Universal Health Care, A Myth?

Universal Health Care is a topic of dissention by almost everyone. Do we need it? Do we want it? Can we afford trillion dollar plus costs? These questions arise daily, from the media talk shows, newspaper editorials, blogs and other venues of discussion.

To those of a conservative nature, the cost alone seems to erase all benefits. Many shout from time to time, that the billions of dollars spent on the Space program could better be spent on social programs like health care. The billions spent on war and defense could feed cloth and shelter everyone in America. While somewhat true, is a Utopia the goal of any nation? If everyone’s basic needs are taken care of, is there any reason to strive to better ones self? These are moral, ethical, and financial questions that are difficult to answer.

Aside from the extreme of “Logan’s Run”, that Sci-Fi movie of years ago when everyone turning 30 was killed to make room on the crowded Earth, I think limits on health care and expense past a certain age say 80 yrs old makes sense. Why do expensive care such as organ transplants, invasive surgeries, etc. on someone 80+ years old, only to prolong their existence a few years. That infinite care and expense could better serve a much younger individual, with productive years ahead.

Universal Health Care has no easy answers or solutions, perhaps the concept is a myth.

A Beginner’s Guide To Medieval Weapons

I like to insert an occasional, relevent (to me) article. I think everyone should be prepared, at least in a modest way, for the coming dark times. I recently found a nice home for sale, with a seperate studio & guest house, plus a 1000 sq ft concrete bunker! I'd buy that in a minute if I won the Lotto (House=$850,000)! Not everyone can buy huge stocks of firearms and ammo. At some point even that will run out. Home made "medieval weapons" may be a necessary choice".

Technological conditions and nature of availability of raw materials form the basis of any culture's arsenal at any point of time in the history of mankind. Prehistoric human race, often better known as the Stone Age civilization were known for their intelligent usage of grinding tools, stone and shaping axes, and creating arrows and spears as weapons for survival strategies. But these implements improved over the years as the technological skills of these cultures improved.

The development of the metallic tools, implements and weapons that persisted through the Middle Ages were actually originated during the Bronze and Iron Ages and following that, these implements have dramatically altered over time. Eventually, with the appearance of gunpowder in Europe in the early 14th century most of these weapon were rendered useless and the castle too took a backseat to the extent of becoming redundant.

The castle was considered to be one of the most formidable weapons of medieval warfare while if we consider the smaller weapons, there were also a lot of lethal ones, the ones that were movable and capable of wreaking havoc and death of an opponent. Thus despite having played a key role in the deaths of many people during the Middle Ages, it is a category of its own and hence will be kept out the following discussion on medieval weaponry.

The Middle Ages witnessed the dominance of double edged swords, metal-headed spears and axes among weapons while arrows and short bows were also in vogue. A very interesting fact that is pretty well known in this regard is that the Saxons valued swords very highly to the extent of considering the value of a sword to be equivalent to the value of 120 oxen or 15 male slaves and thus according great importance and status to a man possessing a sword. Because of these weapons being simple to construct and easy to wield, throughout the Middle Ages these weapons remained popular.

In spite of the three weapons of the sword, the spear (or lance) and the battle-axe being very prevalent during the 12th century, yet the crossbow quickly gained popularity. Compounded with the rapidly rising popularity of the horse warfare that supposedly made movement easy and allowed a benefit to its martial riders who held spears and the beginning of massive siege engines, eventually these hand-held weapons helped invaders like the Normans to overpower these less technologically advanced people.

Call 666, The Rudeness Police

Three people walking abreast on a four foot wide sidewalk, slacker homeless spit on sidewalks, trash everywhere, no one says "excuse me", pushing to get first in line, etc. People are just rude!

I've blogged about this before, but the trend grows worse. Gang bangers whine about being disrespected. How about "normal people" disrespecting everyone! Mindless robots waddle down the streets tuned out to the real world with iPod earphones on, or cell phones glued to their ears, bump into folks and keep going like zombies. It's not just rude, it's a sad state of affairs.

I don't remember being raised to be polite per say, it just feels like the correct thing to do, "Golden Rule" and all that. So in my reclining years, I've decided to become the rudeness police and call offenders on it. What are they going to do to a 60 year old man, kill me?

Protest or Revolution?

I have been blogging and tweeting about the Iran unrest. It reminds me of “letters to the editor” I wrote back in the mid 1960’s in regards to the anti-war protestors and hippies swarming over the college campus.

