Catering to the Automobile is helping bankrupt Salem

Image by Sister72 via Flickr

Now we get to learn how bad the collateral damage will be. The low-budget model fire extinguisher to the right is just an example of the kinds of creative adaptations we'll be experiencing in Salem for the foreseeable future.

Here's a more global look at how various states are faring and what we can expect as the double-dip of the Great Recession really gets underway. Forecast: Severely grim. And we all know how closely tied Salem's economic situation is tied to the overall health of Oregon's budget. Which is to say, Forecast: VERY severely grim.

Best Salem politics joke of 2010 thus far: Mayor Taylor, resolutely mum during the failed Cherriots bond campaign last year, attacking Cherriots for having cut Saturday service entirely.