Shaun Winkler wants to be the Bonner County Sheriff and took some time Monday to explain why. Winkler was out Monday afternoon mixing with the public and talking about his campaign goals like cracking down on drug crimes and sexual predators. “I believe it's about time that we have a strong law enforcement stance against certain criminals in our neighborhood,” said Winkler. He also thinks federal agencies like the FBI shouldn't have jurisdiction at the county level. The 33-year-old runs a landscaping business and doesn't have any law enforcement background. … A check of his court records, however, reveals he was convicted in 2004 on charges of witness intimidation. But, because he satisfied all the terms of his judgment, he is clear to run for office/Anusha Roy, KXLY. More here. (KXLY photo)

Question: Should Bonner County Republicans take a stand against Winkler running as a Republican?

RE: Randy Weaver fan in Washougal, Wash., shootout/Hate Watch

Investigators have recovered two human bodies and four deceased dogs from the ruins of a Washougal home that burned to the ground Wednesday morning as a man fired handguns and rifles to keep emergency responders away, Clark County authorities said. Authorities have not identified the two deceased adults nor have they revealed a possible motive for the events that led to their deaths inside the home at 3275 F Place. However, family and friends of the homeowners, Steven and Leona Stanbary, indicated on their Facebook pages that the husband and wife, along with Leona Stanbary’s twin sister, perished Wednesday/Ray Legendre and Paul Suarez, Columbian. More here. (A police car's shattered window is shown Thursday in Washougal, Wash. (AP photo/Rick Bowmer)

• Also: Man associated with North Idaho supremacists may have died in fire/Mike Prager, SR

Question: Does this story give you a better appreciation for the violent tendencies inherent in some of the white supremacists who once called North Idaho home?

In Esquire's Politics Blog Thursday, essayist Charles P. Pierce provides a lengthy review of the history of white supremacism in North Idaho as well as the MLK Day bomb attempt. He writes: “Both (Norm) Gissel and (Tony) Stewart have noticed an increasing — and increasingly familiar — level of agitation in the air, even though what was left of the Aryan Nations splintered further recently when a power struggle broke out between two men, Paul Mullet and Gerard O'Brien, both of whom claim to be the true successor to Richard Butler. (Mullet seems to have won out, at least for the moment.) What's left of the movement seems to be made up either of small units, or a collection of lone-wolf operators. It has still been enough to set the region on edge. Entire blog post here.

Reaction?

• Weekend Poll: 23 of 85 respondents (27.06%) checked “none of the above” when asked which weekend game interested them most. 19 voted for the Apple Cup, 14 for Battle in Seattle (Gonzaga vs. Illinois), 12 for the Civil War (Oregon vs. Oregon State), 11 for Idaho Vandals vs. San Jose State, and 6 for “all of the above.”
• Thursday-Friday Poll: 85 of 154 (55%) awarded D’s & F’s to the EPA for its performance over first 40 years of existence. 38 of 154 (25%) gave the agency A’s & B’s, while 31 of 154 (20%) awarded C’s
• Today’s Poll: Does North Idaho deserve its reputation as a haven for racism?

Kootenai Conservative: All my relatives on my father’s side are from the South, and they would tell you it would be a grave mistake to interpret a display of the Confederate flag as a gesture of racism or sympathy with slavery. It’s a symbol of Southern pride that those of us from the North or West can have trouble understanding because there’s nothing analogous to it in our own regional cultures. A lot of people in Texas fly Texas flags for the same reason.

Question: Do you consider the display of a confederate flag to be a racist statement?

Retiring Jesuit priest Tom Connolly wrote the following form St. Maries Gazette-Record: Unfortunately, those like (North Idaho Citizens Alliance) who want to continue to keep tribes down have organized to seek to prevent them from exercising their long-suppressed rights. In a simple recent instance, Benewah County might need additional law enforcement for its civic events. If fully trained and certified enforcement officials were to be temporarily used from Kootenai County, nothing would ever be said. But if there’s a possibility of temporarily using equally fully trained and certified enforcement officials from the nearby Coeur d’Alene Tribe, a huge uproar is raised by NICA against any possible recognition or cooperation with an Indian tribe. … NICA bullies and threatens Benewah County with their anti-tribal diatribes to prevent any harmonious relationships between the tribe and the county. More here.

Question: Do you think a Jesuit priest with the gravitas of Father Tom Connolly can talk sense to the North Idaho Citizens Alliance?

