A Venue for Citizen Journalists
Thanks to generous donations from readers, this site is renovated and improved.
Affordability has been a ruse for creating market rate housing.
Represent Us and Our Interests. Please!
Local action in support of a proposal to rebuild nationwide infrastructure
Who’s Superman when you need him? We are.
From Musk’s big investment all the way to local campaigns, political “contributions” will be re-paid. Here’s how.
Private banks are fighting hard to keep us from starting our own state bank. There’s a reason.
To be so manifestly unqualified and yet not be deeply aware of that speaks exactly to the very point of not being qualified.
Chaos likely to ensue. Catastrophe cannot be ruled out.
There is no escape from the deep-throated roar and the clouds of filth produced by these machines.
A perspective from a very old liberal political junkie.
Deeds, not talk, count on Veterans Day
Several days ago, I received the following from Veterans Service Officer (VSO), Liz Witowski, of the Whatcom County Veterans Program (items below in bold are mine). On this Veterans Day, the
An off-budget $5 Trillion National Infrastructure Bank (NIB), along the lines of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) that operated between 1932-1957, means low-cost loans and no additions to the deficit.
Medicare Advantage is NOT Medicare. Medicare is there to provide health care. Medicare Advantage is a business, there to make money.
David Swanson verifies what Jon Humphrey has said for years: good internet access benefits people, cities, counties, and states.
Or perhaps tragic farce or farcical tragedy might be more apt descriptors. Pick one, or both.
After nearly 30 years online, and literally being one of the oldest blogs on the internet, Northwest Citizen needs a major programming overhaul. To do so, we need your help.
The top 20% of commercial banks in the United States control 95% of our total banking assets. Remember “Too-Big-to-Fail”?
The City has created another useless document ensuring nothing changes and mediocre communication services are protected.
Why a vote for Jason Call for Congress is a good vote for conservatives, liberals, Democrats and Republicans. Yes, an unusual idea.
Heaven forbid our reps should attack the main problem, Medicare Advantage, head on. But no. They must nibble around the edges to give the appearance of doing something.
Morally significant double binds force doctors and combat soldiers into identical life and death quandaries, damaging their moral centers. To these two groups we can also add law enforcement officers.
Eric Hirst gives us a brief and clear explanation of the water adjudication process that is beginning now in Whatcom County
“Citing the nonpartisan Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, the paper  [Less Care at Higher Cost—The Medicare Advantage Paradox] notes that Medicare Advantage (MA) plans have overcharged the
Aggressive citizen involvement carried the day.
Build-for-profit, incarceration-inspired housing is destroying our souls.
A 54-photo tour of the ruptured pipe area of the Whatcom Creek explosion taken in July 1999.
The last of the scrap metal is loaded on the ship and it will be gone from our town.
Below is an audio tape of 911 calls, emergency responders’ radio communications, and local radio coverage from June 10, 1999 when Whatcom Creek exploded in Bellingham
Whatcom County’s confusing water rights will be defined by court proceedings beginning now
The foam of secrecy hides all.
If not killed-in-action, they are still dying from the effects of their service in Vietnam.
Local presentations scheduled on a reasonable use framework for water resource management
Broadband-Washing: Greenwashing the Internet
Pacific Northwest organizers join a global campaign to abolish all nukes and push for a city council resolution to start
If the hospitals are smelling a rat, so should Medicare (Dis)Advantage victims (AKA enrollees).
With such a bank in place, we would likely not be scrambling around and asking Congress for rebuild monies, as we are now with the catastrophic event involving the Francis Scott Key bridge on March 26, 2024.
Port of Bellingham commissioners terminate last 13 years of ABC Recycling lease
No public fiber means we can’t compete with big telecom. EVER.

Candidate Statement: Atul Deshmane for County Council

Candidate Statement: Atul Deshmane for County Council

Candidate Statement: Atul Deshmane for County Council

Whatcom County Council At Large position, voted on by all residents of the county.

I've lived in Whatcom County 21 years and raised my kids here on a small working farm. I have devoted my professional life to big causes. First as an engineer but now as a policy leader.

I’ve wanted to serve in local government my whole life. My Dad suggested I work in the ‘real world’ first so I worked in big and small companies as: manager, salesman, engineer, and entrepreneur. About 7 years ago I started by applying for and being appointed as a County Planning Commissioner. Then I ran for and was elected as a Public Utility District Commissioner (PUD). I’ve been learning how to serve the community better and better. I want to continue doing this. I want to get greater County support for broadband and clean energy that I initiated at the PUD. I want to improve how advisory committees work so that they actually capture the wants and needs of the community. Both commissions I have served on are running significantly better than when I joined them.

