Of racketeers, losers, and sexual hypnotists...
Kari Chisholm
This morning, the O's David Sarasohn takes on the right-wing initiative racket - and reviews the cast of characters:
This month we've discovered, yet again, that the historic Oregon initiative system is now the nearly exclusive playground of an octogenarian Las Vegas millionaire and part-time amateur sexual therapist, a legally determined racketeer and a politician whose electoral losses are now at five and counting.Direct democracy at its best.
Loren Parks, the Las Vegas sexual hypnotist, is the sugar-daddy to all these right-wing clowns:
Earlier this month, the secretary of state's office estimated that 10 petition measures had a reasonable chance of making it onto November's ballot. (Thursday, two were ruled short on signatures.) On nine of the 10, the lead petitioners included Bill Sizemore, Kevin Mannix or Russ Walker of the anti-tax group Freedomworks; on all of those nine, most of the expenses were covered by Loren Parks, who as of last September had spent $1.1 million on signature collecting in this cycle.That's on top of more than $5 million he'd spent in Oregon politics over previous years, a flow not slowed at all by his leaving Oregon for Las Vegas in 2003. In 2006, Parks spent $1.6 million on Oregon politics, including more than $940,000 for Mannix's unsuccessful run for the GOP nomination for governor.
What's this stuff about sexual hypnotism? Yeah, it's true:
Everyone needs a hobby. Parks has two, the other being the Psychological Research Foundation Inc. (www.psychresearch.com; NOTE: The author of this Web page is not a state or medically licensed professional), which offers sexual hypnotism by telephone.The details are not describable here, but nine initiative measures on this November's ballot aren't the only presents Loren Parks is prepared to give you.
And then there's five-time loser Kevin Mannix:
Mannix, a former legislator steadily active in the initiative process, this spring lost his fifth consecutive bid for public office, despite years of loyal and expensive support by Parks. Mannix has now lost two races for attorney general, two contests for governor and this year a race for a GOP nomination for Congress, to a candidate treated by the whole state Republican organization as toxic.
And we can't forget Bill Sizemore:
Still, Parks is doing better than Bill Sizemore, king of the Oregon initiative system, petitioner on five measures bound for the November ballot, who can now be described with legal precision as a racketeer. Earlier this month, the Oregon Supreme Court unanimously upheld lower court verdicts that organizations controlled by Sizemore violated anti-racketeering laws by forging signatures and filing false financial reports to qualify ballot measures in 2000, and that he owes the Oregon Education Association $2.5 million in damages.
Here's what I want to know. Does every state have their own cast of right-wing nutballs? Or are we just extra-lucky here in Oregon?
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Jul 13, '08
Sooooooo, the same people that support gay "rights" (sodomy, fist f-ing, trans, queens, etc.) don't like a Sex therapist? Wow what hypocrites.
And since us on the right do not have the Union Dues, collectively forced out of peoples paycheck, even if they do not support the far left agenda of the leaders always, we have to find rich guys to help, like Parks.
And George Soros & Warren Buffett (Billionaire's) don't fund your far left agenda? moveon.org-Obama, Dean.
If it wasn't for Loren Parks, we would only far leftie laws to decide on, I like having a choice.
Again, why are you so against us having a choice? Would that be your preference of Marx or Lenin?
2:12 p.m.
Jul 13, '08
Sooooooo, the same people that support gay "rights" (sodomy, fist f-ing, trans, queens, etc.) don't like a Sex therapist? Wow what hypocrites.
Actually those aren't gay rights (odd how it's always a straight person who thinks of those things first).
If you are going to speak for Marx, better study him first. And when did it ever become a choice between "far-left" and Lenin? I actually don't identify as either. Oh that's right. When the right-wing extremists (note I say extremist, as oppsed to all) decided that they couldn't wrap their heads around a bigger world than that.
