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Good morning, Portland! It’s not quite mid-summer yet, but it sure feels like it. We’re at the point in the year when evenings–which have hovered around the mid-70s lately–are really the star of the show. Speaking of stars and the sky, if you missed Sunday’s magnificent full moon, you can catch one again on August 19, when the sky graces us with a supermoon.

Maybe the recent full moon explains why the world has gone batty over the last week. 

In Local News:

  • A fire near Mosier in the Columbia River Gorge prompted evacuation orders for residents Monday afternoon. The Microwave Tower Fire broke out Monday and has burned at least 150 acres. By Monday early evening, the Wasco County Sheriff’s Office issued Level 3 “go now” evacuation orders for certain areas of the city, which sits about seven miles east of Hood River. An emergency evacuation center was set up at Hood River Middle School. On top of the fire in the gorge, Oregon has four megafires burning in Baker, Gilliam, Harney, and Malheur counties, meaning they’ve reached 100,000 acres or more.
  • Portland City Commissioner and mayoral candidate Rene Gonzalez is taking heat after giving a public nod to a known alt-right firebrand on social media. In a post on X Sunday, July 21, Gonzalez said "Antifa/anarchists have terrorized my family and city" in response to a reply from Andy Ngo on a prior thread Gonzalez made, boasting support for President Biden and VP Kamala Harris. Ngo argued it was local democratic leadership that "allowed the violence to happen" during 2020's prolonged racial justice protests and anti-fascist demonstrations that targeted police precincts and courthouses. Gonzalez gave in, agreeing that anti-fascist protesters (often called "antifa" for short) wreaked havoc, but noted it was under Trump's watch, as Trump sent in federal law enforcement officers and disparaged Portland on outlets like Fox News. Still, Gonzalez didn't hesitate to give credibility to Ngo, whose primary claim to fame is filming antifa protesters during clashes with alt-right militia groups like Patriot Prayer. "I appreciate you calling a spade a spade & recognize you have been terrorized for it," Gonzalez told Ngo in his post.
  • As the Southern Poverty Law Center puts it, Ngo "traffics in politically charged disinformation" and is known to cozy up with neofascist militia groups to gain access to, and protection from, antifa activists. Grassroots nonprofit group Portland for All said Gonzalez's validation and appreciation for Ngo presents "a serious problem."
  • Oregon is just six weeks away from HB 4002–the bill passed by the legislature to replace Measure 110–going into effect. The law will now make drug possession a crime again, but will still offer arrestees a treatment option, rather than jail. The snag? Multnomah County has yet to open new treatment centers. The situation is playing out much like the bungled rollout of Measure 110, in which the state failed to establish enough treatment beds in time, and failed to release funding for treatment centers once the measure went into effect. The county is slated to open a new deflection center (why can’t we just stick to the normal terminology, “diversion”?) but that may not be ready for another two years, and even when it opens, it will only accept patients who’ve been picked up by police for drug possession. Multnomah County also plans to turn a former trendy hotel into a detox center, but it’s unclear whether that will add enough detox beds to the current inventory.

In lighter news, if the world feels bizarre and heavy, allow yourself some levity and cut loose at Wednesday’s installment of the Mercury’s Two Evils game show. The show is hosted by local comedians Kate Murphy and Arlo Weierhauseur. Wednesday’s show will feature special guest Peachy Springs, who must answer questions comparing the lesser of two evils, while the audience also chimes in via survey from their phones. The guest contestant must guess the audience’s most popular response, or else!

In National/World News:

  • The deputy who shot 36-year-old Sonya Massey in the face in her home two weeks ago has been indicted for first-degree murder, as well as aggravated battery with a firearm and official misconduct. Sean Grayson, 30, was one of two deputies in Sangamon County, Illinois, who responded to Massey’s 911 call for help, after she reported a prowler near her house. Body camera footage released Monday shows the deputies talking with Massey in her home, then alerting her to a pot of boiling water on the stove. When one of the deputies said he was backing away from the steaming pot, Massey replied, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.” Grayson then got angry and threatened to shoot Massey in the face, shortly before pointing his gun at the woman as she put the pot down. Seconds later, Grayson fired several shots. He later claimed Massey came at him with boiling water, but body camera footage showed the woman never approached the deputies. 
  • Vice President and Democratic presidential frontrunner Kamala Harris wasted no time launching her campaign for president. A day after President Joe Biden announced he is suspending his re-election campaign, Harris went after Trump during a speech at her campaign headquarters. Harris, a former legislator, prosecutor, and California attorney general, noted she built a career prosecuting people like Trump. Harris said she “took on perpetrators of all kinds. Predators who abused women. Fraudsters who ripped off consumers. Cheaters who broke the rules for their own gain. So hear me when I say I know Donald Trump's type.” 
  • Your stress has a "smell" and your dog knows it. A new study published in Scientific Reports suggests dogs can pick up on their humans' body odor changes, and it may make them more timid in some situations.