December 31, 2020 by davefiskum

AS ONE YEAR PIVOTS TO THE NEXT – AND, REGARDING POLITICS — I WISH….

PERSPECTIVE FROM THE 19^TH HOLE: This is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus to use an image from my favorite sport, golf. Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all of my professional positions, including as press secretary in Washington, D.C. for a Democrat Congressman from Oregon (Les AuCoin), as an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, as press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and as a private sector lobbyist. This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write. I could have called this blog “Middle Ground,” for that is what I long for in both politics and golf. The middle ground is often where the best public policy decisions lie. And it is where you want to be on a golf course.

…for a saner level of political discourse in our country at local, regional, state and national levels (which should be possible if only because Donald Trump exits as a loser)

…for a recognition that compromise is not a dirty word no matter where compromise occurs

…for a recognition that, especially in Oregon, there is a major difference between urban and rural parts of the state and legislators ought to understand the differences, then try to bridge them

…for a recognition that most immigrants are looking for the potential of a better way of life, not a criminal enterprise

…for a recognition that those who represent us ought to expect government programs to produce results, not just exist

…for a recognition that good things can happen if government and private sector work together, not just one or the other

…for a commitment on the part of the media to cover politics from the standpoint of issues important to Americans, just the horse-race mentality

…for continued success of quality journalism outlets, including Oregon Public Broadcasting (one of my former lobbying clients), the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, and the New York Times (and, if you want, add The Atlantic Magazine to this list)

…a recognition of compassion and empathy as important credentials in anyone who wants to hold public office

…for success of Biden Administration as it works to, (a) exert more control over the pandemic, (b) generate even-handed economic recovery, and (c) inject reality and truth into America’s political system

There. Call these New Year’s resolutions, if you will. For me, they are just wishes, which, if you think about it, hearken back to some of my blog posts in 2020.

December 30, 2020 by davefiskum

WHY DID TRUMP PREVAIL AT LEAST FOR A TIME?

After Donald Trump lost his re-election campaign, I pledged that I would not write about the oaf anymore.

I have violated that pledge a couple times. And I do so again today.
I can’t help myself (though I continue to hope that Trump becomes nothing more than a cantankerous after-thought when Joe Biden takes over as president next month).

The question in the headline has bothered me for nearly four years as we have watched Trump act only in his own interests, not America’s.

As we near the end of 2020, Derek Thompson, writing for The Atlantic, answered the question better than most.

Here is a summary of what he wrote:

“The deep story went like this: You are an older white man without a college degree standing in the middle of a line with hundreds of millions of Americans. The queue leads up a hill, toward a haven just over the ridge, which is the American dream.

“Behind you in line, you can see a train of woeful souls—many poor, mostly non-white, born in America and abroad, young and old. It’s scary to look back. There are so many behind you, and in principle you wish them well. Still, you’ve waited a long time.

“Now you’re stuck in line, because the economy isn’t working. And worse than stuck, you’re stigmatized; liberals in the media say every traditional thing you believe is racist and sexist. And what’s this? People are cutting in line in front of you! Something is wrong. The old line wasn’t perfect, but at least it was a promise. There is order in the fact of a line. And if that order is coming apart, then so is America.”

It was in this context that Trump appeared four years ago.

Without a shred of political decency, Trump appealed to those disaffected – those in the line who opposed cutters, or at least their perception of cutters.

The Atlantic continues: “When Trump appeared to the members of the broken line, he embodied the most ineffable aspects of the deep story. Trump might be a lifelong bullshitter, but one thing he has never had to bullshit about is his grievance toward liberal elites and his antipathy for the groups whom Tea Party Republicans already knew they hated.

“He animated their distrust toward Barack Obama with his ‘birtherism’ claims. He gave shape to their hatred for Hillary Clinton by leading ‘Lock her up!’ chants. From his first rallies, Trump’s basic message has always been ‘I love you, and you love me, and we all hate the same people.’

“A lot of liberals can’t tune into the frequency on which Trump is speaking to the right. Throughout his term, the president has been laser-focused, not so much on the day-to-day tasks of the job, but rather on calling out his political enemies — the press, the bureaucracy, the far left, the impeachers, the vote-counting software.

“But although liberals might see pathological anger here, sources have told The Atlantic they perceive something deeper than rage. They see suffering. Suffering consolidates and strengthens belief. It puts an “ism” to the word Trump and gives a political project the shape of a religious movement.

“Perhaps in part because Trump considers himself godlike, he is absorbing the underlying religious paradigm of voters who are seeking some new creed to explain the broken line and mend it.”

