“The people of New York have made it very clear that they don’t like me,” said Ford. “I have no choice but to move my ego to another state, reinvent my principles and try again.”

Fordster!

Ford’s decision follows months of speculation that the former Democratic Leadership Council chair would challenge freshman Sen. Gillibrand.

An aide close to Ford tells Oregometry he is considering a move to Indiana to pursue retiring Sen. Evan Bayh’s seat.

“He thinks the people in Indiana are a lot dumber than New Yorkers,” the aide said over the phone. “He figures there, they’ll have no idea he was even in Congress before, and he can start fresh.”

Ford has not returned request for comment.

If you don’t know New York’s Yeasayer, you should.

After the 2007 release of their innovative and moving debut album, All Hour Cymbals, I fell in love with them. The album is a dreamy, folkish blend of styles tied together with songs reminiscing of a simpler era and yearning for a better life.

All Hour Cymbals (2007)

Now they’re back with the February release of Odd Blood. The album takes a large step away from All Hour Cymbals, sounding more like Paul Simon after he went to Africa and started putting Chevy Chase in music videos. It also has a decidedly more electronic style, which is certainly not a bad thing here.

The album’s first single, “Ambling Alp,” is a nostalgic, wise version of the television show How I Met Your Mother, as the lyrics address posterity, admitting life mistakes and teaching through song. The rest of the album is diverse and imaginative; so much so that I’m not sure I get the first song. Like, really get it.

From the electronic safari “O.N.E.” to the sexy, hard-hitting “Mondegreen,” the album is a smash and I expect to keep it in regular rotation for quite some time.

Author Bill McKibben will kick off the Muddy Boot Festival this evening

McKibben, who wrote the first book on global warming back in the 1980s, joined presenters from various faith traditions today to help motivate and sustain our action in Portland as we look ahead to the October 24 events spurred on by his own global 350.org movement.

Presenters included Sister Pat Nagle of St. Philip Neri, Rabbi James Greene of Temple Beth Sholom, the Rev. Ross Miller, Courtney Demko of the Muslim Educational Trust and Phil Carver, organizer of the Oregon 350 Climate Crisis Walk.

The attending group of folks held a very sincere and motivational energy that consistently raised themes of kinship, spiritual connection to our natural surroundings and the importance of social justice. I was amazed to  hear my small group’s responses to the questions of what motivates and sustains us in our climate activism.

As we look forward to tomorrow’s introduction of Portland’s climate plan, the Muddy Boot Festival and the October 24 Day of Action, it was an exciting jumping-off point for me to refocus and reconsider my efforts on environmental conservation. I left feeling motivated, inspired and connected to likeminded activists in both the faith community and the environmental movement.

Portland is an exciting place to be at all times, but especially when you can really connect with the folks fighting tooth and nail for the same goals you are. I’d encourage readers to check out the Muddy Boot Festival this weekend and definitely mark October 24 on their calendars to be sure to attend the rally being organized by Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon’s Interfaith Power and Light and other groups at Waterfront Park.

We, as human beings, are facing a brush with mortality that is already causing increased poverty, excess drought and famine, widespread displacement, mass emigration and destruction of our natural resources. The next few years will determine the fate of the next thousand. This is the defining issue of this millenium and we cannot sit idle.

As Jim Metcalfe wrote in a recent letter to the editor of The Oregonian, the book of Proverbs claims that one who is slack in his work is brother to one who destroys. Just some bread for the journey.

The communication breakdown sent users panicking, inciting Facebook and Twitter comments of outrage and confusion. The tag #googlefail has popped up all over Twitter and created a common cause for down-and-out Googlers.

The Google-slayer

What many affected parties did not know, however, was the cause of the trouble. This morning, the Willamette Week led several newspapers in reporting that former Oregon governor Dr. John Kitzhaber would file paperwork today to once again seek office in the 2010 gubernatorial race.

The news sent Oregon politicos reeling, and Gchat lit up with discussion about the former governor. Emails were sent flying wildly into the unknown to give and receive information about the forthcoming campaign.

