2008 | EOI View

Fixing health care mess would help all workers

06.25.2008 | Everett Herald | My friend Millie expects to be unemployed soon. At age 60 and after 10 years with her employer, she had her hours cut last fall. She has been told to expect fewer hours next month and no work after August. Because Millie works in health care research with project-specific funding, she'll get no severance pay, and ironically, no continuation of health insurance. A break-up with her partner a couple years ago forced her to buy back half her house, leaving her without much financial cushion. Millie hasn't shown up in unemployment statistics yet, but she's feeling the uncertain economy. | More

Juneteenth good reminder that change requires fight

06.11.2008 | Everett Herald | This weekend, communities across Washington will be celebrating Juneteenth. These festivals commemorate the day in 1865 when Union soldiers entered Galveston, Texas, and announced that slaves were free and had equal rights with their former masters. Juneteenth allows us to celebrate that real progress has happened before and can happen again. It also reminds us that change does not come easily. Now in June 2008, we can hope that real change will come in our nation. But we had better prepare to fight for it. | Read

We need to reawaken our community-building spirit

05.28.2008 | Everett Herald | Mrs. Porter came over in the middle of the night to stay with us kids when my mother went into labor with my baby brother. She invited us for dinner the day a tree fell over in our backyard, taking our electrical wires down with it. She fed our cats when we were away. The day I turned 18, she registered me to vote. This flood of memories was launched by a YouTube video my sister sent me. It shows Barack Obama campaigning in front of an Indianapolis polling station on the day of the Indiana primary. There right at the start, Obama is shaking hands with Mrs. Porter.

Helping working mothers benefits the rest of society

05.14.2008 | Everett Herald | My own kids are mostly grown up, so I sought out two younger women this week to hear their perspectives on being a working mother today. Both women recognized that they were fortunate -- with two incomes and supportive employers. Even so, struggles with child care, commutes and rising prices took a toll. "We need help," they concluded. | More

On key labor anniversary, many old conflicts remain

04.30.2008 | Everett Herald | We've made a lot of progress since 1886, but history has a funny way of cycling back on us. That first Labor Day occurred at a time of economic and political turmoil. Markets were increasingly globalized. Mass immigration seemed to threaten American identity. Workplace standards -- or lack thereof -- left many working families struggling. Terrorists threw bombs and the government cracked down on civil liberties in the name of greater security. In other words, it was a time in many ways like our own. | Read

Government can, should temper pain of recession

04.16.2008 | Everett Herald | It seems like the economic news keeps getting worse. Fuel prices still climbing, food prices soaring, foreclosures and layoffs. The only silver lining is that we're doing better in Washington than the rest of the country. Now a report has come out confirming what many of us suspected -- the rich are getting richer, while most of us are just getting by. | Read

Social Security represents the best of American ideals

04.02.2008 | Everett Herald, Wenatchee World, Tacoma News Tribune | I thought about my grandmother when the annual report of the Social Security trustees came out last week. The years of propaganda by Social Security's opponents have convinced many Americans that the system is in trouble. Most young people I talk to assume that Social Security won't be there for them. And why wouldn't they, when the press and politicians from both parties have parroted the "crisis" line for years? | More (Everett Herald) | More (Wenatchee World) | More (Tacoma News Tribune)

Little-noticed bills make a big difference for many

03.19.2008 | Everett Herald | The 2008 Washington Legislature passed 341 bills -- out of more than 4,000 up for consideration. Even those of us who spend a lot of time in Olympia can't keep track of them all, and most people never hear about the majority of new laws. Here are a few good bills that quietly made it through the legislative obstacle course this year. | Read

Piecemeal tax breaks don't expand opportunity for all

03.05.2008 | Everett Herald | A tax break for groomers of cross-country ski trails, or space for three more students in community college? Forgiving sales tax on the Tacoma Narrows bridge, or full-day kindergarten for 7,200 more 5-year-olds? Lawmakers in Olympia are grappling with these questions as the House and Senate try to reconcile their competing budgets in the final days of the legislative session. | Read

Together, we the people make our government work

02.20.2008 | Everett Herald | The great thing about representative democracy is that if our representatives make the right decisions, we can re-elect them and if they make the wrong decisions, we can throw them out. Legislators come and go, constantly bringing in new perspectives, refreshed from the latest election victory or chastised by defeat. The result is a constant refreshing of political viewpoints and the development of new solutions for the greater good. | Read

Foundation of security has been fraying for 30 years

02.06.2008 | Everett Herald | Last week I was planning to write about Saturday's precinct caucuses in our state, and how we actually have a voice in deciding the next presidential candidates. But now I am writing this column from Vermont, where my mother just had a massive stroke and died. Events in our lives overtake us, and give us perspective on who we are and what we do and say. | Read

Recruit good teachers by helping to pay their tuition

01.23.2008 | Everett Herald | We already have a shortage of math teachers. It's going to grow worse with the retirement of hundreds of math teachers in the coming years. Ingrid's chair is less than a mile from the University of Washington main campus, but it might as well be in Timbuktu. | Read

Most legislators take their responsibilities to heart

01.09.2008 | Everett Herald | Presidential jockeying tends to suck up all the pundits' opinions and thinking about politics and democracy. But Washington, D.C., does not have a monopoly on decision-making. Much of the real action in politics and democracy starts in the states. | Read