Hear My Primal Scream!
You asked us (Slant, 10/23) to “scream if you want Savage Love.” Well, I’m screaming! Savagely! There are a million places to find sudokus and crosswords. Not so with Savage Love. Bring it back, or I stop reading the paper.
Tim Baxter
Eugene
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The Dueling Viewpoints
Thank you for the balance of viewpoints (EW, 10/16). My dismay at by how large a margin Doyle Srader missed the point of the No Kings march this weekend was quickly relieved by reading Stan Taylor of Indivisible Eugene. He very clearly laid out the objectives and goals of the march. This was not a rally to “confront” MAGA, only the leaders who are in the position to degrade our rights.
This was a solidarity action to show our resistance to the Donald Trump regime and its authoritarian tactics. If you support Trump at this point, it’s on purpose and there is no argument, no “Bible” anyone can give you. Sure, it would be great to have everyone on board for the fight to get universal health care, a living minimum wage, supported childcare, etc.
But until the media landscape and politicians stop making money on keeping us divided, I’m saving my breath. Until then, we will organize amongst ourselves and hope to get more than just 64 percent of the electorate to the polls.
Kim Cronin-Ross
Eugene
Supporting Small Business
I read the EW Slant section of your paper for ideas on how to support small businesses. I am a member of Indivisible Eugene Springfield. We have action teams that focus on different issues like health care, climate, immigration, elections, etc.
Solidarity in Action is one of the teams. We approach different small businesses on Eugene and Springfield blocks to talk about a poster. The purpose is to ask if they’d consider hanging an immigrant-friendly poster in their store windows. The signs are positive, authentic and free. Some in both English and Spanish.
Examples are “All Are Welcome Here,” “Hate Has No Home Here,” “We Stand with Immigrant Families,” “Everyone is Welcome Here Except ICE,” etc. There are seven designs to choose from. We’ve gotten positive responses.
Some buildings on Main Street in Springfield are owned by Lane County Commissioner David Loveall. Even though employees are with us in spirit, they must decline knowing Loveall would not want them in his windows.
We’re trying to build a sense of community. Hopefully, when other businesses see the signs, they’ll be inspired to hang them in their windows.
We make a list of the businesses that take the sign, post them on our private Discord app and ask our 900-plus members to support these small businesses.
We could use more people to approach businesses. We go out in pairs, and there is a script we follow. We give the owner or manager the laminated signs they chose.
Cathy Meyer
Eugene
The People Have Spoken
After the latest No Kings rallies, it is clear that many Americans are alarmed about the actual dictatorship being implemented by the Trump regime, and are ready to oppose it. The people have spoken, now it’s time for our leaders to act. U.S. governors must immediately convene a conference to plan united emergency actions in the face of future Trump schemes, which definitely include invoking the Insurrection Act.
Such a conference is not only necessary from a tactical point of view, but would be a great morale booster to us, who wonder if our leaders recognize the seriousness and urgency of the situation. Please contact Gov. Tina Kotek and urge her to get the ball rolling for such a conference and maybe even host it.
Jere Rosemeyer
Eugene
Why No Permit?
While the No Kings march Oct. 18 was such a wonderful event, one thing was sorely lacking — a permit for the march. During the march we witnessed a dangerous situation where a couple volunteers on bikes were attempting to hold back traffic for over a half hour on the busy 7th Avenue as the marchers crossed 7th on Olive Street. The situation grew extremely tense, and I was beginning to wonder if a driver was going to explode in anger and drive into the march.
Having the local police help with redirecting the traffic would have been so much better, as those cars would have been following an alternate route. Apparently, the march organizers didn’t get a permit and are not interested in working with the police.
I think that extreme stance alienates anyone stuck in traffic and also puts the police in a dangerous position when they have to step in. One officer I was talking to seemed frustrated that he was put into such a disorganized and dangerous situation.
We need to work with the local police in any protest that involves walking down city streets. It will build trust between the protesters and the police and make it safer for everyone involved.
Scott Zarnegar
Eugene
Dismantle the Kingdom
The No Kings party is over. The exhilarating turnout has come and gone. Signs are put away, inflatables deflated and most of us are right back to the lives we were leading before Oct. 18. And yes, there are still kings.
Well, kings need kingdoms and we, the American people, sustain that kingdom. If we don’t want kings, then we’ve got to dismantle the kingdom. How? For starters, we can stop financing it. We can divest from companies owned by the very kings we are protesting against.
We can withhold a portion of our taxes that are supporting the Department of War. (After all, kingdoms rely on their militaries for defense and expansion.) We can bank with a community credit union that invests locally rather than a big commercial bank. We can be more mindful about where we spend and what we spend on. Maybe we even ask ourselves, “Is this purchase necessary?” (Our consumption feeds the kingdom.)
At the very least, we can consider if our purchase is benefitting a company, an industry or an entity that is causing harm to people and the planet. Our kingdom is responsible for a great deal of harm, near and far. It is up to us to change that. So if we’re really “invested” in No Kings, then it is time we all divest from the kingdom. For without kingdoms, there can be no kings.
Molly Sirois
Eugene
ONLINE EXTRA LETTERS
Our Once Hallowed House
Not satisfied with the shameful arrogance of dismantling the safeguards and framework of our American freedoms and democracy, our own despot, Donald Trump, in his manic pursuit of fascist authoritarianism, has now taken an actual wrecking ball to the White House — the people’s house.
In this brazen, unconscionable act of self-aggrandizement, he is recasting the people’s house as his personal property, replete with faux gold trinkets, gaudy embellishments, and a ballroom. Really?
This constitutes an actual theft, not just a symbolic act. It is an egregious assault on the foundation of everything that belongs to America — a desperate attack by a small, insecure man with delusions of grandeur.
Similarly, Trump’s henchmen, the contractors he has assembled to carry out this madness, are willing participants in another affront to our nation. They all should be branded as traitors and cast out, blackballed by the very industry that built this country. They are finishing the attack mounted by the insurrectionists of Jan. 6.
Trump and his entire spineless administration are no more than domestic terrorists, and should be charged accordingly.
Trump’s “remodel” should include a mausoleum, a tomb to bury the remains of our nation’s once hallowed house.
W.C. Crutchfield
Eugene
Microplastics in Waterways
I am writing to express my concern and raise alarms about the presence of microplastics in Oregon’s waterways. The effects of this are already impacting our environment and the health of communities across Oregon. This year, Portland State University did a study about the microplastics that are widespread in seafood that we, as Oregonians, eat. Their study found 1,806 suspected particles across 180 of 182 individual samples, which means pretty much 99 percent of the samples had particles found.
In our region, the consequences are severe. These microplastics will soon start to affect our water quality and the ecosystem services we depend on. Additionally, as these plastics begin to break down, they release toxic chemical additives and environmental pollutants. Despite this evidence, our community is not prepared for something like this. Everything was designed when microplastics weren’t much of a threat; now that approach is clearly not enough.
Here is what I urge readers in our community to do: Encourage local government to include microplastic monitoring protocols; advocate for state legislation in Oregon that requires better source control; and invest in pilot programs to filter microplastics from runoff
The Willamette Valley has a long-standing reputation for prioritizing the public’s best interest in sustainability. The next thing to keep this reputation is addressing these microplastics in our waterways. If we turn a blind eye, we risk our region’s health and reputation.