Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
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When I was in seventh grade, I was a scrawny boy with no muscles, so I went out for wrestling. My intention was to develop secret wrestling skills so that if I were jumped by a bully, I’d shout “ha!” and he’d be on the ground in a headlock. Bully: How did you do that? Me: I used skills. Bully: Well, from now on and all my bullying friends will live in abject fear of you, plus you’ll have your pick of the eighth-grade girls. Me: As it should be. The problem was that there actually aren’t any secret wrestling skills — basically, wrestling is...
The hardest thing an employer has to do is to call someone into the office and tell them the business isn’t making enough money to keep them on. Handing a hard worker a pink slip is tough because often the boss knows the employees and their families “their kids go to school together or they attend the same church. It is a terrible choice, but one that must be made to save the business “ and the jobs of other employees. The anguish of having to lay someone off can haunt an employer. On the other end, the hardest thing a worker endures is coming...
THE LETTER from the Department of Social and Health Services came at the turn of the year. It was only three sentences. “Due to state budget cuts, on Jan. 3, 2011, the Division of Developmental Disabilities (DDD) will no longer have case managers for clients who do not receive a paid service. For information about community resources, please call 211. You may call 800-735-6740 if you need to request a paid service.” It was signed by Linda Rolfe, director of DDD. It came to my brother’s home in Ravensdale, because he and his wife have been...
+++ The beautiful jungle tree at the library. +++ Those who sponspored the book club on the 19th at the Colfax Golf Course. Send your Pet Peeves and Okeydokes to the Gazette P.O. Box 770 Colfax, Wa 99111... Full story
President Obama gave his state of the union address on Tuesday. The Republican Party presented the traditional opposing party rebuttal the same night. Then, a second rebuttal was given by Representative Michelle Bachmann. She spoke for the “Tea Party.” The rebuttals reinforced the differences between Democrats, Republicans and the Tea Party faction. How the three will operate together is a question still to be answered. The Tea Party has its own agenda, its own leaders and caucus and its own base. Its rebuttal to a state of the union add...
System worked In the January 13th edition of this paper there appeared an article on the Lamont Town Council’s selection of a new mayor and council member. In that article were any number of unfounded comments from local residents about the process itself and that somehow unfair hurdles or barriers were being placed in front of various candidates. In fact, the Council cast a broad net to include as many potential candidates as possible and even extended the time frame for consideration to allow various individuals to have an appropriate period... Full story
I recently upgraded my cell phone, a process that was as easy and painless as dental school. My old phone had a key go dead. When I was texting, I could no longer use the letter “p,” which doesn’t sound like it would be so difficult, but in my oinion is retty hard. I had to laugh at some of the names of the cell phones out there, like “Interceptor” and “Penetrator.” Do they think that just because I’m a guy I’m going to want a phone with an aggressive name? I picked up the “Attack 2000 Widowmaker.” It has a lot of features I need, like...
State Auditor Brian Sonntag reports that our workers’ compensation system is unsustainable – that huge premium increases are needed to keep the program solvent. But those increases, which must be paid mainly by employers, will cripple our ability to recover from the recession. In the midst of our nation’s $1.4 trillion deficit and crushing unemployment, the issue of workers’ compensation might not seem all that important. It is. Abuses and expanded benefits are draining employers of money they could otherwise use to create jobs. They also impac... Full story
#!*! Gary’s fiance: Give him another chance. ++++ Keep trying Gary. She will come back. Send your Pet Peeves and Okeydokes to the Gazette P.O. Box 770 Colfax, Wa 99111...
The state of the union address by President Barack Obama next week may have a different look. It is said that some Democrats and Republicans will break with tradition and sit together. Although no rule requires it, members of each respective party traditionally sit in blocks across the center aisle from each other. This year members may, in fact, commingle. The seating arrangements of Congress at this year’s address may give a hint of the success of Congress as it tackles dramatic problems and rigid ideological differences. If most of the m... Full story
BACK IN SEPTEMBER 1970, someone telephoned the Centralia Daily Chronicle and warned that U.S. Sen. Henry M. “Scoop” Jackson was going to be shot during a public appearance that night in Centralia. Word was swiftly passed along to Jackson, who was in Aberdeen at the time, and to the State Patrol. Two troopers joined his entourage there and went with him to the next stop in Elma. The way one of his staffers put it, “By the time we pulled up in Elma at the grade school it looked like an armed camp. There were six patrol cars in the parking lot....
Kindness I would like your readers to know about a local hero, at least that’s how I see him. I am a truck driver from Spanaway, and as I was on my way home Monday morning when I found myself in terrible pain and I had no idea what was wrong. I stopped my truck on the north end of Colfax and decided that I should get to the Emergency room. It was about then that I met Ernie Miller. I asked if he could help me get to the hospital and he didn’t hesitate: we climbed in his pickup and away we went. When we got there he helped me in to the eme...
