Columns

Already robust levels of hiking, camping, boating and every other kind of outdoor recreation in our region has exploded during the COVID-19 pandemic as many try to cure the effects of cabin fever.

If this were a normal year, Room 50 in the basement of the Oregon Capitol would have been packed for last week’s gun-control hearing. The overflow crowd also would have filled additional rooms…

When Gretchen Bakke was growing up, Bumble Bee Seafoods’ cannery was closing, the spotted owl was delivering a possible death knell to the timber industry and Astoria was gritty. The lights al…

With the Oregon Legislature running at half-speed last week due to the ice storm, we’ll start by talking a bit about what is, or isn’t, happening at the Capitol. Then we’ll catch up on other t…

Clatsop County’s elected leaders have an unprecedented opportunity to model responsibility and civic sacrifice with the vaccine rollout.

Like a gale that rips off the roofs in a small town, the lingering trauma of Jan. 6 has exposed basic truths about American life. Some of these are intellectual, as they pertain to the U.S. Co…

There’s a long-standing joke among Salem residents that state offices shut down the moment a snowflake is spotted.

Since the start of the pandemic, official reports to child protection agencies have declined across the United States by 20% to 70%, and the Clatsop CASA program is concerned.

During several evenings of testimony and discussion last week, a bipartisan committee voted that state Rep. Diego Hernandez, D-Portland, violated legislative rules against sexual harassment an…

2021 is starting badly as far as transparency in state government.

Mark Kujala knows there might be some skepticism when he grades Clatsop County’s response to the coronavirus pandemic so far as an A.

A third political party has joined the Oregon Legislature. State Sen. Brian Boquist, of Dallas, switched from Republican to being a registered voter with the Independent Party of Oregon.

North Coast Progressive Action crowdsourced these ideas to honor Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Contagious not just to people, COVID-19 is devastating captive mink populations across the world.

‘The difference between the Senate and the House,” Lyndon Johnson famously said, “is the difference between chicken salad and chicken shit.”

I need to find new descriptions for life in Salem and at the Oregon Capitol. “Weird” is both redundant and insufficient.

On the North Coast, we are surrounded by water.

My wish for Oregon in 2021 boils down to four words: clarity, trust and good health.

Every business has a 2020 story.

In the season of peace, in the city of peace, last week the Oregon State Capitol was awash in both amity and animosity.

Arline LaMear has learned the gears of government often turn slowly.

On Dec. 17, The Astorian ran an editorial that invites readers “to come with us on a virtual road trip” which purports to illustrate that the tragic fires that damaged towns throughout Oregon …

How good is your legislator?

Now we know why Gov. Kate Brown has been harping on Congress to send billions more in coronavirus-relief money to states. She is counting on that money to balance our state budget for the next…

Astoria’s downtown streetscapes are visibly brighter these days.

The Oregon Coast is iconic for its craggy cliffs and rugged beaches.

This is the year of “for better or worse.”

One of the unfortunate aspects of this year’s elections was the younger political leaders on the North Coast who chose to step aside.

Thanksgiving is all about making time to reflect on the many things in life for which we are grateful.

As Gov. Kate Brown announced her latest COVID-19 restrictions on businesses and social gatherings, one of the state’s top doctors offered this advice: Learn how to cook your grandmother’s stuf…

One of America’s great adventures attained its goal this month when Lewis and Clark’s canoes came down the Columbia River, arriving at a fateful location on what is now Washington’s southern b…

The Oregon Hunters Association, a group of conservation-minded sportsmen, urges the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to develop and implement a policy to enhance and conserve migratory h…

Oregon voters have passed a new state motto: “Keep Oregon politics weird.”

This fall marks the 50th anniversary of an event that sparked the landmark ruling by federal Judge George Boldt in U.S. v. Washington that upheld our treaty-reserved rights to hunt, fish and gather.

This Veterans Day across the nation, for the first time since the holiday was conceived in November 1919, there were no large ceremonies in big cities and small towns in observance to properly…

The overwhelming approval of Measure 108 is an astounding win for all Oregonians.

The envelope opener in the Clackamas County elections office broke on Election Day, delaying processing of ballots.

Behind the counter at the Astoria Cleaners is a constant hum of steam and squeaks of clothes being cleaned.

The Oregon Coast can provide some of the most sublime sunsets and natural beauty on the West Coast.

When the coronavirus pandemic hit and states started enforcing social distancing and other restrictions, Steve Trout’s phone began ringing off the hook.

When Clatsop County rolled out the Resiliency Project this summer, the concept was straightforward.

2020 has been beyond challenging for all of us. Soothing, calming and resilient, the Pacific Ocean reminds us that tomorrow is a new day, offering hope for the future.

The Astorian plans to publish editorial endorsements for the 2020 general election over the next few weeks, starting with the endorsement for president on Saturday.

What does the Constitution mean to you? Does it mean our freedoms, granted to us by our Founding Fathers, and our father in heaven?

Clatsop County has seen a spike of people in mental health crisis during the coronavirus pandemic.

Most of us who live in Clatsop County, no matter what we look like or how much money we have, want our families to feel safe here. When we feel safe, we can make the connections in our schools…

Writing about a death in the family is difficult. Emotion tugs at us.

The initiation of remote learning for the 2020-2021 school year because of the coronavirus pandemic has presented challenges and circumstances never before experienced even by the most seasone…

I never thought I’d be writing a guest column in the local newspaper, but I was raised that if something was important to you, take a stand.

Oregonians are grieving about the death and destruction caused by wildfires across our beautiful state. There are likely to be more dangerous fires to come this year, according to fire experts…

As sheriff it is my responsibility to be the conservator of the peace.

The one constant in life is change.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the reunification of the two Germanys. That event came about as a consequence of the East German people’s unexpectedly bringing about the fall of the Be…

As the 2020 census draws to a close, I urge each one of you reading this to respond before it’s too late.