the Pacifica Forum, says Weber has a bache-
lor’s degree in history from PSU and a mas-
ter’s in modern European history from
Indiana University. Etter says the Pacifica
Forum’s purpose is to “provide information
and perspectives on the issues of war and
peace, militarism and pacifism, violence and
nonviolence.”
In an EW Viewpoint column this week,
Eugene blogger Mark Robinowitz has a dif-
ferent take on Weber’s visit, saying, “We
don’t need neo-Nazis to tell us that Israel vio-
lates human rights. It is possible that some of
the Holocaust deniers are provocateurs in-
tended to give uncritical supporters of Israel
an excuse to avoid examining human rights
abuses against Palestinians, among other
contemporary crimes.” — Ted Taylor
ENERGY
ROUND-UP
The Lane County Energy
Round-Up (LCER) Steering
Committee is planning two fol-
low-up meetings for all those
who have been involved in
Round-Up forums held over the
past 10 months.
The first meeting will be from 6 to
8:30 pm Wednesday, Nov. 7, at the EWEB
Training Room, 500 E. 4th St, in Eugene.
On the agenda will be an update on what
LCER has done and has planned to date and a
discussion of the “best strategies to help slow
and prepare for climate change and peak oil in
Lane County.”
The second meeting for the purpose of
coalition building is planned for 6 to 8:30 pm
Wednesday, Nov. 14, also at EWEB. “We are
including groups involved with ending the
war in Iraq acknowledging the war is related
to these issues and takes away necessary fund-
ing and work for these urgent problems,” says
Pamela Driscoll of the LCER. “Other groups
invited are active in permaculture, localization
efforts, renewable energy, conservation, eco-
building, community building, etc.”
For
more
information,
OregonEnergyModel.org
visit
LETTER
BLASTS
DOWNTOWN
LANDLORDS
A letter critical of Eugene commercial
property owners and developers Connor &
Woolley was circulated at three downtown
bars last week by bartender and stand-up
comic Ty Connor. Copies of the letter gener-
ated a total of 228 signatures in 72 hours, ac-
cording to Connor’s count.
The letter claims that Eugene’s
downtown blight is "due di-
rectly to the prolonged dis-
use of properties owned by
Tom Connor & Don
Woolley," and C&W have
"proven for years, beyond
all doubt, that they couldn't
care less about the quality of
life in the West Broadway
area."
The letter calls for a no vote on Measure
20-134 and says, "This ballot measure is noth-
ing more than a huge bailout for these do-
nothing landlords. … Essentially, Measure 20-
134 hands millions of dollars of public money
to these negligent property owners, rewarding
their neglect while at the same time threaten-
ing already established businesses with un-
fairly subsidized competitors, displacement
and/or destruction."
Don Woolley was sent a copy of the letter
by EW and said he was considering a re-
sponse. No word was received by press time.
The full text of the letter is included with
other
late
election
letters
at
eugeneweekly.com this week. — TJT
BY PAUL NEEVEL
TIM HELFERTY
As a teenager growing up in the San
Francisco Bay Area, Tim Helferty got
into music at 924 Gilman Street, a non-
profit club in North Berkeley, where he
mixed sound for a few punk and metal
bands. “It was a similar venue to the
WOW Hall,” says Helferty, who left the
music behind when he moved to
Portland in 1991 to work in the plastics
industry. He worked his way up to head
tech engineer, then relocated to Pak
Tech in Eugene for five years. “I was
working 12 hours a day, six or seven
days a week,” says Helferty, who reor-
ganized his life after heart and kidney
failure in 2004. He quit his job and
began volunteering at the WOW Hall,
learning from the sound guys, picking
up part-time paid work and eventually
taking a salaried position as office man-
ager. “I’d rather be happy and make others happy,” he says. “Everyone who comes
here is happy to see a show.” Helferty oversees building maintenance and ticket
sales, with a workforce of volunteers and teens doing community service. On the
side, he and his girlfriend DJ KaatSkratch hire out as a sound and DJ team.
See myspace.com/totalknockoutsound
NOVEMBER 1, 2007 13