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GOOD MORNING, PORTLAND! Expect somewhat cooler weather this week with temps in the mid-70s to lower 80s—which means it's a great opportunity to (hint, hint) snap up a "SAY NICE THINGS ABOUT PORTLAND" T-shirt or tank from the Mercury! Look sexy while saying something... at least that's my motto, anyway. Another motto: Some NEWS is better than no NEWS—so here's some NEWS!

IN LOCAL NEWS:

• Let's say "bye-bye-bye" (at least for now) to the violent antics of Proud Boy/Patriot Prayer member Tusitala "Tiny" Toese who's going away for an eight-year stint in prison for his involvement in a 2021 Proud Boys brawl with antifascists at an abandoned Kmart parking lot in North Portland (yes, the same one that burned down last week and is teeming with asbestos). Prosecutors pushed for a long sentence due to Toese's “long-term involvement in violent activity”—a lot of which he and his toxic, awful pals inflicted on Portland for the last few years. Soooooo, "Tiny"... don't let the prison door slap your ass on the way in! 👋

• A reminder to stick it to Commissioner Gonzalez:

• Want to know more about that burned down Kmart that has neighbors rightfully concerned after it was discovered there was asbestos in the debris and toxic ash rained over the area? (As if that neighborhood hasn't had enough trauma.) Our Taylor Griggs has the details.

• On Saturday, a security officer was shot and killed while another person was injured by an assailant at Portland's Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center. A suspect was tracked down to NE 181st Ave in Gresham where he was shot and killed by three Portland police officers. As usual, the bureau hasn't released any substantial information on the shooting or the officers names. Stand by for more details.

• Despite the fact that NOBODY ASKED THEM, the Oregonian Editorial Board (AKA the print media arm of the Portland Business Alliance) published an op-ed this weekend that tried (and ultimately failed) to defend corrupt Commissioners Gonzalez and Ryan in their baldfaced attempt to sabotage the voter mandated charter reform—a clumsy attempt which happily blew up in their faces, ha-ha-ha. Anyway, the primary intent of the Oregonian's op-ed is to sow discontent about the popular charter reform process... and fun fact: their president John Maher also sits on the board of the PBA. I MEAN, C'MON... WHY WOULDN'T YOU TRUST THEM?? 

IN NATIONAL/WORLD NEWS:

• Protesters are taking to the streets as extreme right-wingers in Israel's parliament have passed a law that curtails their Supreme Court’s ability to overturn decisions made by the government, substantially lessening their power and dealing a frightening blow to democracy in that country. 

• In the battle for the weekend box office, Barbie easily defeated Oppenheimer by earning $155 million to the birth of the atomic bomb's $80.5 million—though both films are great and far exceeded projections. However the biggest losers of the weekend (as usual) were Republican man-babies.

• Once again Elon Musk proves he is a ridiculous fool by replacing the perfectly serviceable bird logo attached to Twitter with a weird "X" that is simultaneously boring and menacing? Musk added that we should no longer call the posts on his site "tweets," and instead refer to them as "Xs." 🙄 The depth of his ignorance remains staggering.

• Not the headline anyone wants to read today: "Body cam footage shows Ohio police unleash K9 to attack unarmed Black man after he surrendered."

• There's a growing movement among dingbat House Republicans to expunge the impeachments of former prez Donald Trump, which the more moderate wing of the GOP is vocally against, because... c'mon... even they aren't as stupid as Elon Musk.

• And finally... "I do NOT give my consent!!!"