This video is a news report interviewing neighbors from Portland, Oregon and not from my neck of the woods. I’m in a rural area and much farther North, but yeah, I totally get it.
I especially get the tears, the frustration, the sense of complete powerlessness. I empathized with the woman who spoke about being afraid to go to work when you have some grown man meth raging in your driveway.
Those feelings about how “nobody cares” run deep. This is like complete abandonment by law enforcement, by civil authorities, by politicians, by leadership of all sorts. It’s hard to even go to work, tough to run a business, and nearly impossible to protect your property. It’s kind of like living in a 3rd world country with crumbling infrastructure and corrupt city officials.
Anyway, I just wanted to post this and say, this is a totally man made disaster. It didn’t have to happen. This is the result of failed leadership, rampant political corruption, and complete neglect. Elections have consequences and the consequences from the last one really bite.
See, there's this thing called biology... 
Heartbreaking. When the righteous rule, the people rejoice. The fool says in his heart there is no God.
Yesterday I got a new customer, went to her house to give her a bid on window cleaning.
She is moving here (East Texas) from California. As I always do, I welcomed her, saying, “Please don’t bring California here.”
She smiled brightly.”Everybody says that. Believe me, I won’t.”
I asked her why.
Her answer: California is now approving abortion to 10 months after birth. If a baby dies before 10 months old, there will be no investigation.
She had been a teacher in CA school system, and she was constantly being reprimanded for telling her students the truth.
Finally, she was fired for “not being a team player”.
She is moving to Texas. I asked her why she waited so long.
“California is my home. I felt like God wanted me there as a light in a dark place. But, now, I feel like I have to flee.”
I mentioned Sodom and Gomorrah, and shaking the dust from her feet.
She smiled, though her eyes were wet.
I welcomed her to Texas.
Gabrielle if you ever decide to flee, we would welcome you as well.
LikeLiked by 5 people
What a great tale, Randy! Also, very sweet to be welcomed to Texas should we ever decide to flee. 🙂
LikeLiked by 3 people
Texas would welcome you IB and so would I.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That is so sweet! It’s nice to be wanted and welcomed. I will treasure those words and hold Texas fondly in my heart. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
“Elections have consequences and the consequences from the last one really bite.”
My paraphrase of HL Mencken puts a very fine point on it:
“People need to get every thing they vote for, in spades, good and hard, until it grinds them to powder.”
LikeLiked by 2 people
@js
(Of the commenters here, when i click on your name, my site pops up? Strange)
LikeLike
I don’t know why you get your site, my site pops up for me when I click on my own name
https://wordpress.com/view/jsolbakken.wordpress.com
LikeLike
Strange I clicked it and mine came up. That is really weird.
LikeLike
“Strange I clicked it and mine came up. That is really weird.”
They should know by now that you’re not me.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes I would think so too. It is really weird.
LikeLike
https://thelionsden98.wordpress.com/
I get this when I click on your name
LikeLike
yeah, that one is good. Your link still is wonky. Odd.
LikeLike
Jsolbakken, I’m with you on the HL Mencken quote! One thing people really need to learn is that elections have consequences, that cause and effect is at play here. “We” created this disaster, meaning those writing these policies, those tolerating and profiting off of addiction, and those supporting it.
Colorstorm, that’s just a cycling gravatar link. It will always link you back to your own site or to my own site. They kind of trip me out, too, but it works well on WP.
LikeLiked by 1 person
So sad! I visited Portland and the Oregon coast several times when I was a kid, also Mt. Hood. It’s such a beautiful state. My aunt still lives there. She is conservative.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s is really beautiful, especially Mt Hood and the Oregon Coast. I’m glad to hear you aunt lives here. I can take comfort in the fact that there is at least one other conservative lurking about. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Awful. Those people need help, but it’s not the job of the homeowners to have to deal with them. Maybe if politicians stopped dealing with made up “existential threats” and dealt with real life issues, like drug addiction, homelessness and mental health, they could fix this. It’s just not as politically expedient to do so. So sad.
LikeLiked by 2 people
So true, Rob!
