Stories for Dec. 6, 2007

10 gifts for kids, under $15

Thu, Dec 6, 3 p.m.

Our shopping maven has quick solutions that are fun for kids and parents.

The online public eye on crime

Thu, Dec 6, noon

Monica Guzman at the P-I's Big Blog has been on a roll lately. She was the first blogger to pick up on the online accusatory fever over Amanda Knox in the now-notorious Perugia, Italy, murder case. Now she's on to another one.

PDXpensive: The high cost of high standards

Thu, Dec 6, 11 a.m.

By Kimberly Marlowe Hartnett

What do Portlanders want? Simple: All the good things about a city, none of the bad. OK, that's a little harsh. After all, who doesn't want green parks, low crime rates, cheap housing, nonexistent gridlock, vanishing potholes, excellent schools, and a happenin' cultural life? The problem here is that Portland's had many of those things for a long time, and seeing them slip away makes folks panic. Knowing that urbanites elsewhere would kill for half of the goodies Portland still enjoys doesn't make us feel better. This whole notion of lessening livability is on our minds right now, thanks to a talker of a piece by The Oregonian's Andy Dworkin, reporting on the city's annual audit of residents' opinions about life here. The survey findings Dworkin highlighted include these points:

City of Seattle v. Seattle Times

Thu, Dec 6, 8:17 a.m.

By Chuck Taylor

So Seattle City Attorney Tom Carr now says he didn't know his office was issuing subpoenas to three Seattle Times reporters until after the fact. Carr said he did not reveal that detail earlier because he generally tries to take the heat for decisions his office makes. "Generally" apparently means until he looks dumb as a result of such a decision. Because until he outed the lawyer responsible for the misguided attempt to circumvent a state law shielding reporter sources, Carr had been defending the subpoenas.