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By MEL GURTOV Contributor Donald Trump’s visit to NATO headquarters last week was consistent with two of his foreign-policy views: the need to pursue close relations with Russia, and skepticism about NATO’s utility. Despite affirmative comments about NATO from his secretary of state and Vice President Mike Pence, Trump persists in accusing NATO members of failing to pay the “massive amounts of money” he says they owe. Rather than reaffirm the US commitment to NATO’s collective-security principle, as its ministers had expected...
In the last decade, there has been a highway construction boom in Texas. On the other hand, lawmakers in Olympia still scramble to fund road maintenance. Texas, a state with a population of 27 million, is flush with cash thanks partly to a 10-year voter approved initiative which will pump $2 billion a year into highways. Then recently, that state’s legislature added $9 billion to further help relieve traffic congestion. What’s Texas doing that we aren’t? The answer is priva...
The weather is heating up and so are the plans to move the Cheney Train Depot to a new home on First Street. It has been a long winter, but just as with Mother Nature, preparations for spring and summer have been going on during the gray days and snowy weather. For over two years now, the Cheney Depot Society has been steadily working toward relocating the historic Cheney Depot from its current location between two sets of railroad tracks where it currently sits, to a prominent location on First Street. Researching relocation...
It’s June and for many of us it’s graduation season. I don’t need to talk about what a big accomplishment it is for a high school senior to walk across the stage to acquire their diploma and begin the next stage of their lives. Many high school students will go off to college — many are staying close to attend Eastern Washington and Washington State universities while others will travel across the country to chase their degrees. Some will attend a trade school, join the military or enter the workforce. There’s no real wron...
The Medical Lake food bank would like to thank the employees of our post office for doing a food drive on Saturday, May 13, and our community for donating 668 pounds of food. It was a great success. Terri Worl Medical Lake...
When I stopped by the Cheney library on Saturday shortly before closing, I was greeted by a lovely bouquet of fresh flowers sitting on top of the big litter can out front. There was a note with them from Jeffry, asking that someone give them a home, indicating that they were from his garden and he had no one to give them to. I took them to my neighbor, who is giving them a good home. Thank you Jeffry, for your random act of kindness. Christie Bruntlett Cheney...
The family of Joyce Callaway would like to thank the community for their outpouring of support following our mother’s passing. We especially would like to thank the members of St. Anne Catholic Church for their wonderful help and sympathy, and her friends and co-workers at the Medical Lake Food Bank for their expressions of love and caring. Shirley Maike Medical Lake...
A big thank you to those on the committee who worked so hard throughout the year to make Cheney Mayfest a success. Although Mother Nature only partially cooperated in giving us May-type weather — it could have been warmer — everyone pushed on to make this community event lots of fun for all. Those who attended know what I mean. For those of you who missed out on this wonderful gathering, make it a point to join in next year. You will be glad you did. Again, thank you, thank you to all those committee members, volunteers, par...
Monday is Memorial Day, a day marked in many ways. There will be barbecues, picnics and other activities. If the weather is nice, some will head to the lake to get a start on summer, go for long hikes or work in their yard. There will be memorial services at cemeteries to honor those who gave their lives in service of their country. Having attended these ceremonies, I find them moving and meaningful. But I’m not going to get preachy to encourage others to go because honestly, if it wasn’t for the fact of where I work, I proba...
By now the West Plains — and probably all of Spokane County — knows the situation with Airway Heights’ water system. On May 16, city officials announced that two of its wells tested above Environmental Protection Agency lifetime health advisory levels for two perfluoro chemicals. This is a result from testing of wells on and around Fairchild Air Force Base that had contamination above advisory levels. Both the city and Fairchild are doing everything possible to provide residents and businesses with alternative water sourc...
By PAUL DELANEY Staff Reporter In the daily flood of stories that makes headlines these days — be they real, rushed or contrived — one stood out last week. And I can tell you it was not for reasons that may be at all obvious. The appearance by U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on May 9 as the commencement speaker at Bethune-Cookman University in Florida drew boos, cat-calls from an audience largely composed of those graduating from college. Been there, done that I recalled — when I was about 10. Still, over 50 years later...
By EMILY LORD Contributor A FedEx warehouse might save your life. When hurricanes are approaching, FedEx allows the Red Cross to stock emergency supplies in its warehouses. By pre-positioning these supplies, disaster relief workers drastically reduce the time it takes to get medicines and other lifesaving aid into victims’ hands. Similar partnerships between private companies, humanitarian organizations and government agencies are flourishing across the globe. They’ll prove vital to stopping the next pandemic, whether it...
Just what does finding peace in the Middle East and the key to affordable health insurance have in common? Not much other than each seems like an endless quest. The debate over paying for health care, however, predates the modern battle for land between the Israelis and the Palestinians by decades. And unfortunately, the solutions for either seem to not be on anyone’s radar. “If you want to understand today, you have to search yesterday,” author Pearl S. Buck once said. The Pittsburgh Post Gazette newspaper published a lengt...
