Taxalicious!

The city of Corvallis is considering a business tax for telecommunication companies doing business in Corvallis, theoretically recovering some of the franchise tax money lost when people stop using land lines in favor of cell phones and "leveling the field" for providers. This has caused quite the uproar, which either shows that people are reacting in typical knee-jerk fashion to the word "tax" or that they haven't bothered to read the fine print.

First of all, this tax will be on the companies doing business, not on individual cell phone users. It is not a direct tax on consumers. Yes, the cell phone companies will undoubtedly pass the fee along to cell phone users, all 4,600 of them here in town. Total cost per cell phone user: $30 per year. Wow! That $2.50 per month is sure going to break the budget for those earning enough to pay for subscription cell phone service!

That's really the rub. Cell phone service is not a necessity, though some people seem to be permanently attached to theirs. It's a luxury item, one that requires infrastructure such as cell phone towers, and is also drawing revenue from the city coffers that would otherwise be earned through traditional phone service. It's a fair tax and not worth all the moaning and groaning.

In similar tax news, Teresa Novak of the Gazette-Times recently wrote an opinion piece supporting Republican State Senator Frank Morse's call for a sales tax and reduction in income tax. Sales taxes unfairly penalize the portion of the population least able to pay. While those who earn a comfortable living are able to save a more significant portion of their income, thus avoiding a sales tax, the lower and low-middle classes must spend a larger percentage of their take-home pay, meaning that a larger percentage of their income is taxed than those earning significantly more. Some, like presidential candidate Michael Smith, suggest a sales tax refund for those earning below the poverty limit. This would force people below the poverty limit to pay throughout the year, then wait for the refund later. Do you know many people earning $14,000 annually (using Oregon's minimum wage) who can do without those few hundred dollars during the year? That can mean the difference between having a car that runs and hoping you don't need a ride to the hospital in the middle of the night.

Oregon's progressive income tax makes sense, as I believe that those who can afford to pay more should pay more, and the lack of sales tax encourages people to spend more money. That is a much bigger boost to the local economy than the sales tax would be.

It's not technically Corvallis...

But tomorrow (Saturday) is the semi-annual beach clean-up over at the coast. From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., SOLV volunteers will comb Oregon beaches picking up cigarette butts, beer bottles and other detritus that morons leave behind on our otherwise glorious beaches.

Part of the joy of living in Corvallis is that the coast is a mere hour away. Too many people treat the beach like a gas station bathroom and trash it up. I think it's important to pitch in to keep the beaches nice. After all, the Oregon coast line is probably the most beautiful stretch of shore in this country, and I believe I have seen the coast in every state along the East and West coasts.

The Corvallist will probably be on hiatus until Thursday, March 30th, so here's wishing you all a lovely spring break, if you are so lucky.

Small town compassion

A few days ago, I was downtown at the post office and a homeless man was sitting on the steps. Sadly, that's not an unusual sight, even in our small, relatively affluent city. Corvallis actually has decent resources for the homeless population, considering that such resources are fairly rare outside of more urban areas. We have a full-blown homeless shelter, special programs for homeless families, meal programs, and a free medical and dental clinic for those who can't afford luxuries such as medicine or prenatal care or having a rotting tooth pulled.

But still, some people fall through the cracks, usually because they are unable (or unwilling) to fully help themselves. Most of these programs will try to help, but if someone is mentally ill (without being a threat to self or others) or carrying the burden of addiction, that person will still end up sleeping under the bypass bridge and panhandling.

When I was at the post office, I gave some spare change to the man on the steps, as several others walking past had also done. This town isn't so big that I can look away and ignore someone asking for help without feeling guilty, even if I know he is simply going to walk over to Dari-Mart and buy another 40-ounce bottle of malt liquor to replace the nearly-empty one at his feet. Sometimes I do walk past, sometimes I cough up some change. But when I came out of the post office, I saw a woman walk up to this man with a platter of food. Seriously, it looked as though she had gone to Elmer's or some similar place and bought a real dinner for this man, right down to the mashed potatoes and gravy. She then handed him two bottles of water and encouraged him to drink them to keep dehydration at bay. She then smiled, got back into her car and drove away. It happened in the blink of an eye, but the look on the man's face is still frozen in my brain.

What an awesome thing to do.

The Other Corvallis

There is another Corvallis, a tiny little burg in Western Montana not far from Missoula. I went there once, simply because I happened to be driving back to Oregon from Ohio through Montana and couldn't resist taking the detour. It's very, very small and nondescript. I remember wondering where the rest of the town was. The surrounding area was visually stunning, but our poor little namesake was just sort of dull.

