Past opinions offer perspective

Looking Back reviews opinions published in The Spokesman-Review during this week in history.

Pinball tax, Dec. 2, 1968

An S-R editorial discussed a proposed state tax on pinball machines, which were once used for gambling.

“A committee of the Washington Legislature … has recommended a heavy new state tax against pinball machines. The proposal is to triple the present levy to $900 per year per machine.

“The effect would be to handicap the operation of the devices. It is a part-way measure in the direction of removing the machines from public operation in the state.

“Outlawing the machines would be the best thing to do about them. Short of that, the kind of heavy tax proposed would be the next best.

“In Spokane and elsewhere in the state, pinball machines are a constant policing problem. They can be operated as recreational devices and that is ostensibly what they are used for, but the use of them for gambling purposes is an ever-present possibility. When they are illegally used as gambling devices, they become part of the whole illicit structure that threatens law and order.”

Death penalty, Dec. 1, 1992

An editorial on the Westley Dodd capital punishment case called for his execution.

“Even his own attorney called Westley Allan Dodd ‘the most heinous criminal ever to exist in the state of Washington.’ ” Dodd probably would agree. But if an order issued yesterday by Clark County Superior Court Judge Robert Harris is carried out, Dodd would cease to exist on Jan. 5. That’s the day he is scheduled to be hanged for the murder of three boys in 1989. And he says that’s what he wants.

“Whatever his ineffable motives may be, Westley Allan Dodd makes a poor subject for well-intended efforts of social reformers. … If Dodd isn’t disputing his fate, others shouldn’t be permitted to intercede.”

Postscript: Dodd was hanged on Jan. 5, 1993. The Spokesman-Review changed its position on the death penalty in 2007.

Bush v. Gore, Nov. 28, 2000

An S-R editorial took the position that Al Gore should bow out of the presidential contest, rather than press his case by seeking recounts in Florida.

“Al Gore will serve the country best if he finds a graceful exit and becomes a member of the loyal opposition. For now, though, George W. Bush is caught in a dilemma. He can’t easily begin to remind Americans of their common interests, or restore their trust in government, while his opponent continues to fight – with an intensity that suggests something horrible would occur if Bush took office.

“There is nothing to fear in the prospect of a Bush presidency. Even those who disagree with a new president’s policies find comfort and representation in our constitutional design, which limits and separates powers. The narrow balance of power in Congress means the next president must seek middle ground and bipartisan accord.

“Unfortunately, the longer the current wrangling lasts, the more difficult it may be for the public to respect its government, which needs to get on with a crucial post-election chore: representing all Americans, regardless of how or even whether they voted.”