Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Sorted by date Results 835 - 859 of 3749
Here's the thing about those bright, shiny human objects that are so irresistible to those of us in media: The truth is that, like so much bling, they are merely fool's gold, soon tarnished by reality. The overexposure reveals that there's little under the gloss, and this "next big thing" is very quickly reduced to "same old, same old." So it was with Beto O'Rourke. He skyrocketed to national fame as the Democrat who almost beat a Republican for US Senate in Texas, which has turned indelibly deep red. But the Republican was Ted Cruz, who has...
If there's one thing that elite opinion tends to agree about on the left and the right, it's that nationalism is a very bad thing. If anything, this view has become even more entrenched as nationalism has demonstrated its potency in recent years, from the election of Donald Trump to Britain's vote to leave the European Union. When President Trump first openly embraced the term "nationalist" at a 2018 campaign rally, commentators reacted in horror. Patriotism is about love, nationalism about hate, New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof...
The House Executive Rules Committee is a five-member committee within the Washington State House of Representatives consisting of the Speaker of the House; the House Majority Leader; the House Majority Caucus Chair; the House Minority Leader; and the House Deputy Minority Leader. The committee was created on the final day of the 2019 legislative session by House Resolution 4642, without a vote of the House, and with the consent of the House in that there was no objection when it was proposed. According to HR 4642, the committee was formed for...
“Go ahead and drop it in.” I watched in bewilderment as my classmate unloaded several large pebbles into the empty cauldron, which resounded with a cacophony of metallic clangs. I sat waiting my turn in line with my can of sweet corn amongst fellow second graders who held a smorgasbord of ingredients from barley to potatoes to rosemary sprigs. We were re-enacting “Stone Soup,” the childhood fable that teaches the value of community and contributing to a greater good (or as I realized as an adult - how to surreptitiously finagle a free meal li...
Just before Veterans Day, the last known survivor of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor died at age 98. With the passing of George Hursey of Massachusetts, it closed that chapter of World War II---the world’s most deadly conflict in which over 60 million people perished. President Franklin D. Roosevelt called Dec. 7, 1941, “the date which will live in infamy.” During the surprise attack, 350 Japanese aircraft descended on Pearl Harbor and nearby Hawaiian military installations in two waves...
The 2019 election is history. The results are in except for a few stragglers left to count; not enough to change the outcome. Before the 2020 campaign engulfs us, we have a brief opportunity to examine the latest results to see what we can learn. I was impressed with the voters. It would have been tempting to look at the long list of confusing advisory votes and lump them all either yea or nay. But they didn’t. It appears they actually read each one before marking their ballots. It gives me confidence in our democratic system. I would have m...
Changing clocks every so often may be a thing of the past. The regular shift from Daylight Saving Time and Standard Time and back again is under scrutiny. Originally, Daylight Saving Time was initiated to save energy, improve worker productivity and make better use of natural daylight. It was first used in the United States and other parts of the world during World War I. Soon thereafter it was eliminated. Again in World War II it was ordered that clocks be reset for daylight saving. Then, for a while, regular or standard time was used. The...
Let's give credit where it's due: As commander in chief, President Donald Trump can claim success for the military operation that took out Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the long-elusive founder of ISIS, who, according to the White House and military sources, blew himself up setting off a vest of explosives that also took the lives of three of his children. This was the president, making his nationally televised announcement: "Last night the United States brought the world's No. 1 terrorist leader to justice. ... He was a sick and depraved man, and now...
California is staying true to its reputation as the land of innovation -- it is making blackouts, heretofore the signature of impoverished and war-torn lands, a routine feature of 21st-century American life. More than 2 million people are going without power in northern and central California, in the latest and biggest of the intentional blackouts that are, astonishingly, California's best answer to the risk of runaway wildfires. Power -- and all the goods it makes possible -- is synonymous with modern civilization. It shouldn't be negotiable...
In last week’s Gazette editorial, Gordon Forgey commented on the jeers Donald Trump received at a World Series game in the other Washington. Forgey decried the “utter disrespect shown to a sitting president” and by extension, “the cost that has in respecting the office of the presidency.” He mentioned the distinction between the office and the man holding it. I learned early in my brief military experience that one respects the rank of an officer, not necessarily the person holding that rank. That rank carries authority that might one day s...
Now that President Trump’s impeachment process is formally underway, Democrats and Republicans need to avoid becoming completely absorbed by it. They must work together on other important issues such as immigration, health care, education, infrastructure, environment and trade agreements. Impeaching a president can be all-consuming and is polarizing. It is more prevalent today than it was prior to Richard Nixon’s presidency (1969-74). Before Nixon, only Andrew Johnson had been impeached and remo...
