| Platform
continued (page 2)
Oregon’s
Safety
Prison
Reform
As most Oregonians, I believe in three basic elements of public
safety: Security, Justice, and Prevention. We have the right to
be secure in our homes and in going about our everyday lives. When
a crime is committed, we have the right to expect that criminals
will be punished fairly, and that our government officials will
be particularly tough on the very dangerous and repeat offenders.
Finally, those offenders who have served their time will return
to society as productive citizens who will not repeat their criminal
behaviors of the past. The current status is that Oregon prisons
and community corrections programs have fallen incredibly short
in each of these three basic elements. We need better forms of corrections
for youthful offenders and those who have a mental illness. If our
troubled youth are in an unsuccessful environment, why not let them
help our farming families thereby changing their environment for
the brighter and sending much needed assistance to our agricultural
society. Oregon should have a productive corrections system with
a strong mental health treatment component, including return-to-society
programs for non-violent offenders. Non-violent offenders with mental
health conditions do not belong in prisons, but rather in secure
treatment facilities where their conditions, as well as their behaviors,
can be addressed. We need to be a state of compassion that is not
punitive. We must deal more effectively with our youth and mentally
ill.
Measure
11
I am opposed to measure 11 because it is misused and it misses its
target. When looking on the internet, never have I seen so many
organizations against a law. Never have I seen so many lost souls.
Every person needs hope. A chance to improve a grow even a Convict.
There are three branches of Government to protect us Legislative,
Executive and Judicial.
Measure 11 eliminates judicial authority. This is constitutionally
a wrong law.
I
am amazed at the injustice and inhumanity to families and children
who have been sentenced under Measure 11, especially the non-violent
offenders. I am amazed at the cost to taxpayers. If Measure 11 were
abolished it would save Oregonians enough money to finance all that
we need for the schools here in Oregon. But possible we could build
new drug, alcohol and mental health treatment facilities. Moneys
can come from HUD and Social Security supplements given to the needy.
Measure
11 gives district attorneys the power and authority to force young
people and first time offenders into pleading guilty to accept lesser
charges without due process of a trial.
It
takes away the discretion of the Judge to decide appropriate sentences,
which, in my opinion, violates the constitution.
The
law requires that any youth fifteen years of age or older who is
charged with a Measure 11 crime must automatically be prosecuted
as an adult. Children, their brain functions have not even begun
neurologically to develop. Though process at these ages
Are still trying to understand the world they live in.
When
we sentence a child to prison. That angers me. I recently heard
a story from a prisoner and his description of the screams of a
19 year old in prison as he was being raped.
The
Bill of Rights allows proper and reasonable bail and a fair trial
not just a plea bargain. If we are going to send someone to jail
for a long time they had better have a fair trial. We must be fair
and we must abide by the constitution that we have sworn to live
and abide by.
This
law is opposed by so many organizations that the list will not fit
here. I am amazed and I am saddened and feel for those families
who have suffered under Measure 11. It is used badly and unjustly.
It needs to be removed. Not fixed but gone. We must keep in mind
that when we punish someone by sending them to jail we take away
their means to make a living for their families and we deprive those
families of their fathers, mothers, sons and daughters. Justice
needs to be served rather than injustice. We must look for better
solutions for non-violent offenders.
Click
here for more on measure 11
Military
I am a veteran of the US Navy. I served on the U.S.S. Ticonderoga
during the Vietnam Conflict. This country has many more freedoms
than other countries. I believe that our nation's defenses must
be strong. We must back our president on his issues and work as
a team. I will do that. We need to keep a strong National Guard.
Our National Guard's mission is to remain strong for Oregon and
for our nation. We must maintain a strong national defense. The
President is our commander in chief and I intend to back him on
international matters.
I
am a lifetime member of the United States Navy League. I support
the principles of that organization. I am proud to be a member of
it.
Oregon’s
Future
Education
As a former teacher, I am concerned with the direction our schools
are taking. I will initiate and support legislation designed to
promote greater awareness of ethics and morality in curriculums.
We should make ethics a part of our every day curriculum. I am in
favor of home schooling and credit for home schooling. I will support
state and federal funding for private schools. I will seek to create
three new trade high schools in Oregon. "Give kids a goal and
we give them identity."
CIM/CAM
The CIM/CAM (Certificate of Initial Mastery & Certificate of
Advanced Mastery) models have failed miserably and our students
are distracted from what it takes to prepare for their future after
high school. I believe CIM/CAM should be removed from the State’s
curriculum and allow our teachers to return their focus on other
education tools that improve our students’ minds and abilities
instead of taking time to just “teach to the test.”
Higher
Education
Improving Oregon’s higher education system is critical to
improving Oregon’s economy, but the current bureaucracy that
has emerged in higher education shows that our tax dollars are not
getting to the classrooms. I question why Oregon is funding seven
universities and their corresponding layers of bureaucracy for our
small population. We should look to consolidation and identify economies
of scale in administering our university system.
Community
Colleges
The continued expansion of programs for the 17 Oregon Community
Colleges has left the system without focus on a consistent purpose
and direction. Ultimately, this creates additional expense to the
taxpayers.
Importance
of Life
I believe in the importance of life and improving the future for
our children. I think education is a key element in this, and education
should be focused on. Education is important in moral, ethical and
family issues. It is an essential point. Life is valuable. My job
will be to protect life and to act with compassion and mercy.
|
