Counter
Military
Recruiting,
which
does educational out-
reach to high school
students targeted by
the military. A mas-
querade ball, with
prizes for costumes,
most foolish fool, most
ghoulish ghoul and
most jewelish jewel,
will be held from 5:30
to 11 pm upstairs at
Grower’s
Market,
while a vegan lasagna
dinner will be held
concurrently
at
Morning Glory Café,
450 Willamette. The
ball will also include
items for sale from the
Bust Bush Boutique and music by Peter Wilde.
The ball is free with a food donation and mask
or costume, otherwise the charge is $5. Dinner
at Morning Glory is $5-$8.
• Students and labor activists in Corvallis
are uniting for what’s being billed as the first
ever Farmworkers’ Rights March and Rally in
the city. The event is from
4 to 6 pm Friday, March
26 and begins at the inter-
section of Monroe and
11th streets.
The two-mile march is
being organized by
PCUN, Oregon’s farm-
worker union, and
MEChA, the national
Chicano student organi-
zation. Its purpose is to
support the farmworker
movement and farm-
workers’ right to union-
ize.
In the wake of “unbal-
anced, pro-business farm-
worker collective bar-
gaining proposals” in the
Oregon Legislature last
year, PCUN is promoting what it calls “a fair,
balanced collective bargaining bill that will
guarantee farmworkers the right to unionize
and will not inordinately protect employers or
limit workers’ rights.”
For more information, call PCUN at
(503) 982-0243.
• Our cover story last week on the sheriff’s deputies’
wild party has generated little response so far; however,
we did get an anonymous call from a woman who said
local law enforcement officials were emptying EW red
boxes downtown over the weekend, and dumping the
papers. Just a rumor? We did find a lot of empty boxes
downtown Monday, but that’s not unusual, and we
haven’t found any stashes of papers, only a crumpled
wad of EWs by the bus station — looks like somebody
jumped up and down on it. Again, not unusual. Sheriff
Jan Clements tells us he hasn’t heard anything, but if
deputies are accused he will “pursue an administrative
investigation not unlike the one your paper purportedly
covered.” Sanipac drivers will be looking for EW stacks
as they make their recycling rounds. Anybody seen
anything suspicious? Perhaps it was just a deputy grabbing five copies for his mother.
• Some civil rights activists are comparing the debate over same-sex marriage to that
of the struggle of blacks for racial equality. Is this such an absurd comparison? Gays and
lesbians seeking to marry are not forced to the back of the bus, required to send their
children to separate schools, or denied property, employment or housing, but they are
denied the numerous legal and economic benefits that accompany “conventional” wed-
lock. In short, they are discriminated against in very real and measurable ways. Same-sex
marriage is a civil rights issue, and like the battle for racial equality, it must be fought on
both the local and national levels. Hats off to Benton and Multnomah counties for show-
Darin J. Ward DDS PC, F.A.G.D.
Fellow of the Academy of General Dentistry
Health Centered Dentistry
300 Country Club Rd. Ste. 290 • Eugene, OR 97401
At Health Centered Dentistry, we focus on your overall wellness. By tak-
ing a holistic approach and arranging for health rather than merely treating
disease, we offer an opportunity to restore your oral health to its optimum.
We look at the whole picture, consider sys-
temic health and underlying factors, and
take steps to perfect your smile while pre-
venting problems before they occur. Friendly
faces welcome you in a relaxing, stress-free
environment to ensure you are as comfort-
able as possible.
Call today and experience the benefits we
offer with the extraordinary people and
unique setting only Health Centered
Dentistry can provide.
(541) 686-2441
TRASH SNATCHERS COMB
OREGON’S COASTLINE
The 19th annual Great Oregon Spring
Beach Cleanup takes place from 10 am to 1
pm Saturday, March 27. The cleanup is orga-
nized by statewide non-profit organization
SOLV (Stop Oregon Litter and Vandalism) in
conjunction with Oregon Parks and
Recreation Department. The cleanup is an
opportunity to work with thousands of volun-
teers, spend time at the ocean and participate
in restoring a more healthy environment for
coastal wildlife and visitors.
The 4,000 Beach Cleanup volunteers of
2003 covered the entire 362 miles of Oregon
coastline. According to Bev Ardueser, SOLV
program coordinator, they removed 38 tons
of trash. Not bad for a rainy, cold day.
SOLV was founded in 1969 by Gov. Tom
McCall. At that time SOLV focused on litter
pickup and illegal dumpsite pickup. In 35
years SOLV programs have “expanded
many-fold,” Ardueser said. The organiza-
tion’s work now encompasses watershed
restoration, cleanup and enhancement as well
as working on small town restoration pro-
jects.
On Saturday the coast will be organized
into 42 check-in sites, each with a “beach
captain.” Volunteers arrive at 10 am, register
and receive a trash bag. They are encouraged
to wear gloves and boots and dress for the
weather. Volunteers can find access to a
coastal map and further information at the or-
ganization’s website, www.SOLV.org
— Kate Storm
GENESIS STILL AFLOAT
The Genesis Juice sign behind the counter
at the Bijou theater says “RIP,” but the embat-
tled organic co-op reports it’s having some
success staying afloat with direct sales to cus-
tomers.
Contrary to rumors, “subscriptions are not
the only choice,” says Benjamin Cutler, co-
owner and president of the company. “People
may come in and prepay for juice a week at a
time and then pick it up when it is ready.”
Cutler says Genesis will have “an online
ordering system linked to our website within a
couple of weeks so that people can order and
pay for their juice before coming in.” And he
adds, “We’re also looking for businesses and
stores who are willing to offer a drop point for
people to pick up their juice.” The website is
www.efn.org/~genesis — TJT
ing some insight and guts in this issue. Lane County should be on that list.
• Meanwhile, Oregon’s dailies are debating how to deal with same-sex marriage
announcements. Do they run alongside conventional marriage announcements and
anniversaries? Do they go in a different part of the paper? Are they paid or free?
We say they deserve equal treatment, so at EW we will run them, along with any
other personal announcement our readers want to make, from bat mitzvahs to dog
obituaries. Our space is very limited so we can’t offer them for free, but we will
make them as cheap as we can and still cover our printing costs.
• Looks like the two parties petitioning to refer the Riverfront Urban Renewal
District to voters are going to be working together, which makes perfect sense. The
petition is a good idea and we support having urban renewal go to the voters. We
need more public discussion about how our tax dollars are collected and spent. The
petitions that will be turned in are the ones available at Paul’s Bicycle way of Life.
• Paul Pierson, native Eugenean and now a professor of political economy at Harvard,
talked to a big City Club crowd recently about Bush, taxes and the erosion of American
democracy, and afterward offered a provocative “can do.” He said that 30 or 40 years
ago in America, citizens had in place an infrastructure of people they trusted in politics,
maybe union leaders, teachers and others. That intermediary social structure is now
gone, but the networks of trust and interdependence need reconstituting for the sake of
democracy in America. An interesting assignment for Eugene and Oregon!
SLANT includes short opinion pieces, observations and rumor-chasing notes compiled by the EW staff. Heard
any good rumors lately? Contact Ted Taylor at 484-0519, editor@eugeneweekly.com
ATTENTION
LOCAL MUSICIANS
HAVE YOUR BAND FEATURED BY
EUGENE WEEKLY & PABST BLUE RIBBON!
If you think you fit the PBR image then submit a short
bio, sample CD and band photo. (If you don't know
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SUBMISSIONS CAN BE SENT TO
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MARCH 25, 2004 9