As the Republican Presidential candidates focus on each other's numerous faults, America focuses on tax injustice

[Edited 1/25/12]
As most of the Republican candidates turn their inherently mean, greedy, and compassionless natures against each other during the debates, in what has become a free-for-all circus of incompetence, demonization of poor people, and back-biting, they have managed to bring the issue of tax fairness into America's living rooms. Mitt Romney has become the poster boy for how fabulously wealthy people can end up paying a lower tax rate than ordinary working people. Mitt Romney, who even though he tells us he does his own laundry, does have an estimated wealth of $190 to $250 million, and paid only about 13.9% in taxes, i.e. $3 million, on $21.7 million of unearned income in 2010. (Unearned--they got that adjective right, because the easier the work, the more you make) At least he pays more than nothing, as is the case with many corporations. His tax rate for the 2011 tax year is estimated to come in around 15.4%. The reason offered for why his rate is so low is due to the fact that most of his income is from investments (long-term capital gains), which are taxed at a 15% rate. The average person pays above 15%, some much more, when payroll taxes for medicare and Social Security are included. Newt Gingrich says he paid almost $1 million, or about 30%, on his 2010 income of roughly $3.1 million. Perhaps it is worth noting that in 1961, an individual making $200,000 or over, and a couple making $400,000 or over had a tax rate of 91%, which, even when adjusted for inflation ($200,000 in 1961=$1,504,608.70 in 2011), would still include both Romney and Gingrich.

The long-term capital gains tax rate is currently as low as it has been for at least the last 50 years. Until the George W. Bush administration, when it was lowered to 15%, it has ranged from a high around 40% to a low of 20%, and for most of the years before W, it was at, or most often above, 25%.

It is difficult however, for Newtie to criticize Romney or even to capitalize on what many people see as inherent unfairness in the tax code, because Gingrich has a 15% flat tax plan, which he now calls the Mitt Romney flat tax, and which would eliminate taxes on capital gains entirely, while cutting his own taxes in half. Then Newt will be able to keep $2.6million instead of a paltry $2.1 million on a $3.1 million income derived from influence peddling and speech making, and Mitt would pay almost nothing as a corporate raider/restructurer. Under Newtie's plan, the corporate rate would fall from its current 35% to only 12.5%, lower that the individual's flat 15%, and both corporations and the rich would reap large tax savings, while tax revenues tumble into the abyss. Fabulous ideas? Are we going to saddle the resurgence of the American Dream on the backs of the vast majority who are already seeing their share of the dream continuously shrink towards desperation? I read tonight that Obama said in his SOTU that he wants a tax plan where people making a $million or more pay at least a 30% rate, which is definitely a move in the right direction.

Romney responds to any criticism of capitalist inequality or thoughts of increasing the low tax load of the rich as "the politics of envy" and "class warfare," as if there couldn't possibly be an objective, fact based, critical analysis and thoughtful evaluation of tax fairness and our growing inequalities in wealth and opportunity between the rich, the middle class, and the poor. No, he and his class would have us believe that it's not the politics of fairness and justice, it's only "envy." He, and many Republican leaders, would have us believe that "class warfare" isn't by the rich on the poor, and isn't about the growing inequality and the increasing wealth and power of the rich at the expense of the poor and middle class, but that somehow, in the face of the facts, the poor are waging war against the rich! If he thinks that listening to poor and middle class people criticizing and protesting against outrageous inequality, in a peaceful, democratic fashion is warfare, then what would he call a situation where the poor actually decided to stand up and fight?

Partly in the hope of avoiding that eventuality, some folks are turning their skills to documentary film making so as to clearly explain the situation to Americans, in the hope that once armed with the facts, they will be able to bring change through the ballot box, even in the face of the Citizen's United ruling which grants corporations and unions unlimited campaign spending.

Below are two video variations on the same theme: We're Not Broke (We're just not taxing the rich and corporations enough, like we used to when all Americans mattered!) These are followed up by an informative Democracy Now! article on the Sundance Film Festival documentary "We're Not Broke," and a blog article by Robert Reich on the effects of globalization and "a Government Overwhelmed by Corporate money."
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We're Not Broke (Documentary at Sundance Film Festival)

From Synopsis in Sundance Film Festival Film Guide:

"With the United States in the grip of the worst economic recession since the Great Depression and an unprecedented budget deficit, the conclusion that our country is broke seems unquestionable. At least that's what politicians and pundits want ordinary citizens to believe as they call for massive spending cuts.

