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OLYMPIA–We’ve been warning for years that the real plan behind the capital gains income tax proposals in the state legislature was to set up a lawsuit in hopes of imposing a graduated income tax without a constitutional amendment. Thanks to recent legislative public records, you don’t have to take our word for it anymore. Consider the following 2018 email from Sen. Jamie Pedersen: “But the more important benefit of passing a capital gains tax is on the legal side, from my perspective. The oth...
A scream from the kitchen. The thud of a faint. She sighs and arises and walks with restraint. Her neighbor lays peaceful, eyes fixed in a stare She’s passed out in front of the new Frigidaire. She looks at the rack with eggs in its keep Winking up at her’s the eye of a sheep. There’s a bottle of PenStrep near the Swanson’s Pot Pies And down in the crisper’s a bagful of flies. The butter tray’s filled with test tubes of blood Marked, ‘E.I.A. samples, from Tucker’s old stud.’ High on the shelf...
To the editor, Though a slow learner I know a bit of truth after living to 96. “A man does not live by bread alone.” Living according to one’s latest appetites is not wise. We must know more about what’s coming to maintain a single focus or life will be cut short by willful ignorance. Frank Buchman said, “We have reached the point where man must learn to solve his problems or be destroyed by them.” As humanity we have been in crises before but does it seem that COVID-19 may be mankind’s last wake-up call for a globally minded world that do...
In the Seventies, with President Richard Nixon’s Détente part of the international atmosphere, Soviet engineers visited the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Walla Walla. The Cold War was in the process of warming and this intellectual exchange was part of it. The group of C.C.C.P. engineers spoke Russian, and apparently no translator had been assigned. When it was discovered one of the Russians also spoke French, Walla Walla photographer Earl Robergé was recruited to act as a linguistic liaison. Robergé was eccentric, a small man with a spry...
Butch has a theory about hardcore born-to-rope ropers; as soon as they build a loop and take one swing, it kicks their brain out of gear. To demonstrate how this theory works he told me about a friend of his. We’ll call him ‘Chope’, for short. Butch was runnin’ a ranch in the wilds of New Mexico east of Las Vegas. He’d bought a set of braymer bulls to put on his braymer cross cows and one of the bulls had turned out to be a bad actor. He’d shornuf do some damage if you cornered him. It came time...
To the editor, Vietnam War Veterans Day “March 29” In the last 45 years, America has lost a lot of WWII values and good leaders because the shaming of soldiers during and after the Vietnam conflict to no fault of their own. So, let’s try to come together again. A simple “Thank You for your service” would be a good start. Brian Black Dayton, Wash. To the editor, My Facebook page reminded me this week of a photo I took in 2011 of the Iwo Jima Memorial. It was a timely reminder of the hard challenges our country has faced before. That memorial...
By Sen. Maureen Walsh, Rep. Bill Jenkin and Rep. Skyler Rude OLYMPIA–As the saying goes, the Legislature has adjourned, and not a moment too soon. When the final gavels came down to end our session March 12, it was a relief for those of us who come from the vast region beyond the King County line. This year, like last, we saw what happens when a liberal urban faction controls the House, the Senate and the governor's office, and exhibits little interest in listening to the rest of the state. W...
Betty Lynne is a cowboy. If you don’t believe it ask her husband to show you the snapshot of her bruise. Last summer they had a cow killed by lightening on their ranch. They figgered they’d better bring in the orphaned calf. The afternoon of the rescue, Betty Lynne saddled ol’ Frosty, a reliable ex-Appaloosa race horse. That allowed Sean, her husband, to ride T-Bird, one of the colts they were training. They trailered to the pasture. Sean stayed outside the bunch, practicin’ quarter circles...
OLYMPIA–My goal, each and every session, is to ensure the policies we pass in the Legislature have a positive impact on our district. We know that some policies are more of a fight than others, and don't always end up the way we'd like them to. But there are also policies that will help our district thrive and be successful. Wine continues to be one of the fastest growing industries in Washington state. It is a major economic contributor to our communities and region. It fosters small b...
