Idaho
updated
11:05 a.m.
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In response to former Congressman Larry LaRocco's Monday interview, his opponent for U.S. Senate Lt. Gov. Jim Risch is scheduled for a half-hour on All-Talk AM 63 KFXD radio Friday morning at 7:30. Risch will be interviewed by regular co-host Chris Kelly and guest co-host Amy Atkins of the Boise Weekly, and it may be the first time he has agreed to be interviewed in a forum where questions from...
New West Boise - 11:05 a.m.
We have had several cougar sightings on campus over the past months, the latest resulted in the teaming up of ISU Public Safety and the Idaho Fish & Game to "corral" the cougars. The sightings have been mostly on or near Red Hill, an area I don't frequent, so I haven't paid particularly close attention, but yesterday the Idaho State Journal quoted an ISU student in their "Campus Word"...
Political Game - 10:37 a.m.
I've been traveling and have some travel in my future, and what with prepping for travel and recovering from it, I haven't had much time to post. I've been thinking about the little dust-up we had that started with Dan Popkey saying he was paying too much attention to the wingers. I then "took a shot" at Adam, according to Kevin Richert, and Adam responded, sort of accusing me of being a cranky ...
IdaBlue - Wed 4:34 p.m. - 7 clicks 
Yesterday afternoon and last night I got a total of fifteen hours of sleep. Today I almost feel like a new person. Still some back pain, tail bone pain, etc., but all in all, I'm in one piece. Nothing to complain about. This is the week that nearly 22,000 Idahoans will see a pay raise due to the second phase of the federal minimum wage hike. $6.55 will be the federal minimum wage for the next yea...
Political Game - Wed 10:12 a.m. - 9 clicks
Every Wednesday morning from 8:30 to 9:00 a.m., I'm a guest on Boise's All-Talk 63 KFXD radio on Jon Duane and Chris Kelly's long-running morning show. Most Wednesdays, I bring in some current political topics and talk about what we've written on NewWest.Net. That's the jumping-off point for Jon to provoke me into defending what he sometimes sees as indefensible positions about campaigns and e...
New West Boise - Tue 7:01 a.m. - 7 clicks
As I have listened to Zeb at the Ranch, the four-show-a-week radio program coming out of Zeb Bell’s home in Murtaugh, Idaho and broadcasted by KBAR out of Rupert, Idaho, I have struggled with the underlying question of when a person’s First Amendment rights can be impinged by their inappropriate usage of hate speech. After reviewing the literature on hate speech, including three U.S. Supreme Cou...
Political Game - Mon 7:04 p.m. - 10 clicks
The persistent financial troubles of Tamarack Resort in Valley County, Idaho, have received another overhead smash. The Associated Press reports that champion tennis couple Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf, along with other investors, have walked off the court and will not build a luxury hotel bearing their name at Tamarack....
New West Boise - Mon 4:34 p.m. - 10 clicks
Below are two videos to serve as a sort of primer for what is to come on this blog in the coming week. I'd like to address the issue of hate speech on a national level (similar to Rory O'Connor's approach) as well as on a state and local level--specifically with the issue of Idaho's own Zeb Bell, a talk radio pundit in the Magic Valley who is well-known for his constant belittling of minorities, m...
Political Game - Mon 6:31 a.m. - 15 clicks
A federal judge in Missoula ordered today that gray wolves in the Northern Rockies be returned to the endangered species list, effectively halting planned fall wolf hunts in Montana, Wyoming and Idaho. U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy granted the preliminary injunction to reinstate Endangered Species Act protections for the northern Rocky Mountain gray wolf, as requested by the twelve conservati...
New West Boise - Sat 5:00 a.m. - 14 clicks
Chris referred me to the piece by Dan Popkey about Fischer and Swindell feeding off the media, and vice versa. I'm glad to see Popkey, and perhaps the Statesman, wake up to how they're being used and how it benefits Swindell and Fischer. Adam is pretty worked up over it, and rehashes the tired Ten Commandments monuments thing here and tries to take on Popkey here. Adam writes things like ...
