ported by both George Brown (owner of
Kiva and two-term Ward 1 councilor) and
Bonny Bettman (retired RN and two-term
councilor for Ward 1 previous to George).
Josh has been an active member of various
committees within the city, including bud-
get and transportation. Both are suma cum
laude grads with various degrees.
I have decided to back Emily Semple
for the position. For one, she has been a
resident of Ward 1 for 31 years and wants
the job out of a sense of dutiful respon-
sibility to all her friends, associates and
neighbors here in Eugene. It is a pleasure
to come to learn that her quiet demeanor
masks a lightning quick analytical mind.
Even more so, I am impressed that her de-
sire to truly represent her constituency is her
agenda. I think she will popularize the posi-
tion of councilor in such a way that a lot of
people will want to step up and give it a try.
And if this indeed is a non-partisan election
in a democracy, more candidates are needed.
Friendly sidebars for me include:
She is at the young end of the Boom-
ers, which is the Socratic moment for com-
munity service.
When she ran for SLUG queen 25
years ago (which was the absolute height
of the Eugene Celebration, and a lot bigger
than the Whiteaker Block Party), she was
the unanimous choice amongst a field of
10 contestants.
She has a couple of lovely, small tat-
toos on her arms, which in a perfect world
would not affect my decision, but most
certainly does in this world.
Scott Landfield
Eugene
MENTAL HEALTH LAWS
WEST 11TH NIGHTMARE
Rep. Pete DeFazio sadly co-sponsored
the worst piece of mental health legislation
I have seen in 42 years of human rights ac-
tivism. HR 2646 is more than 100 pages
long, so mainly lobbyists seem to know
the details. The worst part is that this bill
extends federal financial support for invol-
untary outpatient psychiatric treatment.
In other words, Americans living
peacefully in their own homes could be
court-ordered to take psychiatric drugs
against their will. I call this approach the
“Bill Cosby School of Mental Health.”
I have supported Pete for decades and
interacted with Pete personally several
times. He’s always been kind of grouchy.
That is OK; everyone has a different style.
But if Pete legislates for involuntary psy-
chiatry despite many constituents trying
to explain why this is horrifying, then we
have the right to ask, “Has Pete ever had
a mental health check-up himself?” If not,
will he?
Those of us with psychiatric labels ap-
pear to be one of the last groups that get
thrown under the bus, by both Democrats
and Republicans. I hope the Senate stops
the bill.
Following the revolutionary Micah
White’s strategy, I have decided to place
my name as a write-in candidate for Con-
gress.
David Oaks
Eugene
I hate West 11th. As I was driving
home in the rain from work, all the ve-
hicles were criss-crossing in front of each
other. The old markings were still visible
as they filled with rain, and the new mark-
ings were impossible to follow. It’s amaz-
ing accidents didn’t happen.
Isn’t it curious that as I drive past the
workers (going to work in the morning),
they are standing around or looking at their
cell phones or observing the other workers
standing around?
What palms need to be greased by LTD
to get this nightmare completed? Will a
change in the weather (more rain) encour-
age the workers to move faster to comple-
tion? It’s been months! But it will be worth
it for the four bus riders that use this route.
Linda Wagner
Noti
of
BARGAINS the
MONTH
NATURE’S PRIESTS
Our Children’s Trust is making the case
for climate justice in Eugene’s U.S. District
Court. Seeing clearly the existential threat
posed by climate change, children are plead-
ing for the survival of our planet. Adults in the
room — the fossil fuel industry and Obama
administration — argue that climate change
just isn’t so, the government has things under
control, the case should be dismissed and the
problem left to politics.
Shakespeare wrote: “To-morrow, and
to-morrow, and to-morrow, it is a tale told
by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signi-
fying nothing.” Politics: Macbeth without
the bloodshed.
Presiding Judge Ann Aiken asks if —
since the federal government has known
about climate danger for more than 50
years — now might be the time for climate
change to be addressed “with all deliberate
speed?”
Wordsworth describes children as Na-
ture’s priests. May adults hear their pure
voices, embrace their clear vision and fol-
low them posthaste to the altar.
God bless the child.
Benton Elliott
Eugene
SIMPLE CONCEPT
My name is Stefan Strek and I invented
“Make Eugene Great Again” (#MEGA)
for my campaign as mayor in the primary
2016 election, proof at votestrek.com. Re-
cently, Eugene Weekly has been promot-
ing my slogan. Make Eugene Great Again
is a simple concept that starts with good
people. We have a new school year, and
already I see too much garbage and hu-
man indecency returning to town. There’s
too many dirty rapey hobos and too many
rapey frat bros. Eugene is losing its core
value of promoting a safe place for hippie
flower girls to be their creative selves in a
safe environment. If you want to Make Eu-
gene Great Again, then speak out against
rape and other garbage in our town. Peo-
ple helping people is what “Make Eugene
Great Again” is all about.
Stefan Strek
Eugene
Editor’s Note: EW’s “Make Eugene Great Again” slogan
for Best of Eugene is a spoof of Donald Trump and not
affiliated with Strek.
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