I've worked with our local governments and leaders to implement new policies. I have: spearheaded Whatcom PUD's adoption of countywide broadband; re-envisioned and established new Cherry Point land use practices that protected the environment and jobs; and prioritized and passed new Wind Energy Codes. I have done the work and earned the trust of our leaders and organizations and will leverage that trust for all of you.

Whatcom County homelessness and our approach to the justice system are the top two issues our community is facing. I have spent many hours with people working on the front lines with these vulnerable populations. I have also personally experienced violence on the street and provided aid to individuals on the street. Some community members are feeling less safe in the last few years. Many community leaders are struggling for solutions and saying that “we have to do something”. Right now the approach Whatcom County is taking is to embrace more incarceration and more sweeps. 

I have published plans in two documents: “The Big Lift” and “Reimagining Public Safety”. These documents are linked off of my policy website VoteAtul.info. I welcome input on all my policy ideas. I am not trying to be right. I am trying to do my job. These ideas are bold but we need bold action. The core of the “Big Lift” is a guarantee of shelter. Why guarantee shelter? Because letting people squander on the street costs us more money and trauma. You simply cannot throw people away. I want to “Reimagine Public Safety” by respecting our first responders needs (Police, Emergency, Social Workers, etc…). They need a place to take people that provides a ‘warm handoff’. We need minimum security facilities to contain and redirect people into services (cost less, faster). 

On the County Council I will have three areas of focus: Resilience, Livability, and Safety. Our community is in a crisis around housing, homelessness, and our justice system. We are facing a water adjudication. Our climate is changing. Whatcom needs seasoned leaders demonstrating maturity, dedication, creativity and persistence. I take a collaborative and positive approach but I challenge others when public interest demands.

I have several patents but I still raise my own meat, eggs, and vegetables. I developed electric vehicle and renewable diesel technology but I still bike commute. I like simple solutions. VoteAtul.com.

*****

Editor note:  Each candidate for elective public office in Whatcom County is invited to submit a statement for posting on NW Citizen. For specifics, click here.



- Commenting is closed -

Candidate Statement: Atul Deshmane for County Council

Candidate Statement: Atul Deshmane for County Council

Candidate Statement: Atul Deshmane for County Council

Whatcom County Council At Large position, voted on by all residents of the county.

I've lived in Whatcom County 21 years and raised my kids here on a small working farm. I have devoted my professional life to big causes. First as an engineer but now as a policy leader.

I’ve wanted to serve in local government my whole life. My Dad suggested I work in the ‘real world’ first so I worked in big and small companies as: manager, salesman, engineer, and entrepreneur. About 7 years ago I started by applying for and being appointed as a County Planning Commissioner. Then I ran for and was elected as a Public Utility District Commissioner (PUD). I’ve been learning how to serve the community better and better. I want to continue doing this. I want to get greater County support for broadband and clean energy that I initiated at the PUD. I want to improve how advisory committees work so that they actually capture the wants and needs of the community. Both commissions I have served on are running significantly better than when I joined them.

I've worked with our local governments and leaders to implement new policies. I have: spearheaded Whatcom PUD's adoption of countywide broadband; re-envisioned and established new Cherry Point land use practices that protected the environment and jobs; and prioritized and passed new Wind Energy Codes. I have done the work and earned the trust of our leaders and organizations and will leverage that trust for all of you.

Whatcom County homelessness and our approach to the justice system are the top two issues our community is facing. I have spent many hours with people working on the front lines with these vulnerable populations. I have also personally experienced violence on the street and provided aid to individuals on the street. Some community members are feeling less safe in the last few years. Many community leaders are struggling for solutions and saying that “we have to do something”. Right now the approach Whatcom County is taking is to embrace more incarceration and more sweeps. 

I have published plans in two documents: “The Big Lift” and “Reimagining Public Safety”. These documents are linked off of my policy website VoteAtul.info. I welcome input on all my policy ideas. I am not trying to be right. I am trying to do my job. These ideas are bold but we need bold action. The core of the “Big Lift” is a guarantee of shelter. Why guarantee shelter? Because letting people squander on the street costs us more money and trauma. You simply cannot throw people away. I want to “Reimagine Public Safety” by respecting our first responders needs (Police, Emergency, Social Workers, etc…). They need a place to take people that provides a ‘warm handoff’. We need minimum security facilities to contain and redirect people into services (cost less, faster). 

