|
NEWS
BRIEFS : Lawless Logging
| Fighting Bigotry | Son
of 23? | Conference Continues |
News:
War on Campus Frohnmayer opposes anti-war vote.
News:
Tactical Timing Living wage proponents suspect
delay tactics.
News:
Paving the Warpath Undercovered #26: More news you won't find
in the local press.
Happening
People: Emily Dietzman
LAWLESS
LOGGING
Logging has commenced on several controversial
timber sales outside of Oakridge in the Willamette National Forest,
according to the Oregon Natural Resources Council (ONRC) in Eugene.
The logging sale area is adjacent to McCredie Hot Springs, the infamous
Warner Creek burn and spreading to the northern border of Diamond
Peak Wilderness.
Roseburg Forest Products holds the contracts for the
sales. The area being logged this week is reportedly populated with
numerous red tree voles, an uncommon species protected under the Northwest
Forest Plan. Citizen surveyors, complaining of inadequate Forest Service
surveys, found 27 red tree vole nests in an area where the Forest
Service found none. In the past, the Forest Service has responded
to such surveys by sending government biologists to confirm the usually
accurate citizen sitings, but not this time, according to Leeane Siart
of the ONRC.
"The Forest Service has neglected to protect these
nests in apparent violation of their own laws," says Siart. "These
forests are some of our last old-growth and roadless forests and are
obviously a hot-spot for red tree voles. The Forest Service has previously
been sued over such blatant disregard for imperiled species and we
had hoped that this time they would do the right thing before we have
to sue them again."
| SLANT
Students at the UO Multicultural Center are
holding public forums on campus to talk about KUGN-AM radio.
The station has been known for years as "The Voice of the Ducks,"
and has also been airing blatantly racist and bigoted syndicated
talk shows — the kind that are dominating public airwaves
nationwide. The UO can't and shouldn't dictate KUGN's programming
content, but it can and should choose to align itself with organizations
that further the UO's mandate to educate and enlighten. The
issues here are not politics and free speech, but rather ethics
and public perception. The next open forum is at 7 pm Thursday,
Nov. 14 in the Oak Room at the EMU on campus.
A few bright spots can be found shining among
the debris of the November elections, most noticeably the
passage of local Measure 20-67 that will generate $8 million
a year in city taxes for four years to fund public school nurses,
counselors, librarians, student activities, athletics, music
and PE — freeing up school district funds for academics.
Amazingly, this measure passed while voters thumbed-down other
money measures on the ballot. We can credit Eugeneans who recognize
the value a diversified education and smaller class sizes, and
we must also honor the exceptional community leaders who dedicated
their time, energy and creativity to pass this important measure.
Their efforts will likely be multiplied as other cities in Oregon
see what we have accomplished. =
On the statewide level, we can take heart
in the election of Ted Kulongoski to succeed John Kitzhaber
as governor, and some favorable results in Oregon statehouse
races. The Oregon League of Conservation Voters has probably
not been given enough credit. This strong organization unleashed
its biggest grassroots effort ever this election, educating
the public and getting out the vote for environmental candidates.
The election results show that Oregon voters continue to place
a high value on clear air, clean water, and open space.
We haven't heard how many write-in votes
Bill Fleenor got in his last-minute campaign against Anna
Morrison in the Position 1 West Lane County Commission race.
But some statistics are worth noting. Back in the May primary
with a low (46.7 percent) county voter turnout, a total of 14,734
votes were cast in that race. But in November with a much higher
(68.1 percent) county turnout, only 12,856 votes were cast for
Position 1. Morrison was the only name on the ballot, but it
looks like thousands of West Lane voters declined to give her
a courtesy punch. Is she vulnerable next time around? Absolutely.
SLANT includes short opinion pieces and rumor-chasing
notes compiled by the EW staff. Heard any good rumors lately?
