Portland's New Gun Laws

 The story sounds good but, reading the new norms I wondered if they'd be the same kind of minor victory as the guns-on-Amtrack-trains was for the other side. Of course we'll do just what the pro gun crowd did about the Amtrack deal, we'll tout this as a major victory in the fight for, how did the mayor say it, "the safety of our youth."

Three ordinances would hold adults responsible if their gun gets into a child’s hands, penalize gun owners who don’t report the theft or loss of a firearm, and designate shooting hot spots and allow the city to exclude certain gun offenders from them.

While the theft reporting and child protection laws have been passed in other major cities, criminal justice experts say the exclusion zones that would restrict gun offenders from areas designated as high in gun violence would be unique to Portland.

Two other code changes would set a 7 p.m. curfew for juveniles who have been convicted of a gun offense such as possessing or illegally using a firearm, and would enact a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 days in jail for a gun offender found carrying a loaded gun in a public place, including a vehicle or on transit.

I support these initiatives and applaud Mayor Sam Adams' efforts, but I don't think it'll help much. What's needed is licensing of all gun owners and registration of every gun plus no private transfers without a background check. That's haw to significantly make a difference in Portland's violence. That's how to significantly reduce the gun flow into the criminal world.

What's your opinion? Do you think Mayor Sam Adams is climbing the list of gun-rights enemies? What ranking might he have achieved with this?

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Gay Sex Scandal in Portland Oregon

The New York Times reports on an unusual sex scandal going on in Portland Oregon.

A confession by Portland's first openly gay mayor that he lied about having sex with a teenager is dividing this famously progressive city, as well as its gay community.

Just three weeks after Sam Adams was sworn in, many gays are questioning whether he is the man they want as their trailblazer.

I would imagine if many gays are questioning it, the straights are too. I guess Mr. Adams' days as the first openly gay mayor of a major American city are numbered.

It started earlier this week when the 45-year-old Adams admitted to an alternative newspaper, Willamette Week, that he lied during his election campaign when he denied having sex in 2005 with a teenage male who was a legislative intern.

So, when he was about 41, he'd had sex with a 17 year-old. That's against the law. But is it really that bad? I mean, there's a big difference between what he did and some of the child sex abuse we hear about.

For me, his being gay has nothing to do with it. The questions are simply how bad were his actions and how bad is it that he lied about them.

''Sam has been our guy forever, which makes this even harder,'' said Marty Davis, publisher of the newspaper Just Out, which has called for his resignation. ''It's completely dividing and tearing our community right down the middle.''

Davis of Just Out said she is not as concerned about Adams' relationship with the young man as she is about the lying. She said his actions have eroded the public's trust in her publication.

Sometimes it seems we're as hung up about lying as we are about sex. Is the idea supposed to be that politicians generally do not lie, so when we catch one at it, we're outraged? Or, is it a case of excessively punishing the ones who get caught lying because we know the rest of them are doing it too? Either way it doesn't seem right to me.

What's your opinion? Does the fact that he'd had sex with the intern and lied about it impact upon his ability to govern the city? Are we expecting too much from our politicians, complete chastity and total honesty? Do we demand that of ourselves?

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