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Opinion

April 30, 2013

State budgets are in disarray

When an errant SUV crashes through your picture window, you may not notice that your barbecue tipped over and caught your house on fire. So it is with the U.S. economy these days. All the focus on our national debt, sequester cuts and federal tax increases is obscuring a smoldering problem in the states. Declining tax revenues, budget deficits and underfunded pensions have legislatures scrambling for revenue. Many states are taxing and borrowing more just to make ends meet.

April 30, 2013

‘Challenge’ comes to a close

Nearly one year ago, the mayors of Camas and Washougal, along with nearly 500 residents of the local communities, embarked on a weight loss challenge and friendly competition between the two cities. "Camas and Washougal on a Diet" began with an event at Capt. William Clark Park. Mayors Scott Higgins and Sean Guard stepped up to do what most of us wouldn't dream of -- get weighed in public, and then have those numbers announced over a loud speaker for all to hear. For that alone, these two people deserve a round of applause.

April 23, 2013

Letters to the Editor for April 23, 2013

WFD volunteer program in trouble? I write this letter in an attempt to convey my thoughts and fear in regards to the consolidation of the Camas and Washougal fire departments.

April 16, 2013

Shows of support

Yesterday, an event that took place thousands of miles away, shook this country -- deeply. As of this morning, reports are that three people were killed, including an 8-year-old boy, and more than 175 people were injured when two bombs detonated near the finish line of the popular Boston Marathon.

April 16, 2013

Letters to Editor for April 16, 2013

Leave Humane Society alone I was quite angry after reading the article about the West Columbia Gorge Humane Society being harassed by the owner of a neighboring company.

April 9, 2013

Letters to the Editor for April 9, 2013

County Commissioners should not endorse religion It is coercive for officials of government agencies, whose salaries are paid by all taxpayers, to open their meetings with a "prayer" in facilities that are paid for by all taxpayers.

April 9, 2013

Happy birthday Camas library!

Ninety years ago, when the Washougal Women's Club opened the first library in downtown Camas, they may not have known the impact they would be making on future generations of Camasonians. That first library was housed in Arthur Thayer's drug store, located across the street from the paper mill's offices. The facility loaned out books donated by local residents, and the state's traveling library.

April 2, 2013

Local treasure re-opens to the community

The Gibbons Creek Wildlife Art Trail, a true treasure in our community, re-opened to the public on Friday, nearly six months after a fire burned 148 acres of the 1,049-acre Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge in Washougal.

April 2, 2013

Citizens should ‘take a stand’

In our scheme of government, we elect representatives to take a stand on issues that affect their constituents. Among those representatives, leaders take a stand. Politicians don't. Leaders study the issues and decide what policy best supports the interests of their constituents as a whole. Politicians take a position based on what is best for the advancement of their own interests.

April 2, 2013

Letters to the Editor for April 2, 2013

Washougal should stay neutral on CRC As a concerned citizen of Washougal, I am opposed to have my city create any kind of a resolution, pro or con, concerning the CRC project. This is a collaborative project that is 11 years in the making, legislatively it concerns the state of Oregon and the state of Washington and our federal government.