This explanation resonated with me because I have a number of friends who, to my surprise, supported Tr ump and still do to this day. They appear to believe that “elites in Washington, D.C., including President Barack Obama,” have done them dirt. They say they remained silent during Obama’s terms and, now, don’t trust Biden. So, it is past time , they believe, to right the wrongs – and, to put a point on it, vote for and support Trump, even though he now is a loser.

For these folks, Trump “appears” to embody the notion that his supporters have been harmed (a) by Washington, D.C, which caters too often to itself, and (b) by minority groups (including immigrants) who are “cutting in line” ahead of them.

I put the word “appears” in quotes because Trump was and is nothing like he wants to appear via his rampant tweets. Whatever he says in tweets, he always has been out for himself and no one else.

So, what’s the fix? It’s mostly that government begins to work for the people. And that we — “the people” — accept the fact that government will might produce compromise, as well help the less fortunate among us, including immigrants and minorities.

Both of these represent a high calling. Only time will tell if America is up to the challenge.

December 29, 2020 by davefiskum

MY PROFESSIONAL MOTTO: MAKE “A” DIFFERENCE – AND OTHER NOTABLE SAYINGS

There is no need to have a professional motto, but I did have one over the years.

It was this:

Work hard and smart to make a difference.

Notice, the word was “a,” not “the.”

Hard to make “the” difference at all times. It is more logical to make “a” difference in your work.

In my case, the work was lobbying on behalf of many clients who needed my best effort on their behalf for them to succeed. Making a difference was what I set out to do every day.

Making “a difference” could involve small touches to make sure clients understood I was working in their best interests. Or, making “a difference” could involve larger-gauge issues to achieve client objectives.

Beyond my motto, speaking of words, I also dealt with various phrases during my 25-year career as a lobbyist. Not mottos. Just phrases. In previous posts, I may have referred to them, but here is a list:

Many legislators dealt with issues as if they were part of a circular firing squad

Or, to make a political point, legislators often practiced this — ready, shoot, aim

If I wanted to kill a bill, I might say it represented a camel’s nose under the tent

Or, to use another “kill a bill” phrase, it would constitute the first step down a slippery slope

One of my favorite legislators over years used this phrase — what goes around comes around – to convey a kye point about the lawmaking process — passing legislation often involves starting, stopping, and then starting again, all with recognition of making enemies in the process is stupid. Just make your points and move on.

And, back to one of my important mottos, perhaps secondary to the one above, but still critical. It was this aspiration: Your word is your bond.

If lobbyists and legislators lived up to that, it would improve the process of lawmaking.

December 28, 2020 by davefiskum

THE DEPARTMENT OF GOOD QUOTES WORTH REMEMBERING OPENS AGAIN

As a manager for all seasons, I run three departments – the Department of Pet Peeves, the Department of ”just Saying,” and the Department of Good Quotes Worth Remembering.

This is the latter. It is open again.

And, given my supreme power, there are various prospects for inclusion. Each is totally within my power to cite.

Here they are:

FROM THE WASHINGTON POST/ “It [the response to the pandemic) fits a pattern that stretches back decades: Many of the biggest technological breakthroughs in American history have not sprung from the private sector. They have instead been the result of collaboration between private companies and the federal government.”

Comment: Well said – or, rather, well written. Good things can happen if the government and the private sector work together for the good of the public, which does not happen enough these days.

FROM THE NEW YORK POST/ “Business owners in Queens, New York, are reportedly furious at Democrats and especially Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York), after she and colleagues chased Amazon out of the city, which is now struggling amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“Almost two years after Amazon pulled out from a proposal to build a massive headquarters along the Queens waterfront, the site is a vacant eyesore — and, to many locals, the squandered economic opportunity is even more painful amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“The world’s largest e-tailer abruptly canceled its projected 25,000 job-producing campus in February 2019 after being taken aback by ferocious opposition from local pols — including Democratic socialist Representative Ocasio-Cortez and State Senator Mike Gianaris.”

Comment: Such is the stupidity of Ocasio-Cortex and her ilk. They turn their back on thousands of jobs, including with good benefits. Not just the value of having a job, but just think of the tax revenue jobs produce. Amazon’s second headquarters would have produced solid economic stimuli.

FROM THE ATLANTIC/ “By making himself synonymous with the party, by blocking the emergence of rivals, by putting the party on the wrong side of democracy, and by replacing ideas with disinformation, Donald Trump is not leading the Republican Party so much as holding it hostage. He and his supporters can block but not build. They are spoilers who can foment chaos, encourage radicalism, divide the polity, and stymie rivals, but they cannot construct a coherent agenda or forge the post-Trump future.

“To assess the legacy of Donald Trump’s presidency, start by quantifying it. Since last February, more than a quarter of a million Americans have died from COVID-19—a fifth of the world’s deaths from the disease, the highest number of any country. In the three years before the pandemic, 2.3 million Americans lost their health insurance, accounting for up to 10,000 ‘excess deaths;’ millions more lost coverage during the pandemic.