Contact Ted Taylor at 484-0519, editor@eugeneweekly.com
|
FIGHTING
BIGOTRY
"The hate activity that this community has
witnessed recently is simply unacceptable," says Carol Van Houten,
co-chair of Community Alliance of Lane County (CALC), "and CALC is
ready to respond by renewing our work against bigotry."
CALC has re-energized its efforts to fight hate crimes
in the wake of the recent attack on Temple Beth Israel. Unknown assailants
threw stones at the synagogue, breaking windows, while a Friday night
Shabbat service was in session.
"CALC will not only respond to hate activity, but
will work pro-actively for communities that defend the dignity and
safety of all people," added Van Houten. A kickoff event for CALC's
new program is scheduled for 7:30 pm, Thursday, Nov. 14 at the First
Congregational Church, 24th and Harris in Eugene.
At the event, Alan Siporin will read from his acclaimed
new novel, Fire's Edge, and will talk
about overcoming prejudice and hate. Siporin's novel, set in Oregon,
is a thriller about people tested by hate. Publisher's Weekly
calls the book,"a powerful, sensitive first novel about hate crime
in the Pacific Northwest." Kirkus Review says, "With awesome
skill, Siporin can switch from detailing the ugly genesis and aftermath
of racism to evoking the physical and emotional exhaustion of firefighters
to setting a tender scene for a child's favorite bedtime story."
After the reading, Siporin will sign copies of his
book.
Members of the steering committee for the new program
will be on hand to describe how it will operate, and attendees will
be asked to help CALC name the new program.
SON
OF 23?
Supporters of Measure 23, the single-payer
health insurance proposal that failed in the November election, say
the measure was nonetheless a positive step forward, and a "son of
23" measure will likely be back in 2004.
"Our campaign has given fresh hope and excitement
to health care activists around the U.S.," says Mark Lindgren, chairman
of Health Care for All-Oregon, the grassroots organization that promoted
the measure. "We will analyze the Measure 23 campaign and share what
we have learned from Oregon's campaign with them."
In a message to supporters, Lindgren says, "It would
be easy to think of Measure 23 as defeated but hundreds of thousands
of Oregonians voted to change the way health care is delivered in
this state and in this country. Many other innovative public policies
such as Medicare and Social Security took many years of debate.
"While it would have been wonderful if Measure 23
had passed, the campaign has achieved have only complained about the
problems with the current health care system and suggested Band-Aid
solutions, we put a concrete proposal on the table, a proposal that
will have to be part of any discussion of health care reform in this
country in the future."
SECRECY
PREVAILS
Following up on the defeat of Measure 27,
OSPIRG Executive Director Maureen Kirk says the lop-sided vote "is
more evidence of the powerful influence of special interest money
in politics, and in no way indicates that consumers do not want labeling
of genetically engineered (GE) foods."
Kirk says dozens of polls over the past few years
have shown and continue to show that the overwhelming majority of
Americans want genetically engineered foods to be labeled.
"What we saw in Oregon was one of the biggest public
relations campaigns in the state's history," she says, "with those
opposed to the labeling of GE foods like Monsanto, DuPont, and Kraft
pouring in over $5 million to oppose the ballot initiative."
The battle for labeling of genetically engineered
foods is far from over, says Kirk. "OSPIRG and the state PIRGs continue
to call on government and corporate leaders to stop marketing genetically
engineered foods unless they are found safe, labeled, and biotechnology
companies are liable for any harm done."
CONFERENCE
CONTINUES
The week-long Peace, Justice and Civil Liberties
Conference continues this weekend at UO (see story last week), and
among the keynoters will be Dave Lindorff, speaking at 7 pm Saturday,
Nov. 16, at 150 Columbia on campus.
Lindorff is an award-winning journalist with some
30 years experience as an investigative reporter, and has just completed
Killing Time, a book on the controversial death penalty case
of Mumia Abu-Jamal, Philadelphia journalist and former Black Panther
Party leader who has been on Pennsylvania's death row for the past
two decades.
