Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Sorted by date Results 529 - 553 of 1962
I see that we are selecting a new Lincoln County sheriff this next election cycle. I question why is this a partisan race? Why are electing a sheriff who is a Democrat or a Republican? When my son was growing up he noticed the republican sheriff. He wondered if you were Republican did you not get speeding tickets? Let's elect the best person to do the job and not worry about what party they belong to. We need to question the candidate's long term plan for the department. Do we need more road patrol deputies or more staff? We...
Seattle’s 1962 World’s Fair was awe-inspiring. It previewed developments that would improve our daily lives in the next millennium. While “Century 21” memories have faded, three of its landmarks remain as reminders of the innovations it inspired: The Seattle Center, the Space Needle, and the monorail. One thing many remember is “The Bubble-ator,” a glass ball-shaped elevator in the coliseum (now Climate Pledge Arena) which gradually climbed to the middle of a contoured map of...
Most politicians could only dream of a scenario in which a flood of extra tax revenues suddenly lets them cut taxes in an election year. But clearly Washington state leaders think differently. While other states move to cut taxes in these tough times, hardliners in the Washington state Legislature have decided to keep the extra money for their own spending priorities and offer no general relief. It’s not that they don’t have the cash. The state expects to take in more tha...
Sunflowers are to Ukraine what tulips are to western Washington. During the blooming season, both are spectacular and represent the best in the people who cultivate and visit those fields. In late 1945, Princess Juliana of the Netherlands presented the Canadian government with 100,000 tulip bulbs as a gift for providing Holland's royal family exile during World War II. Since then, the tulip became known as a “Peace Flower” in North America. Her pilgrimage inspired Dutch tulip...
As expected, the I-1929 (capital gains tax repeal) campaign officially filed a legal challenge to the attorney general’s ballot title and summary for the proposed ballot measure. The AG’s proposed language referred to the capital gains tax as an “excise tax” despite a court ruling unequivocally agreeing with the IRS and the rest of the country that a tax on capital gains is an income tax. From the I-1929 ballot title challenge complaint: “The Attorney General’s proposed ‘B...
I was recently horrified by the guest editorial of Rob Coffman, Lincoln County Commissioner, who ranted with typical Republican party hysteria against the very minor arms control legislation proposed by the Washington Legislature. Considering the fact that the Putin backed Trump crime family had recently tried to overthrow the government of the United States with the help of Nazi terrorists, the fact that Republican governors have enacted laws restricting voting rights, freedom of the press, the rights of women, and...
The Northeast Washington Wildlife Group is very concerned about the whitetail deer in District 1 of Region 1 in Northeast Washington. The harvest numbers for the area in 2019 and 2020 set record lows and the blue tongue outbreak in 2020 was worse than the very bad outbreak of 2015. The city of Colville removed over 160 carcasses from within city limits last year, in 2015 they removed 80. When asked if the state Department of Fish and Wildlife had any plans to help deer numbers rebound, the department replied: “Indeed, d...
With COVID-19 vaccines widely dispensed and masking requirements mostly lifted, will “work from home” end? Will workers return to downtown offices at pre-pandemic levels? Probably Not! One big reason it is expensive to drive and the waste of time and fuel idling in traffic jams. Another is safety. Gas prices continue to skyrocket. Last year, the average cost at the pump was $2.62 per gallon. By the end of March, Seattle’s gasoline increased to $4.88 per gallon, accor...
Sorry to break the news, Washingtonians, but Year 3 of living under emergency orders by the governor will continue without meaningful legislative oversight. The House officially killed Senate Bill 5909 before adjourning. Although that bill as passed by the Senate was essentially fake reform, several amendments were introduced for the House floor debate to bring the policy back in line with what exists in the rest of the country by requiring affirmative legislative approval...
Joy at last Listening to the news every day is a downer for the most part. All the bad events that are happening in the nation and the world line up on your radio or television stations, and online feeds. What a breath of fresh air to hear Cory Booker’s impassioned speech at the U.S. Senate confirmation hearings of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson on Wednesday, March 23, 2022. Instead of angry rhetoric that has been the usual discourse, here was a delightful description of the progress people have made in the country to right t...
The cult of social justice is perpetuating racism in the Clover Park School District with a new student discipline policy requiring staff to consider a student’s race and background before determining their punishment. Instead of disciplining students consistently based on conduct, as justice would require, it is mandating discrimination based on race. In other words, skin color determines whether one receives easy or harsh punishment for the same offense. Isn’t this the textbook definition of racism? This is happening in sch...
There is an old saying: Don’t let the “perfect” be the “enemy” of the good! That is important to remember as we work our way out of the energy crisis exacerbated by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. While the Russians are razing the country and killing thousands of innocent people, many world leaders are slapping Moscow with heavy economic sanctions. Embargoing Russian oil and natural gas are examples. With the prohibition of Russian oil imports, there is a crude shortage in...
