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Phil Busse
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WHO’S THE BOSS?

At this critical point in history, Portland needs a strong visionary to take charge at City Hall. The Mercury double-dog-dares VERA KATZ to step up to the plate.
Avatar photoAvatar photo Phil Busse and Helen Silvis

Just as dog owners eventually take on the characteristics of their canines, the great philosopher of American politics, Alexis de Tocqueville, once remarked, so do nations and cities begin to reflect their leaders. Certainly this has held true for America over the past eight years, as the pace of life accelerated under Bill Clinton’s tireless […]

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WINCO

Avatar photo Phil Busse

1222 NE 102nd, 252-3353 You can tell a lot about a person about how he shops for groceries. A yuppie friend of mine, for example, only buys cereal, Diet Coke, and exotic cheese. Even for this paltry pantry, she just must shop at Nature’s, paying so much for a single banana you’d think a Sherpa […]

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Fowl Play

Is Someone Casting A Voodoo Spell on Portland?
Avatar photo Phil Busse

THE GOAT, DECAPITATED and with its feet bound, was discovered in a burlap sack along the railroad tracks that squeeze through the loading docks and warehouses in inner Southeast Portland. A few feet away was a second sack with tufts of gray hair and a hoof sticking out. Scattered along the gravel were eight other […]

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Gimme Shelter

NAACP Forms Task Force To Stop Gentrification
Avatar photo Phil Busse

IN MID-NOVEMBER, someone spray-painted messages on stop signs along Alberta Street in NE Portland. The first sign, in dripping white letters set off against red, reads: “Stop Gentrification.” The next sign clarifies this message. It reads: “Stop Whitie.” Like many growing cities, in Portland gentrification has become a code word for large-scale displacement of working-class […]

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Turning a Blind Eye to Justice

Been Roughed Up by the Police? Been Treated with Disrespect by the Cops? Portland’s Police Review Board Will Gladly Listen to Your Complaint…Just Don’t Expect Them to Do Anything About It.
Avatar photo Phil Busse

LIKE MANY PEOPLE in Portland, City Commissioner Charlie Hales first became acutely concerned with the attitudes and muscular tactics of the Police Bureau on May Day. With his chief of staff, Hales walked down to Tom McCall Waterfront Park during lunch, and was stunned by what he witnessed. Using batons as battering rams, police slammed […]

Posted inMovies & TV

Dude, Where’s My Plot?

Traffic: Masters the New Internet Narrative
Avatar photo Phil Busse

THE SHAGGY-DOG narrative of Slackers came at a crucial point of departure in the American psyche from traditional linear tales. Produced in 1992, about the same time that the Internet was cresting on the horizon, Slackers splintered from the classic journey narrative, where the viewer finds a clue or lead and follows it towards a […]

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On My Soapbox

UP IN SMOKE
Avatar photoAvatar photo Jeff Jassmond and Phil Busse

Even as the campaign to legalize marijuana tried to gather momentum in Oregon last fall, another countervailing force was slowly taking form: A federal lawsuit against the chief organizer of the Campaign for the Restoration & Regulation of Hemp (CRRH) had begun to take shape. Filed last March, the lawsuit accuses Paul Stanford, the chief […]

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On My Soapbox

WE’RE NOT #1!
Avatar photo Phil Busse

I shuddered when Money magazine recently blessed Portland with their #1 ranking for most livable city. Look at our sibling cities, Seattle and San Francisco: In the past few years, both have enjoyed #1 rankings. Now, with bottom-of-the-barrel, one-bedroom apartments renting for $1500 in San Francisco livability for those who aren’t incredibly wealthy is a […]

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Crime Scene

Bouncing Bombs
Avatar photo Phil Busse

A few weeks ago while walking his dog Ivy, a man from southwest Portland picked up a stray tennis ball. Although the ball looked a bit odd–it was wrapped in tape–he tossed it to his dog. A few minutes later, while in Ivy’s mouth, the ball exploded, killing the dog. What was odd about this […]

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On My Soapbox

Be AFRAID
Avatar photo Phil Busse

Let me preface: I go gaga for the Supreme Court. In the same way sports fans salivate over Joe Namath or Jackie Robinson, I gush over justices, past and present. And in a perverse way, I’ve enjoyed the recent hubbub over potential Supreme Court appointments. If Bush is elected, liberals fret, we can say goodbye […]

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Voices from the Air

Pirate Radio for the Homeless
Avatar photo Phil Busse

“We’re trying to give a voice to the invisible,” says Genny Nelson, founder of Portland’s Sisters of the Road Café. Nelson sits in a loft above a busy diner where about two dozen homeless men and women gather for lunch. Six years ago, Nelson came up with the novel idea to launch a pirate radio […]

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