Opinion – The Columbian

Opinion – The Columbian https://www.columbian.com Mon, 06 Apr 2026 19:13:43 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 https://www.columbian.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/columbian-insignia-2025-1-150x150.png Opinion – The Columbian https://www.columbian.com 32 32 In Our View: Cheers & Jeers: Endearing eaglets; transparency https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/06/in-our-view-cheers-transparency/ Mon, 06 Apr 2026 13:03:12 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761520 Cheers: To new arrivals. Two eaglets have arrived at Royal Oaks Country Club, and the whole world can take a look. Liberty and Justice are new parents after two eggs hatched last weekend under the watchful eye of an “eaglecam” at the golf course.

]]> Crisp: Car drives itself better than you https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/06/crisp-car-drives-itself-better-than-you/ Mon, 06 Apr 2026 13:01:48 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761039 No one has ever accused me of being overly eager to adopt emerging technologies.

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]]> Kluth: Trump can’t admit U.S. has suffered setback in Iran https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/06/kluth-trump-cant-admit-u-s-has-suffered-setback-in-iran/ Mon, 06 Apr 2026 13:01:42 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761179 On April Fools’ Day, the American president addressed the nation and the world to send not one message about the war that the United States and Israel launched against Iran a month ago, but all possible messages at once.

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]]> Other Papers Say: Subsidized sugar not guaranteed https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/06/other-papers-say-subsidized-sugar-not-guaranteed/ Mon, 06 Apr 2026 13:01:42 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761181 The following editorial originally appeared in the Las Vegas Review-Journal:

]]> Estrich: Dysfunction is typical Washington politics https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/06/estrich-dysfunction-is-typical-washington-politics/ Mon, 06 Apr 2026 13:01:23 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761180 It’s business as usual — almost — in the midst of a war abroad and an affordability crisis at home and the longest partial government shutdown in history.

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]]> Millhiser: Court won’t back Trump on birthright citizenship https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/06/millhiser-court-wont-back-trump-on-birthright-citizenship/ Mon, 06 Apr 2026 13:01:11 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761185 If you’ve been worried that this Supreme Court might give President Donald Trump the power to strip citizenship away from Americans, you can go ahead and exhale.

]]> Letter: Keep roadsides clean https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/06/letter-keep-roadsides-clean/ Mon, 06 Apr 2026 13:00:41 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761055 Traveling along Interstate 5, Interstate 205, and Highway 14, the amount of roadside trash is hard to ignore. These key corridors should reflect the natural beauty of Southwest Washington — but too often they do not.

]]> Letter: Bank fees can be costly https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/06/letter-bank-fees-can-be-costly/ Mon, 06 Apr 2026 13:00:31 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761365 I recently visited my local bank to close out a home equity line of credit loan that my wife and I never used. I was told there would be a $603 recording fee due that is written to this bank and they then pay it. I understand this for the buying or selling of a house. To me this seems like another way for government to ask for even more funds from retirees.

]]> Letter: West Coast embraces socialism https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/06/letter-west-coast-embraces-socialism/ Mon, 06 Apr 2026 13:00:24 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761363 The word “sanctuary” has been in the news quite often in regards to what it means to the residents of Washington, Oregon and California. What it does mean, and I quote, “refuge, protection, or immunity from arrest, punishment, or prosecution provided by such a place.”

]]> Letter: Vote to fight climate change https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/06/letter-vote-to-fight-climate-change-2/ Mon, 06 Apr 2026 13:00:07 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761360 Our planet is rapidly becoming uncomfortably hot due to burning fossil fuels. Climate change is causing more frequent extreme storms costing $150 billion per year in damages. It is causing drought, reduced crop yields, forest fires, reduced fish runs, dying coral reefs, sea level rise and loss of animal habitat, threatening extinction and the biodiversity of the animal species.

]]> In Our View: Message of peace resonates this Easter https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/04/in-our-view-message-of-peace-resonates-this-easter/ Sat, 04 Apr 2026 13:03:21 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761477 Particularly in times of strife, discord and war, the message of Easter remains a powerful one of peace and hope.

]]> Brown: What visitors think of Vancouver https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/04/brown-what-visitors-think-of-vancouver/ Sat, 04 Apr 2026 13:02:28 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761472 April marks the unofficial start to the tourist season in the Pacific Northwest. The cruise ships are back on the Columbia River and Puget Sound, the beaches are busy with spring breakers, and it’s nearly impossible to get a weekend camping reservation at prime state parks.

