March 21, 2019
Student debt draining retiree income
Lots is written about students exiting college saddled with hefty student loans; however, the impact on retired parents went largely unnoticed.
Lots is written about students exiting college saddled with hefty student loans; however, the impact on retired parents went largely unnoticed.
2018 was a particularly challenging year for East County Fire and Rescue (ECFR).
Last Sunday evening, a small group of folks from the congregation I pastor — Camas Friends Church — joined me in a prayer vigil across the street from the Patriot Prayer rally in Washougal. We held candles and prayed silently, mourning victims of gun violence. Those present with me believe the rhetoric and rallies of Patriot Prayer put vulnerable and marginalized folks in danger. We hoped our quiet presence might testify to a broader set of concerns than those being expressed across the street — to something even more fundamentally crucial than felt constitutional rights.
The circumstances leading to Amazon’s decision to scrap its New York City project are trends corporate leaders need to examine closely. There are cultural and political shifts in America which are changing the way business is done.
Leaders in Congress recently reached an agreement with President Trump to temporarily re-open the full federal government. But the threat of another shutdown looms, and the shadow it casts is of concern not only to federal employees but the many who work and partner with federal agencies to protect, steward and preserve the Gorge.
The good news is Washington’s cherry crop is projected to be as good as 2018; however, absent tariff relief from the ongoing United States-China trade tiff, a key market will remain limited.
Necessity, as they say, is the mother of invention. That’s particularly true in difficult times, when “business as usual” no longer works.
“They’ll make adjustments. They always do.”
Many pundits predict American political warfare will worsen in 2019 and grow more ruthless in 2020 — our next presidential election year. The swamp that candidate Donald Trump promised to drain is expanding.
Christmas is a difficult time for anyone grieving the death of a loved one. It is especially hard when they were slain in the line of duty, while protecting our country.
