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This above is a standard line that scientology sock puppets use to distract. and it is BULL.
Posted by Suzanna Nielsen]]> Sat, 25 May 2013 12:49:56 -0700 Portland Mercury
They played fast and loose with the truth and with our democratic process: mischaracterizing studies (including last year's Harvard meta-analysis and the National Academy of Sciences' 2006 report...in both cases, the authors' own statements refuted what proponents were claiming researchers concluded);

exaggerating the scope and degree of the "dental health crisis" (to the point of conspiring to delay public disclosure of evidence contradicting their claims until after the vote);

employing technically accurate but misleading language in their rhetoric (e.g. "There is no evidence that fluoridation at optimum levels causes any harm", when, in practice, there is no way to ensure an "optimum" dose given individual variations and multiple other sources of exposure in the environment);

exploiting "poor kids" to stir up liberal guilt in favor of fluoridation (nevermind that decades of data from dozens of fluoridated cities show significant INCREASES in dental decay among lower-income children since fluoridation, and that the general consensus of researchers is that the REAL crisis is lack of access to basic, routine dental care...something every lower-income child in Portland already has through OHP);

and attempting an end-run around the public will and Portland's democratic process (conducting back-room deals with the City Council, virtually skipping the phases of scientific review and public input, and manipulating the timing of the petition period and election in ways they thought would work to their advantage).


NOW, they add insult to injury by slandering their victorious opponents as elitists with no concern for "equity" and/or simpletons driven by "fear" and incapable of comprehending the "complexity" of their arguments.

To top it all off, they insist "the fight isn't over", suggesting they have so little respect for the will of the majority (and a significant majority at that) that their plan is to just keep at it until they manage to cram fluoridation down our collective throats by any means necessary.


I will close with the words of Philippe Grandjean (senior author of the 2012 Harvard study) and Anna Choi (lead author of the study):

“Fluoride seems to fit in with lead, mercury, and other poisons that cause chemical brain drain. The effect of each toxicant may seem small, but the combined damage on a population scale can be serious, especially because the brain power of the next generation is crucial to all of us.” Grandjean

"These results do not allow us to make any judgment regarding possible
levels of risk at levels of exposure typical for water fluoridation in the U.S.
On the other hand, neither can it be concluded that no risk is present. We therefore recommend further research to clarify what role fluoride exposure levels
may play in possible adverse effects on brain development, so that future
risk assessments can properly take into regard this possible hazard."
Choi and Grandjean
Posted by Raven333]]> Sat, 25 May 2013 11:53:09 -0700 Portland Mercury Posted by ill paxton]]> Sat, 25 May 2013 10:33:21 -0700 Portland Mercury
So, I hope you'll accept my apology and put the bitterness behind us.

M&A.
Posted by Maxims&Arrows]]> Sat, 25 May 2013 10:10:12 -0700 Portland Mercury
1. @hippo, There is no law that an employer can't act arbitrarily. Nearly the opposite is true: employers can't deliberately treat members of protected classes differently.

2. @Denis, I don't think Kruger posting a letter clearing him of harassment becomes itself harassment, nor does it rise to harassment just because Kruger wrote Galvan's name on it. He wasn't ordered to keep this secret, and her name has been public record for a long time - Galvan was certainly known as the complainant inside PPB.

That maybe changes if he'd e-mailed the letter to the entire Bureau, or did some larger-scale thing, but this is a pretty understated action for a guy who, in his spare time, builds Nazi shrines on public property.

The bottom line is that Kruger's a dick, but unfortunately in this case (and many others), it's not against the law to be a dick.
Posted by Commenty Colin]]> Sat, 25 May 2013 09:27:20 -0700 Portland Mercury Posted by Fletcher Lanning]]> Sat, 25 May 2013 08:52:59 -0700 Portland Mercury A hot chick to stare at is no excuse for holding people up to their destination.
Posted by frankieb]]> Sat, 25 May 2013 07:41:22 -0700 Portland Mercury Posted by Todd Mecklem]]> Sat, 25 May 2013 07:02:38 -0700 Portland Mercury Posted by Maxims&Arrows]]> Sat, 25 May 2013 07:00:33 -0700 Portland Mercury
I think the reason that spoilers for major events are not terribly devastating to most film goers is because they only spoil one or two of the surprises held in the plot. Things that are not generally spoiled are the arc of the characters, clever quotes, cool action scenes, or small but pivotal actions. Since any good film (hopefully) has several surprises, it can afford to lose one or two of them, because the rest of the narrative should still be surprising enough to be absorbing.

