Was [PLUG-TALK] I don't like a certain change on plug...

Darkhorse plug_0 at robinson-west.com
Sat Nov 13 08:08:08 UTC 2004


On Fri, 2004-11-12 at 23:13, AthlonRob wrote:
> On Fri, 2004-11-12 at 22:59 -0800, Russ Johnson wrote:
> > AthlonRob wrote:
> > >When the people left to make the decisions don't like the idea of
> > >providing social services, social services will decrease.
> > >
> > Well, when it comes right down to it, I'm one of those that feel a hand 
> > UP is ok, a hand OUT is wrong.
> 
> The issue today is so much is just a hand OUT....
> 
> > Assuming you would keep everything outside the Portland metro area, I 
> > wouldn't expect much of a change. You'd still have quite a constituancy 
> > of liberal bleeding hearts. Also, those on the dole usually vote to keep 
> > there dole. Welfare begats welfare.
> 
> A vast majority of Portland leans to the left, though... while the
> state, as a whole, is about 50/50.  It would stand to reason, then, that
> the rest of the state much lean to the right.
> 
> A vast minority are on welfare.
> 
> > >Why do you believe there's a higher percentage of welfare losers outside
> > >of Portland than inside Portland?  It always seemed to me urban areas
> > >bred such crap, not rural areas.
> > >
> > Because I lived in Eugene for 35 years. I've seen that area, and I've 
> > visited several other areas. You'd essentially have to cut off the I-5 
> > corridor to have a chance. But now, Bend is growing, and the welfare 
> > contingent there is growing too.
> 
> 1)  Eugene isn't most of non-Portland-metro-Oregon.
> 2)  Again, a vast minority are on welfare, it would be easy to cut them
> off without the Portland lefties having any say.
> 
> Somebody should be able to find the welfare statistics... not tonight..
> maybe this weekend...
> 
> -- 
> Rob                                |  If not safe,
>    Jabber: athlonrob at axpr.net   |    one can never be free.

Since when is poverty a character issue?  

Portland attracts poor people because the climate here is more
hospitable than death valley, etc.  There are a lot of new homeless in
Florida who were fine before the hurricane season.  It's not physical
poverty that makes for such a sad state as long as the poor are not
otherwise lacking and those who are blessed with better fortune help. 
Perhaps if homelessness were paid more attention to than handing out
marriage licenses to homosexuals, real progress would be made in
Portland.  Portland has one of the highest teen homeless rates in the
nation, but was this ever talked about during the campaign for city
mayor?  I don't remember hearing about it as a campaign issue at all.

I am for welfare reform myself, the benefits offered should be adjusted
as people find work so that they are not worse off working than they
were on welfare unemployed.  Set a level of assistance and as as people
start to earn money, only reduce their benefits for the portion they
earn on their own.  If you need $1k/month to live and you start
consistently earning 600$ a month, you should still get $400/month
in welfare.  A system where you get $1k/month benefit if you don't
work and nothing if you work for less than that doesn't make sense.

The most I've heard about poverty in Portland are complaints from
downtown businesses on the news.  Streetcars and aerial trams
are extremely expensive, and the increasing cost of real estate in 
downtown Portland doesn't help with the poverty problem either.  
Condos at the end of an expensive streetcar system, who thought 
about the poor when this project was planned and approved?

The tram towers had to be redesigned to be more attractive, for what 
reason?  The money that went to hiring an engineer to come up
with a more attractive tower design could have gone into social
programs.  Who will ensure that there is enough low income housing?
Katz must have cared more about impressing an elite circle of 
political friends then she did about the poor.  

Why is a swiss company instead of a local one heading up the big pipe
project?  Shouldn't a state with a hurting economy keep those jobs
home?




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