Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Sorted by date Results 76 - 99 of 99
Difficult job Before pointing too many fingers at our beleaguered Secret Service agency and its recent foibles, we should consider its success so far in its bottom line responsibility: to keep President Obama and family alive and injury-free. Interviewed during Obama’s 2012 visit to Portland, Oregon, the Secret Service reported that “Obama faces more death threats than any other president. More than 30 a day” (Portland Oregonian, 7/28/12). This is consistent with the big spike in US hate groups, spread quite evenly over all states except Hawai... Full story
A quasi-religious movement now has a genuinely religious leader. The pope’s encyclical on the environment is being hailed for its embrace of science, although it is about as scientific as the Catholic hymnal. Pope Francis writes that Sister Earth “now cries out because of the harm we have inflicted on her by our irresponsible use and abuse of the goods with which God has endowed her.” Really? Is that what the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says? The Catholic Church brings comfort and meaning to the lives of countle... Full story
For anyone who thought there was the slightest chance of maintaining a sense of personal space, it’s time to get real. Face recognition is here, which means that cameras and sophisticated computers will recognize you even as you, uh, head down the street. Stores will spot you as you pass by; they’ll tap into the minute details of your life and either send enticing emails to your smartphone or alert security if, fairly or unfairly, you’re deemed to be a shoplifting risk or in some other way undesirable. The latest from the puny efforts to regul... Full story
The last few weeks have seen momentous events in the history of the United States. The long battle over the national health care program has been ended by the Supreme Court. Not everybody is delighted with the decision, but it opens the way for some serious, unemotional discussion on how to improve it. That, in itself, may give a chance for constructive bipartisan thinking—something which should have been the goal from the very beginning. The Supreme Court also declared that bans against same-sex marriage were unconstitutional. This did not del... Full story
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. ZERO JUNE PRECIPITATION The official precipitation for June at the NRCS office in Colfax was zero. Normal precipitation for June, long considered the month when rainfall can be critical in finishing a crop, is 1.37 inches. The absence of rain in June follows a below-normal tally for May. The NRCS logged 1.18 inches of rainfall last month compare... Full story
Pullman Posse baseball team lost their first four games at the Walla Walla Sweet invitational tournament last week. The tournament drew 24 teams with some coming from the west side of the state and from Oregon. After sustaining control problems for most of the run, the locals settled down and defeated Steilacoom 8-2 in their last with Cole Sanderson pitching a four hitter over seven innings. Posse booked a four-run charge in the seventh inning. They will return to league action with Northwest Christian in Pullman tonight for two games starting... Full story
The 8th annual Peter Zornes Memorial Golf Tournament was June 20, in Colfax. The tournament raises funds in support of the Peter A. Zornes Memorial Neuroscience Scholarship at Washington State University. Golfers enjoyed lunch, an 18- hole scramble, a catered Italian dinner, and silent auction. Top Team Honors for the day with a score of 57 went to the team of Jake Stewart, Palouse; Ted Melton, Colfax; Wade Winegardner and Josh Bray, both of Pullman. Tied for second-place with 60s were the Inland Cellular group of Darren Malm, Will Gillespie,... Full story
Max Mueller, a 2013 Oakesdale High graduate from Farmington who was a standout player on the Nighthawk basketball team, was among three recruits signed to play for Black Hills State University at Spearfish, S.D. The additions were announced by Coach Jeff Trumbauer. Mueller, a 6-9 post player, competed for Blue Mountain Community College at Pendleton, Ore., for the past two seasons, for an average of 14.4 points per game and 7.9 rebounds. He scored 30 points and delivered 24 rebounds during his best games last season. For Tekoa-Oakesdale he...
Tekoa/Rosalia has opted to drop out of the 2B division for football next fall. They have opted to play in the 1B division which will mean they will not be eligible for playoff competition. Rosalia Principal Darrell Kuhn said an anticipated low number of players next fall led to the decision to play in the 1B division. He said they will play an independent schedule during the football season. The Timberwolves plan to play all other sports in the 2B division next year as a member of the NE league in WIAA District 7. Tekoa/Rosalia's exit from the...
Bill Hays, former St. John coach who rolled up a legendary career during his 17 years heading the Eagles in football, basketball and track, died June 19 at the age of 82. Coach Hays, who departed St. John in 1974 for a teaching and coaching position at Newport, retired in 1989 to his family ranch north of Bonners Ferry where he raised black Angus cattle. A celebration of life has been scheduled in the gym of the Mt. Hall Elementary School at 11 a.m. July 18. A luncheon will follow. Former... Full story
Misner pulls in at the finish of the 112-mile bike segment in six hours, 20 minutes and 11 seconds. The 26.2-mile run came next. While most people might have spent the hot weekend relaxing inside or by a pool, Endicott’s Jamie Misner — with 55 supporters in tow — made her way to Coeur d’Alene to compete in the second hottest Ironman competition ever. “The heat was just so unreal,” she said. “It was really hot.” Record-breaking temperatures topped out at 104 Sunday, nearly 40 degrees above the av...
