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  • McMorris-Rogers recent advertisements are doubling down on proven falsehoods

    Updated Sep 27, 2018

    It must be working for Rep. McMorris Rodgers to make ads approved by her that are untrue. I just received a solicitation by mail on Sept. 14, that doubles down on the lie that her opponent wanted to allow sex offenders to live near public schools. Lisa Brown wanted more children protected from sex offenders, not less. Lisa has a history of voting to protect women and children, unlike CMR who has voted against equal pay for women and at least once against the Violence Against Women Act. A full-page ad was purchased by more...

  • Boeing's hypersonic venture hopfully won't sink

    DON C. BRUNELL, Contributor|Updated Sep 27, 2018

    Last spring, Boeing revealed its proposed hypersonic passenger airliner which would fly much higher and faster than the Concorde — the only previous supersonic commercial airplane. For reference, supersonic jets fly over the speed of sound (660 miles per hour or Mach 1), while hypersonics surpass Mach 5 or 3,800 mph. Boeing told the annual American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics conference held in Atlanta its sleek new airplanes would travel at Mach 5, enabling t...

  • If we all bought American, there wouldn't be tariff turmoil

    FRANK WATSON, Contributor|Updated Sep 27, 2018

    My first new car was a Chevy Malibu made in Detroit. A few years later, my wife and I bought a few acres north of Airway Heights and thought we needed a small truck. I wouldn’t settle for anything but an American brand and was surprised to find that our new Luv truck was made in Japan. The only thing American on it was the Chevy emblem. My next truck was a half-ton Chevy made in Canada. It was followed by a Ford made in Mexico. During my rebellious phase, I owned a Harley that was made in Milwaukee. Thus, I was a bit s...

  • Brown and Wilson will bind country together

    Updated Sep 20, 2018

    Recently there was an alt-right gun rally in Spokane. The gun activists wallpapered themselves with assault weapons and strutted about for needed attention. The candidate for 6th District state representative, Jenny Graham, was there supporting them. It made me think of my father’s values. My father was a World War II veteran and served as an artillery gunner. While being transported across the North Atlantic, he never forgot the moment a German U-boat torpedoed the ship immediately behind his. It sank with all lives lost. I...

  • McMorris Roger's campaign violations

    Updated Sep 20, 2018

    To the recent indictments of U.S. Representatives Chris Collins (R-N.Y.) for insider trading and Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) for campaign finance violations, Eastern Washington voters need to add that the Congressional Ethics Committee found credible evidence of campaign violations by Rep. Cathy McMorris Rogers for which further action has been suppressed by the Republican congressional leadership. Despite touting religious and family values, Representative McMorris Roger’s actions are “credible” examples of the political swamp...

  • New transit center leaves rider speechless

    Updated Sep 20, 2018

    Sunday, Sept. 16, was the first day the new Spokane Transit Authority’s West Plains Transit Center was open. I went from Medical Lake on Route 62 to the WPTC and transferred to Route 64, which was enroute from Cheney to Spokane. The connection was excellent. The bus was full of college students and one of them graciously offered me his seat. The bus was on time to the minute, both when I picked it up on at Prentiss/Campbell (at 12:37 p.m.) in Medical Lake and when it left WPTC for Spokane. I could have gone either to C...

  • The perils of living one's life solely with plastic

    Contributor|Updated Sep 20, 2018

    I received a call from my credit card company last week informing me that my card had been used in Brazil, and I needed to verify a 36-cent charge at a fast food outlet in Rio. I have never been to Rio. It is on my list behind Rome, Australia, and Christmas Island, so I was pretty sure it wasn’t me. My wife went shopping in Spokane that morning, but she hadn’t had time to get to Rio, so I ruled her out too. As neither of us had made the purchase, the agent for the credit card company said that they should cancel the card and...

  • Avoid trouble tweeting - especially when on the job

    DON C. BRUNELL, Contributor|Updated Sep 20, 2018

    Editor’s note: Much of the content for this column came from the most recent edition of HR Magazine, which is the magazine for the Society of Human Resources Management. Since President Trump took office, the attention to social media has mushroomed. His pointed tweets are often the top news story each day. Twitter, Facebook and the other apps are pervasive and even though Google and some others have their share of problems preventing leaking of private information, they aren...

