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The Rajneeshees: Another Sign I am a Portland Native

Jul 28, 2015

In which I am old, and from here.

My co-workers highlighted this recent video on digg, part of a series entitled "Atlas Obscura" (thus, presumably denoting its informational contents are, well, obscure), about the salad-bar poisoning by the Rajneeshees in The Dalles, Oregon in 1984.

Except this information, to me, is anything but obscure. In my memory, the Rajneesh situation flavored several years of Oregon culture and news reporting. My mom still occasionally references it in casual conversation.

It made me curious: How many people know of this event? Is it really so banished to the obscure edges of history? Is it just a sign that I'm getting old, and/or that I am hopelessly from Oregon in that entrenched way? Do I already sound like I'm my porch rocking chair, creaking on about how In my day, cults poisoned salad bars?