Editorial

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy.

The following editorial is from the Chicago Tribune.

The U.S. Constitution protects the ravings of a Yiannopoulous, just as it does the burning of the American flag. If the United States is to remain a safe space for freedom, it must always be so.

There is no telling how seriously the Trump administration will take the threat at Hanford, but there is little question that the departure of retiring Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nevada, is good news for Hanford watchers.

“Justice” and “frivolity” are slippery metrics. Nothing has been done in the last 30 years to explain just what lawmakers meant to define as “justice.”

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

The governor’s plan is already being criticized, but remember this: After more than three decades of kicking this can, it’s the first time someone picked it up.

The main question for Rex Tillerson, who supports the Paris accord and a carbon tax, may be this: How will he manage his relationship with his new boss?

Charters schools in Washington state are more polarizing than they ought to be, because stringent oversight helps ensure that public dollars are not being wasted. In fact, the state’s model was judged the nation’s best by the National Association of Charter School Authorizers. “Its law strikes the right balance that gives charter schools the freedom they need to thrive, while ensuring these schools meet a high bar and are good schools for students and taxpayers,” said John Hedstrom, vice president of policy for NACSA, in a news release.

Given the states’ apples-oranges comparisons, one path forward for Washington is to compare its own results year-by-year to evaluate whether students are increasing their mastery of the material.

Congress will now adjourn for the holidays, and members will have to start all over when a new Congress convenes in January. Two years of work down the drain.

Looking Back reviews opinions published in The Spokesman-Review during this week in history. Scientist shortage, Dec. 17, 1955

Last May, the 5th Congressional District race featured the incumbent Republican, Democrat Joe Pakootas, Independent Dave Wilson and Republican Tom Horne. Now, none of them may be our representative.

Proving bad faith and malice is an exercise in mind-reading. Absent a confession, it’s futile.

It comes as a mild surprise to learn that even so-called digital natives often have no idea that what they are reading or viewing is intentionally misleading, or produced by hyper-partisan proselytizers.

About one-third of Washington state jobs depend on trade, so it’s nerve-racking to watch the Trump administration flout diplomatic tradition with China, trash trade deals and promote steep tariffs.

Looking Back reviews opinions published in The Spokesman-Review during this week in history. Pearl Harbor Day is Wednesday. The following are Spokesman-Review editorials on the attack.

Dreamers are not the criminals Trump says he wants to corral. Rescinding their status would only make America mean again.