News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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Students, parents, educators and activists with the advocacy group Billion Dollar Bake Sale gathered outside the Legislative Building in Olympia Jan. 30 to demand more money for public schools. "Fund our schools, no more crumbs," students chanted as they expressed frustrations over current school funding. The group wants an additional $3 billion for education, well above the $1.3 billion in the proposed budget of former Gov. Jay Inslee. Huda Hamed, a seventh grader in the Seattle Public School...
If you were confused by one of last week’s letters to the editor due to the obfuscation used, so was I. Are people voting on a four-day school week, or on a school levy? My yellow envelope says election, and I did not see four day week on the ballot inside. Since the writer brought it up, I am enclosing the letter I wrote to Q6news on our four day school week, and how the reporter’s conclusion was inaccurate and not well researched. The STAR can decide whether to give readers a peek at this information or not. With the writer’s request for a...
As a community member for several decades, my passion for our local school district is shown by my consistent words and actions. I have high expectations for the GCDSD. Our School Board members and Superintendent need to be consistent and do what is right. They have an ongoing pattern where their words don’t match their actions. Here are some clear and valid examples. Their mantra is “what is best for kids.” They claim they’re transforming the GCDSD culture for the better. In their strategic plan they promote dignity and improved test scores...
It’s been great to see so many community members voicing their support for the upcoming replacement levy vote in The Star over the past few weeks. There’s been great information shared, and I encourage you to go back and read those letters if you haven’t already. The replacement levy is critical for daily school operations, supporting the School District’s strategic plan, academics, school safety/security and much more. It replaces the expiring levy and ensures continued funding for LR schools. As noted by the GCDSD Board in their January...
Recently the GCDSD upper brass forced a 4-day school week for the future. They act like this is new but this option has been going on for a long time nationally. The TV coverage the superintendent boasted about, that he was in, said the DOI Foundation’s research does not support this schedule. It actually leads to negative academic effects. Embarrassing! With the 4-day format there will be a significant number of school days lost. So now when students or staff are absent it will have a greater negative impact. Over 275, close to 94% of s...
OLYMPIA, Wash. – Legislators are considering financially supporting police departments large and small as they try to hire new officers in the name of boosting public safety. Speaking at a hearing in the Senate Law and Justice Committee Tuesday morning, State Senator Jeff Holy (R-Cheney) said Seattle police had one of their best recruiting years in 2024, drawing in 84 new officers. However, he said a large number of existing officers left, ultimately adding two or three officers on net. "...
Gov.-elect Bob Ferguson unveiled a budget-cutting plan to ease a projected $12 billion statewide budget deficit during a 2025 legislative preview in Olympia Jan. 9. "Washingtonians expect that we will increase revenue as a last resort. I will not contemplate additional revenue options until we have exhausted efforts to improve efficiency," Ferguson said. Estimates of the deficit vary widely, from $7 billion to $15 billion. To make up the deficit, Ferguson proposes cutting spending by 6% of the...
‘Tis the time of year to be joyful, to celebrate and show appreciation, thankfulness and gratitude. Previously, I’d mentioned how I am keen on Jim Keene and many others but recently Addison Hansen, our previous neighbor, triggered this outpouring of appreciation here. She surprised my partner of 52 years with a thank you - happy holidays greeting and a beautiful piece of her artwork signed off with much appreciation. Addison is a former Raider and fine arts major. Her message to Mrs. A said, “Thank you for encouraging my creativity and culti...
Republican Dan Newhouse is preparing for a sixth term in the U.S. House of Representatives, serving one of Washington state's most solidly Republican congressional districts. He's excited. He'll be a member of the House majority again. With Republicans in charge in the Senate and an incoming GOP president, he foresees his party "accomplishing good things for the country." Donald Trump, the former and future commander-in-chief might not be quite as happy. He didn't want Newhouse back this year....
Republican Dan Newhouse is preparing for a sixth term in the U.S. House of Representatives, serving one of Washington state's most solidly Republican congressional districts. He's excited. He'll be a member of the House majority again. With Republicans in charge in the Senate and an incoming GOP president, he foresees his party "accomplishing good things for the country." Donald Trump, the former and future commander-in-chief might not be quite as happy. He didn't want Newhouse back this year.... Full story
I want to share how much I enjoy seeing the progress of the reopening of the Village Cinema. My sister, Cecilia, and I subscribe to The Star and enjoy sharing what is happening. My parents, Rod and Anne Hartman, ran the Coulee Dam Theatre when I was growing up. I have such memories of having my parents own the theatre. Some good, some great, and some embarrassing. We’ll start with the embarrassing. My mom would cruise the aisles with her flashlight, watching for those that were not watching the movie but were choosing to make out with their d...
Northwestern University reports that, during the past 20 years, 3,200 print newspapers have closed. That is a savage blow to our nation. The traffic and the advertising money moved to social media. Traditional newspapers are edited for accuracy and truth. Social media are not edited, and anyone can publish their own agenda on social media. Foreign countries that are enemies of the United States can post on social media using fake identities. Community newspapers provide social stability, what economists call a public “good.” Social media is...
This is not about Donald Trump. It’s not even about the sad souls seduced by him. The insurrectionists who stormed the Capitol to prevent the peaceful transfer of power were primarily guilty of being gullible. They fell for the fraud. They did not do the defrauding. Many have been held accountable for their actions. Most of the ones who fooled them have not. Yet. I refer to Republican Party leaders who cashed in their moral courage to ride a demagogue’s coattails to power. They learned from their adored leader how to spew out coded calls to...
