Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Sorted by date Results 1204 - 1228 of 3750
California is ablaze again. Three massive fires in the state are destroying homes, businesses, forests and open land. They have claimed more than 40 known victims. About 200 people are missing. Two of the big fires are in southern California and are very close together. Malibu, the prestigious beachside town, is threatened. The biggest fire, already claimed as the states’s most destructive and most deadly, is to the north. The town of Paradise, near Chico, has been virtually destroyed. Thousands upon thousands have been evacuated from the d...
Mornings are somewhat brighter, but it's still a day of mourning. The switch from daylight saving to standard time is an admission that we can't escape the predictable gloom of winter, with its icy weather. It might become less predictable once global warming fully wreaks its destruction -- you know, the disaster that President Donald Trump and the corporate energy interests expediently choose to deny. On the other hand, the political season is nonstop, and the climate in that world inexorably deteriorates too. While we've wrapped up the...
It's appropriate that the U.N. special rapporteur devoted to adequate housing has visited encampments in Mexico City, Buenos Aires, Mumbai -- and San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley. The homeless situation in those cities and others around the country is positively Third World, a blight that shows the persistence of human folly and misery, despite what we take to be our steady progress to greater enlightenment and prosperity. San Francisco is a crown jewel of the new economy, and a sink of vagrancy. One of the more compelling pieces of...
Pet Peeves Parents who don’t teach their kids acceptable behavior and just expect the rest of society to deal with it. Okeydokes Holiday open house. A nice night on the town. No snow yet....
When our military is viewed as an employer, it has the same problem as the private sector; attracting qualified people to fill jobs. In today’s vibrant economy, there is an abundance of “Help Wanted” signs. Even though our armed forces have stepped up their enlistment bonuses, they still fall short of their recruitment goals. There are just fewer qualified people in the employment pool to fill jobs which require higher educational standards, more skills, a willingness to work hard, and the d...
I was raised around strong women. My four-foot-ten-inch grandmother was one of the strongest human beings I have ever known. My mother’s sisters worked on the farm along with my uncles and me. My sister could whip any kid in school and was one of the finest athletes I have known. They didn’t ask for special consideration, nor did they carry protest signs. They certainly don’t consider themselves victims and dislike militant feminists as much as I do. I have a good friend who is an ordained minister in his church. I was proud to be invited to hi...
It is amazing, but true. The American people are in agreement on a political issue. Consensus is overwhelming. It is something not seen in a long time. This goes beyond Tuesday’s election results. In fact, it may be more fundamental than who won and who lost. According to a recent poll, nearly 80 percent of Americans are fearful that the political divides will lead to violence. The poll indicates they are afraid. Both parties are guilty of playing hardball continuously. They give the other party no quarter, and it is not always over the most im...
Pet Peeves Christmas decorations on Main Street, a Christmas tree at the Public Service building, it’s Nov. 8....
Republicans have always justified their preferential treatment of the super-wealthy by trotting out the bogus "trickle-down theory." They argue that as the rich get richer, they will spend more on jobs, etc., and the financial benefits will "trickle down" the economic scale. It's a total con, of course. A sham. But now we are witnessing a trickle down that's for real. The man who has taken over the Republicans spews ignorance, hatred and violence every time he opens his mouth or pecks on a smartphone. His malice indeed trickles down --...
It's not any less awful for being so familiar. The last three high-profile attacks that have convulsed the nation, two in recent weeks, have been carried out by fringe loners who fit the stereotype of the perpetrators of such crimes precisely -- they didn't fit in, they were "off," they kept to themselves. The word that comes up again and again in accounts of their lives is "alone," always alone. The life of Cesar Sayoc, who mailed crude pipe bombs to Democrats ranging from George Soros to Hillary Clinton to Robert De Niro, was a pitiable...
When our military is viewed as an employer, it has the same problem as the private sector; attracting qualified people to fill jobs. In today’s vibrant economy, there is an abundance of “Help Wanted” signs. Even though our armed forces have stepped up their enlistment bonuses, they still fall short of their recruitment goals. There are just fewer qualified people in the employment pool to fill jobs which require higher educational standards, more skills, a willingness to work hard, and the d...
During a recent visit to Colfax, my son asked about the pink X things. I told him it was to raise people's awareness of breast cancer and the people who pass through that ordeal. There sure are a lot of the pink ribbons; people must really be aware, then. Are they? For those who put a pink ribbon on their window, how are you more aware of breast cancer and what have you done about it? Some people spent money on buying a variety of pink decorations. How much money did they put toward cancer...
Imagine that: It's getting so it's difficult to get away with being slime in the Washington "swamp" these days -- or at the very least, much tougher to paper it over by placing a fake-believe veneer of money from the most noxious sources. For generations, we have allowed so many of our most prominent operators to perfume over the stench of their ill-gained prosperity as they have represented the interests here of some of the planet's most rotten individuals and their brutal tyrannies. Now we have the Saudis and the likelihood that they have...
