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The self-congratulation and superficiality of this discussion of "Oregon" is sad and ridiculous, for anyone who has lived here for longer than a few years.  This program is about Portland and its puffed-up view of itself, not about Oregon.  Drive out beyond 82nd, and there is another Portland of rundown trailer parks and poverty.  Really look at people sleeping in doorways in Portland's precious downtown.  The idea that Stumptown coffee could be "Very Important", in the face of such realities is offensive, at the very least.

And then take a look around Oregon.  It is much more and much different than the New York Times, or for Pete's sake, Vogue, portrays.  It is not a neat  little square bounded by Portland, Hood River, Bend and Cannon Beach.  There are beauties and realities far beyond those pretty places.

posted 3 years, 6 months ago
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As a librarian, I was thrilled to hear one of your speakers articulate so well the problem of the Kindle for public libraries.  His is a voice crying in the wilderness.  Multnomah County libraries are extremely heavily used, by lots of people who choose not to buy books, because they don't want to or can't. Amazon has made it clear thus far that they are not interested in making deals with public libraries.

Making reading a completely commercialized and monopolized activity, as Amazon is trying to do, is anathema to the whole idea of public libraries.  And it is certainly not that libraries are clinging to paper - the conversation about the end of the book has been going on for decades, certainly since I was in library school in the late 70's.  Libraries want to bring books to everyone in whatever form they exist ( see http://multcolib.org/ref/ebooks.html, for example).  Amazon doesn't want that - they want to make money and to do that, they think they have to be a dog in the manger.  It doesn't matter how fabulous the Kindle is if it isn't available to any but the rich.

posted 3 years, 11 months ago
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