The cow went down in the pasture. I took it as a sign. Like lightning striking my saddle horn or guppies in the wine. I’ll have to pull the calf right here. But it isn’t raining hard. It’s just too bad that my slicker is still back in the yard. I taught my horse to ground tie. Like havin’ an extra man. Now why did he run off like that? I really had a plan, Thank goodness I’ve got a catch rope. Whoa, darlin’, just lay still... You four-footed Double Whopper! Your next stop is the grill! Stay...
OLYMPIA–I'm sure many of you have been wondering, so let me explain why I voted against the Happy Meal bill. Senate Bill 6455 aims to address the alarming social problem created by the fact that children are being served chocolate milk or a cup of soda with their Happy Meals. We all want our children to be healthy, but shouldn't we let parents decide whether their kids can have a little soda or chocolate milk when they are enjoying their cheeseburgers and chicken nuggets? Do we really want to i...
“Boys will be boys,” reflected Jack, as he told me a story from his youth. Seems when Jack was a teenager back in Ripley, Oklahoma, he and his teenage friend were serious about becoming bull riders. They had helped fix up the local rodeo arena and that gave them chute privileges. One week they replaced a chute gate. They had made the replacement themselves out of oilfield pipe, painted it and hung it up. As they were admiring their handiwork Jack remarked it was too bad they couldn’t buck a rea...
To the editor, Is it just me or has the packaging of today’s products become Enemy Number One for senior citizens? I think things started to go astray with strapping tape. Its invention seemed harmless enough until the package it wrapped became impenetrable, without the use of an X-Acto knife and surgical skill. Next came flesh-colored plastic tape that wouldn’t tear, just stretch, and then flesh-colored paper tape that tore but wouldn’t stick. Then, along came duck tape, man’s best friend, mending everything and anything in its silver-...
OLYMPIA–One of the best things about being your state representative is the time I get to spend learning. By listening and observing, I can more effectively advocate for you and your family in the Legislature. Last fall, I offered to job shadow teachers and staff at each school district in our region. I spent one day each in Finley, Starbuck, Waitsburg, Kennewick, Paterson and Richland. I got to see firsthand how the work we do in Olympia directly impacts the education our students are r...
A collection of testimonials for Duct Tape in agriculture… From B.A., Large Animal Vet: I’ve been a Duct Tape believer ever since I had a cow tear her bag on a bob wire fence. It was a ghastly gash. She was in pain and frightened. There was no way I could close the wound until…I began wrapping her with Duct Tape! I started just behind the elbow and started circling her girth, then her ribs and her flanks with Duct Tape. I eventually was able to wrap the bag, leaving the 4 teats and tail pokin...
To the editor, My goodness! 2019 has closed and the first two months of 2020 has brought surprises. It is an understatement to say 2020 so far holds a blend of reliable and unreliable. But through it all I can count on our local Dayton Chronicle to provide all the local news and happenings, plus my favorites like cartoons, Quote of the Week, and Baxter Black. I never miss a copy…what a dedicated staff! Rosie Gallaher Dayton PS: Lately the Dayton Chronicle is bigger than the UB!...
OLYMPIA–It's very telling that the first two major policy debates and bills passed by the majority party this session were tax increases. Fighting against tax increases is one of my main priorities. And let me tell you, there definitely hasn't been a shortage of new tax bills that have already come forward. It's disheartening for me to know when we're experiencing a time of increased state revenue, there's still a push to raise your taxes–again and again. It's our obligation to make the mos...
Just count me out,” said Wilford as he lay there in the dirt, A shoein’ rasp behind his ear, a hoof print on his shirt. “I’ll handle this,” said Freddie, “You jus’ git outta the way. This sorry bag of buzzard bait has met his match today.” The horse weren’t much to look at, just the kind a trader’d buy But you knew that he’d be trouble when you looked him in the eye. It was small and mean and glittered, as deep as Jacob’s well, Like lookin’ down the smoke stack of the furnace room in Hell. Fredd...
