Readers Respond to Hospital Merger and Forest Management

“I sincerely love Willamette Week, but what the hell is with these write-ups about Erospace by Crystal Quartez?’

A nurse heads to work at OHSU. (JP Bogan)
By WW Staff

CLIMATE UNCHANGED ON PILL HILL

This is a fabulous, well-written and well-researched, thorough, and compelling article [“Operation: Merger,” WW, April 23].

This merger is all about money and power, nothing more. Just watch how those salaries and bonuses go up precipitously if the merger is enabled.

I remember the days when Oregon Health & Science University was all about research/discovery and teaching/education. Now these missions are never even mentioned by OHSU, although research was addressed by you indirectly in the article. I suspect that if OHSU bigwigs were offered higher salaries and bonuses in exchange for dropping the proposed merger, they would do so with extreme enthusiasm.

I reiterate that the results of the climate survey, which you report in the article, were no different than the results of the previous four climate surveys. In other words, OHSU has been a terrible work environment for decades. Joe Robertson may have been a good ol’ boy, but he was a terrible president, just as bad if not worse, than Danny Jacobs.

I am surprised that you view the unions as highly supportive of OHSU administration. While I was there, there was a war between the two, and the unions despised Joe Robertson and his administration. Although I haven’t followed this relationship closely, I am very surprised that OHSU administration and the unions are aligned.

Buddy Ullman

Northeast Portland

DIG DEEPER IN THE FOREST

Matt Donegan’s presentation of a policy-sell regarding Oregon forest management during a time of wildfire danger and climate disruption is learned, informative and timely [“Hotseat: Matt Donegan”, WW, April 23]. Unfortunately, the flow of the original interview with the Oregon Journalism Project dances around serious considerations and contradictions that should be addressed. First, citing the National Environmental Policy Act as an impediment to good forest management exploits lack of public awareness of NEPA’s keystone and historical role in environmental protection as well as the Trump administration’s intentions to weaken or eliminate it. Second, while I am not of Indigenous heritage, the facile conflation of “Indigenous and Western science” by Susan Jane Brown as regards forest management fails to acknowledge the ecological asymmetry of First Nation and Settler communities historically, economically, and culturally, and is one that is increasingly exploited while failing to warrant a deeper understanding and examination. Third, Mr. Donegan raises the challenge of biomass waste disposal, then except for referencing the fears that environmentalists hold regarding large capital investments in mills, he avoids coming clean on whether he supports innovative waste wood resource markets, in particular, the handsomely financed wood pellet export and electric generation industry, which has a notoriously duplicitous record on community health and global warming mitigation. Earnest omissions? Or part of the policy-sell?

Lloyd Vivola

Portland

GET YOUR EARS OUT OF THE GUTTER

I sincerely love Willamette Week, but what the hell is with these write-ups about Erospace by Crystal Quartez [For the Record, WW, April 23]? They’re disappointing and poorly done. Crystal Quartez has done so much for Portland’s creative scene over the years, and this album/zine release is one of the greatest accomplishments of their career so far. Why do both write-ups come across like a kid in the ’90s discovering Playboy magazine instead of honoring and celebrating the music, the zine, and the event? Crystal’s sexiness is obvious and beside the point. Like. I understand that “sex sells” and Robert Ham may have had some positive intentions to help promote the album; however, I encourage you to raise the editing standard and apologize to Crystal. They deserve better representation than this.

Jess Andra

Portland

KEEP ON RECYCLING

Thanks for the wonderful picks of where to recycle [Green Living Companion, published in April]. It had so many of my favorite places. May I add two more options for future consideration?

1. Friends of the Multnomah County Library accepts a variety of donated literacy-related materials AND will consider accepting larger-scale donations, such as personal collections. Donations are accepted at Multnomah County Library branches and in the Rose City Reads store. Friends of the Library sorts, prices, and sells the donated materials in the brick-and-mortar stores and online. All proceeds go directly back to the public library and to running the organization. As a current board member for Friends of the Library, I can attest to the organization’s fiscal and community responsibility!

2. RepairPDX. This all-volunteer driven organization hosts monthly repair cafes throughout the Portland metro and offers FREE repair services for a variety of needs, including bike repair, small appliance repair (including electrical items), sewing, jewelry, and occasionally ceramic repair and knife sharpening. I volunteer regularly for this organization and am always delighted by how talented and kind the volunteers are.

Kim Yee

Portland

Letters to the editor must include the author’s street address and phone number for verification. Letters must be 250 or fewer words. Submit to:

P.O. Box 10770

Portland, OR 97296

Email: amesh@wweek.com.

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