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What a jarring image of a shackled Black man on the ground on the front page of last week’s Cheney Free Press (March 4). I can’t help but wonder if a white suspect would have been similarly depicted. Kristin Mansfield Cheney...
On Friday, March 5, my friend texted me and asked what I thought of the picture on the front page of this week’s (March 4) Free Press. I had not gotten the paper yet, so had to wait to respond. Cheney cops standing around while an obviously handcuffed black man lay on the ground met my eyes. Surely, the headline would clear up the mystery as to why this man was laying on the ground. But the sterile headline read: “Crash damages building, vehicles.” A poor headline that does not give any idea of how combative the man must...
I was disappointed by the picture chosen for the front page of last week’s Free Press (March 4). In the current climate and awareness of Black Lives Matter, I felt the picture was in very poor taste. I don’t question the man’s innocence, guilt, or involvement. What I question is the selection of a picture showing a black man prone on the ground with four white male officers standing nearby. Had the crash involved a white male in a business suit I wonder how the reporting and photo might have been different. Carol Krieg...
Ever since COVID-19 reached America a year ago, we’ve seen heroic acts performed by many, especially health-care workers helping those afflicted with this contagious and life-threatening virus. As the pandemic has spread to the point of claiming half a million lives in the U.S. so far, doctors, nurses and other health-care workers in hospitals and medical clinics have put their own lives at risk to care for COVID-19 patients. When the pandemic was raging in New York City last spring, nurses from Washington and other states t...
It’s a solution in search of a problem. Lawmakers in Olympia appear to be fast-tracking House Bill 1356, which would ban the use of “racially derogatory or discriminatory” American Indian mascots, logos and team names in public schools in the state. Simply put, the bill is political theater, nonsense that kowtows to the politically correct crowd that’s bent on cancelling our culture, heritage and history. The bill is quickly moving through the Legislature even though I think...
Democrats in Washington’s Legislature traditionally haven’t been shy about raising taxes. This legislative session is no different. In fact, there are several Democrat-sponsored proposals that would increase existing taxes or create new ones. State income tax: The Senate Ways and Means Committee recently passed Senate Bill 5096, a proposal requested by Gov. Jay Inslee creating a state income tax on capital gains. Voters have rejected a state income tax proposal 10 times over the past 85 years. A recent statewide Elway Pol...
The Feb. 11 article in the Cheney Free Press entitled “Occupancy, water conservation ordinances head to council,” brings the following question to my mind: How can the city check to see that occupancy rules are being followed? The street below us is often jammed with cars as well as overflowing trash cans that don’t get taken in after the trash has been picked up. This implies to me that there are more people living in these dwellings than is allowable, but how can the city monitor how many people are really living at any pa...
The dominant view of China in both Washington and in American public opinion is that the United States faces an increasingly ruthless Chinese leadership, requiring that U.S. policy restrain if not contain China’s malevolent influence. Biden will have to craft a China policy that will convince Americans, and Chinese leaders, that he can both compete with and where necessary confront China, relying on diplomacy rather than on threats and bluster. China will be a severe test for a new administration whose highest pri...
Monday marked an event I never dreamed I would see in my lifetime. Somewhere in the late morning, the United States crossed the threshold of 500,000 of our fellow American men and women killed by the coronavirus. If you had told me even five years ago, let alone 10, 20, 30, 40 years ago that we would experience a loss of American lives of that magnitude attributable to one cause, I would have thought you were talking about some kind of armed conflict. 500,000 lives gone. And as you read this, that number is marching steadily...
I’ve spent my career fighting for vulnerable patients, especially people of color. So I was ecstatic to hear about a new initiative from dozens of biotech companies. These firms pledged to enroll more people of color in “clinical trials” — years-long tests that show whether experimental drugs are safe and effective. Boosting diversity will tangibly improve the health of minority Americans. White Americans are drastically overrepresented in clinical trials. Non-Hispanic whites account for 60% of the U.S. population, but rou...
We are fast approaching the halfway point of the 2021 legislative session. There have been some challenges conducting business as usual for the Legislature during this unusual time in our lives. The governor’s decision to close off a large portion of the Capitol grounds to the public is concerning, as are his ever-changing metrics and policies when it comes to reopening our state. I’m very pleased that all parts of our state have been able to move to Phase 2 of the latest reop...
As children, we hear many insightful stories that are simple, but often full of meaning. The one mentioned above seems to resonate with what is happening in our country today. Right before our eyes, we are seeing over and over the truth. Even though videos and pictures can be altered, it would have been an almost impossible undertaking to make fake videos of what happened that led up to and included the infamous events that took place on Jan. 6, 2021. Can we assume that most of the Republicans in the Senate and House, are...
Democracy needs input from citizens to thrive, but figuring out how to share your voice and have an impact on government can be challenging. Whether you are interested in federal, state, or local policy, you can interact directly with elected officials by writing, calling, or visiting your representatives. While testifying in person is the most effective way, we understand not everyone is comfortable in that setting. Other options include writing letters to the editor or sharing information on social media. Traveling to the...
