Blog entries posted in The Wandering Eye

The Eye Wanders Off Into the Sunset

H. Bruce Miller — Sun, 26 Dec 2010 17:15:28 +0100

I’m really sorry to break the bad news to them during this season of peace and goodwill, but after this week the right-wingers in Bend and vicinity won’t have The Wandering Eye to kick around anymore.

The decision to stop writing this blog was my own, and it was prompted by several factors. One of them is that I’m just tired of being a punching bag.

I’ve been writing editorials, columns and blogs for newspapers and the Web for more than 40 years. I never ...

DADT, Gay-Bashing and the “Icky-ness” Factor

H. Bruce Miller — Sun, 19 Dec 2010 17:12:11 +0100

For the past week or so, “Zeo” of the NW Republican blog has had his jock strap in a knot over the prospect of Congress repealing the military’s “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” rule.

To hear Zeo tell it, if DADT is repealed and gays are allowed to serve openly in the US military it will mean the end not only of our armed forces but of America, its economic system and civilization in general.

“If DADT is repealed then the cornerstone of the ...

A Wake-Up Call for Wyden, and the U.S.

H. Bruce Miller — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 14:40:13 +0100

The news that Sen. Ron Wyden has prostate cancer reminds us of the need for all men over 50 to be screened annually for this potentially deadly disease – and for the United States to improve its health care system.

Wyden, 61, announced yesterday that the cancer was detected when he got his annual physical exam in late November. &ldq...

Census Numbers Tell a Tale of Two Cities

H. Bruce Miller — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 19:39:38 +0100

The New York Times has posted a series of interactive maps based on US Census data, and they seem to confirm the view that Bend really is two cities.

There’s always been an argument over what the real line of demarcation between East Bend and West Bend is. The Parkway? Third Street? The railroad tracks? The Deschutes River? The census people seem to have used the river as the dividing line.

On that basis, the maps (based on the Census Bureau’s latest release of its A...

Dudley’s Not Sure About Taking Another Shot

H. Bruce Miller — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 15:05:23 +0100

In his first one-on-one interview since he lost the election, Chris Dudley tells Portland Tribune sports reporter Kerry Eggers that he’s not sure whether he’ll run for governor again in 2014.

“It’s too soon,” Dudley says. “For now, I’ll settle back into normal life. My wife would probably say no [to another run at governor] right now, but time will tell.”

Losing the gubernatorial election to Democrat John Kitzhaber by about 22,000 ...

DeFazio Leads Charge Against Tax Giveaway

H. Bruce Miller — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 18:10:45 +0100

House Democrats have smacked down President Obama’s tax cut compromise with the Republicans, with Oregon’s Rep. Peter DeFazio leading the rebellion.

The House Democratic caucus this morning approved a motion by DeFazio to reject the provisions of a tax deal agreed upon by Obama and the Republicans. Among other things, the bill would extend George W. Bush’s tax break for billionaires and drastically ease the estate tax burden.

“House Democrats are particul...

Wandering Observations, Post-Civil War

H. Bruce Miller — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 17:42:21 +0100

I’m still recuperating from celebrating the Ducks’ glorious victory in the Civil War yesterday and can’t focus long enough to write more than a couple of paragraphs on any one topic, so here are a few random short takes:

***

Bulletin Business Editor John Stearns has a column this morning about momentum in Bend’s tech sector, which he defines as “software development, information technology, biosciences, green energy and other so-called knowledge ind...

That Weird Duck-vs.-Beaver Thing

H. Bruce Miller — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 17:47:25 +0100

As tension builds to almost unbearable heights before tomorrow’s Civil War, which by all accounts is even more momentous than the original 1861-1865 version, let us consider a provocative – but, I think, absolutely right-on-the-money – observation made by Jake on UtterlyBoring.com.

In a post headlined “Beaver Fans Are Crazy People,” Jake writes: “I root for all the schools in this state – whether it's OSU, UO, PSU, UP, WOU, EOU, SOU, George Fox...

Mr. Merkley Goes to Washington, Kicks Ass

H. Bruce Miller — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 17:28:52 +0100

I have to admit I wasn’t a huge fan of Jeff Merkley when he was running for election. In fact I voted for his opponent in the primary, Portland political activist Steve Novick.

Since going to Washington, though, Merkley has become just about my favorite senator. He’s been a strong champion of health care reform, environmental protection and reining in Wall Street, among other things. And despite his mild-mannered demeanor, he hasn’t been at all shy about jabbing sacre...

Terrorist Threat Gets Too Close for Comfort

H. Bruce Miller — Sun, 28 Nov 2010 17:43:23 +0100

The threat of terrorism came home to Oregon Friday as the FBI foiled an alleged plot to detonate a huge bomb next to Portland’s Pioneer Square during the annual holiday tree-lighting festivities.

Mohamed Osman Mohamud, a 19-year-old sometime engineering student at Oregon State University, allegedly intended to blow up a van packed with explosives while the square was thronged with some 25,000 spectators.

“Do you remember when 9/11 happened, when those people were jum...

