City fence-sitting on marijuana (MJ) won’t be allowed if the State gets its way, and a warrant to inspect rental housing won’t be needed now that the City has its way. If House Bill 1099 passes this current legislative session, Lakewood will lose over a half-million dollars annually from the city’s estimated share of alcohol […]
Letter: Living as a square peg in a round hole world
Martin Luther King Jr., whose life and accomplishments are recognized officially with a day set aside in his honor, was “an American Baptist minister and activist who was a leader in the Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for his role in the advancement of civil rights using nonviolent civil disobedience based on his […]
Letter: Another day (month), another unmet rental inspection deadline
As of this writing, January 6 was yesterday, “but” in the hit single lyrics of Chad and Jeremy (1963) “that was yesterday and yesterday’s gone.” And with the passing of another day, another deadline promised by the City of Lakewood’s legal department has gone unmet as well.
Letter: New resolutions, old refrain – hurry up and wait
Whether it’s waiting for the results of a public disclosure request or thinking an emergency room is for emergencies, best take a seat. It’s gonna be awhile. Although, in the latter case, I’ve an idea to cut to the front of the line that doesn’t involve blood. Read on.
Letter: Three questions to ask a prospective landlord (in Lakewood and elsewhere) before signing an apartment lease
“Most people tend to rush signing a lease,” warned Nancy Simmons Starrs in the December 28, 2016 “Washington Post.” Indeed, “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread,” likewise warned Alexander Pope in a poem about tenant/landlord relationships gone bad (or maybe 1711 was pre-rental inspection days).
Letter: New Year’s resolution – never ‘whatever’
Whatever is the most annoying word of the year just ending? Yes. It’s both a question and a statement to which ‘whatever’ is the answer.
Letter: Three predictions for 2017
Marijuana sales will sprout – like the weed that it is – in Lakewood, the city joining La La Land – not the movie but its neighbors – in transitioning from holdout (bans) to handout (bucks). “Principles,” after all, opined the Tacoma News Tribune Editorial Board, “don’t keep the lights on.” And sprigs, that is […]
Letter: Deck the halls with boughs of folly
From the encroachment that accompanies complex, time-consuming, convoluted and cumbersome rental inspection programs, to government-grant research papers concluding that five-to-eight-year-olds prefer clean food as opposed to allegedly sneezed-on food, is it any wonder American’s trust in government to “do the right thing” has hit historic lows? Just published is the 154-page 2nd annual edition of […]
Letter: ‘Tis the season to be, uh, to be, uh
The Pastor shouted at kids waiting to see Santa in the Amarillo, Texas mall saying he wasn’t real; nothing but a red suit. Angry parents, leaving their toddlers behind, stepped out of line to confront the preacher, some protesting to Westgate Mall representatives that the Santa Claus Grinch should be banned.