16 July 2014
Top-Two Primary Qualifies for Ballot
Oregon voters will decide in November whether or not to ditch the state’s partisan primary elections.
Officials certified a ballot measure yesterday that would create a “top-two” primary system.
All candidates for a particular office would appear on the ballot with all registered voters eligible to participate. The top two candidates, regardless of their party affiliation, would advance to the general election.
Critics say the system could lead to two candidates from the same party competing in the general election.
Backers say they system would allow voters unaffiliated with a political party to participate in primaries. It has, they say, the potential to tamp down on partisanship.
According to the secretary of state’s office ballot measure proponents submitted nearly 92-thousand valid signatures; about 45-hundred more than needed.
Collecting the Power of Florence
Eyeglasses, hearing aids, cell phones; empty ink jet and toner cartridges, small electronics in any condition; and a whole lot more are on the list of items being collected this weekend during the fourth annual Power of Florence day of volunteering.
Shannon Graham, the mother of Power of Florence organizer Kaylee Graham, says the Lion’s Club, Siuslaw Genealogy Society, Humane Society, Florence Food Share, Spruce Point, Siuslaw Outreach Services and Habitat for Humanity will all be at the Grocery Outlet Center Saturday collecting new or used items for donation.
Those are just a few of the events going on that day. It starts with a pancake breakfast at the Methodist Church, immediately followed by a “power walk” through Old Town. After the garage sales, car washes, bake sales, food drives and cleanups, the Party in the Parking Lot at Grocery Outlet will celebrate participants and volunteers. Go to power of Florence dot org for more details (www.powerofflorence.org).
Oregon Coast Aquarium in Top 12
One of the best in all the land… that’s quite a designation for something that is focused on the ocean.
Destinations Travel Magazine released their list of the 12 best aquariums in the country last week. On the list along with such facilities as the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta; the National Aquarium in Baltimore; and the Monterey Aquarium is the Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport.
A cover story in the magazine’s online July edition notes the focus on the marine life native to the Pacific Northwest as well as efforts to education, conservation and animal rehabilitation.
It’s Berry Season
First it was strawberries; then blueberries began to ripen; soon it will be blackberries and raspberries.
Oregon is a “very berry state”.
Pick-your-own-dot-com says the strawberry harvest in Oregon is just about done, while the U-pick blueberry and raspberry seasons are just now coming on.
Soon it will be blackberries, especially along the coast where wild vines are heavy with blossoms and ripening fruit.
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