Lindorff also recently published a series of articles
exposing the inside workings of Attorney General John Ashcroft's Operation
TIPS, a plan designed to produce tens of thousands of domestic spies
who would report on their neighbors.
Thursday night (Nov. 14) speakers at the conference
include Kevin Gray and Rahul Mahajan. Friday night speakers include
Amy Goodman and Mario Africa. Saturday night, Lindorff will be joined
by Simona Sharoni, Ira Shorr and Dave Lippman. The conference wraps
up Sunday. For a complete schedule, visit www.efn.org/~eugpeace/iraq
Back to Top
War
on Campus
Frohnmayer
opposes anti-war vote.
BY
ALAN PITTMAN
The UO Faculty Senate will vote next month
on a resolution opposed to war with Iraq. UO President Dave Frohnmayer
opposes the vote.
UO geneticist Frank Stahl gave notice this week that
he will seek a vote on an anti-war resolution at the Dec. 4 UO Senate
meeting. The resolution "urges the United States government and other
members of the United Nations to pursue exclusively peaceful means
of resolving the conflict with Iraq." Stahl is one of the UO's top
scientists, winner of more than a dozen prestigious research honors
including a MacArthur "genius" grant.
Frohnmayer e-mailed Stahl in opposition to the vote.
"It is not the place of this university to be captured by any one
political voice," he wrote. "It is vital for the university to resist
efforts to be captured by one side of a debate."
But Stahl says silence supports the war. "Not saying
something is saying something," says Stahl. Frohnmayer could not be
reached for comment.
Stahl says he expects a difficult fight for his resolution,
but he says faculty should not be "cowed" by Frohnmayer into not taking
a stand. The nation is faced with "a fascist takeover of the American
government," Stahl says. The Bush administration is colluding with
corporations to use the war to hold its grip on power, Stahl says.
"It's a way to keep the citizenry repressed," he says.
The war on terrorism's crackdown on open information
threatens the university's mission of free thought and research, according
to Stahl. "A proud research institution must defend its right to free
inquiry."
Stahl says universities can flourish only in democratic
countries and that war threatens democracy. "The whole concept of
political debate (or scientific debate, or cultural debate) is likely
to be rendered meaningless by the further erosion of civil liberties
that is bound to accompany an increased state of war," Stahl says.
He quotes James Madison, "Of all the enemies to public liberty war
is … the most to be dreaded. … No nation ... could preserve
its freedom in the midst of continual warfare."
Concern about the war's impact on university research
is spreading nationally. Proposals to "restrict scientific communication
in order to prevent the spread of information that could be used in
terrorist attacks, such as the anthrax letters of last year ... have
sent a chill through academe," the Chronicle of Higher Education
reported last month.
Stahl says an anti-war vote could cost the UO support
in the Republican state Legislature and from corporations. But he
says such considerations shouldn't matter. "It mattered to the German
universities, that's why they shut up when their Jews were murdered
[in World War II]," Stahl says. "You can wonder if a university is
worth saving if it doesn't take a stand."
"If we don't defend the democracy upon which intellectual
freedom depends, who will?" Stahl asks.
Avoiding the war issue "means the university has been
captured the same way it was captured on the sweatshop issue," Stahl
says.
Two years ago, Nike CEO Phil Knight angrily withdrew
a planned $30 million donation after the UO joined a workers' rights
monitoring group Nike opposed. Frohnmayer, to get back on Knight's
good side, described the corporation as a "world leader" in promoting
fair labor and withdrew from the coalition.
While Frohnmayer says the UO shouldn't take a stand
on the war, the UO administration has a history of taking conservative
political positions. In 1993, then law school Dean Frohnmayer gave
in to timber industry pressure to move the Environmental Law Clinic
off campus. Later pressure caused the UO to cut funding for a premier
environmental law conference. In 1997, UO Provost John Moseley responded
to business community complaints about professors opposed to the new
Hyundai/Hynix plant by warning the corporation's opponents to "avoid
even the appearance of inappropriate uses of [UO] time or resources."
