Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
Sorted by date Results 1505 - 1529 of 2581
To The Eagle: At last I've been outed! And by my down-the-road neighbor, too (J.B.Bouchard in last week's Eagle). I truly thought my dark and twisted logic was known only to my wife, and maybe a couple of my senior wolfhounds (the new puppy has no clue). One minor caveat: I'm not exactly a Trump supporter, having warned in these pages that he was executing a hostile takeover of the Republican party. But when we got to the finish line, he got my vote by default. T'was de fault of Hilary, who, as the only other real choice, had a long track...
This Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., the Sheriff's Office in partnership with Wahkiakum Health and Human Services will be providing a Drug Take Back event at the Wahkiakum County Courthouse. The take back station will be inside the door near the Superior Court Clerk's office. All prescription and over the counter drugs are accepted. Pills and other drugs should be placed in a zip lock bag with all personal identifiers removed from the packaging. No needles are accepted, however you are welcome...
To The Eagle: Howard Brawn's endorsement of the Trump regime making America great again by eviscerating the very agencies and institutions that actually define our country's greatness was an eye opening view of the dark, twisted logic afflicting those that voted for our present Liar In Chief. What of his dubious campaign promises collectively known as “draining the swamp?" What of the “mandate” provided to him by his deluded constituency? Let's call that what it was--a (fully funded) Electoral College majority and three million popular votes...
To The Eagle: In the ongoing discussion about financial support being given to the Community Center in Cathlamet, there is one point that I want to be sure we consider. It has to do with the property taxes that we pay to Wahkiakum County and to the Town of Cathlamet. A number of people have made a point of comparing the public support given to Johnson Park (in Rosburg) and to the Community Center (in Cathlamet). But, if we’re going to compare the county’s support of Johnson Park with the town’s support of the Community Center, we need to inclu...
To The Eagle: Earth Day 2017 is Saturday, April 22 and friends of the Pioneer Community Association and Cathlamet Community Center are planning on doing some much needed Spring Cleaning around town. We invite you to join us as we polish up our curb appeal and make our little town shine after a long, wet winter. Last October 22, more than 50 volunteers turned out on National Make a Difference Day for the first Tidy Up the Town event. Much was accomplished and we are excited about what we can achieve with even more people. We will meet at 9:00...
To The Eagle: Early last year I encouraged everyone in Wahkiakum County to exercise their option to drop their membership in the Federal Income Tax club. I have done so and now can never volunteer to join again. Most folks are afraid to even think about doing this. Let me make a few comments to reduce the fear factor. The IRS says it is a voluntary tax. It is. They just don’t give you a clear understanding of how you volunteered. You volunteered by filing an IRS form. Just look at the name of the tax. It establishes a tax on federal income. M...
To the Eagle and Wahkiakum County: I have been reading the articles about bank stabilization with the dredging sand and have some thoughts I'd like to share. The dredging of sand has been happening on the river for probably over a hundred years. The sand has been placed on many beaches and has all washed away. The Corp of Engineers has dredged for the purpose of heavy marine traffic. The Corp has built some incredible rock breakwaters on both sides of the entrance to the Pacific to allow heave ship traffic. But then it is decided that no one...
To The Eagle: In last week's Eagle Dennis Gordon takes issue with various actions of our executive branch (intellectual code word for that guy Trump) and observed that if we weren't concerned we were brain-dead. My only concern is that he might not be slick enough to pull it all off, so feel compelled to answer on behalf of the geriatric chapter of the local brain-deaders. He asks how dismantling the EPA, dismantling banking regulation, boosting spending on charter schools, building a Mexican border wall, and building up the military will help...
To The Eagle: Regarding Rep. Jaimie Herrera Beutler's proposed Chronic Absenteeism Reduction Act (see story elsewhere in this issue): From my point of view, she is thinking about this wrong. The law might help, but still focusing on "correcting the student’s aberrant behavior" of not being physically in the school. If the point, however, is continuity of education leading to graduation, instead of seeing absenteeism as a student behavioral problem, why not focus on making it so that school can reach students that cannot attend? Why not find a...
To The Eagle: I am writing to you regarding the dredging issue and replenishment of the beach with sand. I have seen several reports in The Wahkiakum County Eagle of resistance to dredge spoil placement and failure to sign access forms by Steve Sharp. He has claimed that there is no loss of beach on his property per the reporting in the paper. As someone who owns one property just upriver of him and another, a short distance downriver, I can assure you there has been erosion of the beach at both those locations. Also proving the existence of...
To The Eagle: Reading the letter written by my neighbor, Steve Sharp, made me think about this place that we live: Wahkiakum County. When I moved here in 1993 I knew that I had found my home. I’d like to say a few things about our local government, mostly independent of my role as assessor. I’ve owned improved property here almost 24 years. I’ve paid taxes to the Puget Island Fire District 1 that entire time. I have yet to be the victim of a structural fire, thank God. Only a handful of people have this misfortune every year. I’m sure glad FD...
To The Eagle: Irrespective of your political party affiliation, I think many if not most of us are concerned with the actions and direction of our executive branch of government. If you are not concerned, and without insulting you, one of us is brain-dead. My comments are not about winning and losing elections, they are about the direction of our country and how does this affect us in a small citizenship, Wahkiakum county? How will the dismantling of the EPA and environmental safeguards help us/anyone? How will dismantling of banking...
Commissioners use bullying tactics To The Eagle: I’m writing today because I feel my words are falling on deaf ears when I speak directly to our county commissioners. I am being totally ignored by the county commissioners. For the last couple of years, we have heard of a few people living along the Columbia River that are having issues with erosion of the river bank in front of their homes. And still fewer are actually in danger of losing their homes to the river’s erosion. The commissioners were working with these individuals and ass...
