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• Two remarkable women from our philosophically diverse community will be remembered Saturday, Jan. 16, both starting at 2 pm. Peg Morton will be honored at the First United Methodist Church and Robin Jaqua at the Jaqua Concert Hall at The Shedd. Better go early; both auditoriums are likely to be full. Morton fiercely devoted her life to peace and justice on many levels (see our cover story Jan. 7). Continue reading
Welcome back, students, to the cold wet winter of your discontent, otherwise known as the dark term before spring break 2016. It’s time to shake the shards of sugarplum fairies out of your sensory-savoring limbic systems and pay attention to politics. The Oregon Legislature returns to Salem in less than a month. Beware! Continue reading
A PROPHETIC MOMENT I’ve had the privilege of being Peg Morton’s scribe for her many writings in the last months of her life. More of these writings will be disseminated after her memorial service as she requested. In mid-November she wrote a proposal that was communicated throughout the world to her “peace-building, nonviolence-loving groups and others, including faith communities, friends and family.” Thousands of people have now read, shared and are acting upon Peg’s proposal, which begins: Continue reading
• Eyes nationwide have been focused on Harney County this week, but Eugene’s federal courthouse has some interesting ties to the band of armed protesters who have taken over a bird sanctuary in Eastern Oregon. The Malheur National Wildlife Refuge standoff began after ranchers Steve and Dwight Hammond were convicted and sentenced for arson on federal lands. The judge who sentenced them for less than the congressionally mandated minimums was Judge Michael Hogan here in Eugene’s federal courthouse. Continue reading
One of the few useful insights I got from college sociology is that societies are complex organisms with their own history and internal dynamics, not simply collections of individuals. Societies shape the lives of the individuals within them. The U.S. is a migrant society, settled by ambitious risk-takers, producing a highly individualistic culture that tends to see everything as personal rather than social. That has a lot to do with our economic history. Continue reading
This community lost a truly stellar human being Dec. 19. Peg Morton, one of the best that the human race had to offer, sailed off into the great mystery surrounded by loved ones, on a courageous journey that started only 13 days before with an intentional fast to end her life. Continue reading
New Year’s resolutions come and go and come back around again. I can’t even count how many times I’ve vowed to improve my eating, exercise and money management habits. Oh, I’ve made progress — I’m gluten free, walking daily and out of debt — for now, anyway. There’s always room for backsliding. So I guess those same old resolutions will be with me (and most other New Year’s resolution makers) again for 2016. Boring, right? Continue reading
BEAUTY IN THE CRACKS As an alternative to more buildings downtown, how about some grass, flowers and trees? There’s a reason birds and bees and human beings naturally flock to them. City leaders seem hell-bent on filling every downtown space with concrete, providing green for the moneyed interests but only gray for the rest of us. There’s beauty lying dormant in the cracks. Continue reading
• It’s a dark and dastardly world out there so we’ve been cranking up the sunshine with some upbeat content in December. Our third annual “I Dream of Eugene” issue last week appears to be a big hit, and if you missed it due to the holidays, our office has extra copies. It’s great to see letters arriving in response to the funny, fanciful and thoughtful dreams we published for the Whiteaker, north Eugene, the city and Glenwood. We like dreams more than New Year’s resolutions. Dreams are visionary and visions have power. Continue reading
• Longtime Quaker activist Peg Morton died Dec. 19 and we were honored to have some one-on-one time with her before she began the dry fast to end her life at the age of 85. In an early January issue, we will be examining her fascinating life, her personal struggles and her controversial death. We will include stories and images from our files and our two interviews, and we invite her family and friends to also contribute memories, photos and letters to the editor. Continue reading