I liked how the one gal said, “I’m an addict, my family doesn’t approve.” Well, that’s partly because she’s destroying her health and living on the street. No one “approves” of people they love falling into addiction! The political narrative however, does approve. They profit off of this misery, it is politically expedient for them, and they enable it with their policies.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I don’t really know what to say, I’m from the same general area and all of this has been going on for a long time. When you’d complain to the Left. you’d get a scowl and told not to be judgemental, and that all of this was a justified reaction to poverty and inequality (although for all their compassion and concern, 50 years of Leftist leadership on the West Coast did nothing to solve the problem). If you’d complain to the Right, you’d get an indifferent shrug and told, “Doesn’t happen in my neighborhood. Sux to be you!”
You’re right, these are totally man-made problems. People voted in these rats to grab temporary selfish advantage at the expense of the rest of society and now they want to complain that the people at the top want it all and don’t care who they throw under the bus. Trump tried draining the swamp and reversing some of the social damage, but ‘Orange Man Bad’ and people preferred drug-induced drama to good government, so here we are.
LikeLiked by 1 person
All true, these kind of problems have been brewing for a long time, and the only ones in charge are Leftists, literally for decades. I also get irritated with the Right, with the rugged individualism and “not my problem” mentality. The Right’s frequent failure to empathize and relate to the “little guy” is a big part of the problem.
LikeLike
Example of this, here’s when major cities on the West Coast last had Republican mayors:
Portland—1956
San Francisco—1964
Oakland—1966
Seattle—1969
Honolulu—1969
Los Angeles—2001
Seems as though the Left has had a long time to fix all of the things that they’re complaining about so loudly. And, of course, the Republicans haven’t exactly put up much of a fight in any of these areas either.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Exactly! The poor, the addicted, are also a commodity, an endless source of revenue, of grants, funding. We need more of them to justify our campaigns, our political promises, our millions coming in for all these “help the homeless projects” that never really help anyone.
LikeLike
‘The poor you always have with you,’ does not mean ‘poor people’ have the right to infringe on others peace of mind.
In addition, poor is a matter of degree. Your 2 bedroom house is poor next to a 5 br- and the man who lives at the hostel is rich compared to the guy who lives in. Refrigerator box.
But ‘poor’ and a lifestyle of addiction are another story- there is so much blame to go around, don’t even know where to start.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s complicated, isn’t it? “Poverty” is about a whole lot more than money! Addiction is really expensive and so some of the homeless, not all, but some of them actually have more money than I do. They just happen to spend it all on their drug habit rather than on living expenses. One reason why you go live in your car is so that you don’t have to “waste” any money on rent, utilities, food, etc.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ephesians 4:28 puts it this way, and it’s a densely packed punch with a lot of doctrine in it:
28 Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.
Why work? Because love does not mooch and sponge like a sloth, a slow belly, and a lazy stomach.
I’m especially annoyed by those who act like they should not be criticized at any time. Such people throw the words of Jesus, “Judge not,” in your face, as if Jesus taught “Judge not” so that lazy stomachs and other dirt bags could hide behind it and evade all accountability.
Jesus did NOT NOT NOT teach “Judge not” so that we could throw it in the face of those who are harmed by our grievous faults and make them shut up about it.
Like Peter said in I Peter 2:20
20 For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Elected officials are supposed to be representatives of the people who voted them into office…and if those people in office are corrupt, what does that say about the people who voted for them?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, true! My problem is that I frequently overestimate the average person’s understanding of politics and the world around us. A good chunk of people believe politics has no impact on their lives so they don’t bother to engage at all and don’t even vote. Another big chunk are just walking around muttering, “orange man bad” and have no awareness of how cause and effect even works. I’m not trying to make fun of people, just saying that this really is the reality on the ground.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Heavy; praying for the residence, the homeless and I imagine there’s a lot of drug component, that addicts be freed from bondage
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for the prayers, Slim! It matters, it makes a huge difference. Things are going to change, not sure when, but it’s coming.
LikeLiked by 1 person
👍✝️🙏🙏👍
LikeLike