SUBSCRIBE TO THE FREE NEWSLETTER
Cascadia Magazine original: We Hope You Enjoy Portland Spirit
It’s just another strange day in Portland in Terrence Petty’s essay “We Hope You Enjoy Portland Spirit” as protesters and counter-protesters clash, a colorful cast of characters pass by, and tourists seem oblivious to the whole kerfuffle. Read the full essay online.
Carmen Best named as new Seattle police chief
After a muddled process, Seattle mayor Jenny Durkan announced that Carmen Best is the city’s new police chief, according to Crosscut. Skipped in the first hiring round, the new chief faces big challenges, including the department’s efforts to reform of its use-of-force policies. Meanwhile, a controversial a new youth jail in Seattle has drawn opposition from more than 100 groups, reports Seattle Globalist.
Wildfires spark evacuations in eastern Cascadia
According to the Spokesman-Review, a wildfire north of Spokane has required the evacuation of 800 homes, while a fire near The Dalles, Oregon and another near the Deschutes River were raising concerns. Scores of small fires were burning in eastern British Columbia as well. Meanwhile, an article in Scientific American details the public health effects of increasing frequency of wildfires in western North America.
Making sense of proportional representation in BC
British Columbia will vote this fall on whether to create a system of proportional representation in the provincial legislature. CBC has a great video that lays out the various choices voters will have to select from. Policy Note has a piece the debunks the myth that radical parties will win power through PR.
Anti-union efforts surge in region after Supreme Court ruling
KNKX reports on conservative groups sending mailers to teachers in Washington urging them to refuse to pay union dues after a recent US Supreme Court ruling. Meanwhile, a Willamette Week reports on a business interest group that’s spending big money to sponsor anti-union candidates and initiatives.
A threatened butterfly returns to Oregon coast mountain
Writing for OPB, Erin Ross has a great report on reintroduction of the silverspot butterfly to Saddle Mountain near the Oregon coast. The species nearly vanished in the 1970, and efforts by biologists to reintroduce the butterfly to the alpine meadows here seem to be succeeding. Meanwhile the Yakima Herald-Republic reports on a citizen-volunteer project to document the decline of native bees throughout Cascadia.
Imaginary maps of Oregon
During the European exploration and colonization of North America, the northwest corner of the continent was something of a mystery. Writing for the Portland Mercury, Joe Streckert chronicles the strange history of the creative (and often very wrong) maps of Oregon in these early years of exploration.
Raising children in a doomed world
Writing for the New York Times, Roy Scranton (who’s originally from Oregon) writes a sobering and brutally honest essay about raising children on a planet that’s going to be severely altered and unpleasant in the near future due to climate change. “The real choice we all face is not what to buy, whether to fly or whether to have children but whether we are willing to commit to living ethically in a broken world, a world in which human beings are dependent for collective survival on a kind of ecological grace.” You should really read the whole piece here.
That’s all for today from the world headquarters of Cascadia Daily and Cascadia Magazine. Have a great evening! –Andrew Engeslon
Photo credit: silverspot butterfly courtesy of US Fish & Wildlife Service