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COMING UP ON Think Out Loud.
How does your experience with war affect your presidential vote?
Check out our calendar of informal debates with the most prominent candidates for local and state offices here.
McCain and the Veteran Vote
Posted by Sarah Jane Rothenfluch on Fri, May 9
This sure is an exciting time in Oregon. Over the next couple of days Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama will be traveling across the state, courting votes for the May 20th Primary. Then on Monday the presumptive Republican nominee, John McCain, makes his first visit to this fine state.
When Barack Obama first came to Oregon we did a show about race. When Hillary Clinton came we talked about gender and the generational divide. Now that John McCain is coming, we're turning to veterans.
One of the big things that differentiates John McCain from the other people vying to be the next Commander in Chief is his military experience. He served as a Navy pilot in Vietnam, flying attack aircraft from carriers. In 1967, he was shot down, injured, and then held captive as a prisoner of war for five-and-a-half years.
This experience has obviously shaped his life, his campaign, and his position on the war in Iraq and veterans affairs.
Are you a veteran of war? How has your experience shaped the way you look at the presidential race? How important is support for military families, healthcare for retired veterans, the recognition of servicepeople killed at war to you?
Do you think someone needs to be a veteran of war in order to be an effective Commander in Chief?
How does your experience at war impact your vote?
Photo credit: Wigwam Jones / Flickr / Creative Commons
GUESTS:
General Merrill “Tony” McPeak (retired): Senator Barack Obama's military advisor and national campaign co-chairman
Tim Glaser: Veteran of Iraqi Freedom and Desert Storm. He now works as a computer contractor and lives in East Vancouver
John Neumank: A six-tour veteran of the Vietnam War, regional director of the Pacific Rim States for the Vietnam Veterans Association and founder of Veterans of Oregon
Show airs Monday, May. 12
Pomeranian Politics
Posted by David Miller on Fri, May 9
As soon as we left the studio today, our whole show staff gathered around the coffee maker to talk about just one thing: Emily's lack of experience with dog scarves.
Emily's a hiker, a biker, a woman about town. So it stood to reason that at some point in her peregrinations she'd seen a dog with a bandana around its neck. (In my mind the dogs are always labs, the bandanas are always red, and the effect is always cloying. Like this.)
The topic had come up because we got a caller on today's show who is making dog scarves with Hillary on them. And so while I was imagining frisky retrievers in standard faux-outdorsy habberdashery, Emily was asking, "What about Pekinese? Don't they trip on the ends of the scarf?"
Which cracked us all up. Perhaps Emily had spent too much time in Europe, we thought. Dogs don't wear real scarves! But it turns out she had a point.
Photo credit: Googlefish / Flickr / Creative Commons
The Roadshow's Sideshow
Posted by Julie Sabatier on Thu, May 8
LISTEN TO "The Roadshow's Sideshow" (24MB MP3)
The presidential candidates are actively courting Oregon voters and people across the state are delighted to join in the fun. One Portlander has been designing and selling his own biodegradable campaign posters. Chelsea Clinton's appearance at a local fundraiser got gossip columnists humming and helped her mom woo gay voters. Now Portland's only lesbian bar is hoping the former first daughter will grace them with her presence next week .
Pizza joints and coffee shops around the state are gearing up for the possibility of a suprise visit by John McCain, who will be in Portland on Monday, Hillary Clinton, who is in Central Point today and Portland on Friday, and Barack Obama who plans to be in the state on Friday and Saturday. Television stations are selling ads and event planners have been busy making arrangements with venues in the area. Meanwhile, local police are absorbing the costs of overtime pay for officers assigned to campaign events.
How have the presidential campaigns impacted your local community? How are you preparing for a visit from the candidates? What do you want the candidates to remember about their time in the Beaver state?
GUESTS:
- Rob Manning: Reporter for OPB News, reporting live from Hillary Clinton's roundtable discussion on health care at Oregon Health Sciences University
- John-Paull Davidson: Designer and graphic artist
- Mark O'Brien: Managing partner of American Dream Pizza in Corvallis
- Brian Wilson: Volunteer board member of Red Dress PDX
- John Clayton: Reporter for the New Hampshire Union Leader
Photo credit: tyfn / Flickr / Creative Commons
Show aired Friday, May. 9
Got Health Care?
Posted by Sarah Whites-Koditschek on Wed, May 7
LISTEN TO "Got Health Care?" (24MB MP3)
In January, we did a show about the Oregon Health Plan. After freezing enrollment in 2002, the OHP opened up 5,000 spots in the state-sponsored health insurance plan. But even with the additional spots, the State Medicaid Office still estimates that Oregon has approximately 455,000 uninsured adults.
This large number has lead politicians to start working on some big picture changes to the way people in this state access insurance. Last year, the legislature created the Oregon Health Trust Board. This seven-member board was tasked with proposing changes to the current system.
