Category: Opinion

Opinion

A North Idaho pandemic: Then & Now

By Lyndsie Kiebert
Reader Staff

For everyone alive in North Idaho today, the novel coronavirus outbreak is uncharted territory.

Across the world, leadership is suspending gatherings, closing schools and encouraging …

A few thoughts…

By Sandy Compton
Reader Columnist

Darn! It’s already March. November is coming up fast, and I declared my 2020 candidacy for president back when the Trump got elected, but then …

Taking a shot — Part 1

By Marjolein Groot Nibbelink
Reader Contributor

More than 97 guns are owned per 100 people in the United States. Serbia is second, with 58 per 100, and Yemen third with …

Happy [bleep] year

By Ben Olson
Reader Staff

I received a breaking news alert on my phone on Feb. 2, 2020, announcing the fact that the day’s palindromic date (02/02/2020) is the only …

I want my America back

By James Richard Johnson
Special to the Reader

I want my America back! I grew up in the Midwest in the 1950s and want back the America that stood for …

Love is a Dog From Hell

By Ben Olson
Reader Staff

The headline of this article comes from a book by poet and author Charles Bukowski, who lived a bitter, drunken existence periodically punctuated by moments …

Letters

  • Support Our Schools… Dear Editor, When our family moved to Sandpoint in 2012, we quickly realized that our new home boasted a unique culture centered on community. We have had the pleasure to immerse ourselves into the culture of Bonner Country and Sandpoint, which has proven very rewarding for us and our children. We have ...
  • Vote for Betterment of our Village… Dear Editor, I am a retired single woman. I own my own home in Sandpoint and pay property taxes. I don’t directly use any of the public schools. But indirectly the services provided by our schools have huge impacts on my quality of life. Some of those students will become doctors, ...
  • Wilderness is Multi-Use… Dear Editor, To no one’s surprise, the Clark Fork City Council is opposed to a Scotchman Peaks Wilderness. They oppose the designation or want it reduced in size and recommend “returning surrounding areas to multiple use management.” Multiple use was mandated in The Multiple Use - Sustained Yield Act of 1960. This ...
  • Protect Wilderness… Dear Editor, I am writing this letter in support of wilderness designation for the Scotchman Peaks area. I have enjoyed hiking and backpacking in the Scotchman Peaks area ever since I first moved here (30 years ago). There is nothing I love to do more than strap on my hiking boots ...
  • Chamber Supports Levy… Dear Editor, The Greater Sandpoint Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors supports the renewal of the Lake Pend Oreille School District Levy. A ‘yes’ vote on March 14 will replace the current levy and help the school district maintain our academic programs, technology and extracurricular activities. This levy funds one-third of all ...
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.