Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
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While the last veterans who survived the “surprise” Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor are dwindling rapidly, we cannot let their sacrifices and the memories of that horrific day which propelled America into World War II fade into history. On December 7, 1941, 350 Japanese aircraft descended on Honolulu’s military installations in two shocking waves. More than 2,400 Americans were killed, and 21 ships were sunk or damaged. Our soldiers, sailors and pilots who fought and won WWII are now 90 or ol...
In 1992, a single male sockeye salmon managed to swim 900 miles from the mouth of the Columbia River to Redfish Lake located deep in Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains---the end of his migratory journey. Biologists dubbed the sole survivor, “Lonesome Larry.” By 2010, the Northwest Power and Conservation Council happily reported record-setting runs for sockeye —387,000 had climbed the fish ladders at Bonneville Dam. Last year, 751 sockeye were trapped at Redfish Lake Creek and taken to nearby Sawtoot...
President Biden’s $65 billion infrastructure bill contains $8 billion for regional hubs to develop ways to produce and distribute hydrogen fuel. One is planned for the Pacific Northwest and should help haulers and truck manufacturers in Renton and Portland in their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Specifically, long-distance haulers need a network of hydrogen fueling stations (like today’s truck stops) along with affordable trucks and fuel. Hub researchers’ added challenge is 95 pe...
Gov. Jay Inslee inappropriately used our state’s building codes to ban natural gas in new homes and commercial buildings. Now, the Biden Administration is going a step further issuing rules that drastically clamp down on natural gas used in heating and air conditioning units. Inslee’s regulations phase out fossil fuels used for heating water and cooking in new buildings by 2030. They were the first steps to eliminating natural gas in and around the house. Biden’s Dept. of Energy (DOE) propo...
While media focus was on Joe Biden’s decree putting a tiny plot of land within the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) off limits to oil and gas exploration, reporters ignored the bigger story. Biden’s other proclamation forbids tapping more than 10 million acres within the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, a 23-million-acre area on Alaska’s North Slope. That is the area which should replenish the crude oil drawdown stemming from Biden’s oil withdrawal from strategic wells establi...
There is an axiom: Don’t let “the perfect” get in the way of the good! That is important to remember when it comes to improving our air quality. While climate activists want to banish all fossil fuels to control greenhouse gas (GHG), it is not possible today without epic disruption to our economy, supply chains, jobs, and quality of life. Simply, getting to “zero emission” cannot happen by government edicts. It takes innovation driven by the private sector. For example, the California Air Resou...
Many fingers are again pointed at electric utilities because downed power lines are suspected of starting another horrific wildfire---the one that raced through Lahaina killing hundreds of unsuspecting people. Who would have imagined that one day, the historic Hawaiian capitol on Maui would be a thriving tourist destination and 24-hours later it would be piles of smoldering rubble and ashes which included remains of people? Cellphone video reveals that high winds down live electric lines which...
Growing up in the 60s, our parents blamed everything on “The Beatles.” According to them, they were “the punks” from Liverpool who caused all the teenagers to go crazy. Lately, there is another group of “Beatles” giving people fits, only their names are spelled differently. These “beetles” are tiny insects that burrow under the bark of mature needle-bearing trees (conifers) and munch on the nutrient layers. In time, they suffocate whole forests and create immense debris fields. In fact, those tiny bugs provide much of the dead wood fueling to...
Today, good works are often brushed aside or ignored---especially, if done by one of the world’s largest mining companies. However, Rio Tinto deserves kudos for its half-billion-dollar mine cleanup in Holden., a remote village in the picturesque North Cascade mountains just south of Lake Chelan. Rio Tinto did not mine an ounce of copper or other precious metals at Holden. It acquired the site as part of a larger purchase. It gathered interested stakeholders together and ironed solutions o...
The good news is this state’s cherry crop looks good—a marked improvement over 2022. It is sweetening our farm economy especially for cherry growers who have struggled over the last five years. “Last year’s cold, wet April brought down the cherry crop,” Wenatchee World writer Gabriel Garcia recently reported. “But this year, the Washington state cherry harvest is in full swing, and the industry is optimistic about it.” Washington’s cherry growers expect to pick 21 million 20-pound boxes...
Until President Biden signed the Chips and Science Act (CSA) last year, companies, such as Intel and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. looked elsewhere to build plants costing well over $20 billion each. Biden’s pitch to taxpayers was ultramodern manufacturers of miniature computer chips used in our sophisticated weapons, advanced manufacturing, cars and trucks, and high-tech equipment needed to move back to the U.S A. Congress responded and passed CSA supplying a $280 billion to e...
China’s growing dominance of critical metals production and stockpiles is setting off global alarms. It has American manufacturers in a bind as they ramp up domestic electric vehicle (EV) battery production. Ores containing these elements are in deposits across our planet; however, the technology to process them is largely in China. As the China Communist Party (CCP) under Xi Jinping exerts its leverage, America and its allies are facing global economic and military challenges. China is t...