Spinning the Census Numbers to the Right

H. Bruce Miller — Fri, 26 Nov 2010 15:51:59 +0100

The right-wing Oregon Catalyst site quotes a study by the right-wing Americans for Tax Reform organization supposedly proving – surprise, surprise! – that right-wing economic policies promote growth and prosperity.

The ATR compared states that will gain congressional seats through reapportionment as the result of the 2010 census with those that will lose seats and found that the gainers “had significantly lower taxes, less government spending, and were more likely to ...

For Some, a Very Happy Thanksgiving

H. Bruce Miller — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 18:32:53 +0100

This Thanksgiving, Americans still have much to be thankful for. Well, some of them do, anyway.

Such as Brian Brille, who is the head of Bank of America Asia Pacific. In September he celebrated his 50th birthday with a posh party in Hong Kong. “Mr. Brille, who is well known on the New York social scene, wore a gray Hugh Hefner-esque jacket,” reports the New York Times. "Women dressed like Playmates, with feather boas and satin ears, danced behind a pink silk screen.”<...

Oregon Economy: Some Ups, Some Downs

H. Bruce Miller — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 21:55:59 +0100

The good news (for conservatives) is that Oregon lost public-sector jobs in the third quarter of 2010. The bad news for the Oregon economy is that Oregon lost public-sector jobs in the third quarter.

In his quarterly report to the legislature today, State Economist Tom Potiowsky said a slight increase in private-sector jobs during the third quarter of 2010 was offset by a decrease in public-sector jobs. The net result was that the state’s unemployment rate stayed at 10.5% –...

Playing the New Game of “Deficit Buster”

H. Bruce Miller — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 18:42:53 +0100

Think you know how to fix the federal budget deficit? The New York Times has posted an interactive tool that lets you take a shot at it.

The Times gives you 40 different options to play around with, including spending cuts in areas such as the federal government payroll, the military, Social Security and Medicare, and revenue increases of various types.

With about 15 minutes of tinkering I was able to wipe out the deficits (both the short-term one of $418 billion by 2015 and the...

FLASH: Oregon Wants Palin!

H. Bruce Miller — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 19:11:44 +0100

I damn near lost my breakfast when I pulled up the Oregon Catalyst site this morning and glanced at the item headlined: “Oregon’s Top 2012 Presidential Picks.”

Under the headline was a bar graph showing the percentage of support for each of 10 likely or possible 2012 presidential prospects. Topping the list was Sarah Palin, with an astonishing 31%. In the Number Two spot was former House Speaker Newt Gingrich at 24%, with former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney running ...

The Sawyers Find a Champion – for a Price

H. Bruce Miller — Sat, 13 Nov 2010 00:41:27 +0100

The tragicomic tale of Tami and Kevin Sawyer just keeps getting stranger and stranger.

The Sawyers were high flyers during Bend’s real estate bubble era but were shot down in flames last month when a federal grand jury in Eugene indicted them on 21 criminal counts including wire fraud, bank fraud, money laundering, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and false statements to a financial institution. They’re also facing civil suits by about 20 former investors in their various bu...

Republican: Dudley Wasn’t Ready for Prime Time

H. Bruce Miller — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 16:41:52 +0100

Rarely do I agree on anything with Ted Piccolo, a right-wing activist and political consultant who blogs under the alias “I Am Coyote” on the NW Republican site. But he’s posted an analysis of why Chris Dudley lost the governor’s race that I think is spot on – and refreshingly candid.

Piccolo’s central point: Dudley wasn’t qualified to be governor, and the voters knew it.

“Now that the election is over there are many people beginni...

Of Bambi, Bubbles and BS

H. Bruce Miller — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 17:18:04 +0100

Jeffrey Auxier thinks great things are just around the corner for Bend.

Auxier, president and CEO of Auxier Asset Management and Auxier Focus Fund in Lake Oswego, spoke at the Central Oregon Economic Forecast Vision 2011 meeting here Tuesday. According to The Bulletin’s account, he said he thinks the real estate market will rebound faster in Central Oregon than in the rest of the country “because it is one of the best places on earth.”

Déjà vu all...

FLASH: Deschutes County Gives Election to Kitzhaber!

H. Bruce Miller — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 17:20:45 +0100

Whenever a Democrat wins a close statewide race in Oregon, we hear Republicans grumbling that those damn liberal elitists in Portland and Multnomah County gave the election to him. Sometimes, if they’re in a really bad mood, they’ll say they “stole” the election for him.

But Evan Manvel, writing on Blue Oregon, makes an important point: Without votes from all over the state, John Kitzhaber wouldn’t have won.

Kitzhaber’s final margin over Repub...

How Kitzhaber Did It

H. Bruce Miller — Fri, 05 Nov 2010 15:54:15 +0100

Oregonian political blogger Jeff Mapes has an interesting analysis of how John Kitzhaber was able to eke out a razor-thin victory over Chris Dudley for the governorship. Some of the main points:

The Ground Game: Democrats made the most of their 10% registration edge in the state by mounting an intensive canvassing and phone banking campaign to make sure Democrats actually voted.

Waffling on Abortion: Dudley tried to stake out a middle ground on abortion, saying he was pro-choi...