BLOGTOWN

Newsblast!

Good Morning, News: Portland Police Changes Story About Patriot Prayer Guns, Trump Defends Saudis (and Kavanaugh), and Facebook Caught Lying

by Wm. Steven Humphrey • Wednesday at 8:43 am

Stay up to date on Portland news and politics. Looking for fun? Here are the best Things to Do in Portland today.

1533506516-bunch.patrick-7315.jpg
Patrick Bunch

GOOD MORNING, PORTLAND! There is only one for me, you have made that possibility. We can take that step to see if this is really gonna be. LET'S GO TO PRESS.

OKAY: So remember the other day when the Portland Police casually dropped the news that they didn't think it was important for us to know about those Patriot Prayer thugs gathering on a downtown rooftop garage with weapons overlooking an August rally? Now they're saying that it was "only" three rifles in cases, and the officer who discovered them asked the thugs to put the guns away, and never filed a report about it. Think they would've been so nice if antifa protesters were on that rooftop? Or if it had been a political candidate rally? That is some alarming bullshit right there.

Speaking of protests, will Mayor Ted Wheeler's new proposed rules about how, where, and when people demonstrate hold up in court? Our Alex Zielinski talked to the experts.

Nike's Phil Knight, after pumping $1.5 million into GOP gubernatorial candidate Knute Buehler's campaign, has now given another million to the Republican Governors Association—because maybe he wants to squander all the good will Nike got from hiring Colin Kaepernik?

According to a new study, Oregon paramedics give worse care to Black and Asian people than their white patients.

More evidence emerges tying Saudi royalty to the probable murder and dismemberment of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Meanwhile Donald Trump continues to defend and make excuses for the Saudis, now tying the accusations to his defense of unworthy Supreme Court judge Brett Kavanaugh.


Twitter has published some 10 million tweets from Russia and Iran that shed light on how they meddled in the 2016 election.

A plane carrying Melania Trump and reporters was forced to return to its base after the cabin began to fill with smoke. It landed safely.

It's been revealed that during this past summer over 9,000 deportation cases were dropped after the Supreme Court ruled against them for faulty paperwork.

Canada has bested America again by becoming the first major world economy to legalize recreational cannabis. (Say bye-bye to our tourist dollars!)

Beto O'Rourke got fiery in his final debate with Ted Cruz, picking away at his record and borrowing Trump's nickname for the senator, "Lyin' Ted."

A new lawsuit accuses Facebook of lying to advertisers and falsely inflating the average viewing time of their videos—causing bad things to happen.


Roseanne has returned without weirdo racist Roseanne Barr, and has been renamed The Connors, with an episode about the matriarch dying from an opioid overdose.

Meanwhile weirdo racist Roseanne Barr is not happy about the show's handling of her character, but really: who cares what this weirdo racist thinks?

POOR, POOR SEXUAL PREDATOR:


Now let's look skyward to the WEATHER: Another clear, gorgeous day with a high of 77!

And finally, this mashup of Kendrick Lamar and A-ha's "Take on Me" is a work of goddamn sorcery. BURN THE WITCH!!


News

Are Mayor Wheeler's Proposed Protest Rules Legal?

by Alex Zielinski • Tuesday at 6:37 pm

1527807723-dbgcwhtvyaa4vej.jpg
Dirk Vanderhart

In the 24 hours since Mayor Ted Wheeler first laid out an emergency ordinance to restrict potentially violent protests in Portland, city officials, civil rights groups, and legal experts have raised concerns about the proposal's legality.

The ordinance would broaden the city's ability to apply "content-neutral time, place, and manner" restrictions to any protest in Portland city limits. Specifically, it would allow the police commissioner (who, at the moment, is Wheeler) to limit the duration, location, and size of a protest if there are two or more groups involved that have a "history of violence" or if there is a "likelihood of violence" based on protesters' conduct. The commissioner can also order limitations on a protest if they believe that protest will endanger bystanders.

