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Your independent hometown award-winning newspaper
Sorted by date Results 901 - 925 of 1886
Gun violence in the United States is exploding. Over 7500 people have been killed so far this year and it is only May. And that does not include unjustified police shootings which continue to rise. That is something we are acutely aware of because it is getting a lot of coverage on television, radio and in our daily newspapers. What has not gotten much coverage is the revelation that pollution from American farms is expanding exponentially. Most meat, milk and eggs produced in the United States...
On April 30, Joe Biden completed 100 days in office with approval ratings higher than any president at this stage for 40 years. He leans heavily on a brand of Catholicism that disappoints some on the left and on the right, both inside and outside the church. How is he doing? And does his Catholicism affect this governance? His political fortunes remain tied to his ability to slay the virus and get the U.S. economy opened again. Biden’s approval rating in all polls is hovering around 60 percent, the highest of any president at this stage s...
Citizens of La Conner La Conner Town Council I am appalled and disgusted to have witnessed the inept and downright shameful way the mayor and town council have bungled the Maple Avenue ballfield transaction. Through the Hedlin family’s generosity, for over a half-century La Conner families have enjoyed the T-ball, soccer and junior baseball fields. When the Hedlins needed to sell the property, they handed the town an easy lay-up: a rare chance to carry on Dave’s lifelong mantra: a warning that “Pavement is Forever.” Instead of honoring that leg...
Based on what I saw on January 6th and the Republican re-writing of history in response to this vicious act of insurrection, I believe that more right-wing violence is inevitable. I also believe that many in the Republican party have traded their allegiance to the United States and our democracy for membership in a cult of personality. Notice how conservative pundits no longer use the word “Democrat” as a stand-alone descriptor. It is now almost always radical, socialist Democrat. Frankly, I do not think the Democratic Party has changed all tha...
We are six weeks away from the ok for the state – and thus Skagit County – reopening to social and economic activity, just like in the old days. Fifteen months after the coronavirus pandemic shut the country down, Gov. Jay Inslee will, at the start of the July 4th weekend, end the coronavirus public health metric tracking that counties have navigated toward Inslee’s Roadmap to Recovery. Twenty-two of 39 counties, 56.4%, are reporting more than 200 new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents in the last two-week period, and 34 c...
Fifty percent of us are chronically lonely in the United States. When we are lonely we might look at Facebook. When we respond to a post on Facebook with a like, love or angry symbol, Facebook logs our response. From enough of these responses the computer program of Facebook learns our likes and dislikes, our loves and hates. They know that people are powerfully motivated by hate, fear and dislike. Therefore, they feed us more posts to keep us angry because they want to keep us on their platform so they make money. They sell access to data...
Dear Editor, I have so many questions in my mind, please help me get some answers, I still feel quite blind. 1. How is it that the waterline three miles out of town, became the responsibility of the town to maintain? 2. How is it that the town’s new library was prioritized ahead of the missing section of the dike? 3. Why is it that the creative new dike design by a local lifelong farmer has not been significantly covered in these pages? Some questions are outside of your purview to know, this I can understand. Some questions are rather e...
A writer to the Skagit Valley Herald on May 6 claimed to know that Republicans start wars. I wrote the following rebuttal to update him and the Herald readers, which that paper would not print. 1. War of 1812 – Madison, Democrat 2. Mexican War 1846-1848 – Polk (D) 3. Spanish American War 1898 – Cleveland (D) 4. World War I 1917-1918 – Wilson (D) 5. World War II 1941-1946 – Roosevelt (D) 6. Korean War 1950-1953 – Truman (D) 7. Vietnam 1961-1975 – Kennedy (D) 8. Bosnian War – Clinton (D) Civil War...
Competition is, overall, a good thing. It is what makes our sports interesting, drives our natural environment to constantly adapt and it is also what keeps private enterprise going. It pushes a business to innovate, keep prices competitive and keep customers happy. At the heart of this competition is a desire for a mutually beneficial exchange between individuals. On the other side of this coin are monopolies. Although prohibited by federal law, they do exist. Characterized by controlling a market to ensure their profitability and viability,...
The final gavel on Sunday, April 25 concluded a unique and challenging legislative session in state history. Although sometimes difficult to navigate, by-and-large working remotely during the 2021 virtual session went relatively well. Committee hearings, floor debates, even constituent meetings were all held online. Despite some of the obvious inefficiencies, we were able to get the work of the people done. Although I applaud the use of emerging communication technologies to increase citizen involvement – like remote testimony –...
The 2021 Legislative Session adjourned on April 25 and the Legislature made progress on many issues that are important to our community. First and foremost, in this historic virtual session, I worked with the Legislature to provide swift pandemic relief for families, businesses and our community – as well as lay the groundwork for long-term economic prosperity. We also made substantial investments in childcare, public health and housing affordability. The final budget prioritized helping small businesses by reducing unemployment insurance...
The nation’s crumbling infrastructure was suddenly a local story in your community newspaper last week. The page 1 headline blared “Shelter Bay water line break required boil water advisory.” Less conspicuously, without water constantly leaking, was the page 2 headline for the town council meeting: “Town Council reviews local infrastructure priorities.” All of a sudden, the rhetoric from the far-off other Washington has come home: water pipes on both sides of the Swinomish Channel are at the end of their lifespans. In 2018 La Conner replaced...
