This blog is designed to give readers a glimpse of our editorial-page operation and how we make our decisions. We’ll let you know who we’re meeting with, what they’re telling us, what events and issues we’re looking at. We’ll also pass on information and observations that may not make our print editions. In addition to the editorial board members who post on this blog, the board includes Publisher David Zeeck, Executive Editor Karen Peterson and Managing Editor Dale Phelps.
Editorial board bloggers
Editorial page editor Patrick O’Callahan oversees the online and printed opinion sections of The News Tribune. He came to The News Tribune in 1987 and has worked at Washington newspapers since 1979. E-mail him at patrick.ocallahan@thenewstribune.com
Editorial writer Cheryl Tucker, in addition to writing commentary, manages the daily production of the editorial and op-ed pages and edits letters to the editor. She began her journalism career in 1974 at a Virginia newspaper and came to The News Tribune in 1978. E-mail her at cheryl.tucker@thenewstribune.com.
Editorial writer Kim Bradford manages the online opinion section of The News Tribune and writes commentary. She joined The News Tribune in 2005 after working 11 years at newspapers in Washington and Maryland. E-mail her at kim.bradford@thenewstribune.com.
Guest bloggers
Editor emeritus David Seago retired from The News Tribune in 2008 after 41 years at The News Tribune. E-mail him at sds99@harbornet.com.
Richard Davis’ column on state politics frequently runs in the print edition of The News Tribune. He was president of the Washington Research Council, a statewide think tank, from 1986 through 2006. Currently, as a principal with The Simeon Partnership, Inc. he coordinates the activities of the Washington Alliance for a Competitive Economy, a business coalition founded by the Research Council, the Association of Washington Business and the Washington Roundtable.
Karen Irwin of University Place, a mother of four, has been a frequent contributor to The News Tribune's print editions. She has also written for Seattle's Child, Puget Sound Parent, the Tacoma Weekly, the Fayetteville Observer Times and the political blog Right Meets Left. She graduated from California Lutheran University with a degree in English literature and is currently working toward a history degree.
Michael Allen, professor of history at the University of Washington Tacoma, was born and raised in Ellensburg. He served with the U.S. Marines in Vietnam from 1969-70. He has written five books, including the prize-winning "Patriot's History of the United States: From Columbus' Great Discovery to the War on Terror," "Rodeo Cowboys in the North American Imagination" and "Western Rivermen, 1763-1861: Ohio and Mississippi Boatmen and the Myth of the Alligator Horse." Allen lives in Tacoma and Ellensburg and has three children.
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This editorial will appear in tomorrow's print edition.
Boston had its Big Dig. Seattle has its Big Dither.
The Big Dither is the endless and tiresome argument over the best of all possible ways to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct, the double-decked stretch of Highway 99 that runs like a grey concrete horror along downtown Seattle’s waterfront.
It’s been almost eight years since the Nisqually Earthquake supposedly exposed the viaduct’s potential for a catastrophic collapse.
We say “supposedly” because the leaders of this state, King County and the City of Seattle don’t appear to really believe that the viaduct might actually fall down. If they took their engineers seriously, they would have done something about it by now. There would be at least an occasional flicker of urgency in the Big Dither.
Instead, we have process, process, process. Debate, debate, debate. You would think they were talking about the eventual replacement of the Great Pyramid of Giza.
Boston had its Big Dig. Now Seattle has its Big Dither – the endless argument over how to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct. Six years after the viaduct was declared a major hazard, Seattle and the state still haven’t agreed on how to build a new one.
If you have comments or questions about these topics, please email them to patrick.ocallahan@thenewstribune.com. Editorials represent the consensus view of The News Tribune's editorial board.
Want to sit in on a daily ed board meeting? Email cheryl.tucker@thenewstribune.com to make an appointment.
You might have noticed the obituary today for Carlean Johnson – a Gig Harbor woman known for her "Six Ingredients or Less" series of cookbooks.
Her recipes were quick and easy, just perfect for busy parents and working folks. They weren't fancy, and I'm sure the "foodies" would turn their noses up at her generous use of canned soups and other prepackaged ingredients. But they resonated with home cooks, and by the time we ran a 2000 Associated Press article about her, she had sold more than 1 million books.
I have an autographed copy of her first book, published in 1982. I've used several of the recipes over the years, but one I use on a regular basis is for rice pilaf. It's great – and easy.
Here it is:
I spent the long New Year's weekend out on the north Washington coast near Moclips. While driving around, I came upon a planned "eco-village" called Seabrook just south of Pacific Beach along the coast highway.
The community is composed of different styles of homes, from small cottages to near McMansions. Although they all had a New England coastal feeling to them, they still reminded me a lot of another planned community I've visited: Seaside, on the Florida Panhandle. Seaside is where the Jim Carrey movie, "The Truman Show," was filmed.
I liked the feel of the town and the fact that it's walker- and bike-friendly. Homes are for sale and available for vacation rentals, with prices comparing favorably with the motels along the coast. It has a nice restaurant I wish I'd had the time to eat at.
The downside: The homes are not on the beach side of the road, although plans are to build some there and there's easy beach access.
TNT columnist Dan Voelpel had a story about the man behind Seabrook back in May.