“The United States’ score on the human-rights organization Freedom House’s annual index dropped from 90 out of 100 under President Barack Obama to 86 under Trump, below that of Greece and Mauritius. Trump withdrew the U.S. from 13 international organizations, agreements, and treaties.

“The number of refugees admitted into the country annually fell from 85,000 to 12,000. About 400 miles of barrier were built along the southern border. The whereabouts of the parents of 666 children seized at the border by U.S. officials remain unknown.”

Comment: Such is the legacy of Donald Trump, easily the worst president in U.S. history.

FROM THE WALL STREET JOURNAL/ “Two rare events occurred this week and no one alive is likely to see either of them again.

“The first was the celestial conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter, in which the planets appeared closer together than they have in almost 400 years.

“The second was a sincere political apology.

“General Gustave Perna, head of Operation Warp Speed, apologized for miscalculating the number of doses of anti-Covid vaccine available to the states. Listening to Perna’s apology, one thought: Gee, he actually means it.

Comment: The Wall Street Journal has it right. Genuine political apologies are relatively infrequent. They should occur more often – and, as voters, we should accept an apology if it appears to be given in a real, genuine way, including what a public figures hopes to learn from a mistake.

December 27, 2020 by davefiskum

DID GOOD THINGS HAPPEN IN THE TOUGH YEAR, 2020? YES

With the coronavirus raging around the world, it’s easy to look back on 2020 and believe that not much good happened.

Easy. Not right.

The Washington Post performed a solid service last week when it ran a story under this headline: 20 good things that happened in 2020.

I’ll repeat that list below, but, taking the Post story as a challenge, I thought back on some good things that happened this year for me and my family, even amidst the virus. Here’s my list.

Everyone in my family has managed to avoid getting the virus.
Wife Nancy successfully is phasing down her 35-year career as a realtor, though she still handles calls from past clients and friends.
It has been rewarding to watch our son, Eric, successfully run the real estate company where Nancy worked.
We have been thrilled to watch the resilience of our daughter, Lissy, along with two grandkids, as they adjust to living after a divorce, a divorce which was the right action to take.
Have benefitted from great relationships with a number of friends, especially on the golf course, as golf helps all of us make an adjustment to the virus, as well as cement those friendships.
One of the specific benefits, beyond golf, was continuance of a Friday meeting by way of Zoom among friends committed to studying the Bible through lessons created by Links Players,, which emphasizes Christian relationships through golf.
Good links (pardon the play on words) to a group of golfers in La Quinta, California who play at The Palms and have welcomed me into the group.
Great progress by our three grandchildren, who are lights of our life – Mason, Drew and Kate.
Good work by my old lobbying and public relations firm, CFM Advocates, as it earns enough money, for one thing, to continue buying out my shares in the company, now more than 25 years old, a pinnacle for our firm like ours.
Rewarding work for the Oregon Golf Association, Oregon’s leading golf promotion organization, where I am privileged to be a member of the Board of Directors Executive Committee.
Rewarding work for Oregon Government Ethics Commission (OGEC), which exists as a model for state ethics organizations around the country. The OGEC also stands as one of the best- run state agencies in Oregon – and I say that after a 40-year career in and around state government.

Beyond my list, I ncourage you to do the same – focus on good things in the last year, even as you reckon with the bad, probably led by the virus.

So, back to the Washington Post list, which began with these paragraphs:

When we began listing good things that happened in the year to match the year’s number — 16 good things in 2016, 17 good things in 2017, and so on — we knew the exercise would grow more challenging as the century wore on. To be honest, though, we didn’t think it would get this hard, this fast. The year 2020 turned out to be a difficult one to love.

Still, good things did happen. Perhaps more than usual, our list this year includes silver linings — “Yes, a terrible plague struck humankind, but…” We don’t apologize for that; finding the silver linings is how we all make it through.

Without further ado, then, 20 good things — starting with a few of those silver linings.

A terrible plague struck humankind, but scientists responded with unprecedented speed and common purpose; cooperating across national lines to decode the virus and then discover and manufacture

Thousands of people volunteered to take the experimental vaccines — at some risk to themselves — so safety and efficacy could be tested and proven.

We learned to appreciate the selfless dedication of nurses, orderlies, doctors and other health workers who risked their lives to save ours — and the selfless dedication of truck drivers, grocery stockers, farmworkers and so many more who risked their lives to keep the economy from collapsing.

Many of us felt isolated and frustrated in our social distancing, but many found meaning and connection with young or adult children, older relatives and other pod mates.