Many things have changed in our small town this past year, but the little Methodist church at the top of the hill in La Conner remains as committed as always to doing no harm, doing good and staying in love with God and our neighbors. At this time, we are celebrating the good news of vaccines providing a layer of protection for a significant number of members in some of our congregations. However, the church does not belong solely to those who are vaccinated. As the church, God calls us always to do things that are beneficial because we bear...
The City of Seattle is seeking a 50-year federal license for its Skagit dams, likely our last opportunity to require that Seattle help save Skagit salmon and steelhead from extinction. Over the past couple decades, Seattle has contributed roughly 59 times less per megawatt to Skagit fisheries than our local power utility. Now, Seattle has pulled our community into a contentious federal process in an effort to avoid an equitable contribution. We write to propose a better path forward. There are five federally-licensed dams on the Skagit system...
I have a science background and love to compare environmental systems. Some systems may mirror others to some extent but many have unique relationships. Some people have a handle on what are called key species or perhaps apex predators. These species may be important to maintain environmental balance. Often new people with a science background come into a science field with an open mind and new ideas. A new college graduate moved into the Pacific northwest with a new career in marine biology. He was stationed on the coast near saltwater. He...
Americans are indomitable. From sea to shining sea our spirits are resolute and our hopes are high. We want heroes. We want to win every battle and defeat every foe. How can it be that we are entering month 15 of the coronavirus pandemic? We have long looked to Gov. Jay Inslee to lead us out of the restrictions of 25% capacity of seemingly everything and to loosen the yoke stifling businesses, especially on restaurants, which lengthens tourists stays in La Conner. Tuesday Inslee gave the state’s residents and businesses a gift, providing a t...
No Taxation without representation. Remember that slogan? It played a big role in the birth of the United States. Even the most reticent history student must know that a representative government, one “… deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,” is a central feature of both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution. However, what has taken place on both the state and federal level since early last year is that the president and many, if not all, governors were handed, by the respective leg...
July 4th is a proposed vaccine deadline for public service personnel. It is time to get vaccinated. Plan ahead and just get COVID-19 contained. Taxes pay for police, military, healthcare, fire, education, ambulance, clerks, judges, all city state and federal workers. No reasons to avoid your work unless you are recovering from an upper respiratory problem on shot day (Best Life). Enjoy working? This is job security. If you have a weak immune system or are in a medical procedure, ask an MD. This free vaccine saves lives above a 90% rate...
By the numbers. The cliche is life is a numbers game. Start with 19. COVID-19 stands for coronavirus disease 2019. The year the virus appeared is part of its name. The favorite number for restaurants is 200. The hope has been that new infections would stay below 200 new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people in Skagit County in a two week period. That is one-half the magic combination to allow restaurants to continue to seat inside diners at 50% capacity. The twin metric to beat is five hospitalizations per week. Skagit County has not struck out...
I read with great interest the article of March 22,2021 in The Seattle Times. The headline said, “A Christian Vision of Social Justice.” From previous columns I had learned that the writer, David Brooks, is of the Jewish faith but is very ecumenical, as the article indicates. His approach for division “is based on the idea that we are all made in the image of God. It abhors any attempt to dehumanize anybody on any front.” He then tells us, “Christian social justice emphasizes the importance of memory. Today, many Americans are trying to tell t...
Washington’s second congressional district, ours, has just over 711,000 people. Every congressional district has roughly the same population. Our representative, Rick Larsen, votes for and against all kinds of things, from funding for airports to money for zoos, whether or not zoos are in the district. He argues for blueberry farmers and inserts legislation in the Defense Authorization Act requiring real time monitoring of U.S. Navy Growler jets. On this and much more he often works with Washington’s two senators, Maria Cantwell and Patty Murph...
In approximately the summer of 2019 the Town of La Conner was approached by members of the Hedlin family with an offer to buy the 80,000 square feet parcel of land on Maple Avenue known as the Hedlin Ballfield, which the town had leased from the family for decades. This offer allowed the Hedlins to finance the purchase of another farm property, increasing their farm holdings. After looking at the deal, the town council declined the offer as it was not financially feasible for the Town. Grants...
As we dive into spring, our minds may turn to what new things it will bring. Certainly the birds will sing, and the trees will spread their pollen, and some insects will buzz, when they flap their wings. Some of us have been busy reading and writing, trying to figure out what to share, and what to keep in. Sometimes some of us struggle with all sorts of notions, and motions. How do we explain ourselves so we come off like a soothing lotion, rather than a spouter of toxic quotations? I know that I sometimes come across quite gruff, I write...
In his 1848 preface to the 12th edition of “Democracy in America,” written in 1835, French writer, social scientist, philosopher and politician Alexis de Tocqueville wrote, “It is not force alone, but good laws that give stability to a new government. After the combatant comes the legislator; the one has pulled down, the other builds up.” Should he have been here for the passage on April 20, 2021, of state Senate Bill 5038, prohibiting the open carry of weapons at public demonstrations and at the state capitol, he would have celebrated it as a...
Editor: Thank you for your editorial April 21, “A changing climate is deadlier than COVID-19.” In twin Earth Day messages, Pope Francis warned a gathering of world leaders and the global community at large that “we are at the edge” with climate change, and the time to take action is now. In both, Francis urged presidents and prime ministers to act courageously in addressing climate change and to learn from the coronavirus pandemic the need to create “a just, equitable, environmentally safe planet.” “Both the global catastrophes, Covid and cli...
