All I can say is Thank God! 🙏 Miracles still exist, plus the large number of people that wrote in and objected to this tax. I'm with Richard - Thank you Pirate media!!
This was the year that legacy media--particularly the Oregonian--lost control of the narrative. I doubt that, absent pirate media hammering online daily (sometimes hourly) the Titanic Tax would have faced any significant opposition. Something very basic has changed when a political machine with a supermajority can't get a spending bill passed. Especially when the mistress of discipline and vengeance, GuvTina, shows up to stinkeye the recalcitrant.
Any more stumbles and Tina's primary roadkill...the only interesting question being: who'll step up to take her out.
If you go over to The New York Times and look at Nicholas Kristof’s bio, the first sentence is: “I live on the family farm in rural Oregon that I grew up on, and more than a quarter of the kids on my old school bus have died from drugs, alcohol and suicide.”
Kristof didn’t qualify as a three-year Oregon resident when he tried to run for governor in the 2022 Democratic primary. Then-Secretary of State Shemia Fagan decided he had remained registered to vote in New York until late 2020.
In his brief run, Kristof raised more money than his fellow Democrats. If he’s still interested in the job, Tina Kotek should be very worried.
One of the most consequential loose ends left dangling by the Legislature’s sine die adjournment is the unresolved clash between Governor Tina Kotek and Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson over the future of Preschool for All. While the transportation package collapse drew more attention, this quieter standoff may carry longer-term implications for public trust and early childhood policy in Oregon.
The county’s well-intentioned program has been plagued by chronic underspending, over $400 million in idle reserves, and slow expansion despite ample funding. Many providers have declined to participate, citing burdensome mandates and loss of autonomy. Vega Pederson continues to defend the program with familiar progressive language about equity and community control, but her stewardship reflects a pattern of ideological overreach — elevating purity over performance and risking alienation of the majority of voters who do not share her activist framework.
Governor Kotek, by contrast, has raised pragmatic concerns grounded in governance, sustainability, and fiscal accountability. While both leaders claim to champion Oregon’s children, Kotek more clearly aligns with the principles that make public programs function and endure. Let’s hope Kotek doesn’t walk away from this fight. Oregon can’t afford another high-profile initiative that collapses under the weight of its own rhetoric.
"Two years ago state Rep. Janeen Sollman (D-Hillsboro) and then-state Rep. Janelle Bynum (D-Happy Valley) swung their hips and bragged on Twitter w X): “This is how the pretty girls walk when the pretty girls get their way…”
Wow. Well, because I hate politics, struggle to understand the math/tax/economics part of it and because I'm a shallow observer of life in general, I'll say that when a woman brags, as in the quote above, it's generally because of insecurity. That has to be one of the dumbest things I've ever read. It's like Oregon, and Portland gets the lowest common denominator, when it comes to leaders.
Janeen Sollman? Pretty? Hmmm, maybe a hundred years ago, in a past life or something, but no. Not a looker. Nothing to write home about. And Janelle Bynum? Nah. Nothing special. LOL... I am glad that Teeena has faced some opposition. What are they doing with all the millions that were supposed to go to fixing the roads, which I can attest, are in deplorable condition? Who is stealing all this money? Someone needs to investigate the fraud that is going on with these "leaders" because something is not right in Mudville. There are people with their hand in the cookie jar. LOL...
If nothing else, a responsible and effective legislature would devise an effective way to assess taxes on the owners of all-electric vehicles to pay their fair share toward the construction, maintenance and repair of roads. That should happen in Oregon sooner rather than later.
George Will once said his favorite words in the U.S. Constitution were the five which open the First Amendment: “Congress shall make no law…”. (wishing it just stopped there). We should hope for an Oregon version: “The legislature shall make no law….” Period.
So true. LOL... her choice of clothing is hilarious. She doesn't have a clue. There are times, when I'm like, "Hey, did I get magically transported back to a Burger king from 1984?" Her outfits are so hilarious and give off fast food employee vibes.
The question is whether Kotek's makeover that preceded her gubernatorial race and gave her a trendy new 'do and glasses also covered her wardrobe. It would appear not. As it is, the Governor is only Instagram perfect from the neck up.