This ordinance is a direct response to the weekend's violent clash between Patriot Prayer, a right-wing group, and members of anti-fascist (or antifa) groups in downtown Portland.

“We don’t tolerate violence in our streets," said Wheeler at yesterday's press conference announcing the ordinance. "Violence is not, and has never been, a legitimate means to a political end."

He said the proposed ordinance aims to protect both "the freedom of expression for demonstrators and the safety of the entire community."

But will it hold up in court?

Continue reading »

Things to Do Wednesday!

by Mercury Things to Do Staff • Tuesday at 6:30 pm

St. Paul & The Broken Bones, Black Pumas
Sadly, Austin psychedelic soul outfit Black Pumas only have one single to their name, “Black Moon Rising,” but it is one GREAT fucking song. Based solely on the immense strength of their Pickathon set, I highly recommend seeing the Black Pumas live. The fusion of singer Eric Burton and producer Adrian Quesada manifests in fleshed-out, guitar-driven, vintage-sounding soul that’s sure to win over any audience member with a pulse, and make all of you want to buy a “Black Pumas” T-shirt. (8:30 pm, Crystal Ballroom, $35-38, all ages) JENNI MOORE

Richard Reed Parry's Quiet River
Imagine spending 15 years playing in indie rock mega-band Arcade Fire, where every album release is a global event and every show is a giant, life affirming crescendo. Sounds exhausting, doesn’t it? It’s no surprise, then, that someone like Richard Reed Parry—Arcade Fire’s redheaded multi-instrumentalist—might use his time off from the main gig to retreat into something much smaller and more intimate, with more personal connection. Enter Parry’s new folk-rock song cycle, Quiet River of Dust, Vol. 1: This Side of the River. It’s a lovely little listen, packed with adventurous takes on folk traditions and inspired by hikes through Japan, supernatural experiences, mythological concepts, and the music of Arthur Russell, Tom Waits, and Parry’s late father. Is Parry going to headline Madison Square Garden with this stuff? Probably not, but that’s surely part of the point. (9 pm, Mississippi Studios, $17-20)

Zhu
When Steven Zhu—who uses his surname as his onstage moniker—first started posting to SoundCloud in early 2014, he chose to remain anonymous and let his music be judged on merit alone. Now he's a Grammy-nominated artist for his club-friendly "Faded." Zhu's musical influences and versatility become apparent when you listen to The Genesis Series, a six-track EP of collabs with artists from Bone Thugs-n-Harmony to Skrillex and Mind of a Genius labelmate Gallant. (8 pm, Roseland, $35-40, all ages) JENNI MOORE

R.O. Kwon, Elena Passarello
The Incendiaries is R. O. Kwon's bestselling novel about two young students who meet at Edwards University and are drawn into a secretive cult with a penchant for committing violent acts. Kwon will be joined in conversation by Elena Passarello, author of Animals Strike Curious Poses and Let Me Clear My Throat. (7:30 pm, Powell's City of Books, free)

Lebenden Toten, Violent Party, Destripados, Genogeist
Bands on the crusty end of the punk spectrum might pay lip service to the terrible beauty of chaos, but the medium rarely matches the message—it doesn’t get much more musically conservative than a two-minute blast of Discharge worship. Portland’s noise punk rulers Lebenden Toten are a bracing reminder that spiky punk can still shock, and last year’s Mind Parasites LP might be the band’s most forceful statement yet. An exhausting and essential listen, the album is a 20-minute tour of an infernal punk landscape that is all singing static and melting borders, and the songs that live there sound like monsters feeding on the madness. It is messy and ugly and beautiful. (8 pm, The Lovecraft, $8) CHRIS STAMM

The Twilight Sad
The Twilight Sad's well-crafted wall of sound, led by James Graham's thick Scottish accent, is likely to stick in your head after a few listens. (9 pm, Doug Fir, $16-18) CHRISTINA BROUSSARD

Soweto Gospel Choir
The renowned South African gospel group bring "Songs of the Free" to the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, celebrating the life of Nelson Mandela with a set of South African classics and beloved freedom and gospel songs. (7:30 pm, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, $30-50)

Don't forget to check out our Things To Do calendar for even more things to do!

