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WINNERS
1. Oregon tots can sleep easier after last week's
news that the state's rate of SIDS (sudden infant death
syndrome) has dropped 54 percent over the last decade. But
the picture's not all hearts and flowers: SIDS rates in
Oregon are still almost twice as high as on the East Coast.
2. The state's urban school districts got
an unexpected apple from Gov. John Kitzhaber, who surprised
veto-watchers by signing a bill Sept. 3 allowing local property
owners to tax themselves for schools. Corvallis will definitely
put a measure on the November '99 ballot. Portland and Eugene
are expected to follow.
3. Blazer owner Paul Allen shed some of his
geek-bachelor image when Hollywood gossip-hounds recently
linked him to newly Jaggerless model Jerry Hall.
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LOSERS
1. Strap-hangers and bus riders will be wincing
this week as they fork over an extra nickel for their fares.
Tri-Met will use the money--projected at $1 million year--to
beef up bus service on its busiest routes.
2. It looks as if state college students
will get a crash course in frustration. Unless the higher-ed
system and the Oregon Public Employees Union can reach an
agreement on their next contract--which seems increasingly
unlikely--non-faculty support staff will go on strike during
registration, just when they're needed most.
3. The working, coffee-drinking poor are
crying in their java. Last week, with little notice, Coffee
People shut off the spigot of free refills of its house
blend. Now, à la Starbucks, they'll be 50 cents.
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