This will be the last shopping-related event I tell you about in 2013. Probably. Fairly certain. Anyhow: The folks at New Refined Basics (good jewelry that’s just what it says it is) and Spacecraft (a more-complicated-to-describe design studio whose projects have included furniture and light fixtures as well as fine art) are teaming up for […]
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Posted inPolitics
Mayor Bloomberg Says God Wants Him to Be Rich, Poor People to Starve
Someone finally asked New York’s outgoing mayor for his opinion on that New York Times story about the homeless girl named Dasani. His response? Outgoing Mayor Michael Bloomberg (I-NY) went on the defensive when asked whether he was moved by the New York Times’ powerful series on a homeless family struggling to survive in New […]
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Bitcoin: What a Difference a Day Makes
In today’s edition of the Mercury, I wrote a news story about bitcoin and how it is making inroads into the local tech world and various local businesses. A few weeks ago, when I sat in on the meetup group I wrote about in the piece, bitcoin was on a huge upswing. As I wrote: […]
Posted inPolitics
If We Cut the Safety Net, Almost a Third Of All Americans Would Be Below the Poverty Line
You should read this whole New York Times report on poverty from Eduardo Potter. It’s about how our attitudes toward the poor in America have changed, and how we’re losing the war on poverty. But I think one paragraph in the piece is the most important part. It highlights exactly what’s wrong with the Republican […]
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This Week’s Style Events
Things are slowing down/we’re running out of time/it’s almost over. But there are a few local shopping events wrapping up this week that are here to save those of us still plugging away at the gifting thing: —Tonight the shops of 811 E Burnside are staying open late with discounts and cocktails at shops like […]
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This Week’s Style Events
How many shopping events are happening from now through the weekend? If you guessed “one hundred billion kajillion,” you are correct! It’s borderline impossible to keep track of them all which is why, yet again, I’ve collected them in tidy order for you over in Sold Out. However, they just keep coming, so be sure […]
Posted inNews
Surprise $1 Million Question Almost Held Up Police Contract Vote
The city’s proposed new four-year contract with the Portland Police Association is finally expected to become official next week—later than initially expected, the Mercury has learned, after some last-minute heartburn over a new provision ending payouts for time off earned while working holidays. Anna Kanwit, director of the Bureau of Human Resources, confirmed that city […]
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Canada to Phase Out Door-to-Door Mail Delivery
Jacob Kastrenakes at The Verge says: Canada’s postal service will phase out door-to-door delivery over the next five years. Citing the rise of digital communications and a projected loss of CAD$1 billion by 2020, Canada Post today outlined a series of actions that it would take to streamline its organization and reduce losses. In particular, […]
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This Week’s MASSIVE Roundup of Style Events
I think Black Friday/weekend is going to lose its cred as the biggest shopping weekend of the year, because at least around here, the two weeks that follow are bonkers. This week’s Sold Out column is part 1 of a 2-part series in which I shut my mouth and just give you the facts about […]
Posted inReligion
Fox News: The Pope Doesn’t Know Anything About Economics
The Pope doesn’t know anything about economics, argues a Fox News columnist, so Pope Francis really should shut his mouth about youth unemployment or income inequality. Currently digging through the columnist’s archives to see if he objected to the previous pope commenting on abortion, birth control, adoption, and gay sex—also not areas of expertise for […]
Posted inReligion
Teabagger Says “Jesus Christ Is Weeping in Heaven” Because Pope Francis Doesn’t Love Capitalism
Raw Story’s Travis Gettys says that prominent Virginia teabagger Jonathon Moseley took issue with Pope Francis’s claims that unfettered capitalism is hurting the world. Moseley wrote an essay titled “Jesus Christ is a capitalist” that tries to take the Pope on using scripture. Moseley, a Virginia business and criminal defense attorney, supports his claim with […]
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It’s Cyber Monday. Buy Things Or Don’t, It’s Fine Either Way
I appreciate everybody taking to Facebook this weekend to tell their social network not to buy things. It’s really sweet of you. On the other hand, we’re all old enough to decide our own feelings on capitalism. I buy things. I buy things on normal days, I buy things on holidays. I buy things for […]