Guest Opinion

Men and women veterans are dying. It is crucial that we as a community recognize this, discuss it and face it, and come up with a plan to stop it.

Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the federal moratorium – or ban – on evictions. That leaves an estimated 20,000 Idahoans at risk of eviction or homelessness. For the stability of all our communities, it is more important than ever that our Idaho Legislature act to approve funds so that all eligible Idaho families have access to the emergency rent and utility assistance they need to remain stably housed.

By the Browne’s Addition Neighborhood Council Executive Committee

As the practice administrator of Arthritis NW, one of the largest rheumatology treatment providers in the Pacific Northwest, I see our patients and clinicians grapple with access to prescription drugs every day. Since January, I have witnessed Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs), systematically limit access to treatment for our most vulnerable patient populations and the providers responsible for their care.

By Gabrielle Duebendorfer and Dani Demmons

The COVID-19 pandemic hit our communities hard. When cases started appearing in Washington in March 2020, the labor movement mobilized, fighting for workplace safety protections, personal protective equipment, and hazard pay for essential workers. In labor, we talk a lot about the union difference, what it means for a worker to have access to the solidarity and power of an organized workers’ movement. These past 18 months, we’ve seen that difference in action.

If democratic capitalism is to be salvaged, it is imperative that the middle class be resuscitated and thereby the political “vital center.” To paraphrase John Locke, government must ensure broad opportunity for the acquisition of and security of property, else revolution be possible.

The people of the Spokane region are being overcharged for public transit. You might be surprised to hear that, but the facts demonstrate it’s true.

Red Cross offers tips to keep children safe as they make their way back to the classroom, especially drivers. Please be aware school is back in session — slow down.

By Gordon S. Jackson

By George Nethercutt

Because of Volunteers of America’s Crosswalk Youth Shelter, Emily -- homeless as a teen -- grew up healthy, has a family of her own and is leading a fulfilling life.

In the middle of an exceptional disaster season, the Red Cross has a special need right now for disaster action team members, shelter volunteers and health professionals to help care for people in their time of need.

What do Presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump have in common? This sounds like the start of a joke that is sure to have a hilarious punch line. Unfortunately, there is no humor in what is happening to the people of Afghanistan this week, today, this very minute as you read The Spokesman-Review. Targeted killings, rape, forced marriages, abuse of children, displacement of communities. Afghanistan is going through a real-life version of Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale.”

By Robert B. Linn

Close to 80% of voters in Spokane overwhelmingly approved a law to make the city’s multimillion-dollar contract negotiations with powerful labor unions open to public observation – an attempt to promote trust, honesty and transparency in our government.

As the Taliban seize control of Kabul and indeed all of Afghanistan, it is worth pondering the less obvious lessons of this 20-year episode. It is a reminder of why I cannot bring myself to be a foreign policy hawk, even though I largely accept the hawks’ worldview and underlying values.

In Idaho, as in most of the West, water has always been a precious resource. Most notably, Idaho water has turned thousands of acres of desert into lush green fields that produce some of the finest crops and livestock in the United States.

By Elisabeth Warder, DDS