Idaho Voices

First, you should know that Marianne Love admits that she taught George Orwell’s “Animal Farm” and “1984” during her years as a Sandpoint High instructor. Therefore, she knows the difference between indoctrination and diversity of ideas. In her Slight Detour blog, Marianne recalls fondly that the best class discussions involved different views, offered by students under rules of civility that she occasionally enforced. Why am I telling you this? Marianne believes that parents and ideologues threatened by President Barack Obama’s address to students Tuesday are afraid their children will learn to think for themselves. “Listening to a speech by President Obama or Dick Cheney or Rush Limbaugh or any other politically charged big name whose face or voice constantly shows up on the air waves is not gonna plant a poisonous seed in children’s minds,” writes Marianne. In fact, she continues, “listening to advice or speeches from parents is not gonna necessarily guarantee that little Johnny or little Jane will go forth loyally espousing Mommy and Daddy’s philosophies.” So what advice did this astute educator suggest? Let the kids listen to Obama. Or Rush Limbaugh. Or John McCain. Then, discuss their speeches around the dinner table. Bingo. Small world

Today Carl Rey & the Blues Gators (Blues) – 2 p.m., Pend Oreille Winery, 220 Cedar St., Sandpoint, (208) 265-8545.

So far this month we’ve had highs in the 90s, highs in the 60s, and everything in between. High pressure has been responsible for the unseasonably warm and dry weather this weekend, but many folks may have thought fall was here early when overnight temperatures took a big dip last Tuesday. Mother Nature honored the “unofficial” end to the summer season by bringing temperatures as cold as 29 degrees to the parts of the Inland Northwest the morning of the Sept. 8. Here were some of the chilly temperatures reported that morning: Deer Park 29 degrees, National Weather Service Office (Spokane) 32 degrees, and Sandpoint 34 degrees.

One reason people move to this area is the setting. Nestled among the mountains, Sandpoint sits on the shore of Lake Pend Oreille. But a growing concern for this community and others like it is the ability to maintain and preserve the quality of the water. Molly McCahon is the coordinator for the Lakeshore Assessment System program, known as Lake-A-Syst, sponsored by Bonner Soil and Water Conservation District. She said the key is to educate property owners at the early stage of land development. She works with landowners on Priest Lake, Twin Lakes and Lake Pend Oreille, instructing them on ways to protect their water from chemicals and environmental pollutants.

Getting recipes from “how Grandma made it,” Vito’s That’s Italian restaurant is now open in the space of the former Sunshine Trader eatery at 1116 W. Ironwood Drive, Coeur d’Alene. With a traditional Italian menu and daily specials, Vito’s is open 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Owner Vito Barbieri, who also had Sunshine Trader, and manager/chef Rich Grow employ 10 people to help serve a maximum of 68 customers. All items are made from scratch, Grow says, with the lunch menu including Italian grinder sandwiches and with nightly dinner specials. They also offer beer and wine.

Sunday Adrian Xavier (Reggae) – 3 p.m., Schweitzer Village, 10000 Schweitzer Mountain Road, Sandpoint, (877) 487-4643.

Filings from Aug. 18-26. Chapter 7 (liquidation petitions)

Coeur d’Alene

For 09-06-2009

Weekly Events Women’s Bible Study – Wednesdays, 10 a.m.-noon at Hayden Bible Church. (208) 772-2511

There are about two and a half weeks of summer left, with the first day of fall occurring on Sept. 22 this year. September is usually a pretty dry month in Spokane, with average rainfall (.76 inches) on par with July (.76 inches). Coeur d’Alene sees more of an increase in precipitation, from an average of .96 inches in July to 1.58 inches in September. Average highs and lows continue their downward trend this month from the upper 70s and lower 50s, respectively, at the beginning of the month, to the upper 60s and lower 40s at the end of the month. Spokane has never seen measurable snow during September, but late-month cold storms may result in some graupel (soft hail) which many folks like to put in the same category as snowfall. One of the events that has been noticeably missing so far this summer has been the dust storm. Though I don’t believe there are any statistics regarding how many dust storms we see each summer, or even what thresholds of dust and wind are required for a storm to be labeled as such, it seems like one always occurs sometime during mid or late summer.

BOISE – Two Idaho congressmen appeared together last week in an unusual double-bill at the City Club of Boise, dubbed “Red Elephant, Blue Dog, A Conversation.” The two were Republican 2nd District Rep. Mike Simpson and Democratic 1st District Rep. Walt Minnick. Sitting collegially side by side, the two answered questions from a crowd of more than 400 and said they do work together despite coming from different parties.

COEUR D’ALENE – The Coeur d’Alene Rotary Club and the Coeur d’Alene Parks Foundation have invited the community to attend a dedication ceremony for the Fallen Heroes Memorial Plaza on Friday at 5:30 p.m. at Cherry Hill Park. The memorial includes five 12-foot-tall sculptures of public safety officers. The sculptures were designed by regional artist Brian M. Schmid. They are dedicated to Idaho firefighters and law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty throughout Idaho’s history.

Classes for toddlers through senior citizens are available at Syringa Ballet Academy, which opens Tuesday in Coeur d’Alene. Veteran teacher and ballerina Heather Rutherford’s school is at 1928 Fourth St. The 900-square-foot facility that formerly housed the Affordable Elegance formal wear shop includes a dance floor, dressing room and parents’ viewing area. Classes will teach performance, flexibility, posture, choreography and some ballet history.

What are the causes of low oxygen levels in Hauser Lake? That is one of the questions that will be asked during the Hauser Lake Watershed Coalition’s fourth annual Poker Run.

If you think the potential race between incumbent Mike Kennedy and challenger Jim Brannon is your typical City Council race, think again. Linda Cook has been busy soliciting $49 contributions from Repubs for Brannon, to keep them $1 below the spending limit for public disclosure. Meanwhile, leading state Demos, like Congressman Walt Minnick and Boise Mayor Dave Bieter, were part of a Boise fundraiser for Kennedy. In an e-mail intercepted at Huckleberries Online, Cook announced that she was seeking doughnations to “stop the ambitious Mr. Kennedy before his plans for higher office make him too expensive to stop.” After mentioning that Brannon will bring “accountability and transparency” to City Hall, Cook continues: “$49 will keep you from having to be named on the Sunshine Report (I know it’s a small town and sometimes discretions is best).” Kennedy, on the other hand, made no ap-hollow-gies for the Aug. 20 fundraiser hosted by ex-congressional wannabe Dan Williams. Kennedy commented at Huckleberries Online that he wants to be sure he has the money to respond “swiftly and totally” to the smear campaign he expects this fall. Let the games begin. And they’re off