Join us every Thursday morning to hear fellow Democrats share good news and recommendations. What good things have you seen or read or heard or experienced lately? What’s On Your Mind lets you connect with friends and influence progressive leaders in the community, week after week..

Short Read of the Week for October 28, 2021

Our first choice this morning, after discussing six great articles, and the one thing you should read this week if you don’t read anything else, was this:

How Americans Can Learn to Live Together Again
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/24/opinion/small-talk-polarization.html
[our copy here]

We had a tie for our second choice, both related to agriculture in Oregon. The first needs a preface from the person who suggested it: “Democrats have been good for Oregon's agriculture and farming related industry. Since 2015 when Governor Brown was sworn in, and with a Democrat controlled legislature since 2015, the agriculture and farm related industries have boomed. This includes a big rise in Oregon organic farms and ranches. This is something Democrats haven't publicized much.”

Economist: Agriculture a Key Driver in Oregon's Economy
https://www.lagrandeobserver.com/business/economists-agriculture-a-key-driver-in-oregons-economy/article_edb450b0-4892-5734-b3af-865b6d361db9.html
[our copy here]

And the second is something that all Tillamook County Democrats simply need to be more aware of: “PCUN is Oregon's farm worker's union. This article is from the PCUN website. They take a positive celebratory look at school board elections. Refreshing. Reassuring. PCUN's political work stands as a shining light and a model. As PCUN says, We did it. This is how we do it.“


Hasta La Victoria…And Then Some! Sustaining the political power we gain and the change we can make with it
https://pcun.org/hasta-la-victoriaand-then-some-sustaining-the-political-power-we-gain-and-the-change-we-can-make-with-it/
[our copy here]


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/10/28/short-read-of-the-week-for-october-28-2021.

Short Read of the Week for October 21, 2021

Our first choice this week was based on a need we all felt to share news that is supportive of our teachers, considering the embattled atmosphere that right-wing forces have created in and around our public schools:

Aspiring teachers in northwest Oregon can receive individualized support
https://www.cannonbeachgazette.com/news/aspiring-teachers-in-northwest-oregon-can-receive-individualized-support/article_1a864a9f-c488-59f2-9972-d11f9784119a.html
[our copy here]

Our second choice was also related to this embattled atmosphere. We found it comforting to know that our public schools have been through several periods like the one we are in now, always with right-wing forces seeking to damage or destroy the country’s public education system:

School board meetings used to be boring. Why have they become war zones?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2021/09/29/school-board-meetings-used-be-boring-why-have-they-become-war-zones/
[our copy here]

If you are on our side, we could use your presence at next week’s meeting. Will you join us?


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/10/21/short-read-of-the-week-for-september-21-2021.

Short Read of the Week for October 14, 2021

So many interesting articles to choose from this morning, but after a good discussion it became clear that, if you don’t read anything else this week, you should at least read this:

More Republican Centrists Plan to Work With Democrats Until Threat of Autocracy Passes
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/october-11-2021
[our copy here]

These Republicans think the threat is serious enough that they are willing to work with us. The question for us is this: do we think it is serious enough that we are willing to work with them? And what does that mean, exactly? We didn’t decide this morning, but we agreed that this needs more attention and discussion.

We also chose to recommend this very clear sign of light at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel:

Here’s what it will take to end the covid-19 pandemic
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/10/06/what-it-will-take-end-covid-19-pandemic-leana-wen/
[our copy here]

Note that both of these articles should be easy to share with all your friends, regardless of their political leanings. Will you do that? And will you join us next week?


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/10/14/short-read-of-the-week-for-october-14-2021.

Short Read of the Week for October 7, 2021

Our first choice in this morning’s discussion was very short indeed - only 456 words - but also very useful and potentially powerful if widely shared:

Code Red for Climate: Call Your Rep Today
https://www.sierraclub.org/articles/2021/10/code-red-for-climate-call-your-rep-today
[our copy here]

Our second choice was this article by David Brooks about the desperate cultural need for Build Back Better:

This is why we need to spend $4 trillion
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/30/opinion/federal-spending-democrats.html
[our copy here]

Will you click that Sierra Club link and call your rep today? Will you take note of the interesting and persuasive articles you read this week and bring them to next week’s meeting?


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/10/7/short-read-of-the-week-for-october-7-2021.