The massive stress of this rampant political speculation, of course, caused the colossal Google Breakdown of 2009.

“I wanted to use my campaign filing as a metaphor for our failed health insurance industry,” said Dr. Kitzhaber, who in 2006 founded a health care reform organization called the Archimedes Movement. “One day, we’ll hit a small snag and the whole system will implode unless we act now to reign in costs and provide adequate insurance for all Oregonians.”

Kitzhaber, known for his visionary thinking, will introduce legislation to create an “Oregon Email Authority” to provide a competitive and much less volatile option than using Google’s email client. The infrastructure will imitate that of the newly-created Oregon Health Authority, which is intended to become a public health insurance option that will compete with private insurers.

Critics of the move immediately lambasted Kitzhaber for tampering with the free market.

“I like my Gmail the way it is, and I don’t want the guv’mint to take it away from me,” said Corbett Creswell of Cottage Grove. “These politicians want to take over my email, my health care and my pension. Next they’re going to tell us we can’t build our houses all the way out to the ocean.”

The former governor joins a field of members of the Oregon State Legislature and some non-elected officials in the race for Mahonia Hall.

Google joins the ranks of embattled firms Lycos, Hotmail, MSN and others in becoming obsolete technology against an unstoppable force of the future.

###

This article is a satire intended to make you laugh, spark discussion of John Kitzhaber’s campaign plans and take a jab at all the people whose lives froze in time today with the Gmail crash.

The fictional Mr. Creswell is mistaken in his fears, as Oregon’s beaches have been designated public in some form or other since 1912 when Democratic governor Oswald West enacted that policy, despite what the Oregon Republican Party’s television ads might tell you.

The crowd was star-studded with elected officials and candidates alike, indicating that we are indeed headed for another round of tough races, even in the primaries. Some of the electeds included state Representatives Tobias Read, Chuck Riley (now a candidate for the State Senate, and his wife, Katie, will be running for his seat in the House), Brian Clem (the half-million-dollar man for governor), Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian, Washington County Commissioner Dick Schouten, Beaverton Mayor Denny Doyle, state Senator Suzanne Bonamici, Metro Councilor Rex Burkholder and some others that I’ll remember later and hopefully won’t hold it against me that I left them out.

It was a great event overall, with a cakewalk, taco/fajita bar, wine sale and nice, temperate weather. Congressman David Wu stopped by and took some questions about health care reform, offering pleasant-if-nuanced answers that skirted the details of the eventual bill that we’ll have passed through Congress “by December.” There were some folks raising the issue of single payer, and he responded with some specifics about why that won’t work. Beyond that, he seemed to stick to the few provisions we know will be passed, avoiding the details that may or may not be left behind during negotiations. Former primary challenger Will Hobbs listened respectfully and patiently, the truly great guy that he is.

The most eyebrow-raising bit of info I found out is that both Metro Councilor Rex Burkholder and outgoing 1000 Friends of Oregon Executive Director Bob Stacey (both were in attendance) are planning candidacies for the Metro president’s race.

I hadn’t previously heard much about that race and am very intrigued by the candidacies of both men. I became familiar with Burkholder’s work when I interned in City Hall and have held a great deal of respect for him ever since. Stacey arrived on my limited radar during the Yes on 49 campaign, where 1000 Friends was doing incredible organizing. From then on, I have been very impressed with his continued success at the organization and I think that experience would cross over very well to the ongoing figuring-out-what-the-hell-we-do at Metro.

To be sure, this will be an exciting race with widespread resonance in both Oregon and Washington, as well as around the country. We implemented Metro as a kind of pilot project, and now the model is being studied across the nation as other communities look at regional planning for transportation and land use. This has even garnered some Senate support for such ideas, with Senator Jeff Merkley and his colleagues introducing the Livable Communities Act, which would provide federal funding for such ventures that link issues of housing, land use, transportation, etc. together into broad regional planning. The next Metro president will have a large task ahead.

