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Volume XXX
Number 48
Committed to Cultural Diversity
Established in 1970
mvw.portlandobserver.com
■■■■■■
Wednesday
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ M H T-.
50e
November 29, 2000
H M H H I
Neighbors Want Lost Library Restored
By L ee P erlman
P ortland O bserver
Opposition Tries to Topple
Barak Government
JERUSALEM - Israel’s hard-line oppo
sition appealed to the Supreme Court in a
new bid to topple Prime Minister Ehud
Barak, while Israeli and Palestinian officials
met secretly to try to resume security coor
dination. The action comes a day after
Israel’s most serious cross-border attack
on Lebanon to the north since pulling its
troops from an occupied order region.
Paper Wants More Police
at Printing Plant
SEATTLE - The Seattle Times asked for
more police outside a printing plant where
picketing union members continued their
strike against Seattle’s two major daily
newspapers. The Times asked for more
police after strikers temporarily blocked
cars from leaving a parking lot. No decision
had been made on hiring replacements for
staff reporters and photographers, who
walked out along with advertising, market
ing and circulation personnel.
Japanese Line Up for $1.8
Billion Lottery
TOKYO - People crowded around lot
tery kiosks all over Tokyo, braving a cold
wind to buy tickets for the annual New
Year’s lottery, with a top prize o f $ 1.8 billion
The drawing is on Dec. 31. Playing the
lottery has always been a national pastime
for the Japanese, but it’s become even more
popular these days, with the economy show
ing no clear sign o f rebounding from its
worst slump since World War II.
Thursday, North Portlanders will ask the
Multnomah County Commission for the miss
ing piece - money - in their quest for the
missing piece in the county’s library system.
The grass-roots group wants a Lombard
Library or a new branch somewhere in the
middle o f the peninsula.
They are seaching for a site somewhere
between North Greeley and Portsmouth, ide
ally, within a few blocks o f the intersections
o f North Lombard Street and Chatauqua Av
enue.
Group spokesperson Miriam Linder says
her neighbors are the most underserved li
brary community in Portland, considering it's
more than two miles to the nearest branch
library, St. Johns and even futherto the North
Portland Branch.
During the county commission’s Thurs
day agenda, they will hear a briefing on this,
and on a request for an appropriation to
purchase or build a new library. The commis
sion will take no vote on the matter, and may
not do so until its budget deliberations next
year. However, their reactions may indicate
where their votes are likely to go.
The advocates bring evidence o f com
munity support - more than 1,400 signatures
from peninsula neighbors and favorable re
sponses from community groups. More sig
nificantly, there is a line item in a tentative
Interstate Urban Renewal Area budget call
ing for $250,000 for the project.
What would a library mean to this area?
Aside from the chance to read and borrow
books. Advocates would like to see “Some o f
the many wonderful services available at
other branches,” Linder says. These include
bilingual story hours for children, help with
homework, computer and technology train
ing, information on how to apply for jobs, or
how immigrants can apply for citizenship, and
•4 group from north Portland brings attention to the form er library at 2 4 1 0 N. Lombard, one o f two libraries that were c lo se d due
to b u dget cu ts in the 70 s and 8 0 s . Pictured (from left) are Mary Sullivan, Margaret Band, Cecille Ellis. Ronda Bard, Miriam
Linder, Ciaran H ouston and Ronna Seavey.
(P hoto rv M ic h a e l L eighton /P ortland O bservei
public meeting space.
“The North Portland branch has fantas
tic programs, and we want all o f that,” Linder
says. “When we say library, w e’re talking
about a kind of community center, and one is
lacking in this area.” It wasn’t always so.
The University Park branch at 7508 N.
Health Insurers to Make
Quicker Decisions
WASHINGTON - The Clinton adminis
tration issued rules designed to tackle one
ofthe most vexing issues in health care: the
amount o f time it takes to get insurers to rule
on treatment decisions and appeals. The
rules will cut the time required for an answer
on coverage, now 90 days or more, to as few
as 15 days. About 130 million Americans
how get health insurance through private
employers will be covered by the rules,
which go into effect Jan. 1,2002. The rules
do not apply to government employees or
patients who buy their own insurance.
Dutch to Legalize
Euthanasia
THE HAGUE - The Dutch parliament
approved a bill to allow euthanasia and
physician assisted suicide, making it the
first country to formally legalize the prac
tice. The bill passed by a vote o f 104-40. It
still needs the approval ofthe Senate, which
is considered a formality, and is expected to
enter into force next year.
Peru’s Opposition Poised
to Fill Post
LIMA, Peru A disgraced President
Alberto Fujimori said that he would stay in
Japan “ fora long time,” while the leader o f
Peru's opposition-controlled Congress
emerged as his likely successor. After
Fujimori's resignation, two o f his former
allies in line to succeed him stepped aside.
That opened the way for Valentin Paniagua,
a political moderate aligned with the oppo
sition, to become interim president until a
new president is swom in July 28 after April
elections.
ies should go, so they just respond to the
squeakiest wheel," Linder complains. Thus,
she says, a new library is planned for North
west Portland, and an expanded one for
Hillsdale, while North Portland remains
underserved. “This area has no bookstores
and few educational resources,” she says.
