Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Sorted by date Results 1684 - 1708 of 3747
Massive forest fires in western parts of Canada and the U.S. are not only choking us with layers of smoke, but are cutting off lumber supplies around our country. The result is the cost of a new home is rising because of the growing shortage of framing lumber and laminated decking. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported combination of the wildfires and the 30 percent tariff President Trump slapped on Canadian lumber producers are causing lumber shortages and drove up the average prices on new single-family homes nationwide to $406,400 in May....
Qualified? Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers said at her Aug. 10 Town Hall meeting, “I support Donald Trump because, because, because he’s a disrupter and we need to change DC. I continue to support him.” When a later question about Donald Trump was asked, she said, “Donald Trump was elected POTUS. He won the election and I’ve already told you why I support him.” So, being a disrupter is McMorris Rodgers qualification for POTUS? Another woman recently disagreed with her when she said she thought the POTUS should be: “Someone who knows his...
The first thing to know about the instantly infamous "anti-diversity screed" written by a Google software engineer is that it isn't anti-diversity or a screed. The loaded description, widely used in the press and on social media, is symptomatic of the pearl-clutching over the memo, which questions the premises and effectiveness of Google's diversity policies. The document was meant -- before getting splashed on the internet -- as an internal conversation-starter. The author posits that innate differences between the sexes may account for the...
At the beginning of my reporting career, I covered a federal judge hearing a civil suit against National Guardsmen several years after the Kent State killings. The judge refused to allow transcripts of grand jury testimony from earlier criminal proceedings into evidence. Grand juries are supposed to be secret, he ruled, and allowing their deliberations into the record would mean they'd become public. Unfortunately -- or fortunately, depending on one's perspective -- I had gotten my hands on the transcripts from sources I won't identify to this...
On Monday, a total eclipse of the sun will darken parts of the country. The “path of totality” will be just south of us. It will cross onto the continent north of Newport, Ore., and will continue across the country to South Carolina with a 70-mile wide swath. The “path of totality” will pass over 14 states. In Whitman County, we will see a partial eclipse. The eclipse here will be more than 90 percent of a total eclipse. Interest in the event is high. Some airline flight plans have been changed to give passengers a glimpse. A special Amtrak tra...
Over the years my old body has been misused to the point of abuse. Although I am no stranger to operating rooms, I have put off having a foot repaired until I could no longer wear a shoe. I finally allowed the surgeons to do their magic early this week. As I lay there waiting for the anesthesiologist who was caught up in morning traffic, I pondered the issue of health care in America. Over the last eight or nine years, the news has been full of plans and counter plans to fix the medical care problem. Having nothing else to do but think, I...
So far this year, a trio of unexpected deaths has shocked Washington business and agriculture. Melanie Dressel, Ron Reimann and Jeff Brotman leave behind large shoes to fill. They came from vastly different backgrounds and political perspectives, yet it was their diversity, ingenuity and drive which makes our state and nation great. Last February, Melanie Dressel, president and CEO of Tacoma-based Columbia Bank, suddenly died of heart disease. She was 64. She was born and raised in Colville, a small farm and timber town, but stayed in Seattle...
Venezuela is a woeful reminder that no country is so rich that it can't be driven into the ground by revolutionary socialism. People are now literally starving -- about three-quarters of the population lost weight last year -- in what once was the fourth-richest country in the world on a per capita basis. A country that has more oil reserves than Saudi Arabia is suffering shortages of basic supplies. Venezuela now totters on the brink of bankruptcy and civil war, in the national catastrophe known as the Bolivarian Revolution. The phrase is the...
Maybe Donald Trump needs help with his cognitive ability. That might explain his need to assign derogatory labels before recalling someone's name. Perhaps that's why he refers to "Crooked Hillary" Clinton. Same for "Little Marco" Rubio, or "Lyin' Ted" Cruz. Given his obsession with CNN, you'd think he wouldn't need "Fake News CNN" to jog his mind. Another possibility is that he's plain old nasty, that he just needs to bully people, particularly those who might scratch his incredibly thin skin. Our president has such a fragile ego. That's...
“Back to School” sales are on around the county, not to mention the country, and they have been since the early morning hours of July 5. For the Fourth of July is the new end of summer – or it just seems like it. Once upon a time, such as not that long ago, “Back to School” sales didn’t appear until mid-August. Now, these sales come on strong a month earlier, draping thoughts of school over the height of summer. It gets to August 1 and it feels like summer is over. Thoughts of Halloween now, anyone? This development surely grew out of the Chri...
In 2014, President Barrack Obama opened the door for states to collect tolls on interstate highways. This year Oregon lawmakers, much to the chagrin of Washington drivers and truckers, unilaterally took advantage of the new funding opportunity. Before adjourning in July, Oregon’s legislature passed an ambitious $5.3 billion comprehensive transportation plan. To fund it, legislators raised fuel taxes, increased registration and title fees, created a new payroll tax, added taxes on auto and bicycle sales, and placed tolls on Portland metro a...
When did diversity become a positive attribute? How is it beneficial to celebrate our differences? I have a good friend who is an ordained minister, and I was honored to be invited to his ordination. Although everyone there spoke English, the ceremony included prayers in nine languages. The Lord’s Prayer was recited in Navajo. Personally, I like the Lord’s prayer and find it uplifting, but when read in Navajo it is simply noise that has no meaning to me. I’m sure that the prayers recited in Chinese were similarly meaningless noise to the lone...
