Aug. 18, 1924—Nov. 25, 2011 Dr. Morris Weitman, Professor Emeritus in the Portland State University psychology department, died on Friday, Nov. 25 at Good Samaritan Hospital in Portland. A military…
‘Rahmlow should resign,’ says former ASPSU vice president
ASPSU president responds to criticisms following recent arrest
Former ASPSU Vice President Ethan Allen Smith has said that Adam Rahmlow should resign as ASPSU president after it surfaced that Rahmlow recently spent three days in jail for violating the terms of his probation, which stemmed from a prior conviction of resisting arrest.
“There’s no way that PSU athletes would be allowed to continue on the team if they spent time in jail during the season,” Smith said. “It’s absolutely amazing that Adam Rahmlow can keep his job just because he wants it, and that there is no automatic recourse for removing someone who was arrested while serving as a senator and spent time in jail while in office as president.”
One year later: Mohamed Mohamud terrorism trial postponed
Defense requests more evidence, pursues entrapment case
Mohamed Osman Mohamud—the then 19-year-old accused of attempting to detonate a weapon of mass destruction at last year’s Pioneer Square tree lighting ceremony—has yet to stand trial nearly a year after the incident occurred.
The most recent court proceedings have pushed the trial date back to May 15, 2012 to allow more time for the defense and prosecution to exchange discovery evidence.
Mohamud’s arrest was the result of an elaborate sting operation involving two FBI operatives, months of undercover communication and a giant fake explosive device.
AAUP bargaining hits standstill
Full-time faculty union and university will enter mediation
The university and the Portland State chapter of the American Association of University Professors returned to the bargaining table on Nov. 16, but little progress was made during the session, which means the union and university will enter mediation on Dec. 14.
The faculty contract, which expired on June 31, has been extended twice, with the current deadline at Nov. 30. The PSU-AAUP union represents approximately 1,200 full-time faculty members.
Police seek funding for video cameras in squad cars
Pilot program would outfit 10 Portland Police cars with cameras
The Portland Police Bureau is asking the City Council for funding to install video cameras in squad cars.
Several traffic division vehicles are already outfitted with cameras and the bureau is hoping to expand camera installation to include 10 squad cars. As the bureau experiences scrutiny from the community and the Department of Justice, the cameras are viewed by proponents as an opportunity to alleviate concerns about police brutality.
Local bike-share company lands NYC contract
Portland may launch bike-share program of its own
In September, Alta Bicycle Share—an affiliate of the Portland-based company Alta Planning and Design—was awarded a contract to work with New York City to establish a bike-share program.
Alta Bicycle Share’s goal is to become a leader in designing, deploying and managing large-scale bike-share systems around the globe. The corporation is unique in that it focuses solely upon operating bike-share programs. Alta has established bike-share programs in other cities such as Boston, Washington, D.C. and Melbourne, Australia. In the first year of D.C.’s bike-share program, there were over one million rides.
Portland’s sustainability programs are on track
New curbside composting program and plastic bag ban are running smoothly
On Oct. 15, a city ordinance banning plastic bags in Portland took effect. Sixteen days later, Portland launched its curbside compost collection program.
The Plastic Bag Ban ordinance requires that all large grocery stores (e.g., Safeway and Fred Meyer) and large retailers with pharmacies no longer distribute single-use plastic bags to their customers. The reception to this limitation has polarized grocery store patrons across the city.
Two arrests, hundreds of protesters at Occupy PSU
Students and faculty march for tuition equity, increased professor compensation
At noon yesterday, approximately 200 Portland State students and faculty members launched Occupy PSU by walking out of classes and congregating at the South Park Blocks behind Smith Memorial Student Union to rally for improvements in the higher education system. They were joined there by a group of protesters from Occupy Portland who supported the walkout’s objections to tuition increases, large class sizes, poor faculty compensation and decreased state funding for higher education.
The initial rally outside of SMSU was followed by a march to Portland City Hall. On the return march, just before the remaining 100–150 protesters reached the intersection at Southwest 5th Avenue and Madison Street, a police barricade blocked the path, and tension between the police and protesters escalated, culminating in the arrest of one man at around 1:45 p.m.
Occupy Portland may move to South Park Blocks
PSU administration ready, took preemptive measures Sunday
The Occupy Portland movement—after being expelled from Chapman and Lownsdale Squares by Portland Police—may migrate its protest to the South Park Blocks located on the Portland State Campus.
Monica Rimai, vice president of finance and administration, stated that unless circumstances change dramatically, all university functions will operate normally: classes will continue as scheduled and campus buildings will remain open.
Trans-pacific voyagers
A Portland State student’s 3-month journey across the ocean
At well over six feet tall, Simon Ngawhika (Na-fee-ka) makes an impression on the audience gathered before him as he slowly approaches the podium—an impression underscored by his intonation of a song sung in his traditional Maori tongue.
A 27-year-old Master’s of Business Administration student at Portland State, Ngawhika agreed to speak last Thursday during the Native American Student Community Center’s “Reclaiming our Waterways as Highways” event, intended to celebrate and draw attention to the vibrant modern canoe culture that thrives across the length and breadth of the Pacific Ocean. It’s a topic that Ngawhika is well acquainted with; just this last summer he undertook a voyage that brought him all the way from New Zealand to the southern coast of California.
‘Bank Transfer Day’:A student’s experience
Portland State students move their money to credit unions
Portland State conflict resolution graduate student Erica Bestpitch opened her account with Wells Fargo two years ago while living in San Francisco and has had only kind words for the bank and its customer service ever since. The day she visited to close her account was no exception.
Anticipating bigger crowds on Saturday, Nov. 5—designated as the national Bank Transfer Day by the L.A.-based non-profit Move Your Money Project—Bestpitch decided to visit her local Wells Fargo branch on Friday, Nov. 4, instead.