PARK LIFE
RE: “The High Life” [The Mercury Cannabis Issue, April 15], in which we prepare for the impending legalization of recreational cannabis use.
DEAR MERCURY—The Portland Mercury cover for April 15 shows a user-couple puffing up clouds of pot smoke in Washington Park, which is a perfect demonstration of how potheads adamantly intend to ignore all or any of the restrictions that are a part of the new pot law as agreed upon its passage. Instead, even [before] now non-users have always been subject to the rude and unhealthful exposure to secondhand THC smoke in every public place available. Pot-druggies may actually believe that they are inadvertently inducting a new generation [into] their hedonistic movement, but I’m sure that it makes most parents quite upset. For instance, Portland’s Waterfront Park has resembled a preview of a sprawling drug culture, which, I have recently witnessed, includes open needle injectors.
Anthony Agondonter
THE MERCURY RESPONDS: Why, that’s not Washington Park, it’s the photographer’s backyard! What are you, high?
MILD PLEASURE, SEVERE DROUGHT
RE: “The Long, Hot Summer” [Feature, April 22], a look at the imminent effects of climate change on the Pacific Northwest.
DEAR MERCURY—I would like to see more on this topic! If you did, people might read more than the music listings and the front and back two pages of your paper. We need to stop looking to government to fix things for us, and start coming up with our own solutions. Look into it, hipsters!
George Monacelli
THE RISING TIDE
RE: “$15 and Rising” [News, April 22], following the gaining strength of the movement to raise Portland’s minimum wage to $15 an hour.
I know plenty of tiny local business with fewer than five employees who will go out of business if something like this passes. Regardless, any life you can live on the state minimum wage is going to be a rough one, don’t get me wrong, but there will have to be some exceptions to a $15 an hour Portland minimum wage law.
posted by disastronaut
No, you don’t know plenty of local businesses that will go out of business should this pass—because they won’t. This should actually benefit small businesses disproportionately because people with more money in their pockets are more likely to spend it and spend more of it with small businesses.
posted by guspasho
TAX DOLLARS AT WORK
Re: “Paid/Unpaid” [I, Anonymous, April 22], in which an anonymous author grumbles about having to pay the city’s annual Arts Tax, and wonders where it’s going.
DEAR ANONYMOUS—The school district I work in now has one fulltime music teacher in every elementary school, thanks to the Arts Tax! As a product of public education, my love of music performance was fostered at school. While I no longer perform, I have the privilege of working with struggling youth in public schools. I’m sorry you feel screwed, but I can assure you our students, finally, are not.
Calley Ekberg
DEAR MERCURY—I know that this is a place for people to vent, however this little whiner has no idea how the Arts Tax is working. I grew up here so I know how many programs were gutted after Measure 5 passed back in the early ’90s. My art teachers in high school kept me there. I would have dropped out without their guidance and support. I have seen the magic explode since we got a fulltime art teacher. I have spent most of my adult life working three jobs to support myself and 35 bucks once a year is not a huge cost to help out the schools. I thought your paper should hear another opinion on the Arts Tax.
Susan
THANKS FOR SHARING, Susan! You win this week’s Mercury letter/comment of the week, which earns you two tickets to the Laurelhurst Theater, which is frequented by recipients of arts education, both onscreen and off.
DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS
Due to an editing error, the article “$15 and Rising” [News, April 22] incorrectly identified city employee Sarah Kowaleski as a member of Laborers’ Local 483. She does not belong to the union. We regret the error.
From Anthony Agondonter’s Youtube profile:
“American men are correct in giving up on American women and going for the Asians, Latinas, and the European women. American men are tired of working their butts off to please the impossibly insatiable American girl. They are all twisted, so just eave them all to their lesbian girlfriends (who can’t please them either)!”
Cally and Susan:
I tend to think any sort of ‘artist’ is born, rather than bred. It is innate to their very nature, and thus, inherent to their very being — and no amount of dollars thrown at them will change this.
I understand the argument about trying to foster this in kids, I just question how effective it really is.
Let alone the regressive nature of the tax, and how effectively those dollars are being spent.
All my favorite artists, in whatever genre’ , tend to be un-professionally schooled – so perhaps my view is tainted there, but Tarentino and Fassbinder never went to film school.
How about all the important authors and painters that never had any sort of formal art training?
Just throwing money at ‘Art’ don’t make it happen, nor even make a more refined view of it, in my opinion.
THC from Cannabis smoke is instantaneously absorbed into the lungs. Second hand smoke from weed contains no THC, however, side stream smoke from burning herb, does. It’s not unreasonable for people to smoke in public parks, irrespective of ill conceived ordnances, provided that nobody is nearby when they light up. Passersby can just keep their distance. What’s rude is when smokers ignite combustible materials adjacent to where people already are, first.