I have some large, beautiful pear trees at home. Spring is a glorious time, when they are festooned with blossom and the air is sweet with their scent. I have had occasion to observe these trees for o
All the fuss over whether the “surge” is a credible strategy, whether or not to schedule a troop withdrawal from Iraq or continue funding the war kinda misses the main point with which Americans still
Our invisible Congressman, Rick Larsen, has finally had his way with that pesky protester, Ellen Murphy. In order to ensure his privacy from prying constituents, Larsen had the local constabulary haul
According to the Washington Post, “President Bush warned Thursday that pulling out of Iraq too soon would trigger a bloodbath akin to that of the Cambodian killing fields of the 1970s, while Senate Ma
Independent media? Freedom of the press? Peoples friend, tyrants foe? It was a good idea while it lasted, educating the electorate and forming a mainstay of our democracy. Now, we’ve either elected Bu
According to the Bellingham Herald, the Washington State Department of Natural Resources has recently approved leaving tons of mercury buried in Bellingham Bay. The documents are not yet readily avail
New Whatcom Redevelopment Project - The City and Port of Bellingham will hold public information a meeting. Bellingham Cruise Terminal. 355 Harris Ave., Bellingham. WA Times: 6:00 PM.
How did Don Gischer get elected in the first 5 seconds of voting? The Bellingham City Council voted 4 -2 last Wednesday to appoint Don to fill Joan Beardsley’s position until we voters elect someone i
Well, KGMI was fun this morning, although discussing gas prices was not the category I have the most to contribute to. After the show, one more phone call was taken from a caller who did not want to b
I’ll be on KGMI Radio Monday morning, 8 to 9 am, discussing local issues with and at the invitation of Jeffrey Lustick, the temporary host. Any suggestions on topics? john@nwcitizen.us Yes, we will b
Note on below article: Below is a report on some shenanigans by Whatcom County employees and our Whatcom County Court system. On Wednesday, I went to the courthouse to attend a 2 pm hearing for a r
Don Gischer was appointed to the Bellingham City Council this evening to serve until the end of November when a new council representative will be elected. The council voted 4 to 2 for Don on the firs
At the Ellen Murphy hearing yesterday virtually nothing happened and it lasted about a minute. Ellen’s attorney, Joe Pemberton, told judge Lev that in light of the changes in the charges by the city t
I’m informed that the court did allow the change of times on the arrest warrants at the Motion Hearing last Monday. This information was not in the court file I was given to look at. So it seems judg
Rick Larsen’s attitude towards those citizens who are against the war in Iraq is exposed. In the case against Ellen Murphy by US Rep. Rick Larsen and the city of Bellingham, here is a statement from t
The person on the Bench in Bellingham’s Municipal Court said today (Monday, Mar 26) that citizens have no right to be heard by our public officials, that participation in democracy is voting and no mo
Six of the seven Bellingham City Council members could be new next January. Only Barbara Ryan is sure to be back. By filing week Friday, June 8, we may know for sure that three will be new - if Bob Ry
Writer's notes: The candidates for State Representative in the 40th District Position 1 are: Dusty Gulleson (prefers Republican Party,) Chuck Carrell (prefers Republican Party,) Doug Revelle (prefers Happiness Party,) Mike Newman (prefers Republican Party,) Kristine Lytton (prefers Democratic Party,) Tom Pasma (prefers Democratic Party,) Thomas Boucher (prefers Democratic Party,) Justin Van Dyk (prefers Democratic Party,) and Donna R. Miller (prefers Republican Party.)
What follows are the two responses to questions I submitted to Chuck last Mon, Aug 2.
Why should I vote for you?
"I’m running this year because the Legislature and Governor continued their out of control spending habits despite our troubled economy, and we need to stop it.
The only way it will stop is to start electing strong leadership to the Legislature that can make the hard choices that will be needed.
I will not support any new taxes unless they will completely eliminate an existing tax and make the amount less overall to the people they affect.
I think people are taxed to their limit right now and the real long term solution is to have the state and local governments cut their spending and get back to the essential functions of what state government is supposed to do.
I will not accept money from, or be a representative for, any PAC or special interest group. That’s important when figuring out where to trim at least $3 billion dollars from our state’s budget next session.
When making cuts, these candidates will feel obligated to keep unnecessary programs due to the financial aid they received during their campaigns. The problem was highlighted this year, and electing those types of candidates will only bring the same issue to the next Legislative session."
What is important to you?
"The most important thing to me this next Legislative session is getting our fiscal house in order.
We need to simplify the tax structure and then get an accurate assessment of what the state budget will be.
Then we need to REALISTICALLY balance the budget. This means that we fund our most important things such as education and public safety first and then continue down until everything is funded or there is no more state money left.
When the state budget is down to zero then we stop funding programs. No matter how badly we want to fund a program, if the state budget is spent then they will have to get their funding someplace else besides state government.
Even within our top priorities we need to look at how to consolidate these agencies and programs to make them more efficient. We also need to look at reducing the middle management in these agencies and what I term “inner bureaucracies.”
Years of these types of hiring practices by state and local government has created an enormous drain on our resources and is not sustainable. Nor can we rely on Federal grants like we did this year to balance the budget."
