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The state of Alaska has spent decades trying to predict, forecast and even guesstimate the price of oil in an ongoing effort to help the governor and legislators draft an annual spending plan. If state officials truly could know the price of crude a month, a year, two years out, budget-building work would be much easier. Or at least more accurate. And while Alaska’s budget health, public services, education funding and road maintenance is much more dependent these years on Permanent Fund earnings than on oil revenues, any periods of high oil p...
Fearful from what if possibilities To the Editor: I have been wondering for quite a few years now but especially these last 2. When did we as a country become so hysterical, fearful from what if possibilities. Tobacco, global warming, nuclear power, acid rain, mining, logging. The list is long of things that are going to end the world. Now the latest SARS covid-19. A nuclear power plant is destroyed in Japan and the Pacific Ocean is doomed. A mine tailings dam is breached and the river is going to die. Both of these of course never happened. So...
Thank you To the Editor: A heartfelt thank you to our EMTs, doctors, and hospital staff for all their kindness. Geneva Bishop and Family My turn To the Editor: A half century ago on Nov. 2, 1971, I enlisted in the United States Navy. I served on two different duty stations, Naval Air Station Moffett Field, and the Guided Missile Destroyer USS Robison (DDG-12). During my tour on the ‘Rockin’ Robie,’ I stood numerous in-port quarterdeck watches throughout various Pacific ports, and countless watches on the bridge in the Navigation Division while...
Sometimes, connecting the dots is the best way to learn. The first set of dots cost $87 million in federal pandemic aid money. That’s the price of the contract the state signed with an Atlanta-based for-profit health care staffing firm to provide up to 470 medical professionals to help out at 15 Alaska hospitals and medical clinics, schools too, for 90 days. The travelers helped relieve the strain during the worst of the COVID-19 outbreak this fall, when Alaska was in record territory for new cases and hospitalizations. The Wrangell Medical C...
On the mask mandate To The Editor: I wanted to take a minute to share my thoughts on the proposed emergency mask mandate. I believe at this point, two years into this pandemic, that we are doing more harm than good by trying to universally mandate the public’s actions. I believe that no one intentionally is trying to infect others with Covid and beyond that we are all capable of making decisions to protect ourselves and our families if we are feeling vulnerable. Taking away personal choice, and creating situations that promote division and d...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly’s attempt to abate a public health crisis in Petersburg Wednesday night went nowhere. Creating an ordinance to bring the rule of law into play failed. With no enforcement there will be little change. Possibly, but unlikely, the discussion carried out at Wednesday night’s meeting could change some minds, but it’s doubtful. Given the comments voiced by a majority of the speakers Wednesday night, no amount of peer reviewed science or proven medical knowledge is going to change the minds of those who choose to ignor...
There has been a concentrated effort the past few years to develop a long-term solution to the many problems of our ferry system. The effort has been led by the Alaska Department of Transportation. The department has hired several consulting firms over the years including the Spaulding Group, McDowell Group, Northern Economics and the governor’s “reshaping work group,” at a cost to the state of several hundred thousand dollars. These reports have done a good job identifying problems, yet very few of their proposed solutions have been acted...
What’s wrong with this picture? To the Editor: Monday Petersburg had 67 Covid cases. Its winter population is probably around 2,500. Clallam County, WA had 37 new cases. Its population is 77,331. What’s wrong with this picture? John Hoag Compassionate care at our hospital To the Editor: My mother-in-law woke me at 1:30 AM. Or, maybe 2:30 as it was the end of daylight savings time. She was having terrible pain. I scooped up all her medications, walked her carefully down the icy ramp to the car and drove her to the emergency room. We were met...
Conspiracy Theory To the Editor: Let’s pretend that a country decided to find a way to cripple its foes physically and financially without using nuclear weapons that cost billions to produce, deliver and destroy infrastructure for generations, making it unusable to all. Instead, they create germs that cause a disease that will sicken and kill millions and best of all cost almost nothing to develop and spread and does not harm any infrastructure. They also develop and promote a media campaign that says the disease is harmless and any vaccines a...
Ted will be missed To the Editor: We recently laid to rest an extraordinary lifelong Petersburg resident, Ted Smith. I worked for many years as a legislative aide in Juneau, and that is where I first had the pleasure of meeting and working with Ted. At the time, Ted was mayor of Petersburg and made many trips up to Juneau to lobby for our schools, roads, harbors, our firehall, and library. I was working for the Juneau legislator Rep. Bill Hudson, and Ted would spend quite a bit of time in our office because both he and Rep. Hudson had an...
Former and current secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Thomas Vilsack, who was instrumental in reimposing the 2001 roadless rule on the Tongass National Forest in 2011 and is planning to reimpose it again before Nov. 1, has announced “a new Southeast Alaska Sustainability Strategy “to help support a diverse economy, enhance community resilience, and conserve natural resources.” This is to be “a collaborative process to invest approximately $25 million in financial and technical resources in sustainable opportunities for economi...
Every kid should learn from their parents the modern way to avoid responsibility for misdeeds and missed homework. When you fail or do something stupid or dishonest or regretful, or just don’t like the way the world is spinning that day or how the spicy chili went down, deny you’re at fault and deny the heartburn is self-inflicted. Instead, blame the news media. No one ever believed the dog ate your homework anyway. If you disagree with the facts of science, economics, the law or elections, accuse reporters and editors of making it all up. And...