Looking up some random info on Google, I found that the population is fewer than 500 people. Houses only cost $90,000... but the average income is under $20,000. But the coolest little tidbit is that the town was actually named for Corvallis, Oregon. I guess some settlers thought it was too warm here, so moved to an area where it snows for six months out of the year.

Since I have monopolized the name "Corvallist," I think it is only fair to cover news for Corvallis, Montana, as well. I clicked on the current events link for the local wildlife refuge, which apparently has not been updated since last year. I did manage to find the equivalent of the town activity center, which features some fascinating upcoming events, mostly horse shows, but some fascinating seminars like "Free Seminar on Equine Nutrition" and "Gentle Solutions to Horse Problems and Harmony with Horses."

I also found one gay cowboy in the other Corvallis who posted his profile on a dating site, but that link is not safe for me to post here. Oh my. He should probably move here, where there is actually a gay community with a population other than him. But then, maybe my assumptions about Little Corvallis are off base.

Whatever. I think our Corvallis could probably kick the other Corvallis's ass! If anyone in Corvallis, Montana begs to differ, please drop me a line.

I'm too lazy to write letters to the editor

Actually, I have written several, but they very rarely are printed. That's part of the reason I started this blog.

The Corvallis Gazette-Times has really gone downhill in the last five years or so. I blame a combination of the merger with the Albany Democrat-Herald and the parent company, which clearly states that the top priorities are "Grow revenue creatively and rapidly" and "Increase readership and circulation." News is third on the list. Companies are supposed to protect the bottom line. But a news organization has a special responsibility: providing accurate information to the readers. That should always be top priority. People want to read the news; they will pay for a good newspaper. Advertising will never be the top priority for the majority of subscribers.

After working at the GT and one of Lee's other papers for several years, I know how they select the news. They sell advertising first, then determine how much space is left for actual news. They have a few underpaid reporters to handle local stories (and the really good ones quickly move on to larger papers), sometimes merely taking national news and finding some local ties that might be newsworthy, and then the rest of the space is plugged with AP wire stories. These AP stories are sometimes missing entire paragraphs, even ending in the middle of a sentence.

So, what prompts the rant? Since the merger, Hasso Hering of the Democrat-Herald has been handed the Sunday editorial page for his often bizarre pseudoconservative rants. Teresa Novak, the GT opinion page editor, ends up writing a secondary editorial at the bottom of the page, often a fluff piece. This Sunday's Novak editorial was really just sad.

Ms. Novak writes about Comcast's new price hike for expanded basic cable, which could be considered newsworthy. However, while she briefly touches on attempts to deregulate cable and unbundle packaging so that consumers can select their favored channels without paying for those other channels, the editorial primarily makes the bold statement that it's hard to live without cable TV.

Huh? I haven't had cable TV in years. Who wants to support a monopoly? We briefly had satellite TV, but then realized that one episode of Iron Chef each week didn't really justify the cost, even though satellite was cheaper than cable. So we at the Corvallist household actually make do with the somewhat fuzzy Eugene and Portland local stations, when we watch anything other than Netflix. Nobody in our house is unduly suffering from this shocking neo-Luddism.

I can understand making the statement that a phone is a necessity (not cell phones, but that's another article). I can even support the idea that, in these modern times, a computer is a necessity. But TV? For someone who makes a living working for the written press? No.

Dear Peace Rally Coordinators...

Please take a page from the "How to Organize a Peace March" handbook apparently used by coordinators in Portland and Eugene. When organizing and advertising a "peace march through downtown Corvallis," it would really have more of an impact if you would obtain a permit for an actual march. Hundreds of people strolling down the sidewalks, being forced to stop at every intersection to wait for traffic, and weaving back and forth basically to make the march last a full hour doesn't really seem that different from the wine walk a couple weeks ago, with signs instead of wine glasses. Until the rally at the end, you couldn't find a group of people larger than 20 or so in one place, mainly because the sidewalks are too narrow for this sort of thing. It would've been preferable to just have a giant rally on the courthouse lawn for the duration.

Ah well, at least our town did something. The organizers claimed 500 participants today, but I would guess 400. Lots of kids and pets, lots of familiar faces from the daily vigil, lots of names of dead soldiers strung up in a sad memorial created with cloth and string. Even more sad were the cloth strips indicating Iraqi deaths. There have been too many to list individually, so each strip counted as 1,000 anonymous Iraqi civilians.

We were behind some little kids chanting, "We want peace! No more fighting! Donald Duck for president!" That was fairly charming. I'll admit that we left before the planned musical acts at the rally. I love being around peaceful people, but I don't want to hear "Blowin' in the Wind" anymore.

