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In this Discussion
- 1234 May 2014
- Andrew May 2014
- Cherry_Pie May 2014
- ed_chigliak May 2014
- flossy_log_lady May 2014
- ManInTheIvoryTower May 2014
- MirandaJuly May 2014
- Schlabe May 2014
- swamp_knobbler_mahan May 2014
- the_owls May 2014
- UncleBoatShoes2011 May 2014
- YoursTruly May 2014
- zin May 2014
elections corrections
Another ballot! Ovals to blacken! Zins to consult! Any reason to go against willy week recs?
Speaking of the double-dub did anyone catch the emo interview of the right-wing guy by WW editorial board where they were just straight up mocking him and pretending not to understand why he was pissed? Maybe one of those things that happened a long time ago and I just caught it?
Speaking of the double-dub did anyone catch the emo interview of the right-wing guy by WW editorial board where they were just straight up mocking him and pretending not to understand why he was pissed? Maybe one of those things that happened a long time ago and I just caught it?
Comments
WW recommendations this time are fine. Especially important is this stupid water board measure — it effectively gives all control of Portland water to industrial polluters. The measure bans people who have professional experience in any water bureau from even running! So stupid. Vote no.
If you live in State House district 42 (in southeast), you've probably gotten mail and canvass visits from candidates. Make up your own mind on this one — it determines what kind of Democrat we send to Salem next year from the district.
Voting for Nicholas Caleb over Dan Saltzman is popular in some actvist circles, but it doesn't matter — Saltzman will win by a large margin. The Mercury, in particular, finds Saltzman's "candidate of change" pitch implausible.
I'm voting for (and I've done a bit of work for) Deborah Kafoury for County Chair, but maybe you want to vote for Jim Francesconi? I dunno, his "jobs jobs jobs" platform strikes me as hollow, since the county does next to nothing about jobs. They run services that protect the vulnerable, do some law enforcement, couple of bridges… Not really jobs.
County Chair! Why aren't there televised debates for that like for mayor? It's for the whole damn county. Their budget is a lot, a couple of billion dollars. Huh.
My ballot came and I just stared at it in defeat, like where do I even begin? Luckily UrHo has a resident expert for almost everything.
THREE CHEERS
Do you guys want me to post, after the election, the names of otherwise upstanding UHXers who didn't vote? That seems like it would be fun. (As you may recall, how you vote is private, but whether you vote is public record…)
Here's my friendly guide to how I am voting (or would vote if I lived in a different district) this election. I don't mean to presume to tell you how to vote, but a lot of friends and folks who generally agree with me politically but who don't have time to sift through the voter's pamphlet or read all the news have asked me to send them this email, so I thought I'd share it with you in case you fell into that camp or otherwise were curious to know what my take on things is. Feel free to vote however you want, though, and feel free to delete this email or forward it to anyone.
Here I go:
As an initial matter, I always vote for the sole candidate in all uncontested races. If you were up there, you wouldn't want people skipping your race and risking you getting beat by some wacky write-in. I'll let you know if I think an uncontested race deserves a write-in.
Vote no on measure 26-156. While the water/sewer system needs reform, this measure was written by corporate lobbyists primarily seeking to evade environmental regulations.
State Rep 41: Deborah Barnes. Well connected in the district and a longtime leader with education and labor credentials. Articulate voice against the Tea Party.
State Rep 42: Rob Nosse. Teddy Keizer also looks good in this race, but I think Nosse has the edge.
State Rep 44: Tina Kotek. Amazing leader. No reason not to vote for her again.
State Rep 45: Barbara Smith Warner. Keep this incumbent in office also.
Metro President: Tom Hughes. I voted for his opponent in the last election, but he's done a good job, and there is no real opposition here.
Multnomah Chair: Deborah Kafoury. Fantastic track record. I think Francesconi errs a tad on the "say anything to get elected" side.
Multnomah County 1: Jules Bailey. There's a lot to like about Brian Wilson, but I think Bailey ultimately has the edge here. I went to college with him, by the way.
Multnomah County 2: Loretta Smith. She's going a good job in this position. No serious opposition
Portland Commissioner 2: Nick Fish. He's doing a good job also. No serious opposition.
Portland Commissioner 3: Dan Saltzman. He's not my fave city commissioner, but there is no real opposition here.
Oh, and No on the water one.
After he responds to a direct question "Global warming, real or myth?" with "myth" the follow up is "do you believe in the Easter bunny?" Really!? And writing 'blah blah blah' on your notepad in full view of the interview subject? The worst was the pure self-righteousness. "There's the door". What a bunch of tools.
I mean, sure the Portland Mercury can get away with that, but since the O is such a huge steaming pile of rotting dog-shit the WW is almost our paper-of-record now. Respect yoselfs.
Incidentally, the "blah blah blah" interview subject was the woman calling into the interview.