Books • Comedy

Erin Gibson’s Feminasty Is a Blazing Collection of Feminist Essays

by Suzette Smith • Tuesday at 4:45 pm

Feminasty-ErinGibsonbookcover.png
Courtesy of the artist / Grand Central Publishing

For many loyal listeners, the hilarious and topical Throwing Shade podcast is a safe space to learn about the news of the week (generally bad) via comic geniuses Erin Gibson and Bryan Safi. They discuss issues “affecting ladies and gays” and have been doing so since 2011. The Obama era? Did we even have problems then? (Yes.)

Throwing Shade was the first podcast I ever looked forward to and I’m continually impressed by the things I see its co-host Erin Gibson create. Gibson was a political writer for the punchy, sophomoric Funny or Die comedy site even before she and Safi began collaborating on Throwing Shade. She also created, writes, and directs Funny or Die’s Gay of Thrones, which I am obsessed with and which stars her real-life hairstylist Queer Eye’s Jonathan Van Ness.

Now Erin Gibson has produced a hilarious fiery screed of a book, Feminasty: The Complicated Woman’s Guide to Surviving the Patriarchy Without Drinking Herself to Death, which functions partly as a teachable moment autobiography and partly as Gibson’s opportunity to take on some of the perennial feminist beefs of our time. (For example, Woody Allen: “Jesus take the wheel. ‘I liked her youth and energy’ is something a fantasy villain says before using an amulet to suck the life force out of a newborn.”)

Continue reading »
Election 2018

ACLU Puts Out Excellent Ad Saying to Vote 'No' On Measure 105

by Jenni Moore • Tuesday at 4:20 pm


Today the ACLU of Oregon put out a stellar ad featuring the voices of refugees and immigrants who've lived in Oregon since youth. The ad hits the nail on the head, making clear that measure 105 is unjust, fear-based, and just plain cruel.

If passed, Measure 105 would repeal a decades-old immigration law that limits local law enforcement's participation with federal immigration authorities. The 1987 law, meant to prevent racial profiling and stop local agencies from spending their dollars on catching undocumented immigrants, says that no law enforcement can use its funds, equipment or personnel for the purpose of detecting someone whose only offense is being in the country illegally. A 'no' vote would keep the old law in place, and reaffirm Oregon's status as a "sanctuary state." In 1987, it was passed almost unanimously amongst state lawmakers, with bipartisan support.

Also, TODAY IS THE LAST DAY YOU CAN REGISTER TO VOTE IN OREGON. The deadline is at 11:59:59 PT, and you can even complete your voter registration online. Go do it!

Weekday Trumpdate: Campaigner-in-Chief Raises Unprecedented Campaign Funds, Calls Stormy Daniels a Horseface, This Is Hell

by Chase Burns • Tuesday at 4:10 pm

LEAVE HORSES ALONE.
LEAVE HORSES ALONE. Getty Images

I don't know. Where do we even begin? With the money? The "horseface" comment? Sigh.

Maybe with what Savage wrote this morning:

Continue reading »
Sports • Portland

Comedian Ian Karmel on Paul Allen (and Portland)

by Ned Lannamann • Tuesday at 2:29 pm

GettyImages-55855165-WinMcNamee.jpg
Win McNamee / Getty Images

Comedian, writer, former Mercury columnist, and all-around great guy Ian Karmel has written a hilarious and heartfelt essay for the Ringer about Microsoft co-founder and multibillionaire Paul Allen, who died yesterday. Allen owned the Portland Trail Blazers, and Karmel eloquently writes about both being a massive Blazers fan and how Allen's ownership affected the team's home city (for the better). Karmel writes:

