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Last week, the first domino fell in a chain reaction that could end with a casino opening within walking distance of McMenamins Edgefield. That’s the outcome threatened by the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde if another two Oregon tribes are allowed to open casinos along Interstate 5 in Medford and Salem. On Nov. 20, hours after WW published a story on the tribal gamesmanship (“Jackpot,” Nov. 20), President Joe Biden’s administration offered preliminary approval to the Medford project. That places Gov. Tina Kotek in a tight spot since she’s not only referee for the casino dispute, but has the interests of the Oregon Lottery to protect. Here’s what our readers had to say:
George Colfax, via wweek.com: “Good. Let the tribes have their casinos. People can choose where to spend their gambling money instead of being forced into the state-run monopoly that is the Oregon Lottery, whose payout percentages keep decreasing to keep pace with legislators constant feeding at the lottery trough.”
jtech0007, via Reddit: “Most forget that we already have very small ‘casinos’ on almost every commercial block—video poker in bars. The BS that the state wants to protect the tribes is f’in’ unreal. The want to protect THEIR cash cow, not the tribes. But it’s not surprising as Oregon has never been friendly to competition or small business. And the epic part is their president has opened the door for the tribes to F the state out of its second-biggest source of revenue.”
Jerry, via wweek.com: “Let the Grand Ronde Tribe build a beautiful casino using the Blue Heron paper mill buildings and site overlooking the Willamette Falls on the West Linn side of the river. In its allowance, require the casino to give 50% of all income to the full development and maintenance of the proposed Willamette Falls Plan. Historical.”
snakebite75, via Reddit: “Honestly, we missed the best opportunity like 30 years ago when one of tribes offered to build a stadium in exchange for having a casino in Portland. It’s going to happen eventually, might as well get something out of it.”
hawtsprings, via Reddit: “I would like to be entered in the Oregon State Lottery when I submit my state income tax return. Make taxation as fun as gambling and more people will play!”
PORTLAND IS METAL, WW ISN’T
How is this still happening?
For 50 years, WW has pretended that there’s no heavy metal scene in Portland, despite our national reputation.
Agalloch has had far greater influence than many bands on this list [“Iconic Portland Bands of the Last 50 Years,” WW, Nov. 13]. Their recent reunion show sold out Crystal Ballroom in 24 hours. They headline festivals all around the world, and have over 100K monthly listeners on Spotify.
Red Fang made videos that enjoyed millions of views, toured their asses off, and played on David Letterman.
YOB made the #1 metal album in Rolling Stone some years ago. They have also been featured in The New Yorker and The New York Times, and are one of the most respected bands in the world.
The marginalization of heavy metal by college-educated writers was somewhat understandable in the ’80s when college radio was so influential. But in 2024, it makes no sense to ignore such a major genre of music entirely, and continually.
No list can satisfy everyone, and we all have our darlings. But it’s baffling that an entire genre—for which the city is internationally famous—continues to get swept under the rug.
Portland has a Metal Bowling League, a metal pizza chain, and Doom Metal Yoga. It’s an important and relevant ingredient in our local culture.
I wouldn’t wish for any of the artists on your list to be removed. They all have their merits. But the omission of a whole thriving genre with zero representation is a failure of journalism.
Why are you perpetuating this?
Nathan Carson
Portland
CORRECTION The Nov. 13 story “Cost Per Vote” incorrectly stated the amount of public dollars City Council candidates spent for each vote they received. The city keeps two databases of public campaign financing, and we used the one showing public dollars candidates qualified for, rather than public dollars distributed to them. That means Chris Henry initially appeared higher on the list than he should have, and Stan Penkin should not have been listed at all. WW regrets the error.
Letters to the editor must include the author’s street address and phone number for verification. Letters must be 250 or fewer words. Submit to: P.O. Box 10770, Portland, OR 97296 Email: mzusman@wweek.com