New scenery to arrive in Oregon

The Oregonian is reporting today that Oregon's first Hooters restaurant is set to open in Beaverton. I can honestly say I have never set foot inside a Hooters so I'm far from the best critic here. I always thought they were sort of a "destination dining" place like Hard Rock Cafe or Planet Hollywood and only the truly touristy places got one (For years, I've used the existence of a HR/PH as a sign that an area is not only "discovered" but likely well past its prime). Clearly, their appeal must be more, umm, broad-based because they are planning to open up to a dozen more in Oregon -- can you believe?

I've been told the hamburgers at Hooters are quite good. Right and apparently Playboy has good poetry. Those eager to experience Hooters might be interested to know that management only hired one out of every five people that applied so I'm sure the scenery service will be top notch.

Interested in becoming a Hooters Girl?

From Hooters.com > Careers:

Hooters Girl (females only need apply for position of Hooters Girl) ... There is no set requirement in order to be a nearly World Famous Hooters Girl! We look for the All-American Cheerleader / Surfer-Girl-Next-Door image to fill our restaurants. In other words...Very bubbly, outgoing personalities!

Hooters Girls are paid an hourly rate of $2.13 an hour, plus tips. Tips are based solely on their individual performance and amount of hours worked. Gender neutral positions will pay a higher hourly rate, depending on prior experience and location.

Wow.

I did some quick math: assuming each location has an equivalent size staff to this first location, this may be the biggest jobs initiative seen by Oregonians in a long time: 2,040 new jobs. Hooters could single handedly reduce Oregon's unemployment rate by 0.1%. Amazing. Even more amazing? That would be one breast for every 851 men, women and children in the state. Where are our priorities as a society?

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What's next? Hooters Air service at PDX? Their motto: "A great experience that enlivens the senses and puts the fun back in flying!" Uh huh.