Unlike the mindless scum that protested the war in Vietnam, those pawns of Communism and the Soviet Union, the protestors in Iran appear to be self-evolving, rather than the puppets of outside agitators. As the killing of unarmed Iranians continues and perhaps intensifies, the evil that are the Ayatollahs and their oppressive regime become more evident.

From western eyes the ayatollahs are far worse that the Shah that they replaced and a good example to westerners of the rationale of separating religion and politics. I know I don’t want my life, thoughts, actions, and beliefs micromanaged.

Old Farts Fighting

Before I became old, I never realized that old guys were so aggressive. Whether on the street, the Senior Center, or here at the “Home”, aggression among the oldsters runs rampart. Perhaps it is because 50% are ex-cons, uneducated, or going through some kind of elderly hormonal crisis for men. It reminds me of elementary school.

Two guys, well maybe four, here have gotten into a few scuffles so that the police were called yesterday. Most of it was talk, but some of these guys are on meds, and yes some even have guns! Today they are filing complaints against each other with the senior agency that runs the building.

I’ll walk three blocks to the Senior Center soon, probably pass a few oldsters arguing on the street, and of course during lunch, will witness a verbal altercation or two. Upon reflection I think it is more due to the socio-economic background of the guys that makes them aggressive. I’d be amazed if the elderly in Beverly Hills or on Park Ave in NYC resort to such shenanigans. It is kind of funny to watch though, basically free entertainment!

06-19-09 Update:

A local Radio commercial states that aggression in the elderly is a sign of Alzheimer's! If so then, it is a pandemic!

Evaluation, Judgement and Authority

OK, as the title suggests, I don't like to be evaluated nor judged. It goes back to my father and childhood. If I got a report card with 4 "B"s, 1 "C", and an "A"..he would yell at me to get all "A"s, like I was retarded or a slacker. It didn't take a lot of effort to get "B"s...and really not that much to get all "A"s. Who cares? What does it get you...in my case, nothing!

I never liked being reviewed for raises, promotions, or hell even job interviews! I know what I am capable of, why should I have to always prove it! OK, I also hate competition. Being above average in most things, greatness was mostly constant practice at one thing. I never cared enough to practice nor to prove anything to anyone! I finished graduate school with a 4.0 GPA in my program: am 4 courses short of an MBA with a 3.75 GPA...I started and finished graduate school in my early 50's. I have never gotten a job based on my college degrees, nor a raise. What I got was unemployed and homeless!

Today, I have to prove to the Apartment Manager that I have no income or assets! That is more difficult than you may think. What forms can you show to prove you have nothing? The entire process makes me go ....DUH! Fortunately, medication helps!


PS:

I went round and round over my bank statement of 5 months ($12 balance all 5 months).....she wants another month to "prove" I have no assets! Shoot me now!

PDX Update…Day 385!

I never planned to live here for 385 days. When I left Colorado Springs, I wanted to go someplace new & different. A place I had never been before, without memories and assorted baggage. Never in my now 60 + years did I ever think of living on the west coast. Now I know why...PDX was voted the “Most boring city in America”…. months of rain instead of snow, the rudest people I have ever met, hundreds of bums, and walking insane.

On the positive side, I am not currently sleeping in a dry doorway (which wasn’t that bad), don’t have to wander throughout the city looking for free meals, eating with street trash, addicts, and ex-cons! I have a nice studio apartment, a computer, TV, etc. Materially, I am about at the same level of “success” as when I worked almost full time at a chain bookstore, getting paid 50% less than I got on unemployment in another state! Actually, I think I am better off now!

While I get bored on occasion, I manage to stay busy with a marginal daily routine. I read several books per week, chat with neighbors, write my Blogs and Tweet on the internet, cook meals from scratch, watch news and selected shows on TV, listen to jazz and blues, and ponder the mysteries of life.

When I get my first Social Security check on 10-10-10, I am so out here! I’ll head back east to the upper part of Michigan or perhaps NE Minnesota or NE Wisconsin, find some land and live out my life as a hermit.

Getting Stuff........Luck, or Blessing?

Like Charlie on "Two and a Half Men", sometimes things just come to me without effort. Things I need, like a comfy chair or even money. I wonder....is it just luck, taking advantage of an opportunity, or a blessing from God? Unlike Charlie however, cute, nubile, 30 yr old sex partners don't seem to appear!

