^CELEBRATINC A DECADE
m
street roots
F Education •Dialogue ♦ Independence
so little sense
MONEY, from page 8
Riyadh, and Beijing what’s going on and no one really
knows. Money is on the way. That’s all we’re told.”
Meanwhile the world’s leading economists
and insiders at the Federal Reserve and
Treasury Department told more than 400
television reporters that they aren’t even
clear about what’s happening.
“We live on an axis. The tide must
turn,” said one state economist
“When will things turn around?
How do we lead ourselves out of
this dark recession depression?
What is the meaning of life?
And how do local economics
play a role? These are all
questions we ask ourselves.
Time is all we have. The
answers will reveal
themselves.”
Asked if the economist
who has written two New
York Times’ bestsellers,
was sleep-deprived and
possibly needed medical
* attention, he just said,
“No, this is life’s journey.
It’s possible I had a
nervous breakdown back
money to go to housing people like that There’s a
process for this stuff. We’ve already been burned once.”
Multnomah County Chairman Ted Wheeler was the
only politician willing to talk oneon-one with Street
Roots after the roundtable. Wheeler said he’ll do
whatever it takes to expedite the process of getting
dollars on the ground for projects in the pipeline.
“Look, things are bad. Real bad. I mean I don’t know
why on earth I ever ran for this position," says Wheeler.
“And one day, when the smoke clears and I am
eventually governor, I’ll remember some of these folks.
And I tell you what - they’re going to remember me too.
They’re going to remember when Uncle Ted force-fed
them - Wheeler Road Kill Café burgers. Why is that?
Well, that’s how we’re going to be covering costs for the
next two years for our animal road maintenance crew.
I’ll wait for my shot and then, bam. It’ll be possum stew
for some of these characters. They’ll regret crossing me
if I don’t end up in the Oregon State Hospital before the
economy turns around.”
Meanwhile a spokesperson for City Hall pointed
towards a new soccer stadium and a proposed
Convention Center Hotel for signs that the economy is
not that bad for everyone.
“We may be cutting crucial services and moving
things around a bit,” said one chief of staff. “But the
in November, and again in
reality is Portland is resilient and we’ll perservere.”
. February, but now, I’ve just, . I
Asked about the decline in home, values, the record
accepted things to be ...
number of foreclosures in the city, the dozens of vacant
When people ask me for
storefronts downtown and throughout neighborhoods,
advice. I just tell them things
the conversion of condos to rentals, the rising
are going to be OK. Keep
unemployment and homeless figures, and the cutting of
investing. Go green.”
important social services, the City Hall staffer said,
As Street Roots was going to
“We’re the city that works. And we’ll let you know
press, President Obama announced
what’s going on as soon as someone in Salem tells us
that a second round of stimulus
what’s going on with the money. Until then, we’re going
package money totalling nearly a
to have to live with it”
trillion dollars was being proposed to
In a written response from Sen. Jeff Merkley s office
hire staffers around the country to report
in Washington, D.C., on the matter of the failing
on how the first stimulus package was being
economy, Merkley told Street Roots, “Tell me about it I handled. Dozens of high-level administrators
need some help paying down my debt for those
with Fortune 500 companies on Wall Street have
applied for the positions, promising to lead local
commercials. Times are tough.
Asked if anyone in Washington, D.C., was helping
governments around the country out of the black hole
Merkley’s colleagues in Salem figure out what was
they created.
’
going on so they could help their colleagues in Eugene,
Local officials declined to comment on the subject,
Medford, Bend and Portland figure out what was going
but did say they are hopeful.
on he said, “To be honest, we’ve been asking our
colleagues in New York what’s going on and they ve
been asking their colleagues in Paris, Berlm, London,
k
street roots
W
CELEBRATING A DECADE
^Education ♦ Dialogue ♦ Independence
Your online recurring
donation keeps Street
Roots strong and
independent!
It’s safe and easy and a
great way to support the
organization.
For 10 years. Street Roots has published the voices of the streets while bringing readers
££Sbe« j—n«»«V Kes » ofc Wove put more
the hands of people experiencing homelessness and poverty. And we produce the mo
comprehensive list of resources in the Rose City Resource Guide.
Your support means that Street Roots can remain sustainable, especially during these
hard times when the organization is more relevant than ever.
Go to www.streetroots.org and become a recurring donor today!
Levels of donors:
Rainy Day Supporter - $5 a month will provide the necessary materials (rain jackets, hand warmers, Up
balm, etc.) for 10 vendors to stay warm and dry during the winter months.
Coffee Break Supporter - $10 a month will provide fresh water, tea and coffee to more than 200 indi-
viduals who sell the newspaper.
Tech Support - $25 a month will provide computers and Internet service for more than 200 vendors
experiencing homelessness and poverty.
Front-Page Supporter - $50 a month helps produce one page of the paper a month. This is a great way to
support Street Roots.
rnver to-Cover Supporter - $100 a month covers the cost of one entire edition of the paper each year.
A Single print-run puts up to $10,000 directly in the hands of people experiencmg homelessness and
poverty.
_____
___