News Remember the squawking by music venues in 2007 when Oregon's Employment Department interpreted state law so that musicians were considered employees of the venues, thus putting the businesses on the hook for employment taxes. The Legislature looks well on its way to undoing that interpretation. A bill repealing the interpretation of the law has won unanimous approval from the Oregon House ...   More

News At the risk of inflaming readers poised to scream whenever we write about the Gaza Strip, it's worth noting that Portland-based Mercy Corps announced this morning that it received a $10 million grant from Qatar Charity to help rebuild the war-torn area. The two organizations describe the grant as a "kind of economic stimulus package" designed to help an estimated 28,000 people over the next ...   More

News Uninsured parents aren't the only people waiting to see if Gov. Ted Kulongoski's plan to provide medical coverage for children passes. Last July, the Portland City Council voted unanimously on a resolution to form a working group that would look into providing healthcare for children enrolled in Portland's public schools. The group was originally headed up by then-Commissioner Sam Adams, and their ...   More

News In a City Council discussion this morning about Portland's effort to transfer management of McCall's Waterfront Cafe from Portland Parks and Recreation to the city's Water Bureau, an interesting thing happened. City officials revealed a proposal to put a giant neon rose atop the landmark, which was recently given to the Portland Rose Festival for $1 a year. [Click on the link to read the story ...   More

News It's been rumored for weeks that Steven Soderbergh would add Little Beruit to his whistle-stop tour introducing his four-hour roadshow edition of Che. Now it's confirmed by Cinema 21 honcho Tom Ranieri: AND we learned today that Steve Soderbergh is available for a personal appearance here for the opening weekend. We aren't sure whether that's for Friday, Saturday or both days. We'll be sending ...   More

News As Iran this month celebrates the 30th anniversary of its 1979 Islamic revolution, federal authorities in Portland remain mum on the reasons they raided Oregon's largest Iranian charity last summer. Navid Sehedali, a member of the board of Child Foundation, says he still has no idea why FBI agents seized computers and fax machines in a July 15 raid on the charity's downtown Portland office. The ...   More

News [youtube t2yoOlicmww] After 19,000 miles and nearly five months on the road, the cast and crew of Darius Goes West joined about 65 people at the Hollywood Theatre on Saturday for one of two special screenings in Portland of the film. This impressive group of a dozen young men — including the documentary's title character, now-19-year-old Darius Weems — has high ambitions. They want to ...   More

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News TriMet announced today that it has tweaked last month's list of budget cuts that proposed eliminating 12 bus lines to save money. The new proposal, which TriMet says is a response to 1,500-plus public comments over the last six weeks, would instead eliminate five lines, modify four and combine three lines. The five bus lines still proposed for elimination: 41-Tacoma, 74-Lloyd District/Southeast, ...   More