• Established power and corporate Oregon are mobilizing strategically to defeat IP 28, the value-added tax almost sure to be on the ballot in November. The Oregonian in Portland has been editorializing and writing against it for months. The strategy is to convince voters that this is really only a sales tax, not exactly a favorite in this state. But the basic question is, “What do you propose to bring Oregon public education up to where it should be?” To date, no proposal has come from corporate Oregon, while education leaders we trust call this ballot measure a game-changer for Oregon kids. We believe that students need more teacher time and that will cost the money that IP 28 proposes. This will be an extremely important test of political persuasion in the next five months.
• If you need two hours of laughter in this sorry political season, one suggestion is Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, the wild and crazy play by Christopher Durang running until June 11 at our Oregon Contemporary Theatre on west Broadway. Starring Storm Kennedy and directed by Tara Wilbrew, the comedy is well played by the entire cast. While watching, we totally forgot the miserable clown running for president in November.
• Harambe, an endangered lowland gorilla was shot at the Cincinnati Zoo over the weekend after a 4-year-old boy fell into the gorilla exhibit. The shooting leaves animal lovers shocked and in tears, and a popular meme shows an image of Harambe, asking, “Not sure why they killed me, I was doing a better job of watching that lady’s kid than she was.” The incident leaves more questions than answers. Why not use a tranquilizer (they don’t stop the animal in its tracks), was the mom watching her kid? Should we even have zoos and if not, how do we preserve species like gorillas and teach the public to love and protect them?
A Note From the Publisher
Dear Readers,
The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.
That’s because of you!
Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.
Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.
We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.
And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.
None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.
As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.
Thank you for standing with us!
Publisher
Eugene Weekly
P.S. If you’d like to talk about supporting EW, I’d love to hear from you!
jody@eugeneweekly.com
(541) 484-0519