The picnic was fun and friendly, and hopefully the county party raised some money. I had a great time and am thankful to all the wonderful folks who came out. I had a number of delightful conversations with some delightful people.

Living in Oregon, where unemployment has reached a sickening twelve per cent and the rate of homelessness is the highest in the country, we should be using climate policy to spur investment in “green jobs.” Oregon has already begun this process, incentivizing wind farms, solar projects and streetcar manufacture to create living-wage jobs for people right here.

But while Americans keep mindlessly consuming food, clothes and everything else made in China, India or Thailand and shipped across the mighty Pacific, we continue to destroy the planet (and our air and water) while continuing to miss out on invaluable economic opportunities to create jobs and “stimulate” our economy.

Of course, green jobs will not provide a panacea for our economic woes; we need to redirect our health care dollars, shift our state’s revenue burden away from personal income taxes and restructure funding for unsustainable ventures like Tri-Met and LTD that simply soak up public money yet have no accountability to provide service to everyone.

A tariff on the carbon of international goods would not solve these problems, but it would provide an incentive for the rest of the world to act on climate change (this is down the line, of course, after international development efforts are ramped up to help the world’s most vulnerable populations adapt to the consequences of climate change) while raising public revenue for green development both in the United States and in developing nations around the world.

This tariff money would be used to incentivize, through direct credits, private and public investment in truly clean, renewable energy production, rail and other alternative transportation, technological innovation and solid union jobs retrofitting homes and businesses for energy efficiency.

As Chinese leadership drag their feet on climate solutions because they know that we can’t do anything if they don’t, we can put a strong face on building a global green economy. So let’s keep talking about ways we can make climate legislation stronger. Call your senators and ask them to seek more holistic solutions to climate change that close the coal loophole, provide strict verification processes for international offset projects and auction allowances rather than just giving them away.

Why settle?

From elected officials like state Representative Jefferson Smith and Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian to gubernatorial candidates Bill Bradbury and Brian Clem to former primary challengers Steve Novick and Will Hobbs, it was a diverse group of activists, policy wonks and those who simply thought it was a reasonably-priced way to enjoy an evening and help the Democratic Party.

The Beavers couldn’t pull out a win against the Salt Lake City Bees, but there was a feeling among those of us seated in the Democratic section that things are going our way. Conversations I had ranged from the newly-created Civil Rights Commission to 2010 primaries to why Novick hates the Yankees. We were one big happy family, and I hope we can stay that way through next year’s elections.

On our way back to Portland along Highway 26, we stopped off at one of Oregon’s 46 rest areas to relieve the morning’s coffee and stretch our legs. The state’s public rest areas were designed in a very clever way to offer a place of refuge for road-weary drivers, not just a restroom and a drinking fountain.

Our beautifully utilitarian rest areas look more like municipal parks than roadside rest stops, providing picnic tables, native foliage and even small hiking trails at some.

This time, however, I noted the absence of something many parts of Oregon would be remiss without: bike racks. As we continue to strive for a bike-friendly state for the varied health, environment and congestion-related benefits, our culture continues to broaden to include much longer bicycle rides, bike camping trips and farther distances traveled on two wheels.

Why, then, should we not update our already lovely rest areas to serve not just drivers, but weary cyclists, to reflect the diversity in transportation options we foster in our cities? Cyclists, too, need to break for a pit stop, to fix a flat or to just stop and eat lunch. Being able to lock up your bike when you use the restroom would be a nice gesture for those out on 100-mile rides.

I’m going to email my state legislator with the idea. Unless we keep pursuing making our rest areas pr

ivate. Then, as McDonald’s and BP take over public land to pave, build and destroy, cyclists and anyone else not

paying to play will simply be out of luck. Not to mention towns like Otis, Aurora and others that depend on economic benefits of travelers in need of a hot meal, a tank of gas or a place to stay. These local economies all over rural Oregon would lose the support of out-of-towners to keep their local businesses afloat.

