Press "Enter" to skip to content

Posts published in “Essays”

What They Forgot to Mention About Olympic Skier Julia Mancuso

This winter’s Olympics have seen the usual sentimen­tal media saturation of weepy or aw-shucks back stories on the athletes. Overcoming adversity is often the theme: Canadian figure skater Joannie Rochette soldiered on to win the…

Our Fathers

It's still hard for some locals to accept that 150 years ago — five generations, a historical blip — Hum­boldt County was controlled by genocidaires. Our illus­trious forefathers, the settlers of this county, were, in…

Pathological Greed & Electric

Repeat after me. Pacific Gas and Electric is not a public utility. They would like us to think they are a public utility, but they are not. PG&E is a huge amoral corporation owned by…

Annual Report: Headwaters Fund Has More

Millions of dollars of Humboldt County’s Headwa­ters Fund have been spent on community projects but because of loan repayments and interest, the fund’s total amount has grown. Outgoing Headwaters Fund Board Chairman Pat­rick Cleary told…

Schadenfreude for the Masses: ‘I Am SO Sorry’

I’m sorry, so sorry.... Please accept my apology... — Brenda Lee, 1960 It’s apology season. Maybe it's like the Catholic church, you go and con­fess, you are absolved and free to sin again. It's as…

God’s Work Ethic

Protestant guilt-work ethic? A cruel deception prom­ulgated by the rich, the bosses, the early versions of the corporate exec who sits on his ass collecting bonuses while cutting the pay of the poor schmucks who…

Will Kenny Rogers Get A New Trial?

The latest attorney for disgraced Mendo Republican Kenny Rogers, who was convicted last summer of hiring a hitman to kill a political adversary, is claiming that Rogers' last attorney so thoroughly botched his defense that the case deserves another try.

A Very Simple Proposal

The Groundswell following Dave Smith’s generous “Draft Scaramella for Supervisor” suggestion has been, ahem, less than underwhelming. Not one letter of support has been received for publication. And I think four, maybe five, people have…

-