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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 21, 2004)
news briefs Eugene Metro Rotary members get muddy. AMAZON APPRECIATION DAY SATURDAY Eugene’s Stream Team is pulling together its annual Amazon Appreciation Day Saturday, Oct. 23, and this year’s event falls right in the middle of a time when a lot of folks who normally participate are caught up in last-minute election activities. “We’re urging people to take a break from politics and come out and play in the stream,” says Lorna Baldwin, Stream Team environ- mental volunteer coordinator. “This is a fun family affair. Now that the event has been re- located to the fall, we can not only clean up the creek but create healthier habitat by plant- ing native plants.” Baldwin says three sites will be set up for volunteers to gather this year: Amazon Park, Chavez School and the stretch of Amazon Creek between Oak Patch and Acorn Park that was widened two years ago. Bird walks begin at 7:30 am, work parties run from 9 to noon, followed by a gathering at the Hilyard Center for lunch and door prizes. The Stream Team will provide tools, gloves and instruc- • Last week we encouraged Eugene vot- ers to be sure to mark Kitty Piercy for mayor and other uncontested city races because those numbers do get counted and will be quoted in future races. We did- n’t mention all the uncontested candi- dates so, yes, mark your ballots for Betty Taylor, Bonny Bettman and Pete Sorenson as well. How about Doug Harcleroad for district attorney? That’s a different story. Not only does our DA have a record of outrageously poor judgement over his career (selective law enforcement, politi- cal intimidation, etc.), he resigned after winning the uncontested primary, citing exhaustion and burnout. He’s taking a six- month vacation before beginning his new term in January. What can we do about it? Short of a recall election, we can fol- low the advice of Bernard Nickerson, one of our astute readers, and write in Charles O. Porter for Lane County DA. Porter is our former congressman and a man of great courage and integrity who in his twilight years has been spearheading a national effort to impeach the members 10 OCTOBER 21, 2004 tion. Eugene Weekly will have a booth and offer refreshments. The work parties will be cleaning debris from the creek, removing invasive species, and planting native vegetation along the creek and on the Chavez School grounds. Students and parents from schools near Amazon Creek are expected to show up, along with volunteers from neighborhood groups, local restoration groups, government agencies and non-profit organizations in- volved in environmental work. More than 21 square miles of land within Eugene city limits drain into Amazon Creek as it flows northwest from the Spencer Butte area to Fern Ridge Reservoir and the Long Tom River. One of the leading sources of volunteers for Amazon restoration through the Stream Team is the Rachel Carson program at Churchill High School. For the past six years, about 30 students in the program have been doing water quality monitoring and hands-on restoration work year-round. Students from the Village School have planted willows along the creek banks and collected camas seeds to cultivate for replant- ing. Students from Eastside School planted a butterfly garden near the footbridge at 34th Avenue and will be weeding the garden and doing more plantings on Amazon Appreciation Day. Numerous local neighborhood groups and businesses have adopted sections of the creek over the years, says Baldwin. The Eugene Metro Rotary and the Miracle on 33rd neigh- borhood group are currently among those in- volved in the creek adoption program. More information on the Stream Team can be found at www.ci.eugene.or.us — TJT JOURNALIST EYES TAX INJUSTICE David Cay Johnston, New York Times columnist and Pulitzer Prize winner, will share his insights into the gross injustices of the of the Supreme Court who appointed Bush president in 2000. Nickerson says Porter is not a candidate and would not likely serve if elected, “but there are important rea- sons to write in that name — to honor a great man, and to suggest a lesson to another man.” Nickerson com- plains of Harcleroad’s “manipulation of the political process with a sur- prise sabbatical and expedient executive appoint- ment of a chosen successor to the elected office he just semi-abdicated, which must be considered in the context of the many misjudgments of his tenure.” Well said. • Election time always generates squab- bles surrounding lawn signs and political ads. We’re hearing rumors of conservative landlords threatening to evict tenants if American tax system in a lecture at 2 pm Saturday, Oct 23, at the Knight Law Center, UO. The lecture is free to the public, and light refreshments will be provided by the Wayne Morse Chair for Law and Politics. The New York Times hired Johnston in 1995 to conduct running investigations of how this country’s tax system actually operates, as opposed to what politicians say about it. His work has shut down tax dodges and loopholes valued by Congress at $258 billion. In 2001 he won the Pulitzer Prize and he has been a final- ist for that award three other times since 2000, a record unmatched by any other journalist. Johnston’s recent book, Perfectly Legal, ex- poses the ways the American tax system has been rigged to benefit the super-rich. Johnston broke the story that corporations were using Bermuda mailboxes to escape cor- porate income taxes. He wrote the stories that caused General Electric CEO Jack Welch to give up his retirement perks. He exposed the huge untaxed fortunes that CEOs have built up — and how the way those fortunes are created forces companies to cut health insurance and they don’t take down their Kerry/Edwards signs; churches putting up “Yes on 36” signs in apparent violation of their 501(c)(3) status; obnoxious phone polling; hate mail sent to business- es with political signs outside. Got any stories to tell us for next week’s issue? Send a note to editor@eugene- weekly.com or call Ted or Melissa at 484-0519. • Why defeat Bush? We’ve offered dozens of reasons in recent months and here’s one more: Our friends in other countries recognize that Bush was not the people’s choice in 2000 and high-level political corruption landed him in the White House. But if we actually elect Bush this time, after all the damage he’s done, the image of who we are as an American people will be severe- ly damaged. • Looking to do some real muck-raking? Join us at Amazon Appreciation Day Saturday (see story above). pension benefits for employees. His expose of President Bush’s $252 billion tax cut for the super-rich stopped it from becoming law. “We know that Oregon’s state tax system has many of the same hidden loopholes that Johnston was able to find in the federal sys- tem,” said Lucy Lahr, a state caseworker and co-chair of the Eugene-Springfield Solidarity Network. “Is it really a priority for our state to offer tax breaks for yacht owners, when our schools are forced to cut days off the academic year because of lack of funds? The unfairness in the tax system that Johnston demonstrates so clearly is the cause for the cuts in public ser- vices that we are all facing.” JOHN EDWARDS ENERGIZES UO An estimated 5,000 people attended a rally featuring vice presidential candidate John Edwards at the UO on Oct. 13. The event followed recent visits from other high- Ba ll ot P a rt y , Ba nd s A ga in s t B u sh • Bring Your Ballot Party happening at 9 pm Friday, Oct. 22 at Cozmic Pizza. A benefit for the Democratic Party. Contact DeLynn Anderson at 928-2609 or e-mail eventsbydelynn@comcast.net • Bands Against Bush benefit concerts Friday night at John Henry’s, and Saturday night, Oct. 23, at Cozmic Pizza. Evan Marshall’s event features Cap Gun Suicide, PB Army and Busholini. Guest speakers and raffle. Visit www.bandsagainstbush.com
