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I grew up in Nevada which does not have a school for the blind. This meant that all of my schooling was done in public schools. Instead of a dedicated school, they have visually impaired programs at designated schools. If a blind student attends one of these schools they get instruction if they need it. I am sure that OSB does a great job at educating student,s but I personally feel that taking students out of public schools is not the best thing for them. If the school closes, and the property is sold, I believe that money needs to go to inprooving education for blind students around the state.

Here is a link to a blog post that I wrote about this issue.

http://www.blindgal.com/2009/04/should-oregon-school-for-blind-be.html

posted 3 years, 11 months ago
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In high school I had a very good friend that struggled with skitso-effective disorder.  She attempted suicide many times, and I probably stopped her a hand full of times.  During our senior year it seemed like things were getting better.  She was in a happier place, and that's when she decided to take her life.  She found a method that she knew would work.  My first reaction to the news of her death was anger.  I couldn't believe that she would be so selfish.  After time though, I came to realize that being angry wasn't the right way to feel.  I knew she was suffering and that the meds she was taking had so many side-effects that she would never have had a normal life. 

It is now ten years later, and what happened then is part of why I am committing my life to helping people in need.  I worked for the U of O crisis line for over a year and I am hoping to become a counselor for youth and their families.  As a crisis counselor, one of my most memorable calls was directly tied to suicide.  The original caller was a man calling about his wife who wanted to kill herself.  Eventually, he and I were able to convince her to join the conversation and for the next 1.5 hours her husband and I tried to help her see that she was important and loved.  That call will live with me for the rest of my life.  I know that sometimes people truly believe that suicide is the answer, but to me, unless you are dealing with an incurable painful disease, there is something worth living for.

posted 4 years, 3 months ago
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I really have appreciated all of the comments and I thought the show was really good. I am glad that people have the chance to speak freely about hwat they believe.

I myself had an abortion when I was 15. My boyfriend and I agreed that it was the best descision. I did not come to that descision lightly and my family supported me. Unfortunately, my family took out their anger on the baby's father and he was not allowed to be with me when I had the procedure. I think that father's have a right to be there if they want to, but I don't think that a woman should ever keep a pregnancy because the father wants her to. I am not pro abortion I am pro choice. No one has a right to judge my descision nor do I have the right to judge a woman who decides to keep her baby even if she is not ready to be a mother.

I am not a mother now, and I may never be, but I am grateful for the life I have now. I have no idea what my life would be like if I had kept my child, but I am pretty sure I wouldn't be in a healthy happy relationship like I am now.

I hope that our government never illegalizes abortion again because it won't stop women from getting them. I know we need better education and both men and women need to be responsible for preventing unwanted pregnancies. I never felt comfortable asking my mom to get me on the pill because I knew she would just try to stop me from having sex. My boyfriend at the time was reluctant to get condems and so we often had unprotected sex. I know I was responsible for getting pregnant and for ending my baby's life and only me and my baby's father should get to judge our descision. All parents out there please be open with your kids about sex and encourage them to come to you so that you can try to prevent unwanted pregnancies.

posted 4 years, 8 months ago
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As a potential first time home buyer I see a big discrepancy. There is a cut off of about $43000 for a two person household to qualify for the first time home buyer programs, but if my husband and I wanted to live in Portland it may be impossible for us to find something we could afford. We currently live in Corvallis and can't afford to live here, much less in Portland. Some people have told us to buy in Albany, but the price of gas would probably offset the savings we would have by buying in Albany. It seems like first time home buyers are either forced to continue to rent or to live in a city that is poorer and commute because there is no other option. I know that lower house prices may hurt some people, but Oregon is not affordable right now and if we want more home owners the prices need to come down.

posted 5 years, 1 month ago
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It makes me sad to see so much animosity towards mail in ballots. I myself am excited to be voting in the primary this year not only because we have a lot of important races, but for the first time I will be voting without anyone's assistance. Oregon has decided to make voting accessible for all voters including those with disabilities. Because we mail in our ballots making the ballots accessible is a lot easier. I don't think that there is fraud involved in our voting and I think mail in voting helps boost our voting because we get to vote on our own time instead of going to a local elementary school on a Tuesday.

posted 5 years, 2 months ago
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I grew up in Las Vegas where we had a lot of gang activity. One of the reasons I left was to get away from all of the violence. Now Oregon is becoming just as violent. I have no problem with people coming together as a community, but hate and violence doesn't help anyone and I feel like if immigrants are going to live here they need to leave their violence behind them.

posted 5 years, 2 months ago
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I am sure that there were borrowers that knew what they were doing, but most people are not educated about the home buying process. My husband and I have decided to be smart and so we took a home buying course so we won't get trapped. Maybe we need to require people to be educated before they buy a home, especially if it is their first time. I also feel that brokers need to be responsible. A house is probably the biggest purchase someone will make in their life time and people shouldn't have to worry about being swindled by their mortgage broker.

P.S. I am a screen reader user and I had to use a sighted person to register to the site. Please look into having an audio option for your visual capture to prove someone is not a robot. Also I couldn't figure out how to start a post, only reply to one.

posted 5 years, 3 months ago
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