Ime Etuk, 47, a filmmaker and founder of a nonprofit in Portland, Ore., noted the absence of the topic of energy sanctions in Biden’s address. “It’s a little bit of the elephant in the room,” he said.

Etuk would accept a temporary jump in gas prices if it would end the Russian invasion and limit Ukrainian suffering, he said, adding that it’s a conversation U.S. leaders ought to be having. He said they could be asking, “If we’re all united, how much do we really want to support Ukraine? Let’s talk about this together. Are you willing to pay more?” [Read more]

PORTLAND, Ore. — One person was killed and five others were injured during a shooting Saturday night in Portland, near the site of a demonstration planned to protest police violence. [Read more]

PORTLAND, Ore. — Like most people in the United States, Michael Kerr got word of the new omicron variant on Thanksgiving Day, when the news surfaced on his wife’s cellphone.

“We looked at it, and we were just like, ‘Not now,’ ” said Kerr, director of strategy for the Portland Bureau of Transportation. “I think everyone’s just generally feeling malaise and just utter frustration. I think people are less scared than they are just tired.

[Read more]

Public health officials highlight data that mask mandates are widely supported and that face coverings are a simple way to ward off transmission. About 6 in 10 Americans support mask requirements in areas with high coronavirus transmission, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released earlier this month.

“It makes sense with caseloads going up like they are,” said Brian Kendall, an infectious-disease physician at Providence Portland Medical Center in Portland, Ore., praising new mask rules taking effect in the city this month as he headed into a local gym — clad in a face covering. “A lot of my colleagues are extremely frustrated to the point of cynicism.”

[Read more]

We’ve spent decades trying to alleviate teacher shortages. Our attempts have dramatically changed the teacher workforce, but the shortages remain.

[Listen to the series]

PORTLAND, Ore. ­— Kim and Kathy Stoughton thought they could wait out the record-breaking heat in their east Portland apartment, even though they don't have air conditioning.

But by Sunday, they couldn’t take it anymore.

“I felt fatigued, extremely uncomfortable, mad,” said Kim, who is in his 60s.

He was also dizzy and confused, signs of heatstroke. So the couple headed to Sunrise Center, a community-center-turned-cooling-station open 24 hours through Tuesday.

[Read more…]