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 Thursday's edition.
Anti-hunger advocates will have to meet their biggest challenge in years without the Emergency Food Network’s David Ottey.
David Ottey is not what you would call a patient man, at least not when it comes to the idea that anyone should have to go without food.
Ottey saw both want and plenty in his 22 years at the helm of the Emergency Food Network. But it is a credit to his determination and passion that the last time the EFN had bare shelves was 1991.
Ottey sounded the alarm that year, and individuals, organizations and businesses have been answering it ever since. Today, the EFN supplies more than 80 percent of all food to Pierce County food banks. Its reserves ensure that no one here need go hungry.
This editorial will appear in Thursday's print edition.
Smoking in vehicles puts children’s health at risk
The science is clear: Secondhand smoke – especially in enclosed places like cars – is dangerous for children.
Parents who forced their children to ingest a poisonous substance that could injure their health probably would be charged with abuse and have their children taken away.
Yet it’s perfectly legal for parents to threaten their children's health in this state – as long as the poison is cigarette smoke.
That could change – and it’s about time. Health officials and anti-
smoking advocates are looking for legislative sponsors for a bill to ban smoking in vehicles when children are present.
Oh to be a fly on the wall any day at the White House, but today, in particular, it would have been especially nice. This afternoon three ex presidents, Carter, Bush senior, and Clinton met with current President Bush to welcome incoming President Elect Obama. It was a supreme show of goodwill and a genuine display of non-partisan politics, the likes of which we haven’t seen in a while.
A situation like this could have been uncomfortable. Think of the awful accusations these men and their surrogates have lobbed toward one another. Imagine eating chicken salad with someone who accused you of cavorting with terrorists, or passing the salt to someone who said you were responsible for the near collapse of the global economy? Awwwwkward.
Newly elected Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy was to announce this afternoon that former Tacoma City Councilman Kevin Phelps will serve as her deputy executive.
Phelps currently works as an administrator and troubleshooter for state Auditor Brian Sonntag, a former Pierce County auditor. McCarthy was county auditor until her election as county executive in November.
McCarthy aides had been saying last month that McCarthy wanted a "flat" top management echelon without a chief of staff serving in the role that Lyle Quasim played for outgoing county executive John Ladenburg.
But Quasim and Phelps, both members of a McCarthy transition team headed by local political consultant Bill Stauffacher, helped persuade McCarthy that some kind of deputy executive or chief of staff role was essential.
Quasim's administrative credentials included a stint as the longest-serving secretary in history of the massive Washington State Department of Social and Health Services.
Phelps has a long background as a businessman, most recently as the managing partner of Tacoma's Landmark Convention Center. He also serves as head of the finance committee for Life Christian Center, a multi-milliion-dollar enterprise.
Hunger fighters will have to meet their biggest challenge in years without the Emergency Food Network's David Ottey. He retired last week after 22 years at the helm of the organization that has helped ensure that no one in Pierce County need want for food.
Parents who forced their children to ingest a poisonous substance that could injure their health probably would be charged with abuse and have their children taken away. Yet it's perfectly legal for parents to do just that in this state as long as the poison is tobacco. That could change.
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.