Oregon Certifies Vote
for Democrat Gore
Thousands Stranded in
Buffalo Storm
BUFFALO, N.Y. - Thousands o f work
ers and school children awoke in offices,
supermarkets, hospitals and restaurants
where they were stranded overnight by a
storm that paralyzed the city with 2 feet o f
snow. Nonessential travel was banned
under a city state o f emergency to give
plows and tow trucks room to work.
Hereford A ve., and the Lombard branch at
241 ON. Lombard St., both built through com
munity contributions, served the area for
more than 50 years. However, the branches
were closed due to budget shortfalls in 1975
and 1981, respectively. “The county doesn’t
have acriteria for deciding where new librar-
Republicans Delay New Mexico Certification
New Mexico state election officials on
Tuesday delayed certi tying results in the U.S.
presidential election that appeared to give the
state to Democrat A1 Gore until a judge can
check numbers from one county called into
question by Republicans.
Oregon election officials, meanw hile, w ent
ahead and certified that state’s votes for
Gore.
New Mexico Republicans said they did not
expect to overthrow G ore’s lead but still
wanted the tally checked under a judge’s
supervision.
New M exico's three-member state can
vassing board said the results reported by all
33 counties and audited by independent ex
perts showed Gore winning the state's five
Scottie Pippcn and his Trail Blazer teammates volunteer to paint and plaster a
electoral votes by 483 votes, or 286,578 votes
renovated single-family home at 4025 N.E. 9th Monday as part o f the Home Team
to 286.095 cast for Republican George W
program, a partnership between the Fannie Mae Foundation and the Portland Trail
Bush.
Blazers. The Homi Team has worked to create affordable housing in Portland since
But the board said final certification would
1994 with $525,000 in Fannie Mae grants and $70,000from Blazer fundraisers.
have to wait until Thursday while it asked a
(P hotobv M ark W asiiington /P ortland O bserver ) state judge to investigate Republican claims
oferrors in the results from Roosevelt County ,
a small rural county on the Texas border
Santa's workshop and more than 100
State Republicans said they did not expect
holiday music and. dance perfor
to
overthrow
G ore's lead but still wanted the
mances. Last year 2.0,000 people at
tally checked under a judge's supervision
tended Festival of T rees and the event
because about 10 percent o f the county's
raised $200,000.
5.689 ballots showed no vote for a presiden
Carousels, Dr Suess and life-sized
Proceeds from this year’s Festival
tial candidate.
"gingerbread" playhouse await fami
of Trees will benefit the Providence
"We want to make sure New Mexico has
lies at the 18th annual Providence
Child Center, the Providence Heart
the most accurate result, but the likelihood of
Festival of Trees.
Institute's Heart Failure/Heart Trans the (Roosevelt County) numbers changing
This beautiful, heartwarming holi
plant program and Gately Youth Ser the result ofthe state presidential election is
day experience has become a Christ
not high." state Republican chairman John
vices.
mas tradition forthousandsof families
Hie festival is held Friday from 10 Dendahl told reporters.
Gore did pick up seven electoral votes
throughout Oregon. Each of the 50
a.m. to 9 p.m... Saturday front 10 a.m.
Tuesday,
after election officials in Oregon
lavishly decorated trees has a theme
to 9 p.m. and Sunday from 9 a m. to 6
certified
the
presidential vote in the state's
and is sponsored by local companies
p.m. at the Oregon Convention Cen first all-mail election, saying that Gore beat
and individuals. This year's three-day
ter. 777 N.E. Martin Luther King Jr.
Bushby 6.765 votes out ofabout 1.53 million
festival also features storytelling.
Blvd.
cast.
Scottie Steps Up for ‘Home Team’
Festival of Trees
Opens Friday
r •
That is well above the 2.800-vote
threshold that would have triggered an auto
matic recount.
State election officials certified the results
well before the required Dec. 7 deadline be
cause o f the attention focused on the race,
which is undecided after more than three
weeks amid recounts and legal challenges in
Florida.
Gore ended up with 47 percent o f the O r
egon vote, compared to Bush's 46.5 percent.
Green Party candidate Ralph Nader won about
5 percent.
Bush's campaign has said it might chal
lenge the Oregon results if it finds evidence
o f double voting. The campaign has said
voter records sho .v more than 4.000 people
had illegally registered to vote in different
counties as o f September.
A spokeswoman for the Bush campaign in
Oregon could not immediately be reached for
comment.
Neither the outcome in New Mexico or
Oregon, however, w ill affect the race for the
White House Ihc key to that is Florida’s 25
electoral votes.
1 hese were certified for Bush on Sunday
but Gore is challenging that certification in
court, saying not all o f Florida's votes were
counted
G ore called Tuesday fo ra speedy hand
recount o f thousands o f q u estionable
ballots in F lo rid a ’s con tested election,
and urged Bush to drop his objections.
“ This is not a time for delay, obstruction and
procedural roadblocks," the vice president said.
Gore, told reporters his proposal was neces
sary because the nation needs "to be able to
say there is no legitimate question of who won
this election."
Gore said he believed the recount he seeks
of some I 3.000 ballots could be completed in
seven days.
i