Salem Political Snark

Iran, if you're listening...

Even though I can be prone to magical thinking at times, I haven't gone down that rabbit hole deep enough to really believe that if I'd written a blog post with the above title a day or two ago, Iran wouldn't have fired more than a dozen ballistic missiles at a U.S. base in Iraq today.

But since I spent some time this afternoon prior to the attack thinking about what I wanted to say in an Iran, if you're listening... post, I might as well start off by summarizing my advice to Iran -- some of which still makes sense even after the missile attack.

Dear Iran,

I realize you're deeply pissed off at President Trump. Which puts you in the company of a heck of a lot of Americans, including me. It makes sense that Trump's order to kill Maj. Gen. Qassim Suleimani fills you with rage. 

But that's what Trump does all the time. Talk crazy and act crazy. He loves to get reactions from both people and nations. So I'm hoping you'll avoid the temptation to respond to Suleimani's death with your own killings. You can't win a Crazy War with Trump. 

So think clearly and strategically. 

My advice to you, Iran, is to focus on something that is attainable, doesn't require bloodshed, and is guaranteed to make Trump exceedingly angry. Best of all, perhaps, it would meet with the approval of most Americans. It is:

Help orchestrate the complete withdrawal of United States forces from Iraq. This is a dream of yours. Go for it.

The Iraqi parliament already has called for the withdrawal of American forces. The acting prime minister of Iraq wants this to happen. And the US Command in Baghdad sent the prime minister a letter indicating that the withdrawal was happening (though now the letter is being called a mistake, which is as believable as all the other lies the Trump administration engages in).

Getting the United States out of Iraq would be a big victory for Iran. Consider this as payback for Suleimani's killing. Thanks for listening, Iran. 

Well, the breaking news on CNN and MSNBC is that the ballistic missiles landed in an unoccupied part of the base, so apparently there were no casualties. And maybe even no damage, except to the desert.

It seems to me, as well as others I've been listening to, that this was intentional by Iran. Iran wanted to retaliate for Suleimani's killing in a way that didn't escalate the conflict between Iran and the United States into all-out war. 

Trump has responded in what is, for him, an unusually measured way. 

“All is well! Missiles launched from Iran at two military bases located in Iraq,” Trump tweeted. “Assessment of casualties & damages taking place now. So far, so good! We have the most powerful and well equipped military anywhere in the world, by far! I will be making a statement tomorrow morning.”

Reports are that Iranian leaders have said that if the United States doesn't conduct further attacks against Iran, they will consider that this immediate conflict is over. Hopefully Trump will understand that the best thing is to deescalate this crisis, not inflame the situation by bombing Iranian targets.

This is what a wise president of the United States would do. Unfortunately, "wise" doesn't describe Donald Trump. So we'll just have to wait and see what Trump says in his statement tomorrow morning.

Since Trump has vowed to get our country out of foreign entanglements, and Iran hasn't done anything to justify an attack against them, Trump should realize that he's got nothing to gain and a lot to lose by dragging the United States into a war with Iran.

We might be able to destroy a lot of Iran's traditional military capability. However, almost certainly Iran still would be able to conduct massive cyberwarfare against our minimally prepared computer systems that control infrastructure, financial institutions, electrical grids, and such.

Thus there's lots of ways Iran could bring a war to our shores. Which wouldn't be great for Trump's re-election chances. This is a moment for wise minds to prevail. Which I'd be a lot more confident of if Donald Trump didn't occupy the Oval Office.

Bad P.R. for City of Salem: homeless and library debacles

The folks who run City Hall aren't doing very well in the public relations department recently.

KGW News has been doing a good job of holding city officials accountable for failing to live up to their promise to add shelter beds for the homeless following a citywide ban on homeless camps. Here's how a January 3 KGW story starts out.

SALEM, Ore. — More than two weeks after the city of Salem enacted a ban on public camping and two days after their self-imposed deadline, by which they promised to open 140 shelter beds, officials confirmed they’ve come up woefully short.

As of Friday, January 3, they’ve opened zero new beds.

Salem’s Community & Media Relations Specialist Kathy Ursprung wrote via email Friday, “In Salem, there are 330 shelter beds available nightly. When the temperature drops to 32 or below, our warming center network of churches has the ability to open another 256 beds, dependent upon volunteer availability.”

That was the case prior to the ban’s enactment.

Wow. Zero additional shelter beds, when 140 were promised, after two weeks of bureaucratic ineptitude. This sure doesn't make the City of Salem look either compassionate or competent. 

Then, in yesterday's Sunday Statesman Journal, there was a letter to the editor that properly criticized the atrocious decision by city staff and the City Council to temporarily house the Salem Public Library in a building owned by the Salem Alliance Church, which denies LGBTQ rights.

As an Episcopal Priest, I found Scott Rick's editorial fascinating and I totally agree with the writer's comments ("Salem taxpayer money shouldn't go to organization that denies basic human rights," Dec. 29, page 6C).

I cannot believe the Salem Library would enter into a financial arrangement with a church that bans so many accepted positions in today's society and Oregon law. A church that does not give full status and accommodation to women and members of the LGBTQ community should not be receiving a portion of taxpayer money.

Of all organizations, I am astounded that the Salem Public Library would censure adult and mature reading material under the "guise" of placing it in "storage."  This rental arrangement has made for "strange bedfellows" and my regret is that it violates the First Amendment to our U.S. Constitution.

I will not support the Salem Public Library until it is once again fully in step with the Constitution and state and national laws.

