Tracy Olsen for City Council
I am a 22-year resident of the Eugene area and a working mother of three. I was both pleased and surprised to hear that a longtime friend, Tracy Olsen, announced that he would be running for City Council in Ward 3. I consider myself very lucky to have known Tracy since my family moved here in 1978. Growing up, I was always impressed with Tracy’s maturity, integrity and outgoing personality. Tracy has always been a person whom you could trust. I look forward to seeing someone on the City Council who is interested in hearing all points of view and is willing to work for the good of the community. People who have spent their entire lives in Eugene appreciate the quality of life in this community. I believe that Tracy will work hard to enhance our city government while complementing Eugene’s best characteristics and making this a truly great place to live and work. I encourage everyone to get to know him and support his run for City Council.

Veronica Robbins

legal secretary

Involvement is commendable
Compliments are in order for those students who have struggled to learn about and bring attention to the issues of corporate sweatshops, the current inadequate shared governance at the University, and the fact that we are all implicated as students, workers and consumers in this system. I commend them for having the courage, strength and hope to make a better world by their own efforts.
A dark contrast to those students’ efforts was clearly evident on your Perspectives page Tuesday (ODE, April 11). What sad and sobering commentaries we got from other members of the University there; a full blast of columnist Mason West’s adolescent cynicism; Moses Messenger’s miseducation of real economics; Suzanne Clark’s lack of analysis about how this University’s bureaucracy discounts student, faculty and worker voices; and John Condie’s inability to know real character and the lack of it.
And as far as the Emerald is concerned, I propose we rename it the Johnson Hall Rag. As a writer and former newspaper columnist, I concluded months ago that Laura Cadiz and crew are positioning themselves for corporate journalism. Good luck to them and the Moseses and Johns of the world — they are in for some hard surprises.

Peter Ferris

Eugene resident