I have yet to see a straight, pretty liberal....sorry, but liberals are always angry and then they get angrier! Time to rescind mail in voting. The dems are ruining the state and have been for years.
In their seemingly pathological plunge to rock bottom, we have huge vacancy rates while at the same time housing unaffordability, a continued increase in drug overdoses, while other states have reversed it, and the governmental equivalent of putting the groceries on the credit card with the highest interest rates!
The rise in drug overdoses in Oregon can be blamed, in large part, on the state’s drug policy, which falls under the banner of so-called harm reduction. Compassionate liberals and progressives tend to bristle at any criticism of harm reduction. After all, who would oppose handing out clean needles to IV drug users to prevent the spread of blood-borne pathogens?
But what they don’t know—or don’t care to acknowledge—is that harm reduction is rooted in a philosophical stance that rejects morality: the very idea of right and wrong, which we rely on to distinguish acceptable from unacceptable behavior. In its place are principles that normalize drug use and stigmatize recovery.
One of these is the insistence that society must respect drug users’ autonomy, no matter how self-destructive their choices may be. “No judgment” is the movement’s motto. Not everyone, we’re told, measures their success in life in terms of sobriety. We must respect addicts' choices—even if those choices keep them in a spiral of addiction. Under no circumstances should we infringe on their autonomy by suggesting they might benefit from treatment, much less require it. No, addicts will know when the time is right to get clean—until then, hands off.
That’s how we’ve ended up with a patchwork of “deflection” programs across Oregon that would make Rube Goldberg proud, along with expensive sobering centers that taxpayers are funding with little return. It’s also why these resources—like the absurd phone referral program for people ticketed for drug possession—remain so egregiously underutilized.
All I can say is Thank God! 🙏 Miracles still exist, plus the large number of people that wrote in and objected to this tax. I'm with Richard - Thank you Pirate media!!
This was the year that legacy media--particularly the Oregonian--lost control of the narrative. I doubt that, absent pirate media hammering online daily (sometimes hourly) the Titanic Tax would have faced any significant opposition. Something very basic has changed when a political machine with a supermajority can't get a spending bill passed. Especially when the mistress of discipline and vengeance, GuvTina, shows up to stinkeye the recalcitrant.
Any more stumbles and Tina's primary roadkill...the only interesting question being: who'll step up to take her out.
If you go over to The New York Times and look at Nicholas Kristof’s bio, the first sentence is: “I live on the family farm in rural Oregon that I grew up on, and more than a quarter of the kids on my old school bus have died from drugs, alcohol and suicide.”
Kristof didn’t qualify as a three-year Oregon resident when he tried to run for governor in the 2022 Democratic primary. Then-Secretary of State Shemia Fagan decided he had remained registered to vote in New York until late 2020.
In his brief run, Kristof raised more money than his fellow Democrats. If he’s still interested in the job, Tina Kotek should be very worried.
What about Will Lathrop who was running for State Attorney General?
One of the most consequential loose ends left dangling by the Legislature’s sine die adjournment is the unresolved clash between Governor Tina Kotek and Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson over the future of Preschool for All. While the transportation package collapse drew more attention, this quieter standoff may carry longer-term implications for public trust and early childhood policy in Oregon.
The county’s well-intentioned program has been plagued by chronic underspending, over $400 million in idle reserves, and slow expansion despite ample funding. Many providers have declined to participate, citing burdensome mandates and loss of autonomy. Vega Pederson continues to defend the program with familiar progressive language about equity and community control, but her stewardship reflects a pattern of ideological overreach — elevating purity over performance and risking alienation of the majority of voters who do not share her activist framework.
Governor Kotek, by contrast, has raised pragmatic concerns grounded in governance, sustainability, and fiscal accountability. While both leaders claim to champion Oregon’s children, Kotek more clearly aligns with the principles that make public programs function and endure. Let’s hope Kotek doesn’t walk away from this fight. Oregon can’t afford another high-profile initiative that collapses under the weight of its own rhetoric.
