The other day I read about once-thriving rural Midwestern towns losing population — and a basic amenity of life: their grocery stores. This set me to thinking. How is it that while so many rural communities wither, we, tucked away in the upper reaches of an isolated rural valley, have four grocery stores that are not only […]
Hello?
Doing something about the weather
Wilbur Ross, the “Bankruptcy King,” has rendered a public service to the republic that commands our attention. Ross is our nation’s Secretary of Commerce. During the last government shutdown he confessed that he couldn’t understand why unpaid furloughed federal workers were going to food banks when they could get loans to put food on the […]
Unlikely visitors to the Methow
On July 25, some unlikely visitors knocked on the door of Methownet.com’s online bulletin board in Winthrop, asking permission to join our community dialogue. Thirteen tapped in from Russia. One was from Finland, another from France. All were denied entry by Methownet’s cyber bouncer — not a bot nor an algorithm but an actual human, eagle-eyed April […]
How to de-Americanize America
“The demographics race we’re losing badly. We’re not generating enough angry white guys to stay in business for the long term.” — Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina at the 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa. Trigger warning: Today’s subject is white supremacy and the Republican Party. So here’s where our “nation of immigrants” is, people: […]
‘There will always be an England’
This week the 2020 presidential election season formally begins with the first Democratic debates. Steadying infusions of comic relief will be required if we’re to survive the next 16 months. And there’s rarely a more reliable source of comedic relief than the Brits. Our country has become a laughingstock. Our executive branch, a convocation of […]
Bungling a teachable moment
Ok, let’s agree that Harvey Weinstein, the Hollywood producer accused of sexual assault or harassment by 87 women, appears to have behaved despicably and unlawfully. And let’s agree that educational institutions principally exist to dispense knowledge meant to prepare the young to cope in a world where they soon will be the deciders. Which brings […]
Your watchdogs don’t bark
“Elections have consequences.” — Mick Mulvaney, then-acting-director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, explaining why he zeroed out the consumer bureau’s budget request. When you take your child for a spin in a stroller or tuck your baby into a sleeper, you trust the stroller and sleeper are safe for children. When you take a bite of […]
Good news for the president
“We are alarmed by new calls to adopt socialism in our country.” — Donald Trump, 2019 State of the Union address One of my favorite New Yorker cartoons shows an exasperated father trying to cajole a reluctant, pajama-clad child to go to sleep. Lifting up the bedding so the child can peer beneath the bed, the […]
Here come the Democrats
This one’s not for you, Republicans. Please move along quietly. You’ve had your fair share. This one’s for Democrats, who are about to be bathed in barrels of ink long spilled, to such poor effect, on you. Revealing an unsuspected appetite for bedlam, Republicans have taken a wrecking ball to the Republic. Democrats promise to […]
Let’s burn more oil
“We strongly believe that no country should have to sacrifice their [sic] economic prosperity or energy security in pursuit of environmental sustainability.” – Wells Griffith, President Trump’s international energy and climate adviser, United Nations climate meeting, Poland Dec. 10, 2018 Here’s an idea for a New Year’s resolution: Burn more oil. It’s the economy, Stupid. […]