The House has decided to make the closed door inquiry an official impeachment process. The headlines indicated that they had enough votes to unveil their activities. I heard rumors that some Democrats were going to vote against it, but CNN didn’t mention any. The radical left and CNN present a unanimous front. I have never witnessed such hatred. The radical Democrats with the support of a liberal national media have been trying to overthrow the 2016 election from day one. It began with the “Not My President” demonstrations before the inaug...
The President of the United States was booed at a World Series baseball game. Reportedly, the majority of the crowd participated. They also yelled in unison, “Lock him up.” This chant comes from Trump’s own words when he repeatedly said Hillary Clinton should be locked up. Fans in the stadium apparently also made extemporaneous signs calling for his impeachment. Remember this was at a World Series game. Such things get us nowhere, except to make matters worse. Sadly, even a World Series game is not immune from the widening disparity of opinions...
It's really difficult to tell because his hands are so small, but it looks for all the world that President Donald Trump has an extended middle finger raised at, well, all the world. Who knew that he could speak in sign language? Or at least that he knew how to say one word? Come to think of it, it's two words. He seems to have decided on a defiance strategy, his last resort, since his "high crimes" and his low crime of total incompetence are there for everyone to see as he faces impeachment. Every once in a while, he pokes himself in the eye...
The Ukraine story hasn't been good for President Donald Trump, and there's only one way out -- to get impeached, and the sooner, the better. Trump obviously hates the idea of being impeached. He thinks it's unfair, and is raging against the process with every political and legal argument his team can muster and every insult and countercharge he can make on Twitter. But he doesn't have any choice in the matter. Impeachment is baked in the cake. There's no way that Democrats, having opened an impeachment inquiry (although without a vote), can...
YYYY It’s nice to see a healthy police presence return to our coffeehouses. #!*! Winter in October. #!*! People who can’t read traffic signs....
Climate change Some of us might find it remarkable, given partisan divisions, but it appears Republicans and Democrats are coming together on a surprising issue: Climate change. Lawmakers are responding to public opinion. Last month, a CBS News poll found that two-thirds of Americans view climate change as a crisis or serious problem; a majority want immediate action. A survey by Ipsos and Newsy this fall found that 77 percent of younger GOP voters call climate change a serious threat. It’s encouraging that Congresswoman Cathy McMorris R...
Our state’s economy and way of life hinges on low cost and reliable electricity. Since Grand Coulee and Bonneville dams were completed in the early 1940s, Washington has enjoyed both. We are accustomed to flipping a switch and our lights illuminate. Our state’s electricity supply is abundant and our transmission system is dependable. Washington is heavily reliant on hydroelectric generators----many of which are located in powerhouses on the Columbia and Snake rivers. Only during the severe dro...
My kids caught me reading a book. An actual book, printed with ink on real paper. I was lectured about my abuse of the planet and was told how many trees went into making paper. Paper that would line the bottom of our bird cage and eventually be discarded. I argued that I own books I have treasured for many years. They ignored my nostalgic argument and went on to demonstrate how easy it is to dial up an electronic copy of whatever I wanted to read. Instead of a traditional newspaper, my kids get an abbreviated version of the daily news on...
On April 9, North Grand Avenue in Pullman was flooded by rushing waters from the Missouri Flat Creek drainage. Several businesses were badly damaged. People were trapped by the rising waters. Some were forced to take refuge on tables and such. One infant and one diabetic were known to be involved. The Pullman fire department and maintenance crews responded. As should be the case, those in danger and trapped by the torrent of water rushing down the street were the first priority. Nobody stopped to read a water rescue manual. They just did what...
Vladimir Putin is not a Facebook friend of mine -- that I know of, anyway. He could be, perhaps registered under an alias put out by the Moscow Troll Department, but to my knowledge, I didn't send a "Happy birthday to Vlad" greeting to mark the Russian president's 67th. Nor did Donald Trump send his good wishes, at least not on Facebook, even though Mr. Putin seemingly had a lot to do with his being the American president in the first place. But he didn't really have to mark the occasion. For Putin, Trump has been the gift who keeps on giving...
Barack Obama and Donald Trump are diametrically opposed figures, representing the categorical rejection of the other for his supporters, yet they share significant foreign-policy DNA. They both defined themselves in opposition to George W. Bush's foreign policy. Obama probably wouldn't have defeated Hillary Clinton for the 2008 Democratic nomination if she hadn't voted for the Iraq War and if he didn't speak out against it at the time. Likewise, Trump outpaced all his 2016 GOP rivals in denouncing our Middle East commitments. Obama represented...