Jul 13, '08
I'm from the area of the country that brought you Phyllis Schafly. For that I apologize. In my defense, nobody I knew thought of her as anything but a wack job and total nut case. I am really shocked that anybody takes her seriously. So I have to vote for each state having their own unique cast of local deranged wingnuts.
2:35 p.m.
Jul 13, '08
One need look no further than Rick Hickey to see why the GOP is sliding into irrelevence. So long as their candidates have to cater to Rick, they will continue along their slow and painful slide into irrelevance.
Jul 13, '08
Back off the attacks on Rick. If it weren't for him and a couple other Republicans in homosexual panic on BO, I'd never be able to comment on fisting (not, Rick, solely a gay activity - sorry to burst your bubble) or any of the other exciting activities that right-wingers like to fantasize about.
I also love that Rick et al believe that billionaire elites and move-on are "far left". Continue to not read, Rick; the truth could be harmful to your health.
3:23 p.m.
Jul 13, '08
If it weren't for him and a couple other Republicans in homosexual panic on BO, I'd never be able to comment on fisting (not, Rick, solely a gay activity - sorry to burst your bubble) or any of the other exciting activities that right-wingers like to fantasize about.
LMAO...ok that needs to be the quote of the day somewhere.:)
4:30 p.m.
Jul 13, '08
Well, there's always Bobby Jindal, governor of Louisiana and potential VP for McCain. He boasted that he performed an exorcism once...perhaps this could come in handy for handling the supposed axis of evil? Imagine the White House, with split pea soup everywhere....
Jul 13, '08
Maybe I'm wrong about this, but I just don't see a lot of openings for an amateur sex therapist...
Jul 13, '08
Question, who is creepier, sex therapist Loren Parks or perennial candidate/curse caster Pavel Goberman?
Jul 13, '08
Pavel is creepier. Have you seen the pictures of him on his website?
And I have to say that if I could do the things Loren Parks claims to do, heck I'd probably put up a website to brag about it too.
7:38 p.m.
Jul 13, '08
Don't look now Rick, but several activities widely considered to be "sodomy" are very popular among committed hetero couples.
I would have thought that a member of the DOMA crowd would instantly grasp the rather fundamental differences between consentual sexual activity between committed couples and sex therapy which, by definition, injects a 3rd party into the sexual equation.
What I have consistently found among the DOMA crowd is that those who exhibit a strong obsession with allegedly unnatural sexual acts of others, as Mr. Hickey has here, are themselves secretly obsessed with DOING those very same sexual acts, but utterly lack the intellectual/personal honesty to admit it to themselves or anyone else.
Jul 13, '08
I gotta say... I hate Loren Parks for what he does to Oregon's initiative system...
But I can't really fault him for his sex therapy stuff. Sure it's weird and bordering on creepy but hey - different strokes for different folks. Consenting adults and all that.
9:51 p.m.
Jul 13, '08
And George Soros & Warren Buffett (Billionaire's) don't fund your far left agenda?
DAMMIT! Where's my check?
9:54 p.m.
Jul 13, '08
Oh, and an important note for casual readers around here: Rick Hickey is not just some pseudonymous right-wing troll. (And thank you, Rick, for using your real name. More of your friends should do that here.)
He's the vice-chair of the Marion County Republican Party, and the vice-president of the Oregonians for Immigration Reform.
Jul 13, '08
“He's the vice-chair of the Marion County Republican Party, and the vice-president of the Oregonians for Immigration Reform.”
Well, I guess Mr. Hickey gets brownie points for full disclosure, but holy cow, if I were that messed up, I’m not sure I’d advertise. He’s proof that the Enlightenment was just something that happened to other people.
On the other hand, posts like this only emphasize the degree of panic and desperation from the Wing Nut Right. And if you ever need exhibit “A” as to why Republican candidates can’t win a statewide election, save for Gordo – Hickey is it.
Welcome to the 15th Century.
10:40 p.m.