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact in America. This devastation, in my opinion, is a direct result of a lack of resources. As good folks have been losing jobs and small businesses while waiting for a stimulus check that feels like it’s never coming, security has never felt more fragile. The thing is, pandemics have no borders. Meaning, if we as one of the wealthiest countries in the world are struggling, others in impoverished countries are barely surviving. We mustn't forget about them. While our people n...
People are manipulated through fear. Fear of Saddam Hussein. Fear of terrorism. Fear of climate change. Fear of the corona virus. The politicians and the media, with the help of academia and other recipients of money from the government, fan the flames of fear. People react to this fear by doing what the so-called “experts” tell them to do: Destroy Iraq, bombing them into the Stone Age and killing hundreds of thousands of people. Hang humanity on a “Cross of Iron” by spending trillions of dollars on the militar...
The meltdown at the state Department of Employment Security ought to teach us a lesson. It’s easy for government to create problems, not so easy for the Legislature to come back in and clean up the mess. We ought to keep this in mind as the Legislature debates some of the big, bold ideas our liberal colleagues are bringing to the table this year — for an income tax, big increases in gas prices, greater government control of industry, and many, many more. Many of these policies are so big and so sweeping we can be sure they wo...
Why would any company spend $5.5 million for a 30-second Super Bowl ad which leaves viewers perplexed as some glitzy and abstract commercials did? After production costs are tacked on, you’d think advertisers would want their messages clearly understood especially in difficult times. Some prominent advertisers, such as Coca Cola, Budweiser and Pepsi, traditional large buyers, skipped Super Bowl LV; however, Weather Tech did not. After game, the list of best and worst ads was r...
Why are Roger Harnack’s opinion pieces labeled as news articles instead of being in the editorial section (“Gov. Inslee keeps Eastern Washington locked down,” Cheney Free Press online, Jan. 21, 2021). Terms like “so called” and “teased” are clearly point-of-view and call into the reader’s mind questions about whether journalistic rules and ethics of writing are used in the stories. How can we trust that facts are being reported with such clearly slanted yellow journalism? Joan Mamanakis – Cheney...
For a young man, Conner Mertens has had quite an impactful life. Most people know Conner as the brave, vocal activist who made headlines by being the first openly LGBTQ college-football player as a freshman kicker at Willamette University in Oregon. But I came to know the Tri-Cities native when he showed up at my door with an idea for saving the lives of students at risk of suicide, bullying and various other forms of school violence. That idea — a tip line and mobile app to allow students to confidentially report p...
The culture, heritage and history of Eastern Washington — indeed all of Washington and Oregon history — is under fire again in Olympia. I’m talking about an effort this year in the House to erase Marcus Whitman’s significance from the halls of the Capitol building in Olympia and the national statuary in Washington, D.C. Pushed by lawmakers, who obviously lack a full understanding of Whitman’s significance, House Bill 1372 seeks to replace the bronze Marcus Whitman statues w...
My husband and I, both having gone to school in Medical Lake, could provide countless examples as to how the school levies helped support us directly over the years through academics and athletics. The unconditional support Medical Lake School District has shown our son through his early speech challenges, is unbelievable. My son has been able to attend school at Hallett Elementary since he was three years old and receives one-on-one therapy, which improved his speaking tremendously. Because of these early childhood...
To the Medical Lake Community: Many peers and I value the activities the levy affects, for many reasons it should be supported. My personal experience as a student has been shaped by many resources and activities such as Chromebooks, the robotics team, STEM activities and mental health services. One of the biggest resources are Chromebooks. Chromebooks have become a really big part of our learning system and especially due to recent circumstances they have become even more so. They provide diversification of our resources aca...
It is that time again, where we as citizens get a chance to vote on an upcoming levy to support the Medical Lake School District. This levy was last approved in 2018, so it is not a new one that will increase our costs, but a vote to sustain the existing funding levels. This levy is essential for our schools to continue to provide excellence in education in our community. It funds many key educational activities from technology to extracurricular. My family has three students in the district: eighth-grade, fourth-grade and...
As much as we would love to see an end to impaired driving and with it, the need to keep sponsoring DUI legislation, we unfortunately know there is still much work to be done. Last week the Senate Law and Justice Committee heard testimony on Senate Bill 5054, a measure I introduced with the support of Sen. David Frockt, D-Seattle, to strengthen the state’s felony-DUI law and reduce the number of people who become victims of impaired drivers. Washington law now makes the fourth DUI conviction a felony, but courts may c...
I am writing in support of the Feb. 9, 2021 Replacement Levy for the Cheney School District. This levy is vital to our community in the continuation of services, programs and facility improvements to provide high quality education and services for our youth. Now, more than ever, our kids need our support. This past year has been especially difficult for so many in a multitude of ways and our youth has been impacted greatly. As a proud parent of Cheney graduates and as a retired educator or 37 years, (the last 17 years spent...
