On this day, May 5, 1903, James Beard, US culinary expert, author (Delights & Prejudices), was born in Portland, Ore.
Also on this day, May 5, 1945, A Japanese balloon bomb exploded on Gearhart Mountain in Oregon, killing Mrs. Elsie Mitchell, the pregnant wife of a minister, and five children after they attempted to drag it out the woods in Lakeview, Oregon. The balloon was armed, and exploded soon after they began tampering with it. They became the 1st and only known American civilians to be killed in the continental US during World War II.
Also on this day, May 5, 1945, Bly minister Archie Mitchell, his pregnant wife Elsie, and five children from Mitchell's Sunday school class were on a Saturday morning picnic. Thirteen miles northeast of Bly, or about sixty miles northeast of Klamath Falls, Mitchell parked the car, and Elsie and the children headed to Leonard Creek. Mitchell later remembered: "As I got out of the car to bring the lunch, the others were not far away and called to me they had found something that looked like a balloon. I heard of Japanese balloons so I shouted a warning not to touch it. But just then there was a big explosion. I ran up there--and they were all dead." It was a Japanese balloon bomb. They were 70 feet tall with a 33-foot diameter paper canopy connected to the main device by shroud lines. Balloons inflated with hydrogen followed the jet stream at an altitude of 30,000 feet.
Kate Brown’s power will remain unchecked
Checks and balances are meant to exist within our constitutional, republic government. It is one way to protect the governed people from potential tyranny.
Sadly, this idea does not seem to be popular amongst Oregon Democrats, who are happy to completely hand over any legislative power that would challenge the mandates of Governor Kate Brown.
Oregon House Legislators voted to consider a bill on the House
floor that would give the Legislature oversight on Governor Kate Brown’s emergency
powers and sole authority over the COVID-19 response.
Republicans moved to pull
HB 2243 out of committee directly to the House floor for a
vote.
The motion did not receive the required number of votes to pass. All Republican
members voted in favor to make the Governor accountable to the Legislature.
28 Democrats voted against the motion, maintaining the Governor’s sole authority over
COVID-19 and unchecked ability to shut down businesses.
The decision is in response to the Governor’s announcement last week to unilaterally
extend her own emergency powers again, granting her the ability to issue shutdowns
without involving another governing body.
County commissioners have repeatedly asked the Governor to be more targeted in her
decisions. Currently, the statewide threshold for “extreme risk†designation disregards
the fact that hospital cases of COVID-19 are decreasing in some counties where
businesses must now close.
“The Legislature is in Session and we have a duty to engage,†House Republican Leader
Christine Drazan (R-Canby) previously said. “Oregonians deserve a balance of power
between their separate branches of government again.â€
HB 2243 (chief sponsors Rep. Wilde, Lewis, regular sponsors Rep. Cate, Evans, Hayden,
Leif, Levy, Moore-Green, Morgan, Owens, Post, Reschke, Wallan, Wright) - Requires
that declarations and extensions of states of emergency under certain statutes be
accompanied by written explanations.
--Bruce Armstrong| Post Date: 2021-05-04 13:38:27 | Last Update: 2021-05-04 14:27:15 |
