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Gary Crooks

This individual is no longer an employee with The Spokesman-Review.

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Opinion >  Syndicated columns

Smart Bombs: Fear is awfully fearsome

Shortly after the election of President Barack Obama, there was a mad dash to gun shops for the types of weapons and ammunition that many folks feared the new president would outlaw. Shortly thereafter, this “gun-grabber” signed a bill allowing people to carry guns in national parks. He overturned the ban authored by Wyoming cowboy and then-Interior Secretary James Watt. Just think of the hype if this buying spree were followed by an actual law that justified it.
Opinion

Run government like this?

The next time you hear someone say we should run government like a business, ask, “Which ones?” The ones that have computers call you with take-it-or-leave-it delivery times? The ones that cancel appointments shortly before – and sometimes after – their scheduled arrival times? The ones that bash bid competitors rather than doing necessary measurements and calculations? The ones that outsource customer service to folks who struggle mightily with the language you speak?
Opinion

These men show some initiative

Last year, I lamented: “How did education become the chief concern of women?” Fresh on my mind was a presentation by the League of Education Voters, where only a handful of men were sprinkled among the many women in attendance. Plus, three Spokane mothers were making headlines with their efforts to restore library funding.
Opinion

Society needs a jailbreak

Nice article in Friday’s paper about the new playground in Spokane Valley. The secondary headline says it all: “New Discovery Playground offers education through play.” Sure beats this headline from April 15 in the New York Daily News: “City paints over Brooklyn ‘jail’ playground with space-age replacement.” Yes, a Brooklyn playground had a jail-themed jungle gym in the middle of a housing project. And just in case the kids didn’t get the message, the word “Jail” was helpfully included. Neighbors complained for years to no avail, but when the jail finally made the headlines, the city acted. While the bureaucratic culprits might not have wanted to send the message that some children are set up to fail, it is still true that society is following this path.