Here's hoping that the event in Portland draws a lot of Corvallis residents as well. The crowd tomorrow should be 10,000 strong, not including the small and furry:

Peace march downtown tomorrow

To commemorate the third anniversary of our misguided foray into Iraq, there will be a peace march in downtown Corvallis on Saturday, March 18th. The gathering will begin at noon at the Benton County Courthouse, beginning with a march around downtown and followed by a rally.

We'll be there, as we have been since March 2003. (We'll also be driving up to Portland for the larger event on Sunday.) At the very least, it's a nice reminder that there are like-minded people in town. (And yes, I did notice that Leah Bolger's email address is tied to the flyer for the peace rally, but I still disagree with the city council resolution.) It's also a pretty sober acknowledgement that thousands upon thousands of people have died with no good cause. More than 2300 American soldiers and a whopping 33,000 Iraqi civilians have died over the past three years. That's more than half the population of our little town. Isn't that worth a couple hours out of a Saturday afternoon?

In sort-of-related news, I saw a yellow ribbon magnet on a car yesterday that proudly stated, "I support more troops than you." I loved it. If you really want to support the troops, show up for the rally. Nothing supports them more than bringing them home alive. The only people you are really supporting by purchasing for-profit yellow ribbon magnets are the third world sweatshop workers who are making them for 50 cents a day. How patriotic.

(Side note: Gremlins ate the Corvallist blog between Thursday afternoon and Friday morning. Hopefully the issue is now resolved.)

Corvallis at 3 a.m.

Corvallis is not really a town for night owls. Once "beer-thirty" arrives and the bars close, the town becomes pretty quiet. However, for those of us who don't live on a normal 8 to 5 schedule, there are a few places open.

In addition to the three 7-11 stores around town, popular with high school kids out past curfew, you can find heartier (although not necessarily healthier) fare at Shari's, which is sort of a Denny's clone. You'll find the same mix of sleepy drunks fresh from the bar scene, college students cramming with coffee and fries, and the occasional graveyard shift worker taking a lunch break. McDonald's and Jack in the Box are now open 24 hours a day as well, but only for drive-through service.

For OSU students, there is a computer lab open 24 hours a day, but even campus tends to shut down pretty solidly. There are also a couple of surprising late-night venues. Good Samaritan Hospital has a cafeteria that opens from 12:30 a.m. until 3:30 a.m. and serves typical cafeteria fare, with a buffet (menu items change daily), made-to-order grill items and a full salad bar. The food is actually better than one would expect, ranging from pasta dishes to grilled salmon. The mashed potatoes served at 2 a.m. are the best you'll find in town. And while it technically isn't open 24 hours, Pita Pit will deliver until 4 a.m. on weekends.

Last, but not least, there is Winco. In the wee hours, you can probably push a cart around for a good 90 minutes, dodging the inventory restocking, pilfering samples from the bulk items bins and trying to figure out who, exactly, is going to purchase the fresh-wrapped pigs' feet. Yep... the excitement never ends.

The Best Library

I just found out today that the web address for the Corvallis-Benton County Library is thebestlibrary.net (and .org). I thought that was pretty funny. How do they know they're the best library? According to Domain White Pages, someone else owns thebestlibrary.com, but it didn't seem to be an actual library, so I didn't bother checking out the site.

It is certainly a fantastic library, worthy of a dedicated post. For a town this size, the library is a decent size, with great hours, with plenty of events for kids of all ages and some really neat features and services that a lot of people don't know about. A few of my favorites:

• Teen Gaming Night. For a couple of hours, kids from 12 to 18 can gather at the library to play board games and video games. The 12-year-old in the Corvallist household says the best part is playing Dance Dance Revolution on a giant projector screen. It sure beats the poorly-chaperoned Boys & Girls Club middle-school dance nights.
  
• Access to Computer Services. Even in computer-friendly Corvallis, not everyone has a computer at home. The library has computers that are free to use (unlike Kinko's $12/hour machines) separated by age groups so that adults have unfettered internet access while kids are relegated to machines with filters.
  
• Book Clubs, for adults, teens and tweens. You can even join a variety of online book clubs.
  
• The Bookmobile. No transportation? Live in the outer reaches? The library's mobile unit brings books and library services to neighborhoods all over Corvallis and Benton County. In addition, there's a "Dial-A-Book" service for housebound library patrons and library service is provided to inmates at the county jail.
  