If I were writing a headline about current events, it would look like this. *Shots fired *Trump unharmed *School children dead *Congress unconcerned America has better things to do than bury dead school children and try 14-year-old kids as adults. As I write this, an 11-year-old girl in my community has been detained for making school shooting threats on social media, and a loaded firearm was discovered in the backpack of a Virginia 6-year-old elementary school child. Psychologists indicate that full human maturity occurs around age 26. It is...
In light of recent events in Delano, I think it’s time that the community hear it from an actual resident. I have noticed that everyone enjoys the gossip but when it comes to actual crimes happening, everyone becomes Helen Keller - You don’t see anything, you don’t hear anything and you don’t have anything to say. This includes other Delano residents. Everyone becomes a Facebook sleuth and willingly lends their opinion, but no one actually wants their names on paper. It’s important that the community understand that the crimes that are happe...
Someone recently asked me why I like Trump. My answer was that I don’t really like a lot of things about Trump. But this election is not about choosing the most likeable person. We are voting between two vastly different ideologies. We are voting for the country we want to leave our children and grandchildren. Trump represents that future and has proven that he can deliver. He is a patriot to the core and even served his country for 4 years without pay. That moment when someone says, “I can’t believe you’re voting for Trump”. I simply re...
This story has been corrected to reflect a witnesses statement that Sen. Schoesler backed into the same vehicle twice, not into two separate vehicles. An additional sentence was added, noting the legal blood-alcohol limit is 0.08. RITZVILLE - The local 9th Legislative District senator was released on his own recognizance Saturday night, Aug. 31, after being arrested for allegedly driving drunk and striking another vehicle twice. Sen. Mark Schoesler, 67, of Ritzville, was arrested by citation...
During most of recorded history, there was no science, no explanations for the many terrifying events that afflicted life, e.g., volcanic eruptions, floods, droughts, starvation, and epidemic diseases. People invented gods and eventually believed that those gods were the cause of both good events and bad events. According to Michael Jordan, writing in his Encyclopedia of Gods, humans have invented more than 2,500 gods. Modern science has produced provable explanations for many of the things that once frightened people, and science has made the...
It was June 27, 1844, when a young man (aged 38) was running for president of the United States. His name was Joseph Smith, Jr. Many historians falsely attribute his slaying to his stance on plural marriage (polygamy). While that was a part of it, it was by no means the real causation. This was some 16 years before Abraham Lincoln’s platform. Smith had his own plan for buying the freedom of slaves. He advocated religious freedom, sound money in gold or silver, and the proper education of schoolchildren. Brigham Young and other apostles of t...
Our country is at its best when we are united. After a decade of hardship during the Great Depression of the 1930s, when Americans were hoping for some relief, the Axis powers launched World War Two. America quickly ceased production of consumer goods and started producing war materiel. According to the U.S. Defense Department, there were about three million automobiles produced in the U.S. in 1940. During the remainder of the war, until August 1945, only an additional 139 automobiles were produced for civilian use. Automobile tires were ration...
I’ve always been a simple person who needs very little to be happy. My first date with my partner was over 50 years ago. We talk about how if we had nothing but our family, would we be alright? We realize without a doubt we’d be just fine. We are all about quality relationships and being passionate about life and what we enjoy. With these thoughts in mind, we were very excited to be in Yakima this past weekend to cheer on our Raider teams’ athletes and coaches. Last spring after state softball was over, I told the head coach, Jaci Gross, to ke...
Hundreds of children took part in a 45-year-old tradition Friday by running races on the grass in perfect weather on the athletic field below Lake Roosevelt Schools. The first Mini Bloomsday occurred in 1979. The idea came from a first-grade teacher at the time, Carolyn McNeil. Mrs. McNeil and Mrs. Selle had their first-graders race to Acre's Drug Store, where the owner gave each student a free ice cream cone. The next year, in 1980, second- and third-grade students joined in on the fun, and...
Having family at Grand Coulee, I have relatives who work at the dam and it mystifies me how little attention presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., pays to hydro-electric power. True, I mention wind and solar, but rarely (if ever) hydro. The man comes from a rich family and most of them have disavowed him as “dangerous” and called his make-believe candidacy a “vanity project”. He shows images of his father (RFK, Senior) and his uncle (President JFK). But one thing is for sure, “Junior” cannot hold a candle to either of those gentl...
Young soldiers sometimes cite a particular military weapon and pose the question: Is that a defensive weapon or an offensive weapon? Almost invariably, the answer is: It depends on the intent of the user. Whether artificial intelligence is good or bad could be described the same way. Regardless, artificial intelligence is coming to us in an overwhelming way. Computers can be programmed to “learn.” Because of their speed and vast information storage capacity, scientists believe that computer programs will make it possible to solve problems tha...
The United States recognized the state of Israel 11 minutes after formation of the state was announced in 1948. We have maintained a very close relationship since the founding. Israel is now receiving widespread criticism for its mass destruction of Palestinian civilians, and the process is causing political repercussions in the United States. Israel has internal political divisions just as we do in the United States. Some Israelis want Israel to be a democracy while others want it to be a religious state replacing, for example, the Israeli sup...