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Posts published in “Issue: December 2021

Gimme shelter — Thoughts on the theme — November/December 2021

Whether it’s permanent refuge for undocumented immigrants, sustainable housing for low-income people, creating zones of protection from electromagnetic frequencies, or making sure habitats remain intact for native species, contributors to our theme of “Gimme Shelter” make it clear they understand the primacy of shelter and that safe haven is the right of all sentient beings.

2021 election results—Olympia Council and Port of Olympia

The challenge by real estate to take direct control of the City Council failed as City voters rejected the candidacies of Spence Weigand, Robbi Kesler, Cory Gauny and Candace Mercer in the general election, as well as Wendy Carlson’s candidacy in the primary.

Let’s not do that

The Olympia City Council in June approved a Housing Action Plan that lists specific actions the City will take to ensure our housing supply is adequate and affordable for the people who live here now and in the future. It also lists actions the Council considered but decided to exclude…

Fair immigration policies still elude a nation of immigrants

I have been an immigration lawyer for more than 30 years. My work has always been mainly to help people inside the US to secure permanent legal status. Most of my clients have been or are currently part of an undocumented class. Some have been in deportation proceedings—the government actively…

Good news for farmers, developers, conservationists—and gophers

For over six years farmers, development interests and conservation advocates eagerly waited for a Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP). This 30-year plan will cover the entireThurston County outside the cities’ urban growth area. It targets four endangered animals—the Mazama pocket gopher, Oregon vesper sparrow, Oregon spotted frog, and Taylor’s checkerspot butterfly.…

RETHINKING EVERYTHING #13 — Our world on the verge of transition

We are moving from a world in which individual choice and competition made sense to one in which collective choice and cooperation are necessary, not because ideologies have changed but because both the problems we face and the nature of the resources required to solve them have changed...

New resources for landlords and tenants can help avoid eviction

Early in the pandemic, state and federal governments enacted moratoriums to prevent eviction of tenants for nonpayment of rent. People losing jobs, losing wage-earners, and losing childcare were falling behind on rent. The moratoriums meant that at least they wouldn’t lose their homes. The moratorium ended in Thurston County on…

Community Spotlight — December 2021

Download as PDF Harlequin Theater performances Until the Flood, through Sat., Dec 4. . This riveting play uses a series of staged interviews to explore the uprising in Ferguson, Mo. following the shooting of Michael Brown. A Christmas Carol, through Dec. 31. Lots of special effects make this holiday classic…