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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 18, 2012)
NE W S CORRECTIONS/CLARIFICATIONS Mea culpa. Mea maxima culpa. EW has been informed the gentle mockery of UO’s motto “mens agitat molem” (that’s “mind moves the mass” for you non-classics scholars who think UO’s motto translates to “men agitate moles”) should have read “corpora agitant [plural] molem” (bodies move the mass), instead of agitat, which is singular. Best motto that’s been proposed? “UO: We teach classes, too.” ACTIVIST LERT • How can we achieve net-zero water in buildings? A presentation and round table discussion on the “Water Petal of the Living Building Challenge” will be from 5 to 8 pm Thursday, Oct. 18t, at Gerlinger Lounge on the UO campus. Discussion will focus on three case studies: a single family home, a multi-family building and commercial building. Free, but space is limited. RSVP to Scott Stolarczyk at 342-8077 or email eugene@ cascadiagbc.org • A big anti-pot Statewide Marijuana Summit is from 8 am to 4:30 pm Thursday, Oct. 18, at Living Hope Christian Church in Madras. See BestCarePrevention.org • A resolution opposing coal trains through Eugene is on the agenda of the Eugene City Council Monday evening, Oct. 22. The council held a work session Oct. 8 to hear from both opponents and proponents of the coal trains. On July 9, Councilor Alan Zelenka proposed Resolution 5065 to oppose the transport of coal by train through Eugene. A petition opposed to a coal export terminal at the Port of Morrow on the Columbia River near Boardman can be found at http://wkly.ws/1dc • Veterans for Peace is planning an “Unoccupy Afghanistan” vigil at 4:30 pm Wednesday, Oct. 24, at the old Federal Building, 211 E. 7th Ave. downtown. • A town hall meeting to include a screening of The Story of Citizens United will be at 6:30 pm Wednesday, Oct. 24, at the First United Methodist Church, 1376 Olive St. Short presentations and small group discussions will follow. Eugene Ballot Measure 20-198 asks Congress to pass a constitutional amendment overturning the Citizens United decision; attendees will discuss why an amendment is needed and what it should look like. Sponsored by We the People — Eugene. • Eugene Neighborhoods Inc.’s annual meeting will be from 5 to 7 pm Thursday, Oct. 25, at Davis Restaurant, 94 W. Broadway. A panel of citizens will relate their experiences protecting neighborhoods against unwise commercial and residential developments and unwanted cell-towers, and lessons learned from working with attorneys specializing in Oregon’s land use laws. Panelists will include Lisa Warnes, Merilee Eisen, April Hatcher, Camilla Bayliss, Paul Conte and Liam Sherlock. Happy hour and socializing at 5 with program at 5:30. • Canvassing for Betty Taylor is now happening Saturdays with an 11 am gathering time at the Democratic Party of Lane County Office, 228 E.11th Ave. Call 484-5099 or 914-5603. Democratic campaigns are also being supported by the new Organizing for America (OFA) field office at 115 W 6th Ave. Eugene. Call 525-9387 for information on voter outreach and canvassing. LOCAL ACTIVIST DEFENDS BIG BIRD Duri ng the fi rst presidential debate Oct. 3, when Mitt Romney professed to “love Big Bird” yet said he would “stop the subsidy to PBS,” he triggered an immediate internet outcry, one that prompted former Eugenean and political ac- tivist Sam Chapman to start a fun- draising campaign for the Sesame Street character. Chapman’s cam- paign swiftly made national head- lines with mentions in papers such as USA Today. Chapman, a UO graduate and social media consultant based in Portland, is no stranger to political activism. In 2011, he organized the online version of Occupy Eugene on Face- book, which led to the formation of Eugene’s Occupy camps and subsequent attention boost to Eugene’s homeless issues. Chapman says his contribution to the movement yielded some surprising results. He started the Facebook page in re- sponse to the start of the Occupy Portland movement. Within 24 hours, the page had over 300 members, and it soon led to the Oct. 15 march that kicked off OE. Chapman has moved on to other political causes and is now working to support Measure 80, which would legalize and regulate marijuana in Oregon. As cofounder of Orego- nians for Law Reform, Chapman