Karin Hayes and Victoria Bruce's searing exposé reveals that, strangely absent from this rhetoric, is the infuriating fact that multibillion-dollar corporations are based in the U.S., make money from American consumers, and often even receive lucrative contracts from the government, yet pay nothing in U.S. income taxes. By exploiting tax-law loopholes and spending millions on lobbyists to pressure politicians to protect their interests, corporations pocket billions while the less-connected middle class disappears, and the poor get poorer. . . . ."

Watch a short clip on Prescreen:
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Democracy Now!
As Romney Releases Tax Returns, Fmr Senate Investigator Says: We’ve Got To Start Taxing Corporations

During the GOP primary, Mitt Romney has come under fierce attack for parking millions of dollars of his personal wealth in investment funds set up in the Cayman Islands, a notorious Caribbean tax haven. We speak with Tax Justice Network USA chair Jack Blum, a former top congressional investigator of financial crimes, who says tax evasion could seriously cripple the already struggling economy. Blum appears in "We’re Not Broke," a documentary that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. The film examines widespread corporate tax evasion in the United States and the increasing role of offshore tax havens. "Has [Romney] cheated? No," Blum says. "What he’s done is take full advantage of a system that has been structured the way it is because of political influence and a tremendous amount of lobbying money on Capitol Hill... We must not only rewrite the Internal Revenue Code, but we must get a fair contribution from the very wealthy and from corporations, and that is the only way to balance the budget."

[Link added] [Read rush transcript]
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We're Not Broke, Just Twisted: Extreme Wealth Inequality in America


Go To inequality.org
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The State of Our Disunion: A Globalizing Private Sector, A Government Overwhelmed by Corporate Money

Robert Reich

MONDAY, JANUARY 23, 2012

. . . .
An Apple executive says “We don’t have an obligation to solve America’s problems. Our only obligation is making the best product possible.” He might have added “and showing a big enough profits to continually increase our share price.”
. . . .
What they want in America is lower corporate taxes, less regulation, and fewer unionized workers. But none of these will bring good jobs to America. These steps may lower the costs of production here, but global companies can always find even lower costs abroad.
. . . .
Put simply, American workers are hobbled by deteriorating schools, unaffordable college tuitions, decaying infrastructure, and declining basic R&D. All of this is putting us on a glide path toward even lousier jobs and lower wages.

Get it? The strategic responsibility for making Americans more globally competitive can’t be centered in the private sector because the private sector is rapidly going global, and it’s designed to make profits rather than good jobs. The core responsibility has to be in government because government is supposed to be looking out for the public, and investing in public schools, colleges, infrastructure, and basic R&D.

But here’s the political problem. American firms have huge clout in Washington. They maintain legions of lobbyists and are pouring boatloads of money into political campaigns. After the Supreme Court’s Citizen’s United decision, there’s no limit.

Who represents the American workforce? Organized labor represents fewer than 7 percent of private-sector workers and has all it can do to protect a dwindling number of unionized jobs.

Republicans like it this way, and for three decades have been trying to convince average working Americans government is their enemy. Yet corporate America isn’t their friend. Without bold government action on behalf of our workforce, good American jobs will continue to disappear.

_

Robert Reich is Chancellor's Professor of Public Policy at the University of California at Berkeley. He has served in three national administrations, most recently as secretary of labor under President Bill Clinton. He has written thirteen books, including The Work of Nations, Locked in the Cabinet, Supercapitalism, and his most recent book, Aftershock. His "Marketplace" commentaries can be found on publicradio.com and iTunes. He is also Common Cause's board chairman.

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See also:

Income inequality: Theme of 2012
By Marshall McComb
LTE, Baker City Herald
Baker City, Oregon

. . . .
But the inequality issue is not going away. Despite Republicans’ avoidance of this issue or their decrying it as “class warfare,” most of us realize that we have become a society more unequal than at any time since the 1920s. Automation, globalization, union-busting, and legalized financial abuse have drained middle-class purchasing power and stymied upward mobility. Health care and public education are in critical decline. Most of us have been left behind, while Romney and his cohorts pursue a never-ending quest for more money ... and the political power to cut their taxes even further. . . . .

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Iris Dement Wasteland Of The Free

War on WikiLeaks Continued: Assange Interview

[Edited 12/22/10]
War on WikiLeaks Continued: Assange Interview—You be the Judge

The merciless assault on Julian Assange has continued, and although he has not been charged with any crime, he has been granted “bail” to live in an ankle bracelet in-house arrest arrangement on the British estate of a friend, while the British government either arranges to turn him over the U.S. for some sort of Kangaroo Court, or gives him up to the subservient nation of Sweden, who would likely do the same.

There are at least two motives that I can discern for the way his case has been handled by the “authorities.”

