Op Ed:
Dollars, Deaths, Decencies:
Brutal Political Games
Costing Oregonians Dearly

Founders Built Our Constitution To Protect All Citizens.

Founding Fathers image, courtesy: thepime.blogspot.com

(SALEM, Ore.) - Many thousands of Oregonian kids are suffering --and some will die without due and rapid action to provide proper healthcare now clearly consensus-choice in this State.

Twice before a rational tax-rise on cigarettes has won strong approval when taken directly to citizen choice. This third increase “would help Oregon meet two excellent public health goals. It would reduce smoking, particularly among younger people, while helping tens of thousands of children in low-income working families get better health care.”

But twice-done means nothing to legislative participants willing to wager still more in “political poker with children as chips.”

“All men are born equal” is the very heart-and-soul of our Constitution.

“Equal opportunity” follows from that fundamental, as surely as the sun rises each day, in our America.

The Founders felt that fact so strongly it shaped all they declared in those philosophical findings on which a world-shaping Declaration was founded. Brutal party politics --played paramount to put so-called “political principle” first, finally and always-- would have profoundly dismayed them even then --as the Federalist Papers clearly communicate.

That fundamental fact is “the heart of the matter” today at State level; precisely as it applies at national level; as the Founders intended, and surely would appreciate.

What would they think of a “representative assembly” --in Oregon’s 21st Century!-- where tattered, outmoded, 19th Century “political principle” means much more than the health and living opportunity for Oregon’s own disadvantaged childen?

Most especially, those so unlucky as to be born to families now unable to provide healthcare-demanded, due to their unavoidable, inescapable lower-income status? Yet our “Legislature” is now blocked from taking practical, rational, reasonable action to meet the overwhelming needs of thoroughly-documented and ferociously-demanding child-care for this group.

Are these children then simply to be declared as “unequal” and further chastised and chastened by that critical, but unavoidable, human status of currently “dollar-deprived”? Three times fair and strongly-felt legislative actions have been achieved, resulting from fully-open, ongoing democratic dialog; and followed by mutual agreement.

Three times “political principle” has been the pretend-mechanism, making meaningless that commonsense action in commonweal interest.

Reasonable, rational action has thus been prevented from prevailing: NOT by any disagreement on needs and impacts --those are already ferociously and fully documented; BUT precisely reflecting, over and over, the dollar-driven destructive impacts of a contemptuous major national corporate interest.

That interest --on full-attack right here in our home state-- has expended millions in lobby, “campaign contributions”, and canny advertising to capture even more child victims; while our children needing healthcare are forced still further into despair; and some will die. What prevents badly-needed legislative action is simply a demand for political pay-off: ”Give us what we demand or watch the children suffer” --in very plain-English.

But our Founders knew well that folly, frailty and fear shape much that men do, both FOR and TO each other. They knew what follows when that “principle” --monarchical mechanisms chosen by party-panderers--is remorselessly applied; to provide partial or complete paralysis of ANY commonweal action known to be consensus.

That was why they built our governance system as they did -- providing due control and strong continuing supervision; via careful balancing of human interests and the motivations and mechanisms for wise action in the overweening commonweal interest.

Fully-open, democratically-dialoged assembly action is the primary and productive means and method they chose --based on completely authoritative information.

The Founders were practical men of their proper time-and-culture. They were entirely aware of “the overwhelming impact of wealthand-privilege” on what men did, even then, “in the name of governance”.

The dollar-impact of our current “corporate campaign contributions”; and outright political purchase by overwhelming impact of wealth-applied for selfish purpose; went by a different name in those days.

It began with a b, and reflected precisely the impacts-then we feel in “more modern” methods today: Lobby-contact “every day, in every ear”; just as malign and un-moralistic nowadays, even if more-”sophisticated”.

But the net practical effect was so brutally felt that it finally drove our Founders to real Revolution --in 1776-- for which we should be eternally thankful.

The Federalist Papers make this process entirely clear. That is information of the highest marque for anyone seeking clarification on democratic principle applied today. But these “legislators” suffer no lack of similar solid guiding information, timely and strongly offered to guide their most-basic considerations on this issue.

They have heard from an overwhelming assembly of associations, individuals, authoritative professionals --and even other politicians. They have heard grieving, desolate parents describe the deadly circumstances and the wrenching moments ending courageous child struggle.

Still the stymie-situation continues today, despite clear and fully CURRENT reality-reports long readily readable by any “Legislator” who so chooses to carry out consensus-demanding responsibilities.

The major Oregonian daily newspaper is already “twelve-reports deep --since Sunday, January 2007”, on this seemingly “intractable” issue, in reality a simple choice between two opposing forces.

How can it be that these strong and documented daily newspaper reports are profoundly ignored now by this ostensible “elected representative” Legislature? Their cumulative impact is impossible to ignore; and especially if one is seeking conscientious solid guidance on this issue. Obviously two confrontational forces are at work here. Which side one chooses should require no great struggle, so there must be “other considerations” in process. Where have we heard that one before?

One force is corporate continuance of proven disastrous consequence via advertising and other provocative means, including constant lobbying contacts with legislators. (Reportedly in the millions of dollars during long-past years and currently, too.)

The other force is public opinion, surely now clear and completely demonstrated by actual declaration on two previous occasions of formal-electoral choice; when citizens stated their strong feelings and pointed the way to proper preventive action.

WHY do we need ANOTHER SHOT, costing many millions more in voter-choice AND partisan-driven political propaganda persiflage --on paper and via the airwaves-- to determine what has been plainly proven TWICE ALREADY?

“Too Little, Too Late, Too Long!” need not play out that expensive political-poker/hand here, too, any longer! The wit, wisdom and will of the people is well-known on this issue and has already been demonstrated: TWICE, in FACT ! Oregon will never “Fly With Her Own Wings” while frustrating and foolish counterweights are tightly bound to both “wings” --House and Senate-- in this stymied and stuttering “representative assembly”.
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Reader Note:
The OREGONIAN series “State of Denial” Oregon’s Uninsured” began on 1/7/07, It is archived at www.oregonlive.com. Current Edit “Playing political poker with children as chips” appeared 6/14/07. Quotes are verbatim, condensed, summarized from numerous sources, list available on request.

More than 30 separate sources were consulted for this one, with some 40 documenting references, list available on request.