When Liberal Worlds Collide...Welocme to Oregon, Part II

Major Mike

Icons have become a staple of our lives. We move them about on our “desktops” with impunity. They help us master our electronic, computer filled world. We routinely use icons in place of dozens of words, or to convey nuanced meanings that icons can capture effortlessly. Our institutions become icons representing our collective societal persona.

Oregon is no different. University of Oregon is well known for its liberal thought, and is in direct competition with Cal to see which institution can consume more tin foil than the other. U of O hasn’t met a liberal cause it couldn’t embrace…nuclear free zones, global warming, anti-war protesting, are all staples for intramural activities for the Duck student body. It is an iconic representation of the rest of Oregon.

There are others. OMSI, the Oregon Museum for Science and Industry, is appropriately a showpiece for Oregon. They are often innovative in their exhibiting, and they strive to keep the museum alive and lively. They aim for progressive exhibiting, and they get it. Other museums might cringe at the thought of putting on some of the exhibits that OMSI does, but the “Grossology” and Star Wars exhibits were huge local favorites. It stands as an icon for Portland and Oregon.

Oregon Health and Sciences University is also on the list. It serves its function as the main training center for medical professionals in the State of Oregon, but it prides itself in its innovative treatments and its high profile in the paper and in the community. It serves Oregon well, and it also serves itself well. But it is one of the institutional icons that both represents Oregon, and is representative of Oregon.

And that brings us to the Oregon Zoo. Again, aside from the usual, liberal nature of zoos in and of themselves as conservation and interpretive activities, the Oregon Zoo also finds time to hold a unique summer concert series that captures the likes of the Indigo Girls, Hapa, and Shawn Colvin. The Oregon Zoo is an idyllic setting that could turn the coldest from the right into vegemite munching, organic sprout growing, pan flute playing lefties. It is, again, a cultural representation of the blueness of the state, and unashamedly so. And no one minds.

Which is why it came as a great shock to me to read yesterday that In Defense of Animals, the same foil wearing space travelers that forced Schumacher Furs out of downtown Portland (see “I Just Want To Negotiate”), is now gearing up to take on the Oregon Zoo. What Leftie v. Leftie Icon? Pass the popcorn.

And for irony, it is all over the foot care of pachyderms. That’s right. The left in Oregon is about to square off over, get this…the pedicurical practices of the zoo staff , on the preeminent icon of the right…the elephant. More butter, more salt, please.

This highlights two things about leftie thinking.

First they attack in all directions, all the time, which means, they will never be satisfied with sticking to the main themes of their particular agendas. In this case, IDA is attacking a beloved icon of the city that tacitly supported their out-of -bounds efforts against Schumacher Furs. After chasing the dastardly fur seller out of town, IDA turned right around and snapped at the hand of their feeders…liberal animal lovers…a group in Oregon that loves the zoo. Ouch that has to hurt.

Don’t get near the nasty liberals when they are feeding. I hope the City of Portland will arrange some hasty “negotiations” so that the pachyderm herd can start leasing property in the burbs next to Schumacher Furs.

These types of cannibalistic attacks eventually erode support and cause deep fissures in the promulgation of the leftie agenda. I am not weeping, it just comes as a shock that a group that succeeded in one of their endeavors with the help of the Portland Protesters Local 101, would turn around and attack such a highly regarded, local institution. It shows all the political astuteness of a Teddy Kennedy presidential campaign.

Secondly, liberal “watchdogs” consistently fail to get the point that Zoos, governments, police forces, fire departments, the military, etc. and et.al., are all populated with human beings. Human beings, as in the case of the Oregon Zoo, who have the same love of animals as the IDA, but have the same shortcomings of all people and organizations…they make mistakes, and they are imperfect.

Any single human with the best intentions will make mistakes and often fall short of set goals. Such it is with our institutions. Because all organizations are populated with imperfect humans, imperfect results will follow. I think a fair examination of the Zoo’s records will reflect that they are aware of all of the problems that IDA highlights, and are doing their best to treat the symptoms and alleviate the conditions that caused the great pachyderm podiatry uproar of 2007.

The uber-left will begin eroding support for their causes, and indeed cause an unwelcome backlash, if they cannot come to understand that the constant attacking of the well-intentioned does not add to their support…it only diminishes their base, and splinters their efforts. People tire of being lectured to by professional protesters who bear no responsibilities, and produce no tangible product. Why not volunteer for nail trimming duty, rather than pouring over piles of elephant footie records? That would be helpful. The continual harping of responsibility-free protesters wears thin on those who actually produce results through labor and direct action.

When the left starts feeding on themselves, they fracture far more deeply than the right, and they have a hard time stabilizing back to center-left. Dean, 2004?

It will certainly be entertaining watching the cosmic results of the impact of two liberal super-novas. Perhaps the Hubble Telescope could be re-directed in order to help us catch some masterpiece photos resulting from the impact between California based furry animal lovers, and tofu eating, organic fruits and vegetable growing, mineral water drinking, latte sipping, music loving, hemp wearing Oregonians. More salt please.

Welcome to Oregon.