That said, I despise spoilers. The big twist or surprising development that everyone felt the need to reveal was intended by the filmmakers to communicate an extremely important message within the context of the film. By spoiling that major event outside of the film's context, it seems to remove any invitation to consider the meaning of it. For example, finding out that Darth Vader is Luke's father shatters Luke's (and our's) notion that Luke is absolutely good and infallible. We see that the potential for Luke to turn to the dark side is inside of him (as well as the potential for Vader to turn to the light side). This detail was spoiled for me long before I saw SW:ESB, and it was only recently that I reflected on what the scene meant in the context of what came before and after. I have often found that when a major scene is spoiled for me, I am removed from the narrative of the film and shocked back to reality as I recognize what was spoiled prior. This seems to disrupt my flow of the context of the film and I see the scene outside of the events, and it's later that I have to go back and figure out what the scene is meant to convey (and not just feel shocked by it).

TL;DR: a good film should be a series of surprises. Although any good film should be able to hold up as an absorbing film with one or two of its large surprises spoiled, we are being robbed of the delivery of an important message within the context of the film.
Posted by Shawn Mehess]]> Sat, 25 May 2013 06:59:37 -0700 Portland Mercury Posted by Cpt_Amurrica]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 23:42:24 -0700 Portland Mercury
Peter
Posted by PDXTeacher]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 23:23:26 -0700 Portland Mercury Posted by Tina Granzo]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 23:15:45 -0700 Portland Mercury
Any union contract that doesn't allow someone like Kruger to be fired is a bad contract, and offensive to the public.

The fact that forces deep within the police force have been leaking documents in order to help this guy is completely insane, and shows the Portland Police are rotten to the core.

Kruger pulled this latest stunt because he knows he's safe. The powers that be are on his side. Which means the department itself holds Nazi sympathies.

Bust their fucking union. They deserve worse.
Posted by jamdox]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 22:55:11 -0700 Portland Mercury
and really, holding up traffic to ogle women? and some of the comments that people left here sound eerily akin to comments about women dressing a certain way asking to be raped. like women are at fault for you douchers inability to contain yourself and your uncomfortable stares.
Posted by bort]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 22:26:35 -0700 Portland Mercury Posted by Gza1340]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 21:34:40 -0700 Portland Mercury
I supported the fluoride measure because it's actually designed to help the majority of people, especially the less fortunate as opposed to a select few. It doesn't matter where you come from. That just makes sense.
Posted by Gza1340]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 21:28:19 -0700 Portland Mercury
I've admired a lot of your work over the years, which makes the glaringly limited perpective displayed in this piece all the more disappointing. If you had attended the entirety of the April 11th budget hearing in particular (which from your interpretation I assume you didn't) you would have seen anything but "peace." From the hundreds of Portlanders who showed up at hearing after hearing, to the passionate testimony we have heard on behalf of the safety net and the many other vital programs on the chopping block this year, to the pleas of union city workers to not be laid-off when there is already more work to be done than there are workers to do it, the actual process has borne little resemblance to the story you have concocted.

Anti-austerity activists such as myself and my friend above have been giving up our free time to fight back against Mayor Hales's baseless assertion that cuts are our only way forward. We have been there from beginning to end at budget hearing after budget hearing, and we're not even being paid to do so, so what's your excuse? If you had stuck around on April 11th, you would have heard Robin Hahnel, Professor of economics at PSU, deliver an impassioned and expert speech on the folly of austerity, from Portland to DC. You would have heard the City Council attempt to cut him off only to be vocally overruled by the community members in attendance. You would have seen the majority of the room stand up in opposition to cuts and for progressive revenue when asked to do so. You would have heard the crowd crying out for City Council to "go get the money" from the wealthy and rich corporations.

That doesn't sound so peaceful to me. I think you need a more diverse range of sources.
Posted by hatlesspete]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 20:49:18 -0700 Portland Mercury
Nope, came here for (gasp) a job. I would request you not make assumptions without knowing, or demonstrating a good grasp of, the facts-- but that motherfuckin ship has sailed. Also, what do you have against people who move somewhere for a better life? So the fuck what? Are you "original"? You're a tool who attacks character without knowing anything. And it's clear that your nerve has been struck on this site, and you're having a little tantrum.

So get back to your anecdotes, kiddo. You're a babbling idealogue who needs to drink one less beer before you type. And if you want to be taken seriously, don't rely on ad hominem attacks and anecdote-based logical fallacies. You have plenty of company in the US- disinterested in information and full of opinion.
Posted by sagging flint]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 20:30:21 -0700 Portland Mercury
I,A was probably like, "I have a lady boner, you should have a dude boner, we're in this together, so calm the fuck down and smell the fucking roses while she, and her bouncing boobs pass us."
Posted by Munch]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 19:49:25 -0700 Portland Mercury Posted by PennyPingleton]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 19:38:13 -0700 Portland Mercury Posted by Number 6]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 19:12:11 -0700 Portland Mercury
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/17/h…
Posted by Horny Hippo]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 19:05:32 -0700 Portland Mercury Posted by Patty Rodrigues]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 18:57:02 -0700 Portland Mercury Posted by Horny Hippo]]> Fri, 24 May 2013 18:53:40 -0700 Portland Mercury