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The weekend headline in Anchorage said an Alaska North Slope natural gas pipeline project “could be closer than ever, Alaska politicians say.” The first clue was “Alaska politicians say.” No offense, but pinning your hopes on what politicians say in an election year is like believing your kid really cleaned up his room like you asked. The kid will tell you what you want to hear to avoid punishment, just like a candidate will tell tall tales and exaggerate to avoid losing an election. The only difference being the politician should know better....
Property Development To the Editor: I would like to encourage the borough to proceed with developing building lots on borough land, much of which happens to already be subdivided and adjacent to borough utility services. The lack of available and affordable building lots is slowing growth through the lack of housing. The community is unable to provide housing for necessary workers for the school and hospital as well as the fishing and fish processing industry. Another aspect of borough involvement in supplying building lots is the fact that,...
The Legislature adjourned on time last month, a nice change from past special sessions that got in the way of summer fishing, watching baseball, eating anything off the grill (except eggplant) and sitting outdoors in the sun doing nothing. Lawmakers settled on a healthy and wealthy but not necessarily wise dividend that will put $12,800 into the hands of a family of four this fall. As expected months ago, that single issue consumed the largest amount of political negotiating in the Legislatures final days. House and Senate members also passed...
Memorial Day Ceremony 2022 To the Editor: I may be stepping into a hornets’ nest here; but nobody ever accused me of knowing when to keep my mouth shut. The day was sunny and cool; there were flags and flowers everywhere; the cemetery was well-tended - the perfect setting for the ceremony. Then the orations began. To me, Memorial Day is a civic occasion which should be for everybody in our pluralistic society. But the preachers saw a captive audience. Too many sermons and prayers were made for Christians and “in Jesus’ name.” One reading...
Despite repeated claims and allegations conjured up from the thin air of political dishonesty, there has never been any proof, no charges and convictions, no indictments for voter fraud that cost Donald Trump his reelection dream in the 2020 voting. And yet, the former president and his followers continue to spew out and stir up claims that thieves will do it again in 2022. It’s called “preemptive excuses.” If they lose in this fall’s elections, it must have been stolen. Can’t be that voters picked someone else. Best to start now with the...
The recent sale of Borough owned land on Sandy Beach Road brought to light the shortcomings of the borough government when it comes to managing their land. Obviously, there is a pent-up demand for building lots. The value of real estate, as we all know, is based on location and availability. Since the borough owns land that is desperately needed to provide housing for the community, it’s time that they develop it and make it available to the public. The borough has platted land in the Tlingit-Haida subdivision, on property uphill behind Lake S...
PIA’s letter of support To the Editor: It is our understanding that the Petersburg Borough is working with the State of Alaska to obtain the dock, floats, ramp, tidelands, and uplands at Papke’s Landing on Mitkof Island. The State of Alaska DOT and DNR both have interests in this facility; DOT has already indicated that it would like to pass ownership to the Borough. The Borough Assembly has solicited a Letter of Support from the Petersburg Indian Association (PIA) regarding this matter. Although Petersburg’s governing body has not shown itsel...
The amount of this year’s Alaska Permanent Fund dividend was still uncertain as of our publishing deadline, but it is certain that the payments will total more than $1 billion above last year’s checks, maybe a lot more, depending on final budget action by the House and Senate. No doubt a lot of families need every bit of that to pay rent, buy food and clothes, cover utilities and fuel, particularly in rural communities where there are few cash-paying jobs. Equally of little doubt, a lot of Alaskans never counted on the oversized, ove...
The Legislature is working toward the largest capital budget in a long time. Municipalities are hearing “yes” instead of years of “no” to some of their public works funding requests. In addition, more state money is headed to schools. And Alaskans are likely to get a check from the state this fall more than double the amount of last year’s Permanent Fund dividend. All thanks to elevated oil prices — more than 50% higher than a year ago — and the large tax and royalty payments that are flowing to the treasury from North Slope oil producers. Lawm...
Making the World a Better Place To the Editor: I love people that have no idea how wonderful they are just wandering around making the world a better place. Someone out there feels better because you exist my friend. Thank you for seeing my pain and not only that, but you made me believe humanity is not lost. May you always be blessed, may your family always be blessed. Marina Leblanc and Family...
Update on Landless Efforts To the Editor: Hello folks, this is a quick update on the efforts of the Landless group for the benefit of Petersburg. Who are the Landless? They are 5 communities that got left out of ANCSA in 1971 and should have gotten land under that legislation 50 years ago: Petersburg, Wrangell, Ketchikan, Haines and Tenakee Springs. Together we are Alaska Natives Without Land. Our goal is to amend ANCSA to reunite our five SE Alaska Native communities with their lands, to grow and succeed with their rightful land base as their...
The US Coast Guard Cutter Anacapa invited the community on board for tours on Monday. The occasion was to bid thank you and farewell to Petersburg, which has been home port to the USCGC Anacapa for the entirety of her 32-year career. Commissioned to serve as an Island-class patrol boat on January 13, 1990, the Anacapa has carried out her mission of law enforcement, safety and fisheries law enforcement, search and rescue, and maritime defense with a crew of sixteen on board and their families living in the Petersburg community. Captain Darwin Je...
Ocean Rangers To the Editor: If you were disappointed in the Senate Resource Committee’s decision last week and want to stop SB 180 please speak up now. As constituents of Senator Bert Stedman, it is very important he hear our concerns on this bill introduced by Governor Dunleavy that will eliminate Ocean Rangers on cruise ships. We need to ask him to hold SB 180, to not schedule a hearing this session, and urge him to reinstate funding for the Ocean Rangers on most ships, most of the time. Ask Senator Stedman directly what he is planning to d...
