Opinion – The Columbian

Opinion – The Columbian https://www.columbian.com Thu, 06 Aug 2026 22:45:33 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.3 https://www.columbian.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/columbian-insignia-2025-1-150x150.png Opinion – The Columbian https://www.columbian.com 32 32 Schrager: Kids shouldn’t be worried about AI https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/06/schrager-kids-shouldnt-be-worried-about-ai/ Thu, 06 Aug 2026 13:01:44 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2791120 When I was in fourth grade, everyone in my class had grand ideas about what they wanted to be when they grew up: a professional basketball player, a firefighter, a professor (I grew up in a college town), a farmer (that was also in the country). I can’t say there was anyone who wanted to be a retirement economist; that came later.

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]]> Hiltzik: Fauci refuses to play their game https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/06/hiltzik-fauci-refuses-to-play-their-game/ Thu, 06 Aug 2026 13:01:12 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2791118 There’s a comic trope beloved by playwrights, novelists and screenwriters about the fighters all suited up for battle, only to discover that their adversary refuses to play.

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]]> Letter: U.S. gets trapped in Iran https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/06/letter-u-s-gets-trapped-in-iran/ Thu, 06 Aug 2026 13:00:43 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2791119 In response to Jeffrey Gibbons’ letter (“War in Iran is lost,” Our Readers’ Views, July 29), this writer has to comment on this very good letter to the editor to The Columbian. He leaves out maybe the most important factor Donald Trump got us into going to war with Iran; Gibbons does not mention Israel’s ongoing conflict with Iran.

]]> In Our View: Focus on Wash. wildfire threats for future https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/06/in-our-view-focus-on-wash-wildfire-threats-for-future/ Thu, 06 Aug 2026 13:00:33 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2791269 Although the skies over Clark County are hazy, the lessons should be clear — the threat of wildfires demands dedicated attention from state leaders.

]]> In Our View: Permitting process, zoning deserve focus https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/05/in-our-view-permitting-process-zoning-deserve-focus/ Wed, 05 Aug 2026 13:03:35 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2791055 There is a cost that comes with living in a desirable, well-managed state. For Washington residents, that can be seen in construction prices, where a combination of labor costs, materials costs and government regulations combine to create one of the most expensive states for homebuilding.

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]]> Abcarian: Shame on Trump, Rubio and Musk https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/05/abcarian-shame-on-trump-rubio-and-musk/ Wed, 05 Aug 2026 13:01:54 +0000 President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and richest-man-in-the-world Elon Musk have not personally killed anyone, but their actions are unquestionably causing the unnecessary deaths of millions of innocent people — including 4.5 million children — who have been cut off from the lifesaving aid the U.S. was once proud to provide.

]]> Bloomberg: Can’t fix schools without data https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/05/bloomberg-cant-fix-schools-without-data/ Wed, 05 Aug 2026 13:01:15 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2791028 At a time when both U.S. parties paint the other as a threat to the country’s future, both are ignoring one of the gravest threats of all: student achievement levels that are abysmally low.

]]> Letter: B.G. fireworks are out of control https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/05/letter-b-g-fireworks-are-out-of-control/ Wed, 05 Aug 2026 13:00:13 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790786 I agree completely with Phyllis Waldron about fireworks (“Action needed on fireworks,” Our Readers’ Views, July 18).

]]> In Our View: Mobile home parks need state, federal attention https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/04/in-our-view-mobile-home-parks-need-state-federal-attention/ Tue, 04 Aug 2026 13:03:08 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790759 As early as 2021, an article in The New Yorker summarized the situation: “The financial industry’s pursuit of profits from mobile-home communities is undermining one of the country’s largest sources of affordable housing.”

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]]> Millhiser: Will court enforce Constitution? https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/04/millhiser-will-court-enforce-constitution/ Tue, 04 Aug 2026 13:01:57 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790809 A court case involving President Donald Trump’s efforts to sabotage voting by mail reached the Supreme Court last week. The executive order at the heart of Trump v. California is one of many attempts by Trump and his Republican Party to make it harder for voters to mail their ballots and to potentially invalidate lawfully cast ballots that are submitted by mail.

]]> Maloney: Bots for kids shouldn’t act like friends https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/04/maloney-bots-for-kids-shouldnt-act-like-friends/ Tue, 04 Aug 2026 13:01:53 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790819 During the rise of the internet, as the World Wide Web moved from government and academic settings to family homes, parents worried about the exposure of their children to predators in online chatrooms. A generation later, as social media became central to young people’s lives, the dangers of platforms such as Facebook and Instagram to children’s mental health moved to the forefront of the national conversation.

]]> Letter: Column embraces absurdity https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/04/letter-column-embraces-absurdity/ Tue, 04 Aug 2026 13:00:00 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790779 I rarely read beyond the headlines of the guest opinions in The Columbian. But the absurdity of John Crisp’s column (“We’re on wrong side in Mideast,” The Columbian, July 29) caught my attention. Who in their right mind would ever conflate Iran as having a legitimate democracy, hindered only by British and American meddling? The Saudis are hardly choir boys and unfortunately everyone who has touched the snake pit of Mideast politics has dirty hands.