Short Read of the Week for September 30, 2021

Our first choice in this morning’s discussion was this reassuring answer to the anxiety-ridden drumbeat that pervades the national news this week:

No matter what happens in congress, a Biden administration has done big things.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/09/27/no-matter-what-happens-congress-biden-administration-has-done-big-things/
[our copy here]

Our second choice was written by Tillamook County resident Neal Lemery, and published in the Tillamook County Pioneer. We chose it, too, because it addresses the anxiety we all feel this week:

Words of Wisdom: Embracing Change
https://www.tillamookcountypioneer.net/words-of-wisdom-embracing-change/
[our copy here]

What do you suggest we read for next week’s meeting?


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/9/30/short-read-of-the-week-for-september-30-2021.

Short Read of the Week for September 23, 2021

In this morning’s discussion we chose this short and sweet reminder of how refreshing it is to have a president who is capable of admitting error. It’s the one thing you should read this week if you don’t read anything else. Remember that an article like this should be easy to share with your Republican friends. They will start by wanting to read about Biden’s mistake, but the ones with some emotional intelligence — who really are the ones we want to reach — will be impressed with how it was handled:

Biden agrees with France's Macron that sub snub could have been handled better
https://www.mycentraloregon.com/2021/09/22/biden-agrees-with-frances-macron-that-sub-snub-could-have-been-handled-better/
[our copy here]

We also chose to recommend this:

How LA County countered recall-election disinformation in real time on social media
https://www.mycentraloregon.com/2021/09/19/how-la-county-countered-recall-election-disinformation-in-real-time-on-social-media/
[our copy here]

When you see disinformation on social media, will you alert us? Will you consider joining a team to combat it in ways like those described in this article?


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/9/23/short-read-of-the-week-for-september-23-2021.

Short Read of the Week for September 16, 2021

Our first choice, when we voted at the end of this morning’s discussion, was only 556 words and one important observation: “of all the Republicans who condemned Biden's policy yesterday, none of them said it would be ineffective in combating the public health crisis. They instead bypassed the efficacy question altogether.“

The question GOP critics of Biden's vaccine policy won't answer
https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/question-gop-critics-biden-s-vaccine-policy-won-t-answer-n1278941
[our copy here]

Our second choice explains why the efficacy of President Biden’s new vaccine policy dwarfs every other consideration:

The Huge Economic Stakes Behind Joe Biden’s Vaccine Mandate
https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/the-huge-economic-stakes-behind-joe-bidens-vaccine-mandate
[our copy here]

If you know Democrats who think the new policy might have gone too far, please read and share these articles with them. And please join us next week!


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/9/16/short-read-of-the-week-for-september-16-2021.

Short Read of the Week for September 9, 2021

In part because one of the articles we read this week was so alarming, our top recommendation this morning - the one article you should read this week if you don’t read anything else - was this story of good results achieved through solidarity:

How a small town silenced a Neo-Nazi hate campaign
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/05/us/politics/nazi-whitefish-charlottesville.html
[our copy here]

And in a similar vein, we also chose to recommend this bit of good news:

Approval of Labor Unions at Highest Point Since 1965
https://news.gallup.com/poll/354455/approval-labor-unions-highest-point-1965.aspx
[our copy here]

What do you think is the main reason for this peak in approval for labor unions?


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/9/9/short-read-of-the-week-for-september-9-2021.

Short Read of the Week for September 2, 2021

We had a unanimous first choice in this morning’s meeting, so if you don’t read anything else this week, at least read this:

It’s clear America can afford Biden’s investments at home. Just look at how much it spent on wars.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/08/31/its-clear-america-can-afford-bidens-investments-home-just-look-how-much-it-spent-wars/
[our copy here]

Our second choice was one of several excellent pieces this week by Heather Cox Richardson, Professor of History at Boston College:

Letters From an American
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/august-27-2021
[our copy here]

Will you join us next week?


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/9/2/short-read-of-the-week-for-september-2-2021.

Short Read of the Week for August 26, 2021

In this morning’s discussion we chose an article by an Afghanistan war veteran, and one of the articles it cites, as the one thing you should read this week if you don’t read anything else:

America ignores its wars and soldiers, except for useless hero-worship. Our deaths cost nothing.
https://news.yahoo.com/america-ignores-wars-soldiers-except-090212587.html
[our copy here]

Afghanistan War Has Been Hugely Profitable
https://theintercept.com/2021/08/16/afghanistan-war-defense-stocks/
[our copy here]

Tell us what you think, please.

We also chose an article written as an open letter to the owners of AirBnB which relates directly to the Tillamook County housing crisis:

An Open Letter to Airbnb. The pitchforks are coming
https://survivingtomorrow.org/an-open-letter-to-airbnb-8b1b58b4ad33
[our copy here]

Do you agree with it? If not, what do you think is causing this terrible shortage of affordable housing?

