After Boston, any philosophical qualms about the proliferation of surveillance cameras sound hopelessly naive. The two suspects in the marathon bombing were identified as quickly as they were because not just one but at least two surveillance cameras caught them in the act of walking past, carrying backpacks. As it happens, the Oregon House has […]
No matter what goes on inside, the grounds of the Oregon Capitol and the building itself are something of which Oregonians can be proud. What we have there, in Salem, is a handsome building surrounded by a well kept park. More important, citizens have unfettered access to the seat of the state government. There is […]
After lying low for about a year, Albany’s downtown urban renewal district will soon have to make a choice: Look for new projects and regain its momentum or return some of its money to other taxing districts. The advisory board of the Central Albany Revitalization Area started debating this Wednesday. The issue comes up because […]
President Obama sounded bitterly disappointed when the Senate failed to get 60 votes for his gun-control ideas including a so-called “universal background check.” He called Wednesday’s Senate vote a shameful day in America. But he was wrong. He himself bears part of the blame for pushing legislation of dubious merit and then shamelessly exploiting the […]
Keeping an eye on — or over — the Capitol. The Oregon Senate Judiciary Committee appears to be taking seriously the arguments against two of the gun-related bills it has been considering. The committee was scheduled to act on the bills Wednesday but instead held them over for another day. The reason appears to be […]
Senate Bill 796 would require applicants for an Oregon concealed handgun license to prove they can shoot a handgun. Who could argue with that? Except that the original bill by Sen. Floyd Prozanski of Eugene was unworkable. It would require applicants to get a score of at least 70 percent on a shooting test almost impossible […]
State gun bills watered down
Four anti-gun bills have cleared the state Senate Judiciary Committee, but they have been almost completely watered down. The panel’s three Democrats backed the bills on Thursday while the two Republicans, including Betsy Close of Albany, opposed them. The bills themselves had been stripped of their most objectionable provisions and in their present form would […]
Tags: CHL holders, Oregon gun bills, Senate Judiciary