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Tuesday, February 19, 2019  Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883 Fog 29° Fog
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Opinion

Guest Opinions

Guest Opinion: What’s love got to do with it?

What do the Super Bowl and Valentine’s Day have in common? Well, they’re both in the month of February (this year) and …anecdotally, they’re also days when rates of domestic violence (DV) increase. Amid the hubbub of the big game and the romantic holiday, one can be easily lulled into believing DV is a rare or a far-away occurrence, but we need to recognize we have a significant problem in our own backyard. Domestic violence in Spokane, just like in many U.S. cities, is a public health crisis. On average, 3,300 domestic violence victims are identified annually in Spokane County. In one year, domestic violence in Spokane resulted in $6.7 million in hospital charges and constituted one-quarter of all criminal cases. Two thousand children were either witnesses or victims of DV in Spokane County between 2016 and 2017.

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Joe Heller

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Syndicated Columns & Other Voices

Robert J. Samuelson: ‘The Affluent Society’ revisited

Written by Harvard economist John Kenneth Galbraith and published in 1958, “The Affluent Society” foretold that private prosperity would lead to a larger public sector. But this has also left problems that linger today.
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Letters

Emergency repairs needed

I love dogs and most living things. Hank the dog didn't deserve this ("Dog electrocuted downtown," Feb. 8, 2019). Neither would any other being who came into contact with this electrical "fault" with bare feet, conductive shoe soles, or falling down. A toddler would likely suffer the same fate as Ol' Hank.

Containing threats

Throughout history people have mitigated potential threats by channeling them through monitored checkpoints to give them a chance to avoid at least the worst of the threat's potential harm. We do it with water, we call them dams. Same with wildlife when we use the increasingly more popular over/underpasses to keep cars and animals in their own lanes. We even use it in our justice system when we select an impartial jury from a pool of potential members.

Wall? Let voters decide

Politics, yuk! Many of the politicians who once favored a border wall to prevent our enemies from coming through the windows and down the chimney (Ho-ho-ho) are now opposed to any idea that they must come through the gate and be vetted like all legitimate visitors to any other country on Earth.

Where are the police, Mayor?

I just watched Mayor Condon make a speech on the 5 o'clock news. Maybe someone should have asked him why people are being robbed and broken into and harassed and every time either myself or anyone I've talked to calls the police we are told they don't have anyone to send out. His statement is false and he should be ashamed of himself.

Third trimester abortions?

We are a profoundly divided people. People of good will can fundamentally disagree. Of all of our public disagreements, none brings out the worst in people more quickly than the issue of abortion. The two camps hurl invective across party lines, each accusing the other of terrible things.

Bishop Daly does his job

I disagree with Ben Stuckart and Karen Stratton that Bishop Daly sent the wrong message. Sorry that Ben's feelings were hurt. Maybe if he attended Mass "regularly" he would understand the position of the Church and the sanctity of all life.
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Editorials

Editorial: Lawmakers still want to keep secrets from Washingtonians

Wednesday’s weather provided a suitable backdrop for state lawmakers intent on passing a secrecy bill. Clouds hung low over Olympia, obscuring any sunshine, and snow statewide prevented people from attending a hearing about it held by the Senate State Government, Tribal Relations & Elections Committee. A year ago, the Legislature passed a bill exempting itself from the Public Records Act. Washingtonians responded with justified outrage, inundating the governor’s office with letters of opposition. Gov. Jay Inslee vetoed that bill, and lawmakers agreed to spend some time carefully studying the issue to identify a better approach.
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