I am now maxed out on space in my 360 sq ft studio apartment. Still have room for some more pictures and some plants, my first I'll get today! Some days, retirement is good!

"Today's" segment on Credit made me laugh. FICA Scores, credit reports, loan payments and credit card debt only matter if you play that "game"...and it is a game. I have never played it, cared to play it and have never won....or lost that game! Cash....ever head of it? If you can't pay cash, you don't need it or can't afford it. Our Grandparents didn't use credit back in the 1930's. Presently we are paying the price of living on future earnings....there aren't any. You lost your job, can't find a new one more than minimum wage, and spent your $50,000 IRA. Wait your me! Welcome to the "Golden Years"!

What to Put in Your Cooler – 5 of the Best Beers You've Never Tried

by: Kavin Yardly

America's big-name beers are great, but if you've been drinking them as long as we have, you just might be in the mood for something different. Also, Americans tend to drink a lot of lager and light beers, which, while cool and refreshing, can lack that bite that you need sometimes in a beer. Here we present 5 beers that you've never tried that you can stock your cooler with next game day:

1) Duvel

Duvel is the flagship beer of Duvel Moortgat Brewery in Belgium, and it's available all over the world. Duvel is a golden ale with a lot of flavor. It's great served lightly chilled straight out of the bottle. Be careful though, because Duvel has a high alcohol content of 8.5%, hence the name Duvel, which means 'devil' in Brabantian!. Duvel tastes best when consumed refrigerated. Duvel can be refrigerated through diversity like counter top fridge, portable mini fridge and sport coolers.

2) Miller Genuine Draft

Miller make Miller Genuine Draft using a special process that prevents some of the beer's flavour from being lost like it is on many mainstream beers. It has won a couple of awards at the World Beer Cup and has a sweet aroma and a mild bitterness.

3) Stella Artois

This is a lager, again from Belgium, but one with a stronger taste than most American brewed mainstream lagers. It has a 'sparkling' appearance and a nice level of bitterness. It’s taste increases if it is consumed chilled with the help of various refrigerating techniques like portable ice maker, rolling cooler, backpack coolers. If you like lagers but want a bit more taste, give Stella Artois a try!

4) Trumer Pils

This one is an Austrian pilsner. Pilsners tend to have a very light color and a distinctive smell and flavour. Trumer is full-bodied and has a loooong aftertaste as well, so it's perfect for washing out the bad taste in your mouth caused by your team losing on game day!

5) Becks

Reportedly a favorite of David Beckham's, Becks is a German pilsner with a pleasing nutty flavor. It's a beer with a crisp flavour and an easy drinkability which is great on a hot day. It also combines well with BBQ food – perfect for game day!



About The Author

Kavin Yardly
Site Representative
Online Retailer for Rolling Cooler & Sports Cooler-http://www.Superfancoolers.com

PBR vs. Micro Brew Swill

PBR has been part of my life since the 1950’s. Back then, I remember the TV commercials in glorious B&W during the Friday Night Fights. In the early 1980’s when I was part of a management team at a major retailer, PBR was the company’s “un-official” beer after long hours on the job. Where I lived, determined availability. In Michigan and NY, it was difficult to find. The mountain west provided 99 cent, 24 0z Tall Boys, in abundance. But then, upon moving to PDX, PBR became nirvana. It is the norm of bar beers, signs and taps are abundant, and it is inexpensive. A cold PBR is one of god’s treasures, a compliment to a burger or a slice of pizza. It is clean, real beer, with no perfume scent or lingering after taste of flowers, feet, or honey!

Micro Brews on the other hand, are also everywhere. Something about them…. un-dissolved yeast, flavorings like “cherry wheat”, etc just make me sick. I get headaches, like drinking a Hamm’s or Olympia beer at 10,000 feet. I want beer that tastes like beer, not bread. Of course the “beer snobs”, like their wine counterparts, look down their patrician noses at PBR, as they pay 100% more to drink their swill. “Oyo, numb nuts, try filtering that crud!” I laugh at this city’s call to glory as “Beer City USA”, a label which could not possibly measure number of brew pubs or beer sold vs. population. Regardless, it is a “Yuppie” measure of success, like a $300,000 studio condo or a BMW. Swill is still swill.

