Life in "Progress" State

From the the beaver state of Oregon, who hasn't had a conservative in state state government since Lewis and Clark drank a few liquid breads in the area.

In the case of Oregon, even some "progressives" are starting to understand that you can't kill the goose that delivers the golden eggs.............

A great beauty of the American federal system is that any of the 50 states can offer its policies as an experiment for others. So the nation owes some gratitude to Oregon for testing whether it is possible for a state to tax its way from deep recession to prosperity.

Oregon's unemployment rate is 11.1%, among the nation's highest. But Oregonians are now voting by mail whether to endorse a pair of tax increases passed by the legislature last year: one to raise the state's top personal income tax, to 11% from 9%, and another to raise the business income tax, to 7.9% from 6.6%. Both tax hikes would be retroactive to January 1, 2009.

The legislature and governor argue that only the state's wealthiest 2.2% percent of residents will pay this tab. Nonetheless, the liberal Portland Oregonian has editorialized against the new taxes, which it says would target "the very businesses and employers that Oregon is depending on to lead an economic recovery, start hiring again and pay the wages that support state services."

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