IdaBlue - Fri 1:32 a.m. - 16 clicks
Legacy /MountainGoat Report Different judge will hear flag case /South Idaho Press The Unbound Wounds /Adam's Blog NAACP leaders will push Confederate flag issue /Statesman A Racist Oasis /Left Side of the Moon ...
Political Game - Jul 16 - 4 clicks
Given Bryan Fischer's money woes we've heard so much about lately - he has to pay Boise City's legal fees for the Ten Commandment monument fight - it's appropriate to have a look at IVA's financial picture. The most recent info I can get is from 2006, though as you'll see below the report was filed August 2007. (Click any picture to enlarge.) The IVA received $89,116 in donations and earni...
IdaBlue - Jul 14 - 11 clicks
1. I am deathly afraid of water. 2. I once had a crush on Adam West. 3. I hate birds. 4. For the first thirteen years of my life I had a different last name than I do now. 5. I was addicted to bubblegum. 6. I may still be addicted to bubblegum. 7. I can’t swim. 8. I was adopted. Twice. 9. I have four brothers and one sister. 10. I played the baritone (horn) in junior ...
Political Game - Jul 14 - 2 clicks
So the travel advice I received is pretty much the course I'm looking to take. It allows me to see North Dakota, hit South Dakota and see Mt. Rushmore, then drive through Wyoming and see Yellowstone National Park. I lived so close to it for years and never went. I know, I know, I'm totally lame. I'm trying to convince some of my friends in Pocatello to drive up and camp with me in Yellowstone. I'...
A Seattleite in Idaho - Jul 10 - 11 clicks
Since the Idaho State Journal redesigned not only the print edition, but the online edition of the paper, I have not been a regular reader. However, every now and again I will take a look at the ISJ blogs to see who is commenting. The ISJ blogs are not blogs in the typical sense, they are mostly editorials that ran in the print edition and are now running online in categorized sections (...
Political Game - Jul 10 - 5 clicks
A quick look at Risch's web site shows under upcoming events only one event; the Festival on the Falls in Idaho Falls, on July 4. One upcoming event, in the past. Have a look at the opening page of his website. I think the bright orange Donate button dominates the picture, and is a bit tacky. At least let people into the site before asking for money. ...
IdaBlue - Jul 8 - 11 clicks
Ran across this very important LTE in the Statesman this morning from a member of the board for the Treasure Valley Down Syndrome Association. I hope you'll all read it and I hope it sinks in....
Political Game - Jul 7 - 5 clicks
The last few days I've really been thinking about moving back to Seattle and the drive. On one hand, I'm super excited about the drive. On the other, I'm nervous and impatient that I even have to make the drive. I'm really thinking I'll aim for 7-10 hours each day. The places I'd like to stop and smell the roses, so to speak are Chicago, Billings (my friend's parents live there), Coeur d'Alene, W...
A Seattleite in Idaho - Jul 6 - 9 clicks
A bit more on the flap over Idaho Tax Commissioners giving discounts to corporations that challenge their tax bill. In case you forgot, Royce Chigbrow, the Tax Commission chairman, ran as a Republican for state Controller in the 2006 primary against eventual victor Donna Jones. He ran for Controller after serving as a campaign treasurer for Otter and Ysursa. Per the Spokesman-Review: Politi...
IdaBlue - Jun 25 - 11 clicks
I've got the day off so I can attend BSU's freshman orientation with my son, but have a moment to note a couple of fun facts. Betsy Russell reports that Gov Otter, the legislature, and AG Lawrence Wasden are all looking into investigating the whistleblower allegations about the Idaho Tax Commission giving discounts to corporations who protest their taxes. Tax Commission Chair is Royce Chigbrow....
IdaBlue - Jun 23 - 10 clicks
