While the nation has been enthralled in a passionate debate regarding the future of the Senate filibuster, a similar conversation is unfolding nearby in Salem. The Oregon legislature has spent…
It’s not enough to open the streets
As cars flood back into the once-empty streets of the early days of the pandemic, and affluent urbanites are forced out of their open street canopies and cabanas, a weak…
The most myopic place on Earth
Jonathan VanBoskerck is deeply concerned. As Disney rolls out the latest revisions to its rules governing employee appearance standards at Disney parks, VanBoskerck had a few choice words for the…
A cop by any other name is still a cop
Portland City Council is doubling the amount of park rangers in Portland, ostensibly to reduce reliance on police presence in Portland parks and create community-based alternatives to policing. But beneath…
The shame of purity culture and abstinence-only sex education
I could feel my heart racing in my chest—BOOM, BOOM, BOOM. My heart crashed against my rib cage, wanting to flee this predicament as much I did. My cheeks grew…
HB 3261 doesn’t go far enough
On Wednesday, March 31, the Oregon Legislature approved House Bill 3261, which dictates the limited intervention of local governments in the conversion of some properties into emergency shelters for the…
What’s all the hubbub with NFTs?
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are apparently worth millions of dollars, as illustrated by the artist Beeple, the phenomenon seems to be creating a fervor in people ranging from academic economists to…
Manufactured gridlock
The seminal political film Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, directed by Frank Capra in 1939, is one of the greatest representations of parliamentary procedure within the United States Congress, albeit…
Wait, it was this easy to cripple global trade?
On Tuesday, March 23, a giant container ship by the name of the Ever Given got itself lodged sideways in the Suez Canal, a vital shipping waterway. According to the…
Vanguard History Corner: Portland’s labor history
Hello, reader, and welcome to the Vanguard History Corner! This reoccurring column will whisk you through the little-known and forgotten history of the Pacific Northwest, as I endeavor to reconnect…
Hazelnut Grove should be celebrated, not destroyed
Hazelnut Grove, a self-governed tiny home village located in North Portland with about 15 formerly houseless residents, is under threat of being torn down, dispersing the people who live there. …