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One hundred twenty-five years ago in August 1890, the Cheney Enterprise merged with the Cheney Sentinel newspaper under the ownership of James Fitzgerald. During the first decades, Cheney had two, sometimes three newspapers. Learn more about our area’s history at www.cheneymuseum.org....
Whoever came up with that widely popular notion that “60 in the new 40,” I hope they’re right. Because as you pull this edition of the Free Press out of the mail box or newspaper stand for some leisurely reading I’ll be somewhere along a trail by the Lostine River in Northeastern Oregon headed for Mirror Lake, with an elevation just short of 7,400 feet. The ultimate goal is the tip-top of the 9,572 foot Eagle Cap, the namesake peak of the wilderness area in the Wallowa...
The July 30 Guest Commentary by Dr. Richard Badalamente demonized corporations as “scandalous” liars — snake-oil salesmen. If you are skeptical of man-caused global warming claims the commentary also characterized YOU as gullible, ignorant, unenthusiastic, shortsighted — incapable of or unwilling to make hard choices in favor of long-term future concerns, opting instead for “self-absorbed,” “immediate gratification.” In his May 14 Guest Commentary, he also used similar ad hominem arguments to marginalize two men through the...
Supporting our military personnel is all the rage these days, especially after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 and the wars and military actions that followed. And yet, unless you’ve actually served in one of the armed forces, the majority of us don’t have a really good idea of what it’s like to be in the United States Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force and Coast Guard. There is a way, however, that non-military citizens can get a small glimpse into the lives of our service men and women — the Honorary Command...
Earlier this month, my son’s baseball team qualified for the 9/10 State Little League tournament, which was to be held in Cheney July 18 – 26. As most are aware, the tournament had to be moved to Montesano, Wash. at the last minute because of a watering issue here in town. Hosting this tournament would have brought a lot of revenue into the city. Despite this lost opportunity, I am writing today to tell you that the people and businesses in the West Plains area are amazing. When our team won the district tournament, coa...
On behalf of the board of directors and all the members of the Cheney High School Alumni Association (CHSAA) kindly allow me to express our gratitude for your support of our annual All Class Reunion Picnic. We enjoyed one of the best reunion picnics we have had in recent years. The classes of ‘45, ‘55, ‘65, and ‘75 celebrated special milestones and everyone had a good time. The Free Press’s support contributed a great deal to our success. The picnic is an exceptional event that occurs in very few communities, bringing...
The last time I checked you can still buy your POM Wonderful at our local supermarkets. This despite the fact that a judge issued a “cease and desist,” ordering POM to stop claiming its beverage benefits everything from your brain to your prostate (see www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/pom-not-so-wonderful/). Distributors aren’t going to remove the stuff just because its maker’s lied, not as long as people keep buying it, and they do. POM’s 8-ounce bottle is now the fastest selling, single-serve premium refrigerated juice. Ho...
There’s a television ad these days that speaks to cellphone users who decided to take the offer of a competitor only to find when all was said and done the service was just not as good as advertised. Those who left were offered a financial incentive, which the advertiser is willing to match should they return. The idea reminded the Cheney Free Press editorial board of the current tug-of-war between the city of Cheney and Eastern Washington University when it comes to police dispatch services. While it appears that the c...
At the Center for Rural Affairs, we’ve heard from farmers across the Midwest and Great Plains about the negative impacts of federally subsidized crop insurance for over a decade. A farm safety net is important to help family farmers mitigate risks, but there are real concerns with the current crop insurance program. The best way to begin addressing those concerns is through honest assessment of the crop insurance system. Toward that end, the Center for Rural Affairs recently released a crop insurance report card, entitled ...
The 24-Hour-Tennis-A-Thon committee would like to give a big thank you to all the generous supporters, countless volunteers and community members who participated. Much of this year’s success is attributed to the generosity and assistance we received from sponsors and supporters like you. This year’s event benefited the local Food Bank, Medical Lake Outreach Program and the Medical Lake High School Tennis programs. During the 24 hours, we had approximately 100 players involved in the marathon. Altogether, everyone’s combi...
Last week was a roller coaster week for the city of Airway Heights, which has been under the microscope due to the actions of Mayor Patrick Rushing. I won’t go into full detail because you can read on the front page of this week’s Cheney Free Press to learn what happened. I could attack this issue from many angles. I could go on about First Amendment rights, which was something that was repeatedly brought up at Monday night’s City Council meeting. The First Amendment does give us the right to free speech but it doesn...
Editor’s note: The following editorial from the Detroit Free Press does not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the Cheney Free Press editorial board. Until last week, Pluto had been a distant dot in the sky; far out on the edge of the universe and so small and remote that it had lost its full status as a planet. But now, as the first images from the New Horizons trans-lunar mission stream back to Earth, we are getting up close and personal with Pluto and are quickly learning answers to questions that are c...
Last month, a Cheney Middle School student was struck by a car at the corner of Sixth Street and Golden Hills Drive. The driver of the car was a high school student on the way to Cheney High School. The bicyclist was riding on the wrong side of the road and was not wearing a helmet. Fortunately, there were no serious injuries. There are several lessons that can and should be taken from this incident. First, parents should ensure their children are aware that bicyclists should ride with, not against, the flow of traffic....
