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Tuesday | February 1, 2011
Gov. Kitzhaber releases state budget proposal, responding to funding crisis with further cuts to education, health
The budget Kitzhaber offers would include cuts to Oregon's already ailing K-12 education, reducing teachers and increasing class sizes. Also Oregon Health Plan, the same program Kitzhaber started in the mid-90s, would have cuts. According to OPB, "doctors would be paid less to treat Oregon Health Plan patients and fewer treatments would be covered." Since it was conceived, people who have relied on Oregon Health Plan have experienced several critical cuts in their health care, including a massive cut in 2003 that attracted national attention, when 100,000 people in mental health and/or substance abuse treatment lost their prescription coverage.
Monday | January 31, 2011
Feds Want To Roll More Green
A number of Federal agencies are already familiar with the color green. Whether it's an alert code stuck at the very bottom of Dept. Homeland Security's Terror Alert System[1], or the hue of endless piles of loot shoveled into the black hole of a failed financial system, green is the new black as far as the Feds are concerned. Now they want to raise the green bar high on their own supply. Supply chain, that is. And you can participate! The White House Council on Environmental Quality and the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) are co-sponsoring a "Greening the Supply Chain Roundtable" tomorrow in Portland at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) Auditorium (1945 SE Water Avenue, Portland, OR 97214). The event is scheduled for Tuesday, February 1, 2011; 3:15 PM - 4:45 PM. Wanna join the fun? Visit Greening the Supply Chain Roundtable to sign up.
- Go to story: Obama administration looks to greening federal supply chain
- Go to sign-up form: Greening the Supply Chain Roundtable
Sunday | January 30, 2011
Public Forum: Oregon State Bank Bill | Tuesday February 1st, 2011
Did you know that an "Oregon State Bank could offer 6 percent credit cards and 6 percent certificates of deposit, much better than any private bank offers"? In fact, low-interest credit loans and high-interest savings are not the only potential benefits a state bank can offer the citizens of the state it serves. A state bank is potentially free to align its mission with the interests of that state's many and diverse communities, rather than the short-term interests of a small group of profit-seeking shareholders. You can learn about the other benefits a state bank can offer Oregonians at an upcoming public forum focused on the Oregon State Bank Bill.
- Go to email announcement: Oregon State Bank Bill - Public Forum - Tuesday February 1st, 2011
- Go to story: Why a state bank makes sense
- Go to blog: Public Banking Institute's Public Banking Blog
- Go to story: Are State-Run Banks a Good Option?
Saturday | January 29, 2011
Egyptian Uprising Sparks Sympathy Protests In Portland, Elsewhere
"The uprising and unrest in Egypt is spawning sympathy protests across the United States." Yup! Even "in cities [like] Washington, D.C., San Francisco and Portland..." About "300 protesters turned out in Portland's Pioneer Courthouse Square Saturday, most of them Egyptian-American. They support the protesters in Egypt, and they want Mubarak out." Egyptian-American and Portland resident Doaa Elhaggen "is fed up with 30 years of autocratic rule in her native country. 'Everything is messed up: education, health, transportation....'" Hey wait a second! All that is also "messed up" right her in the good ol' U.S. of A. Time for our own uprising? Perhaps. But some folks here worry that if the Arab world's people free themselves they could disrupt oil flows to fuel-hungry U.S. drivers. Three Bronx cheers for good ol' Yankee pragmatism!
- Go to story: Portland-area Egyptian-Americans stage protest sympathy rally
- Go to story: Unrest in Egypt stirs interest in auto show’s electric cars: Crowds swarm to clean energy cars as Mideast protests spur oil supply concerns
- Go to story: Inside Story - Egypt: The youth perspective: Young people are at the forefront of protests in Egypt, but do they believe that they can bring about change?
- Go to analysis: We're Better Off Than Egypt -- Right?
Friday | January 28, 2011
More 'Eco Friendly' Cars on the Way!
In the past few years, Portland has made a bigger name for itself in the US than what it once had. It has bred many talented fashion designers and people who are generally more eco friendly than our neighbors in California and Nevada. And now, it is possible to mirror that eco friendly attitude you have on your zipcar vehicle! Plug-in Prius Hybrids are not officially coming onto the scene until 2012, but residents Portland, Boston, and California are all lucky enough to experience the full experience today! There are two of these zipcars located in Portland, one in the Portland State University parking garage and the other at Shaver Green. In fact, maybe the grass really is greener on the other side (of the wheel).
Thursday | January 27, 2011
Environmental Organizations Seek Protection for Klamath River Chinook Salmon
A petition signed by four local and national environmental organizations has been submitted to the National Marine Fisheries Service asking for endangered species protection for Klamath River chinook salmon in northern California and southern Oregon. According to the petition, Klamath River chinook salmon, prized by fishers for its taste and economic importance, has declined from 100,000 before dam construction and other habitat changes to now only 7,000 individuals. Environmental organizations hope that being listed as an endangered species under the ESA would allow fish populations to stabilize and recover.
- Go to story: Groups seek protection for Klamath Chinook salmon
- Go to story: Conservation groups seek Endangered Species Act listing for Klamath River chinook salmon
- Go to press release: Endangered Species Act Protection Sought for Klamath River Chinook Salmon
Wednesday | January 26, 2011
The Internet: Just Another Cable TV Box?
This coming Friday, January 28th, you are invited to participate in Portland City Council's Portland Broadband Strategic Plan Kick-Off event - CONNECTING OUR FUTURE - from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon in Portland City Council Chambers. Who else is showing up? Public servants from the city and county, a variety of public advocacy representatives, and the usual corporate lobbyists from AT&T Wireless, Comcast and other "industry players." Nationally, it's the industry players, and their handmaidens in Congress and the Supreme Court, who've wreaked the most havoc with public access to free, open, unfettered and affordable access to the Internet. Ten to fifteen years ago, thousands of mostly mom & pop internet service providers (ISPs) provided dial-up internet access to anyone who wanted it. If you didn't like the available ISP choices in your community, you could set up your own with just a small investment and a bit of technical know-how. These days, most of us access the Internet through our cable or DSL connections, or through our mobile devices. Access is controlled by a tiny number of corporate giants who invest millions of dollars each year to buy off your congress person, your senator, as well as any judge or regulator they can get to. The reason? The business rationale for forcefully stuffing the most democratizing communications medium ever imagined into a tightly controlled, commercially restricted "cable box"? Think about it: what could possibly threaten large corporations--essentially private label totalitarian regimes--more than genuine democracy?
- Go to announcement: Portland Stategic BroadBand Plan: Connecting Our Future
- Go to Personal Telco: Personal Telco
- Go to story: U.S. Court Curbs F.C.C. Authority on Web Traffic
- Go to history: FAQ: What is Brand X really about?
Tuesday | January 25, 2011
Tobacco sales decline in Oregon
What is going on? Isn't smoking still cool in Oregon? Have those wacko doctors and scientists finally convinced people that it's unhealthy or something? Do some people actually dislike the taste it gives everything they eat? Well then why not respect the tobacco industry's marketing shift towards flavored smokeless tobacco. The additives mostly mask the tobacco flavor with something marginally more pleasant, and there's no law against constantly spitting brown sludge. My friend Phillip Morris says it's really sexy. It's still unhealthy though.
- Go to story: Report Finds Tobacco Sales Down In Oregon
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