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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (June 28, 2007)
TO THE EDITOR simply because they will be too expensive to drive. At least there will be more parking and less road wear and tear. And with scrap metal prices up, you might want to sell your SUV while you can still get a few bucks per ton for it. The next generation of smaller, lighter and more fuel efficient cars won’t be cheap either since the automakers will need to make their profits off them and recoup their belated in- vestments in hybrids and electrics if they aren’t bankrupt first. With gas in Canada already over $5 a gal- lon and China and India buying up “our oil” in the Middle East, the question really is: What will you drive when gas is $5.95? Give or take a few cents of taxes. Mark Murphy Creswell SWEET RUMSFELD I like to chew Wrigley’s spearmint gum when I work. It helps me think, relaxes me and soothes my stomach. I bought a pack last week and noticed it said “Better Mint Taste” on its package. Wrigley has been selling the same spearmint gum since 1893. I started chewing some and immediately spit it out be- cause of a bad chemical taste. I looked at the list of ingredients and there it was: aspartame. My favorite gum had finally been laced with this poison. Now most sugar-free gums sold have this poisonous artificial sweetener added. Aspartame was discovered in 1965 by the G.D. Searle company. They could not get FDA approval for its new artificial sweetener until they hired Don Rumsfeld as CEO. Rumsfeld used his political clout and “called in his markers” to achieve FDA approval for aspartame, better known by its trade name NutraSweet. Independent studies have proved conclu- sively that aspartame is a neurotoxic, carcino- genic and highly addictive drug now lacing over 9,000 products. Rumsfeld received a $12 million dollar bonus. I silently put up with rocket fuel in my let- tuce, E. coli in my spinach, growth hormones in my milk, toxic plastic in my cat food and antifreeze in my toothpaste, but I have to scream bloody murder when the only good gum remaining has been poisoned by “Better Mint Taste.” Michael T. Hinojosa Drain DO-NOTHING ATTITUDE Regarding “Biking a Better Eugene” (cover story 5/24): With eight miles of new bike lanes down Main Street of Springfield, the new bike safety corridor being built sometime later this year in Glenwood and the new EmX buses, the city of Springfield is moving alternative transportation at a much quicker pace than Eugene. When I called the bicycle people with the city of Eugene about a month ago when Mayor Kitty Piercy suggested that bicyclists do, I was verbally told that they weren’t all that interested in the input from longtime Eugene bicyclists. That they wanted to hear input from people who were novice bicycle riders instead of people who have ridden the streets of Eugene for 15 to 20 years. What better way is there to ignore the calls for the repair of the dangerous disre- paired bicycle lanes and paths, calls for new bicycle only streets (like 12th and Alder) and pedestrian bridges over dangerous and con- gested intersections (like what is needed on BY SALLY SHEKLOW Franklin and Onyx)? It’s the same do-nothing attitude, not just from the city bureaucrats but also from the bi- cycle business community, until too many bi- cyclists die or the city gets sued, that irks me the most. Suggestion: When someone like myself who really cares about our community calls to get involved and provide input, take them seriously and don’t blow us off. Shannon Wilson Eugene MEANS OF INTIMIDATION What a hoot! Convicted domestic terrorist Chelsea Gerlach accuses the Bush adminis- tration of “name calling” and says that “it cer- tainly is not going to stop me from working for peaceful, sustainable change in society.” The sustainable change we need is for Chelsea and her cohorts to stop setting fires as a means of intimidation. Now her sister describes her as “kind, compassionate.” Well, the kind and compas- sionate people I know don’t use arson to force their views on everyone else. Chelsea’s sister goes on to ask if the terror label will be used against those who use legal means to protest the government. No, it will not. The terror label is appropriate for those who use violence to force their views on oth- ers. Burning things down is violent be it a ski resort, a lumber mill or a Planned Parenthood facility. Human death need not occur for an act to be terrorism. And here’s a little tip for those who feel that they can’t get their point across by partic- ipating in “the system.” Your failure to achieve your goals is very likely a reflection that your views are