Category: Opinion

Opinion

Emboldened haters not welcome

By Nishelle Gonzales
Reader Contributor

Owning a handyman and contracting company has been a great way to interact and learn about our diverse local community. We get to assist everyone …

An ‘ungracious’ prayer

By Zach Hagadone
Reader Staff

Any halfway diligent reader of the Reader since December 2004 is familiar with my coverage of city decisions, trends and politics. They may also have …

Eat a peach

By Ben Olson
Reader Staff

In Shakey, Jimmy McDonough’s massive 750-page biography of Neil Young, he described the moment when Young bailed on Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young midway …

The Lumberjill: Generation WTF

By Jen Jackson Quintano
Reader Columnist

<insert deep, fortifying breath here as I contemplate raising a girl at this particular time in history>

<insert long, drawn-out f-bomb as I stall …

Looking back

By Erik Daarstad
Reader Contributor

Having grown up during World War II and lived under German occupation for five years, I watched the planes drop the bombs that killed my …

The birds in my wall

By Ben Olson
Reader Staff

There’s a bird that lives in my wall. Actually, there’s a whole family of them in there, jostling around, chirping, fussing and pecking.

I first …

Letters

  • Wanting clarity from Avista… Dear Editor, Avista is increasing electric rates for North Idaho, saying it’s to “cover costs accumulated in 2016.” However, another testimony claims it’s planning to spend $24.2 million between 2017 and 2019 on additions to Colstrip, a coal-fired power plant in Montana. So, which is it? And what is being “added” ...
  • Deepest Gratitude… Dear Editor, Ninety years of entertaining Sandpoint was highlighted last Saturday by a very talented crew, a handful of staff and volunteers and enjoyed by a special audience of those reminiscing and celebrating the evening. The celebration started with a special art show reception in the Panida Little Theatre with art ...
  • Gun Laws Do Save Lives… Dear Editor, The gun lobby and its followers claim that laws designed to stop gun violence fail -- even in the recent wake of two white Americans using automatic rifles slaughtering 84 citizens and injuring hundreds more. Turn to Australia (a country with a similar gun culture)  which in 1996, after a ...
  • The Tip of the Iceberg… Dear Editor, With Republicans in control of the House and Senate and Trump in the White House, you would think Congress could manage to pass some of their wish-list legislation. Yet, it’s difficult to see any constructive success, aside from: failed attempts at dismantling health care and threats to abolish Social ...
  • NFL Players… Dear Editor, As a veteran who risked his life for our country, I don’t believe that those NFL players taking a knee or banding together during the playing of our national anthem are being disrespectful of our flag. They are exercising their First Amendment rights to peacefully protest issues — a right ...
Close [x]

Want to support independent local journalism?

The Sandpoint Reader is our town's local, independent weekly newspaper. "Independent" means that the Reader is locally owned, in a partnership between Publisher Ben Olson and Keokee Co. Publishing, the media company owned by Chris Bessler that also publishes Sandpoint Magazine and Sandpoint Online. Sandpoint Reader LLC is a completely independent business unit; no big newspaper group or corporate conglomerate or billionaire owner dictates our editorial policy. And we want the news, opinion and lifestyle stories we report to be freely available to all interested readers - so unlike many other newspapers and media websites, we have NO PAYWALL on our website. The Reader relies wholly on the support of our valued advertisers, as well as readers who voluntarily contribute. Want to ensure that local, independent journalism survives in our town? You can help support the Reader for as little as $1.