To come up with those proposals they're conducting a series of 14 "Health Conversations" with people around the state. This week they're in Newport and Astoria.
Tomorrow on Think Out Loud we'll discuss some of the scenarios being hashed out around the state at these Health Conversations. They're designed to get a sense of what people generally want out of health care. Here are two scenarios:
Felicia Ward and Andrea Foley are single mothers of young children. They both work full-time as housekeepers in different motels at the coast. According to a new law, their income level is low enough to qualify them for full state subsidy to pay for private health insurance for themselves and their children. Because of Oregon's health reform, both Felicia and Andrea now have health insurance for themselves and their children.
Is this the kind of change you would like to see in Oregon's future health care system? How important is it for everyone to have access to affordable health insurance? Should the state subsidize private health insurance for those who can’t afford it? Is it feasible? Or is it even the state’s responsibility at all?
Here is the second scenario:
Albert Haley owns a small vineyard that relies heavily on immigrant workers. A new state law requires him to offer his workers health insurance or pay into a state pool where they can buy health insurance individually. Albert doesn't much like the requirement, but he likes having a choice. He doesn't want to shop around for health insurance. Paying into the pool works for him. But he's not sure the arrangement will really help all of his workers. A lot of them can't afford to pay the premiums and he heard that immigrants who have been in the country for less than five years aren't eligible for public subsidies.
Will a separate insurance pool benefit small businesses? Large businesses? Should the US be providing health care for immigrant workers?
Show aired Thursday, May. 8
Primary Conversations: U.S. Senate
Posted by Sarah Jane Rothenfluch on Mon, May 5
LISTEN TO "Primary Conversations: U.S. Senate" (24MB MP3)
The Democratic race for U.S. Senate is next in our continuing series Primary Conversations. It has been the most watched (and certainly the most debated) contest so far in Oregon this year. The Democrats are working hard to remove incumbent Gordon Smith -- who's running uncontested in the Republican primary -- from his seat. Jeff Merkley, Candy Neville and Steve Novick are all vying for the chance, as is Independent candidate John Frohnmayer.
Jeff Merkley is Oregon's speaker of the House. He was born in Myrtle Creek, Oregon, spent his younger years in Roseburg, and was the first member of his family to go to college. Merkley served as a national security analyst, first for the Pentagon and then for Congress. He returned to Oregon to lead Habitat for Humanity, and became the first Democratic House Speaker in 16 years.
Candy Neville is a real estate broker from Eugene who admits she has no experience in politics. She's been a real estate developer and a freelance writer for the Chicago Sun-Times. She says she has "guts born of sorrow and agony over the state of the nation."
Steve Novick is a senior project manager at Pyramid Communications, a consulting firm that works primarily for non-profits, tribal and public sector clients. He was born in Newark, New Jersey and raised in Cottage Grove, Oregon. After graduating from the University of Oregon he went to Harvard Law School and then worked in law firms in New York and San Francisco and in the Environment Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.
What do you want to know from these prospective Democratic nominees for U.S. Senate? Their takes on healthcare reform? The War in Iraq? Timber Payments? Social Security? Or simply why they think they're best equipped to take on Gordon Smith in the fall?
GUESTS:
Jeff Merkley: speaker of the Oregon House and Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate
Candy Neville: a real estate broker and Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate
Steve Novick: senior project manager at Pyramid Communications and Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate
Show aired Wednesday, May. 7
Where Bikes and Cars Intersect
Posted by Julie Sabatier on Mon, May 5
LISTEN TO "Where Bikes and Cars Intersect" (24MB MP3)
Bikes and cars share the roads in Oregon, but there are some who say that bicycles should be more integrated into automobile traffic. In a recent issue of Adventure Cyclist Magazine, technical editor John Schubert argues that Portland bike lanes make cycling in the city unsafe by keeping bike traffic to the right of cars, where cyclists often end up in drivers' blind spots. The League of American Bicyclists clearly disagrees. The national organization recently named Portland a Platinum level (that's the highest) Bicycle Friendly Community, touting the city's bike lanes as one reason for the honor.
Oregon law treats bikes as a vehicle and biking under the influence of alcohol carries the same penalties as driving drunk. A 2007 law puts cyclists and pedestrians in the same "vulnerable user of the public way" category, increasing penalties for reckless motorists who contribute to the serious injury of someone who falls under this heading.So, should bicycles be treated the same as cars when it comes to where they travel in traffic? Are bike lanes helpful or harmful when it comes to safety for cyclists and drivers alike? What is the best way to share the road?
GUESTS:
- Carl Decker: Professional cyclist
- Tony Barton: Cement truck driver
- John Schubert: Writer and technical editor for Adventure Cyclist Magazine
- Roger Geller: Bicycle coordinator for the City of Portland
Photo credit: Jeff Youngstrom / Flickr / Creative Commons
Show aired Tuesday, May. 6
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