Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
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If you live outside Maryland and happened to notice that Martin O’Malley announced in Baltimore that he is running for president as a Democrat, you might well be asking yourself: “Who is Martin O’Malley, and why is he even bothering, since Hillary Clinton has things sewn up?” For starters, O’Malley is the former governor of that state and former mayor of that city. So now you know the “who,” but what about the “why”? What would possess anyone to waste his time and other people’s money to seek a party nomination that is already a done deal... Full story
President Barack Obama is less than stalwart in the fight against ISIS and doesn’t seem overly concerned about Vladimir Putin’s predation in Ukraine or China’s aggression in the South China Sea. It is the fight against climate change, an allegedly dire threat to the nation’s security, that brings out his inner Churchill. In remarks to the Coast Guard Academy commencement, Obama pledged his undying hostility to climate change and his determination to fight it on the beaches and in the fields. He called it “one of the most severe threats...
The Transportation and Safety Administration did not pass a series of tests involving airport security. That was bad enough. But, subsequently, it was disclosed that 73 TSA agents have suspected terrorism ties. That is 73 people ensconced in the very process that is designed to root out terrorists. That is 73 people hired to stop people just like them. Not only do these agents screen passengers and luggage, they are charged with screening airline and airport employees and airport vendors. Although the TSA employment checks have been classified...
Editor’s Note: The following column was originally published in 2010. Back in the 1980s, my grandparents, Dick and Emily, moved to Florida because they wanted a better climate to argue in. They had one of those relationships where they fought so much they couldn’t even agree on what they disagreed on. Their little home in Florida was a few dozen yards from a boggy pond that kept trying to evolve into a swamp. Dick liked to go down to the water’s edge and feed marshmallows to the small alligator who lived there, probably hoping that one day i... Full story
Over the last few years, one of the remarkable successes is the record salmon returns to the Columbia River and its tributaries. Conversely, one of the biggest disappointments is low recovery of delta smelt in San Francisco Bay. To protect the smelt, a federal court ordered that water be flushed into the San Francisco Bay – 1.4 trillion gallons since 2008. That was enough water to sustain 6.4 million drought-stricken Californians for six years. Yet a survey of young adult smelt in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta last fall yielded just e... Full story
Help Needed! The 1948 Harley-Davidson bought new by the City in 1952 was recently put up for sale by the Mayor and Police Chief. They wanted to use the money to buy another police car. They said it had no historical value. The sale of this motorcycle for that reason made a large group of people feel that it was necessary to work to save it from being lost forever. There was a deadline made by the Police Chief for the sale. The Whitman County Historical Society was contacted and wanted to buy it, but did not have the money. A citizen bought the...
If the National Security Agency’s bulk-data program expires, the coroner should conclude that it was “Death by Bumper Sticker.” Rarely has a controversial government program been so fiercely debated and so poorly understood. Authorized by soon-to-expire Section 215 of the Patriot Act, it has been brought to the edge of extinction by a couple of simple but inaccurate phrases, including “listening to your phone calls” and “domestic spying.” You can listen to orations on the NSA program for hours and be outraged by its violation of our liberties...
The Alabama Legislature has made the state the fourth to officially call for a convention to amend the Constitution. That’s the U.S. Constitution, the one that protects our freedoms, or purports to, the one that sets limits on the government of the United States. They’d better watch it, because they’re playing with fire. Article 5 outlines the way the nation’s foundation can be reworked. Congress can pass an amendment by a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate in Washington, followed by ratification by three-fourths of the country...
The Transportation Safety Administration is going through a shakeup. Reportedly, the agency failed in detecting dangerous items passing through security at airports. The items were brought by TSA agents posing as passengers. They were to test the integrity of the security system. The screeners failed to detect the test items ninety-five percent of the time As a result, agency managers are being reassigned and a number of procedural changes are being made. This news comes at the same time that it was discovered that a government laboratory... Full story
Editor’s Note: The following column was originally published in 2010. Few things have ever given me as much national pride as learning that an American named Monte Pierce currently holds the world record for firing a dime the longest distance (10 feet, 10.5 inches) using his earlobe. China’s economy may be growing faster than ours, and maybe we aren’t competitive at soccer, but at this, using ears as slingshots, we excel. Take that, world. I learned about this dime-shot accomplishment from the folks at Guinness, who manage the most famou... Full story
While protesters were trying to block a Shell oil rig from docking in Elliott Bay, a team of surgeons and nurses at Vancouver’s Legacy Salmon Creek Hospital was replacing my left hip. Interestingly, the tools used in both places primarily came from raw materials made from coal, oil and natural gas. Some of the Seattle protestors were in a flotilla of kayaks — boats made, ironically, from petroleum-based products. Their attempted blockade is the latest chapter in a larger campaign across the nation to eliminate fossil fuels. But fossil fuels con...
The Amtrak crash outside of Philadelphia was an invitation for practically every politician in the Northeast and every transit expert in America to complain about lack of funding for the county’s infrastructure. They didn’t even wait to know what was the cause of the tragedy to take to the airwaves and recite the usual litany of laments for our “crumbling” infrastructure and our lack of high-speed rail. What these advocates rarely do is take account of Amtrak as it actually exists. It is a test case of a highly subsidized (and politic...
What a dilemma for the Republicans. They’re holding their first debate later this summer, and they have some 20 candidates who have either officially declared or made it clear they’d like to. They are mostly prominent: governors, senators, brain surgeons, business executives, business executives who are publicity hounds and assorted others. Depending on your point of view, the GOP has either an embarrassment of riches or a lineup that’s an embarrassment. The question is, which ones do you dare cut? Forget about relying on their ranking in th...