We also connected and reconnected with friends, relatives, colleagues and therapists across great distances as we became accustomed to Zoom calls and FaceTime video chats. We wouldn’t suggest that in-person wedding celebrations are gone forever — but the advances we made in telehealth, remote work and virtual gatherings will outlast the pandemic.

As movie theater chains struggled across the country, some family-owned drive-ins made a comeback, bringing a sense of community to small towns that had thought they were gone forever.

A record number of Americans turned out to vote in our national election, pandemic notwithstanding.

As the president launched an unprecedented assault on the democratic process, local and state officials of courage and integrity stood up to his assault and did their jobs with honor. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, Michigan Board of State Canvassers vice chair Aaron Van Langevelde and other Republicans stayed true to law and principle despite the corrupting pressure of their president, the cowardly silence of their national leadership, and, at times, vile and violent threats to them and their families.

And… he lost. We realize that for 74 million Americans, that doesn’t count as a good thing, but the result was welcomed by 81 million — ourselves among them. And this is our list. We celebrate the defeat of the worst president in U.S. history.

Black women led the nation to this fortunate result, with more than 9 in 10 voting for Democratic candidate Joe Biden in an election that was far closer than it should have been.

In so doing, they helped elect America’s first female vice-president, first Black vice-president and first Asian American vice-president: Sen. Kamala Harris of California.

The Supreme Court ruled that no one can be fired for being gay or transgender

When the country was really in trouble, Republicans and Democrats came together in Congress and the administration to pass the Cares Act, which provided relief to businesses and workers suffering through no fault of their own.

The Federal Reserve, under the leadership of chair Jerome H. Powell, mounted an innovative rescue effort that kept the economy battered, but afloat.

One of the most horrifying acts of police brutality ever caught on video — the killing of George Floyd — led to an outpouring of protest and reflection and, in many cities and state capitals, the beginning of reform.

NASA named its headquarters building in D.C. after Mary W. Jackson, the agency’s first African American female engineer. Mississippi replaced a flag that had featured Confederate symbolism. Fairfax County renamed Robert E. Lee High School for the late civil rights leader John Lewis. Congress voted to rename 10 Army installations that honored Confederate generals. Despite resistance, Americans began to reckon more honestly with their history.

The United States launched astronauts to the International Space Station on a U.S.-made rocket, after years of dependence on Russian technology. The reusable booster did its job and then returned safely, potentially opening an era of more cost-efficient space travel.

Carbon dioxide emissions declined — in part due to the recession, yes, but also because the cost of renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind, is declining more quickly than many experts had predicted.

With the United States set to rejoin the Paris agreement, and China pledging to reach carbon neutrality by 2060, momentum grew for the global community to take its climate emergency seriously.

After four years of an administration appointing mostly White men to the judiciary and the executive branch, the government was set to look more like America. And not just with its new vice president, but with a plethora of new faces including the most Native Americans elected to Congress, the most trans people elected to state legislatures, a burst of Republican women elected to Congress and a highly diverse and competent array of nominees for the incoming Cabinet.

Oh — and a panda was born at the National Zoo!

Happy new year.

December 26, 2020 by davefiskum

OREGON PUBLIC BROADCASTING DEMONSTRATES QUALITY JOURNALISM

If you want to see quality journalism, go to Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB).

Listen to OPOB radio. Watch OPB television. Go to OOPB’s website.

You’ll find quality in each of those locations. Often better than anywhere else.

I was proud to represent OPB as its lobbyist at the Capitol in Salem for more than 10 years. My old company, CFM Advocates, still lists OPB as a client.

We did a lot of good work during my tenure. One of the major achievements was to prod the Legislature to invest $3 million in making sure OOPB signals reached Eastern Oregon to make sure those areas did not go dark.

Gaining those funds was a tribute, not to just to me, but to the credibility of OPB’s management structure led by CEO Steve Bass, who remains there today and continues to lead a great organization.

He came to Oregon from the East Coast and, while I worked with Steve, he set out to become familiar with every corner of Oregon. One of the ways he did was to join, for a day, a number of orchestras around the state demonstrating his ability to play his flute.

By such actions, he raised the reputation of OOPB.

A recent OOPB story on vaccine availability illustrates the point about quality journalism. The story included information and perspective, a tribute to journalistic enterprise beyond what is available elsewhere in Oregon

Here are excerpts from the OPB story:

“The initial deliveries of COVID-19 vaccines to Oregon, Washington state and Idaho are spoken for — at least well into next month. High-risk health care workers, EMT/paramedics and nursing homes have top priority to get the vaccine jab. But then who?

“’We feel torn,” said a vaccine administrator. ‘There is limited vaccine and we need to do the best decision making we can with the data we have and the values that are out there in terms of trying to share equitable access.’

