WTF

Global warming skeptics (aka deniers) have their forum: it's called AM radio. So it's curious that the Oregon chapter of the American Meteorological Society has chosen to give several prominent skeptics a platform to espouse their misinformed ideas.

Republicans never met a tax cut they didn't like, unless of course it comes at the expense of their corporate masters. To wit, view the most recent partisan showdown in Washington that has Senate leaders wrangling over a no-brainer payroll tax extension.

It's been said that there ought to be an IQ test for prospective parents given the importance of the task at hand. We'd like to respectfully request one for another job – elected officials, particularly school board members.

There has been no shortage of good story lines coming out of the DA's office in the past year or so: mass firings, costly lawsuit settlements, clashes with county government, but the Bulletin's front-page Sunday story about Pat Flaherty's request for a new software and email system isn't one of them. It's no wonder that Flaherty won't even return a reporter's phone calls anymore with this kind of thinly veiled witch hunt emanating from Chandler Avenue.

There are perhaps no two topics of greater interest to small-town television news producers than pets and crime. Occasionally, the two narratives intersect for what must feel like the Holy Grail of scoop for TV folks.

In terms of rest stops the drive between Madras and Sandy is not exactly target rich. That's why were scratching our collective heads at the idea of shutting down the public rest strop at Government Camp, AKA, the only public restroom on the long stretch of road between Central Oregon and the Valley.

$4.6 million
That's how much the heirs that owned the Eagle Cap Wilderness Lodge sought for the 50-year-old lodge and guest houses in Eastern Oregon when they put the property up for a sealed bid auction recently.

On Monday, County Commissioners abruptly and unexpectedly dismissed County Administrator Dave Kanner after five years on the job, citing a difference in management style. The firing comes on the heels of a contentious contract negotiation with county staff and a prolonged pissing match with the district attorney's office.

This week's WTF comes courtesy of the Deschutes County Commissioners who decided in July to perpetuate the ongoing pissing match with Deschutes County District Attorney Patrick Flaherty. Working through their contracted attorneys, county commissioners filed what amounted to a plea to oust the embattled Flaherty who is the subject of anonymous bar complaint over his handling of a grand jury investigation last year.

Flipping through Monday's edition of The Bulletin, it became clear that the readers of our daily paper are either a) quite old b) not especially great listeners or c) fans of the latest hearing assistance devices. In the “A” section of the paper alone, there were three full-page ads for hearing aids.