I didn’t know the guy and I’m not a journalist. I’m a Trail Blazers fan, and for all but four years of my life, Paul Allen owned my favorite team. I met him once, though only by the loosest definition of the word “met.” After a game, he walked by in an expensive sweater that didn’t look expensive, and I choked out the words “thanks for owning the Blazers” — which is a deeply silly thing to say to someone, like telling Jon Hamm “thanks for having a big penis.” I said it anyway, though, and I meant it.
Karmel gently touches on something that's hard to articulate—about what it's like to see your hometown change in front of your eyes, and why constants, like the Blazers, are so important in keeping a city's identity. "Sometimes it’s nice to care a lot about the things that ultimately don’t really matter that much," Karmel writes, while effectively providing hard evidence that these things, in fact, do matter, and quite a lot.

It's a great essay. Go over to the Ringer and read it.

Movies & TV • Music

John Carpenter's New Halloween Score Is Great, Surprising No One

by Erik Henriksen • Tuesday at 2:08 pm

GettyImages-596242078.png
Getty / Awakening / Stringer

"I came from music. My father was a music teacher. I grew up with it," Halloween director John Carpenter told the Mercury's Aris Hunter Wales in 2016, shorty before he came through Portland to perform songs from his albums Lost Themes and Lost Themes II. "My first love is cinema. It's always going to be, I think. But [the Lost Themes records] are an opportunity to do something and have sort of a second act in my career."

This weekend, a new Halloween movie opens (read our interview with co-writer Danny McBride here), and while Carpenter isn't directing it, he did provide the score. Carpenter's unmistakable music has been wildly influential and widely imitated, but nothing else ever comes close to it; for many, the chance to hear a new Carpenter score is just as exciting as getting to see Michael Myers back on the big screen.

Yesterday, Sacred Bones Records released "Halloween Triumphant," one of the tracks from Carpenter's new Halloween score. It's Carpenter-y and Halloween-y in all the best ways, with a thudding, propulsive menace pulsing through his now-familiar theme:

"I only had three days to write it, and the main title was a piano riff on my father teaching me 5/4 time on the bongos when I was 13," Carpenter recently told the New York Times about his original Halloween score from 1978. I'm guessing he had a bit longer than three days to write this new one, and I'm antsy for Sacred Bones to put the rest of it out there already. They will on Friday.

Cannabis

Is Weed a Good Thing? Tell the FDA Your Thoughts!

by Josh Jardine • Tuesday at 1:59 pm

gettyimages_yaryginedit.jpg
YARYGIN / GETTY IMAGES

Would you like to share your thoughts with the Federal Gubbermint about cannabis? I hope so, because from now until October 31, they actually want to hear from you about your fondness for the devil's lettuce. Actually, they're looking to hear from ALL people who have feelings about weed—including those who believe it's a bad, scary, harmful drug that turns users into violent zombies—so it's important that we make our voices heard. While this isn't as important as remembering to VOTE on November 6, consider it a dry run.

As Marijuana Moment reports, the World Health Organization (WHO)'s Expert Committee on Drug Dependence (ECDD) is meeting next month to consider the classification of cannabis and other substances such as fentanyl and several synthetic cannabinoids, and is now seeking to “gather information on the legitimate use, harmful use, status of national control and potential impact of international control.”

The FDA is gathering comments regarding "abuse potential, actual abuse, medical usefulness, trafficking, and impact of scheduling changes on availability for medical use”—the hope being that if enough people submit comments that are pro-cannabis, it may be removed from the Schedule I status it so erroneously holds right now. Mind you, this is the FDA we're talking about, so I'm not suggesting an investment into party hats just yet.

So, partake in whatever format you most enjoy, then do your part here (click on the "Comment Now!" box) by making the "type type" noises.