The first of course, is that the embarrassed Western industrialized countries, AKA, the “international community,” are/is engaged in a smear campaign to destroy him personally for his having revealed the scandalous information, i.e., leaks, that had been given to him by others to publish. The anti-democratic and in some cases, illegal, activities of the world’s governments that are revealed in the leaked documents, seem to have brought out the worst authoritarian tendencies from some American leaders, up to and including calls for Assange's assassination. (He is not a U.S. citizen, and therefore, as far as I know, not subject to U.S. laws in regard to revealing “secret” information.) An example must be made of those who dare resist and defy imperial power. Nothing different about what he has done really, except in the magnitude of the world corruption that his leaks reveal, than the leaks that the mainstream media (MSM) regularly publish when they see it in their interest to occasionally tell people the truth. The MSM have in fact been eager to publish the information he forwarded to them, even though they have also been happy to downplay the value of the information, or spin it in a way that destroys its effectiveness, all the while participating in the campaign to annihilate WikiLeaks.

The second motivation seems to be to divert attention from the embarrassing nature of the information WikiLeaks has provided, and to instead put the focus on Julian Assange’s character—to portray him as a lawless terrorist and serial rapist (kill the messenger). Nothing there that should have been unexpected, and it wasn’t. This is the way Western governments operate. They have become accustomed to putting out the most outrageous, irrational, and unbelievable lies, (Iraq MWD and etc.) and having the mainstream press repeat them incessantly (before "trial" and in this case, even before official charges), until they convince the public to believe the claims are true (Hitler’s Big Lie).

Below is an interview by the BBC’s John Humphrys, a media shark, intent on furthering the character assassination of Julian Assange. Problem is, Assange’s calm, gentlemanly, rational demeanor and forthright responses to Humphrys’ apparent viciousness, disarm, for the most part, Humphrys’ arrogant and aggressive attempt.

You be the Judge by reading or listening to the interview below, but here are
Humphreys’ last three questions with the answers from Assange. Much is lost without listening to Assange in the interview, where he answers some questions about the circumstances behind his detention, but these last three answers tell you something about him.:

Q: Just a final thought. Do you see yourself… as some sort of messianic figure?

JA: Everyone would like to be a messianic figure without dying. We are bringing some important change about what is perceived to be the rights of people who expose abuses by powerful corporations and then to resist censorship attacks after the event. We are also changing the perception of the west.

Q: I'm talking about you personally.

JA: I'm always so focussed on my work, I don't have time to think about how I perceive myself… I had time to perceive myself a bit more in solitary confinement. I was perfectly happy with myself. I wondered what that process would do. Would I think "my goodness, how have I got into this mess, is it all just too hard?"

The world is a very ungrateful place, why should I continue to suffer simply to try and do some good in the world. If the world is so viciously against it ,why don't I just go off and do some mathematics or write some books? But no, actually, I felt quite at peace.

Q: You want to change the world?

JA: Absolutely. The world has a lot of problems and they need to be reformed. And we only live once. Every person who has some ability to do something about it, if they are a person of good character, has the duty to try and fix the problems in the environment which they're in.

That is a value, that, yes, comes partly from my temperament. There is also a value that comes from my father, which is that capable, generous men don't create victims, they try and save people from becoming victims. That is what they are tasked to do. If they do not do that they are not worthy of respect or they are not capable.

Read or listen to the interview:
Transcript And Audio: The Assange BBC interview (via Information Clearing House)

Cole Case: Justice Delayed IS Justice Denied: Reynolds Dismisses Sex Abuse Charges Against Cole.

[Edited 10/23/11]

As the case of the influential, middle aged consultant and the poor school girl seemed to come to an end this morning, several of the Goddesses of Justice, including Justitia, Dike, and Maat, let out a collective cry of sadness and rage, followed by grief-filled moans and uncontrollable sobbing. Most could not hear them. Their discomfort came from the fact that Judge Garry Reynolds did exactly what some thought he would do: He dismissed all four counts of sex abuse against Brian Cole without giving due consideration to the motion or the evidence that had been collected in the case.

A relieved looking Brian Cole, right, and a more somber J. Robert Moon, prepare to leave the Circuit Court after Moon successfully defended the now 48 year old Cole against four counts of sex abuse involving a 17 year old high school girl.

