It’s Sports Tourism, Dammit
So, as of this writing, it seems that the city’s parks department has finally succeeded in driving the breakfast program from Washington Jefferson Park. Maybe now people will realize that feeding hungry, destitute people does not fit in with the rebranding of Eugene as a sports tourism destination.
Put yourself in the shoes of one of the well-heeled spectators our city yearns for so achingly. You and your friends fly into the city, check into an Airbnb and unwind after a stressful trip with some cocaine and escorts. Then, the next morning, as you are taking your Uber to a college football game or track meet, you are disturbed by the sight of a bunch of hippies feeding some unsightly homeless people in a city park!
Such things have no place in the Brave New Eugene!
Art Bollmann
Eugene
Above and Beyond
Every now and again a local business goes so above and beyond it’s worth taking the time to bring attention to it. La Salsa Foods in Eugene makes local, organic salsa, dips and other foods carried by most local markets. On occasion, their product (like all products) will swell and go bad long before the expiration date. This is frustrating to consumers and is almost always due to a refrigeration issue out of the owner’s control (often at the store level).
Because I believe this is the best fresh salsa made in Eugene, I brought this experience to the attention of the owner in the hopes of understanding and avoiding it in the future. She took the time to explain her frustration as the owner and then came to my home and dropped off several of her products to “make it right.” She went way above and beyond. As such I want to give her a shout out and encourage all EW readers and salsa lovers to support La Salsa Foods. In my opinion, the best fresh organic salsa in town.
Andy Traisman
Eugene
TV Butte the next Parvin Butte?
I have a few friends in Oakridge. I know how they and most of the residents of Oakridge feel about a rock quarry that may top TV Butte at the eastern edge of their town. I wanted to see for myself what this was all about.
I thought about the Parvin Butte rock quarry that left Dexter residents stunned when the state allowed the quarry operation to continue without a review. The Lane County Board of Commissioners appealed this decision, but later in a 3-2 decision dropped the appeal in 2013. Now Parvin Butte should rightly be called Baldy Butte, torn apart and flattened by huge earth moving excavators.
I drove to Oakridge. Then up Dunning Road toward TV Butte. On both sides of the heavily forested road were older evergreens, mostly Douglas fir — great carbon dioxide storage swaths. At the end of the road was a sign: “Help us Save TV Butte: OakridgeStrong.org Stop Ed King—Stop the Quarry.”
Then I drove west to the Oakridge city center. When I made an abrupt U-turn I discovered what all the hubbub was about. Ahead of me was TV Butte, visible from practically the whole town. Forests of evergreens that house a rich diversity of animal life. It’s a paradise folks.
Our Lane County Board of Commissioners may turn this utopia into another Mt. Baldy. Shouldn’t the huge majority of Oakridge citizens have a say in this matter?
For Pete’s sake! Nix the quarry idea.
Joe R. Blakely
Eugene
Food for All Oregonians
On Dec. 10, I visited the Oregon State Capitol to meet with Rep. Julie Fahey and discuss Food for All Oregonians. I hope we can count on Fahey’s support as we work to make Oregon the first hunger-free state. We need our leaders to take bold action to address hunger amidst the incoming administration’s threats against immigrant communities.
As a local social worker for children, I’m concerned that we are losing the battle of poverty. Poverty-induced trauma scars children for a lifetime and negatively affects the future of this very wealthy nation. Many of these are completely preventable if we put our money where it matters.
Over 62,000 Oregonians are excluded from food assistance programs like SNAP (formerly food stamps) because of their immigration status, leaving many in Eugene struggling. Supporting Food for All Oregonians would help fix these issues.
The power of families sharing meals together creates lasting positive impacts on children’s mental health. But when some families and children are locked out of SNAP based on immigration status, it reinforces prejudices. Aren’t we taught to sit as a family and eat together for at least one meal a day? What does that look like when some members qualify for SNAP while others are excluded, leaving entire families struggling to put enough food on the table? This campaign isn’t just about food — it’s about fairness.
Fahey, please support Food for All Oregonians and help lead Oregon toward a fairer future where every child can thrive.
Anonymous
Editors Note: EW requires a signature from the letter writer — and address and contact information for our files — for the letter to be published. However, EW publishes anonymous letters when the letter writer fears reprisal or retaliation to themselves or their family, in this case because of immigration status.
It’s Getting Harder
As a transsexual, I am used to getting owned on the global stage, and I want to highlight a few of the big Ls we’ve suffered lately.
With the passage of the NDAA, thousands of trans kids are going to lose the health care they need. Health care in America is byzantine and cruel at the best of times, but the flat denial of care is something else. Note that 44 Democratic senators voted “yea” (none from Oregon, though). It seems rather than blaming their figuratively rotting institutions or literally rotting president for the failure of “Kamabla,” trans people have assumed the venerable role of national scapegoat. Just remember, if it can happen to us, it can happen to you.
The British Parliament recently banned trans health care for all minors via their NHS. My friends from across the pond already have an incredibly difficult time, and it’s wild to imagine things getting harder.
