Guest View

On March 23, I was privileged to be able to witness history as President Obama signed into law the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). ]After over a year of contentious and often politicized Congressional debate, it was rewarding to know that we succeeded in overcoming tremendous special interest lobbying to enact sweeping health care reforms that will help individuals and businesses thrive.

The farm to market road begins in the fertile Snohomish valley and ends at the western edge of downtown Edmonds near the shores of Puget Sound. Shoppers, tourists, artisans and farmers make their way to the year-round public market.

Last Fall SOC predicted the Environmental Assessment and subsequent hearings would fall in the midst of the busy Holiday season. Sure enough, that’s exactly what happened.

The City of Edmonds is in a very fragile place. Regarding our financial situation, we appear set to spend through all of our reserves by the second quarter of 2012.

We are fast approaching a demographic tsunami of older adults in every community across America. Nationally, the number of older adults will increase by 15 million over the next 10 years.

Each year, the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council (SBE Council) publishes a list of the best to worst state tax systems for entrepreneurship and small business.  

Boeing CEO James McNerney and Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO James Albaugh enthusiastically report the Boeing flight test program for the 787 is on schedule to complete the test program by mid-September. But that buoyant enthusiasm just doesn't match the numbers.

By now many of you ardent readers of this newspaper have been reading and/or hearing about Councilman Michael Plunkett's drive to change the governing structure of Edmonds. In a nutshell, his proposal seeks to abolish the direct election of our mayor and replace the position with a council-manager form of government.

Last night, the Edmonds City Council took fiscal irresponsibility to a whole new level.  As you know, we spent much of last year talking about the need for a levy - including 6 unanimous votes for a levy in 2009.  Ultimately, in a 4-3 vote, Council decided to put that levy off until 2010. 

Recently the Edmonds City Council passed a campaign reform measure about how we elect our local officials. Today, I’m proposing a government reform measure. After 12 years on the Edmonds City Council I have come to the conclusion that we need to enact a major reform and create a council-manager form of government as soon as possible.

The community of Edmonds is at a very unique crossroads regarding developing a vision for the area between downtown and the waterfront. A confluence of efforts, interests, and projects have produced a special time where it is possible we might be able to imagine – and then implement – a new, engaging and vital public space there.

Beyond rows. Vegetables without borders. Delicious and delightful. These are terms that come to mind when I think about adding edibles to the ornamental beds in a garden. All too often, vegetables are segregated in a dedicated edible area. While this can certainly be a workable solution to where to plant them, there are many other creative ways to sneak a few tasty plants into the landscape.

People across the state must be scratching their heads and wondering, “Now what?”  Your Washington state representatives, driven primarily by the ever-so-close-to-supermajority of Democrats, have really gotten themselves in a bind.

Earlier this year, news that Wall Street banks had posted record profits and were quickly returning to a “bonus-as-usual” mentality left families across our state astonished and angry.

The yearly calendar of garden chores has catapulted ahead of schedule with this winter’s warm temperatures. Pruning of many fruit trees is often performed during late winter and early spring during the dormant state. All indications seem to point to the imminent arrival of spring.

I recently reported in “Taking Stock” that Microsoft was the most profitable company in the world, earning $6.7 billion in the quarter ending Dec. 31.

Lawmakers in Olympia have a rare opportunity this session to give a green light to the Washington State Heritage Center, creating much-needed jobs, generating sales tax revenue… and providing our citizens with a priceless resource that will serve as a legacy for future generations.

In the 1970s and early `80s, the most profitable company in the world was AT&T. On Jan. 1, 1984, as a result of a court-approved consent agreement, AT&T was broken up into eight companies.

Years ago, an accomplished writer was given the assignment of drafting the pilot episode of a proposed television series. He thought about it, letting it play around in his writer brain for weeks, and finally got a call from the producer, asking about the script.

A game rigged against us. Want to play a game? Regardless, you’re in, and you can’t quit.