The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support!

Blue Origin Powerful Wand Massager with 8 Speeds,  20 Vibration Modes. âś“prime FREE Delivery Sat, Jul 24
"Blue Origin Powerful Wand Massager with 8 Speeds, 20 Vibration Modes. âś“prime FREE Delivery Sat, Jul 24" Joe Raedle / Getty News

GOOD MORNING, PORTLAND! 'Cause you're the object of my desire. Baby, ignite my fire, object of my desire. Hey, you really turn me on. LET'S GO TO PRESS.

IN LOCAL NEWS:

• You may have heard that the Portland Winterhawks hockey team recently changed their logo, from a racist caricature of an American Indian to a hawk, which... good for them. The bad news is that after years of lobbying, the Native American community were completely locked out of discussions and the reasons that Winterhawks management have for doing so are... not good. Our Alex Zielinski has more.

• A Portland police officer shot and wounded a man in a Northwest convenience store last night, for the crime of... *checks notes*... "eating food, not paying, and lying down on the floor." It's unclear at this time whether the victim was armed, and this marks the fourth time an officer has shot a citizen this year.

• A new plan, currently under the direction of City Commissioner Dan Ryan's office, will set up six Safe Rest Villages in Portland by the end of the year, and on city-owned property. Where are those possible locations, you ask? Well, our Alex Zielinski and Isabella Garcia have made a handy map for you!

• The gigantic Bootleg fire has now joined with the smaller Log fire, which means the blaze has grown to a whopping 388,359 acres—the largest wildfire in the nation.

• As the state gears up for what could very well be a historic wildfire season, Governor Brown and fire officials are telling residents to get prepared, and familiarize themselves with evacuation levels, make an emergency kit, and sign up for emergency alerts. Our Isabella Garcia also has a handy, necessary guide on how to prepare.

• It's been a helluva year for local, independent movie theaters, and our Blair Stenvick has a very sweet, interesting story on how two such venues survived and then thrived post-pandemic.

IN NATIONAL NEWS:

• According to public health officials, thanks to COVID-19, American life expectancy dropped by a year-and-a-half during 2020—the biggest decline since World War II. But wait... it gets worse. The life expectancies of Black and Hispanic Americans dropped by three years.

• Because they hate America, the Senate GOP are promising to shoot down a proposal from Sen. Chuck Schumer to begin debate on a bipartisan infrastructure bill—but Schumer has no intention of backing down.

• Speaking of Republican b-holes, Sen. Rand Paul got embarrassed yet again by Dr. Anthony Fauci after the Senator trotted out a number of ignorant COVID-related lies, and the doctor correctly informed him, "You don't know what you're talking about."

• GOOD NEWS: A federal judge has temporarily blocked an Arkansas law that bans nearly all abortions in the state, calling it an "imminent threat" to women.

• The US Women's soccer team had their butts handed to them by Sweden in a 3-0 stunner in the first game of the Olympics.

• In more sporting news: The Milwaukee Bucks have won their first NBA championship since 1971, thanks to a 50 point shooting spree from the great Giannis Antetokounmpo.

• Billionaire Jeff Bezos took his joy ride to the edge of space yesterday, and landed safely only to give an incredibly tone deaf statement about his customers and workers. Remind me again about why we haven't eaten the rich?

• Today in UNNNNGGGGGHHHH: "Couple charged in deadly California wildfire sparked during gender reveal."

• Too hot for ya? Get ready for a cool July because the Mercury's SUMMER OF SLUSHIES is serving up $5 delicious, boozy frozen concoctions from your fave bars all damn month long!

• And now... THE WEATHER REPORT: Mostly sunny today with a comfy high of 78.

• And finally... I've decided I need a random hype person in my life, too.