The governor of Washington state, the mayor of Medical Lake and numerous fire officials asked that we forgo using Fourth of July fireworks this year due to the dangerous drought conditions. I was embarrassed and disappointed by the number of people who chose to ignore the requests and instead terrorize pets, traumatize veterans and risk the lives and property of their neighbors. What may I ask is so “patriotic” about watching your hard-earned money disappear with a bang and a puff smoke? Wouldn’t it have been more patri...
The following July 12 editorial from the Orange County Register may or may not reflect the views of the Cheney Free Press editorial board. Jeb Bush tripped over his tongue this past week when he posited that, to grow the U.S. economy, “people should work longer hours.” The remark by the Republican presidential candidate was misconstrued in some quarters as suggesting that American workers are somehow lazy. Indeed, that’s how the Democratic National Committee’s rapid response team chose to play it: “So does Jeb’s whole 4 perce...
The ink was barely dry on the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 26 decision guaranteeing same-sex marriage as a constitutional right when the backlash against the ruling began. The most laughable of these came from Republican presidential aspirant Sen. Ted Cruz, who criticized the decision along with a ruling the previous week upholding the federal government subsidy of the Affordable Care Act as “judicial activism.” Cruz said he planned to introduce a constitutional amendment subjecting a “lawless” Supreme Court to intermitt...
Thank you to everyone who donated books or purchased books at our Friends of the Library Rodeo weekend sale. We also thank all the people who helped us move books indoors during Saturday’s rain. It takes many people to set up the sale and we thank them for their efforts. Special thanks go to the 11 EWU women’s basketball team members who carried up books and to the Cheney Faith Center youth group for organizing and placing tarps over the outdoor book sale area. We could not hold the sale without your help. Funds raised by...
This Independence Day was extremely stressful to many people in my area, especially seniors who long for a quiet and safe place to live. I thank God for His protection and care for all of us. On the human level it was reassuring that the Spokane County Police were monitoring our community and available when help was needed. I truly thank those who made that possible. I choose to keep on the positive side and to believe for the day when all people will celebrate the birth of our great country by means that are indeed peaceful...
What a great weekend. The just passed Fourth of July holiday served up a perfect menu of generous portions of family and friends topped off by time to dial life down just a little from the hectic pace it had been on recently. It wasn’t totally without sweat, however. I got to check off the big project, finishing the moving of the final dozen wheelbarrows of river rock — the last of 6,000 pounds dumped in my driveway — into the backyard and hopefully make one more flower bed a...
Being a state legislator is a thankless job — almost as bad as being a Hoopfest court monitor. And even more so this session what with the Legislature needing not only the four-month regular session but also two overtime special sessions and a last-minute, late-night negotiating meeting to pass the $38.2 billion 2015-2017 operating budget. And even then, apparently not all the work is finished as the whole package could unravel over funding, or not funding, K-12 classroom-reduction initiative 1351. We’ll know how the sta...
During a May 6 community forum on increasing train traffic through Cheney, Cheney resident Pamela Gray brought my attention to a large, dead, pine tree at the end of I Street in downtown Cheney. She even brought a picture of the tree to pass out at the meeting. At the close of the forum I spoke briefly with Gray and indicated I would see what could be done about removing the tree. After I finished talking to Gray, Ross Lane, regional public affairs director for Burlington Northern Santa Fe, introduced himself to me and...
Before pointing too many fingers at our beleaguered Secret Service agency and its recent foibles, we should consider its success so far in its bottom line responsibility: to keep President Obama and family alive and injury-free. Interviewed during Obama’s 2012 visit to Portland, Ore., the Secret Service reported that “Obama faces more death threats than any other president. More than 30 a day.” (Portland Oregonian, 7/28/12). This is consistent with the big spike in U.S. hate groups, spread quite evenly over all states excep...
Rolling down the corporate-political assembly line is a trade deal so treasonous to the people of the world that it should serve as revolution’s matchstick. The treaty is secret, but one fact is well known: the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement is being negotiated by transnational corporations without a single U.S. legislator present. Each time I hear this, my eyes blink in disbelief. Without a single legislator present ... without their presence at negotiations, without so much as seeing a draft of the deal, and most treac...
The following June 29 editorial from the Panama City News Herald may or may not reflect the views of the Cheney Free Press editorial board. In the wake of the murders at a Charleston, S.C. church, details are sinking in — and with them, the recognition that racism lives, breathes and festers, even as we dream that it is a thing of the past. A man just 21 — looking more like a schoolboy than a hard-core white supremacist — stands accused of killing nine respected community members, all black, at the historic Emanuel Afric...
It’s going to be another hot and dry summer for the West Plains, which means there are plenty of chances for wildfires in the area. It’s late June and we’ve already seen some wildfires in the region, including last week’s 145-acre blaze at Fish Lake, east of Cheney. There have been 306 wildfires this year, according to the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Washington has already taken some precautions to address the wildfire season. Earlier this month, DNR imposed a burn ban on DNR-protected lands east o...
