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  • Biden's Accomplishments

    Feb 22, 2024

    President Joe Biden’s accomplishments have been remarkable, especially considering the cult-like devotion to Donald Trump of most congressional Republicans, including Cathy McMorris Rodgers. Trump opposes everything Biden proposes, completely disregarding our country’s welfare, caring only about his election. A prime example is Trump’s recent edict that all Republicans scuttle the bipartisan, long-negotiated Senate deal that supported Ukraine and limited immigration. House Speaker Mike Johnson had already complied by withholding a full House...

  • Jesus Gets Us

    Feb 22, 2024

    Like approximately 200 million other folks, I watched the Super Bowl ad “Jesus gets us”. Like most things on TV, it wasn’t showing the complete truth. “Jesus gets us” is true. But, He doesn’t wash our feet and leave us in our sin. The point of “the washing of feet” is the continual cleaning FROM sin—not the acceptance of it. Jesus doesn’t endorse, accommodate, coddle, nor tolerate sin. He loves us sinners enough to transform us out of our sin. He doesn’t wash our feet so we can continue to walk in it. And, He has paid the bloody price to break...

  • Jake & T.C

    Feb 15, 2024

    In reading the Gazette Reporter Jake Hull’s great article regarding Tony Carter, I was struck by two things. The first was the obvious outpouring of the importance that TC had in the Colfax School System. Whether coaching in several areas, teaching, helping, his humility and humor, of course I and all you others could go on and on but one of the most important to me was Mike Morgan’s comment about Tony’s superb athletic training. You knew when your kid was hobbling or down and T.C went out to take a look and the kid either stayed or came out,...

  • We need to unite to tackle fentanyl

    Feb 15, 2024

    As an emergency physician, I see too many patients and families destroyed fentanyl epidemic. This is a plague that we can only face united. Four decades ago, many dismissed the impact of secondhand cigarette smoke. History shows us they were wrong. Today, “educated experts” dismiss what they call trace amounts of fentanyl on public transportation – buses, light rail, and ferries. The difference? Fentanyl is considerably more toxic. The time for hiding the effects of addiction and leaving this disease unaddressed in the public square is long pas...

  • About the roundabouts

    Feb 8, 2024

    I drove truck for 47 years and when the roundabout on Freya Street, north of Frances St., was installed I was hauling food products to a URM warehouse. The roundabout humps in the middle and when the trailing trailer goes over this it is tipped about 30 degrees and all the palletized goods are dumped off the pallets and scattered over the floor of the trailer and must be restacked by hand to unload. Exit 276 on Interstate 90 has two or three roundabouts, all jammed together making for a confusing mess. That serves no purpose than having some...

  • Colfax School Levy Support

    Feb 1, 2024

    In the recent mailing of the Colfax School District, “Focus on Schools”, we learned from the two Building principals about upcoming activities and current events Colfax students are participating in. In addition there was included information regarding the upcoming enrichment levy, to be voted on by Colfax School District residents, ballots being due to elections by February 13, 2024. I encourage you to read this mailing. Every two years we have the opportunity to vote for the passage of a replacement enrichment levy. Washington State does not...

  • Watch your language on climate change

    Feb 1, 2024

    As climate disruption becomes more evident, more people are empowered to advocate for climate mitigation. This advocacy is positive, but climate advocates must choose their words carefully for their message to be most effective. Advocates need humility because we don’t have all the answers. For instance, while the climate science fundamentals are well-established, it is a relatively new field and probably still holds plenty of surprises. Humility is necessary because renewable energy development will make mistakes, just like any other t...

  • Mrs. Soss

    Jan 25, 2024

    As I sat and read Dan Soss’ obituary tonight in the 1.4.24 Gazette, I couldn’t help but go back to June 7th, 1975, when the existing nursing home was to become a boarding home/assisted living facility with most of the staff and nursing patients being transferred by us, our employees, friends, relatives, etc. to the just finished and licensed Whitman Convalescent Center. As the administrator, I was so fortunate to have an experienced staff who had worked with our residents, some for years, so they knew and trusted each other as we all moved int...

