MONEY MATTERS

HELLO SARAH [MIRK]—I was reading your piece "Suspension of Belief" [News, Sept 24] yesterday online and noticed a factual error. You noted that the [Columbia River Crossing bridge] has spent $131.06 million to date. This figure is the amount of money allocated to the project for planning and project development. The second portion of our response to your public disclosure request included a breakout of spending by project category and included a total for the money expended to date on the project: $72.8 million. I would appreciate it if you could correct the online version.

Carley Francis, Outreach and Planning Assistant, Columbia River Crossing (CRC) Project

SARAH MIRK RESPONDS: The states of Oregon and Washington have allocated $131 million to the CRC and cannot spend that money elsewhere. Though the CRC staff has not yet spent that entire amount, it is fair to say that Oregon and Washington have spent $131 million on the project.

NOT MILKING IT

This article is so poorly constructed it is irritating that Matt Davis gets paid ["Taking the High Ground," Feature, Oct 1]. [Ethan] Nadelmann is nothing like Harvey Milk for several reasons: he is still alive; no one is born with an inclination to smoke anything since that is a learned behavior not an innate behavior; finally, no one is beaten often or to death by groups of pot-phobic people who know or suspect that someone is a pot smoker.

posted by Anothervoice on portlandmercury.com

REVELATION AND RAGE

I've gone off on [Police Chief Rosie] Sizer all week over the Chasse conclusion. To learn now that she used policy effectively against excessive force is very exciting ["Not Policing Themselves," News, Oct 1]. It goes a long way toward mitigating my outrage at this conclusion, and placating my concerns over what seemed a lack of willingness to examine policy. I'm now thinking that disciplinary options available to the authorities may indeed be quite potent. With that said, it's my position that there is simply no excuse for anyone involved in the beating death of another human. The fact that these were our police only mitigates this. Prison time should have been given to the five officers, and they should be disallowed from ever policing so much as the roll of toilet paper in their bathrooms. My speaking positively about certain aspects of the technicalities here is in no way meant to reflect anything aside from the abject outrage I feel at the thought of law enforcers beating people to death on our streets.

posted by Vance Longwell on portlandmercury.com

GRAVY TRAIN

DEAR MERCURY—Ectoplasmic baby gravy ["Try My Ectoplasmic Baby Gravy by the Ghost of Patrick Swayze," New Column! Sept 24]? I will admit that I was extremely excited that the ghost of Patrick Swayze took his time in the afterlife to write to the Mercury. However, you should've used the new column for Michael Jackson's letter instead of Patrick's! Yeah... Michael Jackson... very Ectoplastic.

Teo

GET YOUR TICKETS TO HUMP!

The legendary amateur pornography film festival hosted by Savage Love columnist Dan Savage is coming to Portland for the first time ever! See the funniest, sexiest, naughtiest, and OMG-iest short films from throughout the Pacific Northwest, and vote for your favorite (winners will be awarded up to $2,000 in prize money, so you might want to take notes on how you can beat the competition next year with your own film). Screenings will be held at Cinema 21 on October 23 and 24—tickets and details are available at portlandmercury.com!