On the "Occupy" movement
John McDonagh, Publisher
Clearly, there is great frustration and disappointment among the citizens across the country with their personal plight, the condition of the economy and the lack of meaningful policy solutions coming from the elected officials.
I’m not convinced there will be much concrete result coming from these gatherings. They are comprised of disparate groups that lack organization, single or focused purpose and have no one foe. Consequently, they’ll be recognized for what they are, demonstrations. At the end of it all, I fear life will go on as it had been with little having changed.
Nicholas Shannon Kulmac, Managing Editor
As Nobel Laureate Joseph Stiglitz pointed out in a recent Vanity Fair article, the richest 1 percent of Americans now own 40 percent of the nation’s wealth. Additionally, their share of the nation’s income is greater than at any other time since the Great Depression, according to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities.
In today’s social media/instant communication culture, eyebrow-raising statistics like these are getting more play. Add to that our nation’s high unemployment, divisive political landscape and current economic struggles, and you have the recipe for a movement like “Occupy.”
I fear that many have simply lost faith in the trickle-down effect. They have lost faith in equal opportunity. The Occupy movement is a call for hope that faith can be restored.
Jessica Swanson, Special Publications Editor
It’s no surprise the Occupy movement is finally here, and will be in Esther Short Park on October 15. The spike (and subsequent free fall) of housing prices, and the accompanying rise of property taxes, college tuitions, apartment scarcity and commodity food prices, as well as lack of government and private support for healthy and affordable lifestyles, combined with a drop in services and support for the arts, education and the least fortunate among us, has led to an unrest of the folks who cannot find a way to make ends meet and do not see a bright future for themselves and their children.
Clark County offers lower-than-average wages for higher-than-average skilled jobs, as well higher-than-average unemployment. We face a significant loss of city and county services, including our (already expensive and less-than-comprehensive) public transportation. Programs put forth by the federal government to regulate the various institutions that were at the heart of this recession have stalled again and again, and the largest financial institutions continue to balk at reform.
Folks who do not see a bright future will make one for themselves, and often the first step is to speak out, to be heard, to make the news. As our citizens’ economic disparity continues to grow, the gap will be filled with the voices and faces of those less fortunate, and ultimately, reform. This is history’s lesson and the future’s inevitability.
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In the News
Greater Portland Inc. hires new VP of business development
Greater Portland Inc., the Portland-Vancouver regional economic development partnership, announced today the hiring of Colin Sears as the vice president of business development.
Sears joins Greater Portland Inc. with more than 12 years of experience with the Portland Development Commission where he played a key role in recruiting and retaining companies such as SolarWorld, Keen Footwear and Vestas Wind Technology North America.
In his new role, Sears will be responsible for implementing a unified and proactive regional retention, expansion and recruitment program by creating strong and enduring relationships with both private and public sectors at all levels.
“Greater Portland Inc. is working to drive a best-in-class recruitment, expansion and retention program that is directed at traded-sector companies in the Portland-Vancouver region,” said Sean Robbins, CEO of Greater Portland Inc. in a press release. “Colin’s work will be strategic, proactive and collaborative and will be at the core of our effort and value proposition. It will be a driving force in the rest of our organization’s work.”
