Editorials

Subscribe

Flu vaccines could break transmission cycle

CORVALLIS, Ore. – The value of vaccinating more children and young adults for influenza is being seriously underestimated, experts say in a new report. Conventional wisdom and historic vaccine programs previously concentrated on the elderly and those at higher risk of death and serious complications.

Editorial -- Hang up and drive: One-day cellphone ‘blitz’ serves a broader purpose

Though it’s no game, call it “Cops and Talkers” in Hood River on June 19.

Editorial: Lasting spin -- Travel safely and consider one man’s cycling legacy

Share the road. This is the time of year when awareness of that concept is more important than ever. With summer’s arrival, more and more bicyclists will be recreating, commuting and competing aboard two-wheeled transport. This is magnified by the fact that school will be out on June 12, putting more kids on the road at more hours of the day.

Editorial: Getting behind Community Ed

Encouraging news can be drawn from the May 28 school budget committee meeting regarding the fate of the Community Education program. (Story, page A1.) While officially the county-wide program seems on tenuous terms, it has several things going for it looking ahead to 2013-14: First, the committed and impassioned leadership of director John Rust, who in three years at the helm has redefined of Community Ed and accommodated the major expansion of its role by taking on middle school sports programs.

Editorial: CenturyLink cost-cutting would put public at risk

The biggest provider of landline telephone and Internet service in Oregon wants regulators to let it pare back utility pole maintenance to one-fifth of its current requirement as a cost-cutting measure. In a May 22 Willamette Week article entitled “Down to the wire,” CenturyLink is reported to have asked the Oregon Public Utility Commission to put off routine maintenance of utility poles to 10 years; five times the currently mandated two years.

Editorial -- On the roads: Stay safe this Memorial Day, and take a moment to remember

Despite high gas prices, this year’s Memorial Day weekend is expected to pull high numbers of drivers onto the roads. May all travelers get away and home again safely this weekend and any time they hit the road. What happened on I-5 north of Seattle Thursday is a testament to the unexpected: A freeway bridge collapsed, with three cars falling into the Skagit River below. Miraculously, no one died.

Tease photo

Editorial: LUBA ruling leads to a new opportunity

The steps and bridges that help make up Indian Creek trail are a reasonable allegory to consider with this week’s news that LUBA has sent back to Hood River County the matter of Barrett Park’s future. The LUBA legal decision, rather than a divisive moment, provides an opportunity to come together over Barrett Park. No one at the county level, or in the community, is averse to parks in general.

Editorial: Ballot time

Special Districts election deadline is near

We are not quite at “last chance” for getting ballots in on time, but close to it. Consider Thursday, May 16 as your deadline for mailing in your vote for the May 21 Special Districts election. After that date, a mailed ballot runs the risk of not getting to the county on time.

Editorial: On 2 wheels

The economic and social values of cycling

Two wheels at a time, bicycles are making a difference in the Columbia River Gorge as more and more people ride and more and more cycling events and opportunities for all ages arrive on the scene.

Tease photo

School Board endorsements: Re-elect Jan Veldhuisen Virk and Mark Johnson

Good as it is to see challengers in any local election, when it comes to Hood River County School Board, Jan Veldhuisen Virk and Mark Johnson richly deserve to return to their posts.

Diamond’s day: Growing, packing, shipping… and the fruit keeps coming

Centennial status is a proud one for sure.

Fair notice: Time to think about contributing to the summer extravaganza

The “crookedest carrot” and other delights will be back at the Hood River County Fair this summer.

School budget: A wrinkle among the tough choices

A stark reality surrounds the pending budget for the Hood River County School District.

Previous