• Last Saturday morning
• We caught bits and pieces of the two-hour
Jefferson Smith, a ’96 UO
“conversation” with John Musumeci on
political science graduate,
KOPT-AM radio Tuesday and we’d be inter-
challenged the ’05 UO poli
ested to hear what listeners think. Did the
sci grads to “change funda-
program sound like progressive radio or
mentally the mechanisms
just another conservative talk show? Did
by which we govern our-
host Nancy Stapp ask any hard questions
selves.” As founder and direc-
(we might have missed them) or was it
tor of the Oregon Bus Project,
mostly superficial? Do you buy into
Smith is working at that chal-
Musumeci’s justifications for his past Gang of 9
lenge himself. His project website
campaign of character assassination? Is he using
talks about involving young people,
his radio station to further his personal political
Jefferson Smith
bridging the urban-rural divide, going
agenda and his business interests, or is he really
to the grassroots — “combining fun with the serious busi-
providing a public service? Have we learned anything
ness of politics.” Smith closed his ringing commencement beyond how to pronounce his name? Repeat after me:
remarks with a series of questions “our own grandchil-
muse-oo-meechy.
dren will ask,” such as: “Where were
you when we still had plenty of fossil
fuels? Where were you back before
the temperature of the earth was
threatening to rise and melt icecaps?
Where were you when the country’s
election system and economic system
were relatively corruption free?
Where were you when the U.S. still
was the envy of world markets?
Where were you when Oregon threat-
ened the nation’s shortest school
year? Where were you when the
country was at the turning point of
history — deciding what kind of place
we wanted to be, and how we were
going to get there? And we’ll be able
to say, we were here: doing some-
thing, and saying something, answer-
ing history’s questions. We were
here.”
• Craigslist.com is fun to play with and now has a Eugene
page, but be warned. We read on MSNBC online that the
infamous Nigerian scammers have discovered Craigslist
and will offer to buy your advertised stuff and arrange
shipping, sending cashiers checks and money orders that
turn out to be fake, even though your bank might accept
them initially. They may also try to rent your advertised
house or apartment, send you a bad check (or too large a
check), then ask for a refund. PayPal scams are also
appearing and send unwary people to fake websites that
look legitimate. Sneaky bastards are out to get us. EW
classified ads are still cheap, effective and relatively
scam-free, and they support the work we do.
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
• This is a turning point in history and
several local powerhouses are lining
up this week to call for the impeach-
ment of President Bush and Vice
President Cheney. We wish more
politically engaged people would
express such courage, clarity and
conviction. Former Congressman Jim
Weaver will make his case for
impeachment at 4 pm Friday in room
127 of Chiles Hall, across from the UO
Bookstore. He will be joined by the
eminent scientist Frank Stahl. For the
past year, Stahl has been distributing
fliers on campus that describe the
Iraq war as illegal and unconstitution-
al. Pacifica Forum Chairman Orval
Etter will be there, and perhaps oth-
ers. This is the kind of ruckus Charlie
Porter would love to join, but we are
sad to hear the distinguished former
congressman’s health is failing.
• Meanwhile, alternative media,
including Internet sites and blogs,
have taken the lead in telling the
story of the Downing Street Memo
(see DowningStreetMemo.com and
AfterDowningStreet.org), about how
U.S. and British top-level officials
plotted to invent reasons to invade
Iraq while claiming to pursue diplo-
macy and inspections. If true, and it
certainly appears to be, this docu-
ment is a thousand times more
damning to the Bush administration
than Nixon’s Watergate fiasco.
Congressional hearings are in order.
We have a right to know just how
badly we’ve been lied to.
JUNE 16, 2005 9