Western state governors and state health officials are now reviewing a finalized recommendation from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for how to prioritize future vaccination phases.

On Sunday, a CDC advisory panel voted 13-1 to urge states to give the next round of vaccines to people 75 and older along with “frontline essential workers.” Then remaining essential workers, seniors aged 65-74 and other high-risk people would get the vaccine in the following phase after that.

Jonathan Modie, a spokesperson for the Oregon Health Authority, said his agency was pleased that the CDC elevated the oldest Americans into the vaccination group coming up next. Their turn came later in prior drafts of the guidelines.

“’If we could vaccinate the 12 per cent of Oregonians who are 70+ years of age, we could prevent 76 per cent of COVID-19 deaths,’ Modie said in an email.

“The frontline essential workers placed at the head of the line by the CDC include teachers, daycare staff, grocery store workers, farmworkers and food processing, prison staff and postal workers.

Vaccination for this grouping could begin in mid-January at the earliest, according to Washington assistant health secretary Michele Roberts. She said the states do not yet know how many vaccine doses they will get in January, which introduces much uncertainty.

“An Idaho committee advising Gov. Brad Little has already ranked and prioritized essential workers for the upcoming next phase, putting police and fire responders who weren’t in the very first group at the head of the next line. Those folks would be followed by teachers, correctional staff, food processing workers, grocery workers and Idaho National Guard members, in that order.

“The Washington health department and Gov. Jay Inslee’s office said an announcement of the state’s priority list would be posted as soon as it is ready, possibly within days. A draft plan for the allocation of the COVID-19 vaccine posted online by the state health department several weeks ago includes some modest differences from the newly finalized CDC guidelines.

“One difference is that the preliminary state plan prioritized vaccination of inmates in prisons and jails. The new CDC list ranks correctional staff highly, but is silent about where inmates belong in the sequence.

“A Seattle-based union local representing grocery store workers said it had ‘strong hopes’ that its members would land on Washington state’s vaccine priority list after being included in the CDC’s guidelines for who should share the next allocation — formally known as Phase 1b of the COVID-19 immunization drive.

“’The federal government could and should be doing more to maximize the production of the vaccine,’ Geiger said in an email. ‘We are not in favor of one essential worker competing with another essential worker for a vaccine that they both should have access to.’

“Anthony Anton, the president of a trade organization that represents thousands of restaurants across Washington, said he thought it was appropriate to prioritize teachers for vaccination so that students could get back in classrooms soon.

“Dara Khosrowshahi, the CEO of Uber, wrote to Inslee, Little, Oregon Governor Kate Brown and other governors earlier this month to ask that ride-hailing company driver also be given early access to the COVID-19 vaccine. The Uber chief said they provide an essential service that other frontline workers rely upon.

“The new CDC guidelines call out transit operators as frontline essential workers deserving to be in the next vaccination group.

“Roberts (from Washington) said her state is working to build online tools to assess one’s place in line, and then be notified by the state when it is time to be vaccinated. That information system may also provide links to vaccination locations. Health care providers will probably notify their patients who are high-risk when it’s their turn, she added.

“In the meantime, even though folks are getting tired of it, people will need to keep wearing masks when around others outside of home, keep gatherings small and maintain social distancing, advise your state and local health officers.”

The fact that information has changed in the last couple days since this story first appeared is just an indication that more will be coming from OPB.

December 25, 2020 by davefiskum

“THE DEFIANT HOPE OF CHRISTMAS: GOD IS WITH US”

The headline on this blog also appeared in the Washington Post this morning to herald a column by one of my favorite writers, Michael Gerson.

There is no better way to celebrate Christmas morning than by reprinting Gerson’s column.

So, here it is – and I hope, for you, this is a Merry Christmas in the true sense of the phrase – “The Defiant Hope of Christmas: God With Us.”

****************

One of the stranger elements of the strange Nativity narrative is the way an angel addresses Mary: “You who are highly favored.” As a teen mother, pregnant before marriage and destined to give birth among barn animals, she might have been forgiven for regarding this as angelic sarcasm. Fast forward three decades, and the most favored one will see her son executed among thieves before a jeering crowd.

The whole Christmas story is pregnant with enigma and violated expectations. The Creator pulls on a garment of blood and bone. Almighty God is somehow present in a fragile newborn. The deliverer of humankind is delivered, slimy with vernix, in a place smelling of dung. If God can come here, amid the shame and straw, he can come anywhere. If God came here, he has come everywhere.