]]> Westneat: WA rich OK with taxing rich Million-dollar earners live in Dem districts, haven’t pushed back https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/04/westneat-wa-rich-ok-with-taxing-rich/ Sat, 04 Apr 2026 13:01:54 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2760765 If you’re really rich, and mad that you’re going to have to pay the new millionaires state income tax, it turns out you have your immediate neighbors to blame.

]]> Donnelly: Mental health heroes need state support https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/04/donnelly-mental-health-heroes-need-state-support/ Sat, 04 Apr 2026 13:01:43 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2760722 No wonder our state has a mental health crisis. Washington is ranked near the bottom for its service to mental health, warn psychiatrists at the University of Washington. Treatment beds for those needing immediate customized care are virtually nonexistent.

]]> Klas: Hopes of Dreamers at risk https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/04/klas-hopes-of-dreamers-at-risk/ Sat, 04 Apr 2026 13:01:14 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2760721 As a high-achieving college kid, Alex Vallejo wasn’t surprised by the kind of young people he met at the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers’ national conference in Salt Lake City three years ago. Like him, there were other computer-science students who were in their school robotics clubs. Like him, there were other web developers and students who worked two jobs while getting top grades. All predictably impressive.

]]> Other Papers Say: TV merger a threat to freedoms https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/04/other-papers-say-tv-merger-a-threat-to-freedoms/ Sat, 04 Apr 2026 13:01:05 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2760764 The state of American democracy took another dark turn under the Trump administration last month. The Federal Communications Commission effectively rubber-stamped Texas-based Nexstar Media Group Inc.’s merger with Tegna Inc., creating a broadcast behemoth capable of reaching four in five American television households.

]]> Letter: Illegal act allowed to persist https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/04/letter-illegal-act-allowed-to-persist/ Sat, 04 Apr 2026 13:00:56 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761086 During the “No Kings” march on March 28 in Battle Ground, individuals repeatedly drove through the area for approximately two hours while “rolling coal” — a deliberate and illegal act requiring vehicle modification to bypass emissions controls.

]]> Letter: President ignores worthy causes https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/04/letter-president-ignores-worthy-causes/ Sat, 04 Apr 2026 13:00:55 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761098 What is the going price to alter American currency by adding a sitting president’s signature to every one-dollar bill being printed? How much will it cost to reverse this frivolous gesture of vanity when that president is no longer able to abuse his temporary position of power?

]]> Letter: Charter review is mischaracterized https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/04/letter-charter-review-is-mischaracterized/ Sat, 04 Apr 2026 13:00:49 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761100 In his March 28 column “Checking on the Charter Review,” the normally level-headed Craig Brown fundamentally mischaracterizes this year’s commission, on which I serve.

]]> Letter: Is artificial intelligence a threat? https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/04/letter-is-artificial-intelligence-a-threat/ Sat, 04 Apr 2026 13:00:45 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761106 Here is the real problem with advanced artificial intelligence. Soon, it will calculate that humans are the problem and will deal with them appropriately.

]]> Letter: Zone to preserve cultural identity https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/04/letter-zone-to-preserve-cultural-identity/ Sat, 04 Apr 2026 13:00:25 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761093 In March 2025, I purchased a home in Southcliff after performing due diligence with the city’s Office of Neighborhoods. My inquiry was met with prompt yet glaringly incomplete information. There was no mention of “Be Heard Vancouver” or the current rezoning efforts that fundamentally threaten our neighborhood’s character.

]]> Letter: Biden still delivers https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/04/letter-biden-still-delivers/ Sat, 04 Apr 2026 13:00:00 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761019 North county is experiencing an internet upgrade. Fiber optic cables are being installed that will improve our phone and especially our internet connectivity and speed. Welcome to the modern world.

]]> In Our View: Should state revisit Growth Management Act? https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/03/in-our-view-should-state-revisit-growth-management-act/ Fri, 03 Apr 2026 13:03:26 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2761142 The saga of Clark County’s 20-year growth plan raises questions about the efficiency of Washington’s Growth Management Act. It also should draw the attention of legislators.

]]> Thorbecke: AI news masks labor crisis https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/03/thorbecke-ai-news-masks-labor-crisis/ Fri, 03 Apr 2026 13:01:20 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2760447 Singapore-based Crypto.com said recently that it was cutting 12 percent of its workforce, the latest company among a growing cohort to cite artificial intelligence adoption for job losses.

]]> Letter: Consider response in street plans https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/apr/03/letter-consider-response-in-street-plans/ Fri, 03 Apr 2026 13:00:48 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2760448 We live in Cascade Park Estates, a gated, manufactured-home community in the area east of Vancouver and west of Camas. Our community has been in the news several times in the last year with regard to legislation limiting rent increases.

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