We want owls to return and the sheriff to leave.

[December 5th, 2007]

Winners

1 Oregon’s spotted owl, marbled murrelet and other endangered species get a second chance after the U.S. Department of the Interior restored protections and agreed to investigate if the Bush administration ignored scientists’ recommendations to benefit industry. We’re guessing “if” isn’t the question, but rather, “How whorishly?”

2 No elephants in this room. State Sen. Bruce Starr (R-Hillsboro) won’t run for Oregon secretary of state next year, as had been expected. And that news leaves state Democrats facing no recognizable Republican candidate in any of the three statewide offices—treasurer and attorney general are also on the ticket—up for grabs in 2008.

3 Backers of a liquefied natural gas terminal in Oregon don’t have to worry about opposition from Gov. Ted Kulongoski (“Welcome to Gastoria,” WW , Sept. 28, 2005). The guv says he’s open to LNG, which to LNG’s opponents might now stand for Lame Nuts Governor.

Losers

1 So much for two weeks a year: The Oregon National Guard is prepping for its biggest deployment since World War II. About 3,500 troops learned this holiday season they’re on alert to be deployed in 2009 to Iraq or Afghanistan. Merry Christmas.

2Steve and Angela Brandt , the foster care parents hoping to adopt 2-year-old Gabriel Allred (“Boys in the Media Bubble,” WW , Nov. 21, 2007) got some bad news last week. The state Department of Human Services is delaying a ruling on Gabriel’s future, proving that red tape and bureaucratic delay aren’t just good for Bucky and Snowball the deer. They’re good for children, too!

3 The end may be near for the controversial Lakeside Reclamation Landfill (“Grapes of Trash,” WW , July 18, 2007). Last week, the DEQ issued a closure permit that could force the dump to stop accepting waste in July 2009, at least three years earlier than owner Howard Grabhorn wants to shut down.

4 There’s a new “sheriff” in town. His name: Multnomah County Chairman Ted Wheeler. The chair wants voters to OK transferring actual sheriff Bernie Giusto’s power to run jails to the county board. And Wheeler aims to make the sheriff’s job an appointed—not an elected—one. One more fight for Giusto, who’s already dealing with a state investigation that could cost him his badge (“Let’s Play Recall,” WW , Oct. 24, 2007).