The Bum Hierarchy in the Land of Bumdom

Formerly homeless myself, for about six months,in two different states, I have experienced this on a personal basis. My story is elsewhere on this blog. The NW is inundated by bums looking for handouts and is one of the top 5 states for homelessness (Bumdom). Being homeless does not mean you have to be a “bum”.


Among the homeless and down trodden of society, there exists a class hierarchy. It is as apparent to see, as the difference between a coal miner in West Virginia, and a stockbroker on Wall Street.

“In the land of bums, a bum with $1 is king!”
I believe it is recognized both within the Bumdom and to those in “normal” society. Picture the “food pyramid” and beginning from top to bottom, the levels of Bumdom follow:

On top are the recently homeless…from job loss, foreclosure, etc. Normal folks, educated, moral, but without money. They don’t think of themselves as bums, more a victim of economic events….and a temporary situation.

Next are those who have been on the streets for a while. They include recent ex-cons, divorced, former military, etc. They are willing to seek and desire Government Services and help. They follow procedures and hope to better themselves.

The third level is the wandering mentally ill. They number in the hundreds in any given city, thanks to Ronald Reagan’s policies closing the Mental Hospitals in the US. Many have no clue of even who they are, wandering aimlessly, arguing with pigeons and invisible opponents. They deserve to be in a safe, warm institution, not living on the streets.

Fourth will include the tweakers, alcoholics, and IV drug users, who prey on each other and steal to supply their addictive habits. Pupils the size of pin heads, manic laughter, twitching, nervous behavior are very evident. At least 50% of all social services are aimed at ‘saving” this group. Friggen Liberals.

The fifth level of the hierarchy of bums is reserved for the “gutter punks”, 15- 22 yr old run aways, school drop outs, hippie wannabees, who dress in black with old army clothes, have numerous piercing and tattoos, trade sex for drugs, pan handle, and run scams. They usually have a pet Pit Bull, dragging along. They are the most violent and one of the largest groups. Punks are rude and generally disgusting.

Finally at the bottom of the bum barrel are the chronic homeless, the professional bum. They live on the street by choice, many for decades. They answer to no one, hate all authority and rules. Many stink from few washings, urine, feces, puke, etc. They couldn't’t get in a homeless shelter even if they wanted to, and they don’t want to. They are the worst of the worst and include all of the above groups. They can’t and don’t want to be “saved”.

This is the hierarchy of bums in the Bumdom. Millions may exist in the USA, in every major city and lost in the wilderness. The true numbers are down played by the Government, perhaps by as much as 50%. Services are limited and severely under funded. As the economy worsens, the numbers will explode. Here in the NW, there is already a 50% increase over last year. In the downtown core, the homeless sometimes out number the normal citizens who shop and work there.

Sunday, not Monday

NW and life update: I think, therefore I offend. No really, I listen to the old folks at the "Home" tell their stories about previous wealth and social position, yet all are now on Section 8, and suffer from numerous health problems. What's the point?

They sound like the Portland Trail Blazers, making excuses for being "beaten like a circus monkey" last night. Waaaaaaaaaa, NBA wannabees!

Sunny and nice for a few days, except for the tree pollen which seems to annoy me, that and a few blood sucking bed bugs. They don't hurt when they bite, but my bed sheets look like I've been bedding virgins! When pigs fly!

Very quiet today actually, where do the bums go on Sunday? They sleeping in? It's 12:00 noon.....hello? Nothing on TV, except those damn "paid programs". When did that crap start? I remember back in the 1950's and 60's they had old movies on in the afternoon. Chill, order a pizza with a quart bottle of red cream soda and veg. That is when I wasn't out in the woods building forts, man traps, and bombs with black gunpowder. Dang, those where the good old days!

Nothing more to report, will head to the river on the streetcar, and watch mega yachts tied to the docks, they never leave.

The Birth of the Special Forces

Today concepts like unconventional warfare and covert operations are universally known and are a common site on the news in hot spots like Afghanistan. Every branch of the military has elite units of troops to handle highly dangerous and specialized operations. Politicians have grown to rely on them to handle sensitive matters quickly and discretely. There have always been elite fighting units. This idea of specially trained troops being used for special missions has is origins in World War II when the Allies needed a new breed of warriors to wage a clandestine war against the Axis powers. The man who spearheaded this effort was Aaron Bank. He would build Special Forces from the ground up and the face of modern warfare forever.