  • The world shouldn't be your garbage can

    PAUL DELANEY, Staff Reporter|Updated Sep 20, 2018

    What is it that prompts people to toss their bag of fast food garbage along the side of the road for someone else to clean up, and not just on the passenger side floorboard for disposal at home in the trash can? Or what was it that made it right for someone to chuck car parts along the Centennial Trail in Spokane Valley? Worse yet, and incredibly sad, how was the river the place to dispose of a dead female body that a rafter discovered Sept. 15 while participating in a...

  • Lisa Brown Cheney office open for questions

    Updated Sep 13, 2018

    Local supporters of Lisa Brown for Congress invite you to join them for coffee and doughnuts on Tuesdays from 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. at the Cheney field office for the Lisa Brown campaign, 1010 First St., Suite A. Bring your questions for Lisa and they will pass them along. Buttons, signs and assistance with voter registration are available there Monday – Friday from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. Stop by and visit with a volunteer. Christie Bruntlett Cheney...

  • Cathy McMorris Rodgers strong on pro-life

    Updated Sep 13, 2018

    I want to thank Cathy McMorris Rodgers for speaking at the pro-life Rally in Spokane Valley. Her speech was touching as well as inspirational. Everyone in the room was moved to a standing ovation, numerous times. Cathy touched on the importance of valuing every life — pre-born and born, as sacred and something to be celebrated and nurtured fully to its God-given potential. She, like many of the other speakers, acknowledged the difficulties many face with raising children. As a mother and grandmother, I can fully relate. S...

  • Cheney teachers need competitive salaries

    Updated Sep 13, 2018

    Last evening (Sept. 10, the Cheney School District teachers staged an informational picketing of the district administrative offices supporting their negotiations team during an arbitration meeting with the administrative team. Teachers are requesting a substantial raise from the McCleary funds allocated to this district. They need and deserve it as they have not received an actual salary raise in 10 years. Last year the number of days they were required to work was increase so their yearly contract was increased, however thi...

  • Lampson beating odds for family-owned businesses

    DON C. BRUNELL, Contributor|Updated Sep 13, 2018

    When one approaches the Tri-Cities, it is impossible to ignore Lampson International’s monstrous cranes in its Pasco assembly yard. Those gantries stand out like the Space Needle in Seattle and reach over 560 feet into the sky. Like the Space Needle, Lampson is built on a solid footing. Last month, Construction Review Online (CRO) ranked Lampson as the world’s third largest crane company. “Lampson International has been a world leader in the Heavy Lift and Transport indus...

  • Can there be a middle ground in the abortion debate?

    FRANK WATSON, Contributor|Updated Sep 13, 2018

    I recently took my grandson back to the Midwest to get better acquainted with some of his relatives. He is only recently aware that he is related to a huge clan of Midwesterners. While there, I watched as two of my kinfolks debated whether or not Brett Kavanaugh should be confirmed to fill the opening on the Supreme Court. The debate gravitated to Roe vs. Wade then moved on to the morality of abortion. One was adamantly pro-choice and the other just as firm pro-life. The pro-life asked me if I could think of any situation...

  • The best approach is to wait for answers

    John McCallum, Managing Editor|Updated Sep 13, 2018

    Like the rest of you, I want some answers to why a knife-wielding man was shot and killed in Mitchell’s Harvest Foods parking lot late Sept. 3 by three Cheney police officers. Unlike some of you, however, I’m willing to wait before I start offering up conjecture on why the officers fired and condemnation for doing so until I know more of the facts. There’s a saying that “Facts shouldn’t be allowed to get in the way of a good story.” Contrary to popular belief, we in the news journalism profession don’t adhere to this. But...

  • McMorris Rodgers connects with Eastern Washington small-town values

    Updated Sep 6, 2018

    Cathy McMorris Rodgers is the most dedicated, energetic and effective elected official I have ever seen. As chairman of the Pend Oreille County Republicans, I’ve seen a lot of them. Cathy covers her district, one of the largest in America, with a relentless dedication that flows from her deep and passionate commitment to the people of Eastern Washington. I have seen her repeatedly connect on a personal level with ranchers, farmers, veterans, loggers, single parents and people from all walks of life struggling to make it. S...

  • McCleary money should be for education needs, not teacher wages

    FRANK WATSON, Contributor|Updated Sep 6, 2018

    If you would talk to some of my Air Force buddies from the Vietnam era, you would find that I dreamed of being a teacher and football coach for a long time. When I had sufficient time in military service, I decided to obtain my teaching credentials and pursue my dream. I could have chosen any state in the union. I owned a home in Nebraska left over from my assignment to the base in Omaha. My parents wanted me to return to my roots in the Midwest, but I chose to settle in Eastern Washington. I had been stationed at Fairchild...