This Memorial Day was marked by speeches, ceremonies and concerts. The President spoke at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery. Tombstones around the country were decorated with flags and flowers. Some grave sites were marked with personal gifts. The words were nice and so were the tributes. Veterans, however, often need more than words. They need assistance in returning to civilian life. They need decompression time. They may need medical care. And, often not stated, they need a national policy that gives them the opp...
Editor's Note: The following column was originally published in 2010. My younger sister looks to me to provide her with advice on how to do her job better -- though she's too shy to ask me questions, so I have to give her my opinion on an unsolicited basis. (She's a doctor.) "You're 'book smart' in medicine. I'm 'street smart,'" I explain to her. "I've been practicing for 20 years!" she replies. "Well, keep at it, practice makes perfect. I think you're coming along fine," I say charitably. (Her response to this is, as they say in the medical...
There’s an old saying that people living in glass houses shouldn’t throw rocks. The moral is that before criticizing others, you should make sure your own house is in order. Companies, such as REI, supporting Gov. Inslee’s climate change legislation should heed that advice. REI is an iconic Northwest retailer of high-end outdoor gear popular with nature enthusiasts and millennials. REI has been a big booster of Gov. Inslee’s climate change agenda which pits Washington businesses against one another. The company hosted the governor’s rollout of...
Who are they? The Gazette had a front page story, below the fold, about Patagonia buying full page ads in several newspapers in Washington state. These ads were to get people to agree and contact our state senators to attempt to destroy four hydroelectric dams. The ads failed to mention these dams have generated very cheap power for Washington residents for many years. If these dams were gone, several unintended consequences would be: 1. Electricity rates for many Whitman County users would skyrocket. 2. Every spring these rivers would run... Full story
Manicures and pedicures aren't usually news or fodder for commentary, but a blockbuster report in The New York Times has made them a compelling issue. Under the headline "The Price of Nice Nails," the story cataloged the abusive treatment of workers in New York City's ubiquitous nail salons. The story generated an enormous reaction; it highlighted the poignant juxtaposition of affluent women enjoying what once would have been a luxury, thanks to poor, exploited women with no other options. It is a tableau that doesn't feel very American or...
"Used to be I couldn't spell 'politician.' Now I are one." Yes, it's come to that. It seems that now candidates are proudly declaring as they run for the most powerful political office in the world that they don't know the first thing about politics. In fact, neurosurgeon-turned-presidential-candidate Ben Carson made no brains about it: "I'm not a politician," he insisted. "I don't want to be a politician. Because politicians do what is politically expedient -- I want to do what's right." Easier said than done, Ben. There are an awful lot of...
The candidate filing period is closed. Even the special three-day filing period for positions without a candidate closed Wednesday. The look of the August ballot is decided, except perhaps for a write-in challenge. Mary Dye of Pomeroy, just appointed to fill Susan Fagan’s vacated state representative seat, has filed to retain that seat by popular vote. Two others, Richard Lathim of Pasco and Kenneth Caylor of Othello, have filed to take it for themselves. In Colfax, incumbent Todd Vanek wants to keep his job. Two others want it as well. F...
How is Seattle’s Lighthouse for the Blind connected to the Export-Import Bank? Very closely. Since 1918, The Lighthouse for the Blind has provided education, training and manufacturing jobs for people with visual and hearing disabilities. Of the 400 people currently employed there, approximately 240 are blind or deaf-blind. In its certified machine shop, the Lighthouse employs more than 70 visual or hearing-impaired machinists whose customer list includes the Federal Defense Logistics Agency, The Boeing Company and BAE Systems. The m...
Editor’s Note: The following column was originally published in 2010. I’ve read that an average dog possesses a vocabulary of 200-300 words, which is enough for him to have his own Twitter account. Most people won’t buy their dogs a smartphone, though, so you don’t see too many canines tweeting their friends unless they have access to a computer. Probably from the dogs’ point of view there are a lot of words they would just as soon not know, the N-word being the most obnoxious. Here’s an excerpt from a dog’s wiki-dictionary on known words:...
Three things Could we ask our state legislators to do three things regarding recreational drugs? One would be to take some action against the largest recreational drugs. What’s to stop our state from declaring that alcohol, tobacco (and marijuana?) are semi-legal drug s— legal enough to be sold in restricted circumstances, but not legal enough to be advertised? Tobacco kills 420,000 Americans each year, and alcohol is the number one drug related to crimes of violence, including violent sexual predations, and produces about half the workload for...
Our country is unraveling, right before our eyes. No longer can we treat the eruptions of violence in places like Baltimore as isolated incendiary incidents. If, as a nation, we don’t take immediate remedial action, which means a complete overhaul of a brutally unfair system, the grudges that have simmered for so many generations will explode wherever there are people who are oppressed by those who benefit from a grossly inequitable economic system. It’s too easy to dismiss the rioting in Baltimore as the actions of some punks who went on a r...
President Barack Obama responded to the Baltimore riots with a heartfelt bout of self-righteous hectoring. Supposedly, we all know what’s wrong with Baltimore and how to fix it, but don’t care enough. Not only is this attitude highhanded, it rests on a flagrantly erroneous premise. President Obama doesn’t have the slightest idea how to fix Baltimore. His solutions fall back on liberal bromides going back 50 years. Dating back to the Kerner Commission after the riots of the 1960s, the left’s go-to solution to urban problems has been more so...
