demi 🪄
@deminlawrence.bsky.social
journalist, writer, yapper, listener, reader, deep-thinker, portlander. opinions, however correct, are my own! she/they for the people 🐀
I would prefer no public contribution at all, but looking at this, it's a good proposal.
Mitch Green@councilorgreen.bsky.social · 38m agoDid some modeling at the dais to show you what would happens if we pass my amendment: we’d generate free cash flow from the current encumbrances of Moda fees net of debt service on a $120MM bond issuance. No PCEF $, no general fund obligation and reduced public contribution by 2/3rds
Everett, buddy, i promise the team will not leave. glad that he is engaging with the civic process though
“this term sheet is unacceptable. y’all should be able to negotiate better than this” purr, no notes
A volunteer lobbyist for DSA called the negotiations a “hostage situation,” with the behavior of the Blazers being sickening. Brian Owendoff, known for racist texts about city councilors, came to speak in favor of the renovation. He said we need to “reduce political rhetoric.”
Benson Boone mention by the Spirit of 77 owner is so fucking funny
the testimony about how we need public money to go into private hands so then the private sector can give to philanthropic organizations / non-profits was actually the clearest explanation of the rot of neoliberalism I've ever heard. The government should just fund public services & employ people.
booooooootttttliiiiiccccckkkkkerrrrrr
demi 🪄@deminlawrence.bsky.social · 55m agooh god Brian is up next
Last week, Zenith sued the City to try to prevent democratic oversight of its planned sale of its (illegally expanded) oil by rail throughput facility to a private equity firm. Let them know just what you think about this. Sign up to testify tomorrow around 9:45 am: www.portland.gov/council-cler...
Register for testimony or submit written testimony to Council
Complete this form to register to provide verbal testimony on an agenda item during Council and committee meetings, or to submit written testimony on an item.
portland.gov
Kori 🌹@koriander.bsky.social · 2w agoAn oil company would haaaaaaaaaaate it if a large number of people signed up to testify on multiple items at Thursdays committee of the whole meeting and took so much time testifying that the sale of the oil company got pushed off the agenda www.portland.gov/council/agen...
I'm calling it: "Start smoking" is going to be mainstream MAHA / Republican health advice by 2028. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
Portlanders sharing the love and generational loyalty they have for the Blazers this morning...sounds like a great community for a new team owner to invest in! #RipCityNotRipOff
i’m back. Jim Etzel pls don’t make me sad i also really like you
this feels insanely, incredibly even, reasonable
Mitch Green@councilorgreen.bsky.social · 2h agoWe’re hearing testimony on the Moda term sheet today. I have filed an amendment that seeks to do two broad things: 1. empower the Joint Authority to limit expenditure public funds in the public interest with transparency and accountability 2. Reduce City’s commitment from $400M -> $120MM
OK she still gets a pass, comments were neutral and about the players. plus she works for RAJ so makes sense she talked them up Clare is so genuine i really have enjoyed every conversation, private and public, her and i have had
demi 🪄@deminlawrence.bsky.social · 2h agooh Clare Hamill please do not let me down here i’ll be really sad
oh Clare Hamill please do not let me down here i’ll be really sad
first round of invited testifiers: We Are Rip City is first
Moda Center Public Meeting thread here! Gonna try to keep up as best I can with this today. Feel free to add any comments on any posts to add extra details.
New: Police in Wisconsin used Flock to create a pretext to search a man's car for weed. Their justification? He drove from Wisconsin to Michigan, a “known source state for marijuana as it is legal there,” and Flock showed he "travels to Michigan frequently." www.404media.co/cops-used-fl...
Cops Used Flock to Track a Man Across State Lines to Create Pretext to Search His Car for Weed
"The vehicle travels to Michigan frequently which is a known source state for marijuana as it is legal there," a probable cause justification reads.
404media.co
Wild what powerful people will just straight-up say on the record.
The Wall Street Journal@wsj.com · 17h agoNew York City’s business elites are long accustomed to direct access to City Hall, where even Democratic mayors felt the need to court the city’s wealthiest and most influential corporate leaders. That access is getting shredded by Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
Sunrise reveals a Pacific Northwest overwhelmed with wildfire smoke. Combined with rising temperatures in the region, any outdoor activities should be limited as much as possible. weather.gov
This is the key takeaway: Haley Stevens got everything she could have asked for. AIPAC spent the most it ever has. The party pulled out all the stops. Millions were even spent to spread the false idea that the most popular president in modern US history endorsed her. And it still wasn’t enough.
Prem Thakker ツ@premthakker.bsky.social · 5h agoAbdul El-Sayed’s win represents a big blow to the politics of bygone days. Because if one campaign can show that *that* much money and *that* much old guard support doesn’t guarantee victory, it cracks open what can be imagined. It widens the aperture of what’s possible.
Today we are holding a public hearing on the Moda Center Term Sheet. This is an opportunity for Portlanders to express that any public investment must be met with transparency, accountability, and a clear explanation of community benefits. www.youtube.com/watch?v=UD8e...
Portland City Council AM Session 08/05/26
YouTube video by eGov PDX
youtube.com
Over the last nine months, Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta has run dozens of paid ads that include explicit AI-generated child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and images of minors alongside sexually suggestive statements, according to details of the ads shared with WIRED.
Meta Ran Ads That Contained AI-Generated Child Sexual Abuse Imagery
More than 50 offending image and video ads were published across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, or Threads, according to Meta’s ad library data. Some ran as recently as this week.
wired.com
goddamn. AP was also a side-quest pipedream that i thought about. hate this
Leor Galil@imleor.bsky.social · 4h ago“Music publications BrooklynVegan, Alternative Press, Revolver, and Goldmine have been gutted by parent company Veeps... Nearly all the staff at each publication appear to have been laid off yesterday. Veeps, which is now owned by Live Nation, acquired the publications in 2024 or 2025”