Jul 13, '08
I always thought Sarasohn was pretty conservative...but maybe I'm wrong! I thought his piece on Helms was pretty powerful, calling out his racism.
Jul 14, '08
[Rick Hickey is] ... the vice-president of the Oregonians for Immigration Reform.
Yes; you can always identify his posts by his incessant mangling of the English language.
8:38 a.m.
Jul 14, '08
But I can't really fault him for his sex therapy stuff. Sure it's weird and bordering on creepy but hey - different strokes for different folks. Consenting adults and all that.
Have you read Loren Parks' uber-creepy web site? I went for a laugh and ended up feeling sad for the women he preys on. I had the sense that they were women who had been abused before, or frankly, his creepiness would be more obvious to them up front.
Wearing the cloak of a medical guy, he puts himself out there for people who might have a legitimate need for professional help but can’t afford the real thing. They think he is going to help them, when he is just using a crazy, narcissistic, pseudo-medical shtick to get his rocks off. And he’s just... ewwww...
So I don't file that under consent. To me, this is abuse. Not the guy I want forming our public policy.
Jul 14, '08
So Rick's fix is to do away with the Oregon initiative system? So far as I can tell, the initiative system never passed a single issue, it just gives us a chance to vote on them. I trust the unwashed masses of Oregon way more than the brain trusts at the Oregonian, Oregon Legislature, ODOT, the PERS board, and everyone that thinks it is their job to vote on a federal interstate bridge that is 3 billion dollars more than the one built down river recently.
Oregon Initiative System = Loren Parks Good one Mr. Sarasohn....
1:03 p.m.
Jul 14, '08
Oregon Initiative System = Loren Parks
Unfortunate, but true.
Jul 14, '08
"Here's what I want to know. Does every state have their own cast of right-wing nutballs?"
Kerri, you forgot to mention that Our very own Oregon has its very own child rapist and his merry band of cover-up artists, some of which are still holding public offices.
Jul 14, '08
ooooh a sexual hypnotist donates to a right wing cause....wow.
and Larry Flint, donates to democrats.
So what's your point? Did the democrats ever come out and say "we don't want your million$" mr. Flint?
Jul 14, '08
Kari, you forgot to mention that our very own Oregon has its very own child rapist and his merry band of cover-up artists, some of which are still holding public offices.
You're talking about Lou Beres, right?
2:51 p.m.
Jul 14, '08
Whoo hoo! The rightie trolls are here!
Jul 14, '08
Kari - these trolls are disgusting. I just made a donation to NAMBLA on behalf of Blue Ore. Keep up the good work.
We need to end this so called "initiative process". Power to the Unions!
Jul 14, '08
So this is where Hickey hangs out on his days off. Statesman Journal readers know him as Selfmadegenious (sic). What a piece of work.
Surprisingly, he didn't rage on about Sizemore's poorly written English Immersion bill. I'm amazed his head doesn't explode with all the hate in there.
Jul 14, '08
So this is where Hickey hangs out on his days off. Statesman Journal readers know him as Selfmadegenious (sic). What a piece of work.
Surprisingly, he didn't rage on about Sizemore's poorly written English Immersion bill. I'm amazed his head doesn't explode with all the hate in there.
Jul 14, '08
Always fun to watch Selfmad. So what is the status of OFIR's initiative effort. They won't tell me.
Sleeping with Elvis?
Jul 15, '08
What's this stuff about sexual hypnotism? Yeah, it's true JK: So what? Or are you confusing fiscal conservatives with social conservatives?
Thanks JK
Jul 15, '08
Kari,
Every state has their own nutjobs (some states have more than others, especially in government---see Oklahoma an Texas for good examples)....and some get bored just screwing up their own states and finance other state's nutjobs in messing up THEIR states. Which is why we need an initiative on the ballot outlawing out of state money being used to in the initiative system.
Jul 15, '08
Didn't Loren Parks also finance the assisted suicide measure?
Thanks JK
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