Commentary | The Daily Chronicle

Sen. Lynda Wilson, R-Vancouver, is budget leader for the Senate Republican Caucus. She serves Washington’s 17th Legislative District.

Commentary: The Best ‘Targeted Investment’ in Washington Families Is Tax Relief

Remember how state government had a $15 billion budget surplus during this year’s legislative session? At the time, I and other Republicans said some of that should be returned to the people, … more

By Sen. Lynda Wilson | 7/11/22

The location of the home of the Salzer family is pictured in this photograph by Julie McDonald.

Highlighting Lewis County: In 1875, the Salzer Family Settled in the Valley Now Bearing Their Name

Fifty years after his birth in 1825 in Germany, Joseph Salzer settled nearly 5,300 miles away in a valley 3 miles southeast of Centralia that now bears his name. He and his wife, Anna Marie, … more

By Julie McDonald / For The Chronicle | 7/11/22

Commentary: School Choice Opponents Say Giving Families Access to Education Vouchers Is Racist; Here’s Why They’re Wrong

Due perhaps to the dawning realization that they are losing, school choice opponents are now claiming, in desperation, that using vouchers as a tool to provide children with an education is racist. … more

By Liv Finne / The Washington Policy Center | 7/10/22

A rib plate from Izzy’s Bar-B-Que is pictured at the Southwest Washington Fair in this Chronicle file photo.

Brian Mittge Commentary: Summer Festival Food — Who Does it Best?

We’re hitting our stride in Lewis County with the annual summer parade and festival season. Our diverse agricultural heritage has given us a wonderful range of events that directly tie to … more

By Brian Mittge / For The Chronicle | 7/8/22

Other Views: Combat Organized Retail Theft in Washington With Coordinated, Sustained Effort

Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson is creating a statewide Organized Retail Crime Theft Task Force. It remains to be seen whether it will make progress or become just one more committee … more

By The Seattle Times Editorial Board | 7/7/22

State Rep. Peter Abbarno talks to attendees of an ARPA and Infrastructure Initiatives Stakeholders meeting last May.

Peter Abbarno Commentary: We Must Make Home Ownership Affordable and Attainable

Growing up, many of us heard home ownership was an essential part of the “American Dream.” I still believe that to be true. It is part of a family’s retirement planning, security … more

By State Rep. Peter Abbarno | 7/6/22

Kris Johnson is president of the Association of Washington Business, the state’s chamber of commerce and manufacturers association.

Commentary: Washington State Employers Deepen Trade Ties to the United Kingdom

When our friends in Great Britain open their eyes in the morning, many parts of their day look a lot like what we see here in Washington. The Association of Washington Business led a trade mission … more

By Kris Johnson / Association of Washington Business | 7/6/22

Bill Moeller Commentary: Ramblings in Early Summer and a Pitch for Summerfest Grand Marshal

One of these days our weather will settle down and behave itself the way it used to. Remember? For instance, the lady who used to own the mobile home I now inhabit had planted a good supply of … more

By Bill Moeller / For The Chronicle | 7/6/22

Carol Ponder is pictured near the former one-room Salzer Valley schoolhouse.

Julie McDonald Commentary: Interview Provides Glimpses of Early Salzer Valley

As the nation’s bicentennial celebration approached in 1976, members of the Salzer Valley Homemakers decided to reopen the historic one-room school so local fourth graders could see how their … more

By Julie McDonald / For The Chronicle | 7/6/22

Jack Kerr, a marine veteran who works with his wife Kathy Heimbigner to organize meetings with other local veterans, introduces speakers at the Tall Timber Restaurant Lounge in Randle. Kathy A. Heimbigner is the author of this commentary.

Commentary: Veterans Ask Only for What They Were Promised After Pledging Lives

Whether a volunteer or draftee, each and every veteran signed a document agreeing to sacrifice his or her life during service for the United States of America. That makes a veteran different … more

By Kathy A. Heimbigner | 7/1/22

Sam and Brian Mittge play doubles during the Jack State Tennis Tournament at W.F. West High School on Saturday.

Brian Mittge Commentary: Sunny or Cloudy, Summer Days Are Sweet, Indeed

“Summertime, and the living is easy...” — George and Ira Gershwin I’m a bit of a contrarian when it comes to summer. I’m happy with overcast and … more

By Brian Mittge / For The Chronicle | 7/1/22

Bill Moeller Commentary: Is Summer Really Here? And Another Trip to the Emergency Room

You’ll probably be reading this at least a week or more after I’ve written it, so I can only assume that, just maybe, summer is finally here. We can only guess how long it will be … more

By Bill Moeller / For The Chronicle | 6/29/22

Carol Ponder and her daughter Marilyn Gallagher pose with one of Ponder’s baskets.

Highlighting Lewis County: Ponder Family Has Deep Roots in Lewis County

While walking home from a Rainbow Girls meeting, Carol Matteson and her friends accepted a ride from a handsome young man, Richard “Dick” Ponder. “And next thing I knew, he … more

By Julie McDonald / For The Chronicle | 6/27/22

A Brewer’s blackbird looks on from a tree in front of Chehalis City Hall on Thursday.

Brian Mittge Commentary: Bad Blackbird of Chehalis an Apt Anti-Hero of Our Era

So many of the problems in our world today seem larger than life; far away but looming ominously as they cast a pall over our future and a threat over the present day. In a way, the latest villain of … more

By Brian Mittge / For The Chronicle | 6/24/22

Ed Johnstone is the chairman of the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission.

Being Frank: We Need All Hands on Deck to Slow the Spread of European Green Crab

Efforts are ramping up to control the explosion of invasive European green crab (Carcinus maenas) in western Washington. The invasive species reached San Francisco in 1989 and was first detected … more

Commentary by Ed Johnstone | 6/24/22

Bill Moeller Commentary: The Aftermath of My Experience With a Virus

I don’t suppose there’s a policy on when you can stop thinking about something as serious as the coronavirus once you’ve come into personal familiarity with it, but here — and … more

By Bill Moeller / For The Chronicle | 6/22/22

Don Brunell Commentary: Drones Can Help Restore Scorched Public Forestlands

Regenerating millions of western forested acres scorched by large wildfires is a herculean task costing hundreds of billions of dollars. However, healthy growing woodlands are essential to reducing … more

By Don C. Brunell | 6/21/22

At left, A young Carol Matteson Ponder is pictured. At right, Carol Matteson Ponder, left, and daughter Marilyn Gallagher.

Highlighting Lewis County: Octogenarian Recalls Childhood in Centralia and Salzer Valley

After physical education class, a teacher handed Centralia sophomore Carol Matteson the key to the girls’ dressing room, asking her to lock up after she and her friend, Marlene Christin, of Pe … more

By Julie McDonald / For The Chronicle | 6/20/22

Richard Stride is the current CEO of Cascade Community Healthcare. He can be reached at drstride@icloud.com.

Richard Stride Commentary: How’s Your Character? Are You Worth the Admiration of Others?

If you have been watching the news lately concerning the Jan. 6 hearings — which I hope you haven’t watched too much — you are aware that issues such as credibility, … more

By Richard Stride / For The Chronicle | 6/20/22

State Rep. Peter Abbarno, R-Centralia, speaks at a town hall in September 2021.

Peter Abbarno Commentary: Pursuing a ‘Fix’ to the Rise in Crime

The recent rise in crime has been disturbing and unsettling. Everyone deserves to be safe at home, work and in their communities. Unfortunately, recent state and federal police reforms have … more

By state Rep. Peter Abbarno | 6/20/22