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Articles from the January 12, 2012 edition


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  • County signs deal to start year of remodel projects

    Joe Smillie, Gazette Reporter|Jan 12, 2012

    Whitman County commissioners kicked off a slate of major capital projects Monday by signing a series of contracts to initiate replacement of a heating and cooling system on the jailhouse. Facilities manager Bob Reynolds presented contracts for more than $504,000 for the jail chiller. The new chiller will replace a decades-old unit that Reynolds said costs as much as $300 a day in utility costs. Commissioner Greg Partch noted the unit has for the past several years required as much as $1,800 a month for repairs in summer months. Reynolds said...

  • Eli Cook wins first baby award

    Jan 12, 2012

    Eli Hunter Cook, shown here with his parents, Trevor and Khou Cook of St. John, won the first baby prize when he was born at 11:34 a.m. last Thursday, Jan. 5, at Whitman Hospital and Medical Center. He weighed eight pounds, 6.5 ounces. Eli joins a sister, Maleah Ying Cook, age 2....

  • MC Rally ruling reconsidered

    Jan 12, 2012

    A motion to reconsider that was filed by attorneys for the town of Rosalia and the Rosalia Chamber of Commerce has been approved in superior court. The ruling was filed Wednesday, Jan. 4, after a Dec. 16 hearing. The motion asked the court to reconsider a summary judgment it granted to Josh Bryan, originator of the now defunct 100 Years of Motorcycles rally in Rosalia. The court initially granted Bryan the summary judgment after ruling the town violated the contract terms for production of the rallies. The court initially ruled the town failed...

  • New rabies law in effect

    Jan 12, 2012

    A new Washington law which requires owners of dogs, cats and ferrets to have the animals vaccinated for rabies took effect at the start of the year. The new law makes it a misdemeanor offense for pet owners who fail to have the pets vaccinated and keep proof that the vaccinations are current, according to Sharon Schnebly, code enforcement officer of the Pullman Police department. The new state law supersedes civil ordinances on the books in many towns, including Pullman, which require proof of the vaccinations. The new law is punishable by up...

  • Add cheer basket count

    Jan 12, 2012

    Rosalia Garden club delivered 50 cheer baskets over the holidays. This was their 76th year of doing the baskets. A previous edition listed the number at 43....

  • Letters

    Jan 12, 2012

    Where are we going? We received one of the most shocking rebukes from our county commissioners that we have ever received in our many years as residents of Whitman County. Many residents have been concerned with the county obligating our citizens with a $15,000,000 contribution to a project near the Idaho State line. This project has been ongoing for several years and is supposed to create a great deal of revenue in the form of sales tax to the county. The only problem with the project is that it is a very risky commitment of public funds that...

  • The Last Cameron Column

    Jan 12, 2012

    Ages and ages ago — like, 1993 — people would purchase a PC, plug it in and then stare in wonder at all the error messages. There wasn’t much else to do with the things if you weren’t part of the “information economy,” though people gave it their best shot. “Look!” Mom would cry. “I’m typing my recipe cards into the computer!” “Wow,” the children would say. “Mom is so smart.” (Unless they were teenagers, in which case they would say, “Mom is such a dork.”) “From now on,” Mom promised, “these recipes will be permanently stored in the computer u...

  • Don Brunell: It's the economy

    Jan 12, 2012

    In 1992, Bill Clinton’s campaign slogan was, “It’s the economy, stupid.” In 1993, Washington employers modified the slogan to, “It’s the economy, don’t kill it,” and emblazoned it across a huge banner draped from AWB’s building near the state’s Capitol Campus, where it could be seen by elected officials driving by. But lawmakers didn’t get the message 19 years ago; they left employers holding the bag for new taxes and fees as well as added costs for unemployment insurance and workers’ compensation. Hopefully, those lawmakers learned their...

  • Adele Ferguson: Two different holiday accounts

    Jan 12, 2012

    SOME YEARS ago, friends of mine who live here in Washington but have a vacation condominium in Mexico, invited my husband and me to make use of their condo. Thanks, I said, but no thanks. I wouldn’t go to Mexico if somebody was going to give me a condo. I consider it one of the most dangerous places on earth. I’ve read too many stories in the newspapers, I said, of American tourists and travelers waylaid and murdered by thugs or even the Mexican police. No way, no how. I thought about that this Christmas when a story in my local paper, the Kit...