The beginning of the hearing had sort of a slapstick quality, with the Special Prosecutor Riddell dialing the wrong number for the tele-conference, and the Judge stating that he had not read and was unaware of the Civil Compromise Agreement that he was supposed to rule on. After finding a copy so he could "read" it, and hearing pleas to Dismiss as a Civil Compromise from Attorney Moon and the victim's La Grande Attorney Brent Smith, a brief rebuttal from Chief Criminal Counsel Sean Riddell, and another short appeal from Moon, Judge Reynolds reversed ground and his previous practice of sitting on an opinion for almost a month or even more, by summarily dismissing the sex abuse charges.The whole discussion on the Civil Compromise motion probably didn't last longer than 15 to 20 minutes, and Judge Reynolds did not seriously address the objections of Riddell. Reynolds did not however dismiss the two charges of Providing Liquor to a person under 21, and those charges will be tried in Circuit Court at the County Court House on November 29th.

Ridell cited the following case:

"To be entitled to civil compromise, defendant’s misdemeanor must affect only person or persons with civil remedy: acts criminalized to protect public at large are not covered by this section; overruling State v. Phon Yos, 71 Or App 57, 691 P2d 508 (1984). State v. Dugger, 73 Or App 109, 698 P2d 491 (1985)"

Again, Judge Reynolds did not seriously address this issue in today's hearing. I believe that Riddell's point was that sexual abuse by 47 year olds of 17 year olds is an issue that affects the public at large, and those cases are not protected by "Civil Compromise" with the victim when the public is possibly endangered by 47 year-olds who would engage in sexual acts with 17 year olds in the community.

Beyond That:

Given the long periods of time that Judge Reynolds has taken to decide the other motions offered by Moon in this case, which helped to prolong the case past the time the victim turned 18, and which provided the opportunity for the defense to cut the victim's parents out of a position of authority in the case, so as to deal directly with the victim, it is a bit surprising that he made a snap judgement on this particular motion, one that he only first read a few minutes earlier. In my mind, his actions in this case, from strangely suppressing the incriminating text messages from the day prior to the Halloween incident, to his long delays in issuing opinions, to his snap judgement on a motion he had no time to reflect on, raise many questions.

While the Grand Jury heard the evidence in secret, there are many public documents that have been made available in this case. In the interest of an informed public, the judgement of history, and in my opinion, in the interest of justice, I will be making some of those available in the near future.

More Later. . . .
For other background on this case, see:

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2010
Cole Case: Is Justice Delayed, Justice Denied?

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2009
Halloween Happenings: Brian Cole Cited for Furnishing Alcohol to a Minor

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
Odds & Ends: Brian Cole Case and Environmental Issues

TUESDAY, MARCH 9, 2010
Hells Canyon Early Spring Wildflowers (also, Brian Cole Case)

THURSDAY, APRIL 15, 2010
Cole Case & Baker County Birds
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Property Maintenance Jihad Targets Disabled Life-long Baker City Resident

IN THIS ISSUE:
- MEET RON CALDER, DISABLED VICTIM OF THE ORDINANCE JIHAD
- CITY'S SIDE OF THE STORY
- APPEAL FILED FOR ORDINANCE CITATION / ORDER & JUDGMENT
- SPEED TRAP UP AGAIN ON 17TH STREET
_______________________________

City rolls over unrepresented indigent citizen.

Meet Ron Calder (above) and His Side Of the Story
Ron on the Right Of Way in Front of His House. There used to be a 100 year old house where the new homes are in the background.

On May 17th, I met with Ron Calder to talk about the citation he received last year for alleged violations of Baker City Ordinances. He talked with me about how the Baker City Police Department has treated him, and about Justice of the Peace Lise Yervasi’s recent court order giving him “7 days, instead of 14, [to remove] all the remaining inoperative, wrecked, dismantled, partially dismantled, abandoned or junked vehicles, including any camp trailers that are inoperative, wrecked, dismantled, partially dismantled, abandoned or junked." (If he doesn’t win an appeal or do things to the City’s and Court’s satisfaction, the City will “abate” the property anyway and charge him for it.) He also talked with me about his life, about why it has taken him so long to do some of the things the City is requiring him to do, and about what he believes to be the truth concerning what he has agreed to do to comply with the City’s demands. The following paragraphs tell his side of the story, as it was told to me. (See note 1 at bottom)

Ron is a lifelong resident of Baker City. For 34 of his 58 years, he has lived on the corner of Fifth and Grace streets. When he was young, most of the streets were not paved and many were without curbs and sidewalks, but people liked their semi-rural lifestyles and were used to living without the amenities found in the larger cities of the west. People had a live and let live attitude and did not intrude upon the affairs of their neighbors or tell them how to live. A lot of people, including Ron, learned to get along as best they could, and they saved and stored things they thought they might need to get by. He attended Baker schools, but due to some cognitive difficulties and other problems, he did not graduate and can barely read or write. (His friend Diane reads his mail for him and helps him with his other matters requiring those skills.) Not long after his teenage years, he was helping his father pour concrete for the Culley Lane overpass when he fell down into a hole filled with rebar and wet concrete, severely damaging his feet. A subsequent botched surgery left one of them nearly useless. Over the years since then, he has gotten along as best he could doing concrete work, welding, and odd jobs, until his knees went out, and the injuries to his arms and shoulders from accidents at his mining claim left him disabled. During his working years, he helped remodel many Baker City Buildings, including the County Court House and City Hall. Since then it has been a challenge to just keep a roof over his head.

