10/08/08 Letters to the Editor - To the editor -- Mental Illness Awareness Week is Oct. 5-11. That same week, our presidential candidates will hold a "town hall debate" in which up to a quarter of the audience are likely to have experienced a mental illness. That's b...MORE...

Owen deserves another term - One thing stands out in a review of the duties of the office of lieutenant governor: It is pretty much what the officeholder wants to make it. Technically, the state Constitution requires that the lieutenant governor fill in as governor if the state's chi...MORE...

Incumbent Reed wears all three hats with distinction - Election reforms launched by the secretary of state's office in recent years have grabbed most of the headlines, so it might be easy to overlook two other important duties assigned to that office beyond being chief elections officer: chief corporations of...MORE...

It's time for endorsements; we'll have plenty - The state's first "top two" primary election is over, and now the two finalists in various races square off for the Nov. 4 general election. Our annual quest to stimulate interest in local and statewide election campaigns gets serious Wednesday when we pu...MORE...

10/07/08 Letters to the Editor - To the editor -- Wake up, America! We face a national election of tremendous importance. The obliteration of the middle class is close (something Thomas Wolfe warned of in his masterpiece "You Can't Go Home Again"), unless we, as voters, do...MORE...

Tough part now is making the bailout work - There's a lot of talk about "bold" in the nation's capital when referring to congressional passage of a measure that will provide some $700 billion-plus to bail out Wall Street and the nation's financial community. Frankly, we see it more as "bald" -- as ...MORE...

10/06/08 Letters to the Editor - Farias for commissioner To the editor -- Look what Jesse Farias has done for Wapato! For example, he was instrumental in working with the Yakama Nation and Yakama Nation Housing Authority to find funds to open and maintain the Wapato city pool for two yea...MORE...

10/05/08 Letters to the Editor - Developer's threats To the editor -- So the city of Yakima's hearing examiner has decided a verbal threat from the developer to build tall buildings of manufactured construction (do they even exist?) is the only requirement to reconvene the appeal process...MORE...

Michoacán attack warrants attention and condemnation - A cowardly, and fatal, Sept. 15 grenade attack on civilians in Morelia, Mexico, doesn't generate the same level of worldwide concern as suicide bombers in Iraq, but it certainly reverberates throughout Central Washington. We share the anguish and outrage...MORE...

Take out the trashing: Candidates should shape up - Wednesday's gubernatorial debate in the historic Capitol Theatre was OK as debates go, but voters who care more about issues than partisan, sound-bite sniping had reason to be disappointed. Maybe Gov. Chris Gregoire, the Democrat, and challenger Dino Ross...MORE...

10/03/08 Letters to the Editor - Adult retail, RIP To the editor -- On Sept. 18, the Urban Area Regional Planning Commission voted in favor of an ordinance that will literally be the death of adult retail in Yakima. I don't see how any of these small businesses can comply with proposed "...MORE...

Cities brainstorm sharing services and saving money - Those of us in this business get a pretty good overview of local government at work day-to-day and one thing that has become increasingly clear in recent times: Given increasing demands for services and limited ways to raise money to pay for them, there i...MORE...

10/02/08 Letters to the Editor - To the editor -- I am writing to support Vickie Ybarra's election as our 14th District Position 1 representative. I have known and worked with Vickie and respect her leadership, nursing expertise and education needs' awareness. Ha...MORE...