About six weeks ago, I had a “cardiac episode.” As I laid in the emergency room, thinking about my to-do list and wondering what I could do for the people who were contacting me regularly asking for help with policies in Olympia that threatened their farms or ranches, the irony of my “heart problem” was entirely lost on me. I have not worked in public policy for very long, but I have been a farmer my entire life. Even when I’ve held other jobs or lived elsewhere, when I came h...
When is enough, enough? In the United States, a law is presumed to be constitutional until proven otherwise in court. This process can take years, and a lot of money, to wade through the legal system and end up at the Supreme Court. As the challenge proceeds, we are still obligated to obey the law. We are a nation of laws. When a politician doesn't like something, they seek to make a law prohibiting you from possessing or doing whatever it is that they don't like. Even if it...
Sorry to break the news, Washingtonians, but year three of living under emergency orders by the governor will continue just as the last two years have – without meaningful legislative oversight. The House yesterday officially killed SB 5909. Though that bill as passed by the Senate was essentially fake reform, several amendments were introduced for the House floor debate to bring the policy back in line with what exists in the rest of the country by requiring affirmative l...
“Bye Bye Russ.” That was the text buzzing through my phone from a friend that alerted me to the unthinkable news Seattle Seahawks fans have been secretly dreading but fighting off with feigned thoughts of “that would never happen;” star quarterback Russell Wilson had been traded to the Denver Broncos for three players and five draft picks. My heart sank as I knew the end of an era that had been dying a slow death had finally arrived. My teenage and young adult years were sp...
Presidential ineptitude What I don’t understand, and I don’t think anyone else does, is why we are still buying oil from Putin, so he can take that money and fund his bloodthirsty war on Ukraine and kill innocent people. I really don’t know anyone who would knowingly do this, but Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi are doing it! Supposedly Putin and Russia are our enemy. Buying oil from Russia, giving them money to carry on a horrific war against Ukraine, killing men, women and children, is the last thing we should be doing. When Dona...
When St. Patrick’s Day rolls around March 17, the Irish have lots to celebrate. Ireland is still clean and green. Now, it is spending $15 million to bring visitors back. Irish tourism officials are targeting 35 million people living in the U.S. with Irish heritage. They are key to generating $3 billion in pre-coronavirus yearly revenue. Ireland is an island nation roughly one-third the size of Washington state with 5 million people. It is no longer an agrarian country. T...
“Wear masks!” “Social distance!” “Wash hands!” “Do not gather!” “Don’t be a danger!” “Quarantine!” “Vaccinate, vaccinate, vaccinate!” “Follow the science!” “Listen; do not speak!” “Stay in your lane!” “No room for rebels!” That was the narrative in the beginning. It was void and without form. But the narrative grew – and quickly. While it still had little form and virtually no substance, somewhere in its early growth, the narrative developed its own self-perpetuating energy supply called “agenda.” Later, adherents to the...
Washington Sen. Patty Murray and Gov. Jay Inslee announced in October, they’ll listen to diverse viewpoints with open minds to recover salmon and potentially breach the four Lower Snake River dams. Their focus on restoring Snake River salmon and steelhead runs is too limited. It needs to be expanded to cover the entire Snake River drainage. Currently, the four lower dams---all in Washington---are targeted to determine if they should be torn down to improve ocean-going fish r...
At a recent press conference, Gov. Jay Inslee was asked several questions about the state’s nursing shortage, a problem that existed long before the COVID-19 era. Reporters were stabbing around at various solutions being proposed in the Legislature. Should we regulate hospital working arrangements? Should we limit what contract nurses are paid? How does the government protect nurses from burnout? Gov. Inslee summed up the concerns well: “The best solution is to produce mor...
Early one very cold morning, a knock at the door revealed a couple who were enroute to Canada. The lady was holding a small, quivering, bleeding puppy they found on the Waukon Road who needed medical attention. Seeing a coyote in the area, the couple decided to find help, for which my family was only too happy to do. After the fluffy puppy, later identified as Scotia, was wrapped in warm blankets and given a drink, its shivering stopped. His photo was promptly put on the Lincoln County Washington Lost & Found Pet Network...
You may have heard rumors that local funding for these programs could be in jeopardy. That was true on several fronts, but those issues were resolved before the holidays. The County has had an Interagency Agreement with WSU for many years whereby the County provides both direct funding support through tax dollars and in-kind support from the use of a County building, in exchange for Extension and 4-H programming and services. Last fall, WSU notified the County that they were...
Palouse Falls has long been one of my favorite places to hike. Over the years, I’ve hiked the mile or so trek to the top of the main falls on numerous occasions. I’ve hiked it by myself, with friends and even my daughter when she was very young. I’ve meandered along the Palouse River to the upper falls and descended the basalt rim to the pool at the base of the falls about 189 feet below. For those of us who grew up in Eastern Washington, hiking Palouse Falls trails has long...
Last year, Gov. Jay Inslee attempted an end run around the legislature by banning natural gas in new homes and commercial buildings via the state’s building codes. It was a bad idea. Now, some fellow Democrats who control the legislature are working on legislation trying to do the same—also a bad idea. Inslee’s proposed regulations forbid the use of fossil fuels for heating and hot water in new structures. Prohibiting natural gas is expensive for home and building owner...
