Oregon is wobbling. That is because of conflicts of interest; trust in our politicians; public employee unions; rural versus urban polarization; haves versus the have-nots, just as examples.

Conflicts of interest. Enough ink has been spilled on the embarrassment of former Gov. John Kitzhaber. Unfortunately, Gov. Kate Brown led from behind on ethical reform and transparency. And, when a whistleblower was identified, he was pilloried by the administration. Then we have the regrettable decision by the Oregon Supreme Court on reform of the Public Employees Retirement System. As participants in a version of PERS they had a vested interest in assuring the reform legislation was struck down. They declined and the rest is history. Finally, Gov. Brown received $100,000 from a public employee union. Since Gov. Brown is the “employer,” just how hard will the state negotiate its labor contracts?

Trust in our politicians. The Trump phenomenon reflects broad distrust of the political class. And, well, there should be distrust. Kitzhaber struck the grand deal, trading PERS reform for a basket of goodies desired by the Democrats. When the Supreme Court struck down the reform, where was the gracious offer by the Democrats to repeal the quid pro quo? The silence was deafening. Then during the short session, they refused to address PERS reform, rather looking to two silly and potential dangerous pieces of legislation. They toiled long and mightily over implementing legislation for marijuana. Why? More taxes. They toiled over minimum wage. Why? Given wage compression and the raised minimum wage, the state would receive more taxes. And the consequence may be business failures and DUII convictions. And, not to be forgotten, Rep. Tina Kotek has announced her support for the staggering tax increase that will put a nail in the coffin of any large company being headquartered here. Here we come, Idaho.

Public employee unions. We have the worst or close to the worst public schools in the United States. Fire a teacher? Not over the dead body of the union. Expect productivity from state workers? Good luck. And the Democratic politicians are bought and paid for by these unions.

Rural versus urban. Not merely the mountains separate the Eastern from Western Oregon. The political class seeks to prevent the development of small family farms. The political class through the estate tax seeks to prevent farms and ranches from being passed down to the next generation. The environmentalists, living in their posh condos in the Pearl District, have throttled the timber industry and now are attempting to destroy the way of life of ranchers and farmers through the pretext of the spotted frog. This may result in a clarion call to secede from Oregon and join Idaho.

Haves versus the have-nots. The state spends a staggering amount of money to support the “have-nots.” It has totally failed to support initiatives that would eliminate this distinction. Instead it enacts legislation and fosters policies that make it more profitable for haves to drop into the have-not group. Why not promote the family unit — job opportunities instead of disincentives?

The foregoing is the tip of the iceberg. But it ought to be a sufficient wake-up call, before Oregon descends to the depths of Detroit, Baltimore, etc. There still is time, but the window of opportunity is closing fast.

— Thomas Triplett lives in Bend.