The same warning did not go to pro-Hyundai faculty. Moseley himself
had written letters on UO letterhead in support of wetlands destruction
permits for the corporation's chip factory.
While post 9/11 teach-ins at the UO have filled auditoriums
with explorations of U.S. policy and the root causes of terrorism,
Frohnmayer, a Republican, has taken a more conservative tack in public
speeches.
At a candlelight vigil, Frohnmayer called for "moral
clarity" after the attack. "There is such a thing as a difference
between good and evil," Frohnmayer said, describing the terrorists
as "pure and blinding evil."
On the 9/11 anniversary this year, Frohnmayer said,
"I believe that the flags that fly from our homes are not symbols
of arrogant nationalism."
There is some precedent for the UO Senate taking political
stands. A campus divestiture movement in the 1980s lead to a vote
in the Legislature to withdraw investments in South Africa. Stahl
says the university has taken stands against racial and sexual preference
discrimination that are politically controversial.
University campuses have been hotbeds of the anti-war
movement. More than half of the 100,000 or more protesters in Washington,
D.C., last month were college students, according to the Chronicle
of Higher Education. Hundreds of university faculty have signed
petitions against war. Anti-war speeches at the UO have filled the
largest lecture halls on campus.
Stahl says he won't give up. Whether or not the anti-war
resolution passes, he says he plans another resolution opposing the
Patriot Act for its weakening of civil liberties after 9/11.
Back to Top
Tactical
Timing
Living
wage proponents suspect delay tactics.
BY
JOHN HERBERG
EDITOR'S NOTE: John Herberg is a member of Citizens
for Public Accountability, which has endorsed the city's living wage
ordinance.
Should Eugene's city government pay its employees
and contractors a living wage? That's the question the City Council
began to consider late last summer. At the time, prospects for a living
wage ordinance were promising as the council voted unanimously to
move forward on the matter. Since then, however, proponents of a living
wage ordinance believe the issue has become a victim of stalling tactics
and political maneuvering.
At question is whether the City Council intended to
discuss a living wage ordinance early in the fiscal year (FY) 2004
budget-building process (this November) or later (January or February
of 2003). If the intention was for earlier action, did city staff
thwart that intent? And what is the impact of the delay on the likelihood
of a living wage being enacted?
At an Aug. 12 work session, the City Council supported
7-0 (Gary Pape recused himself due to potential conflicts of interest)
a motion to "direct the city manager to return to the council, in
time for inclusion in the FY04 budget-building, with draft options
for a living wage ordinance..." The council also agreed to Councilor
Scott Meisner's amendment to use the Budget Committee as a review
board before bringing it back to council.
Proponents expected another work session in November.
But more than a month after the Aug. 12 work session, Councilor David
Kelly recognized no such work session was scheduled. In response to
Kelly's inquiry, City Manager Jim Carlson sent an e-mail to the council
stating that he asked city staff to develop a "schedule that will
enable the living wage ordinance to be considered early enough to
be included in the FY04 budget development. I believe that was the
charge given to staff." The message goes on to state that the budget
committee will not review the living wage until January and that the
council could consider it sometime after that.
When asked if the intent of the Aug. 12 motion was
for the Council to consider a living wage ordinance in November, Kelly
says the "intent was obvious." He sites the work-session packet developed
by city staff that explicitly mentioned November as the beginning
of the budget-building process. Perhaps more convincingly, review
of the Aug. 12 work session shows November was consistently referred
to as the timeline. Before the motion, Kelly stated, "We need to have
pretty clear decisions to staff as they start working on the budget
in November, December." Before the actual vote Kelly reconfirmed the
intent. He clarified, "I just wanted to double-check ... we're all
in agreement. In order to involve the budget committee, they would
need to have at least one special meeting." In response, the city
manager agreed. The budget committee would only need a "special" meeting
if the assumption is that the council expects the committee's input
by November.