• The Library Website. From the comfort of your home, you can reserve books you would like to read, print off tax forms, order books from other libraries, find age-appropriate homework help links for the kids, and my new favorite feature:
  
• Downloadable Audio Books. Lamenting a lack of time to catch up on the classics? You can now download a huge selection of audio books from the Library 2 Go website, absolutely free, and burn them to CD or transfer them to your MP3 player so you can catch up on Anna Karenina during your morning walk. I have never been able to stay awake while listening to audio books in the car, but I'm sort of sick of listening to Rick Steves podcasts during my workout and I've been meaning to finally get through Paradise Lost.

It is indeed one of the best libraries I've used. When I was a new mom, I would bring my baby to the library in a stroller and read magazines in the giant overstuffed chairs while the kidlet napped to save unnecessary expenses. That kid is the one now dancing like crazy on teen game nights and ravaging the manga section every weekend.

The Future of Southtown

The portion of Corvallis that lies south of the confluence of Mary's River and the Willamette, disparagingly referred to as "Southtown," has a less-than-favorable reputation. It has traditionally been the cheapest part of town in which to live, and in a few neighborhoods, such as the trailer park behind Papa's Pizza, the notoriety is deserved. The situation has improved somewhat over the last decade, with the expansion of the First Alternative Co-op, the addition of Intaba's and a couple of new housing developments that have brought new blood into the region.

Arguments over development in Corvallis are certainly nothing new, but there is a new controversy brewing over development in Southtown. The owners of John and Phil's Toyota/Scion/Subaru want to move their car dealership to a large industrial area in Southtown. Their current lot is sandwiched into a narrow strip between 5th Street and Highway 99 and there is no room for expansion. You can download the Corvallis Planning Commission report here (PDF), but be warned it is more than 200 pages.

This development proposal makes absolute sense. The land in question is zoned industrial. The lot is neighbored by the wrecking yard and open fields on two sides. But Ted Daum, an environmental consultant and resident of the new Willamette Landing housing development nearby, is vehemently protesting the plan, stating that South Corvallis doesn't need auto dealerships, it needs a grocery store. Daum claims that "It's not smart growth."

First of all, why would this be considered an either/or proposition? The planning commission has already identified the former auction yard as the site best suited for a supermarket, a plan that would not be thwarted if the auto dealership plan was completed. Besides, the expanded First Alternative Co-op is a fantastic grocery store, so the residents of Southtown are no longer doomed to purchase overpriced convenience foods at Circle K and 7-11 as they were 15 or 20 years ago. In addition, the short drive over the bridge into downtown Corvallis brings you right to Safeway's doorstep. It's not like the denizens of Southtown are starving as they trek across the plains in search of food.

Secondly, if Daum is so concerned about "smart growth," why would he move into Willamette Landing? One of the several housing developments in town created by Legend Homes, it is yet another example of large, overpriced, cheaply-constructed homes on small 1/10th acre lots, crammed into a small area. For $300,000 or so, you can have one of these ugly clone houses for yourself, except that the average Corvallis resident couldn't afford to actually purchase one.

There are certain areas of Corvallis where development does not make sense. Downtown Corvallis is mostly full, with the exception of some areas along the riverfront and some continuing beautification projects. Ninth Street still has a few vacant lots where commercial development opportunities exist, but these should be preserved for retail development, such as the expansion of the business center near Office Max and the lot behind the K-Mart/Safeway shopping center. Southtown is one area where the city should encourage development. The area is lacking in job opportunities and there isn't much traffic to the area. The planning commission will be voting on this issue the evening of Wednesday, March 15th. There will be no public participation at this meeting, but they are soliciting feedback until the time of the meeting. Make your voice heard by dropping an email to Kevin Young.

Random post of gastronomic giddiness

At the Rhapsody in the Vineyard wine walk last weekend (Did you see me? I was the one with the wine glass), I was on a mission to drink nothing but pinot noir. I am new to pinots, having had a penchant for cabernet for most of my life, so I am trying to learn more about our regional specialty.

My friends and I tried our best to use up our ten taste tickets before our time was up, no small feat when you are trying to sip, not guzzle, before wading through the crowds to the next venue. There was also no possible way to sample all the wineries without alienating my liver, but ten tastes turned out to be just about right, leading to big smiles and hearty laughs, without leading to ejection of bodily fluids along the riverfront. Anyway, of the wines we tasted, we managed to agree on a favorite pinot noir: Pioneer Hopyard. And lo, the wine is actually made here in Corvallis by the owner of Coleman Jewelers. Tastings are available in the jewelry store's new wine-tasting room Monday through Friday 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

I also just found out about the Soup Shop from an article in the Barometer. I'm absolutely thrilled that there is a soup restaurant in town. While traveling in Britain a couple of years ago, we became addicted to a kiosk franchise called Souper Douper in the London train stations. A cup of great soup and a mini baguette of bread for about £4. I think we ate lunch there four or five times out of the two weeks we were there. I haven't trekked down to Monroe to try the Soup Shop out yet, but for now, I'm simply happy that it exists.