To The Eagle: With new laws enacted ‘continually’ or seemingly so, it is impossible for us everyday people to know all laws. Yet that is not a legal excuse if caught breaking one law. That brings me to a law, I just learned from a friend. This friend just got a huge ticket, from a game warden, for cutting firewood, on a private river beach. Having lived along the Columbia most of my life, I had never heard of it before. Having seen people openly cutting firewood hundreds of times, and in the past having done so myself, honestly find it a lit...
To The Eagle: How does the county approve a marijuana business in a motel that could not be used for its lack of water and septic system? How does that motel qualify as a business location when it magically disappeared from the market in a supposed foreclosure where nobody was given the opportunity to purchase it and for what price? This is but one of the many properties that supposedly were sold in foreclosure sale (auctions that never happened). I personally attended a couple of these auctions that never happened. Myself and others wasted...
To The Eagle: At the March 21 county commissioners’ meeting, two retail/medical marijuana license applications were approved by a 2 to 1 vote. Approving the applications were Blair Brady and Mike Backman. Opposing the applications was Dan Cothren. The Wahkiakum County Republican Party stands united behind Dan on this issue. Our party feels we do not need more drug exposure, especially for our youth. We feel these applications are only a stepping stone to future problems. By allowing these, we are telling our children and society drug use is O...
To The Eagle: Where’s Jaime? Many Long Beach peninsula residents (voters) wish that our fourth-term U.S. Representative, Jaime Herrera Beutler, would appear in person to field questions and address our concerns at a town hall. Ms Beutler seems to prefer telephone town halls (sometimes quickly announced and conducted), community coffee meetings, or sending surrogates to communities in her district. That’s not sufficient. Her predecessor, Brian Baird, conducted over 300 town hall meetings during his twelve-year tenure. Many were held in Long Bea...
To The Eagle: I am well familiar with snopes.com and Breitbart and, yes, I do see a pattern. I’m glad you (previous letter writer) see it too, though we see it in a different way. I typed in Hamtramck, MI, and you’re right; right away I see snopes.com website for it and you’re wondering how could “lazy people who are not fact-checking” miss it? In the first place, I’d never heard of the city. I was researching Sharia Law in many websites, and as you go into each website, you find words that are highlighted you can click on that would give...
To The Eagle: Hello from Finland! I sometimes visit your paper’s site in internet, but this time I was advised by Bud Lindwall’s widow, Pat, to read about the memorial for gillnetters. I am very happy to read and find that the initiative of Pat’s husband and my dear cousin, Bud Lindwall, to raise a memorial to fishermen in the area, is coming to reality. I send my best to you all lovely people who has taken the acts to make the memorial a reality. This activity will have my best appreciation and also is a nice memory of Bud Lindwall and all L...
To The Eagle: I found Toni Below’s Feb. 23 letter to the editor to be full of dark humor, political irony and some gross factual errors. The humor starts right away with The Eagle’s header of “Writer praises Trump.” I found faint praise indeed and deftly delivered irony such as Toni’s implication that the new Trump regime is just as likely to deliver this nation over to the Muslim Caliphate as Hillary Clinton might have been had she been elected, and that if we don’t believe that, then consider that no one believed either that Donald coul...
To The Eagle: I am writing to comment on Bob Pyle’s letter of Feb. 9 concerning the failed efforts to enroll the county in the Timberland Library system. When I first started using the Cathlamet Library, I inquired as to why we were not on that system and received an answer citing a lack of funds or will, not the detailed explanation given by Mr. Pyle. Now that I know the approximate amount of money that currently would have to be spent by an individual or family either for a card at the Naselle Timberland or as part of property taxes, I w...
To The Eagle: I will be attending the Sewer Fairness meeting scheduled an hour prior to the March 20 Cathlamet Town Council meeting between 5-6 p.m. at the Cathlamet Fire Hall. I have already presented my concerns and requests to the Town Council although I used the Hotel Cathlamet as a focal point. Prior to the Sewer Fairness meeting I would like the opportunity to understand what other residents and businsses are thinking about the Cathlamet sewer/water rate situation. To that end, the Hotel Cathlamet will be hosting a coffee/cupcake...
To The Eagle: Reading the lengthy letter to the editor in the Feb. 23 edition: I find it irresistible to not respond. I usually get enough of this sort on Facebook. When I find unsubstantiated claims, I usually try do some research. Being retired and not having nice weather allows all sorting of facts and fictional stories. I love fiction stories, but not when pushed as being true facts. Main thing was a divided nation being blamed on the media. I find that is an opinion which many have. My opinion is that it is the fault of the politicians...
To The Eagle: Those of us who dink around regularly in the "letter to the editor" department do so mostly to advance alternative points of view, and occasionally deflate bubbles of political or governmental hot air. We are always delighted when we manage to evoke an inappropriate, intemperate, or defensive response from the object of one of our rants. It's not so much drawing blood as it is counting coup in the old spirit of the Plains Indians. For that particular endeavor, kudos are due to Mike Swift for his polemic in last week's Eagle....
To The Eagle: Some of the rights we all have in America are to believe what we each feel is right. And to speak about our concerns. These are rights we all have here. It does not matter if you are liberal or conservatively inclined. What matters is, what are you doing every day to improve this country? Try this, at the end of each day ask yourself, “Ahem! What did I do today that improved productivity or some condition here in America?” If you can not find a reply you are proud of, then get busy and do something good for this country bef...
