Both sides should get a say before staff weighs in
The problem with lengthy land-use hearings isn’t that they take many hours most would rather spend at home with family. It’s that citizens feel the decisions have already been made before they ...
Dear garbage goliath: Please give us a break
CEO James C. Fish Jr. Waste Management Inc. First City Tower, Houston Dear Mr. Fish: Your company has come a long way since Dutch immigrant Harm Huizenga began hauling garbage in Chicago in ...
Records czar finds Oregon is no Eden
If your mother says she loves you, ask for a second opinion. That venerable bit of journalistic wisdom is venerated for a reason. Everyone, not just journalists, should view the world with a gimlet eye. OK, ...
Rift stirs nostalgia for return of shared respect
The popularity of the Dragging the Gut Festival, recently reborn as Cruise McMinnville, illustrates the enduring pull of memories forged during a childhood long gone. Dragging the gut. Dropping by the ...
Restoring locks could unlock new potential
Multnomah Falls, which carries Multnomah Creek over a 620-foot drop about 30 miles east of Portland, draws more than 2 million visitors a year. Willamette Falls, which channels the mighty Willamette River ...
Election security deserves a unified vote of confidence
Election security should never be taken for granted. It’s one of the key tools to a strong democracy. But fearmongering about unfounded voter fraud can be equally, if not more, damaging. State and ...
We’re all newcomers in the end
Who are all of these newcomers streaming into our area? Many of them are poor and uneducated. They seem to lack the means to take care of themselves. Unless we do something to stem this influx, they ...
Botched death penalty bill demands legislative action
There are lots of reasons to oppose the death penalty. Among them: It disproportionately targets African Americans, who account for 42 percent of the death row population, but only 12 percent of the overall ...
Enrollment rise offers hope in jittery times
Linfield College will welcome 532 new students this fall, marking its largest enrollment increase in years. That increase represents tremendously good news for a small liberal arts college typically hosting ...
City off to a sound start on corridor planning project
Over the years, city planners have collaborated with state and local agencies, affected interest groups, the business community and the community at large on a variety of projects. Makeover targets have ...
Just say no to reliving past glories
Last week’s Viewpoints cover piece was headlined, “Can our political leaders shake the Curse of Apollo?” In other words, can they forsake the hollow lure of manned flight bragging rights ...
Terms like ‘white privilege’ trigger oversensitive officials
Many people have a hard time understanding the concept of white privilege — often because they are privileged whites who in fact have a hard time understanding any experience other than their own. Exhibit ...
No room at the inn for low income
As Scottish poet Robert Burns wrote almost 250 years ago, “The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” And so it seems with well-meaning city and county plans to foster new housing ...
It’s about a sick society as much as sick people
A 1993 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine concluded a handgun in the home triples the chances someone will be shot and killed there. Horrified, Congress took immediate action. It cut ...
Attend a concert and save a park
One highlight of summer in Yamhill County is always the mid-week concert series hosted by local non-profits and agencies. This year, the McMinnville Parks and Recreation Department is celebrating its ...