Please join us next Thursday morning at 7:30 and be part of the discussion.


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/8/26/short-read-of-the-week-for-august-26-2021.

Short Read of the Week for August 19, 2021

Our top recommendation in this morning’s discussion - the one article you should read this week if you don’t read anything else - was this defense of President Biden from an old-school Republican:

Why Traditional Conservatives Should Root for Biden's Success
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/08/12/why-traditional-conservatives-should-root-bidens-success/
[our copy here]

We recommended it not because we have much hope that many traditional conservatives will read it, but because the left wing of our own party needs to. Your friends on both the left and right should be open to reading this, so please share it with them.

Our second-place recommendation was Robert Hubbell’s concise explanation of the rationale and the correctness of Biden’s decision to withdraw troops from Afghanistan, including a brief history of this decades old deadly debacle.:

Biden Steps Up
https://roberthubbell.substack.com/p/todays-edition-biden-steps-up
[our copy here]

Will you join our discussion next week?


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/8/19/short-read-of-the-week-for-august-19-2021.

Short Read of the Week for August 12, 2021

Our first choice this morning - the one article you should read this week if you don’t read anything else - is this:

Trump's brazen attempt to overturn the 2020 election: a timeline
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/08/06/trumps-brazen-attempt-overturn-2020-election-timeline/
[our copy here]

It is astonishing that civic-minded Republicans could defend or minimize a record presented so clearly.

We also chose to echo a recommendation in Robert Hubbell’s August 9th newsletter:

How Democrats Win the Culture War
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/08/08/how-democrats-win-culture-war/
[our copy here]

Its bottom line is worth repeating: “Democrats might not be comfortable engaging in the culture wars, but they can’t afford not to make a clear contrast between the parties. The Republicans are the immediate threat to our democracy, but the longer-term problem of civic illiteracy remains. If Democrats do not champion American democratic values, Republicans will continue to trample them.”

Our Thursday morning meetings help to solve that problem of civic illiteracy. Will you join us next week?


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/8/12/short-read-of-the-week-for-august-12-2021.

Short Read of the Week for August 5, 2021

We had six articles to discuss this morning, and after a great discussion, chose this as the one article every Tillamook County Democrat should read this week if you don’t read anything else:

Oregon school board politics have never been so polarized, partisan, and hostile to racial equity
https://www.oregonlive.com/education/2021/08/oregon-school-board-politics-have-never-been-so-polarized-partisan-and-hostile-to-racial-equity.html
[our copy here]

Our second choice was this:

GOP Senator Who Cheered On Jan. 6 Rioters Urges Kids To Love America
https://apple.news/AXPGvzTf2Qbi0ngunQ3Pd6Q
[our copy here]

This weekly meeting is where we learn what our Democratic Party friends think - it's where consensus begins to form and unity is built. Will you join us next week?


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/8/5/short-read-of-the-week-for-august-5-2021.

Short Read of the Week for July 29, 2021

Trust was the common thread in most of the articles we discussed this morning, and our first choice was a powerful article on that subject out of Douglas County, published in The Daily Yonder and called to the attention of one of our members by The Rural Organizing Project:

Broken Glass, Broken Trust
https://api.neonemails.com/emails/content/i3anpuX_idEWz-xIA1gXiJCkoGl_ssbVF5uXHvTt3Ms=
[our copy here]

Our second choice was an article that should build trust in the leadership of the congressional investigation into the January 6th insurrection:

As Jan. 6 probe begins, DEM vows, "We have to get it right"
https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-government-and-politics-capitol-siege-trump-impeachment-29f9dca497e443189dc0fde11bffbb9d
[our copy here]

Please share widely, and join us next week!


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/7/29/short-read-of-the-week-for-july-29-2021.

Short Read of the Week for July 22, 2021

Again this week, we had a unanimous first-choice for the article you should read if you don’t read anything else. It highlights the victories of Oregon unions in the 2021 legislative session, some of which they had been working to pass for 12 years, never giving up. And if you doubt that unions really help everyone, note that all of these benefits apply to every Oregon worker, not just union laborers:

How working people and unions fared in the 2021 session of the Oregon legislature
https://nwlaborpress.org/2021/06/how-working-people-and-unions-fared-in-the-2021-session-of-the-oregon-legislature/
[our copy here]

Our second choice was an article about an issue that affects us directly, and that divides Oregon Democrats:

Redistricting fight begins with Dems battling Dems
https://pamplinmedia.com/pt/9-news/515833-412307-redistricting-fight-begins-with-dems-battling-dems
[our copy here]

We want your feedback on this. Would you be interested in hearing Speaker Kotek’s point of view on it if we can get her (or some reasonable person on her side of this issue) to come talk to us? Let us know.