In addition to his mangled feet and chronic pain, he has a torn rotator cuff in his left shoulder, and he lost strength in that arm and leg due to several mini-strokes. He has had bone transplant surgery on his right arm, and he can’t get it over his head. Due to these problems and others, his doctor has him on a box full of prescriptions.

Mr. Calder owns a small 1 bedroom, 1 bath home on about 1/4th acre right next to the railroad tracks where 5th Street is interrupted by them. The home was built 109 years ago and the assessor’s office says the structure has a real market value (RMV) of $4,190. By contrast, a 2 year old, 3 bedroom, 2 bath home just up the street has a RMV for the structure alone of $140,840. With the land, the assessor’s office thinks the residence has an RMV of $167,870. Nelson’s Real Estate is trying to sell it today for $179, 900, as well as another newer home next door for $125,000. The average RMV of the other four houses facing 5th Street on that block is $74, 42.00. It would appear that the two houses Nelson’s Real Estate is trying to sell, at prices so much higher than the average for that block, are a bit out of place. Might be hard to sell them at that location unless everyone else’s home is spruced up or bulldozed, especially with the train tracks so close. Maybe that’s where the police department comes in.
Looking down 5th street towards Ron’s house in corner at upper right.

The story goes that one of Ron’s neighbors was solicited to make a complaint by Shannon Regan, Baker City’s Code Enforcement Officer, but they refused. (No one can offer any proof that this is the case, and because the City has said that it won’t release the names of those who complain, we will probably never know who actually filed it.) Mr. Calder ultimately came to believe that the complaint was associated with the sale of the expensive house up the street. On August 22, 2008, Shannon Regan issued Ron a citation for violations of Ordinance 3216, an “illegal Fence” and Ordinance 2686, “Discarded Vehicles on Private Property.” The fence portion of the citation was subsequently dismissed.
Portion of citation showing alleged violations

I asked two of Ron’s neighbors up the street about the complaint. One characterized him as an “Inoffensive neighbor” and the other said that Ron had never caused them any trouble or been a bother of any kind. Ron felt the same way.

The Police Department has been over to the house 3 or 4 times during this episode and on one visit they brought along Mike Pina of the Planning Department. Ron said that Mike and the others wanted him to let them into his trailers without a warrant so they could look around. Ron cooperated by letting them on the property, but just let them look inside, rather than, I would guess, go on a fishing expedition. While it was not listed in the complaint, not long before his May 13th appearance, the police department told Ron that the City Manager wanted him to remove all personal items from the right of way in front of his house. Below is a photo of the 5th Street right of way in front of Ron’s house. It dead-ends at the railroad tracks just to the left of the photo. He has worked to remove his things.

5th Street right of way in front of Ron’s house

Ron says he has mowed and taken care of this right of way for over 34 years, having worn out several mowers on it. He said that some years ago he received a verbal okay and agreement, first by Tim Collins and then by Milo Pope. He says they agreed that so long as Ron agreed to maintain the right of way he could use it for his own private use. He says the police recently told him that he can’t even drive on it or park in front of his house, even though people park on similar right of ways all over town. Because he had no place to put the firewood he stored in front of the fence, he ended up giving away around 5 cords despite the fact that it is his primary source of heat, and it would be nearly impossible to go out and cut replacement wood.

He says they also told him he had to get rid of freezers he stored meat in, his washer and dryer he had outside, and the oil barrel he uses for backup heat, even though none of these things were on the original citation. There is nothing in the citation that relates to these issues.

He also said they suggested that he and a neighbor were running an unlicensed business subject to another citation. He says that the only business he’s currently engaged in is the “survival business,” and that his mining claim is a hobby. Even the IRS doesn’t call a consistently unprofitable enterprise or hobby a business. Because he is in the “survival business,” he has accumulated a lot of things he finds useful in that endeavor. In that respect, Ron is not a lot different than many of us who pride ourselves on self reliance and making do with what we can make from what we have, including salvage materials that others may see as eyesores.

