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Matter of Opinion archive for Aug. 2008

SUNDAY, AUG. 31, 2008

Sunday editorials

All politics, all the time. Today's "Our view" offereings include a comment apiece on the nomonations (or nomination to be in one case) of Barack Obama and Sarah Palin.

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FRIDAY, AUG. 29, 2008

Dumb Bomb

Worst point of the day about Sarah Palin comes from Steve Doocy of Fox News. He explains how Palin does indeed have foreign policy experience. More than Joe Biden. You just have to listen to appreciate it.

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THURSDAY, AUG. 28, 2008

Thursday's editorial

Should health care workers have the discretion to withhold treatments or medicines from patients because of their own moral or philosophical concerns about the people, procedures or prescriptions involved? Today's "Our view" tells you what we think, and we invite your responses.

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WEDNESDAY, AUG. 27, 2008

Labor and energy

A few days ago, one poster alluded to...a LEED certified building on SFCC's campus that is not being "managed" the way the contractor developed it because the Union will not train and effect the maintenance staff in the specified methods to make that building as…

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Loose thread time

Lots of buzz today on cable news as the commentators try to analyze Hillary Clinton's speech last night and anticipate Bill's tonight. Poor old Joe Biden is practically being overlooked.You can get in the act, too, right here. Or, as usual, you can launch a…

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TUESDAY, AUG. 26, 2008

Blowin' in the wind

The Northwest Power and Conservation Council's quarterly newsletter talks about a prospective new technology for developing wind power. Instead of using land-based windmills, this approach would use airborne windmills, tethered to power generation lines on the ground below. For more, check out one of these…

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MONDAY, AUG. 25, 2008

News or daily affirmation?

Leroy Sievers was the "Nightline" producer who chronicled his life after being diagnosed with cancer. Sievers recently died, and in reading about him I was struck by his take on today's audience for news."The audience has changed," he told LA Weekly in 2005. "People don't…

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Conventional thinking

A downtown hotel of historical significance in Spokane closes in what appears to be a regrouping maneuver. A sign of bad times for tourism here? Not according to overall figures. As Monday's editorial notes, the Ridpath's struggles are in contrast with an otherwise brightening picture.

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SATURDAY, AUG. 23, 2008

Hello, my name is Joe

Sen. Joe Biden will round out the Democratic ticket as Barack Obama's running mate. Like Republican nominee-to-be John McCain, these are two guys from the legislative branch running for executive roles. What are your thoughts about Biden, and about the collective credentials of the running…

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FRIDAY, AUG. 22, 2008

The August Crazies

As we get prepared here to close up shop for the weekend at AMOO, just thought I'd throw out this question.Is the end of August always a little weird for you?I've been talking to women friends this week who say by the end of August,…

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Good news for book lovers

(A grand staircase leads to the lower levels of the new Coeur d'Alene Library, which opened a year ago. JESSE TINSLEY/The Spokesman-Review.)From our editorial today:in recent years, libraries struggled with identity crises. People could find so much on the Web. People stopped reading as much,…

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THURSDAY, AUG. 21, 2008

Hail-O! Caught in the storm

I was driving to the Spokane Valley just as the huge thunderstorm appeared. I should have been smart and parked underneath the I-90 overpass as I saw a police motorcycle -- and several cars -- do.Instead, I got off the freeway at Argonne, but for…

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Loose Thread Thursday

Olympics -- A lifetime of training for just ten seconds. -- Jesse Owens, 1936 Olympics.What did you work really hard to accomplish -- for weeks, months, years -- and have the moment of glory last only a short time? Blog lines are open on that…

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WEDNESDAY, AUG. 20, 2008

Hoarders: Collecting stories here

(Dave Chameides shows some of the six months' worth of trash, including plastic and glass bottles stacked up the stairway, in the basement of his home in Los Angeles, Tuesday, July 1, 2008. Most outsiders would likely write off Chameides as a hoarder. But the…

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TUESDAY, AUG. 19, 2008


Loose Thread Tuesday

(Jean-Claude Killy, left, and Prince Albert of Monaco, members of the Olympic Committee, in a 2005 photo. Killy was an Olympic champ in skiing in the 19690s. AP Photo/Antonio Calanni) The best and fastest way to learn a sport is to watch and imitate a…

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MONDAY, AUG. 18, 2008

Running start

We've talked before about judges who resign without filling out an elected term, leaving it to the governor or county commissioners to choose a successor. The same concern -- about letting political officials give someone an incumbent's headstart before the voters can have a say…

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SATURDAY, AUG. 16, 2008

Suit case

Without question, too many Americans are too eager to sue one another over too many issues. So it makes sense to allow popular deep-pocket targets, such as municipalities, to seek remedies against frivolous litigation. But the city of Spokane has a history of using that…

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FRIDAY, AUG. 15, 2008

Don't steal their 'Thunder'

The film "Tropic Thunder" has led to some calls for banning certain words (in this case derogatory terms for intellectually disabled people) from certain venues because they detract from human dignity. Today's editorial calls for the increased exercise of free speech rather than its restriction.…

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THURSDAY, AUG. 14, 2008

Minorities to be in the majority

Ethnographers are predicting that by 2042, non-Hispanic white citizens will be outnumbered by groups currently called minorities. No other country is experiencing such a racial/ethnic overhaul.1. Do you have a problem with this?2. Should government do something to head this off? 3. Will this make…

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Lessons from Duncan

Today's editorial expounds the reasons pursuing the death penalty is unwise, but they have little to do with how undeniably heinous Joseph Duncan's crime was. Justice, closure and catharsis are often cited as reasons to pursue executions, but death-penalty cases necessarily delay the payoffs because…

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WEDNESDAY, AUG. 13, 2008

For government wonks

The Washington state Office of Financial Management (in other words, the governor's budget office) has launched a new Web site where you can find information about state agencies' spending and fiscal performance. Check it out here.

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A Matter of Opinion is really a matter of three opinions – those held by the people responsible for the opinion pages of The Spokesman-Review. Check in regularly to find out what they’re up to, what they think and where they differ and to joust with them if you want.



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