With just a few weeks left in the legislative session, House and Senate budget writers appear to agree that $2,600 is a good number to put into the hands of Alaskans this fall. But how they get there is different. The House-passed version of the state budget appropriates enough money to send every eligible Alaskan about $2,600 — half would be the annual Permanent Fund dividend, and half would be called “energy relief” to help people pay the higher prices for gasoline, diesel and heating fuel. Those same high prices have generated a lot of mo...
Thank you from the Pioneers To the Editor: As Chairman of the Petersburg Pioneer Tea Party, I would like to thank Sue Paulsen, on piano, and Cathy Cronlund, on violin, for the music they provided for the Tea Party. They enhanced the ambience of the Tea Party tremendously. Cathy Harris, Debbie McMahon and Margaret Newlun were my committee members, who worked very hard to make the Tea Party such a success. I couldn’t have done it without them. To all the members of the Pioneers, a very great thank you for making all the fabulous food. The v...
A big part of a well-functioning democracy is running for office or, if you don’t want your name on the ballot, backing a candidate, taking a position on a ballot issue, and writing checks for the campaigns you support. Writing those checks to elect your favored candidates and contributing to campaigns to win, or defeat, ballot propositions that do, or do not, serve your interests and align with your beliefs is everyone’s constitutional right. Freedom of expression includes the freedom to spend your money to promote your own self-interests and...
A note of thanks To the Editor: We’d like to recognize everybody who contributed to the Welcome Back Vietnam Warriors: starting out with Home Health, Petersburg Medical Center for putting on the breakfast on the morning of the 29th. The Moose got into it by doing hamburger night for all veterans. Then after the ceremony the Elks put out finger foods for all the Vietnam Vets. Also thank you to the Petersburg School District for the use of the gym, and Jamie Cabral, Dino Brock, Jim Engell and the baseball team for helping set up the gym and t...
Maybe Alaskans were tired of hearing the all-too-familiar refrains: Good candidates don’t run for public office anymore; it’s too expensive; ill-mannered social media posts go after their families and disrupt their lives; voters are too easily swayed by misleading attack ads; and no one wants to hear the truth about solving the country’s problems. So why bother running for office. Clearly, 51 candidates to fill the seat of the late Don Young, Alaska’s congressman for the past half-century, decided to ignore all the reasons not to run. Or maybe...
This year’s switch to ranked-choice voting in Alaska is something new, maybe even surprisingly new for those who missed or forgot about the 2020 statewide ballot initiative that put forth the change. But new, while exciting for some people, can be scary and disconcerting and disruptive for others. This coming from a 70-year-old who is stuck so deep in his own comfort zone that I wear the same button-down cotton shirts (never white), same two-tone saddle shoes, use the same hair shampoo and same original flavor Crest toothpaste. Hey, nothing w...
Keep the Ocean Rangers program: Together we can have a voice To the Editor: Whether you are a commercial fisherman or just an Alaskan who enjoys recreating in Southeast Alaska’s waters fishing for salmon, halibut, crab, shrimp, digging for clams or collecting seaweed, you should be deeply concerned about SB 180 which will eliminate the Ocean Ranger program that was put into law by voters in 2006. In mid-summer of 2019 Governor Dunleavy vetoed funding for the Ocean Ranger program just after Carnival Corporation was fined $20 million for i...
No, this column is not directed at oil producers. They are not the guilty party in this tale of cost escalation. Nor is this column about the many businesses around the world stressed by energy prices that have shot up faster and higher than fireworks on the Fourth of July. As crude oil has jumped, surged and spiked from just over $65 a barrel on Dec. 1 to painfully over $100 a barrel this month, consumers have been paying more at the pump — whether the corner gas station for a dozen or more gallons to fill up a car or pickup, a couple h...
Many Alaskans will be hurting under $5-a-gallon gasoline, and rural residents who pay even higher prices will hurt even more. The state treasury, meanwhile, is flush with higher oil production tax and royalty checks, depositing tens of millions of dollars more each month than expected at the start of the year. Oil at $100-plus a barrel is guilty on both counts — making people poorer and making the Alaska checkbook richer. To use one to help the other, many Alaska lawmakers seem to be nervously coalescing around the idea of using much of the a...
The state of Alaska, Congress and the president, individual companies and people do not all have the same capabilities and authority to show their disgust and dismay at Russia’s unprovoked, murderous attack on Ukraine, a sovereign nation at war with no one until Russian President Vladimir Putin decided he had to prove that he is the toughest, meanest kid on the planet. But everyone needs to do something. The world has suffered far too many deaths, ruined countries, poverty and famine due to wars over the centuries to sit by and watch more of t...
Thank you to the clinic staff and to the community To the Editor: We wanted to take a moment to thank the staff at Joy Janssen Clinic, particularly Dr. Hess, as well as the radiologists, medical technicians, and Rexall Drug, for their diligent care last week. Their thoughtfulness and professionalism made the heartbreak of miscarriage easier to bear. We also wanted to thank our community for all the ways they have shown support in this difficult time. On dark winter days it can be easy to daydream about all the places we’d like to go, but on t...
More than a month has passed since Sen. Mike Shower claimed that he and other Alaska legislators were so busy they didn’t have time to deal with campaign finance legislation this year. He was not telling the truth. It was just something Shower said to conceal the effort to allow unlimited campaign donations in Alaska, which is what Gov. Mike Dunleavy and others in the Republican Party want. Shower is the chairman of the state affairs committee in the Senate, a committee that is responsible for dealing with this topic. He hasn’t done any...