1 Years Ago May 10, 2007 The West Plains Community Fair held its "Sweet Social" where the fair royalty were crowned. Amanda Hansen, a junior at Cheney High School was crowned the queen while CHS sophomore Meagan Roberts was named princess. Several moving companies hauled off a house that had been sitting on land behind the Cheney Trading Company. The property the house formerly sat on was the future site of the new Bi-Mart membership store. The Cheney High School boys soccer...
Thank you for your (In Our) Opinion on not taking a stance...taking a stance (Cheney Free Press April 27). This decision is more than dismaying, it is a disservice to students who expect options in a liberal arts education, an education that provides diverse opportunities and gives them a chance to explore and see something for themselves. Although they can learn in a variety of places, given tuition rates, most students will make every minute count, meaning they’ll do what they get credit for. How sad that Whitworth’s lea...
There was nothing pretentious about Mike Lowry. What you saw is what you got! Lowry was one of Washington’s most colorful governors. He served one term from 1993 to 1997. He died on May 1 at age 78. There was nothing subtle about Lowry. He was not afraid to mix it up publicly nor put his political future on the line when he believed in a cause. For example, in 1993 Lowry pushed legislation dramatically reforming our state’s health care laws. He and his Democrat colleagues jam...
This year, the annual cost of caring for individuals living with Alzheimer’s Disease or other dementias will reach $259 billion, $175 billion of which comes in direct costs to Medicare and Medicaid. Yet in 2016, for every $100 the U.S. government spent on Alzheimer’s Disease research, $16,000 was spent by Medicare and Medicaid to care for those living with the disease. Thankfully, Congress is taking action. Just recently, a $400 million increase in Alzheimer’s disease research funding was approved. I am thankful that senat...
We are only a day away from Cheney’s fifth annual Mayfest celebration (May 12-13). Both Friday and Saturday feature several activities that residents and visitors should enjoy. Mayfest is a huge production and what folks may not realize is most of the work that goes into putting it together is done by a committee of board members and a few worker bees who already spin several plates. Some of these people are having difficulty balancing their work schedules along with the hours they are committing to Mayfest. Community events...
Following ex-President Obama’s 2008 election, a Canadian relative sent congratulations, adding, “I didn’t think the U.S. was ready for a black president.” Unfortunately, she was probably right. Following Obama’s election, Southern Poverty Law Center documented a big hate group spike. Beginning his presidency, Rush Limbaugh said “I hope Obama fails,” the Tea Party arose and Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell stated the singular Republican Party priority was Obama’s 2012 defeat. Before his inauguration, R...
Last month, a Wall Street Journal editorial hit the nail on the head recommending Amtrak focus its limited funds on shorter more heavily traveled routes between Washington, D.C., and Boston. The money is needed to prevent more derailments. The situation will only worsen unless Amtrak plows additional funds into rebuilding its dilapidated northeast railroad infrastructure. It must quit subsidizing runs greater than 750 miles. One is the Empire Builder, the passenger train...
I am responding to only one part of your Opinion piece in last week’s paper (“Not taking a stance diminishes discussion,” In Our Opinion, April 27), when you asked “To those who oppose abortion, how often have you stepped forward and volunteered physical, emotional and financial assistance to women who find themselves in the situation of having to consider terminating a new life?” I am not going to try to convince you of a different stance, but I want you to be aware, there are several organizations in the Spokane area that a...
“Hate radio, hate speech, hate groups, hate crimes really don’t fit in, in the America that we know today,” — Kweisi Mfume, former President/CEO of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. I’ve seen hate speech in different forms, but vandalism seems to be one of the more common types of spreading it. One example of this was last Friday (April 28) when graffiti was found on the back door of the Community Building in downtown Spokane. It’s not uncommon to come cross graffiti in a city like Spokane or...
It’s a bit disappointing that there is no resolution to Cheney’s Parkside Commons rezone issue. At its last meeting, the City Council made the decision to send the proposal, which would change the zoning of a section of land near Eastern Washington University from multi-family (R3) to multi-family high density (R3-H), back to the Planning Commission for further review. We applaud the council’s decision to be thoughtful and thorough. But it’s difficult to see what more information might be out there. The biggest concern...
Last week, Whitworth University in Spokane announced it was discontinuing an affiliation with Planned Parenthood wherein university students could receive credit for internships or volunteer at the organization’s Spokane Office. As reported in the media, university President Beck Taylor said the affiliation sent a “confusing signal to many of our constituents” that somehow the university had “taken a side” in an issue — abortion — that has become highly politicized over the years. But by discontinuing the relationship,...
By JOHN McCALLUM Editor Now that the annual stress-inducing ritual of income tax filing deadline has passed, how you doing? Still feeling stressed, or are you relieved it’s done? You’re not alone if you feel worn out by the requirements of our tax system. According to an April 14 Pew Research Center report, 43 percent of Americans are bothered a lot about the complexity of our tax system, with another 29 percent bothered some. Soon, politicians will be trumpeting “Tax Relief Day,” that mythical moment when, hypothe...