  • White House Murder

    Jan 11, 2024

    This is my reply to Nancy from Cheney’s Letter in the edition of the Gazette of December regarding her wish for peace in Gaza, the Holy Land, especially this time of year. Well, if you remember there was a solid and joyful peace in Gaza that for once as everyone, both Israelis and Palestinians could, after so many years and so many political promises, was here to stay! It was created and enforced by non-politician and pro-business President of this County, Donald Trump who used our excess in oil production to force Arabs to the peace table. U...

  • Reintroduce bill to ban dwarf-tossing

    Jan 11, 2024

    Persons who have dwarfism (also referred to as “little people”) frequently experience employment discrimination. Although they can perform any job task well – often needing only a stool – employers frequently reject them during interview. Bars and strip clubs exploit the resulting financial problems by hiring “LPs” for dwarf-tossing events, where bar patrons pay to physically throw an them in front of a crowd of laughing and jeering customers. LPs very frequently have skeletal (especially spinal) issues requiring multiple surgeries....

  • Breaching dams isn't the answer

    Jan 11, 2024

    Monumental Dam has a concrete fish ladder. Its lock works for barge. Rather than breach the dam – or others on the Lower Snake River – how about using a tunnel-boring machine to notch an on the side an additional zig-zag fish ladder? The answer is cooperation or compromise – not contempt or hard-headed, extremism on breaching. Sen. Murray, Gov. Jay Inslee and President Joe Biden need to step back and look at the whole picture. Errol Kramer Odessa/Ritzville...

  • You should cover Hudson's presidential bid

    Whitman County Gazette|Dec 21, 2023

    I am writing to express my concern regarding the lack of attention given to non-partisan candidate Anthony Hudson in your coverage of the presidential race. As a blue-collar man with a message that has resonated with over 60 million people, Hudson represents a significant portion of the American population that deserves to be heard. It is disheartening to witness the prevalence of media bias in the current political landscape. While the media plays a crucial role in informing the public and shaping public opinion, it is vital to ensure fair...

  • Stop the Israeli-Hamas war in Gaza

    Whitman County Gazette|Dec 21, 2023

    Christmas season is upon us. From the time we were children, most of us heard carols, sung songs, sent cards with , “Peace on Earth, good will towards men.” Yet, we humans continue the violence and killing. This year it is especially terrible because it is taking place near the headquarters of religions that claim peace and where Jesus was born. Concerning the war on Gaza, experts keep saying that the situation is very complicated and solutions do not come easily. The conflict has been ongoing for years. Nevertheless, the war can be sto...

  • The Secret is No Secret

    Whitman County Gazette|Dec 21, 2023

    The fact that confidential mediation sessions concerning the future of the four Lower Snake River dams are occurring is no secret. According to the American Bar Association confidentiality is at the heart of a mediation session to facilitate open communication and promote settlement. The parties must be assured that they can share sensitive so their true needs and interests may be met. The fact that meetings are being held is public knowledge, not a secret. The reason for the mediation sessions is to reach a settlement of litigation between...

  • Joy to the World

    Whitman County Gazette|Dec 21, 2023

    “Joy to the World” is a Christmas carol that we will hear and sing again this Christmas season. Yet every year there seems to be less joy in the world. We continue to deal with more wars, sorrow , strife , crimes and death. Is it because we have not believed the simple yet profound message of this song, “The Lord is come; Let earth receive her King”? William Penn said “ Those who will not be governed by God will be ruled by Tyrants.” Our founding fathers believed Isaac Watts and William Penn. They replaced King George with King Jesus our C...

  • Israel-Hamas war an example of religion gone bad

    Dec 7, 2023

    The Israel/Hamas situation is a perfect example of how losing touch with our religious and political traditions makes all of us sniveling idiots. Religion gone bad is the reason Jews and Muslims are at each other’s throats today, and the reason why American Christianity is complicit with all the inhumanity. Israel’s lop-sided military holocaust in Gaza is a flowering public relations disaster for democracy, Israel, Joe Biden, American Jewry, the American war industry, monopolist media companies, religion, the Republican party, you name it. Thi...

  • Trump's agenda

    Nov 30, 2023

    Dear Editor, (writer is from a Colfax family) Former President Trump’s agenda for 2024 is becoming increasingly clear. Mr. Trump established a long time ago an absolute power to hire and fire. (The Apprentice) Our sitting President then went on late in his term of office and after January 6th to argue an absolute immunity from prosecution. (Impeachment trials, fraud trial and criminal indictment filings) Candidate Trump now argues a right to absolute freedom of speech. (Gag order filings) This picture suggests a man devoted to an absolutist s...