  • Democrats trying to scare area seniors

    Updated Sep 6, 2018

    I get very upset about the dishonest, scare-mongering tactics from Lisa Brown’s campaign. I saw them again in the mail card that arrived at my house this week. Lisa claims that Cathy McMorris Rodgers has voted to cut Social Security and Medicare. No, she has not! It’s especially dishonest to make these claims when these programs are such a lifeline for friends and family and for some very vulnerable people. Cathy understands how much they matter. That’s why she has supported the hard work to make them safe and susta...

  • Much needed dose of Yogi Berra's wit and wisdom

    DON C. BRUNELL, Contributor|Updated Sep 6, 2018

    With today’s tension and rancor, we need a dose of Yogi Berra’s wit and wisdom to put things into perspective. Let’s start with “You can observe a lot by just watching” because seeing what is happening now is very disconcerting. We need less sarcasm, and to alleviate the vilification of one another that we constantly witness in the news and on social media. To quote Yogi: “It was impossible to get a conversation going, everybody was talking too much.” Yogi’s humorous way of...

  • One of the highest expectations is to be respectful

    MONTE SYRIE, Contributor|Updated Sep 6, 2018

    On my classroom door there’s a sign. It reads: “In my room I want you to feel empowered, connected, respected, valued, challenged and supported. How am I doing?” Early on I direct the kids’ attention to it, discuss it, and revisit it. But as time gets on, I let it be. I no longer want to bring attention to it; I no longer talk it. I strive to walk it, to embed it, to live it. It is the culture I wish to create in my room. It is the standard that I set for myself as the leader in our classroom community. And as that leader,...

  • Reasons our ancestors immigrated vary

    Updated Aug 30, 2018

    While waiting outside the Spokane Valley City Council in July, I met an elderly woman who was very proud that she grew up in Idaho and now lived in the Spokane Valley. We had a brief discussion about immigration, and she just couldn’t understand why all the migrants were coming to the United States with their children. “Why don’t they just stay in their own countries and fix them, instead of coming here?” she queried. I responded by asking her, “Well, why do you think they come here?” and she said that they want our stuff....

  • Trade wars hit Washington's cherry growers hard

    DON C. BRUNELL, Contributor|Updated Aug 30, 2018

    Last April, Washington wheat, apple and cherry growers hoped U.S. and China trade negotiators would resolve differences and prevent imposition of damaging tariffs on our state’s leading crops. Unfortunately, that did not happened and the costs are adding up. Thousands of Washington farmers now find themselves on the front lines of a battle between the two largest economies in the world. Here’s what has happened so far. Earlier this year, President Donald Trump imposed a 25...

  • McMorris Rodgers supports veterans

    Updated Aug 30, 2018

    One of Cathy McMorris Rodgers’ signature campaign promises has always been that she will help get veterans the care they deserve and that she has the military’s back. Cathy has fulfilled this promise in bounds. In just the last few years, Cathy has been instrumental in getting military personnel the largest pay raise in nine years. Cathy also sponsored the “Faster Care for Veterans Act,” which will modernize the system used by the VA. Among other things, veterans will now have the option of scheduling their appoint...

  • New coal regulations not worth the risk

    SHANNEN TALBOT, Staff Reporter|Updated Aug 30, 2018

    Last week, the Environmental Protection Agency released the details of its new plan to roll back federal pollution restrictions on coal-burning power plants in an attempt to buoy the languishing coal industry and replace stricter Obama-era regulations. The Trump administration’s new energy proposal, called the Affordable Clean Energy rule, is intended to replace Obama’s Clean Power Plan, which would have phased out most coal-fired power plants by 2030. In contrast, the Affordable Clean Energy rule would shift power plant reg...

  • Some suggestions on how we can improve our country

    FRANK WATSON, Contributor|Updated Aug 30, 2018

    A friend and I were engaged in a bit of fanciful wishful thinking the other day when he asked me how I would improve our country with a $100 million or so. I quickly ran down the list of national problems we are rapidly leaving for our grandchildren. A hundred million wouldn’t do much for the national debt, so I scrolled down to our utter dependence on fossil fuels. I’m not concerned that our oil and coal reserves will run out in my lifetime, but the supply is finite and will eventually be depleted. In the long term, we hav...

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