While the court order says Ron agreed to remove camp trailers with mining equipment in them, he maintains that he only agreed to move the mining equipment on utility trailers that had been stored on the right of way in front of his house. He had planned to take the equipment up to his mining claim, which is at a little over 7,000 foot elevation, but the late winter/spring snow pack has made the roads inaccessible.

In looking at his camp trailers, I have only found one that is inoperable, and that should be easily remedied by pumping up the tire. All the rest have the tires pumped up, and I didn’t see any that would fit the ordinances definition of “discarded vehicle” that is cited in the complaint. If this is the case, on what basis is the court asking him to remove them? The citation only mentions “Discarded Vehicles,” not operable vehicles with mining equipment in them.

There are two, perhaps three, motor vehicles that are currently inoperable, and one old Toyota truck that a neighbor would like to fix up. All but the Toyota can be fixed as Ron gets help. He says he tried to put a starter in one last fall, but the part didn’t work. The worst enemy he has had in getting the motor vehicles running since that time, besides the fact that he is disabled and has to have someone else do a lot of the work, is the deep snow and freezing temperatures we all had to deal with this last winter. He has no building in which to work on the cars, so the work must be done outside in the elements in the dirt, mud or snow.

Mr. Calder has worked to meet the City’s demands for six months now, doing what he can, weather permitting, almost every day. He says his doctor has informed him that this work has been detrimental to his health and has made his condition worse. He would like to comply where health and safety, or public property storage issues actually exist, but given his situation, he needs more time, certainly more than seven days. Where the City seems to be infringing on his private property rights, he feels he has needed legal representation, but he can’t afford it.

A look around Mr. Calders’s neighborhood reveals two other significant issues. One is that many others could also be cited for similar types of alleged violations, but have not been. The other is that his property does not look significantly different than many other properties along the tracks in the area, much of which is zoned industrial. A look along the tracks at the back of his property reveals an industrial zone right across the tracks and in the nearby areas to the northwest. Granted, the vast majority of those along the corridor created by the tracks are ether commercial, or belong to the City, but their character is similar to that found on the Calder property. I have no issue with or complaint about the conditions found on nearby properties, and they are only included here to show that they exist and are being ignored, while Mr. Calder is being cited. Captions refer to photos above them.

These are the camp trailers in Mr. Calder's yard. He stores mining equipment, tools, and other personal items in them.

Ron’s Property starts behind the Garbage Bin and wood fence on Left. Distributing company is over the tracks.

This photo is of the abandoned industrial zone about 2 blocks up the tracks.

This is another picture of the industrial zone, 1 block to the northwest.

This is a photo of the conditions in the City’s Public Works lot one block to the northwest

Examples of possible violations are abundant in the city and in Ron’s neighborhood. One can be found 1&1/2 houses up from Mr. Calder’s home. The unlicensed Ford Bronco in the photo below is said to have been in the same place on the City’s street for a year or more now, a clear violation, and yet nothing has been done about it.

Unlicensed Ford Bronco. Ron’s home is in upper left.

Residence on Carter Street nearby.

Conditions near tracks 2 blocks up on Auburn.

Another residence within 5 Blocks.

This residence is across the tracks and up two blocks.

These photos are just a few examples of how some people live in Baker City. Numerous examples can be found that would not meet the standards of many in the middle and upper classes. Does it give the powerful a right to harass, intimidate, and inflict financial and emotional harm upon them?

What’s different about these situations that would have the City picking on Ron Calder while ignoring these and many other similar situations throughout the City? Does it have something to do with the fact that Nelson Real Estate is selling two expensive, overpriced, and out of place homes just a few doors up from Ron? Or is it that Mr. Calder is simply easy pickings for example setting? I don’t know, but I do know that the City’s actions reek of a high-handed abuse of power that sets the stage for running over the rights of other Baker City residents who are not in a position to defend them selves. If they can do it to Ron Calder, they can do it to others.

The last, and perhaps most troubling aspect of this episode, is the way the City and Court have treated an unrepresented indigent and disabled citizen. This is a classic case of indigent or otherwise powerless people appearing in court without legal representation or other means to defend themselves. In this case, with non-representation, illiteracy, cognitive and physical disability issues, and low income tragically converging, the defendant is literally defenseless. This is because, even though we pride ourselves about cherished rights, freedoms and democracy, and even though we provide some minimal defense to indigent people in criminal cases and certain types of civil cases, there are no provisions in law to force a local jurisdiction to provide legal counsel for anyone in a civil case for alleged property maintenance violations. This leaves unscrupulous City Managers who have arranged for unwarranted power, and Police Departments looking for justification of their expansion, with the ability to prey on people who have few options and no way to defend themselves. Although many states have a few statutes granting right to counsel in certain cases relating to child custody, health, safety, shelter and sustenance, in Oregon there is currently no general right to civil counsel for many of these categories, including property maintenance and other ordinance violation allegations.

