Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 16, 2007)
Saturday Aug. 11 marked a quarter century of S.L.U.G. (Society for the Legitimization of the Ubiquitous Gastropod) queens in Eugene. The com- petition was hard fought, but in the end Queen Glorious Gastropause (or Queen Glo to her minions) beat out the other hopefuls. After a display of talent by the Old Queens, the competition asked the can- didates to show off their own talent, answer questions that would have stumped the brightest of Miss Americas, and display their costumes. Unlike Miss America, there were no two-piece bathing suits. This was perhaps for the best, though contestant Malta Landers was lovely in what appeared to be an evening gown of sorts. Talents included singing by Slugaña, whose entourage chanted “Escargot!” as he shuffled across the stage. Slugaña New S.L.U.G. Queen Glo looked rather like a male snail, but during his spiel, while “coming out of his shell,” s/he pointed out that snails are hermaph- roditic. Queen candidate Terre Verde wowed the crowd with stiltwalking and also showed off her devotion to slug-green with her nail polish and unmentionables. The crowd was horrified and delighted when contestant Pittie Pie Slugstocking dropped her skirt while hula-hooping to “Baby Got Back,” but the unclothing revealed pink ruffled hip-high grandma panties, suitable for all but the most dis- criminating audiences. In the end, after a lengthy debate among the judges, it was Queen Glo (also known to Eugenans as Leigh Anne Jasheway-Bryant) who was coronated by the Old Queens. Please note: There are no former S.L.U.G. queens, only Old Queens, Very Old Queens and, for those whose “rain” ended more than 20 years ago, Very, Very Old Queens. Queen Glo, a humorous author and speaker and former KOPT radio personality, won the judges over with a monologue poking fun of everything Eugene, from field burning to anti-Bush administration quips. (The competition encourages the con- testants to “Bribe early, and bribe often” when it comes to the judging.) Pittie Pie was first runner-up and stands ready to take over if Queen Glo cannot fulfill her duties; Slugaña slimed into third place. The competition ended with danc- ing to the music of J.C. Rico and Zulu Dragon. Queen Glo will meet her public at the S.L.U.G. Queen Silver Jubilee from 6:30 to 7:30 pm Friday, Sept. 7, at the Eugene Public Library and again Saturday, Sept. 8, during the Eugene Celebration Parade. — Camilla Mortensen BLAME IT ON THE CLIMATE Is the spotted owl the latest victim of climate change? An article in the summer 2007 edition of Forests for Oregon, the Oregon Department of Forestry’s (ODF) magazine, blames climate change for the dwindling numbers of spotted owls. Barred owls have moved west and begun to push the threatened northern spot- ted owl out of its dwindling habitat. Barred owls not only eat the same mammals spotted owls do, they also interbreed with them, creating owl hybrids. Scientists fear that the incursion of the barred owl into spotted owl habitat is one more nail in the coffin of this threatened species. According to the 10 year report on the Northwest Forest Plan, spotted owl popu- lations have been steadily declining, possibly due to weather, harvest of habitat (log- ging), fires and insect infestations that alter habitat. Jeri Chase, an ODF public affairs specialist writing about the work of Forest Service researcher Ronald P. Neilson, speculates that “the incursion of the barred owl into spotted owl territories is a harbinger of climate change.” Chase calls the incursion of barred owls “a potential increase in overall biodiver- sity,” while noting the barred owls place “the continued existence of an endangered species in peril.” The Northwest Forest Plan called for unlogged reserve blocks of old-growth habi- tat intended to support owl reproduction. However, the recently issued Western Oregon Plan Revisions (WOPR), which supercedes the Northwest Forest Plan, does away with those reserves. Old-growth forests are one of the most secure forms of carbon storage, accord- ing to conservation group Oregon Wild. Carbon storage slows the greenhouse gases that lead to climate change. — Camilla Mortensen 10 AUGUST 16, 2007 ROGER RIX LONG LIVE THE S.L.U.G. QUEEN! news briefs TASERS USED IN PRISONS Eugene is debating the role of electronic weapons known as Tasers in the arsenal of the Eugene Police Department, and similar debates are happening at the state level and around the country. And now the nation- al Partnership for Safety and Justice (safetyandjus- tice.org) is calling for action to reduce or eliminate the use of Tasers in our jails and prisons. The Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) is proposing a change in its rules that will allow prison guards to use Tasers on unruly or noncompliant prisoners. “The DOC currently uses electronic shields and has an older model of an elec- tronic gun in its arsenal,” says a statement from the group. “The newer electronic pro- jectile weapons are much more likely to hit their targets than older models, and they’ve proven themselves to be deadly weapons. More than 220 people have died after being shot with electronic weapons.” The deadline for comments on the pro- posed DOC rules change is Aug. 25. Information on how to send a message to DOC’s Director Max Williams can be found at SafetyAndJustice.org Look for the Action Center page. In Eugene, a series of public meetings on Tasers are being held by the Police Commission and a commission subcommitee. These meetings are being videotaped, in part, and broadcast later on Community Television Channel 29’s Altruistic Insight program with Christopher Kelsay. Meetings from July 26 and July 5 will be broadcast at noon and 11 pm Thursday, Aug. 23. Another Taser meeting is planned for Aug. 20 and will be broadcast the following week. See CTV29.org for program schedule. WE GROUP TO MEET The West Eugene Collaborative, aka WE Group, has scheduled another in its series of facil- itated community meetings to hash out solutions to traffic congestion in west Eugene. The group was formed after the Eugene City Council withdrew its support for the West Eugene Parkway last year. The meeting runs from 2 pm to 5 pm Monday, Aug. 20, at the Lane Council of Governments building, 99 E. Broadway. The meeting, facilitated by Dennis Donald and John Huyler of The Osprey Group, will begin with an overview of meeting goals and a review of key decisions from the previous meetings. Presenters and discussion leaders include Emily Proudfoot, Tom Schwetz, Gerry Gaydos, Chris Pryor, Sue Wolling, Rob Zako, Susan Ban, Mary O’Brien, Mayor Kitty Piercy and Jack Roberts. Updates on the meeting agenda will be emailed this week to participants and interested par- ties. To get on the email list visit www.TheOspreyGroup.com or email johnhuyler@earth- link.net