recently worked to elimi- nate seven billboards in the Portland area that made inaccu- rate comparisons between marijuana and meth, depicting a young woman looking haggard with sores. Chapman says the misleading billboards, put in place by Protect Our Soci- ety, will be taken down as a result of failure to disclose their source of funding. “I’ve always felt that my stronger skill-sets involve speak- ing for the soft-spoken,” Chapman says. “If I feel strongly about something, you can bet I’m going to do something about it.” This philosophy prevailed when Big Bird came under fi re. Chapman grew up watching Sesame Street and even saw Big Bird live in New York when he was 4 years old. Somehow, he says, he knew he had to help out his beloved PBS. Since Big Bird is male, he is at least safe from Romney’s “binders full of women.” The campaign “Keep Your Mitts off of Big Bird!” is at Indiegogo.com, a website that allows its users to post cam- paigns and raise money. As of Oct. 16, the Big Bird campaign has raised $447 and will continue accepting contributions un- til Nov. 2, after which all collected donations will go directly to PBS. — Amy Schneider UO HONORING ANNE DHU MCLUCAS The UO is honoring the life and work of music profes- sor and former dean of the School of Music and Dance Anne Dhu McLucas, who died Sept. 8. Plans are proceeding on the second of a two-part symposium on “Oral Traditions, Old and New” Oct. 19 and 20. The October portion of the symposium will be dedicated to McLucas, with musicians and scholars from across the U.S. and abroad presenting their work in her memory. The theme of the symposium was chosen to honor her 2010 monograph, the “The Musical Ear: Oral Tradition in the USA.” lighten up BY RAFAEL ALDAVE 10 October 18, 2012 • eugeneweekly.com A memorial service will be held at 4 pm Saturday, Oct. 20, in Beall Concert Hall, 961 E. 18th Ave., on campus. The service is open to the public. See music.uoregon.edu for more information on the symposium and memorial. LOOKING AHEAD FOR RAPID TRANSIT In celebration of fi nal local approval of West Eugene EmX, a party to celebrate and thank everyone who has worked to support EmX is being planned for 5:30 to 7 pm Tuesday, Oct. 23, at the Broadway Commerce Center, 44 W. Broadway. Mayor Kitty Piercy, LTD Board Chair Greg Evans and other local leaders are expected to attend. RSVP to rsvp@emxyes. org What’s next for EmX? The LTD Board has approved pro- ceeding into the design and development stages of the West Eugene EmX Extension. Meanwhile, LTD and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) are completing the Environmen- tal Analysis (EA) review process. “If the FTA fi nds that all signifi cant impacts have been avoided or mitigated, a Finding of No Signifi cant Impact (FONSI) will be issued to complete the environmental plan- ning and review process,” according to the LTD website. After receiving funding authorization, LTD will begin de- veloping detailed project designs. LTD will work with prop- erty owners along the corridor on project refi nements that best meet the interests of property owners, businesses and the project. After the 18- to 24-month fi nal design process is completed, “construction would progress in segments along the route to minimize the duration of construction at any loca- tion,” says LTD. “Given this schedule, the new West Eugene EmX service would open to the public in 2017. LTD hopes to accelerate this timeline, if possible.” LTD says the EmX Extension will benefi t the community in several ways: • Improvements along West 6th, 7th, and 11th avenues will increase capacity at eight major intersections, add 5.9 miles of new street pavement and add 4.7 miles of upgrad- ed sidewalks. • Two new bike/pedestrian bridges over Amazon Creek will provide connections to West 11th. • An additional 8.8 new round-trip miles will be added to EmX for a total of 24 round-trip miles. • Travel time will improve for both transit and regular traffi c along the entire west Eugene corridor. • LTD will experience lower long-term transit operating costs, “thereby maintaining funds for quality service into the future.” See weemx.ltd.org for more information. Running 150-car coal trains that spew coal dust, belch diesel fumes and snarl traffic throughout Eugene just might make environmentalists out of all of us.
