• The judges’ decision: Powerful lobbyist Mark Nelson’s new business has cost him some old business. Nelson is now working to refer to the ballot two tax increases passed by state lawmakers. As a result, one of his longstanding clients, the Oregon Judges Association, is dropping him, no doubt because lower tax revenues would mean less money for state courts.
  • Henry the schnoodle (combination schnauzer and poodle) is taking on a pit bull named Hoss in court. In a lawsuit filed July 21 in Multnomah County Circuit Court, Henry’s owner, Diana Chesney, claims she was walking Henry on Dec. 30 near her home on Northeast 174th Avenue when Hoss ran off the porch and bit both Henry and her hand. Chesney seeks $3,475.33 from Hoss’ owners, Uydo Nguyen Le and Daniel Nguyen, for Chesney’s medical expenses, Henry’s vet bill, and time off work to take Henry to the vet. She also wants $2,000 for pain and suffering. Hoss’ owners could not be reached for comment.
  • Longtime Street Roots vendor Mike DeBee is back selling the paper in the Hollywood neighborhood after resolving his conflict with Street Roots director Israel Bayer. DeBee stopped selling papers June 26 to protest a Bayer column that said vendors shouldn’t be punished if they use money from sales of the paper for drugs or booze. DeBee thought that made all vendors look like addicts. He was then suspended as a vendor July 3 after he promised to picket sites of vendors he thought were using drugs or alcohol. But Street Roots editors say their “conflict resolution” meeting with DeBee cleared the way for his return. PHOTO: Mike Perrault
  • When some lawyers asked, “Where’s the diversity?” in the naming of five hetero white males for two open federal judgeships (see “Vanilla Slice,” WW, July 22, 2009), Blue Oregon posted three items in two days friendly to U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, who runs the selection process. Former U.S. Senate candidate Steve Novick, who posted a defense of Wyden’s selection committee, failed to note—until Murmurs asked—that Wyden and fellow Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley nominated Novick in June for a top post at the federal Environmental Protection Agency. “My assumption was, people already knew about [the nomination],” Novick says. “But I guess it wouldn’t have been a bad idea to acknowledge it.”
  • Here’s a petition other than the one aiming to recall Mayor Sam Adams. Portland Beavers fans who want to keep the team inside city limits have started an online petition drive at thepetitionsite.com/2/save-the-beavers. With Beavers owner Merritt Paulson looking at the suburbs for baseball, the group hopes to gather 5,000 signatures to persuade him otherwise. At press time Tuesday afternoon, their swing looked to be a pop-up, having gathered only 83 signatures.
  • Former Portland Tribune editor Dwight Jaynes writes on his dwightjaynes.com blog that he’s “asking” and “kind of begging” for a full-time job. Jaynes, a fixture on the Portland sports scene, says that after nearly a year of “great part-time gigs” he needs full-time work “both mentally and financially, before the guys from the poor house arrive.” He asks his readers two questions: Would they provide financial support to keep his site going as a premium site? And do they have a job for him? “I’m not necessarily looking for a media job, either,” he writes. “Just about anything, as long as it has a little health insurance to go with it.” Wanna help? Email him at dwight.jaynes@gmail.com.