If the first couple of weeks of the year have been any indication, 2007 will be the Year of the Ban. Already on the chopping block—trans fats, smoking in parks, and wiping snot on city property. This Thursday, January 11, City Commissioner Dan Saltzman was scheduled to revisit his new proposed parks conduct rules, which […]
Scott Moore
Posted inNews
On Their Best Behavior
On the First Day, the Oregon House Banned Gifts
After a series of opening ceremonies that stretched on for hours, including songs from seemingly every elementary school in Oregon, both houses of the state legislature finally used their first day in session to get to work. First up on the block: changing the way lawmakers do business. In many ways, the legislative kickoff—on Monday, […]
Posted inMovies & TV
Boyz in the ‘Burbs
Alpha Dog Brings Sexy Back
THE OPENING SCENE of Nick Cassavetes’ Alpha Dog is a little groan inducing—several young, white pseudo-thugs lift weights and posture about, acting as tough as possible. My first impression was that Cassavetes had failed miserably; his “thugs” were utterly unconvincing. But within 10 or 15 minutes, it became apparent that the director actually nailed his […]
Posted inNews
Getting Winded
Wind Power Talks Still Dragging On
For nearly two years, the City of Portland has been in contract negotiations with a local power company, PPM, to provide all of the city’s municipal energy through wind power. The deal will make Portland the first city in the country to use all renewable energy for the government’s power needs—but not unless the two […]
Posted inNews
Hall Monitor
Raw Deal
City council may have taken off for a week (or more, depending on who you ask), but hot city action was still lurking around every corner. For instance! The Portland Development Commission released yet another appraisal of the embattled SW 3rd and Oak property, which it wants to develop into “market rate” housing—AKA condos for […]
Posted inMusic
Irrepressible Authenticity
My Morning Jacket Is the Best Band in the World
THE LAST TIME My Morning Jacket played Portland, the front of the Aladdin Theater stage was crammed with fans, none of whom were about to let rows and rows of obstructive seats get in the way of totally flippin’ rocking out. Seriously—just to get to the bathroom, I had to scale a five-foot railing and […]
Posted inNews
19 Things Not Invited Back to 2007!
Tired of all the annoying annoyances you had to put up with in 2006? Well, instead of crying about it, we’ve come up with a simple solution: “HEY, TOP 19 ANNOYING THINGS OF 2006! YOU’RE NOT INVITED BACK!“ Non–Sexy Emails from Former Police Chief Derrick Foxworth Yeah, yeah. WE KNOW. It’s supposedly “morally repugnant” to […]
Posted inNews
A Tale of Two Chinatowns
Has the PDC Split the Chinese Community?
On January 8, a meeting is scheduled to take place between the Regional Arts and Culture Council (RACC) and Portland’s Chinese community. The topic of discussion: Old Town/Chinatown’s controversial new dragon sculptures (“Chasing the Dragon,” News, Dec 14). But the meeting will take place 8.6 miles away from Chinatown on SE 82nd—raising questions about the […]
Posted inNews
Hall Monitor
Clip show
Like your grandma after that third box of Franzia, city council is shutting down for Christmas week. Four of the five commissioners are out of town, and Dan Saltzman can’t quite make up a quorum by himself. So guess what, long-suffering readers—I’m treating (?) you to a clip show of sorts. As I rifled through […]
Posted inBooks
Letter To A Christian Nation
Much has been written in the past year about the New Atheist “movement,” about the increasing aggressiveness of some secular humanists trying to rid public discourse of unquestioned tolerance for—and deference to—religious beliefs. And no one personifies that movement in America more than Sam Harris. With his first book, End of Faith, Harris threw out […]
Posted inNews
Hall Monitor
So Long, Nancy
After a couple of weeks of speculation, Mayor Tom Potter’s chief of staff, Nancy Hamilton, announced last Wednesday, December 13, that she was stepping down. The official line from the mayor is that she’s leaving “to pursue other opportunities,” but even Hamilton admits that the mayor’s office needed her to hit the road. Over the […]
Posted inNews
Un-SAFE At Any Speed?
City Rushes Forward on New Sit-Lie Rule
Over the objections of some homeless advocates, Portland city council seemed poised to approve an ordinance on Wednesday, December 20, that would bring back a kinder, gentler version of the city’s defunct sit-lie ordinance. The ordinance is being pushed through as part of a package of recommendations brought forward by the Street Access For Everyone […]