Cascadia today: Will WA millionaires tax survive? BC pipeline would increase tanker traffic + new memoir from Eugene anarchist John Zerzan

Good morning! I'm back from Chicago and grateful that Cascadia is currently an oasis of mild temperatures as the rest of North America melts under a heat dome. Definitely appreciate the Pacific Northwest and the abundant natural beauty here!

Measure to roll back WA millionaires tax turns in signatures

Wealthy investor and right-wing initiative booster Brian Heywood turned in thousands of signatures gathered to put a recall of the recently passed millionaires tax on the ballot in Washington this fall, KUOW reports. Election officials will take several weeks to validate the signatures. The tax of 9.9% applies only to income over $1 million, and will generate $3.5 billion in revenue beginning in 2029, helping fund education, preschool, childcare, and other programs.

New BC pipeline would increase tanker traffic in Salish Sea

Washington State Standard reports that a proposed new climate-killing oil pipeline between Alberta and British Columbia just north of the Washington border would cause yet another surge in oil tanker traffic in the Salish Sea. That's bad news for the struggling southern resident orca population, as well as risks of oil spills. The Lummi Nation and other Washington tribes are strongly opposed. The tribe has previously filed lawsuits in BC courts attempting to be consulted on infrastructure projects north of the border, since the tribe historically lived on both sides of the current colonial border.

An independent Cascadia should honor all existing colonial treaties as well as supporting consent-seeking and consultation with all Indigenous groups with regard to all major projects throughout the bioregion.

Seattle mayor seeks ban on rental junk fees

The Seattle Times reports on Seattle mayor Katie Wilson's proposed legislation that would ban a variety of junk fees that landlords impose on renters, including pet rent, charges for in-unit appliances, and other hidden fees. Earlier this year, the mayor's office conducted a survey of renters about the impact of hidden fees. You can contact the city council in support of this measure here.

Osoyoos Indian band works to restore burned forests

Indiginews reports that the Osoyoos Indian band in south central British Columbia are working to re-introduce native plants to forests heavily damaged in the 2021 Nk’Mip Creek Wildfire. Planting include native shrubs such as soapberry, huckleberry, and thimbleberry as well as cottonwood and aspen.

Eugene's most famous anarchist has a new memoir

John Zerzan, the anarcho-primitivist philosopher and Eugene resident has a new memoir, Often in the Right Place: The Education of an Anarchist. Eugene Weekly spoke with Zerzan about his journey to becoming an anti-technology advocate who argues that hunter-gatherer societies are preferable to our current late capitalist, social media-infused world. He notes that societies arranged around small bands of 100-150 people seems ideal:

"That just sounds like utopia. I mean isn’t that what we’re all really looking for?”

Thanks for reading. Keep loving and keep fighting. --Andy