The lack of counsel for low income, disabled, or otherwise resourceless defendants often leads to a forfeiture of rights because the defendant has no real idea as to what those rights are or how to enforce them. The police may come in and attempt to intimidate and coerce the victim with threats of other, often baseless charges, such as illegally operating a business. They may expand the nature of the complaint beyond that which was originally alleged to areas not covered in the original citation. They may put a person’s health at risk by forcing them to work beyond their capabilities, especially when they are disabled and don’t have money to hire a crew to make the demanded changes ( “abatement”). All of these things may have occurred in the case of Mr. Calder. Ultimately, because the defendant is unable to comply with their demands, the local authorities, lacking any conscience, may come in and forcefully abate the property with their own crews, hauling off any property they find offensive and charging the victim far more money than would have been necessary if they had been able to do it themselves. Because the defendant lacks the money to pay for the work, the City will then place a lien on the property.

Recognizing a wrong when they see it, the American Bar Association unanimously passed a resolution in August of 2006 that called for a right to counsel in civil cases relating to human needs. Until our American “civilization” advances and legislates such a right, we will continue to see the powerful prey on the powerless in ways that defy the American values we say we cherish.

One wonders how much property the City will end up owning before the Ayatollah and his militia end the Jihad on our hapless low income residents. Hopefully the City Council will assert their ultimate authority to put an end to this before any more people are hurt.

If anyone knows an attorney who would like to offer Ron some pro bono legal help, please call 541-523-2376 and leave a message with a contact phone number.

(Note 1: Given the Court’s timeline of 7 days and the urgency of Mr. Calder’s situation, I decided to go forward without the City’s side of the story at this time. If they are willing to cooperate by providing adequate information to me for completing the story, I will. Unfortunately, the last time I requested information from them, they wanted $208.00 for it)

_____________________________________
City's Side of the Story:

Request for their side of the story:

Hello Jennifer,

Thanks to your gracious reception of Ron Calder's appeal this morning.

I will gladly post something of reasonable length, say three pages not counting a reasonable number of photos, if the City would like to give me their side of the story.

I would appreciate any information in addition to that, if the City will provide it.

Thanks,

Christopher Christie

Response:

Hi Christopher,

We will prepare a staff report on this matter that will be available for the public. In our case, it’s not “our side of the story” but the laws and their interpretation by many lawyers and judges over the years. I appreciate the opportunity, but I’m sure it will all be publicly presented in the near future.

Thanks for your offer.

Jennifer
________________________________
May 18, 2009
APPEAL FILED

Mr. Calder filed the following appeal at about 9:50 this morning.

May 18th, 2009

Ronald G. Calder
1249 5th Street
Baker City, OR 97814


NOTICE OF APPEAL OF JUDGEMENT AND ORDER; CASE NO. 08 V 1901

Baker City Council
C/O Jennifer Watkins, Baker City Recorder
PO Box 650

1655 First Street

Baker City, OR 97814

Dear Councilors:

My name is Ronald Calder. My address is 1249 5th Street, Baker City 97814. My phone number is 541---------. My message phone number is 541----------.

I am the owner of the property at 1249 5th Street and on August 22, 2008, I was cited (Citation and Complaint # ’08-50851) by Baker City Police Officer Shannon Regan for alleged violations of Ordinance 3216, maintaining an illegal fence, and Ordinance 2686, having discarded vehicles on my private property at that address.

On May 13, 2009, a Judgement and Order for that case, number 08 V 1901, was issued by Baker County Justice of the Peace, Lise F. Yervasi. This letter is a request of appeal to you to amend that Judgement and Order. I would like an appeal hearing. This appeal has been filed with the City Recorder’s Office within five days after the decision of the County Justice Court, which has heard the case.

