Zombie Oden Rips City

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Here's the article ClutchPoints had cited:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/aug/16/portland-proud-boys-rightwing-march-liberal-city

............During the Obama years, Portland was widely seen as a redoubt of crunchy, progressive, west coast liberalism. Much of the world saw the city through the lens of Portlandia, a TV sketch show that lampooned hipsters, cyclists and fussy diners. The city was viewed as a liberal, cultural centre of the US – and a sharp contrast with more traditional conservative parts of the country. Its laid-back image was frequently satirised, not least by the comedian Fred Armisen, who said: “It’s where young people go to retire.”

Portlandia was more a caricature than a portrait, and locals noted what it left out – rapid gentrification and displacement, increasing homelessness, the contentious policing of the Portland police bureau (PPB) and the long racist history in the Pacific north-west that made Portland the whitest major city in America. The former NBA player Greg Oden said of his time playing in Portland: “It isn’t a great city to live in if you’re a young African American male with a lot of money.”

Even as Portlandia’s run was ending, a darker picture of the city was being painted, often by outsiders.

This weekend will see the latest in a long line of far-right gatherings that have plagued the city over the last few years. Various groups, including the most visible, the Proud Boys, will descend on the downtown area. Once again they will be met by leftist counter-protesters. And once again, PPB will be under heavy scrutiny for the way in which they police the event.

But how did Portland, for so long considered a bastion of American liberalism, become the centre of the country’s battle between left and right?

Ask Portland’s mayor, Ted Wheeler, what happened to the city’s brewpubs-and-bikes image, and he will say that behind the headlines and images of political street fighting, that city still exists.

“I would say Portland has not changed. The impression that people get these days is that everywhere you go in Portland violence is breaking out all over the place. That couldn’t be further from the truth.”(CONTINUED)
 
I can't talk about what life is like in Portland for a young black man as I am none of the above. But two general points:

1. Oregon has a history of racism. So does the whole fucking country! The USA was founded on slavery and genocide. It is not all people or even all men who were considered created equal, but all white property owning men, and property included other humans. Oregon has its own unique history, but here in California I live in a state that wiped out Native population, dispossessed Mexicans, brutally exploited Chinese laborers and sent loyal American citizens of Japanese descent to concentration camps. Try to find a state without racist history! Is Oregon more racist specifically or just different?

2. Because the Blazers are the only major league sports franchise everything is magnified. If they love you they worship the ground under your feet (Exhibit A: Dame). If they are disappointed they scream from the rooftops (Exhibit B: the very white Meyers Leonard). When the Blazers got the #1 pick the fans on line and on the ground went NUTS for Oden. There was a rally to welcome him. When he needed surgery that cost his rookie season fans were disappointed but still ready to give benefit of the doubt. I am not his doctor, I can't say how many of his physical problems were bad luck and how many were bad conditioning, but no two ways about it, our cherished #1 pick was a bust. And Durant became a superstar which rubbed salt into the wound.

3. Dame has a quote, these are not exact words, but something like if you want to look good in front of thousands you have to work harder than everyone in front of no one. Dame did that. Oden did not. So maybe Oden had innate physical issues like Brandon Roy that he had no control over but there were behavioral issues he absolutely did have control over and he would have heard about it wherever he lived.

4. I hope he finds a path in life he enjoys that is productive. He's a grown man and it's on him now.
 
chris_in_pdx said:
He's not really wrong.
Click to expand...

He's also not really right either. He was looking for an excuse for his drinking problem and his depression instead of dealing with the real issue at hand.
 
If it weren't for Oden, the Proud Boys wouldn't be marching in Portland. Show me a Proud Boy rally before Oden was drafted - you can't. Clearly, their presence in town is due to Oden.

barfo
 
barfo said:
If it weren't for Oden, the Proud Boys wouldn't be marching in Portland. Show me a Proud Boy rally before Oden was drafted - you can't. Clearly, their presence in town is due to Oden.

barfo
Click to expand...

Are you saying they were secretly turned on by that photo?
 
Well....Oden can go back to the Rust Belt called Ohio and feel content....getting drunk with his cousin in his apt in Portland everyday didn't help his recovery, and he probably didn't see much of what Oregon has to offer...he's probably referencing that he couldn't enjoy getting drunk outside of his apt....in the Rust Belt he could find a crowd outside any liquor store to hang with. Portland is not for everyone and to me...that's a really good thing.
 
Proud Boy

TinyCucumber1.jpg


barfo
 
So many thoughts running through my head, but I will just say that the article lost me with calling Portland right-wing. Anything after that had no credibility.
 
julius said:
He's also not really right either. He was looking for an excuse for his drinking problem and his depression instead of dealing with the real issue at hand.
Click to expand...

It wasn't just Greg Oden that's said something like this over the years. When you've got multiple people telling you the same thing, perhaps there's some validity.
 
Being white, but having lived in Portland and in Dallas, I be interested in knowing if a majority of black people would rather live in a city with a low % of black population, without a strong history of racism (Portland), versus a city that had a higher % black population, with with a much worse history of racism, that I would argue still exists throughout the city (Dallas). It sounds like most black NBA players would rather live in the Dallas environment, even with its racism.

I was appalled by some of the racist behaviors I saw when I lived in Dallas. I haven't lived in either for 18 years, but elements of the confederation seemed alive and well when I was there.
 
Good gawd he's an ignorant buffoon. I'm quite sure you can text pictures of your weenie from Portland as easy as you can anywhere else.
 
The quote from Oden is something we have discussed for decades.

'“It isn’t a great city to live in if you’re a young African American male with a lot of money,” said Oden,

Translation: The nightlife is not as good as a lot of NBA cities. They have all the money in the world and just like most men their age they want to "meet" as many good-looking women as possible. They want the club scene that is available in cities like Miami, LA, Houston, NY, and Atlanta. Not saying Portland has no nightlife, just that for rich young males, it just isn't as good.

In Portland, they are big fish in s small pond, but they of course would prefer to be big fish in a very large pond. And of course, diversity is a big part of the equation. They are stars with a lot of money and are only young once.
 
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