  • Bulletin Column

    Jan 12, 2012

    These reports are from the previous four issues of the Daily Bulletin in Colfax. They are reprinted here for the benefit of Gazette readers who reside outside of Colfax. Some accounts have been updated. HICKMAN FINISHES RR SADDLE Bob Hickman of Post Falls, former proprietor of Hickman Boot & Saddlery in Colfax, recently completed work on a silver mounted parade saddle which will be raffled off for the benefit of the Roy Rogers and Dale Evans Happy Trails Children’s Foundation. Hickman has worked for about a year on the saddle in tandem with a...

  • TRIVIA TEST

    Fifi Rodriguez|Jan 12, 2012

    1. ENTERTAINERS: Which actor’s birth name was Ramon Estevez? 2. MUSIC: What was the name of Smokey Robinson’s group? 3. INVENTIONS: Who is credited with inventing bifocal lenses? 4. PSYCHOLOGY: What irrational fear is manifested in peniaphobia? 5. LITERATURE: In which of Shakespeare’s plays does the character Shylock appear? 6. GENERAL KNOWLEDGE: During which war did Harry Truman fire Gen. Douglas MacArthur? 7. HISTORY: When did Australia become a commonwealth nation, largely gaining independence from Britain? 8. ANATOMY: About how long are t...

  • STRANGE BUT TRUE

    Samantha Weaver|Jan 12, 2012

    • During this election season, it might be good to keep in mind the following sage observation, made beloved humorist Will Rogers: “The American people are generous and will forgive almost any weakness with the exception of stupidity.” • Mountain goats aren’t actually goats; they’re antelopes. • Those who study such things say that a mosquito flaps its wings 1,000 times every second. • If you’ve ever been to London — or if you’ve seen a movie that was set there — you might remember the iconic black taxicabs that are ubiquitous in that city; the...

  • Colfax wrestlers plan Orofino trip

    Jan 12, 2012

    Colfax Bulldog wrestlers will depart Friday for the two-day tournament at Orofino. Coach Dennis Gransbery said the tournament will feature a qualifying round Friday to determine pod assignments for the following day. Wrestlers will compete inside of their assigned pod in the Saturday rounds under a format intended to group wrestlers according to skill levels. Colfax and other teams plan to “sleep on the mats” Friday night before the finals. Coach Gransbery hopes to have heavyweight Daython Maltone back in action at Orofino. Maltone, who injured...

  • Eagle grapplers head to Rumble

    Jan 12, 2012

    St. John/Endicott wrestlers will travel to Ritzville tonight and compete in the the Royal City Rumble Saturday. The young Eagle lineup had another tough outing last Saturday at Cheney but are stacking up experience. Lone Eagle to get beyond two matches at Cheney was junior Thomas Newton who posted a 1-1 in his first two matches. He then stacked a 10-4 lead over a Deer Park foe before making a wrong move and getting pinned. Assistant Coach Dave McCue credited the young Eagle squad with making progress on the learning curve as the season...

  • Grid coach resigns at Pullman

    Jan 12, 2012

    Pullman High School last Wednesday officially announced the resignation of Coach Craig McCormick, football coach of the Greyhounds for the past three years. McCormick took over the job following the resignation of the late Bill Peterson. The ‘hounds this year finished 1-9 and 0-5 in league play. Activities coordinator Mike Davis said the high school administrators plan an aggressive search to find a new coach for the program....

  • SPORTS QUIZ

    Chris Richcreek|Jan 12, 2012

    1. Who is the San Diego Padres’ all-time leader in career home runs? 2. How many times has a Texas Ranger been named the A.L. Most Valuable Player? 3. How many NCAA men’s basketball championships have the UConn Huskies won? 4. Name the first Eastern bloc player to skate in the NHL. 5. In 2011, thoroughbred Rapid Redux won his 20th consecutive race, topping the North American record held by two horses. Name either horse. Answers 1. Nate Colbert, with 163. 2. Six — Jeff Burroughs (1974), Juan Gonzalez (‘96, ‘98), Ivan Rodriguez (‘99), Al...

  • Crusaders win string survives Colfax test before big crowd

    Jan 12, 2012

    Finding an escape hatch in the hands of their outside shooters, the Northwest Christian Crusaders departed Colfax Friday with a 63-52 win to extend their season win string to 11-0. The Cru crew erupted for 21 points in the last quarter to regain the lead and take the win. Colfax, led by a game-high 28 points from Justin Berarducci, paced the league leaders in the first half and slipped into the lead in the second half but couldn’t hold off the NWC outside game. Guard Dakota Winward, one of two 6-1 players on the short end of the NWC roster, f...