Just like our beaches and the banks of the Willamette, Oregon’s rest areas should remain open to the public to avoid a very slippery slope of development, concrete and exclusion. Keep that in mind the next time you pull off to take a break, stretch your legs or grab a bite to eat. Take a moment to enjoy the gorgeous green foliage and your respite from the road.

Well, it wasn’t just the attorney general, but a veritable posse of environmental powerhouses including one of the A-G’s deputies, a representative from DEQ, the Tualatin Riverkeepers staff and Senate Majority Leader Richard Devlin (the park is in his district). Also attending were the mayors of Tualatin and Tigard, as well as a couple Tualatin city councilors, including Donna Maddux (apologies if misspelled), who is apparently serving as the A-G’s interim Environmental Crimes Unit until a full-time environmental attorney is hired later this summer.

The topics of the evening ranged from Hanford to PGE’s Boardman coal plant to river pollution, and most questions were satisfactorily answered in a straightforward manner that has come to be paramount to the A-G’s success at such gatherings. The overall IQ at the front of the group of probably 30-odd attendees was surely above average and the solutions coming out of their collective efforts border on genius. I am happy to have these folks working to continue (and get back to) Oregon’s tradition of environmental stewardship. We were leaders once and we will be leaders again in cleaning up our state. After all, Tom McCall drew up the bottle bill a long time ago.

If you get a chance to meet with your attorney general at one of these events, I would certainly encourage you to do so. The discussion might seem like watching paint dry if you aren’t interested in the topic at hand, but it will be an incredible opportunity to have a statewide elected official really listen to you and then work to turn your concerns into real action. It’s a rarity these days.

So many descriptors cross my elated mind as I finalize my post-college move back to my hometown. Well, close to my hometown, as I’ll be doing the parent’s house thing until I nail down a job.

As I reflect on my four years in Eugene, there are a number of things I will dearly miss.

Here’s a list:

Biking through Alton Baker Park

Saturday Market (especially when plugging a candidate or cause)

Alexander’s Great Falafel

Lane County health care reform advocates

Democratic Party of Lane County

The Sweet Life’s vegan treats

Memorials to Wayne Morse

Friday afternoons at the Laurelwood driving range (with beer!)

The Associated Students of the University of Oregon 2008-09 Executive

Debate watches/meetings at Davis’ Restaurant (family-run business!)

Sundance Grocery (and certainly Sundance Wine Cellar!)

The big Market of Choice

Free bus rides with student ID

The unparalleled leadership of Congressman Peter DeFazio, State Senators Floyd Prozanski and Bill Morrisette, Lane County Commissioners Pete Sorenson and Rob Handy, Mayor Kitty Piercy, and State Representatives Chris Edwards and the impeccably attentive and dedicated Nancy Nathanson (I will never be able to thank her enough for her commitment to her community….she radiates the spirit to reinvigorate Oregon).

ASUO Street Faire

Post-concert house party show by Common Market at Alex Clark’s house

Holy Cow Cafe (and their ethos)

Frog (but not his joke books)

KWVA

UO leadership of Dave Frohnmayer, Dave Hubin, Dr. Robin Holmes, Elizabeth Bickford, Consuela Perez-Jefferis, Julie Palanuk, Nicole Nelson, Lynn Giordano, and Mike and Cheryl Eyster.

The amazing tutelage of Ken Debevoise, Kyu Ho Youm, John Mitchell, Kelli Matthews (I never even took a class from her, but she taught me a ton!), Al Stavitsky, Duncan McDonald and any other professor/instructor that absolutely does not allow students to pass if they don’t do the work/come to class. Good on you for making my degree worth something.

And some things I certainly will not miss:

Horrible roommates shaking me down for money I don’t have because they’re too lazy to find a sublet

California students driving across town to park a 20-minute walk from class when the bus would drop them at the doorstep in 15 minutes for free

Eugene restaurants that still have no vegan options

Phil Barnhart and his hatred of participatory democracy

Jim Torrey (’nuff said)

Militant atheists on campus that rabidly repeat Dawkins talking points without any thought

Students that sit around and talk about saving the planet while chain-smoking cigarettes