When World War II broke out Aaron Bank was in his forties and considered to be old for combat duty, so in order to get in on the action he joined the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) the United States intelligence agency that would later become the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Since he had traveled in Europe, spoke several languages and was a skilled athlete he was just the type of man they needed. The problem was that the OSS had no experienced guerilla warfare experts, so Bank and other recruits went to train in Scotland along side experienced British instructors who had fought in Yugoslavia, Greece, and France. They learned many things included communications, sabotage, and most importantly close combat techniques. Martial arts expert William E. Fairbairn taught the Americans everything he knew about hand-to-hand combat including real world self defense techniques and sentry removal using knives and other weapons.

Once his training was complete Bank parachuted into Nazi occupied France with other commandos to aid French in their guerilla war against the Germans. Along with fighting the enemy he had to coordinate between the two resistance groups. With blades, bullets, and bravery the commandos terrorized the Germans day and night until the Allies invaded in force. He would even recruit a company-size unit of anti-Nazi Germans for a mission to capture Hitler. Bank and other OSS operatives supported, trained and fought along side allied partisans in Europe and Asia and let them know they weren't alone in their fight. They were teachers and warriors who made difference.

Were they effective? General Dwight D. Eisenhower said that in France the OSS and the French resistance did the equivalent of 15 divisions and the OSS had similar results in other areas of the war. Even though OSS other Special Forces units were successful it still took Bank years to convince the Army to create a permanent branch of Special Forces for future conflicts. Eventually Army Secretary Frank Pace gave him the green light to begin organizing and recruiting. Since all Special Forces units had been disbanded after the war Bank had his choice of recruits from units like, the First Special Service Force, Merrill's Marauders and even former guerilla fighters from Europe. Highly trained, battle tested and experts in martial arts and close combat these men would be the first Green Berets.

Aaron Bank retired from the military in 1958, but continued to be an advocate for Special Forces troops arguing that a few well trained soldiers fighting along side indigenous fighters could make more of an impact than conventional forces. In the 1970's he fought to improve security as nuclear power plants and was openly critical of how Special Forces troops were used in several conflicts. In 1995 Congress declared Bank "The Father of the Green Berets," and in 2002 the year the great warrior celebrated his 100th birthday President George W. Bush thanked him for developing the unconventional warfare programs that are still in use today against terrorists. He proved that with the right training, equipment, and most importantly the right mindset that a handful of soldiers could make a big difference in combat. Like the cadence says, "When there is trouble in the world today count on the men in the Green Beret."

Types of martial arts & martial arts styles

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=William_Pehush

Tax Day...Time to Pay Up!

The patriotic duty of all wage earning Americans...pay taxes so that others may live!

OMG, Rush Limbaugh was on the rant this AM about taxing the rich. Whine, Whine.....they(the rich) work hard and deserve every dollar they get. Yeah, on the backs of wage slaves. The greedy are running scared, looming socialism their worst nightmare. The real reason for the hate and fear of Russian Communism during the cold war.... fear of losing their wealth and ill gotten gains from the backs of the working class. They should be scared!

Today "Tea Parties" are the main game in cities across America. Bah, bulldookey.

April 2009........So Far, So Good

Been hold up in my apartment, barely able to function with a painful neck (arthritis, and throbbing headache) for two days. None ending rain doesn't help. Thought it was my "light" stretching exercise from Monday, working my neck muscles. I tweaked my neck on waking this AM and "pop", something aligned..."poof", pain gone! The scary part.....it could go the other way and I'd be flopping on the floor like a carp!

Enough about me. Getting ready to cross the river, to get a new hard drive for my PC and some cleaning supplies at the dollar store before the rains begin again in earnest. Then it's down to the Senior Center for lunch and more PC action on the slow Internet (all those bored Spring Breakers).

My life is full.

Just Another Day.....

Just another day in the ruddiest city in America. This week I have multiple doctor appointments as the old bod' falls apart. Hurts to walk, hurts to sit, hurts period. Oh well, 3 years, 8 months and 28 days to go.

I've noticed that the NW must be the "Electric Wheelchair" capital of the United States...no where have I seen so many. Of course they are all "bullies" and drive faster than people on bikes! Talk about entitlement. Bah.