As we pull back from these events, an odd violation of perspective kicks in. The largest figures of the time — King Herod, Emperor Tiberius — grow smaller. The smaller figures — Mary, Joseph and some random shepherds — loom large. The smallest, most helpless figure blots out sun and moon and fills the whole sky with song: “Glory to God in the highest. Peace on Earth. Good will toward men.”

Many in first-century Palestine — as in every time since — were looking for political deliverance. They had every right to resent the brutal rule of Rome and its proxies. But the Christmas story overturns that expectation. It asserts that the most important things — the things that last and count — are not political or social but personal and human. Instead of influence based on coercion, the birth of Jesus points to a power found in vulnerability, service and humility. Humankind is offered not a new way of organizing society but a new way of being human, marked by compassion, purpose, dignity and kindness.

Imagine if Jesus had been a political revolutionary. Even if he had miraculously succeeded in humbling Rome, he would be a historical footnote — someone on par with Judah Maccabee. Precisely because Christ’s kingdom is not of this world, it was not limited to his time. Those who politicize religion are also miniaturizing it. Their faith is as fresh and relevant as last week’s newspaper.

None of this is to dismiss the importance of politics. We are still working out the massive social implications of honoring God’s image in every life. But in the Nativity story, political figures only appear as tax collectors and murderers. At the center of history lies a domestic drama. The universe held its breath as a baby drew his first. God arrived, not as a conqueror, but as a child in a stable. A teacher on a hillside. A man nailed to a cross. And his achievement — bringing God’s presence to humankind — makes every victory achieved by force look trifling in comparison.

If the Nativity story is true, God is not merely a philosophic or theological postulate. In the scriptures, Jesus is given the name Emmanuel, which is Hebrew for “God with us.” He entered the bowels of human existence for the sake of every human soul. The implications are remarkable. It means there are no insignificant or pointless lives. It means that the events and choices of an average day can carry eternal significance. It means that a journey of meaning and purpose — a life of courage and generosity — can begin from whatever desolate place we find ourselves.

This emphasis on the personal — this glorification of the human — has sometimes been captured in art. Consider the luminous domestic spaces of Vermeer. A milkmaid, a lacemaker or a geographer shines with dignity and grace. A girl with a pearl earring and limpid eyes is as radiant as a Madonna.

Or consider James Wright’s brief poem “Trouble,” dealing with a young woman named Roberta who is pregnant out of wedlock. She is taunted on the street by a boy, Crum Anderson, who says she looks like she has swallowed a watermelon. The poem continues:

Fat? Willow and lonesome Roberta, running

Alone down Pearl Street in the rain the last time

I ever saw her, smiling a smile

Crum Anderson will never know,

Wondering at her body.

Sixteen years, and

All that time she thought she was nothing

But skin and bones.

None of us — no matter what Crum Anderson says — is merely skin and bones. We are skin and bones and the life of God within us. Even lives that feel relentlessly ordinary or hopelessly broken are vessels of divine purpose. We are embraced, elevated and dignified by God’s astounding humility.

This should be a source of hope. I am not speaking here of optimism, which is more like a genetic gift than the foundation of a life. Some of us, in contrast, have the genetic affliction of depression, which can bathe life’s wonders in dirty dishwater, making our days appear gray and two-dimensional. Depression tries to convince us that hope itself is a fiction. Sometimes the only comfort lies in knowing your mind is a vicious liar and in managing to endure another day.

But when we are thinking clearly, most of us can recall glimpses of purpose, beauty and glory in our lives. In the overwhelming calm and joy of holding our child close. In the majesty and marvelous internal order of nature. In art or music that touches our deepest being. In the undeserved, sacrificial love of a friend. And maybe, if we are silent and open, in the sense that a benign God is speaking to us in the seemingly random events of our lives.

These are not logical proofs; they are signposts pointing in the direction of grace. And they culminate the defiant hope of Christmas: God is for us. God is in us. God is with us.

In enforced isolation and loneliness, God is with us. In chronic pain and degenerative disease, God is with us. In a shattered relationship or a cancer diagnosis, God is with us. In an intensive care unit or a mental ward, God is with us. In life and in death, God will not leave us or forsake us.

It is possible, of course, that none of this true. Such Christmas hope may well be a pleasing myth or projection of our own desires. If we had been there on the night in question, walking the Judean hills, would we have seen and heard the angels? I have no idea. But I do know that the civilization I inhabit is unimaginable without the birth of the Christ child. I know that billions in the last two millennia have claimed communion with Him. And I have faith that this extraordinary person, who knew God’s heart so intimately, can be born into our hearts as well.

Such faith does not promise release from suffering, but it can bring deliverance from fear. It means that every moment we are blessed to inhabit, even in a difficult and shortened life, can be infused with God’s presence and ennobled by His calling. The hope that began on Christmas Day still shines like a star and swells like a song, carried across the centuries by chanting monks and gospel choirs, filling great cathedrals and revival tents, but clearest in the quiet of our hearts: God is with us.

