Lars Larson 2/22/12
Lars Larson speaks about the comments the La Grande Mayor made about gay marriage on his personal Facebook page |
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Greta Van Susteren 2/22/12
Greta Van Susteren speaks with former GOP hopeful Michele Bachmann about the presidential race – pt. 2 |
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Bill O'Reilly 2/22/12
Bill O’Reilly speaks with radio host Glenn Beck about reuniting the Tea Party across the world |
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Sean Hannity 2/22/12
Sean Hannity speaks with Fox News Contributor Sarah Palin about how conservative Mitt Romney really is |
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Greta Van Susteren 2/22/12
Greta Van Susteren speaks with former GOP hopeful Michele Bachmann about the presidential race – pt. 1 |
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Sean Hannity 2/22/12
Sean Hannity speaks with GOP candidate Newt Gingrich about how President Obama is handling national security issues |
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The production and use of methamphetamine—a highly addictive drug often made with store-bought ingredients—continues to be a serious problem for many states around the country, including Oregon. Curbing meth’s negative impacts on communities, individuals, and families is an important societal goal; and it is understandable why our state legislators sought to do something about it [...]
I recently heard that the Oregon legislature actually may kill a wasteful, non-productive, and from my perspective, illegitimate government program. I won’t tell you which one, because that could give its supporters time to organize and to pressure legislators to keep squeezing taxpayers for more money to keep their gravy train alive. This program and [...]
Media Release FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Steve Buckstein Senior Policy Analyst Cascade Policy Institute Phone: (503) 242-0900 steven@cascadepolicy.org February 21, 2012 Requiring a Prescription for Cold Medicine Has Not Reduced Meth Use in Oregon Cascade Study Raises Questions about Real Impact of Oregon’s Prescription-Only Requirement PORTLAND, OR — Cascade Policy Institute released a study today [...]
A 2005 law which requires Oregonians to get a doctor’s prescription to use cold and allergy medicines containing pseudoephedrine has not significantly reduced meth lab incidents, made the illegal drug methamphetamine harder to get or reduced the number of people using it. What it has done is impose a considerable burden on legitimate users of [...]
A tale of Steve Buckstein’s and Russ Dondero’s time together at the State Capitol on February 8th.
On Wednesday at 1pm, Hearing Room B in the State Capitol was packed with representatives of virtually every organization and special interest group involved in Oregon’s public education system. The focus was on SB 1581, one of the bills Governor Kitzhaber wants passed to continue concentrating power and control over pre-Kindergarten through graduate school in the hands of some of, as one Senator called them last year, “the best and the brightest of Oregon,” members of the Governor’s appointed Oregon Education Investment Board.
A long list of individuals signed up to testify before the Senate Education and Workforce Development Committee that afternoon, virtually all noting on the sign-up sheet that they intended to support the bill. After nearly an hour’s worth of testimony, the Chair, Senator Hass, announced to the audience that he would only take another 15 minutes of testimony because the committee had other business to conduct. At that time, not one testifier had opposed the bill, even though at least two people had signed up to do so.
Finally, with 10 minutes to go, I was called to testify in opposition, which I did, along with another two of the bill’s many supporters. My testimony is here. But the other naysayer never got a chance to testify, even though he is one of the most respected educators in Oregon.
Russ Donero is Professor Emeritus, Department of Politics & Government, Pacific University in Forest Grove. He and I come from different places in our analysis of many public policy issues, and we’ve had spirited public debates in the past. But on Wednesday we discovered that we both opposed this grand new attempt at educational reform, and for surprisingly similar reasons. We do not agree about what the better alternatives may be, but I frankly thought it was shameful that the committee chair wouldn’t make even a few minutes available for him to make his case. Would some fifteen or so testifiers in favor of the bill to two opposed have been so threatening that it couldn’t be allowed to happen?
So, I offered to link Professor Donero’s written testimony here. I hope legislators and others will read it, as I hope they will read mine. Of course, this committee voted four to one to pass the bill on to the Ways and Means Committee. As one member stated at the hearing, even with some concerns, “it’s too late to turn back now.” When Professor Dondero heard that, he turned to me and stated, “That’s what the captain of the Titanic said too.”
Professor Russ Dondero’s testimony in opposition to SB 1581
Steve Buckstein’s testimony in opposition to SB 1581
Audio of the entire hearing (SB 1581 hearing starts at about 2:37 minutes; my testimony starts at about one hour into the hearing.)