  • 'BIG WIRES' Act provides power benefits

    Nov 30, 2023

    The Building Integrated Grids With Inter-Regional Energy Supply (BIG WIRES) Act is a promising bipartisan bill in Congress that offers a wide range of benefits: reducing the risk of electrical power outages, lowering carbon emissions and energy costs, and increasing national security. The recent gas pipeline rupture in our region gave many of us a taste of how a blackout in winter would feel. Extreme weather events damaging power stations and overloading the grid are on the rise. The bill will require each U.S. transmission-planning region to...

  • Cowardice of politicians

    Nov 16, 2023

    Dear Editor, Before I vent, I want to thank Mr. Myers for reminding us of the cowardice of politicians. (Column, 11/9/23) Politicians/appointees ordered utilities and fuel suppliers to not tell their customers that the fuel price increase is from climate policy. Let’s keep the deceitful nature of the political beast in mind. The rest of the column is a deception. He raised my hopes with this: “To achieve Washington’s CO2-reduction goals, there are two competing approaches. First, he gives us the government’s approach: raise the price of carb...

  • True Foundation of Law

    Nov 16, 2023

    Dear Editor, Is it illegal to restrict the hospital privileges of a surgeon to prevent harmful, specialized cross-gender surgeries? This question is pertinent to our local Whitman Hospital and Medical Clinics. What is the true foundation of law? Are current legal systems the result of billions of years of random, undirected iterations of ideas advanced by evolutionary forces resulting in highly refined systems, which will one day perfectly address the evil that plagues us? No. Quoting from the ESV translation of God’s Word, the following law st...

  • Conclusion Re: Our Great Local Paper

    Nov 9, 2023

    Despite having a senior granddaughter from Genesee and a senior great-niece from Colfax both competing in post-season volleyball, this rainy Wednesday morning should allow me time to conclude my remarks started in the October 6th Gazette edition regarding the Gazette’s remarkable achievement, despite being without the services of a guy that both the Wilmont and Forgey Gazette’s had and who to me is a Colfax legend. My great old time friend Jack McBride (wrestling coach par excellence, along with Richard Felber, Ed Olson, and several others Col...

  • Local news

    Oct 26, 2023

    It was about a year before Mr. Harnack bought the Gazette that my health took a slight downturn and I forgot, among other things, to renew my subscription to the paper. I had always had one since this is my hometown. I want to know how everyone is doing here. So it wasn’t until Tom Barlass came to the cemetery in a rage re: Norma Becker’s comment about her perception of the “grass and weeds.” Well, my concern at the moment wasn’t so much the article (which I hadn’t seen yet but the lessening of Tom’s face color from a beet red to a more normal...

  • Who do you trust?

    Oct 19, 2023

    I’m not thinking of political leaders. I’m referring to people. Whether they go to church is as irrelevant as their political party. What matters is whether they put their beliefs above evidence. Do they put tribe above truth? If they are unwilling to look at evidence, then the answer is beware. We all choose what we believe. But if we’re unwilling to put evidence above ourselves, we can’t even trust ourselves. We’re all tempted to do it. You know who I am talking about because we are related to them. They are our friends and neighbors...

  • Big three budget issues

    Whitman County Gazette|Oct 5, 2023

    Dear Editor, (from a member of a multi-generation Colfax family) The “big three” federal budget issues for Republicans and Democrats right now are border protection, Ukraine war funding, and disaster aid. Disaster aid is an issue that politicians of both parties can get behind. It’s like spending on health care. We first fail to prevent disease and disability by neglecting wellness programs, so then we have the great pleasure of paying for our mistakes in hospitals at a much higher cost. In consumer and industrial affairs, we first fail to pr...

  • $500 Million Claim

    Whitman County Gazette|Sep 28, 2023

    The premature notice of withdrawals, delivered by the 10 departing schools of the PAC 12, should result in a $500 million claim against them and the conferences which induced them to so act. The claim should be brought by the PAC 12, controlled solely by OSU and WSU and for the benefit of these two schools. Unlike the other Power 5 conferences, the PAC 12 does not impose an exit penalty. Instead the PAC 12 bylaws provide: “No member shall deliver a notice of withdrawal to the Conference in the period beginning on July 24, 2011, and ending on A...

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