  • Wildcat girls dominate at SE halfway mark

    Jan 12, 2012

    Colton’s undefeated Wildcats appear to be closing the door on the rest of the SE 1B league which starts second round play this week. Colton blasted past Rosalia’s undefeated team in a league showdown Friday and the SJE Eagles Saturday, both by the hefty margins which have been the Wildcat mode for the campaign to date. Monday, Colton’s girls booked their third big-margin win in four days with a 78-32 crunch over Lapwai, a team which has been atop the Idaho polls in their division for most of the season. Lapwai, undefeated in league play, arriv...

  • Battle for 2nd place: Second half Colfax charge falls short

    Jan 12, 2012

    Down 20 points at the half with their SunDome shooting maladies lingering, Colfax girls Friday came out snarling before their home fans and turned on the juice against Northwest Christian. The Bulldogs came within eight points of erasing the lead, but the NWC girls prevailed in the final minutes. The week’s lone hoop clash turned out to be a battle for second place in the league behind the undefeated Reardan team. Northwest Christian now holds the number-two slot in the league, and the Bulldogs are in third place in front of a cluster of t...

  • Cats claw top post in SE play

    Jan 12, 2012

    Colton’s Wildcats grabbed control of the SE 1B Saturday night, riding center Dustin Patchen who blew up for 35 points and 17 rebounds to sink St. John/Endicott 77-68 at Colton. The Eagles were undefeated in league play. The win puts the Wildcats alone at the top spot in league standings with a 6-0 record in SE play. Tight through the first quarter, the ‘cats pulled away in the second and third quarters before the Eagles, led by Dakota White’s 18 points, shot their way back into the game. SJE sharpshooters nailed eight three-pointers with White...

  • The World

    Jan 12, 2012

    THURSDAY Researchers at Cornell University slowed down time long enough to hide an event for 40 trillionths of a second. Using beams of light, the researchers flashed a red beam into a green beam for a fraction of a second. But the red beam could not be detected. They said a beam of light 18,600 miles long would be needed to hide a complete second. Police in Texas shot and killed an eighth-grade boy in the hallway of his middle school after he reportedly refused to lower a pellet gun and respond to police orders. Two officers fired three...

  • Colfax levy volunteers organize campaign

    Garth Meyer, Gazette Reporter|Jan 12, 2012

    The Colfax school district levy committee met in the high school library Tuesday to plan its effort to win voters’ approval of a two-year levy package which will go before district voters Feb. 14. Chairman Bob Lothspeich led the meeting which was attended by volunteers along with Supt. Michael Morgan and Business Manager Reece Jenkin. The group talked about various opportunities to spread the word and ask voters to support the levy proposal for $1.2 million for 2013 and $1.25 million for 2014. ...

  • Wal-Mart sales boost county's third quarter talley

    Joe Smillie, Gazette Reporter|Jan 12, 2012

    Thanks to Wal-Mart, the economy of Whitman County saw a marked upswing during the third quarter of 2011. Figures released Friday by the state Department of Revenue showed taxable sales in Whitman County between July and September were more than $145 million, up nearly 15 percent from the same period in 2010. Retail sales, which exclude construction and services, rose 30 percent, from $44 million in 2010 to $58 million in 2011. Most of that came from Wal-Mart. “No doubt about it, Wal-Mart’s been good for our city,” said John Sherman, Pullm...

  • Midnight at Noon

    Jan 12, 2012

    An afternoon moon hung in the sky over Colfax Jan. 5. Mild winter weather stayed around last week until temperatures dipped into normal January numbers Tuesday....

  • Port board gets update on fiber optic installation

    Garth Meyer, Gazette Reporter|Jan 12, 2012

    Board talks of potential local impact of Panama Canal expansion Gathering after the Christmas holidays, Port of Whitman commissioners last Thursday confirmed plans for the next two months and touched on a range of issues. New commissioner Tom Kammerzell reported on a new commissioner seminar he attended in Bellevue. The two-day event was put on by the Washington Ports Association. “It was good information. It was very helpful,” Kammerzell said. Executive Director Joe Poire reported on the fib...

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