in the minority. That’s life. Get over yourself. Randy Kolb Eugene PSYCHOTIC BREEDERS The Bible does not say, “go forth, metas- tasize and smother the Earth.” Nor does it command us to keep female cats, turn them out when they are in heat, take them back to have their kittens, then turn the kittens out to roam the neighborhood in search of food and shelter, and to breed freely. Yet we have a family here in our neighborhood that is doing just that. They have, apparently, several breeding females, which each produce one or two litters a year. The kittens are turned out to roam the neighborhood when they are six or eight months old. The neighbors are all getting sick of this behavior. Those people refuse to stop turning out kittens. There have been at least a dozen this year. Orange tigers, various colors of shorthaired kittens with fluffy tails and prob- ably others that I haven’t recognized. Those people are clearly psychotic. The neighbors don’t know what to do. We can’t afford to neuter and feed all those cats. We don’t want to take them to animal control to be destroyed, but what else can we do? The kittens become feral within a year or two. Right now, they are trying to get into any house they can because they think they be- long in houses. They are right, but they can’t all find houses. I don’t think the authorities care. They will tell you that dumping cats is not illegal. It should be illegal. There should be a heavy fine, say $1,000, for each kitten or cat turned out or dumped. Better yet, $1,000 for the first Are You Gay-Friendly? Take the quiz and find out L ast month Oregon’s Senate Bill 2, the new law to protect gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Oregonians from discrimination, and House Bill 2007, recognizing domestic partnerships, were signed by our governor and set to take effect Jan. 1, 2008. But even before the ink dried — and with a ballpoint pen that’s pretty quick — the opposition launched its drive to put the new laws to a vote. Now, our civil rights are on ice until the November ’08 general election. Then they’ll become law only if the no-on-equality vote fails. Gauging from past anti-gay ballot measures around here, the lead-up to the elections won’t be pretty. Queer-hating rhetoric will get air time under the guise of political debate. All of the old nasty myths and stereotypes will be unleashed. Make way for more tough times, especially for LGBTQ kids, who you know are going to hear a lot worse than That’s So Gay. We fair-minded folks will need to know who’s on our side. During the tough political months ahead, we’ll be checking over our shoulder to see who’s got our backs. Can you be counted among the LGBTQ-friendly? Take the quiz! 1. When I meet lesbian, gay, bi, trans, queer or questioning (LGBTQ) people, I usually: a. Tell them they’re an abomination against God b. Try to act cool, but I can’t help wondering why they’re That Way c. Shake their hands 2. I believe LGBTQ people are: a. Morally degenerate b. Kind of weird, but they can’t help it c. Earthlings 3. Some of my best friends are: a. Grieving for Jerry Falwell b. Gay-acting c. Not allowed to get married under Oregon law 4. Homosexuals are: a. Sick b. Sick, but they are good cooks c. Sick and tired of harassment and discrimination 5. Most LGBTQ people want: a. To take over our schools and teach immoral behavior to our children b. To dress like the opposite sex c. Equality 6. When someone tells a fag joke I usually: a. Get an adrenaline rush and want to go out and smear a queer. b. Laugh real loud so nobody thinks I’m gay. c. Explain why the joke perpetuates harmful stereotypes and that most homophobes are insecure about their own sexuality. 7. My opinion about the ban on gays in the military is: a. Keep the ban b. Don’t ask, don’t tell c. Ban the military 8. Oregon’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people should: a. Repent b. Keep it in the privacy of their own bedrooms c. Be protected against discrimination, so I’m telling everyone not to sign the petitions against nondiscrimination and domestic partnerships, and log on to www.basicrights.org and pledge to vote YES for Equality in the 2008 election How did you do? Add one point for every “c” answer. Add zero points for every “b” answer. Subtract 10 points for every “a” answer and do 10 hours of community service. Key: 7-8 points = Congratulations and thank you, you are LGBTQ-friendly! 5-7 points = Nice try, but I wouldn’t let you marry my sister. < 5 points = Your eyelids are getting heavy, you will forget to vote in 2008. Award-winning write Sally Sheklow has been agitating for equality in Eugene since nineteen-seventy-fucking-two. JUNE 28, 2007 7