Lisa Gingerich, Gazette advertising Ahhh, January. The time of year when we look around at all the “stuff” we got or gave for Christmas and wonder to ourselves, “Where the heck am I going to put it all?” Your answer will depend on the kind of organizer you are. As I see it, there are three kinds of organizers: stackers, filers and throwers. The “stacker” likes to keep everything and manage it with a stacking and piling method. The piles oftentimes include random, unrelated items to be addressed at a later date. I have a friend who is a classi... Full story
I am beginning to think that there are some key differences between a puppy and a baby. I don’t have a baby at the moment, which I think everyone can agree is a good thing, including the baby. I do, however, have a new puppy named Tucker, which is a very good thing except for when it isn’t. At any rate, I’m in a perfect position to offer observations on the differences between babies and puppies — I suggest you save this article and refer to it whenever you find yourself forgetting which is which. With a puppy, people very often come up to m...
State lawmakers convening in Olympia are looking under every pebble for new money. They must write a budget with as much as 20 percent less tax revenue. Often when cash is short, some want to repeal the so-called “tax loopholes.” They presume that businesses will simply cough up the extra cash. There are two problems with that line of thinking: First, the extra tax burden will cause some businesses to stop hiring or close altogether. Second, eliminating tax incentives tells prospective new employers, “Go away, we don’t want you here....
IT HAS BEEN 22-1/2 years since Cassie Holden, 12, on the second day after arriving in Bremerton from Pocatello, Idaho, to spend the summer with her mother, went for a walk near her home and never came back. Her body was found two days later near the Rolling Hills Golf Course. She had been raped and beaten to death with a rock. Witnesses reported seeing a black man in the area and Jonathan Lee Gentry, 30, already in jail for the knife point rape of another young woman in Kitsap County, was quickly suspect. When hair and blood were found on his... Full story
#!*! No gravel in the crosswalks. YYYY Friendly and heroic tow truck drivers. Send your Pet Peeves and Okeydokes to the Gazette P.O. Box 770 Colfax, Wa 99111...
The shooting of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and others in Tucson, Arizona, last weekend has ignited a national search for the reasons behind the tragedy. The investigation already involves more than just the incident itself. The shooting, of course, may simply be the result of an angry, deranged person acting out his own demons. Immediately, however, the vicious and hysterical nature of our national political rhetoric was blamed for agitating the shooter and driving him to such a horrible act. Also, the availability of guns in this nation... Full story
I offer as my kissoff to 2010 a review of some of the columns I wrote for you during the year. Hope you enjoyed them. 5-31-10: A video showing two Seattle police officers kicking a prone detainee prompted minority organizations to form a coalition aimed at police accountability. On April 17, police detained three men suspected in a robbery. One of the officers kicking a Latino man lying on the sidewalk said, “I’m going to beat the (expletive) piss out of you, homey. You feel me?” A woman officer stomped on the man’s hand while other officer... Full story
Pure gift Aside from the obvious sanity considerations that come from being the mayor of the second smallest town in the State for the last 5 years, having that honor, and honor it was, has given me a rare insight into the system that we all say we support but often kick to the curb when we don’t like this or that. Rarely are the greater principles that this Republic is founded upon in more peril than in a very small town setting – where history and ‘Old Boy Networks’ and all the bad clichés one would expect in a second-rate B movie bear rea...
I am a wonderful uncle, even though my nieces and nephews always pretend otherwise. I’m currently visiting Jakob (16), Maya (13) and Ethan (8), who celebrated my arrival by joyously phoning their friends and begging to be allowed to spend the holidays at their houses. At 9:00 a.m., I announce that we’re all going on a hike. Jakob, on the couch, rolls his eyes, Maya doesn’t react, and Ethan throws himself dramatically on the floor as if shot in the stomach. “A hike?” he shrieks, writhing around. “Not a hike!” “Get your hiking boots on, let’s...
Remember the old saying: The only things certain in life are death and taxes? You need to add global competition to that list. Increasingly, American businesses are competing with companies around the world. No one has a captive market any more, not even Boeing and its European rival, Airbus. Since 1970, Boeing and Airbus have been the only major players in the large commercial jet market — airplanes carrying from 125 to 580 passengers. That will change in the next few years as competitors around the world salivate over a highly promising m... Full story
#!*! The new gate behind the Grandmother’s shop. #!*! People who take advantage of social services programs and then use their paychecks for pot and drugs. ++++ Having a local bowling alley with friendly owners. Send your Pet Peeves and Okeydokes to the Gazette P.O. Box 770 Colfax, Wa 99111...
3 was the year of money. From private citizens to the federal government, money, or more precisely the lack of it, shaped nearly every decision and conversation. Finances and making ends meet became very serious business. Something different has been happening in Whitman County. There seems to be a cavalier attitude about money here. Sure, everybody talks about money, but it just doesn’t seem to be all that important. Take for instance the county the government. The county lost track of some of its cash. Estimates ranged from around half a... Full story
It’s been said that during the worst of times, things get fixed. That adage is certainly ringing true in 2011. Our crushing financial crisis at all levels of government is sending shock waves through the halls of government these days bringing elected officials to their senses about spending. While the voting public was far ahead of the politicians and bureaucrats in ringing the alarm bell, the message has finally gotten through. Legislatures around the country are slowing the rate of spending by necessity, and voters sent a clear message l... Full story