Join Pullman Parks and Recreation July 8 for the first concert of the summer at Reaney Park. Pullman Parks and Recreation will present the Community Band of the Palouse. from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Subway will be serving food from 5:30-7 p.m....
The Colfax High School class of 2015 officially gained one more member when Supt. Michael Morgan presented a diploma to A.J. Garcia. Morgan explained Garcia, who dropped behind his class at the start of his high school career, has worked hard to make up credits, particularly over the last two years. At the time of the 2015 class commencement, Garcia was still short of the required credits for graduation, but he has finished an on-line course to meet the requirements of the district and the...
A charge of harassment with a threat to kill was filed June 22 in superior court against Roger Gossage, 42, Lewiston. He was arrested in the Snake River off Nisqually John Landing June 17. Gossage was charged with threatening a woman who locked herself in the bathroom of a camper after they had an argument at the campground. According to the arrest report, Gossage told the woman if she called police, she would be dead by the time an officer arrived on the scene. At an initial hearing last Thursday after his arrest Gossage was found to be in vio... Full story
A travel advisory issued Thursday for the Department of Transportation's eastern district office said drivers can expect one-way traffic from Railroad Ave. in Colfax north to Dry Creek Road for the current construction project. Drivers should expect delays up to 20 minutes with pilot cars and flaggers on station. Work on the Colfax-Dry Creek segment will continue on night shifts, from 6 p.m. until 6 a.m. The report also said drivers can expect delays for paving operations on the south 195 project from the Highway 27 intersection south of...
State Representative Mary Dye, R-Pomeroy, will not be able to attend the Port of Whitman in Colfax today as announced last week. Dye is unable to attend because of the third special session of the legislature called by Governor Jay Inslee to conclude work on the state's operating budget for the next two years. Legislators announced a primary budget agreement after working late into early hours Saturday. Linda Olson, administrative secretary for the port, said Dye's visit will be rescheduled for a later meeting.... Full story
The state was facing a potential government shutdown if state legislators failed to reach an agreement on the 2015-17 operating budget by Tuesday at midnight. Legislators worked into the early hours of Saturday to reach the final agreements in the budget before the end of their second special 30-day session Saturday, announcing in a 1:28 a.m. press release that a deal had been reached and details would be finalized later in the day. A third special session was called Sunday so legislators would have time to print, study and vote on the budget...
Three new home-based businesses begun in the past two years are gaining establishment in Palouse, along with a longtime architect who recently joined the Chamber of Commerce. Northwest Cheesecrafters and its product “Ghost Pepper Cheese Bites” are now sold in 15 stores after beginning with their first tasting at Palouse Market in October 2013. The half-pound bags of cheese cubes are made by Johnny Parkins and his wife Sharon in a sterile room and dry storage area they built onto their hou...
Kids play water basketball at the Colfax pool. The pool has seen a steady stream of attendees since the summer opening....
A change of streetlights in Whitman County will begin in July after a statewide pilot program, in which Palouse was one of six test towns, proved beneficial. The new LED (light emitting diode) lights will be installed beginning in Colfax, Colton, Uniontown and Tekoa as part of a state Transportation Improvement Board project budgeted for $6 million in 2015. The local towns will join a stretch of communities in Western Washington served by Puget Sound Power. Each of the towns in the program is...
Whitman County’s population count grew by 750, from 46,500 to 47,250, in a year’s time, according to estimates released Tuesday by the Washington State Office of Financial Management. The county has seen consistent population growth since the 2010 census which put Whitman County at 44,776 residents. That means an estimated growth of nearly 2,500 in just five years. The OFM population estimates are used to determine state program administration and the allocation of selected state revenues. According to information compiled by the OFM, Whi...
Whitman County Commissioners have reached a tax sharing agreement with the city of Pullman, effective as of July 1. The commissioners voted unanimously in favor of the agreement at their regular meeting Monday, following the unanimous Pullman City Council vote June 2. The agreement calls for Pullman and Whitman County to split retail taxes 50/50 from new businesses and to work together to establish those new businesses in a tax sharing area. The tax sharing area surrounds the Pullman city limits and extends east from the city limits along the c... Full story
Fourth of July plans promise lots of fun around the county when the big day arrives Saturday. Traditional parades in Johnson and Albion will kick off the day, and celebrations in Endicott and Pullman will conclude the festivities with their fireworks lighting up the night skies. JOHNSON It all started with six bored kids, and now it has become one of the biggest events each summer for Whitman County. It also could claim the most unique trophy if somebody had one. The Druffel siblings found themselves bored on that Tuesday in 1967, the Fourth...
David "Groundskeeper" Benson of Onaway, Idaho is the man to visit for coffee at the Palouse Muzzeloaders Rendezvous Saturday afternoon near Colfax....
