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Unintended consequence or bureaucratic power grab? Given the things being ordered behind locked doors of government offices, I’ll take the latter. Tonight, March 25, when the clock strikes midnight, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife is banning all fishing and boating statewide. This closure comes on the heels of a previous order to ban all camping on publicly owned, state-managed lands. The closures, Department of Fish and Wildlife officials say, is in keeping with G... Full story
In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and shutdown of businesses and activities, Free Press Publishing is having to cut back page count and staff hours, hopefully just temporarily. It’s not a decision we made lightly; it’s a decision out of necessity. Newspaper companies are already shutting down around the nation, including multiple papers in the Puget Sound region, in the Columbia River Gorge and elsewhere. But we’re here to stay. Please bear with us a few weeks as we ride out this economic tidal wave. We’ll be back be...
Some years back, in the biggest town in a small county outside our 9th District, there was a clothing store. Upstairs was the office of the area’s weekly newspaper. Week after week, year after year, the clothing store published the same advertisement in the newspaper, displaying its name, address and a drawing of a coat rack, to signal what people could buy there. No brand names, no sale prices, nothing else. The message this ad sent was clear and reassuring: “We’re still here.” It’s a complete understatement to say the f...
At these hard times, I am concerned how people are being educated on health issues we are facing in today’s society. Through my experience of this COVID-19 pandemic I have witnessed people doing things that have clearly been stated by health professionals that won’t help with the virus. I also know people who are in their 20s that believe they won’t be affected by the virus so they continue to live recklessly. I think it is important for people to be properly educated on health issues by using reliable sources such as the C...
Based on current events regarding the COVID-19 virus, I have noticed that many people are struggling to get clear information on what is happening and how we as a community can be proactive. One issue that concerns me is that various news stations, social media networks and other forms of communication are spreading different interpretations and opinions of what is going on. The confusion this can cause is most likely why some people are panicking, and others are staying calm. When people are told statistical values for how...
I was a long-time subscriber and firm believer in local print media. As depressing as these days are, nothing is more depressing than discovering the owner of the Cheney Free Press having no problem with renaming COVID-19 in racist terms. Does the Free Press staff actually use these words? Little wonder then facts a la carte Frank Watson was or is allowed to bloviate his nonsense. Wholly objectionable. No, there are no two sides to this when racism and fascism are concerned. Tom Marion Cheney...
Chris Armitage is running as a Democrat for Representative in the 5th Congressional District against Cathy McMorris Rodgers. He is well-educated with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and a master’s degree in Homeland Security. Chris has been trained in the military, and has spent seven years in the Air Force, stationed at Fairchild Air Force Base, so he knows the 5th District very well. In addition, he has also been deployed to the Middle East, so has first-hand experience living and working in that region. Chris has...
Stop buying all the toilet paper. Seriously, knock it off. It’s not necessary. Across the state—in large and rural communities alike—grocery stores’ entire toilet paper aisles are empty. Not a single four-roll package remains for people who need it. So who has it? People who likely already had enough. Contrary to popular belief, we do not have a toilet paper shortage. According to the Washington Department of Health, there’s nothing causing additional use of toilet paper and producers say there has been no cut in toilet pa...
Losing control can lead to a lot of things like fear, panic, suspicion, emotions of that nature. That’s one of the aspects of the spread of the coronavirus and the disease it carries, COVID-19. Despite our best efforts, there are things we can’t control about the disease. The things we can control, indeed are being asked to control, so disrupt the normalcy of our lives that they leave us feeling helpless and angry. But we can exert some control on this disease if we understand and accept that will mean sacrifice, at lea...
As we are all aware the coronavirus is taking over everything we do, whether it’s our social media, TV and daily lives which includes shutting down school and work. Every day we are seeing new death reports that only scare and hype up people more. The problem with this is that when the media reports these deaths and creates the media hysteria it has, they are not sharing any of the actual facts, which is that the people who are dying are typically older or have compromised immune systems, but yet they continue to fail to l...
As a member of the “Fourth Estate,” our newspaper staff regularly comes in close contact with people from all walks of life. Knowing that, we are doing our part to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus, COVID-19, colloquially dubbed “Wuhan flu” and “WuFlu.” Like you, we are washing our hands, covering coughs and sanitizing everything in sight. We’re also taking the unusual step of closing our offices to public access, in an effort to protect the staff that is keeping yo...
It’s times like these that bring out the best and worst in people. Unlike previous crisis, this one surrounding the spread of novel coronavirus and the disease it carries, COVID-19, has elements of politics mixed in. It also is fueled by the proliferation of social media avenues. Combine those two elements, and good information surrounding the disease is often drowned in a sea of at best misinformation and ignorance and at worse outright lies and deception. Who benefits from this will be up to history to judge. But there a...
Nobody knows how deep the impact of the coronavirus will be, but one thing that it is destined to test is how effectively people will work from home. Washington is at the point of the spear. Of the 22 U.S. deaths attributed to COVID-19, there are 19 in our state. To avoid further exposure, employers are encouraging telecommuting, canceling meetings, events and travel, and, taking extra caution to sanitize work locations. Seattle-based Alaska Airlines is among the carriers...
