What's in a name?

Plenty. This has been a comedy of errors.

Guess what? You can oppose changing the name of Interstate, the old 99W highway that runs between Oregon and Washington, a street with historic significance, and not be a racist. You can't convince the supporters of such a name change of this, but there you are. From the beginning, this affair was mishandled, largely by the mayor, who avoided hearing from those who actually live in the area affected by the change. And when belated meetings finally were held, all hell broke lose.

So the council looks for a compromise but forgets that the street in question runs through Chinatown, where a street named for a Latino hero didn't make sense. This is when it got pretty funny.

Of course, not many people were laughing. They were too busy calling the other side names.

And we're "the city that works"?

clipped from seattletimes.nwsource.com Portland gives street-naming issue a rest The Portland City Council voted unanimously this week to overturn an earlier move to rename the downtown street for César Chávez. The council also voted 3-2 to reject renaming Interstate Avenue, the choice of Mayor Tom Potter and Latino leaders. Months of debate over renaming a street for the labor leader revealed deep divisions in the city, and the council finally decided it needed a breather. The renaming process began in September when the council voted unanimously to support a proposal by a group of Chávez supporters to rename Interstate, sending the idea to a pair of community meetings. When those meetings revealed fierce neighborhood opposition, commissioners began looking for compromises. But the supporters, solidly backed by the mayor, rejected anything but changing Interstate, and no alternative could muster a council majority.