Posted in2022 election

My feelings as I filled out the May 2022 Oregon ballot

Here in Oregon we vote in the privacy of our own homes. Or any other damn place that we choose, since our oh-so-enlightened state is 100% vote by mail in every election. Yesterday my ballot arrived in the mail. Being eager to vote ASAP, almost immediately I sat down at our dining room table, a pen with black ink in hand, so I could put my ballot in a mailbox on my way back from a Thursday evening Tai Chi class. I can't say it was a highly emotional experience. But I did have some clear feelings as I filled…
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Posted in2022 election Chris Hoy City Council

Vote for these progressive candidates in the May election

I like progress. That's why I'm a progressive. And why I'm recommending that you vote for these candidates in the May election that likely will determine who becomes the next Salem mayor and wins the even-numbered Salem City Council seats. (If a candidate gets 50% of the vote, plus one more vote, they win outright in the May election, which is a primary for partisan Democrat/Republican races, but usually is the deciding election in local nonpartisan races.) For more detail, here's a recommendation I saw today from a progressive group that includes some additional races. They leave out the Ward…
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Posted in2022 election City Council

Three reasons to vote for Medlock rather than Gwyn in the Ward 4 council race

If you live in Salem's Ward 4 and are thinking of voting for Deanna Gwyn, I urge you to think again. Her opponent, Dynee Medlock, is a much better choice to represent you on the City Council. A couple of Salem Reporter stories by Rachel Alexander provide the reasons. Here's three of them, based on a written Q&A where Medlock and Gwyn answered questions sent to them by Salem Reporter staff, and a devastating story, "Salem council candidate Deanna Gwyn has rarely voted, records show." (1) Voting records. Gwyn has voted just twice in the past decade, not voting in…
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Posted in2022 election Chane Griggs

Chane and James Griggs’ campaign contributions, 2008-2022

Today someone sent me a spreadsheet that, they said, was pulled from Oregon's campaign contribution database, ORESTAR. It showed the contributions to 28 candidates by Chane Griggs and James Griggs between 2008 and 2022. The amounts ranged from $100 to $2,000, aside from a $5,000 contribution by James to Chane's campaign. Chane Griggs Since Chane Griggs is running for Salem Mayor against Chris Hoy, the accompanying email pointed out that while the Mayor's office is non-partisan, most of those receiving money from the Griggs were Republicans or conservatives. That's true. But most of the donations, 25 of the 28, were…
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Posted in2022 election Marion County politics

Marion County District Attorney candidates offer clear choice in City Club debate

I'm healed! Thanks to the current Marion County District Attorney, Paige Clarkson, and her challenger in the May election, Spencer Todd, I've recovered from the (mild) trauma of watching the previous Salem City Club debate via Zoom between the candidates for Salem Mayor, Chris Hoy and Chane Griggs, where Hoy and Griggs agreed on almost everything and were kind and gentle toward each other. Morally uplifting, perhaps, but boring.  In contrast, Clarkson and Todd disagreed on almost everything and were pleasingly snarky toward each other. Partly that was because being attorneys, they're used to arguing with their fellow lawyers. But…
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Posted in2022 election Oregon politics

I’m uncertain about who to vote for in the Democratic Governor primary

I'm usually quite opinionated when it comes to politics. But this morning my wife asked me who I favored in the upcoming May Democratic primary for Oregon Governor.  I said, "I don't know. Tina Kotek and Tobias Read are the favorites. I'm not sure which is best." A KGW story, updated as of April 12, shows 16 candidates in the Democratic primary. Wikipedia has 15 candidates, lacking Michael David. This is the Wikipedia list. Again, Tina Kotek and Tobias Read seem to be the only viable candidates. Both are experienced in Oregon politics, have a decent amount of campaign funds, and…
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Posted in2022 election

Other CD6 Dem candidates furious at Carrick Flynn getting $1 million from House Majority PAC

A tweet this afternoon by an Oregon Democratic consultant, Kari Chisholm, clued me in to an controversial action by the House Super PAC backed by Democratic leadership in Washington, D.C. Below is the Joint Statement from the six Democratic candidates that I copied from the tweet above. It is indeed highly disturbing that the House Majority PAC would back a particular candidate in the Democratic primary for an newly created House seat, especially since Carrick Flynn isn't lacking for campaign funds, given how many mailings my wife and I have gotten from him. An Oregon Capital Chronicle story about this…
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Posted in2022 election City Council

Ask these tough national questions of local conservative candidates

The saying used to be "All politics is local." Now the reverse is at least equally true: "All politics is national." Meaning, whereas there used to be lots of politicians who were conservative Democrats and liberal Republicans, those days are pretty much gone. Democratic politicians are almost all liberal. Republican politicians are almost all conservative. This poses a problem in nonpartisan races, such as for Salem Mayor and City Councilor.  Sure, nonpartisan has a lovely inclusive vibe to it. Let divisiveness rule in those nasty races where candidates have Democrat or Republican accompanying their name. Our local races can simply…
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Posted inNational politics

Parents don’t get to choose the version of American history they like best

Until I read a story by Jill Lepore in the March 21, 2022 issues of The New Yorker, "The Parent Trap: How school fights, from evolution to anti-racism, pit parents against the state," I failed to understand some key points about the current controversy over teaching American history in public schools. Quite a few conservative states are passing so-called parents-rights bills that allow parents more leeway than they've enjoyed before to complain about teaching regarding slavery, systemic racism, and such that goes against the grain of a view of American history that papers over these subjects in favor of a rosier…
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Posted in2022 election Chane Griggs Chris Hoy

Disappointing: Hoy versus Griggs in City Club debate

Since I like debates, and the Salem City Club called today's program a debate between the two candidates for Mayor, Chris Hoy and Chane Griggs, after I settled into my chair for the noon Zoom meeting, I was looking forward to some argumentative fireworks. Instead, what transpired was more like a sparkler that fizzled a bit now and then, but mostly just gave off some smoke without any real heat. Or to mix my metaphors, Griggs and Hoy acted like two fighters who were so concerned about not getting knocked out, they neglected to throw any genuine punches. Part of…
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