I laugh at all the Liberals here who think their "City" is the greatest place to live. Numb nuts in Colorado Springs thought that too. Talk about misinformed. Personally I can't think of five things that would ever make me stay here once I get my SS checks. I can't think of one. My problem and cross to bear...I've born worse.

Ah, let the crap begin...it's early yet. I can take it.

2012...De-Evolution

I've written on this site, and re posted a few other articles about the coming “event” on December 21, 2012. Most research on-line, or from books, results in the generic gloom and doom scenarios of war, the rapture, earth catastrophes, etc. Last night, while reading and listening to a smooth jazz station, I thought of another possible outcome of 2012.

Going forward to December 21, 2012 as the hour of 11:11 AM GMT approaches, catastrophe, is indeed, only seconds away. But then something far different, as far as I am aware, begins. At that hour of finality, time literally stops. Stops in every sense of the word.

In that final second of time, the earth's rotation stops. Oceans and land masses are crunched, jolted, and rearranged as often predicted due to the lurch of rational energy. All time stops. The universe stops expanding, the earth stops rotating around the sun, planets and moons all stop, plants stop growing. Humans & animals stop aging, Seasons quit their progression, all activity down to the cellular and even atomic levels stops. Then, I think, something really interesting happens. It starts up again, but in reverse! The sun rises in the west.
Time is reversed, things get younger, clocks go backwards, etc. De-Evolution has begun.

The Earth, Mars, Venus, and other planets return to their primordial status (in millions of years of course), but at some point in time , at least these three will be fairly similar and possibly habitable by humans (at least bio-engineered humans). Whether or not mankind will regress to caveman status is unknown, and even so will take millions of years to accomplish. But it may be possible to arrest this human aspect by science...”suspended animation”, faster than light star ships, etc. What an opportunity.... to stay in stasis while the universe regresses around you, and an opportunity to populate Mars, and Venus when they become “like Earth”. Sounds better to me than the more common scenarios of gloom, doom, and death.

In three years, nine months, 3 days, and 16 hours we will know.

House of Death

I live in Senior housing, everyone is at least age 55. Most are sick and/or handicapped. Residents call it the "House of Death". I call it Purgatory.

The ambulance and fire rescue come at least twice/day and cart someone off to the ER. Most come back, but some do not! Since the first of March at least three people have died, and two evicted because they are crazy and a disturbance to other residents. One of the nutters pees on the floor, and won't go in her apartment(it's haunted). Hey, it's free entertainment.

Like the Hotel California...you can check in, but can't check out!

PS, When I got back home, after posting the above....they were wheeling out yet another dead guy! Holy crap!

My Senior Housing...............DOA!

It was 9:00 PM Thursday night. The rain was pelting the windows like gravel thrown by a pre-schooler. sounds through my door over rode the TV. Yelling, running feet, doors to the stairwell slamming shut, sirens in the distance growing loader by the second. More commotion that a two for one sale at Macy's.

It was the old drunk Indian in the corner apartment. Two police cars, fire rescue, and an ambulance...yup, he was DOA. Then they gave him a shot of a drug I can't find that "restarted" him.........then they left him here! I've never heard of any attempted suicide where they let the victim go, let alone stay at home. What are they, nuts? His unsuccessful attempt to end his miserable life will only lead to another possible more successful one. Hey, there is the top 6th floor balcony.......just jump!

03-12-09 UPDATE

The Indian is being evicted....so he went nuts, broke two security cameras and didn't get arrested (no beds at the inn). Kewl.

Portland, Oregon.... "The City That Works"

That's the city slogan, painted on its trucks, etc., perhaps more accurately, it should be called, Portland "The City Without a Clue".

Snow Removal, while not that frequent, is second only to Colorado Springs, CO. in mediocrity. It should not take one week to clear 10 inches of snow from city streets. Three months latter, with no snow in all that time, folks still have their cleated tires on, clicking down the city streets. Back East, in the Snow Belt, plows work 24/7 until it's cleaned up. They plow every street and even alleys...oh yeah, Portland forgot those when they laid out the city, with the smallest city blocks in the USA.

Visitors to the "Rose City" can visit our cultural icons and parks, use our progressive public transportation system, while they circumvent the trash, urine smells, vomit, dog and human poop on the sidewalks, and thousands of bums, panhandlers, and teen runaways with Pit Bulls, and the hundreds of walking insane screaming at shadows. What a grand time for all. "When does my plane leave for home?"