Rev. Fred Heard
Salem

Honor Mike Swaim by making Salem more progressive

Mike Swaim was a much-admired former mayor of Salem who died on December 17 from a stroke that occurred during heart surgery. 

Other people have praised Swaim for how he worked to improve Salem during his three mayoral terms in office from 1997 to 2002. Below I'm sharing a piece that Bill Smaldone wrote about Swaim that was posted on the Salem City Watch site. 

And both the Salem Reporter and Statesman Journal had stories about Swaim. So since I don't have anything to add about Swaim's exemplary life, I want to talk about how we can honor him in the future.

Since Mike Swaim was a proud progressive, working to make Salem more progressive than it already is strikes me as a fine way to say Thank you, Mike. We're taking your footsteps further in a direction that would please you.

Which means, in part:

(1) Protecting, and hopefully expanding, the 6-3 progressive majority on the Salem City Council.
(2) Preventing further urban sprawl that Swaim disliked so much.
(3) Reducing greenhouse gases in Salem through a strong Climate Action Plan.
(4) Expanding LGBTQ rights in Salem.
(5) Fighting against conservative efforts to prevent 1-4 above from happening.

Regarding that last point, it seems clear that the Salem Area Chamber of Commerce, the Realtors Association, and other groups on the right wing of the political spectrum are going to go all out to regain control of the reins of power at City Hall, just as they did after Swaim was elected mayor and the City Council had a progressive majority.

Someone sent me a link to a May 2002 Oregonian story about how Janet Taylor, a conservative, had been elected mayor of Salem by beating Bill Isabell, who Swaim had endorsed.
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Since I like people who tell it like it is, I loved this part of the story.

Swaim told a weekly Eugene publication that Salem has a Chamber of Commerce "with a lot of good people run by a bunch of Neanderthals."

OK, that comment led to demands that Swaim apologize, but I don't think he needed to.

What he meant, I'm pretty sure, was that leaders of the Salem Chamber of Commerce weren't interested in wise, forward-looking, cutting-edge policies that would move Salem forward toward increased equity, quality of life, and economic development that benefits everybody, not just a privileged few.

The same holds true today, by and large. That's why we need to remember that, as Progressive Salem likes to say, people power can beat money power. 

Which doesn't mean you shouldn't donate to progressive candidates and causes. Of course that's needed.

But so is volunteering to help elect people to the mayor's office and city council seats who are committed to following in the progressive footsteps of Mike Swaim, and doing your part in other ways to assure that Salem continues to move forward, not backward.

Here's what Bill Smaldone wrote in his Salem City Watch piece about Swaim.

With the passing of Mike Swaim on December 17 the people of Salem lost a true friend.

Many members of City Watch certainly remember well that few local political figures defended the interests of average people in Salem the way Mike did during his three terms as Mayor. For Mike every issue essentially boiled down to a few basic questions: who got to make the decisions, how were obligations and benefits shared, and how were individuals’ rights protected.

Mike was truly a democrat with a small d.

He believed it was essential to listen to people and for the government to serve all residents as fairly and equitably as possible. Listening takes time and that sometimes made for very long meetings, but Mike thought it was worth it and he was right. Mike led the fight for as much transparency as possible in city government.

He pushed for citizens’ right to vote on annexations, supported ordinances to provide as much information as possible to the public about growth and its costs, and insisted that those who profited from growth pay their fair share of its costs to the community.

For Mike, government was all about improving the quality of life for all, and he worked tenaciously to defend our parks, our library, and our neighborhood services while at the same time providing adequate resources to public safety.

Mike also knew that many in our community faced discrimination and exploitation. He emphasized the importance of the Human Rights Commission in defending the rights of all citizens. He recognized the importance of tolerance and communication in community life, and this was symbolized by his support for the Peace Plaza and for Salem’s sister city projects.

Mike was also much concerned with the environment.

Long before “climate change” became part of the daily discussion, he supported the creation of the City’s Environmental Commission, which later councils, unfortunately, lacked the foresight to continue. He also placed much emphasis on planning ahead and many projects initiated during Mike’s tenure, such as the Riverfront Park, the Convention Center, and the Pedestrian Bridge to Wallace Marine Park, are now core elements of our flourishing downtown.

The list of achievements could go on. What is perhaps more important, though, is to remember Mike as a person.

Mike and his spouse, Kellie, were a team. Not only did they raise a family together, but they also shared the work of the law practice. The decision to engage in city politics was a joint project that Kellie shared with Mike every step of the way and, just as the law practice depended on both of them, so did Mike’s stint as Mayor.

Being Mayor meant a lot of sacrifices. It is financially difficult for anyone with their own business and it demands enormous amounts of time and energy that one might otherwise spend with family and friends. Mike and Kellie dealt with it all with aplomb. They took the work in stride and were always ready for a good laugh and a beer.

Mike will be missed, but his model of civic engagement will remain.

-- Bill Smaldone

Angry Owl's Top 10 Predictions for Salem in 2020

Funny. Sarcastic. Provocative. In short, a hoot. Here's Angry Owl's Top 10 Predictions for Salem in 2020 that came to perch on the top of the Twitter tree today.

It's tough for me to pick a favorite, because I like them all, but I suppose my #1 of the Top Ten would be... "Botched construction at the polo grounds and clubhouse delay grand opening of Salem's $73 million police facility," because cost overruns were so extreme on this Police Palace.

Be sure to follow Angry Owl on Twitter so you don't miss this famous bird's tweets. And check out Angry Owl's 2019 predictions for Salem, which also had some sharp talons aimed at our city.