But Lauren Chouinard, the lead city staff-person on
the issue, said that after reviewing the work session tapes, he believes
it could be "read two different ways." He refers to a discussion that
takes place after the unanimous vote. At that time the city manager
pointed out that the budget committee already has a busy schedule
and that the motion adds to it. He asked for direction from the council.
In response, Councilor Pat Farr stated, "I trust your decision-making
as a city manager and realize this is a policy issue." Most other
councilors didn't appear to understand what the manager requested.
Then the work session ended.
At the Sept. 23 City Council meeting, Kelly motioned
for councilors to "reiterate the intent of the council's motion of
Aug. 12" by scheduling a work session in November. Initially, Councilors
Bettman, Taylor, Rayor and Farr voiced support for Kelly's motion.
Prior to the vote however, the city manager emphasized the budget
committee's other priorities and that the budget-building process
does not "begin and end in November." The motion failed 4-4 with Farr,
Meisner, Pape and Nathanson voting against, and Mayor Torrey breaking
the tie.
Does the delay affect the chances for a living wage
ordinance? Sarah Jacobsen of Eugene-Springfield Solidarity Network
(ESSN), the organization spearheading Eugene's living wage, thinks
so. She explains that if the living wage had been considered early
in the budget process, it could have been included in the budget's
core. By entering the process later, it will have to be included as
an add-on after the core has already been planned.
Chouinard disagrees. He points out that items have
been added to the budget before and believes a living wage will "rise
and fall on its own merit." He says, "It will be subject to the budget
committee weighing it one way or another."
Which is precisely why proponents for a living wage
are unhappy with the process. Jacobsen says: "Supporters of a living
wage are asking Eugene councilors to make a policy decision
that would set a community standard to ensure that our public dollars
are not going to pay poverty-level wages." She says that decision-making
has been removed from the council (where policy decisions are to be
made) and given to staff and the budget committee (where policy decisions
are to be implemented).
Currently, the budget committee is scheduled to address
the living wage on Jan. 21. The council could consider the issue as
soon as Jan. 22 or 27.
Back to Top
Paving
the Warpath
Undercovered
#26: More news you won't find in the local press.
BY
KATE ROGERS GESSERT
« Considerable confusion surrounds the meaning
of the resolution the U.N. Security Council voted for unanimously
last week. If Iraq accepts the new terms of inspection and then violates
them, must the U.S. discuss consequences of violation with the Security
Council? To Syria's Minister of Information, voting for the resolution
was "to eliminate the [U.S.] right to go to war against Iraq" (Independent).
France and Russia insist that Security Council members should discuss
any violations and decide together what should happen next. U.S. Ambassador
to the U.N. John Negroponte says the U.S. would be ready for war if
it were dissatisfied with these discussions (Canada's www.globeandmail.com).
According to Michael Ratner of the Center for Constitutional Rights,
"The Security Council, a body that was supposed to make war at the
behest of one country illegal and impossible, is paving the way to
a war of aggression. And worst of all, the U.S. will be able to argue
that somehow it has its blessing."
And what would constitute a violation? According to
a U.S. official, "It will be clear to everybody when Iraq is trying
to impede the process. But what that is, I can't tell you yet" (Christian
Science Monitor).
Meanwhile, up to 50,000 U.S. troops are already in
the Gulf region. Aircraft carriers and sailors are on the way (Guardian).
Dissatisfied with CIA reports showing neither connections between
Iraq and al-Qaeda nor Iraqi plans to attack the U.S., Pentagon officials
are planning a new intelligence organization (Harper's Weekly).