The October borough election brings clarity to both borough administrative staff and elected officials as they assess the needs for mandates and new policies during the ongoing pandemic including COVID testing, social distancing, masking and vaccination policies. The bold and brash campaign statement, “Nobody’s been listening,” in reference to elected officials was proven false by the electorate. Elected persons on the assembly, school board and hospital board clearly were listening to all sides of the COVID issue and wisely chose optio...
Continue to be amazed To the Editor: A few weeks ago I again passed through Petersburg while traveling on my small boat, Puffin. This was my 29th year cruising in SE AK. I continue to be amazed at the friendly and helpful reception I receive from the citizens of Petersburg. Starting from the cheerful VHF radio greetings to your harbor by Glo Wollen and her outstanding staff, you can’t help but notice the contrast between them and the passive reception one receives in other SE harbors. Your questions are answered with a smile and you never f...
By any measure, the seemingly never-ending stream of vitriol at the Anchorage Assembly’s mask mandate debate over the past week was a depressing spectacle. If you showed up in person or tuned in to the livestream Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday evening, you were witness to an hours-long hatefest that displayed just how degraded our politics has become, even at the local level. After watching the proceedings for any length of time, two questions were sure to come to mind: “How did we come to this?” and “Can it possibly get worse?” The discourse...
Once again, Alaska legislators have gaveled back into special session because Gov. Mike Dunleavy wants to show his constituents that he believes in one thing above all else: The largest Permanent Fund dividend in state history. He’s like a wide-eyed kid in the candy shop, only he’s got a record-setting Permanent Fund balance jingling in his pockets and wants to spend some of it to buy chocolates for everyone in the state. Talk about a dangerous sweet tooth that can only decay the future growth potential of the state’s only savings accou...
Silent majority must stand up To the Editor: We of the silent majority must stand up and make our voices heard. The only way Covid-19 or its variants will ever be behind us is if the vast majority of us are vaccinated. People say “I probably won’t get very sick.” That may be true for you and your family but you might kill your neighbor. Christians are commanded to love their neighbor as themselves. This isn’t just a suggestion, it is a commandment. You may be worried that the shot will make you sick. I had my first shot in January and my third...
We encourage voters to vote YES on the $7.8 million bond issue proposed by Petersburg Power and Light to pay for back-up diesel generation and the refurbishment of the Crystal Lake hydro plant. Petersburg has enjoyed the benefits from the construction of the Crystal Lake hydro project that was built by forward thinking residents in the 1920s. The current operation, that was last upgraded in 1957, generates power at 1.3-cents per kilowatt hour. It’s a bargain rate compared to anywhere else in Alaska or the Lower 48. The project will enable f...
It was the same day that Gov. Mike Dunleavy announced the state would help hospitals cope with record numbers of COVID-19 patients by assisting with decisions to ration care, and the same day that the state’s chief medical officer, Dr. Anne Zink, said Alaska is “at the worst place in the pandemic that we’ve had this entire time.” It was the same day that the governor announced Alaska would spend $87 million to bring in out-of-state medical workers to help relieve pressure on overwhelmed hospital staff. And it was the same day Alaska set a r...
Forty-five years ago, with the foresight of a time beyond their newfound oil wealth, Alaskans took the initiative to create the Permanent Fund, thus constitutionally protecting a portion of the royalties for future generations. As a steward of the Fund, the Permanent Fund Corporation was established to invest the assets in an innovative financial structure which continues today to stand as a model for sovereign wealth funds globally. The legacy of the Alaska Permanent Fund is, and always has...
Calls for silent majority to be loud To the Editor: As we near our local election day on October 4, I hear people in our little town refer to a group known as the "silent majority." A group that prefers to stay out of the back and forth of politics. Members of our community that would prefer to keep to themselves and let their vote do their talking for them. The counterpart to this silent majority could then only be the "vocal minority." One might even say the "loud" minority. And boy, over the...
We encourage a NO VOTE on Proposition #2, which seeks to remove the Frederick Point East Subdivision from Borough Service Area 1. Changes to Service Area 1 boundaries proposed under the proposition are unnecessary and ill advised. In 2012 voters approved the creation of the Petersburg Borough boundaries. Terms for governing and taxing the borough were established, and the measure passed with 55% approval by the voters. Proponents argue few to no services are available to the Frederick Point East (FPE) property owners and consequently they pay t...
The anti-vaccination politics rolling across the country — much like a pandemic — have gotten so bad that the Alaska state Senate could not even manage to pass a bill last Friday allowing more telemedicine without lawmakers amending it into a debate over personal liberty. Much of the discussion had no connection whatsoever to patients and doctors working together online to diagnose and treat ailments often totally unrelated to COVID-19. The Senate amendments were targeted at blocking businesses, state agencies and local governments from req...
The school board did what was needed to assure the best chances of keeping the schools open this year. School board president Sarah Holmgrain succinctly stated online what needed to happen this year: “It’s mostly for me about keeping the school open, keeping quarantines down, keeping unvaccinated kids safe, and unvaccinated staff able to remain at school when they’ve been in close contact. “We simply do not have enough subs (substitute teachers) to cover if we have even a small outbreak at the school. That means parents are home, not at work...
Well finally hate mail....rather some opinionated opposite view. Mr. Mackay is this vaccine the second coming? Are vaccinated people safe now? Maybe, but really it's only been a few months, maybe, I hope it works. Rather than believing what the CDC, WHO or Dr. Fauci are telling us let's look at actual documented history. Israel was way ahead of the curve with 80% of the adults vaccinated. That country thought they had the virus beat in July. Through the rest of July and August to now things have turned around with record cases,hospitalizations...