]]> In Our View: Cheers & Jeers: Public Health; insurance cost https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/03/in-our-view-cheers-insurance-cost/ Mon, 03 Aug 2026 13:03:36 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790332 Cheers: To public health. Dr. Alan Melnick, Clark County’s Public Health Officer since 2013, has announced that he will retire this month. Melnick has helped shepherd the community through the COVID-19 pandemic and one of the largest measles outbreaks in state history, all while misinformation has undermined public health efforts throughout the country.

]]> Local View: Public safety bottleneck isn’t fault of police https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/03/local-view-public-safety-bottleneck-isnt-fault-of-police/ Mon, 03 Aug 2026 13:01:36 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790184 Please indulge this retired Vancouver police chief for a moment as I weigh in on the recent decision to suspend arrests and citations for low-level misdemeanor offenses and traffic violations (“Union decries Vancouver police orders not to arrest people suspected of misdemeanors,” The Columbian, July 21).

]]> Westneat: Seattle’s representatives still fighting war hawks in D.C. https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/03/westneat-seattles-representatives-still-fighting-war-hawks-in-d-c/ Mon, 03 Aug 2026 13:01:16 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790192 Being Seattle’s main person in the U.S. Congress has always been a quixotic pursuit. You’re at the center of the left-wing firmament. But often this leaves you off on the fringes at the Capitol.

]]> Letter: Millionaires tax will be beneficial https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/03/letter-millionaires-tax-will-be-beneficial/ Mon, 03 Aug 2026 13:00:56 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790306 Fantasy is great for bedtime reading. It is not a good basis for policy decisions. Caleb Patterson writes that the so-called millionaires tax can cost the state (Our Readers’ Views, July 27). In fact, it is the repeal of the tax that will cost the state and everyday citizens.

]]> Letter: Perez’s vote is disappointing https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/03/letter-perezs-vote-is-disappointing/ Mon, 03 Aug 2026 13:00:40 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790303 I am saddened that Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Skamania, voted for the National Defense Authorization Act, which further integrates the Israeli military and the U.S. military. The Israeli military uses the money and technology that we give it to commit genocide.

]]> Letter: Lives depend on public health https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/03/letter-lives-depend-on-public-health/ Mon, 03 Aug 2026 13:00:35 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790296 As Dr. Alan Melnick announces his departure, we find ourselves in an era when vaccine rates are below healthy levels, diseases like measles are on the rise, foodborne illnesses are increasingly on the front pages, federal disinvestment in public health is taking place, populist social media is replacing sound science in policy making, and disparate health outcomes across racial groups continue.

]]> Letter: Competitive swimming has value https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/03/letter-competitive-swimming-has-value/ Mon, 03 Aug 2026 13:00:18 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790308 Many thanks to The Columbian for running Monika Spykerman’s excellent article on the Vancouver Swim Club (“Just keep swimming,” The Columbian, July 27). It brought back a lot of good memories.

]]> Letter: Firepits can be harmful https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/03/letter-firepits-can-be-harmful/ Mon, 03 Aug 2026 13:00:13 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790301 For over 10 years, my husband and I have been forced to breathe heavy smoke from a neighbor’s firepit. We both have asthma, my bone density has declined, and I have age-related macular degeneration issues — yet the burning continues without a shred of concern.

]]> In Our View: Can USPS deliver? Drop off ballots if possible https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/01/in-our-view-can-usps-deliver-drop-off-ballots-if-possible/ Sat, 01 Aug 2026 13:03:42 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2789971 Ballots for the 2026 primary election in Washington are due Tuesday, Aug. 4. And as local voters participate in our representative democracy, the process is engulfed in a national discussion regarding vote-by-mail, which is available for all elections in our state.

]]> Brown: Money behind local races https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/01/brown-money-behind-local-races/ Sat, 01 Aug 2026 13:02:09 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2789964 In last week’s column, I looked at fundraising and expenditures by candidates in some of the races on the Aug. 4 primary ballot. I ran out of space, so here is the information I found early this week about more races.

]]> Other Papers Say: Public ownership wrong path https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/01/other-papers-say-public-ownership-wrong-path/ Sat, 01 Aug 2026 13:01:59 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790189 The following editorial was written by Bloomberg Opinion:

]]> Hiltzik: Litigating war on science Court documents prove Trump cuts to research targeted blue states https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/01/hiltzik-litigating-war-on-science/ Sat, 01 Aug 2026 13:01:31 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2790190 A few days ago, the Trump administration issued a 123-page report heralding a “new golden age” for U.S. science.

]]> Schrager: If U.S. is so rich, why so much anger? https://www.columbian.com/news/2026/aug/01/schrager-if-u-s-is-so-rich-why-so-much-anger/ Sat, 01 Aug 2026 13:01:25 +0000 https://www.columbian.com/?p=2789710 It is one of the great paradoxes of our time: Americans have never been richer — or more negative about the economy.

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