On the County Council I will have three areas of focus: Resilience, Livability, and Safety. Our community is in a crisis around housing, homelessness, and our justice system. We are facing a water adjudication. Our climate is changing. Whatcom needs seasoned leaders demonstrating maturity, dedication, creativity and persistence. I take a collaborative and positive approach but I challenge others when public interest demands.

I have several patents but I still raise my own meat, eggs, and vegetables. I developed electric vehicle and renewable diesel technology but I still bike commute. I like simple solutions. VoteAtul.com.

*****

Editor note:  Each candidate for elective public office in Whatcom County is invited to submit a statement for posting on NW Citizen. For specifics, click here.



- Commenting is closed -
A Venue for Citizen Journalists
Thanks to generous donations from readers, this site is renovated and improved.
Affordability has been a ruse for creating market rate housing.
Represent Us and Our Interests. Please!
Local action in support of a proposal to rebuild nationwide infrastructure
Who’s Superman when you need him? We are.
From Musk’s big investment all the way to local campaigns, political “contributions” will be re-paid. Here’s how.
Private banks are fighting hard to keep us from starting our own state bank. There’s a reason.
To be so manifestly unqualified and yet not be deeply aware of that speaks exactly to the very point of not being qualified.
Chaos likely to ensue. Catastrophe cannot be ruled out.
There is no escape from the deep-throated roar and the clouds of filth produced by these machines.
A perspective from a very old liberal political junkie.
Deeds, not talk, count on Veterans Day
Several days ago, I received the following from Veterans Service Officer (VSO), Liz Witowski, of the Whatcom County Veterans Program (items below in bold are mine). On this Veterans Day, the
An off-budget $5 Trillion National Infrastructure Bank (NIB), along the lines of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) that operated between 1932-1957, means low-cost loans and no additions to the deficit.
Medicare Advantage is NOT Medicare. Medicare is there to provide health care. Medicare Advantage is a business, there to make money.
David Swanson verifies what Jon Humphrey has said for years: good internet access benefits people, cities, counties, and states.
Or perhaps tragic farce or farcical tragedy might be more apt descriptors. Pick one, or both.
After nearly 30 years online, and literally being one of the oldest blogs on the internet, Northwest Citizen needs a major programming overhaul. To do so, we need your help.
The top 20% of commercial banks in the United States control 95% of our total banking assets. Remember “Too-Big-to-Fail”?
The City has created another useless document ensuring nothing changes and mediocre communication services are protected.
Why a vote for Jason Call for Congress is a good vote for conservatives, liberals, Democrats and Republicans. Yes, an unusual idea.
Heaven forbid our reps should attack the main problem, Medicare Advantage, head on. But no. They must nibble around the edges to give the appearance of doing something.
Morally significant double binds force doctors and combat soldiers into identical life and death quandaries, damaging their moral centers. To these two groups we can also add law enforcement officers.
Eric Hirst gives us a brief and clear explanation of the water adjudication process that is beginning now in Whatcom County
“Citing the nonpartisan Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, the paper  [Less Care at Higher Cost—The Medicare Advantage Paradox] notes that Medicare Advantage (MA) plans have overcharged the
Aggressive citizen involvement carried the day.
Build-for-profit, incarceration-inspired housing is destroying our souls.
A 54-photo tour of the ruptured pipe area of the Whatcom Creek explosion taken in July 1999.
The last of the scrap metal is loaded on the ship and it will be gone from our town.
Below is an audio tape of 911 calls, emergency responders’ radio communications, and local radio coverage from June 10, 1999 when Whatcom Creek exploded in Bellingham
Whatcom County’s confusing water rights will be defined by court proceedings beginning now
The foam of secrecy hides all.
If not killed-in-action, they are still dying from the effects of their service in Vietnam.
Local presentations scheduled on a reasonable use framework for water resource management
Broadband-Washing: Greenwashing the Internet
Pacific Northwest organizers join a global campaign to abolish all nukes and push for a city council resolution to start
If the hospitals are smelling a rat, so should Medicare (Dis)Advantage victims (AKA enrollees).
With such a bank in place, we would likely not be scrambling around and asking Congress for rebuild monies, as we are now with the catastrophic event involving the Francis Scott Key bridge on March 26, 2024.
Port of Bellingham commissioners terminate last 13 years of ABC Recycling lease
No public fiber means we can’t compete with big telecom. EVER.