News

Portland Police Give New Version of August 4 Events. (It's Still Concerning.)

by Alex Zielinski • Tuesday at 1:44 pm

1533504485-img_8816.jpg
Kathleen Marie

Yesterday, the Portland Police Bureau's top brass told reporters that officers had encountered several individuals with loaded firearms prior to an August 4 protest organized by Patriot Prayer, a right-wing activist group. The officers did not charge or arrest the individuals because they all had permits allowing them to carry a concealed weapon, but they did confiscate the weapons. Deputy Chief Ryan Lee told reporters the individuals were associated with Patriot Prayer.

Now, less than 24 hours later, PPB's telling a different story.

According to PPB spokesperson Christopher Burley, a sergeant encountered four men hanging out on the top floor of a parking garage located about three blocks from Salmon Springs Fountain—where the Patriot Prayer protest was expected to take place later that day. The men had three rifles—all in cases and all unloaded—with them and had ammo on hand.

Continue reading »
Food and Drink

Restaurant Review: Smallwares Is Back with Big Flavors

by Andrea Damewood • Tuesday at 1:15 pm

dsc_5675.jpg
Meg Nanna

Smallwares is back, although it kind of never left.

When it debuted in 2012, Chef Johanna Ware’s restaurant, which introduced Asian flavors never before seen in Portland, earned top critical marks across the board. The spot in Northeast Fremont’s Beaumont-Wilshire neighborhood made an indelible mark on the city’s dining scene, with iconic dishes like deep fried kale with candied bacon doused in fish sauce and mint.

In 2016, Ware closed up shop—the restaurant’s bold fusion never took full hold on a street where pancakes, burritos, and mini donuts fare best. In 2017, there came Wares in Northeast Sandy’s The Zipper, featuring greatest hits like ramen, oysters, and that kale.

2018 brings the new old Smallwares, now open in the former Chalino space on North Fremont and Williams. The hits are back, along with an array of new plates that, for the most part, keep pushing Ware’s inventive palette forward.

Continue reading »

A Message From the President of the United States

by Dan Savage • Tuesday at 10:24 am

This president is the most presidential president we've had since Lincoln was president, according to our current president, and here's what our second most presidential president was tweeting out this morning...

presidenthorseface.jpeg

The intended insult—directed at Stormy Daniels—is by definition presidential behavior. (Call it "Conway's Law.") But to be clear: the president—this president—took to Twitter this morning to insult the looks of a porn star (with a Twitter account of her own) that he paid for sex shortly after the birth of his fifth child by his third wife and then paid an additional $130,000 to that same porn star in order to buy her silence about the unprotected sex they'd had in the weeks before the 2016 election and the evangelical right is just fine with this. And then there's the unintended insult, the self-own there at the end, all thanks to the misuse of a comma. Presidential punctuation is as presidential punctuation does.

And, yes, this tweet, like all his others, is no doubt meant to distract us from the corruption, theft, and self-dealing, as well as the destruction of the planet, and I fell for it.

Sneaker Wave

Check Out Blossom's Latest Music Video, "Your Heart"—STARRING ME

by Jenni Moore • Tuesday at 9:48 am


HUMBLE BRAG ALERT:
I never mentioned this in my Sneaker Wave column before, but Portland-based neo soul singer Blossom released a gorgeous visual for "Your Heart" in late summer, and I'm sort of in it. Briefly. On three occasions.

The 2017 single "Your Heart" is from Blossom's debut LP Tease with producer Hot16. The short film is directed by Jeredon O'Conner, who did a fantastic job capturing the divine feminine vibes and putting it together.
See if you can spot my cute, yet brief, cameos.

Newsblast!

Good Morning, News: Portland Police Withheld Info About Patriot Prayer Gun Stash, and REGISTER TO VOTE TODAY, OKAY??

by Wm. Steven Humphrey • Tuesday at 8:47 am

Stay up to date on Portland news and politics. Looking for fun? Here are the best Things to Do in Portland today.