"Two years ago state Rep. Janeen Sollman (D-Hillsboro) and then-state Rep. Janelle Bynum (D-Happy Valley) swung their hips and bragged on Twitter w X): “This is how the pretty girls walk when the pretty girls get their way…”
Wow. Well, because I hate politics, struggle to understand the math/tax/economics part of it and because I'm a shallow observer of life in general, I'll say that when a woman brags, as in the quote above, it's generally because of insecurity. That has to be one of the dumbest things I've ever read. It's like Oregon, and Portland gets the lowest common denominator, when it comes to leaders.
Janeen Sollman? Pretty? Hmmm, maybe a hundred years ago, in a past life or something, but no. Not a looker. Nothing to write home about. And Janelle Bynum? Nah. Nothing special. LOL... I am glad that Teeena has faced some opposition. What are they doing with all the millions that were supposed to go to fixing the roads, which I can attest, are in deplorable condition? Who is stealing all this money? Someone needs to investigate the fraud that is going on with these "leaders" because something is not right in Mudville. There are people with their hand in the cookie jar. LOL...
Another great article Pamela!
If nothing else, a responsible and effective legislature would devise an effective way to assess taxes on the owners of all-electric vehicles to pay their fair share toward the construction, maintenance and repair of roads. That should happen in Oregon sooner rather than later.
George Will once said his favorite words in the U.S. Constitution were the five which open the First Amendment: “Congress shall make no law…”. (wishing it just stopped there). We should hope for an Oregon version: “The legislature shall make no law….” Period.
You would think the Governor could at least wear clothing that didn’t appear like you were going to dinner at McDonalds.
So true. LOL... her choice of clothing is hilarious. She doesn't have a clue. There are times, when I'm like, "Hey, did I get magically transported back to a Burger king from 1984?" Her outfits are so hilarious and give off fast food employee vibes.
The question is whether Kotek's makeover that preceded her gubernatorial race and gave her a trendy new 'do and glasses also covered her wardrobe. It would appear not. As it is, the Governor is only Instagram perfect from the neck up.
As the article says . . .
1. Past promises about road work went unfulfilled (after the 5 billion tax).
2. Kotek is very VERY concerned about layoffs of state employees, and less concerned about the taxpayers and drivers.
3. At some point, massive tax increases with no voter approval have to end. So say the constituents.
Oof
I have yet to see a straight, pretty liberal....sorry, but liberals are always angry and then they get angrier! Time to rescind mail in voting. The dems are ruining the state and have been for years.
In their seemingly pathological plunge to rock bottom, we have huge vacancy rates while at the same time housing unaffordability, a continued increase in drug overdoses, while other states have reversed it, and the governmental equivalent of putting the groceries on the credit card with the highest interest rates!
In
The rise in drug overdoses in Oregon can be blamed, in large part, on the state’s drug policy, which falls under the banner of so-called harm reduction. Compassionate liberals and progressives tend to bristle at any criticism of harm reduction. After all, who would oppose handing out clean needles to IV drug users to prevent the spread of blood-borne pathogens?
But what they don’t know—or don’t care to acknowledge—is that harm reduction is rooted in a philosophical stance that rejects morality: the very idea of right and wrong, which we rely on to distinguish acceptable from unacceptable behavior. In its place are principles that normalize drug use and stigmatize recovery.
One of these is the insistence that society must respect drug users’ autonomy, no matter how self-destructive their choices may be. “No judgment” is the movement’s motto. Not everyone, we’re told, measures their success in life in terms of sobriety. We must respect addicts' choices—even if those choices keep them in a spiral of addiction. Under no circumstances should we infringe on their autonomy by suggesting they might benefit from treatment, much less require it. No, addicts will know when the time is right to get clean—until then, hands off.
That’s how we’ve ended up with a patchwork of “deflection” programs across Oregon that would make Rube Goldberg proud, along with expensive sobering centers that taxpayers are funding with little return. It’s also why these resources—like the absurd phone referral program for people ticketed for drug possession—remain so egregiously underutilized.
And possibly the least educated high school graduates in our history to fuel Oregon's tech industry slide to other states.