Oregon Governor's Driver Card is No Answer

The answer is enforcing the motor vehicle laws with real teeth, but more importantly to fund and maintain public mass transit and sidewalk/bike lane infrastructures.

(SALEM, Ore.) - Governor Kulongoski has finally finished playing a game of "Chicken" with the Department of Homeland Security in regards to compliance with the REAL ID Act. Bully for him. He has decided that his posturing should not deprive legal citizens of Oregon the right to travel.

However, he continues to worry about the 'poor illegal' who would be unable to get a license. So he proposes a 'Driver card' that would not comply with the REAL ID act but that those who cannot prove legal status (probably 99.99% of whom cannot because they are in this country illegally) can acquire, and we are left to marvel at his compassion.

I understand his goal - If illegal residents have the card maybe they will be more inclined not to flee the scene of accidents they cause, maybe they will be more likely to carry auto insurance, etc. But who does he think he is fooling and how moronic does he think illegals are?

This card should have ILLEGAL stamped right at the top of it because really the vast majority of those getting it will BE ILLEGAL.

Sure there will be the odd person who is 90 and lost their birth certificate in a fire in 1932 but how many of those will there really be?

What the Governor will be expecting is all the nearly 200,000 illegal drivers to come out of the woodwork and sign up for what amounts to an illegal registration program, giving their names and home locations to a government they inherently distrust. No recipe for failure there huh?

On another track we cannot even get legal residents to get licenses and insurance or to not drive without them. Need I remind anyone of Sean Lee Hagen, the deadly motor vehicle scofflaw who has 16 or so suspensions of a license he has never had who ran down and killed (some might say murdered) an elderly veteran in Downtown Salem just this summer past? He, like so many others, has no license (or a suspended or revoked license) and no insurance yet he is a legal, if not law abiding, citizen.

The answer to getting scofflaws, legal or illegal, off the roads is not allowing or supporting more of them. The answer is to both enforce, with real teeth, the motor vehicle laws but more importantly to fund and maintain public mass transit and sidewalk/bike lane infrastructures.

Putting people in a situation where they feel they have to drive to survive will make them drive even when they should not. The answer in the long run is to make it so driving is no longer seen as necessary for day to day survival.

Besides, in our generally obese society it is healthier to walk, ride bikes and take the bus than to drive anyway even without the pollution aspects, true?

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CodyO October 23, 2007 9:03 pm (Pacific time)

Missy is exactly right.

Kaybee October 9, 2007 7:54 am (Pacific time)

Thanks for the support Henry. Im sorry, but the word "elderly" has come to create an image of frail, impaired, etc. You know when you think of someone maybe with a walker, or who resides in a care facility. It should not be used just to refer to someone of a certain age. Do you consider Tina Turner to be an "elderly" woman? I sure dont! And she is about 67, chonologically. Also labels like "ancient" are insulting. As I said before, PLEASE lets just drop all the labels. If you HAD to emphasize the fact that this person was of that generation, saying that he was a Veteran of WWII or the Korean war would have given the reader the general idea of his age. I am glad to see that you, Neal, consider older Americans worthy of respect, but ALAS many people, especially females, would cry if you called them "Elderly". Sorry.

Neal Feldman October 8, 2007 6:35 pm (Pacific time)

Henry - regarding the illegals who 'need to drive' where mass transit does not go two suggestions - 1) expand mass transit to such areas and 2) find employers so draconianly that hire illegals that no illegals will need to drive there anymore because they will have no jobs there to drive to. Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. Ah well...

Neal Feldman October 8, 2007 6:33 pm (Pacific time)

Genry - at 90 you are past ancient and into the venerable level (followed by the "Ain't he dead YET?!' level - lol. sorry could no resist. I said Elderly veteran becayse the man was in his 70s. In my view the term elderly is not derogatory but in fact describes an aspect worthy of respect. I consider it DOUBLY heinous that not only was the victim of Sean Lee Hagen a veteran, but ALSO elderly as well. I see nothing negative or stereotypical in my usage. I am not saying thst no one uses the term in such a manner but since I do not I take no responsibility for any who might - I find such folks despicable IMHO. I would have stated his age (and name) but was not able to easily locate them. My apologies. That would have been my preference. If that is not good enough... Ah well...

Henry Ruark October 8, 2007 10:22 am (Pacific time)

K-Bee: I'm with you on this one...since already in danger of "ancient"..but "elderly" is out-of-place since describes attitude and life-approach more than actual-age, these days.

Kaybee October 8, 2007 8:57 am (Pacific time)

You are right on, but PLEASE just call the man who was killed "a veteran" and not "and ELDERLY veteran". This word is being used to refer to people as young as 50 and it is negative and stereotypical. Lets just either give his chronological age, if it is importan, or just call him a "veteran" and leave the age labels off.

Henry Ruark October 8, 2007 8:12 am (Pacific time)

We may never know when the "real GPS" chip is inserted, since technology these days is often not known to those being subjected to it..honest injun...but that's another story entirely. Many illegals drive out of any range of mass transport, and will so continue, too; so whatver is done must cover that much more than in-town travel. Dunno answer; if did, might make mint of more-monies manipulating right-to-use !!

Neal Feldman October 7, 2007 8:43 pm (Pacific time)

So long as there is no GPS chip in it nor are we required to swipe our card at checkpoints I don't think there is anything to fear from the REAL ID Act. Right now any cop can ask to see your ID and hold you for up to 48 hrs if you refuse to comply. Heck they can hold you for up to 48 hrs just because they want to. They tend not to abuse that but some abuse does happen. That has nothing to do with REAL ID. But to comply and then cater to illegals to the point of creating an entire card and system for them is ludicrous, especially since I doubt if they will get three illegals to sign up for it. Ah well...

Missy October 7, 2007 6:13 pm (Pacific time)

I think we are missing the point here. NO ONE should support the Real ID Act. It's like hitler times..."show your papers!" Are we going to let this happen to us? FIGHT THE REAL ID ACT. REFUSE THE NATIONAL ID CARD! If we all refuse it, it won't work. We are Americans! This is OUR COUNTRY and we have won freedom. But it can be taken away from us if we don't stand up and defend it.

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