To protect against terrorist reprisals during war on Iraq, Pentagon
officials expect to mobilize more than 250,000 reserves to guard military
and civilian targets in the U.S. and on overseas bases (New York
Times).
|
'They
want us silent, they want us tame, but this war on the world
is not in our name.'
|
On Oct. 26, more than 100,000 people marched in a
2-mile ring around the cordoned-off White House in the biggest Washington,
D.C., protest since the Vietnam era. They chanted, "They want us silent,
they want us tame, but this war on the world is not in our name" (www.notinourname.net)
Human Rights Watch has documented widepread political
arrests, extortion, and torture by forces of Ismail Khan, governor
and warlord of Herat in western Afghanistan. Khan has received U.S.
military and financial aid and a visit from Donald Rumsfield, who
found him "an appealing person."
General Myers, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs
of Staff, admitted that in Afghanistan "we've lost a little momentum,"
because the Taliban has swiftly adapted to U.S. military tactics.
He suggested that American forces change from hunting al-Qaeda to
reconstruction efforts. A recent CIA report stated that reconstruction
could be the best way to increase security and prevent terrorist havens
in Afghanistan (Washington Post).
Palestinian farmers and Israeli and international
peace activists consider this year's olive season a success. Despite
injured activists, wounded and dead Palestinians, and burned and uprooted
trees, activist help and protection enabled many Palestinians to harvest
their olive groves for the first time in years (International Solidarity
Movement.) Uri Averny of Gush Shalom believes the olive harvest indirectly
brought about the departure of the Labor Party from Sharon's alliance.
Many Israeli citizens were disgusted by the behavior of settlers,
stoning and shooting at Palestinian farmers and stealing their crops.
Labor's Ben-Eliezer opposed a proposed Israeli budget that "gives
too much to the settlers and not enough to the poor," and left the
alliance.
Near Tulkarem and Qalquilya, Israel is seizing more
than 20,000 acres of fertile farmland, many homes, and most local
wells because of the new "security fence," a barrier zone 90 to 300
feet across, with a 30-foot-tall concrete wall and gun towers in highly
populated areas. The fence will run the length of the West Bank, and
so far, it places 50 percent or more of nearby Palestinian farmland
on the Israeli side of the fence. Bulldozers work day and night while
Palestinian farmers sit in passive resistance with international and
Israeli activists, often getting beaten and kicked by contractors
and security forces. Yehezkel Lein of B'tselem explains, "Israel's
intention is not to seize the land for a temporary period, but to
expropriate it indefinitely" (B'tselem and Bob Wing, ISM).
Gila Svirksy of Israel's Coalition of Women for a
Just Peace believes the real division is not between Israelis and
Palestinians, but between Israelis and Palestinians who want peace
and those who do not. "More and more people on both sides have come
to understand that violence is not a solution ... Two vibrant states
— safe, secure, independent of each other, and cooperative for
the benefit of all — must inevitably emerge."
Kate Gessert will teach a workshop at the Peace, Justice,
and Civil Liberties Conference about how to find and share undercovered
news, from 2:15 to 3:45 pm Saturday Nov. 16, Fir Room in the EMU at
UO.
Back to Top
 |
Emily
Dietzman
"I grew up gardening with
my mother," says Walla Walla native Emily Dietzman who moved to Eugene
and the UO in 1996. "She raised flowers — I got into vegetable
gardening here." Dietzman interned at Wintergreen Farm, apprenticed
at Nettle Edge Farm, and worked on organic farms in New Zealand on
her way to a BA in environmental studies in 2000. Still a part-time
student pursuing a master's in education, she teaches gardening for
a small stipend as a team leader at the UO's Urban Farm. "The students
use the food," she notes. "They learn to eat seasonally." A year ago,
Dietzman launched the School Garden Project (SPG), a volunteer effort
to bring gardening into school curricula. "We now work with 15 local
schools," she says. "This is what I love most — to work with
kids in a garden setting. You can integrate all subject areas." Dietzman
consults with schools on site design, curriculum, fund-raising, and
volunteer recruitment. She teaches a school garden seminar winter
term. "Emily has been an amazing resource," says SPG board member
Megan Kemple. "She has motivated community members to get involved
in school gardens." — Paul Neevel
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