Opinion: Page 388

Putting a Face on Discrimination

White supremacists and the Springfield MLK celebration

Viewpoint

Last week the Eugene/Springfield area held various events to celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Students spent the days leading up to the celebration creating poems and artwork in their classrooms. They read stories and did assignments that described how Martin Luther King Jr. has influenced and inspired them.  In Springfield the MLK march made its way through downtown ending at Springfield High School. We gathered to see the student’s artwork, hear music and celebrate together as a community. Continue reading →

Slant 1-30-2014

Slant

• The fate of Civic Stadium is in flux as we go to press this week, with some interesting new twists and turns. Among them, the City Council and 4J School Board got a letter Monday from Harvey Smith, president of the National New Deal Preservation Association, calling for the preservation of Civic Stadium. Smith is also advisor to the Living New Deal, an organization that catalogs New Deal structures throughout the county. He writes, “I urge you to preserve your Works Progress Administration (WPA) Civic Stadium. Continue reading →

If I Ran the Zoo

How to improve downtown Eugene

Viewpoint

Recently both EW and the R-G have been covering the problems facing downtown Eugene. Here are some changes I would make to improve the situation, focusing on inclusivity, safety and getting the most bang for the city’s buck. First, I would replace the Downtown Guides with a pedestrian team of CAHOOTS-style crisis-intervention workers. I would expect this change to have a quick effect, and it wouldn’t cost the city a penny more. Continue reading →

Stealth Fees, Hacked Services

Financial excesses abound in city budget

Viewpoint

Just eight months ago, the campaign for the failed city service fee focused on the non-essential spending that the city could curtail before increasing taxes or fees on residents and businesses or cutting essential services. But the city, enabled by the Financial Investigative Team (FIT, mostly connected insiders), has taken all the strategies that resonated with voters off the table. The 2015 Options for Budget Reductions are almost identical to the city’s original ballot proposal: recycled service cuts and a new fee. Neither is necessary. Continue reading →

Letters to the Editor: 1-23-2014

Letters

PAINS OF DISPLACEMENT The most world-respected literary personage from our area is Ken Kesey. He is principally known for his novel One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1962). It develops a common theme where individual and group clash, both losing. In this case, we like to give the edge to the skill of the first-person artist who renders us the depiction. Continue reading →

Slant 1-23-2014

Slant

• Packed audiences at the local Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebrations heard speakers from Rep. Peter DeFazio and the UO’s President Michael Gottfredson to Giancarlo Esposito of Breaking Bad honoring MLK’s legacy. Less honorable were the folks who showed up at the Springfield celebration holding a sign that read “‘Diversity’ is a code word for white genocide.” We posted the picture on our blog, which became inundated with defenders of white pride. Continue reading →

Intense Opposition Coming

Fred Meyer underestimates Eugene

Viewpoint

The fate of Civic Stadium is unlikely to be decided in 2014. Yes, the members of the 4J School Board are committed to “disposing” of the structure as soon as they possibly can — they consider it a distraction from their mission. But, whether they choose to accept the offer of Kroger (Fred Meyer), the Y or the city of Eugene, it will almost certainly be a year or more before we know how the site will be used. The reasons differ for each of the bidders. Continue reading →