Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 16, 2014)
“WHERE IS GOD WHEN I NEED HIM?” Or…maybe you don’t even think He exists at all. Or that you don’t need him in YOUR life. If He does exist, why does He allow suff ering? COME JOIN US AS WE EXPLORE THESE QUESTIONS AND MORE: • We expect a public announcement about Phil Knight’s big gift to UO will be made at a breakfast meeting Friday, Oct. 17, somewhere on campus, and to which 300 are invited. We broke the story last week about the Knight family preparing to make a rumored $1 billion gift, with strings attached, but the amount could be more or less, according to UOmatters.com. The gift could be the largest ever made to a university anywhere, and if it goes to academic programs and scholarships, as anticipated, it would give UO a tremendous boost where it’s really needed. The stark contrast between UO athletic and academic standing is getting the UO some embarrassing attention nationwide. Meanwhile, neighborhood organizations and businesses ringing the UO have been invited to meetings this month looking at possible sites around the campus for three big building projects: a 500-bed residence hall, a 1,500-seat softball stadium and a 100,000-square -foot research lab building. Hold onto your green and yellow visors. Big changes are ahead for that part of town. • Thumbs up for the selection of the UO Foundation and its partners to develop the EWEB site along the Willamette River. It has a huge stake in what happens to Eugene beyond the borders of the campus, a stake historically not appreciated except for athletic facilities. With any development along the river we need to be concerned about protection of the riverbank, maintaining open spaces and making connections to our wonderfully reviving downtown. Who, please, will be the planners in charge? WTF? This big diesel truck with custom exhaust pipes was spotted in a Eugene parking lot last week making a statement among the mostly compact cars. Along with “He’s a Criminal,” the stickers included “Infowars.com,” the Alex Jones right- wing conspiracy website that claims Obamacare is spreading ebola. And no, the license plate is from Oregon, not Texas. • Random thoughts about First Lady Cylvia Hayes and Gov. John Kitzhaber: What happened in her life 17 years ago is between Cylvia and John. During the last four years, whether she has unethically or illegally used her role as first lady to help her private consulting business is an open question, muddy in the Willamette Week story that opened this discussion. We’re reminded of the Antoinette Hatfield story when she was selling big-time real estate in Washington, D.C., perhaps using her role as Sen. Mark Hatfield’s wife to help her lucrative private business. Is Cylvia Hayes as first lady too powerful? We’re reminded of Bill Clinton’s appointment of his first lady Hillary Clinton to head his important, but failed, drive for reforming our health care system. And, of course, we can’t forget Eleanor Roosevelt. We are impressed that Hayes stood alone at her press conference, unlike shamed political men Eliot Spitzer, Gary Hart, etc., who were joined at the podium by their dutiful spouses. She told the press that she asked John not to appear with her. We like Hayes’ main issues, climate change and energy policy, and we hope she and Kitzhaber have four more years to work on them. • The city and Eugene Police Department are once again cracking down on those who ride their bikes or skateboards on sidewalks downtown. This time around they are getting all innovative and creative in their efforts to notify errant bikers of the wrongs of sidewalk-cycling: They are using signs. OK, we are being sarcastic. Signs aren’t innovative, even when they look like mutant smiley faces. But the last two times EPD went on a no-wheels-on-the-sidewalks kick, the cops went around spray-painting warning signs on the sidewalk itself. Sadly, they painted them the wrong direction so that you only saw the warning right-side up if you were already on the sidewalk and breaking the law. Kudos to the city and EPD for moving from graffiti to actual signs. Unfortunately the signs don’t solve two big issues: We need better bike lanes downtown so that cyclists don’t feel they need to be on the sidewalk to be safe. And skateboarders have nowhere they can safely and legally ride downtown except apparently crosswalks. We built them a great skatepark but made it hard to get there. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 17 Does God Exist? Can we trust what the Bible says about him? SATURDAY, OCTOBER 18 AT 11:00AM Why does God allow suff ering? SATURDAY, OCTOBER 18 What happens when you die? SUNDAY, OCTOBER 19 Would a loving God really burn people in hell for eternity? Join us for a series of free discussions about the character of God, on October 17-18-19, 2014. All meetings are at 6:00pm except where noted above. Eugene Seventh-day Adventist Church 1275 Polk Street • Eugene • 541-683-4169 Follow the beat with SELCO. Richard and his boys needed a new place to jam—with a home attached. After SELCO’s quick mortgage pre-approval, Richard was ready to start house hunting. SELCO’s local experts guided him through every step of the home loan process. He also got a great rate on homeowners’ insurance from SELCO Insurance Services. And what really rocks? Richard even saved enough for a new drum kit. selco.org / 541-686-8000 Several locations in Eugene and Springfi eld • Great to see Rep. Peter DeFazio taking a strong stand against escalating U.S. military action in the Middle East. The hounds of war are snarling and drooling and Pete is trying to keep them in chains. DeFazio is distinctly a minority voice, as was Wayne Morse, one of the few in Congress who clearly envisioned the bloody quagmire of U.S. military intervention in Vietnam’s civil war. NMLS# 402847 Membership requirements apply. See SELCO for details. 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 Banking | Mortgages | Insurance | Retirement | Business Lending eugeneweekly.com • October 16, 2014 9
