Kathe-my-sweetie (that's how I usually refer to her when I'm in a situation where there might be some confusion about which Kathe I mean) used to attend Portland City Council meetings, and she was amused by one of their little rituals:
A member of the council would read the text of a proposed resolution:
"Blah blah blah . . . and, declaring an emergency, move that this go into effect immediately."
Over and over, an emergency was declared. Portland was a flash point of crisis, with all the emergencies being declared.
For all I know, they're still at it.
This comes to mind in the context of the current Oregon elections, in which various ballot measures propose not just state laws, but amendments to the state constitution. In one case, an amendment is proposed to declare that double-wide manunfactured houses don't have to have license plates. This is a constitutional amendment because the constitution already dictates various rules about vehicle licensing.
I have never read the Oregon constitution. I kind of think I don't want to.
No comments:
Post a Comment