Parting Shot -- 9.16.16 1
A young girl uses a smartphone to take a picture of a lion at the zoo in Frankfurt, Germany, Tuesday.
FRIDAY, SEPT. 16, 2016
TGIF Wild Card -- 9.15.16 56
Long-time commenter Sisyphus has decided to leave Huckleberries Online, telling his friends on Facebook that I'm too old, too right wing and too forgiving of trolls in the comment threads. All that may or may not be true. I'm not getting younger. In fact, I set another personal record today for the number of days I've been on the earth.
PM Scanner Traffic -- 9.16.16
Scanner Traffic for Friday PM (25 items & counting + link to AM Scanner Traffic with 17 more items) includes report of bull moose near STEM Charter in Rathdrum. Also: Mid-60s male hurt at English Point. Football player hurt @ Lakeland High/Rathdrum.
Cutline Contest -- Time2Vote 12
The Cutline Contest today features PETA supporters at a protest against the use of meat and for vegan nutrition at the town hall in Frankfurt, Germany. Thursday Winner: Nic.
Stuntman completes Knievel jump
Forty-two years after daredevil Evel Knievel failed to clear the Snake River Canyon near Twin Falls, stuntman Eddie Braun pulled off a similar jump on a steam-powered rocket. Braun landed safely on the south rim of the canyon, the Twin Falls Times-News reported.
HBO Blogos -- 9.16.16
The daily roundup of HucksOnline blosophere includes: Powder to the people/OnTap, Dressed for success/Fort Boise, My friend John et al/Slight Detour, 'Sully' adds drama to hero's tale/7 Blog, WSU's terrible, horrible, no good week/Grip, Trump 54: No dissent in Trump's USA/Randy Stapilus + more ...
Sam: Civility needed for progress 4
Sam Taylor remembers HucksOnline of days gone by, when things were far nastier in the comments thread than today. Still, Sam wonders about the incivility that's still displayed here: "I believe the only way to make progress ... is to be positive and seek solutions. Being negative only hurts those I'm serving, and honestly it hurts internally, too."
Council to hear Hagadone request
The Coeur d’Alene City Council will hear Duane Hagadone’s request to annex part of Blackwell Island on Tuesday. Hagadone Corp. owns 24 acres on the island’s southern end, plus adjacent submerged lands. Two Hagadone businesses - the Marina Yacht Club LLC and Cedar’s Floating Restaurant -- operate on the property.
'Shipwreck' 2
Huckleberries wishes its old friend Tom Wobker, The Bard of Sherman Avenue, had lived to see that the Seattle Mariners are still playoff relevant in mid-September 2016. “Shipwreck,” one of my many favorite poems of his involved one of many futile M’s seasons.
Rain heads our way Saturday 1
A rainstorm fed by moisture from a tropical typhoon is approaching the Pacific Northwest coast and set to strike inland by late morning on Saturday. National Weather Service forecasters said the heaviest rainfall will hit in North Idaho, mountain areas of northeast Washington and the Cascades. (Q: Why does rain hit on the weekends? Party pooper.)
Couple throws garden tools at cops 8
Local streets and I-90 briefly resembled a garden shed Thursday night after two people fleeing from police in a stolen van threw garden tools - including a gas powered weed trimmer - out the back in an effort to escape. The chase started in Post Falls and crossed into Spokane County around 6:45 p.m. (Q: Which garden tool do you value most?)
Nic: Comment Boor no more 7
We had a swell thread re: Comment Boors yesterday. Many good comments. Nic provided the best when he owned his tendency to be an occasional Comment Boor. In his comment, Nic provided 4 steps he takes to step away from the ledge when he's tempted to be a Comment Boor.
Harvest Moon 3
On her Facebook page, Kerri Thorsen posts this photo of this week's Harvest Moon, with the description: "The spectacular Harvest Moon behind log bunks at the Idaho Veneer mill in Post Falls." (Q: Do you consider a full moon romantic?)
AM Scanner Traffic -- 9.15.16
Scanner Traffic for Friday AM (17 items & counting) includes ATV rollover on Canfield Mountain during lunch hour that has injured a 60YO woman ...
Kathy's son has a big football game 1
All of you have enjoyed the photography of my friend Kathy Plonka for the SR. Her husband, Brian, also is a superb photographer who graced us with his work years ago. On Brian's 51st birthday yesterday, the Plonkas son, Jordan, a defensive tackle for Lakeland High scored a touchdown in a 28-0 rout of Rogers High. Whatta gift.
Driving to work in style 17
Kootenai County Clerk Jim Brannon arrives at the courthouse after driving his 1960s era VW bug to work. Color me green with envy. I drove a VW bug back in the day. Traded it for a convertible Camero. I still wished I had the bug. Gutless. But many fond memories driving it. (Q: Did you ever own a VW bug?)
Largest cop union backs Trump 12
The nation's largest police union on Friday endorsed Donald Trump for president, lauding his commitment to police officers. The Fraternal Order of Police gave the GOP presidential nominee its endorsement after he received support from more than two-thirds of the group's national board.
IFF: Idahoans help those in need 7
In his column today, executive director Wayne Hoffman of the Idaho Freedom Foundation comments that a group called Love Caldwell models how the private sector can help those in need better than government. (Q: Do you agree-disagree that the private sector is better positioned than government to help those in need?)
Redoubters doubt 6
In his column today, Randy Stapilus of the Ridenbaugh Press doubts that the ballyhooed American Redoubt movement has had much of an impact on Idaho. In theory, he says, the movement of religious isolationists could affect the next election, adding: "But I'll believe it when I see it."
Ex-Spokane mayor hurt in bike crash 2
Former Mayor Mary Verner spent 11 days in the ICU following a bicycle accident on Sept. 3. “I would say she sustained pretty serious injuries to her face and her head,” said city councilwoman Karen Stratton, who has spoken to Verner’s daughter on the phone. (Q: Izzit just me or are there more bike crashes today in region than ever?)
Poll: Split on home work
In Thursday's poll, HucksOnline readers were evenly divided re: the importance of after-school home work. They were reacting to the story that Bryan Elementary in Coeur d'Alene will no longer require that teachers assign home work. Today's Poll: What do you want to seen done with the old Hayden Elementary?
NIC races: BNI backs GFeller, Murray 3
Balance North Idaho has unveiled its endorsements for the North Idaho College Board of Trustees: Greg Gfeller and Brad Murray. Gfeller is running against controversial incumbent Todd Banducci while Murray was appointed to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Ron Nilson.
Teens gather in NIdaho for drugs, fights 14
Teenagers from all around the northwest have been gathering by the hundreds in North Idaho for parties that feature drugs, alcohol and “sanctioned fights,” according to a joint statement from Coeur d’Alene Public Schools and the Coeur d’Alene Police Department. The parties are organized on social media.
WSU expels football player Barber for fight
Robert Barber, a starting nose tackle and lynchpin of the Washington State football team’s defense, has been expelled from the school following a University Conduct Board investigation into a fight over the summer that left one student unconscious and another hospitalized with a fractured jaw.
Edit: To home work or not to? 10
In this morning's editorial, the Coeur d'Alene Press is urging balance by Bryan Elementary School administrators who have decided not to require teachers to assign home work this year.
D.F. Oliveria started Huckleberries Online on Feb. 16, 2004. Oliveria's Sunday print Huckleberries is a past winner of the national Herb Caen Memorial Column contest.