The basis of my appeal is the following”

1. As a disabled, largely illiterate, low income person, I have not been able to adequately defend myself against the charges brought by the City because no public defender has been provided, and I cannot afford one. I did not graduate from high school, can barely read or write, have cognitive issues, and have been disabled since 1987. I was officially classified as disabled in 1991.
2. Ordinance 2686, relating to motor vehicles discarded on private property, calls for, in Section 6, a “Hearing by Municipal Court.” My hearing was not held in a Municipal Court as there is none. Therefore, the complaint and order should be dismissed.
3. In the original complaint dated 8/22/08, the City only identified 2 motor vehicles that they thought were “discarded,” but during the course of this issue being presented before Judge Yervasi, Officer Regan was allowed to make a very confusing assault against me to include all aspects of my property that she deemed in violation of any City ordinance.
4. The order states that I agreed to do things I did not agree to do. For example, I did not agree to move all my camp trailers off my private property. I only agreed to move the mining equipment and utility trailers that had been stored on the right of way in front of my house.
5. My camp trailers are not discarded, inoperative, wrecked, dismantled, partially dismantled, abandoned or junked, so there is no basis for removing them under any interpretation of the ordinances cited in the citation and complaint.
6. The title of the ordinance in question, 2686, refers to motor vehicles, but the ordinance defines “vehicles.” This shows that the intent is to control storage of motor vehicles, not the camp trailers referred to in the Judgment and Order.
7. The Court and/or the City had no right to try to have me agree to things that were not related to the original complaint, as no complaint concerning those other issues had been filed. Debris and scrap metal were not part of the original complaint for “discarded vehicles” on private property. Likewise, the city had no authority to attempt to force me to remove personal items such as a full freezer, my oil barrel, my washer and dryer, or other items, without a formal complaint and citation.
8. Additionally, Judge Yervasi has apparently allowed Officer Regan to disallow any use of the public right of way located on the portion of 5th Street that runs along the front of my house. I am now told I am no longer allowed the use of this right of way to access the front or south side of my house, even to park, but other citizens throughout Baker City are allowed to park on the public rights of way in front of their homes. Because of the layout of my property this has resulted in severely limited access onto my own property.
9. Even if the Court is determined to have been legally correct to require me to do the things they wanted me to do, my physical condition and the winter weather conditions they expected me to work in were not fairly considered in the hearings. My disabilities and financial condition made it impossible for me to have complied with their demands.
10. The improvements I was able to make were not recognized by the Court and I was given no credit for my attempts, even though they have resulted in a deterioration of my health. I can elaborate at the appeal hearing.

In summary, I believe that this all has been allowed to go far beyond the issue of the citation. I believe that both Judge Yervasi and Officer Regan have been very unfair to me in this entire matter. I believe I have not been given any consideration for what I have already done, or for what I continue to do on a daily basis to try to comply. Additionally, I was not given any consideration that throughout all of this I have been doing the majority of the cleanup solely on my own, despite my being disabled, and that it was expected of me to do these things in the worst of winter. I definitely believe that my punishment for the supposed ordinance violation handed down by Judge Yervasi in her judgment and order that now requires me to remove "everything within my personal property not located within an enclosed structure or she will have it all removed by the City on her behalf,” and that it goes far beyond anything that can be justified by the original complaint.

I respectfully request, and it is to my understanding, that neither the City nor the Court will take any further actions against me, Ronald G. Calder, or my property located at 1249 5th Street Baker City, Baker Co., Oregon, until the appeal is heard by the City Council and their final decision in this matter is given. I also ask that demands made by the Court requiring removal of items, or other actions, not covered in the original citation be rescinded. For any decision regarding actions to alleviate a situation relating to “discarded vehicles,” I request that my disabilities and financial situation be taken into account so that I have adequate time to comply.

I have included a copy of the ticket and a copy of the final judgment and order for your convenience.

Thank you for your just consideration in this matter.

I provided the personal details for this appeal. This appeal was read to me, I agree with what is written in it, and to the best of my ability, I believe the contents to be true and correct.


Signed __________________________________ Dated: May 18, 2009

Ronald G. Calder

CC: Lise F. Yervasi, Justice of the Peace in the Justice Court of the State of Oregon for Baker County District 1.

I request that the City Recorder, or her representative also sign this document, and my copy, in the spaces provided below, to show that the appeal was received in a timely manner.

Signed __________________________________ Dated: _____________

City Recorder or Representative
_________________________________
_________________________________
SPEED TRAP UP AGAIN ON 17TH STREET

While Ron and I were giving a copy of the appeal to the Justice of the Peace's ofice this AM, I ran into an acquaitance who had received a $150.00 ticket for exceeding the 25 mph speed limit on 17th street below Pocahontas. I understand that the Police Department gave several tickets in one day there recently. Unstated quotas for patrol officers as the end of the fiscal year approaches?

A description of the speed trap can be found at:
Did We Have An Open Public Process For Purchase Of New Police Building?
Speed Trap on 17th Street
March 6, 2008.
http://bakercountyblog.blogspot.com/2008/03/do-we-need-new-police-building.html