'Important public purposes sometimes warrant involuntary sacrifices. Taxes may be levied to build sewers or fire stations. Property may be taken by eminent domain for a railroad or tunnel. Government even has the power to force citizens to fight in an army during times of war.

'In Northwest Portland, the community and city are considering a comprehensive parking program that cannot happen without government action. It involves metering on-street parking throughout most of the district, rewriting city codes to allow large commercial parking structures in residential zones and raising millions of dollars to finance these garages.

'What vital societal need justifies these measures? Best I can tell, it's all about saving well-heeled recreational shoppers from having to walk more than two blocks.'

Ñ From a column in the May edition of the Northwest Examiner newspaper, opposing public parking facilities that have been proposed for Northwest Portland