December 24, 2020 by davefiskum

IF THERE IS ONE THING PRESIDENT BIDEN SHOULD DO, IT IS THIS: RE-UNITE IMMIGRANT CHILDREN WITH THEIR PARENTS

Here I go again writing about a travesty involving Donald Trump.

This time it is about immigration.

But, forget Trump as he exits the stage as a loser.

Just focus on one of the most heinous acts of the Trump Administration (there’s that inaccurate word again, “Administration,” which does not belong to Trump). It was to separate immigrant children from their parents at the U.S-Mexico border.

Imagine that for a moment.

“Kidnap” children from their parents at the border, do so intentionally, and then forget about them. If the kids cry, no problem. If the parents wail, don’t listen.

And the fact is that Trump and his sycophants performed this tragedy intentionally out of some apparent belief that immigrants were all criminals.

So, the point of this blog: New President Joe Biden and his allies should work immediately to undo this tragedy.

As difficult as it will be, reuniting parents with their children should be at the top of the Biden’s “new policy” list. Achieving this would be an act of humanity as part of an overall reform of the American immigration system under Biden.

Trump began separating children from parents as part of a pilot program in El Paso, Texas, in 2017. By the time Trump announced his “zero tolerance” policy against immigrants the following year, the practice of separating children and parents had been implemented up and down the U.S.-Mexico border.

Incredibly, according to a study by the Washington Post, 1,500 separations occurred in 2017 and 2,800 in 2018.

The practice included holding migrants for possible criminal prosecution — even if they were just seeking asylum — and eventually deporting them while their children remained in facilities located around the U.S.

The plan was devised by White House adviser Stephen Miller, an incredible figure in his own right, someone who put in place incredibly inhumane policies, such as parent-child separation without any regard for the long-term deleterious effects.

Miller’s work for Trump rested on several principles, if you can call what motivated his hatred “principles.” He maintains immigrants are primarily a threat and should above all be feared. Immigrants, he contends, are largely driven by nefarious motives, looking to scam their way into the United States.

According to Miller, efforts to migrate must, above all, be crushed by maximum cruelty and hardship, including by separating children from their parents.

According to the Post, Biden officials don’t fear Miller who, fortunately, is on his way out. Biden and appointees intend to “expand legal pathways for migration,” including “allowing people to apply for refugee resettlement.”

The Biden team accepts the principle that most migrants actually do have a plausible case to seek protection and that because of this, the U.S. should facilitate immigration, not make it harder.

“That’ is,” writes the Washington Post, “a decisive break with Miller-ism. Indeed, it would begin to restore a core commitment that the U.S. has made to international laws and ideals dictating a human right to a fair and just hearing.

“Biden is also signaling efforts at regional solutions that are sane and humane. Biden officials say they will pursue a $4 billion plan to combat corruption and foster economic development in migrant-origin countries, another sign of recognition that migrations are driven by root causes that can be addressed through internationally negotiated solutions.”

Unwinding Trump’s horrors will be extremely difficult. But the effort to reunite children with parents is worth it as a key tenet of Biden’s approach.

The fact that such an intentional policy existed at all will rank as one of the major stains on Trump and his cronies as they leave the White House. Only ONE of the major stains, because are so many over the last four years.

December 23, 2020 by davefiskum

AN EXAMPLE OF COMPROMISE THAT WORKS

PERSPECTIVE FROM THE 19^TH HOLE: This is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus to use an image from my favorite sport, golf. Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all of my professional positions, including as press secretary in Washington, D.C. for a Democrat Congressman from Oregon (Les AuCoin), as an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, as press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and as a private sector lobbyist. This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write. I could have called this blog “Middle Ground,” for that is what I long for in both politics and golf. The middle ground is often where the best when I public policy decisions lie. And it is where you want to be on a golf course.

When I drafted this blog yesterday, my purpose was to give credit to where credit was due – to Congress for producing a bi-partisan compromise that, while imperfect, did respond to the national virus emergency.

Then, guess what? Donald Trump intervened by saying that he opposed the compromise, even though he had not done one thing to help with its development.

It struck me a little like former Oregon John Kitzhaber who earned the nickname, Dr. No, when he vetoed various bills after no involvement in their development.

Well, as I complete this blog this morning, it is not clear whether Trump was just doing his usually ranting via Twitter, or whether he intends to veto the compromise. If he does, there were enough votes when it passed the House and Senate to override his veto if Members of Congress were to vote the same, affirmative way.

We’ll see about that, but, for now, back to the bill that emerged from Congress.