When Oregon enacted the nation’s first bottle bill in 1971, it was intended to reduce litter on the state’s beaches, along roads, and in parks. It was a cleanup, not a recycling program. Today, the focus is recycling empty beer, pop, juice, and water containers and it is working very well in large part because it pays people to recycle. Collect the “empties” and earn a dime for each plastic bottle or aluminum can. It adds up and often is enough money to supplement purchases of food and gas. Or...
Although New Zealand and Washington are located a half-a-world apart, they have lots in common---beautiful seashores, majestic mountains, crystal clear streams and lakes, and vibrant salmon and trout fisheries. Both are struggling to rid their air sheds of CO2 and other greenhouse gases coming from the burning of carbon fuels (coal, natural gas, gasoline, and diesel) in vehicles, home heating and electric-power generation. New Zealand and Washington share a common goal to be carbon-neutral by 20...
President Biden is unwisely “throttling up” plans to ditch carbon fuels unilaterally despite the extreme consequences of doing so. He wants to accelerate replacement of gas/diesel vehicles with electrics (EVs) which will be recharged by electrical grids energized by solar, wind and hydro power---- not coal, natural gas, or nuclear fuels. Additionally, in our state, Governor Inslee mimicked Berkeley (CA) building codes stopping the installation of natural gas stoves and water heaters; how...
Today, employers continue to struggle finding enough workers while attempting to bring people back to the office (work sites). A key problem is there simply aren’t enough people to fill available jobs. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce reported at the end of February, there were 9.9 million job openings and 5.9 million unemployed workers. The Chamber added if every unemployed person in the country found a job, there would still be 4 million vacant positions. As America emerges from the Covid-19 p...
My mom would be horrified by the rash of violence in our schools today. The most recent tragedy at Covenant School in Nashville where three students and three adults were shot to death is devastating. It was unimaginable 40 years ago. Mom was an elementary school secretary for 20 years. She wanted us — her four children — to become teachers. A key reason was schools were safe places for kids, teachers and staff — places where students learned the fundamental skills required in life. Littl...
In the race to “Electrify Everything” there are glitches which may derail the plan over the next 20 years. One is a shortage of skilled electrical workers needed to rewire homes, make grid modifications, and install new electrical capacity. President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, signed in August, contains billions of dollars to help Americans electrify their homes, buy electric vehicles, replace natural gas stoves, and install solar panels. “The problem is most houses aren’t wired to...
Earlier this month when President Biden fastened the Congressional Medal of Honor (Medal) around retired U.S. Army Col. Paris Davis’ neck, it was a welcome pause to the endless venomous rhetoric, political feuding, and lawlessness which plagues our nation. For a few hours, America’s attention was on Col. Davis and the sacrifices those in our military make to preserve our safety, freedoms, and way of life. Those who serve us on the frontline of danger, whether they are cops, firefighters, medics,...
There is no substitute for person-to-person connections—people talking with, listening to, and understanding one another. It is called “customer service” and it is the best way to resolve problems and retain customers. Those employed and embedded in business are more likely to be located on-site, frequently see fellow workers and suppliers, better understand the products and services, and are part of local communities. So, whatever happened to people answering phones and directing callers to fe...
While the coronavirus clobbered many businesses, pharmacies were not among them. In fact, since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19, a pandemic, local pharmacists have become vital cogs in dispensing crucial medical advice. Pharmacies adapted their businesses quickly after the pandemic outbreak three years ago. According to the December’s issue of Pharmacy Times, drug stores increased their accessibility to curbside service, traditional drive-through windows, and home deliverie...
It’s past time for an energy reality check. If we are to meet our soaring demand for electricity and produce it without coal and natural gas, we must double down on nuclear power. Today, U.S. nuclear plants generated enough electricity to power more than 70 million homes. It’s the most reliable source of electricity operating at full capacity over 90 percent of the time. It is “greenhouse gas” free, yet many activists are pushing to close, not build, nuclear power plants. If President Biden a...
Three years after crooks stole billions in unemployment insurance (UI) funds, federal and state officials are scrambling to retrieve the money which was directed to the jobless and plug leaks in their systems. According to a recent Wall Street Journal editorial, the General Accounting Office (GAO) estimates taxpayers underwrote $60 billion in fraudulent payments from an “unprecedented infusion of federal Covid-19 relief funds into UI programs during the pandemic.” It gave villains and org...
Coupled with the rapid growth of data centers we rely upon for internet service and information storage is an increased demand for electricity to power millions of computers and cool the mammoth buildings in which they operate. Data center computers are integral to our everyday life and store everything from cooking recipes to complex engineering blueprints. They are heavy power users consuming 10 to 50 times the energy per floor space of a typical commercial office. Energy inflation combined wi...
It is time to change the way things are done in our nation’s capital---the “Other Washington!” The year-end Christmas dash to pass a $1.7 trillion spending monstrosity is the straw breaking the camel’s back. It is a 4,000-page document which lawmakers freely admit they did not read. To put the problem into perspective that one bill contains 17 times more money than the entire two-year state budget for Washington. It’s an unfathomable sum of money and its vast scope has not gone unnoticed...
