Since the revelation this morning that the Oregon Zoo has a contract with private roadshow Have Trunk, Will Travel regarding the adorable baby elephant recently birthed at the Zoo, people have been going back and forth on an important question: What will happen to the baby? According to the Seattle Times, the roadshow owns the […]
Sarah Shay Mirk
Sarah Shay Mirk reported on transportation, sex and gender issues, and politics at the Mercury from 2008-2013. They have gone on to make many things, including countless comics and several books.
Posted inHistory
Behold! The Hippie-Friendly Pamphlet Portland Distributed to Discourage Protests in 1970
I’m reading Matt Love’s book about the Oregon Vortex, the giant state-and-business funded “biodegradable festival of life” that kept Portland lefties occupied with drugs and music instead of protesting the Vietnam War in the summer of 1970. Included is this amazing pamphlet the city printed and handed out to counterculture businesses that summer: The “Peace […]
Posted inNews
Good Morning News!
The World of Zoo Elephants is Seriously Screwed Up. All week, we’ve been gushing about the adorable baby elephant born in the Oregon Zoo. Now, that love has turned to horror as we find that the baby was secretly promised to a traveling elephant roadshow years before she was born. Read the Seattle Time‘s investigation […]
Posted inLuv
And Now, An Adorable Video of Portland’s Baby Elephant
Gahahaha! The Oregon Zoo’s baby elephant is one day old in this video. I also want to note that today I learned the name of the father elephant: TUSKO.
Posted inPortland
The Best Holiday Window Display in Portland
From the John Fluevog store on SW 12th and Stark: Spotted by veganidiot!
Posted inSexual Politics
The Wage Gap, in Easy Infographic Form
Oregon is currently trying to figure out how to close the wage gap—women in Portland make 15 percent less than men, and that’s a problem. Education website Learn Stuff made a great infographic about the wage gap that persists across the country. Check out the whole thing.
Posted inCity Hall
Sam Adams Will Finally Shave Gross Mustache
For a month, Portland Mayor Sam Adams has been subjecting his face and city to a mustache which, in my opinion, looks like the kind of ‘stache an old cowboy would have. Mayor Adams’ office is raising money for prostate and testicular cancer research by participating in Movember, sort of like a jog-a-thon where instead […]
Posted inCrime
Beaverton Pays Out Only $5,000 After Cop Coerced a Blowjob
A terrible story out of Beaverton: The police department there has paid out a settlement to a woman who says a police officer forced her to give him a blowjob. The payout for an officer accused of rape? Only $5,000. The victim had been seeking nearly $50,000. From The Oregonian: The charges stemmed from two […]
Posted inPolitics
Update on Canvasser Firings: Sierra Club No Longer Contracts With the Fund for Public Interest
This month, the Portland branch of progressive fundraising organization Fund for the Public Interest officially fired the last remaining member of an initial union bargaining team that has been trying to obtain better working conditions for its canvassers. The Fund for the Public Interest is a giant canvassing organization—in 2010 (the most current year for […]
Posted inBikes
Bike Craft in Portland This Weekend!
December is a mess of local craft and art shows every weekend, but one of my favorites is coming up: Bike Craft is at Sandbox Studio (420 NE 9th Ave) this Saturday and Sunday. If you’re going to be spending money on holiday presents, you might as well spend it at Portland small businesses. About […]
Posted inNews
Good Morning News!
Close Guantanamo. A big new report by the government says that Guantanamo could be safely closed and its inmates absorbed into US prisons. Meanwhile, the suicide of another detainee held for years is under investigation. Fast Food Strike! To launch a campaign to unionize fast food workers, McDonalds staffers and other burger-flippers are on strike […]
Posted inLGBTQIA+
Your Guide to Getting Gay Married Next Week
JESSE CHAMPLIN Wahoo! Same-sex marriage will officially become possible in Washington next Thursday, December 6th. Readers lucky enough to reside in America’s Vancouver can apply that day for a marriage license at the Clark County clerk’s office. Portlanders who are still denied equal rights can’t get hitched in Vancouver (well, you can and be recognized […]