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/7/22/short-read-of-the-week-for-july-22-2021.

Short Read of the Week for July 15, 2021

Our unanimous first choice in this morning’s discussion clearly explains how climate change is at the root of the subject that is front and center for everyone in the Pacific Northwest right now:

Numbers explain how and why West bakes, burns, and dries out
https://apnews.com/article/science-environment-and-nature-climate-change-1ab13a82a8581f745aac18cab475e5d5
[our copy here]

In second place we chose a very insightful article about efforts to reduce political political polarization and misunderstanding — something Tillamook County Democrats have made a priority in the last year:

Building Bridges Without a Foundation for Peace Won’t Work
https://www.yesmagazine.org/opinion/2021/04/09/build-bridges-peace
[our copy here]

Do you have thoughts about how we might begin to build a foundation for peace? Please join us next week.


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/7/15/short-read-of-the-week-for-july-15-2021.

Short Read of the Week for July 8, 2021

This morning we had a clear first choice. If you don’t read anything else this week, at least read this excellent article from the July 5th Seattle Times on the situation in southern Oregon:

Racism, drought and history: Young Native Americans fight back as water disappears in southern Oregon
https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/racism-drought-and-history-young-native-americans-fight-back-as-water-disappears/
[our copy here]

This problem would be so much easier to solve if more people understood it at a human level. People on both sides could gain a lot of that by reading this article.

And with just a little less consensus, we also chose to recommend this insightful analysis of recent history:

Scott Walker’s Wisconsin Paved the Way for Donald Trump’s America
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/06/opinion/wisconsin-act-10-trump.html
[our copy here]

Will you read and then share these articles with your friends?


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/7/8/short-read-of-the-week-for-july-8-2021.

Short Read of the Week for July 1, 2021

Our first choice in this morning’s discussion was an article that might help to pass an important set of reforms if we can get the Biden administration on board. This is a situation where strong Democratic voices can have an outsized influence, so please share this one widely among your Democratic Party friends:

A small "Trump proofing" reform
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/06/29/inspector-general-bill-trump-proofing-carolyn-maloney/
[our copy here]

And considering the upcoming 4th of July weekend, we also wanted to highlight an uplifting perspective on where we are as a country :

The defense of democracy and truth is never finished
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/06/30/defense-democracy-truth-is-never-finished/
[our copy here]

All Americans want to feel good about their country on the 4th of July, so this is one that should be easy to share publicly, which will greatly increase its reach.


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/7/1/short-read-of-the-week-for-july-1-2021.

Short Read of the Week for June 24, 2021

The articles we chose to recommend in this morning’s excellent Short Read of the Week discussion both had to do with Oregon’s responses to mental-health and substance-abuse issues. Our first choice highlighted a solution that is gaining national attention and praise:

Calling mental health workers, not police, to deal with mental health crisis
https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/mental-health-workers-not-police/2021/06/18/bf250938-c937-11eb-a11b-6c6191ccd599_story.html
[our copy here]

Our second choice points to the need for more attention and resources devoted to this problem, now that measure 110 has passed:

Oregon’s pioneering drug decriminalization experiment is now facing the hard test
https://www.opb.org/article/2021/06/19/oregon-s-pioneering-drug-decriminalization-experiment-is-now-facing-the-hard-test/
[our copy here]

Read and share. And please join us next week!


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/6/24/short-read-of-the-week-for-june-24-2021.

Short Read of the Week for June 17, 2021

The articles that stood out for us in this morning’s Short Read of the Week discussion both related to chapters in American history that Republicans prefer to forget or distort. The first is a short, fascinating history of a crucial change in the Republican Party, told by a firsthand witness. Younger voters in particular may never have heard this story:

My front row seat to the radicalization of the Republican Party
https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2021-06-13/republican-party-radicalization-ronald-reagan-donald-trump
[our copy here] 1637 words

Our second choice was particularly fitting on this day when Juneteenth was finally made a Federal Holiday:

It's Time to Correct the Myths About the Battle of the Alamo
https://time.com/6072141/alamo-history-myths/
[our copy here] 1120 words

Remembering history as it really happened, and telling the truth about it even if that costs us votes, is part of our duty as citizens and is a core value of the Democratic Party. If it’s a value that you share, we need you with us.


Direct link to item: https://tillcodems.org/whats-on-your-mind/2021/6/17/short-read-of-the-week-for-june-17-2021.