I watched the long version too and still feel like an editorial board should stay professional and document the encounter in their paper if they feel it's relevant... so much better to report the truth that the guy is a prick then get caught up in his reindeer games.
Good example of using conventional wisdom and/or "common sense" instead of reason. It "probably" costs more to have a county farmer? Really? Has Kafoury actually done any analysis of this program?
Sorry but she sounds really, really dumb here.
GROW UP.
Jesus.
"Blah blah blah blah" -- ARE YOU SERIOUS?
I do not understand why we can't just f*cking treat each other with respect. Why is this so hard? And why is it so hard for people to treat others with respect even when they're being disrespected? That's what growing as a human being is all about! I'm certainly not perfect at it - we all make plenty of mistakes - but shouldn't we all be striving for it? WHY AREN'T WE ALL STRIVING FOR IT?
I don't know why I'm so mad about this.
When people are dumb or rude or disrespectful, it's simply difficult to be gentle and kind to them and to take their ideas seriously. It's just straight-up hard, no two ways about it. It's so hard that Sigmund Freud wrote an entire book proving that actually it's impossible.
I also hold journalists to a higher standard when it comes to being professional with politicians holding opposing views, I think. Shouldn't they have more practice/isn't that something they should be trying to work on? I don't know. I feel like I would be equally appalled (ok, more appalled) if a fellow counselor disrespected a client - sure it's REALLY hard to sit there and be strategic and empathic in the face of stuff that pushes your buttons, but that's a big part of the job/your training!
Tell me about it. This is basically the bulk of my job and it's preeeeeetty draining.
I don't think all opposing views are equal, and I don't think journalists should pretend like they are.
Whether this should take the form of actively mocking someone, I don't know, but I certainly don't want to live in a world where scientists, experts, intellectuals, and every random batshit asshole are all given an equal platform in terms of being taken seriously and being treated respectfully.
That being said, I'm prolly not gonna give my 93 year old grandma shit for being a young earth creationist who probably believes that a whole lot of people are going to hell.
Should all opposing views be taken seriously? --> No. Depends on context.
Do journalists need to give equal serious credibility to the Westboro Baptist Church as they do to somebody with a PhD talking about climate change? --> also depends on context. If journalists don't plan to take seriously the views of the Westboro Baptist Church, they probably shouldn't invite the Westboro Baptist Church to an interview?
Whether this should take the form of actively mocking someone, I don't know --> You don't? THIS is what upsets me, and maybe I'm just overly sensitive or downright morally prude or something... when is it EVER okay to downright mock someone in a disrespectful way? I think one could argue that a lot of satire and humor is still done respectfully. Why can't we all just agree that it's not okay to "meanly" mock someone? IT ISN'T IN MY BOOK! Which isn't to say it's an easy thing to refrain from doing...
Would love to meanly mock Dick Cheney, or Limbaugh, or Hannity, or pretty much anybody on Fox News.
Also people who ride razor scooters who are past the age of 11.
HOW'S YOUR WEIRD BLOODCULT WORKING OUT DUDE?
Actually pretty well I guess.
REDACTED
Anyway sometimes you gotta be mean and rude to fight the power.
Weird, but true.
I'm just advocating for sometimes being dismissive of stupid people; sometimes it is perfectly reasonable. If I went up on a public forum and said stupid unfounded shit I would expect to be rudely dismissed. I have been rudely dismissed before (even by close friends who love me!) when I have said something truly stupid and it seems reasonable to me. Being rudely dismissive of a stupid person doesn't always have to be "mean," or like, even if it is mean I think it's called for sometimes.
I was thinking about this today and how there is a time and place for gentle guidance and a time and place for fucking putting your money where your goddamn mouth is. If I'm teaching a class of college freshmen and one of them says something stupid, I'm going to gently guide them to a better understanding, instead of being mean and mocking. But if a grown-ass person is putting themselves in a position of authority, and THEY say something stupid, then they deserve to be rudely dismissed--nay, they SHOULD and MUST be rudely dismissed.
I don't want us to treat all grownup people who ought to know better the way we treat our school children!
are they the same thing?
"usury"
I dropped my ballot on Sunday, so it hasn't been recorded as "voted" just yet. It was easier than I thought it would be. Sometimes there are those elections for Judge or something where you have no information, but all of those on my ballot were uncontested. So it was just City Council, County Commission, the corporate water board thing, and Democratic primaries.
Multnomah County has not yet recorded receipt of a ballot from Yours Truly.
If you were previously registered in Oregon, you can update your registration and you should be able to vote in this election.
If you've never been registered to vote in Oregon, it's past the deadline to register for this particular election.
All that remains is to successfully take it to the library tomorrow.....will she do it
http://www.oregonlive.com/mapes/index.ssf/2014/05/oregon_gay_marriage_ban_struck.html
He can see the future.
I RIP!
https://web.multco.us/elections/multnomah-county-official-ballot-drop-sites