I agree with Washington Post editorial writers who contended this week that the virus relief bill shows that Washington, D.C. can still work, albeit slowly and with difficulty.

What happened in Congress was a compromise, which is not a negative word. It is the real definition of politics.

And, by definition, with compromise, there is:

A lot to like about the bill that passed.
A lot to dislike about the bill that passed.

If you are involved in producing a compromise, another way to say it is this – you give and you get. And you don’t always like everything about the final product.

Here is how the Post described the result:

“As the nation closes out a gloomy 2020, there have been a few signs that its political system still can work. First was an orderly presidential election, perhaps the cleanest and most secure ever, that has resisted concerted attempts by President Trump to overturn the result.

“Second is the compromise Covid-19 relief bill that lawmakers raced to pass on Monday, following months of legislative stalemate. Yes, it is imperfect. But it is nevertheless an indication that lawmakers are still capable of shaking hands on big legislation when national prosperity is at stake.

“The $900 billion bill would extend enhanced unemployment benefits for another 11 weeks, provide rental assistance to keep people in their homes and reinvigorate the Paycheck Protection Program that has kept businesses afloat amid the historic coronavirus shutdown.

“It would pump more money into vaccine development and distribution. While it lacks much-needed federal help for state and local budgets, it would funnel aid to some of the most critical areas of state and local need, such as mass transit, covid-19 costs and schools. Lawmakers hitched Covid relief to a big funding bill that would keep the federal government running through September.

“A welcome addition to the legislative package is a ban on one of the most obnoxious practices in the country’s health-care system, so-called surprise medical bills, a long-overdue bi-partisan reform that finally overcame intense industry lobbying.”

Of course, the relief package has flaws. For one thing, it is late; it should have been passed weeks ago. For another, the bill includes a few “earmarks” on issues not related to the virus, which illustrates the often-used definition of law-making – it often looks like sausage.

It also is possible to imagine that, as the virus rages and the vaccines are just beginning to be distributed, there will be a need for further relief after the first of the year, no matter what the loser Trump does. If there is further action, it will have to occur by way of another compromise.

The Post’s conclusion: “Governing in this environment will not satisfy the ideologues, and it will not deliver everything the country needs. But as President-Elect Joe Biden has said, ‘a willingness to compromise will be essential to getting anything done.’”

December 22, 2020 by davefiskum

A SOLID YEAR FOR JUNIOR GOLF IN OREGON

As the pandemic rages on – and as the first vaccines are being distributed – I have taken a look back at the year in junior golf in Oregon.

I do so for at least two reasons.

First, the course where I am a member, Illahe Hills Golf and Country Club, has demonstrated a long-standing commitment to building golf among junior players.

This commitment existed back about 35 years ago when we joined Illahe and the Club became a site for activities by our now-grown children, Eric and Lissy. Both learned golf, so much so that Eric earned a golf scholarship at Oregon State University and Lissy started what has been a lifetime interest in the sport.

Second, the Oregon Golf Association (OGA), where I serve as member of the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors, posted one of the best years ever in junior golf, if that is measured only by the group of young people learning to play golf by signing up for OGA tournaments.

So, even during the pandemic, junior golf has thrived.

What follows – a summary of junior golf achievements through the OGA – is based on a report prepared by the OGA’s junior golf intern, Tianna Brown, a graduate of George Fox University. She worked all season long in junior golf and was good enough to prepare the following summary.

The numbers of young people signed up for OGA junior golf programs grew markedly – 2,7872 by the end of the year, way up from 1,890 in the previous year.

Two juniors – Graham Moody from Vancouver, Washington, and Kyra Ly from Portland – were named Junior Players of the Year, each for the second year in a row.

Over the run of junior tournaments this year, there were:

+ 94 eagles

+ 5 holes-in-one

+ 2 albatrosses

Illahe got a warranted dose of credit for hosting the annual OGA Junior Tournament of Champions. Illahe’s head pro, Steve Bowen, worked well with the OGA to adjust the tournament several times for reasons related to the pandemic, as well as the effects of smoke from forest fires.

Kudos to Bowen, his pro shop staff and Illahe overall for being willing to host junior and regular amateur tournaments for the OGA.

What could be said about junior golf is what can be said about golf in general – the pandemic, amplified by the good work of golf administrators, is making golf these days more popular than ever.

For evidence, look no farther than a recent Wall Street Journal story that appeared under this headline:

Coronavirus shutdowns are making golf courses an oasis for stir-crazy Americans eager to get out and tee it up

With few alternatives for outdoor activities, the golf business hopes built-in social distancing can draw new participants

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Perspective from the 19th Hole

Thoughts from a lobbyist who has represented clients in Oregon and Washington, D.C. for more than 40 years.

Month: December 2020