Patriot Prayer Member in August: Not Ready to Commit Violence, Like, At All.
Patriot Prayer Member in August: Not Ready to Commit Violence, Like, At All. Kenton Waltz

GOOD MORNING, PORTLAND! I feel the night explode when we're together. Emotion overload in the heat of pleasure. LET'S GO TO PRESS.

In a press conference yesterday afternoon about the latest Patriot Prayer rumble downtown, Portland Police spoke of a rally in August in which Patriot Prayer members were discovered with loaded guns on top of a parking garage downtown right above where protesters were expected to congregate. The police apparently "redirected" them, but never deemed it necessary to inform the public. Join me now in saying, "WHAT. THE. FUCK."

At this same hastily called press conference, Mayor Ted Wheeler announced new rules to govern protests in the city, to wit: "…the proposed ordinance allows the police commissioner to decide what time, how long, and where the slated protest will take place—along with how many participants are allowed to participate in the demonstration." People are already raising constitutional concerns about that, and for very good reason.

Billionaire/Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen has died following a lengthy battle with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. He was 65.

The conservative leaning editorial board of the Portland Tribune has joined the conservative leaning editorial board of the Oregonian in endorsing GOP gubernatorial candidate/fake moderate Knute Buehler.

It appears President Trump is setting up a smoke screen for the Saudis in regards to the brutal killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, saying his murderers could've been "rogue killers." (Or, you know, that hacker "sitting on their bed who weighs 400 pounds.")

Democrats are doing much better than Republicans in midterm fundraising for key Congressional districts, but big money interests are keeping the GOP's wallets nice and fat.

(Ahem.) TODAY IS THE LAST DAY TO REGISTER TO VOTE IN OREGON. DO IT HERE, AND MAKE SURE YOU'RE REGISTERED AS WELL. THEN MAKE SURE YOUR NOT-AS-SMART-AS-YOU FRIENDS ARE REGISTERED, TOO!


Stormy Daniel's (extremely credible) defamation lawsuit against the president has been thrown out by a federal judge, who also ordered the businesswoman to pay Trump's legal fees.


Today in "Trump is a goddamn idiot": THIS PAINTING.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren decided to play Trump's game by getting a DNA test that proves her Native American ancestry, and now is getting heat from tribal leaders and activists. Oh, and her test results didn't stop our racist president from calling her "Pocahontas" again.

Former Senate Intelligence Committee Security Director James Wolfe pleaded guilty to lying to FBI agents in regards to information leaks within the White House.

I am behind this 100 percent: "Cursed: witches are planning a public hexing of Brett Kavanaugh."

ROYAL BABY BUZZ: Pippa Middleton has a baby boy, and (ICYMI) new royal Meghan Markle is expecting a baby next spring. THE MONARCHY CONTINUES!

Now let's look at the WEATHER: Another gorgeous sunny day with a high of 77!

And finally, here is the Halloween/Pee-Wee Herman mashup you didn't know you desperately needed.

News

City Leaders Raise Constitutional Concerns About Mayor Wheeler's Proposed Protest Rules

by Alex Zielinski • Monday at 8:34 pm

IMG_3347.jpeg
Alex Zielinski

Mayor Ted Wheeler outlined a new city ordinance today that would tighten rules around protests prone to violence.

The ordinance, announced days after downtown Portland witnessed yet another violent clash between right-wing and left-wing protesters, would put the police commissioner in charge of determining if a planned protest will become a threat to public safety based on "statements or conduct" by members of any protesting groups or based on "other credible information" obtained by police before the event. (A reminder: Wheeler is currently the police commissioner.)

If a protest is deemed dangerous by these new rules, the proposed ordinance allows the police commissioner to decide what time, how long, and where the slated protest will take place—along with how many participants are allowed to participate in the demonstration.

Mat dos Santos, legal director at the ACLU of Oregon, has already raised concerns about the constitutionality of this proposal.

Continue reading »

Next