With some luck & the sun is shinning, a visitor or local citizen may see blue sky, but due to the lack of building limitations, sunshine laws, construction setbacks, etc, the high rise buildings of 20+ stories and narrow little streets make it look like a canyon of concrete and glass boxes. Uniformity and maximum space for the buck, trumps architectural significance and design. Build a high rise condo building with sun and views of Mt Hood, only to have them blocked by the next high rise across the street. Most cities I have lived in would not allow zero set back buildings, will protect your right to sunshine (you know, solar power, roof gardens, etc.), require high rises to be "stepped"...like the Koin Tower and a few others. Lots of cities limit buildings to 5 stories for just those reasons above. Every other city requires off street parking, at least two spaces per unit, not use street parking. Building built to the edge of the property line don't even allow for trees! The ugliest area of the city, and a fine example of all the above, is the congested SW Waterfront area. Portland likes to reinvent the wheel on everything, it seems.

Sustainability, what it really means. Small cities like Boulder, CO or Ithaca, NY are good examples of real sustainable cities.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainability

Obviously Portland only uses the term as a marketing gimmick to promote consumption and make people feel good about raping the environment. The sprout "buy locally" and have nice "Farmers markets".... that buy their produce fro the same California and Peruvian suppliers Safeway does. Sustainability essentially means using what you have locally and reusing waste, i.e., not growth or expansion or building high rise condos that don't sell, right on top of each other. Most of these building developers are not from Oregon, nor are the workers, or even the buyers...let alone all that metal and glass construction materials. Since Portland is one of the poorest cities in the USA of it's size, it is understandable that "outsiders" run things and the local politicians are in their pocket.

Speaking of Politicians, why on earth would anyone choose a flaming gay mayor? Only liberals, and families who pride themselves of having roots here since Lewis and Clark (make that no gumption to go elsewhere) want to "Keep Portland Weird". Congratulations you made it. Portland is officially a national joke.

Just when I thought I had run out of criticisms, I remembered a major one.....lack of shopping. In no city or state I've lived in, has shopping been such a chore. Forget I have no car, even with one, who wants to drive 5-10 miles to a Target, Wal-Mart, Best Buy etc. This is a great example of the lack of planning. Perhaps the idea is the wealthy who reside in the $300,000 condos in the city core only shop at Macy's, let the riffraff ride the bus it Tigard.

Then there is the myth that Portland is bike city....not hardly. There are lots of irresponsible bikers, who run red lights and stop signs, weave in and out of traffic, go too fast on bridges, and ride on sidewalks when it suits them. I know of no city except Portland, that allows bikes on downtown sidewalks, let alone skateboards, but that is another ilk. Real bike advocate cities have dedicated bike paths (often abandoned rail road tracks), trails outside the urban core running on side streets, rules that are enforced etc. Portland isn't a bike city, just a city full of bikers. Probably because they don't own cars, or are too cheap to park one.

People, you know those people, whine about overpriced houses & rents in California...gee go look someplace else for a city of it's size and low incomes, look on the internet if you don't have the gumption to travel or move. Portland prices are outrageously high and taxes ridiculously low. If you can afford to pay $500,000 for some dumpy bungalow in the SE side of Portland that costs about 40-50% less East of the Mississippi, you can pay 1% for property taxes...that's $5,000+ per year, for the math challenged

Finally (ready to move to Kansas yet?) crime, gangs, & diversity. A few weeks ago there was an article in the Oregonian or some other local rag about how Portland, only 74% white, was not diverse enough. Now for many years I have realized that "diversity" was a white liberal term. People of color don't care about diversity, they want to be with their own kind. This is why there are ethnic neighborhoods in most cities. Portland is like "bussing"....remember that failed attempt back in the 60's to integrate schools? They put everyone in a big blender and mix them together. Section 8 housing in with the yuppie $350,000 condo owners, black and Hispanic gang bangers in with the Asian store owners and blue color whites. They also mix drug treat centers, homeless shelters, ex-con halfway housing with the seniors center and university day care schools., across the street from the $350,000 condos What fun, look how diverse we are!

But wait, Portland has crime, gang killings, drug offenders, perverts, child molesters, home invasions, robbery, muggings, and murder, oh and fires. What a wonderful community to move your little white bread family to. Sorry, your safer in Newark NJ, Saint Louis, or Detroit.