Interview with Michael Smith

My apologies for the unannounced hiatus. Like so many other Corvallis residents, I've been waylaid by a rather evil little head cold, one that precluded me from staring at a monitor for the past several days.

But this morning, the snow heralds big news! Michael Smith, Republican candidate for president of the United States, graciously granted an interview with yours truly a few weeks ago. That interview has been completed and can be downloaded in its entirety here: Smith Interview (PDF). You must have Acrobat Reader to view this file.

Here is a small excerpt:

Your website lists several reasons that you have chosen to run for the Oregon primary, as opposed to staging a full national campaign. But why jump straight into the presidential race, as opposed to running for state congress or even city council? Why not work your way up through the political ranks and garner some political experience on the way?

• Valid point. First, this is more about making a gesture regarding the state of today’s politics than it is about gaining an office. I have a full time job, and the last thing this country needs is another “seasoned” politician of the standard vintage. The country could benefit from a demonstration that the moderate middle is tired of the choices typically presented.

• It comes down to my estimate of how I could most effectively influence a huge system with negligible resources; I figured that it would take a big gesture. Modern campaigns cost a fortune (I heard that the last Governor’s candidates spent around $6 million.) But I thought that gathering the 5000 signatures to get on the primary ballot might not be overwhelming. Then my hope is that the Oregon primary is, as it typically is, overlooked by the national candidates since the nomination is usually locked up weeks before. Under those circumstances I’m hoping that the local press may be willing to spare some of the spotlight for a local-interest candidate.

I encourage you all to take a few minutes to read the full interview. Even if you disagree with Mr. Smith's politics, even if you can't or won't vote for him in the Republican primary, it is heartening to see someone try to shake things up a bit. The fundraising campaign has also been officially kicked off, so why not donate $20 in the interest of supporting a local man in his quest to make a difference? You know that $20 is just going to buy a week's worth of Starbucks mocha lattes anyway, or worse... a secret binge on Cadbury Creme Eggs. Put it to good use instead. The Creme Eggs will be back next year.

The freedom to be an idiot

On February 8, 2006, the Oregon State Barometer published a column by Nathanael Blake that basically stated that Christians are good and Muslims are bad. There are, of course, many more details to the column than this broad summary, but boiling it down to the basics is a good place to start. He spends some time ranting about how the liberal press oppresses the poor Christians and then tries to justify comments like "we expect Muslims to behave barbarously" by interspersing his verbal spew with a few snippets pulled from the Koran without context. Theoretically, Mr. Blake was inspired by the recent violence over the anti-Muslim cartoons (a summary, if you somehow missed it), but rather than comment on the action by fundamentalist extremists, he attacks the core of Islam itself, even calling Mohammed a "pedophile" at one point.

After this article was published, Muslims on campus expressed their outrage by peacefully protesting on campus. Maybe Blake will note that there were no suicide bombers on the MU quad Thursday, no calls for jihad against the Barometer (although a boycott was mentioned) and no death threats against Blake himself. But honestly, I don't think Blake will learn anything from this. I think he's too far gone, brainwashed in a religion that espouses peace, except when referring to those who reject the neo-conservatism faction of modern Christianity.

I fully support a free press, which means I support the Barometer's right to print Mr. Blake's fervent little rant. But I lose respect for the Barometer for printing something so full of flaws and historical inaccuracy without telling the author to do a little fact-checking.

Maybe Blake should start by picking up a history textbook. Maybe then he would learn that his statement "Christianity grew on the blood of its martyrs; Islam grew on the blood of its enemies," is truly laughable. Maybe he hasn't heard about the Crusades? Or maybe he is blinded by the rose-colored glasses of his own religion, which really makes him closer to the Muslim extremists than to peaceful folks in any religion.

To me, it seems pretty simple. Fanatics of any flavor are bad. Religious fanatics more easily justify violence because they believe they have God on their side. And this holds true for many religions, including all three major "desert religions": Christianity, Islam and Judaism. (The formation of Israel wasn't exactly bloodless.)

I do believe it is important to maintain freedom of speech and freedom of the press, even when the articles prove inflammatory. It's much better for our society to know where the rabble-rousers are and what they are saying, so we can keep an eye on the ones who seem truly clueless and/or dangerous. And hey...if you disagree and would like to include me in that latter category, you have my blessing. That's what free speech is all about.