Is the INF Treaty so important that the Russians should be allowed to cheat on it without consequence? That's the implication of the criticisms of President Donald Trump for saying that he's pulling out of the Cold War-era arms-control agreement. Mikhail Gorbachev deemed Trump's stated intention "unacceptable" and "very irresponsible," although it isn't the U.S. that has been flagrantly violating the treaty for years. The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, signed in 1987, was a central achievement of the Reagan-Gorbachev diplomacy of...
Pet Peeves People who complain but don’t vote Those R’s and D’s who put party affiliation before U.S.A. Okeydokes Colfax’s WIAA Academic State Championship football team! Impressive honor! A pink-painted town that supports health Rosauers employees who went out of their way to help a customer, who was locked out of their car....
Whitman County Commissioner Michael Largent, a lifetime resident of the county, has the experience that is crucial for our county to continue to be a great place to live. Mike is accessible and willing to listen and work through issues important to citizens. He has shown, by example, how to balance delivering services critical to our county with being a good steward of taxpayer money. Undoubtedly, Michael would continue to serve in the same contemplative manner. --Karen Hinnenkamp, Colfax...
Gordon Forgey, in contrast to your usual pertinent and level-headed editorials, your "Who Needs the Russians?" (Oct. 25, 2018), disappoints. You equate the confusion of voters as to whether or not to add a fifty-cent postage stamp on their ballot return envelopes, to the Russian hacking of American voting machines and their fomenting division of the American people. I don't see how these are remotely equal in importance. --Mark Olson, Seattle...
A vote for Rob Rembert will accomplish two good things for the citizens of Whitman County. It will allow John Hart to retain his position as Colfax’s municipal court judge, a role for which he is eminently well-equipped. It will help ensure that the more mature, more experienced, and more competent candidate is chosen to serve as our next district court judge. Let’s give Whitman County two wins, by electing Rembert as district court judge and retaining John Hart as Colfax municipal court judge. --Rod Schwartz, Pullman...
What happened to the image of the American father? I remember when fathers were considered the undisputed head of the family. The stereotypical father was venerated by his children and had the answer to all family problems. Not so anymore. The image of the American father has changed from Ward Cleaver to Archie Bunker to Homer Simpson. Hollywood portrays the normal couple to be Lara Croft Tomb Raider and her incompetent male side kick. No more dumb blond jokes. I liked them and learned most of them from my blond daughter who is not at all...
After meeting with county commissioners on 22 Oct. it became apparent that Mike Largent doesn't care about the conditions in our small western county communities. He states that county government doesn't have a responsibility to enforce county zoning regulations in our unincorporated communities. Accumulation of trash, wrecked/inoperative vehicles and right-of-way encroachment are fine with Mike. If he doesn't care about us, maybe we shouldn't care about him on 6 Nov. A blank vote sends a message. --Kirk Suess, Steptoe...
It may not surprise you to note that none of the comments attributed to me by Kirk Suess in his letter to the editor are accurate nor reflect my views. Fortunately, there is a recording of Mr. Suess' recent presentation to the Whitman County Board of County Commissioners available to any interested parties. Interestingly enough, the recording shows that I didn’t make a single comment. I do believe effective policy making begins with listening first, which was my intent. I, and the other Commissioners I serve with, are always happy to listen t...
We really don’t need the Russians to fool with elections. We are perfectly able to do it ourselves. After a lengthy string of local issues relating to elections and ballots, now the state has stepped in to confuse voters as well. One instance involves the Whitman County ballots. The state declared that election ballots would be postage free. The return envelope says that no postage is necessary. Making ballots free of any mailing charge is the result of a deal at the state level. All Washington ballots can be mailed for free. No ballot in Washi...
Pet Peeves Maybe the council person and her friends could carpool to the Pullman pot shops to “reduce travel time.” Councils and residents hindering our local economic growth!!!! County commissioners can say no to county employees’ raises but can’t say no to their own. Okeydokes So far, a wonderful autumn. If only we could have a spring, too. The Colfax Police flagging for the school busses....
It's Major League Baseball playoff season, as well as the run-up to the elections. Oh, the games people play. Way back when, in the early 20th century, New York Giants manager John "Mugsy" McGraw was the first to utter an important life lesson for those who play either form of "Hardball" (thank you, Chris Matthews). "Nice guys," he growled, "finish last." It's wisdom the Democrats are only now allowing to penetrate their cluelessness. "Really?" they whimper in amazement. "It's not enough to be righteous?" Not when it's self-righteous, which is...
It's doubtful that a former American presidential candidate has ever formally endorsed incivility before, but Hillary Clinton is ever full of surprises. In an interview on CNN, the erstwhile advocate of "if they go low, we go high" switched around to unapologetically call for going low. "You cannot be civil with a political party," she explained, "that wants to destroy what you stand for, what you care about." She added that if Democrats retake a house of Congress, well, then, "that's when civility can start again." Clinton's statement is yet m...
