For the third time in three sessions, the Oregon House of Representatives this week will vote on whether to grant in-state tuition rates to undocumented students. The bill is controversial because it grants non-citizens a benefit commonly associated with citizenship, but its most compelling purpose is neither benevolence nor fairness. The bill merits approval because […]
Editorial
Posted inOpinion
One Day at a Time
MONDAY 11 Aaaaad the Most Terrible Person of the Week Award goes to… someone other than Chris Brown? Amazing, but true! Certain homophobic students from Sullivan High School in Indiana—with encouragement from special education teacher/counselor/Most Terrible Person of the Week Diana Medley—rallied today for a separate prom that would ban gays. “We want to make […]
Posted inOpinion
Time for Federal Government to Get Off the Pot
When the history of marijuana prohibition in America is updated in a few decades, this will be recounted as its awkward age, when some states allowed the production and dissemination of medical cannabis, some didn't, and the federal government made delicate—and sometimes seemingly arbitrary—decisions about raiding grow sites and co-ops. The residents of Washington and […]
Posted inOpinion
Think Outside the Pond
When it comes to the future of the man-made pond backed up behind an old hydroelectric dam in downtown, the Bend City Council stacked the deck by appointing a Mirror Pond Management Board rather than a Deschutes River Reclamation Board to guide us. The name alone suggests the inherent bias that’s now given us as […]
Posted inOpinion
One Day at a Time
MONDAY 28 America’s most lovable sweetheart, Chris Brown, is back in the news again, and—say it isn’t so! He and his posse allegedly jumped and attacked R&B singer/proud bisexual Frank Ocean? THIS IS SO UNLIKE CHRIS. (One moment while we disengage our “sarcastic all caps” function. There.) According to multiple sources, Brown and Ocean mixed […]
Posted inOpinion
GOP delegates need to bargain for progress
The 2013 session of the Oregon Legislature holds promise for extraordinary progress. Democrats, holding the governorship as well as control of both chambers of the Statehouse, are a force to be reckoned with, and Deschutes County's Republican representatives—Sen. Tim Knopp and Reps. Jason Conger and Gene Whisnant—owe it to their constituents to reckon with the […]
Posted inOpinion
One Day at a Time
MONDAY 21 Today heralded a monumental day in American politics—the second inauguration of President Barack Obama—but don’t worry! These hallowed proceedings were undermined by a bunch of stupid, inconsequential shit. INCONSEQUENTIAL SHIT #1: The entire Internet squealed with delight during the inaugural luncheon when House Speaker/Republican crybaby John Boehner said “something” to the First Couple, […]
Posted inOpinion
Real Lawmen Enforce Democratic Decisions
Several Oregon sheriffs last week decided to begin a standoff with our federal government by prematurely declaring their refusal to enforce any new gun-control laws. Before Vice President Joe Biden presented President Barack Obama with a list of what turned out to be sensible recommendations for reducing gun violence, Linn County Sheriff Tim Mueller wrote […]
Posted inOpinion
One Day at a Time
MONDAY 14 Last night Hollyweird was out in full force for the GLITZ! The GLAMOUR! And the GASTROINTESTINAL DISTRESS of the Golden Globes! Here are the highlights: Hosts Tina Fey and Amy Poehler killed it, turning award show chicken shit into something akin to chicken salad. It was also a great night for cut-aways, especially […]
Posted inOpinion
Where the Sun Don’t Shine
If we must be subjected to boundless political advertising, we should at least know who's paying for it. That's the reasoning behind Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden's efforts to tame the political big game unleashed by the Citizens United ruling handed down two years ago Monday. When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the First Amendment […]