Frank Watson tells us in his Thursday, March 5 commentary, that, “…patriotism really is a good thing.” Read on and discover that what Frank means is that if you agree with him, you’re patriotic and if you don’t, you’re not. But Frank is not so much commenting on patriotism as he is on socialism — a favorite axe Frank enjoys grinding. Frank is taking Bernie Sanders to task for advocating accessible and affordable health care for all Americans (Medicare4A), and vastly improved education, including tuition-free undergraduate...
While this plea may not carry much weight I’m going to present it anyway. Ringo my beagle has an eating disorder, meaning that if an entire bag of food were somehow left within reach of his snout, he just might eat until he burst. But that’s not the point. Somehow when we got him as a pup nearly 14 years ago on Father’s Day we were told that he was typical of many beagles. They eat, eat, eat and slowly become big and round. Through careful exercise, Ringo has remained a const...
Washington and Oregon lawmakers want to end their legislative sessions; however, accounting for the costs of carbon emissions is a major road block. In Salem, rural Republican senators are boycottingsession and thereby denying majority Democrats a quorum to vote on a “cap and trade” bill. The measure calls for an 80 percent state reduction in greenhouse gases (GHG) by 2050. The system would be similar to existing programs in California and some Canadian provinces. The sta...
During a recent Democratic Party debate, candidate Pete Buttigieg made a comment that just about floored me. He said, “The American Dream is alive and well – In Denmark!” Elizabeth Warren and Amy Klobachar both nodded in agreement before Bernie Sanders picked up the torch. He touted the advantages of Democratic Socialism claiming life in Denmark to be far superior to here in the good old USA. Joe Biden stood there wondering what was going on, and Mike Bloomberg began bragging about the economic and environmental virtu...
SPOKANE – Former Spokane County Treasurer Rob Chase has announced he will be running for Congress in Washington’s 5th District. Chase will challenge incumbent Cathy McMorris Rodgers, who is seeking a ninth term as the district’s representative in Washington D.C. Chase was county treasurer from 2011-2018, and has lived in the district since 1974. A former real estate agent, he is a graduate of Eastern Washington University with a bachelor’s of arts degree in business administration. Chase is the second challenger to file ag...
AIRWAY HEIGHTS – The city of Airway Heights moved the regular Monday night council meeting to Tuesday, Feb. 18, due to the President’s Day holiday. The Spokane Transit Authority (STA) made a presentation on significant route changes under consideration for the Airway Heights area including: discontinuing service on Fairchild Air Force Base with the bus stopping outside the gate only, citing low ridership and difficulty for drivers to get on base; shrinking the paratransit service area, increasing frequency to the air...
Last week, we visited the Grand Canyon National Park in northern Arizona. It is part of our National Parks “bucket list.” The trip was a real eye-opener. The Canyon is spectacular. It is hard to believe over a billion years ago it was flat ground and covered by ocean waters. In ancient times, there was too much water. Today, it is a deep gorge with a ribbon of water running through it. The Grand Canyon is 277 miles long, over a mile deep and 10 to 18 miles across. The fam...
By PAUL DELANEY Staff reporter SPOKANE — Under cover of darkness. Sneaking in the back door. Or better yet, call it making good on a pledge. Quietly, my old byline that was officially retired to the Cheney Free Press archives Dec. 31, 2018 has returned. After a little over a year in my self-imposed role of a “recovering journalist,” the request came from CFP managing editor John McCallum asking what it might take to coax me back into the game in a relief role following the departure of Lee Hughes. BTW, Lee heads “home...
A few years ago, I attended a workshop on politics in San Francisco. One of the main ideas taken away from that event was the importance of enthusiasm. Washington state has tried to increase voter participation with mail-in stamped ballots, yet the turnout is usually below 50 percent. So, if you are wrestling with your choice of nominee in the upcoming primary on March 10 and electability is your prime consideration, choose the candidate who is most likely to excite the most number of people, who can attract the largest...
With heavy heart the volunteers of Feed Medical Lake bid farewell to our fellow volunteer and friend, Roy Herrick, who passed away Jan. 23, 2020 after suffering from a stroke in July 2019. Roy was a diligent worker and our liaison with the Union Gospel Mission. We appreciate all the hard work he did for Feed Medical Lake and will miss him terribly Volunteer Staff Feed Medical Lake...
By LUNELL HAUGHT Contributor Washington has the opportunity to review and change the Redistricting Commission every 10 years. This is the group that works in the background making sure the wheels of democracy turn smoothly and fairly. The commission decides where the lines will be drawn for legislative and congressional districts. In the next 10 years decisions about growth, energy, transportation, water, fire and quality of life issues will be made by our legislators and congressional representatives. Now is when you can inf...
By DON C. BRUNELL Contributor The 2020 race for the White House is heating. It’s shaping up to be a referendum on America’s market-based economic system. The central question is government or the private sector going to provide our basic products and services? Last May, a Monmouth University Poll found most Americans say socialism is not compatible with American values, but that only 4-in-10 hold a decidedly negative opinion of it. Americans are divided into two dominant camps — 29 percent have a positive view of capitalism a...
