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‘City
of Roses’
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Established in 1970
Volume XXXVII. Number 18
www.portlandobserver.com
Committed to Cultural Diversity
Wednesday • May 9, 2007
.Week in
The Review
Drinks
Flow on
Alberta
Six Charged in Plot
Six foreign-born M uslims were ar
rested and accused T uesday of
plotting to attack Fort Dix in New
York and slaughter scores o f U.S
soldiers — a schem e the FBI says
w as foiled when the men asked a
store clerk to copy a video o f them
firing assault weapons and scream ­
ing about jihad.
Kansas Town Destroyed
R esidents o f G reensburg, Kan.
w ere allow ed to visit their homes
M onday — the first tim e since Fri­
day w hen a tornado destroyed an
estim ated 95 percent o f the town
as it cleared a path 1.7 m iles wide
and 22 miles long. At least 10people
were killed.
Art gives way to
beer and wine
Bush Rating Lowest Yet
P resident G eorge W. B ush's ap ­
proval rating has fallen to 28 p e r­
cent in a N ew sw eek Poll released
S atu rd ay , an all-tim e low for
Bush in that survey. N early tw o
o ut o f three A m erican s — 62 p e r­
ce n t — b eliev e B ush's recent a c ­
tions in Iraq show he is "stu b ­
born and u nw illing to adm it his
m istakes," N ew sw eek reported.
photo by
S arah B lount /T he P ortland O bserver
Allan Oliver is one o f the earliest gallery owners to set up shop along Northeast Alberta Street, with Onda/Arte Latina at 22nd
Avenue. Oliver enjoys the recognition he gets on the monthly Last Thursday art event, but believes most people are too
distracted by the street scene to notice his collections.
by S arah B lount
T he P ortland O bserver
As with many gentrified neigh­
borhoods, plans in the 1990s called
for m aking a large swath o f N orth­
east A lberta Street into funky bou­
tiques, artists' galleries and stu­
dios.
But now more than ever. A lhena
is ju st as well know n as a place to
enjoy a drink. T his is especially
trueduring the monthly Last Thurs­
day art w alk when the avenue be­
com es a crow d-choked party where
continued
on page A2
Imus to Sue CBS
D isgraced radio
host Don Imus will
sue CBS Radio for
the huge portion
o fh is $40 million
contract that was
left unpaid after he
was fired for rac­
ist and sexist com m ents, his attor­
ney said Thursday.
LAPD Brass Reassigned
The highest ranking Los A ngeles
police official at the scene o f a
violent clash between officers and
people at an im m igration rally was
dem oted M onday, and his sec­
ond-in-com m and was transferred.
Police w ere videotaped using ba­
tons and firing rubber bullets at
dem onstrators and journalists in a
park after an otherw ise peaceful
march for im m igration reform on
May 1.
Spider-Man Sets Record
Spider-M an caught ju st about ev
eryone in his web. The superhero's
latest adventure, "Spider-M an 3,"
sm ashed box-office records over
the weekend with $ 148 million in its
first three days, according to stu­
dio estim ates.
Hilton Gets Jail Term
P a r is
H ilto n f
m u st se rv e 45
d ays in ja il for
v io l a t i n g h e r
p r o b a ti o n by
d riv in g w ithout
a valid license.
L o s A n g e le s S u p e rio r C o u rt
Ju d g e M ichael S auer ruled F ri­
d ay the 2 6 -y e a r-o ld c e le b rity
h eiress m ust turn h e rse lf in by
Ju n e 5. A visibly shocked and
tearful H ilton called the d ecision
"cruel and u n w a rra n te d .”
Saw
s
h
Grannies Take Action to Stop War
Iraq disaster laid on
leadership, media
by R aymond R endleman
T he P ortland O bserver
In planning an invasion o f Iraq, the Bush
A d m in is tr a tio n w a s n ’t c o u n tin g on
P ortland’s Seriously Pissed-off G rannies.
T he anti-w ar group is getting a reputation
for its w eekly protests and acts o f civil
disobedience. The latest occurred during
the early m orning hours o f May I when
these senior citizens used m ore than $ 100 in
coins to open O regonian boxes throughout
the Portland area and blanket the boxes with
theirow n "O regon Extra" section criticizing
the m edia’s role in suppressing negative
stories on the w a r .
“ It was technically a theft o f service,’’
said Pat Schw eibert, as she and her com pa­
triots rem inisced the follow ing Thursday in
the 8,000-sqaure-foot N ortheast 18th A v­
enue Peace House, w here several o f the
group's 15-20 active members live with other
activist leaders.
“ We were looking forward to aci vil suit,”
said DeEtte Beghtol, “but I guess the O rego­
photo by C hris L eck
nian realized how m any law yers w ould rush
Sara Graham, 66. is arrested for blocking the army recruiting center at Northeast 13th and Broadway. The April 20 protest
to defend us.”
was one o f many she and her so-called Seriously Pissed-off Grannies have organized in opposition to the Iraq War.
W ith the general reluctance to prosecute,
the grannies have been m ore daring in g et­
“W e’ll keep that in mind for our next Rhododendron G arden organized through am ple, they reg u larly d isru p t ac tiv itie s
ting its antiw ar m essage across. The guer­ caper," said Beghtol.
S tandingW om en.org.
o u tsid e the A rm y R ecruiting C en ter on
rilla paper generated another regret: M any
For the next protest, they are willing to
M ost o f the g ra n n ie s’ actio n s tend to N o rth east B roadw ay.
readers passed o ver it to find their favorite announce, the group will participate in a push the line fu rth er than five m inutes o f
continued 'y f on page A 2
O regonian sections.
M o th er's Day action at Crystal Springs silen c e o u tsid e o f a busy park. F or ex-
Targeting Gun Violence
H igh estin
the Nation
Gas prices in Oregon
are among the highest
in the nation, accord­
ing to Oregon AAA,
eclipsing the national
average o f $3.07.
Gas prices have risen
sharply in recent
weeks on concerns
that refiners aren't
making enough to
meet peak summer
demand.
Ceasefire gun
turn-in Saturday
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Turn-tn
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Sat, urday
220.
I
Food Mart
PHOTO BY
M ark W ashington /
P ortland O bserver
by L ee P erlman
Till P ortland O bserver
Ceasefire O regon has an offer
for you: Turn in an unneeded and
potentially dangerous hunk o f iron
G z //j
and get som ething useful back. The
foundation's annual gun turn-in
takes place on Saturday, M ay 12
from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Redeem er
Lutheran Church, Northeast 20th
and K illingsw orth Street.
A nyone turning in all or part of
a firearm that they no longer want
will have the choice o f receiving a
gift certificate worth $50 at Fred
photo by M ark W asiiington /T iie P ortland O bsery e r
Meyer, New Seasons Market, I 'nion
Julie Sterling of Ceasefire Oregon helps prepare Redeemer
76or Nike. A limited num berofTrail
P er
Gallon
continued
on page .43
Lutheran Church at 5431 N.E. 20th Ave. and Killingsworth Street
for Saturday's annual gun turn-in. Anyone giving up all or part of
a firearm will get a $50 gift certificate.