The Republican plan under the coming administration is rumored to be a ban on funding to any institution that provides trans care at all, Hyde Amendment style. Meaning no more care from any public hospitals, doctors or pharmacies. No more research. All care is restricted to a few private clinics like abortion.
Lastly, what I think is the grimmest portent is Disney publicly axing the trans character from their upcoming Pixar miniseries. This means a room of Patrick Batemans in Burbank, California, calculated the prospectus on trans people and found the ROI on hate had significant growth potential. These numbers don’t lie.
Penelope Pascal
Eugene
In Defense of Dutch Bros.
I’d like to address the letter to the editor from Jeffrey Fields (EW, 12/5) regarding Dutch Bros. lack of participation on Veterans Day by not offering free cups of coffee:
I am director of a local nonprofit here, Sole to Soul Veterans Thanksgiving Project Inc., that delivers meals to Veterans homes every year on Thanksgiving Day. I can’t speak for their “no free cup of coffee on Veterans Day,” but I can say, unequivocally, that in the nine years we’ve been feeding our veterans, Dutch Bros. has always stepped up, when asked, to provide coffee gift cards for our food boxes. They have enthusiastically done so and have offered any other items that might fit in. I have found the company to be very committed to giving back to all sorts of social issues in our community.
I regret that Fields did not get any concrete, timely response from the management (bad business protocol), but I hope they’ll follow up and that he reconsiders his decision to “throw the baby out with the bath water.”
Robin Brown-Wood
Eugene
Be Safe Out There
In these dark and rainy times there are still people walking and cycling on these roads. My driving friends, you are in big, bright, fast and loud vehicles (exacerbated by the weather). Please remember to look, to slow down, and with calm temperament own the responsibility of the machine you operate. There should be no rush to impede upon another’s sense of safety.
Sophia MacMillan
Eugene
Another Take on Leaves
In response to Eliot Bald’s comment (EW Letters, 12/5): Dead leaves on the streets are hardly as hazardous as the garbage and human waste left behind by the unhoused.
Why these “neighbors” can’t pick up after themselves after visiting is a question no one has an answer to. Many times when I walk past these places where they have been, there is a dumpster nearby.
The leaves can’t help but fall.
The unhoused can make choices.
Nadine Powell
Eugene
The MUPTE Conundrum
The RG recently had a piece regarding the budget shortfall in the city’s budget. It would be helpful to the community to have information on the impact of MUPTE tax breaks on this shortfall, such as the number and amount of taxes waived each year, how many years remain on each property, and is there a date to end this program.
Clearly, these large projects utilize city services, currently subsidized by Eugene tax payers.
Phyllis O’Neill
Eugene
Inaction that Costs
Whether it is the United Nations Climate Change Conference, the International Court of Justice in The Hague or the Eugene City Council, it seems decision-makers cannot adopt measures or policies to reduce carbon emissions from the burning of fossil fuels, which is intensifying with more frequent catastrophic weather events.
Inaction is becoming costly. Just ask the folks in Asheville, North Carolina, and Damascus, Virginia, who are homeless, jobless and struggling to recover from the effects of almost 40 inches of rain from hurricane Helene and damage costs of $53 billion. Eugene is one atmospheric river event away from flooding, and it is unfathomable the impact 30 inches of rain would have on the confluence of two rivers.
Building energy is one of Eugene’s largest sources of carbon emissions, and in July, 16 regional organizations suggested to council these reduction actions. Establish low nitrogen oxide emission standards for gas appliances, increase natural gas supplier tax from 5 percent to 10 percent and dedicate the revenue to subsidize low income residential electrification, prohibit expansion of gas mains within the city right of way and establish climate pollution fees to be paid for gas installations in new residential and commercial construction.
Polar explorer Robert Swan writes, “The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.” The inaction of decision makers near and far in reducing carbon emissions is now the greatest threat to our planet.
Jim Neu
Eugene
Press Delete
Voters rely on public officials and government agencies to uphold democratic principles like transparency, fairness and accountability. Under Elon Musk’s ownership, X (formerly Twitter) has strayed far from these values, raising serious concerns about the role we allow it to play in our public discourse.
Musk’s anti-democratic actions — suspending journalists, amplifying conspiracy theories and manipulating platform policies to serve personal interests — undermine the platform’s credibility. By arbitrarily banning voices and distorting algorithms, he has transformed a space for open exchange into a tool for his own agenda. This behavior is fundamentally un-American and incompatible with the free speech principles enshrined in our First Amendment.
Public officials and government agencies play a key role in shaping trust — as do regular voters like you and me. By remaining on X, we all inadvertently endorse a platform that disregards accountability or fairness. There are alternative platforms, or even traditional media outlets, that offer more transparent and democratic ways to engage with the public. These options better align with the values we expect our leaders and society to uphold.
To be clear, X has a First Amendment right to exist, but we are not obligated to participate. It’s time for our leaders to set an example by protecting democratic norms and fostering genuine public dialogue. Delete your account and urge your representatives to do the same. Our democracy deserves better.