald Reagan were among the leaders who
working-class votes. (Yes, I’m using “working grasped this.
class” as a rough synonym for the two-thirds
This new plan is unabashedly left-leaning
of adults without bachelor’s degrees.) It’s not
in its call for the government to help create
just Trump. Republicans control the House,
millions of good-paying jobs. It uses the
the Senate, 33 governor’s offices and the
phrase “jobs guarantee” and would meet
legislature in 32 states.
the guarantee by taking on many problems
Democrats need a comeback strategy, and
the private sector isn’t solving: Crumbling
the American working class needs an ally. The roads and public transit. Patchy digital
solution to both problems can be the same:
infrastructure. A shortage of good schools,
a muscular agenda to lift up people without
child care, home-health-care workers and
four-year college degrees.
EMTs. All of this would cost billions — but
It would have two main pillars. The first
also far less than Trump’s reverse-Robin Hood
would be improving the lives of those who
agenda.
will never have those degrees — ensuring they
The fact is, the electorate has shown
can find meaningful, well-paying work and
some surprising support lately for an activist,
afford health care, child care and retirement.
populist government. Minimum-wage
A stable middle-class life should be possible
increases keep passing, in blue states and
without a bachelor’s degree.
red ones, and Trump won the Republican
The second would be helping more people
nomination while spouting big-government
earn degrees and enjoy their benefits. There
promises (which he’s now violating).
is something about college — the actual
Americans of all races who have been left
learning, as well as the required discipline
behind in today’s globalized, high-technology,
and initiative — that seems to prepare people
high-inequality economy are angry, and
for adult success. Although two-year degrees
they have reason to be. They deserve better.
bring benefits too, four-year degrees bring
They want tangible solutions. Finding those
much larger ones.
solutions is the right thing to do, and it’s the
On Tuesday, the Center for American
path back to power for Democrats.
Progress, an influential liberal group, is taking
■
a first step toward creating a working-class
David Leonhardt is an op-ed columnist for
agenda. It’s calling for a “Marshall Plan for
The New York Times.
A muscular
agenda to lift up
people without
four-year
college degrees
is needed.
YOUR VIEWS
God chose Trump — an answer
to prayers — to lead country
I am disappointed that several months
after the presidential election, a number of
East Oregonian columnists are still attacking
Donald Trump and trying to discredit his
presidency. This constant ranting continues
to emphasize their own misunderstanding of
national issues and lack of appreciation toward
voters who made conservative electoral
choices.
Although most of the national media seem
to remain galvanized in their hostility toward
the president, they might do well to consider
some of the reasons for his success in spite of
their fierce opposition, which may itself have
contributed to the success. If this is the case,
I do not think that continual reiteration of the
same tiresome charges is in their favor.
But though media persecution of Trump
may have helped his vote total to some
extent, there were more positive reasons
for his success with voters. For some time
government has seemed detached from the
ordinary citizen, and potential voters have
felt alienated from candidates who do not
share their concerns. Along came Trump
with numerous issues that appealed to a large
portion of the electorate — issues such as jobs,
national security, immigration, and health care
— and suddenly the voters felt enfranchised.
Their confidence has been rewarded with an
attempt by the new administration to enact
meaningful changes quickly, even though
hindered by constant political opposition.
A third reason for Trump’s electoral win,
probably the deciding factor, was his extensive
support from Christian voters. Appalled by
the erosion of religious freedom, evangelical
Christians especially turned out for Trump in
large numbers.
The key issue was an attempt to secure
conservative Supreme Court justices, seen as a
vital element in preserving religious freedom
as a bastion against constantly encroaching
national secularization; the fact that a position
was currently open added to the urgency of the
situation.
Much time was given to prayer for election
outcomes. I, for one, spent hours praying both
Monday and Tuesday of election week for
large conservative voter turnout, especially in
so-called battleground states.
The Bible declares that rulers are ordained
by God. This does not mean that God always
approves of what they do, but he uses them in
accomplishing his purpose in history. Those
who oppose God’s purpose do so to their own
peril. Perhaps President Trump, like Queen
Esther of old, came to his position “for such a
time as this.”
Ron Ingle
Hermiston