In way of explanation, Charles Dixon comments inside: “You can say that anyone is racist for doing anything. The way the racist charge is getting thrown around these days it would make for a good Dr. Seuss book. It has become that nonsensical.” Then, he offers:

I’m a racist for tying my shoes in a knot.
I’m a racist for dotting my I’s with a dot.
I’m a racist for driving a purple and green car.
I’m a racist for driving that car way too far.
I’m a racist because my name’s Harry O’Leary.
I’m a racist for running and not being weary.
I’m a racist because I like blueberry jam.
I’m a racist because I hate green eggs and ham.
I’m a racist for using the made-up word Uppityville.
I’m a racist for thinking our president’s not civil.
I’m a racist because I don’t hate Sarah Palin.
I’m a racist cause I complain that my 401k is ailin.
I’m a racist for thinking the country’s going the wrong direction.
I’m a racist cause I deny I’d love Obama with more introspection.

Question: Do you agree w/Charles Dixon that the word “racist” is bandied about too freely today?

I was born in Chicago, a town with its own long history of racial tension, and my parents were hillbillies, one from Texas and one from Tennessee. It would not be surprising to many to learn that my upbringing was steeped in racism, yet it wasn’t—somehow my parents managed to raise their children to be almost color blind. When my little ‘sister’ Chrissie went to kindergarten, she came home quite irate, asking “Why didn’t you ever tell me that black people were different than us?,”—a  ‘knowledge’ that had apparently been shared with her by either her teachers or her classmates/Trish Gannon, River Journal (Politically Incorrect column). More here. (River Journal photo of Trish’s niece & nephew)

DFO: I was delighted during my recent vacation to California to meet my two Ethiopian nieces, Marte & Buzai, for the first time since their adoption by my nephew Josh and his wife, Heather. I guess this means my full-blooded Portuguese family is wonderfully integrated now.

Question: Were you raised color-blind?

The Rev. Al Sharpton, front, addresses the media during a news conference at the 101st annual NAACP convention as NAACP President Ben Jealous looks on Wednesday in Kansas City, Mo. Story here. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)

Question: Do you agree with the premise of the NCAA that the Tea Party movement tolerates racism?

Human rights activists in Coeur d’Alene have decided to fight flags with flags. For months, people have been walking into the Human Rights Education Institute in Coeur d’Alene asking what they can do about two nearby residences flying white supremacist flags, said Rachel Dolezal, the institute’s education director. The institute’s staff and volunteers brainstormed a response and decided to create a flag of their own, this one emblazoned with a human rights message. They are encouraging residents to fly the flags in their neighborhoods and use them to establish “hate-free zones” throughout the region/Alison Boggs, SR. More here.

Question: Would you be interested in flying a human rights flag at your home in an attempt to establish a ‘hate-free zone’ in your neighborhood? Or do you think this idea will fly?

Editorial: Mistrial shows area fights racism with fairness/Spokesman-Review

More Info: Part of the judge’s responsibility is to make sure that the evidence is delivered properly, which is why he threw a flag over the 911 tape. It probably would have been easier for Luster to let the trial go on, but that would have served no good purpose if it had continued to a verdict only to be overturned on appeal. Whichever way this trial ends, it is important not just to the parties but to the whole community. The Tankoviches and Requena all are entitled to justice. And Coeur d’Alene deserves a reputation for the impartial administration of justice.

Question: Do you sometimes get tired of the community playing fair with the various supremacist elements that continue to rare their ugly heads?

Elwin Wilson, left, and Friendship 9 member Willie McCleod, right, look over pictures from civil rights incidents in Rock Hill, S.C., in the 1960s. in downtown Rock Hill recently. Wilson, a former segregationist who jeered and assaulted civil rights leader John Lewis at a South Carolina bus station in 1961 is apologizing to the Atlanta congressman, saying he regrets his past hatred and fears he might go to hell for it. (AP Photo/Herald, Andy Burriss)

Question: What lesson do you take from this story — that there’s hope for even the most hateful people? Or that the fear of the afterlife can cause contrition in even hard cases?

UI officials have received complaints from across campus and throughout the state about racial epithets uttered by some Vandal fans during the game. Offensive terms for Hispanics and illegal immigrants reportedly were shouted at one or more opposing players, including the term “dirty Sanchez,” which apparently was directed at BSU forward Mark Sanchez. Some might not find the term offensive or understand its meaning. That doesn’t matter to Sanchez, to the other people of Hispanic heritage in the stands or watching on television, or to the hundreds of parents whose children asked them what it meant when the game was over/Doug Bauer, Moscow-Pullman Daily News. More here.

Question: Is there something other fans or UI officials could have done to stop the inappropriate behavior at the UI/Boise State basketball game?

Hundreds of small cells of would-be terrorists exist throughout the United States. They travel under various names—Ku Klux Klan, National Socialist Movement, Vinlander Social Club, American National Socialist Workers Party, World Wide Church of the Creator, National Alliance, White Aryan Resistance, National Vanguard. To the dismay of civil rights groups, on the margins are a few politicians and rural law enforcement officers who express their disdain and distrust of black Americans and Hispanics, plus radio talk show hosts who tend to give stature to racist propaganda/Idaho Mountain Express. More here.

Question: Are white supremacist organizations still a threat in this country?