Good morning, Portland! Happy Friday to all. It's gonna be hot again this weekend...but did you hear the RAIN last night?? I fell asleep to the sound, and it was glorious. Perhaps we'll get lucky and there will be more next week, as is currently on the forecast. (Can you tell I'm counting down the days until summer is over???) 

But enough wallowing in summertime sadness from me. We've got some news to get to.

IN LOCAL NEWS: 

• Though right-wing blogger Andy Ngo lost the lawsuit against two anti-fascist activists in a Multnomah County case earlier this month, he ended up being awarded $300,000 in damages this week, requiring three people who didn't attend the initial trial to pay Ngo $100,000 each. One of them says they never received proper legal notice about the lawsuit, and therefore couldn't attend...because they didn't know it was going on. Our Courtney Vaughn has more. 

• Outdoor dining in Portland, which took over curb spaces outside restaurants at the start of the pandemic, is staying—with some tweaks. This week, Portland City Council voted to approve a report on the Portland Bureau of Transportation's (PBOT) Outdoor Dining program, setting standards for the future of outdoor dining in Portland. I am in favor of anything that takes street space away from cars, so I think this is great. 

• The Smith River Complex fire on the Oregon/California border is growing, and a dangerous fire weather outlook this weekend is making firefighters nervous. Once again, I'm calling on the sky for a big downpour. Why won't the clouds hear me??? (But seriously, good luck to all the brave firefighters.) 

IN NATIONAL/WORLD NEWS:

• Alright, folks. It's finally here: the mugshot heard 'round the world. That's right, Donald Trump was booked in Atlanta last night for his latest indictment, and unlike in the (MANY) other ongoing legal squabbles he's involved in, they got his mug this time. People on The Platform Formerly Known As Twitter were taking bets on what facial expression Trump would be making in the shot—he ended up going for a passionate scowl, one eyebrow slightly raised. It's quite the image.

If humanity is lucky enough to make it out of the next 20ish years alive, I just KNOW US History students will have a field day adding graphic eyeliner and other Sharpie modifications to the photo. All we can do is pray it's not followed by a section about Trump's second term in office. But if that ends up being the case, I think the odds for humanity's survival dwindle substantially anyway. 

• Earlier this month, Maui experienced the deadliest U.S. wildfire in the past 100 years. Now, Maui County is suing the Hawaiian Electric Co. for damages, saying its negligence caused the fires. This lawsuit sounds pretty similar to what happened in Oregon after the Labor Day fires three years ago: 

• Duneheads and Timothée Chalamet lovers, I have bad news. Due to the ongoing actors strike, which restricts movie stars from doing promotional campaigns, Warner Brothers has decided to postpone the release of Dune: Part Two until March 2024. The consensus I'm seeing about this is largely that while everyone supports the actors (and writers) currently striking and want to see them come out strong, it's still a disappointing move (and ultimately demonstrates just how money-hungry these studios are, which is exactly why the strike is happening in the first place). Either way, you'll have to hold tight to see what's new with Paul Atreides + Co. (Can you tell I'm a bandwagon fan who hasn't read the books??) 

• Finally, take a look at Rosa the sea otter. And HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

 
 
 
 
 
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A post shared by Monterey Bay Aquarium (@montereybayaquarium)