VA funds research Thank you for publishing a high quality newspaper that is interesting and informative. However, in a recent Gazette opinion piece, "The Cost of Healthcare," Frank Watson has at least one of his assertions wrong. Mr. Watson states, concerning the Veterans Administration system, "They do good work, but, they don't fund research." The VA's website, the VA Office of Research and Development, lists 11 VA research programs, including a program that shares VA research with outside researchers. Mark Olson, Seattle...
The ascension of Donald Trump was supposed to change everything in the GOP. As it happens, perhaps one very important thing hasn't: The Republicans may well still be The Stupid Party. That Obamacare repeal has one or maybe two feet in the grave, depending on how you're counting, is testament to jaw-dropping disarray and bad faith. On the cusp of a historic failure, the party has begun the finger-pointing, and it's hard to argue with any of it. The establishment is right that Trump is incapable of true legislative leadership. The Trumpists are r...
It was the end of 2012. The country was courting fiscal and political disaster. The Obama-administration Democrats were at an impasse with the adamant GOP contingent on Capitol Hill. At the last minute, or so it seemed, then-Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell called Vice President Joe Biden: "Does anyone down there know how to make a deal?" Biden was precisely the one to approach. He had spent 36 years in the Senate, and countless days and nights negotiating compromise with McConnell and the Republicans. The answer to McConnell in 2012 was...
For years now, people have railed against the Affordable Care Act, more commonly known as Obamacare. Republicans in Congress have decried it and in more than 50 attempts have tried to abolish it. Consumers over the years have complained about costs and its requirements and weaknesses. The recent presidential campaign was rife with declarations, demands and promises to “repeal and replace” it. So far, six months into the new administration, no progress toward its repeal and replacement has occurred. Republicans, who own the presidency and bot...
There is an old saying: 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 some activists want to eliminate all fossil fuels used on the waterfront, it is not possible without major disruption to our quality of life, jobs and economy. That is not perfect. It is a recipe for disaster. The better way is to recognize the major environmental improvements we have accomplished and find ways to continue to solve problems. That is good for all Americans. Here is an example...
Some of you young folks may not believe this but my whole generation grew up without hand sanitizer, and we rode our bicycles without helmets! Men who rode motorcycles looked cool in black leather jackets with wavy hair blowing in the breeze. I can’t imagine James Dean in a helmet? I think riding a motorcycle is dangerous under the best conditions, so I choose not to do so. But for those who like the danger and the exhilarating feeling of freedom should have the right to assume the risk. If I rode a racing bicycle at 30 miles an hour, I would w...
Uniontown call Citizens of Uniontown, people who pay property taxes in this city deserve due diligence. You have invested in our community. Protect your investment. Three council positions plus the mayor's spot are open - all as write-ins for those positions. City council meetings are on the second Wednesday of the month at city hall. Meetings begin at 6:30 p.m. Ray Heitstuman, Uniontown Honest cartoon Thank you for the first honest political cartoon that I have seen in any news. Ninety-nine percent of newspapers in America would not have run...
The world has had its delusions about China over the years, but none quite as fantastical as the notion of Beijing assuming the mantle of global leadership. Ever since Donald Trump's election, it has been a journalistic trope to speculate that China is about to take the lead on globalization, climate change and international diplomacy. Knowing his audience, President Xi Jinping has stoked this tripe by mouthing all the right cliches in front of the right audiences. He gave a speech at Davos heavy on the theme of openness and promised to help...
I can tell you what the cast members of "Saturday Night Live" are doing during their off-season: They are practicing their Russian accents. It would take pretty much the entire "SNL" group to do a bit on the meeting between Don Trump Jr., Jared Kushner, Paul Manafort and the gang from the Kremlin. There were altogether at least eight people at that infamous get-together that we now know was called to dish some dirt on Hillary Clinton. "SNL" already has been feasting on the Trumpsters to the point that this season it gathered 22 Emmy...
Autonomous vehicles will soon be on the roads. At least, that is the prediction. Some are already being tested. These cars can drive themselves, negotiate traffic, follow a circuitous route to their destination and react to traffic signals and changing road conditions. The “driver” will have nothing to do. The responsibility of the “driver” may only be to make sure there is gas in the tank or a charge in the battery. Autonomous vehicles are coming, but they are not ready for widespread use. The problem is that many drivers think they already...
The Trump Administration is still trying to fulfill their promise to repeal and replace Obamacare with something better. They are having a rough time of it. Even within their own party there are divisions that seemingly will never compromise. I have listened to the debate and have come to the conclusion that the majority of Americans want free government sponsored health care for everyone. Most Americans don’t care who pays for it as long as they don’t have to. Government programs have a history of growth far beyond what was originally int...
When the Economist Magazine reported the price of a Guinness pint could increase because of Brexit, it grabbed readers’ attention. Brexit is the process whereby Great Britain, including Northern Ireland and Scotland, is withdrawing from the European Union. The Republic of Ireland remains with 26 other nations. EU members benefit from a standardized system of laws which allows the free movement of people and goods. Costly border checkpoints were abolished, but because of Brexit, they may be reconstructed between Ireland and Northern Ireland. Whi...
Imagine that President Donald Trump gave a speech praising a strong Europe. Imagine that he called forthrightly on Russia to stop its aggression in Ukraine and join the community of responsible nations. Imagine that he embraced the mutual defense commitment, so-called Article 5, of NATO. Imagine that he extolled the role of women in our society. Imagine that he said we share the hope of every soul to live in freedom. Imagine that he celebrated the free press and ceaseless innovation, and a spirit of inquiry and self-criticism. That's the...
