Opinion
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Quinn Minute – The tooth of the matter
I got an e-mail from one of my newspaper friends wondering when old toothbrushes should be switched out for new ones. Frankly, I know little about the mouth, but I once gave an oral report. And I must admit my teeth aren’t all... — Updated 3/15/2023
Tucker Carlson is fake news
What is going on with Tucker Carlson? In private messages unearthed by lawsuits against Fox News, the fiery host was a fierce critic of former President Donald Trump, even as he continued to praise and defend him on television. ... — Updated 3/15/2023
Those embarassing moments
I held the last “coffee hour” that Sen. Warren Magnuson ever held. The senator had assisted me with some of my arrangements when I made my trips to the Far East. So when one of his aides called and asked if I would hold a... — Updated 3/15/2023
Our mix of free enterprise and socialism has been working for a long time
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) was developed during the Great Depression that occurred in the 1930s. It was a federal government program that established electricity for a seven-state area, and it bolstered the free enterpris... — Updated 3/15/2023
Carter story brought back a sweet memory
I took a little trip down memory lane after reading Roger Lucas’ remembrance of Jimmy Carter in last week’s edition of The Star. While I never met President Carter, I did in fact spend a lovely couple of days with his sister Ru... — Updated 3/8/2023
Washington State Supreme Court opposes transparent government
Lincoln County has always been a huge proponent of transparency. We believe, as elected officials, that we should not get to decide what the public should or should not know about how their tax money is spent. In fact, in 2016 the... — Updated 3/8/2023
Quinn Minute – Free meals
It was just a case of mistaken identity. But after all these years, I need to share my secret. That’s why I’m telling you. In my younger days, I worked in a downtown store’s advertising department.... — Updated 3/1/2023
Rivers in the sky, it's real
Back on Jan. 11, Peter Funt's column appeared in The Star newspaper, titled, "Cry me an atmospheric river." The author wrote about some of the terms used in weather forecasting,... — Updated 3/1/2023
A leader you can respect
Jimmy Carter is in the news. At 98, Carter has entered hospice care. He has been counted out many times only to resurface with a hammer in his hand, building houses for other people. While having a lackluster one-term presidential... — Updated 3/1/2023
Inequality is weakening Social Security. Here's how we fix that.
Is your salary less than $160,200? If so, you’re among the 94 percent of American workers who pay into Social Security all year long. But there’s a privileged group that’s about to stop paying into Social Security for the... — Updated 3/1/2023
An unprecedented time of "record-breaking" is hurting all Americans
Every month we hear of a new “record-breaking” disaster under the Biden Administration. Whether it be record-breaking inflation, gas and grocery prices, crime rates, illegal border crossings, fentanyl deaths — the list goes... — Updated 2/22/2023
Pre-season baseball memories
At a family reunion, I went outside to play catch with a cousin. “I’d rate your baseball skills below average,” he said. “Does that surprise you?” That didn’t shock me one bit. I score below average in most sports,... — Updated 2/22/2023
People depend more on local pharmacies for medical information
While the coronavirus clobbered many businesses, pharmacies were not among them. In fact, since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic, local pharmacists... — Updated 2/22/2023
Seabiscuit is not for eating
There is nothing like learning about betting on the ponies at the top. I was introduced to betting on race horses at Santa Anita Park, one of the premium race parks in America. I was in Los Angeles covering the Rose Bowl for my... — Updated 2/22/2023
Thoughts on fourteen hundredths of a second
We take a lot of risks in our everyday lives. Some are more worthy than others. From assuming we know how to navigate that ice during a thaw to getting behind the steering wheel, life is full of them, some warranted, some not. Last... — Updated 2/22/2023
The border and fentanyl crises put our communities at risk
We are now two years into the Biden Administration and the crisis at our southern border has only gotten worse. Recent figures from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) show record levels of border crossings with no sign of... — Updated 2/15/2023
Sailing ships and ships of war
We were in Baltimore visiting our daughter Kathy, who lived there at the time, and did the town. One of the highlights was touring the USS Constellation, a three-mast sailing man-of-war. It was the last ship in the fleet commission... — Updated 2/15/2023
America needs Navy's nuclear expertise to meet electricity demands
It’s past time for an energy reality check. If we are to meet our soaring demand for electricity and produce it without coal and natural gas, we must double down on nuclear... — Updated 2/15/2023
To the USBR, a request to honor a hero
To whom it may concern: It has come to our attention that the Bureau of Reclamation is currently constructing a new fire department facility at the Grand Coulee Power Office in Grand Coulee, Washington. Along with this, we are... — Updated 2/15/2023
It's time to do away with the debt ceiling
Here we go again. The United States crashed through the nation’s debt ceiling on Jan. 19, according to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. For now, the government is relying on accounting tweaks and shifting money from one pot to... — Updated 2/8/2023
America must protect her sovereignty from the Chinese Communist Party
Last week, news outlets around the country had wall-to-wall coverage of a spy balloon sent by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) transiting across America. While a balloon itself does not sound very dangerous, it’s the intent... — Updated 2/8/2023
Adkins should focus on his own school
For several weeks we’ve read comments by John Adkins, who serves as Superintendent of Wellpinit schools, although he focuses at the local school scene. We know that students at Wellpinit are accomplishing noteworthy studies, and... — Updated 2/8/2023
Who let the dogs out?
To be specific, my wife let her little dog of 50 years out with a very short leash and held up a rolled-up newspaper as if to whack my backside if I didn’t behave. She put a muzzle on me until the latest GCDSD levy passed and too... — Updated 2/8/2023
Be assured, the future will be in good hands
It’s easy, and human, to get pulled into negative thinking about the state of world, which, after all, is never the way it used to be and therefore must be headed for nothing good, and fast. Don’t fall for it. I get reminded... — Updated 2/8/2023
Global Water, Micro Plastics & Corporate Science
A new satellite was launched by NASA in December that was built specifically to survey Earth's water. It's called SWOT, Surface Water and Ocean Topography. Both United States and... — Updated 2/1/2023