Opinion
19 articles-
The Real Divide Isn't Policy... It's the Refusal to Listen
Shasta Pearson writes to her Liberal Democrat friends that the real divide is a refusal to hear half the state, and asks voters to take a beat before filling out their ballots.
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Fact-Check: Oregon's $32.8 Million Consumer Recovery Claim
Rob Taylor finds the state's $32.8 million in consumer recoveries credible, but calls the claim that Oregon is filling a gap left by the federal CFPB overstated.
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Common Sense Isn't Common Anymore: C.S. Lewis and the Tao
Gayle Farrel on the shared moral code C.S. Lewis called the Tao, found across world civilizations, and the danger of teaching it as merely optional.
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A 15% Tax for "Affordable" Care? The Numbers Behind Oregon's Draft Plan
Perry Holman on draft funding numbers for Oregon's Universal Health Plan, under which up to 60% of adults could pay nothing while others face a 10–15% tax.
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In Praise of the Coostucky Chronicle
The Coostucky Chronicle trades in “fake local news, real Coos County nonsense” — and humor rooted in the place keeps the powerful honest and politics bearable.
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The Hypocrisy of the 'No Kings' Protests
An opinion piece arguing the 'No Kings' protests are not a defense of democracy but a refusal to accept the 2024 election, since Trump is delivering the promises he campaigned on.
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Why We Should Follow the Law, Even When We Don't Like It
Prohibition and the 55 mph limit show what widespread defiance costs; seat belt and indoor smoking laws show grudging compliance works. Change bad laws by vote and in court.
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Freedom Through Forgiveness: Healing From Within
Forgiveness releases resentment without erasing the hard-earned memories that keep healthy boundaries — a call to drop grudges, free yourself and your debtor, and reset relationships.
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Public Safety in Coos County: We Deserve Better
Jail capacity cut from about 98 beds to 49 after the public safety levy failed, emergency releases up from around 7 a month to over 80, and sheriff's staffing down from 94 to 69.
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Coos Bay's Building Safety Month: Promoting Costly Codes
A four-week city campaign urged residents to lobby for the latest International Code Council standards while omitting Coos Bay's own costs and the fact that ICC membership is optional.
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Why Party Rules Aren't Just Red Tape
Bylaws and Robert's Rules are the guardrails of local party politics, and bending them for a short-term win risks resentment, lawsuits, walkouts and lost turnout later.
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Oregon Spends More on Each Homeless Person Than the Average Taxpayer Earns
Welfare and social programs average about $60,000 a year per homeless person counted in Oregon's Point-in-Time tallies, while the average working adult in the state nets $55,000.
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From Doubt to Hope: A Letter to My Future Daughter and the America We’re Fighting For
A letter to an unborn daughter on how a couple who never wanted children changed their minds, and how showing up over Coos County crime turned doubt into hope.
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It’s Time to Shut Down the North Bay Urban Renewal Area
Nearly 40 years on, the district's tax increment financing keeps diverting property tax growth away from the County General Fund and core services like public safety.
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We Keep Pretending This Time Will Be Different
The House voted 399-5 to reauthorize the Secure Rural Schools Act through September 2026, leaving three permanent fixes on the table: a land endowment, county land transfers, or PILT.
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A Message for Our Local "Liberals"
An appeal to average liberals to get involved with their local Democratic Party and denounce the extremists, and to conservatives to encourage them, as the way to lower the political temperature.
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They Called It a Conspiracy Theory — A Jury Just Proved Them Wrong
A federal jury convicted a Bronx man of running an unregistered Chinese police station in Manhattan's Chinatown — a warning about what happens when local officials blur national sovereignty.
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Dueling Protests Expose Deep Divide in Civility
Two protests an hour apart on June 14th — one described as vulgar and full of hate, the other a respectful flag wave — point to a community that has lost the habit of civil disagreement.
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What It Means to Be a Strong Conservative in Today's America
Limited government, self-reliance, free markets, a strong defense, traditional values and the rule of law—the principles of strong conservatism, applied to Coos County.