For those of us who love the sport of politics, let me be the first to say, “Wow, Eureka!” Who says your vote doesn’t count?! In 33 years of reporting (or closely watching the reporting of others) I cannot recall election night prelim results being reversed. Last week, after all those straggling ballots were counted, […]
Judy Hodgson
Judy Hodgson is a co-founder of the North Coast Journal.
Posted inLetters + Opinion
Prepping for Midterms
Midterm elections are such a yawn, right? Well, this one actually has a few hot-button issues you may care about. GMOs and $12 an hour for hamburger flippers? I was taught in journalism school that newspapers should have an opinion about the news they cover. In Humboldt County that means pissing off half your readers […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
Growth, Change
I’ve been shedding job titles since 2003. The first one was hard to give up — the title of editor. Later, we hired a sales manager and transferred those duties. When I turned 62, five years ago, I started to work part time, mostly supervising department managers two days a week. Our company and staff […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
The Supes: A Retrospective
Letter-writer Leo Sears reminded Journal and Times-Standard readers last week that in 2012, in this opinion column, I gave “kudos to [4th District Supervisor Virginia] Bass for chairing an emotional discussion, keeping everyone civil, and for finding a solution — a way forward” as chair of the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors. The agenda item […]
Posted inNews
One Hot Firehouse
Several hundred people turned out this afternoon to celebrate the grand re-opening of the remarkably good-looking firehouse in Fieldbrook. Fire Chief Rich Grissom and his all-volunteer crew of fire fighters presented a plaque of appreciation to builder Gene Callahan and his wife, Chris, owners of Black Oak Construction. Skilled and unskilled workers, under the direction […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
Bay [T]rail Update No. 9 + CCT
I have a new favorite book. Well, it’s not that new and it’s not a real book. I just discovered online the 170-page report called “Humboldt County Coastal Trail Implementation Strategy,” published in January 2011. It’s about the dream of being able to transport yourself, sans car, along the California Coastal Trail in Humboldt County […]
Posted inNews
Nice, and Nicer
The question came near the end of the two-hour debate Friday night, one she said she hadn’t expected: What do you bring to the position of 5th District supervisor that your opponent does not? After a long pause, challenger Sharon Latour said, “Twenty years more of adult life, of problem-solving, tragedy and joy, mistakes and […]
Posted inNews
Publisher: Court docs unsealed
Curiosity. It’s a critical trait for a reporter. In January Gary Lee Bullock was sitting in jail charged with the horrific crime of breaking into the rectory of St. Bernard’s Parish on New Year’s Day and murdering Father Eric Freed. Digging through court records, News Editor Thadeus Greenson learned that Bullock had been deemed “ineligible” […]
Posted inNews
Update: Journal Snags TEN Awards
Second Update, final results: Make that FIVE FIRSTS, one second (in the photo essay contest), plus the four blue ribbon honorable mentions. Update: The CNPA folks just shipped along four more awards announcements for the Journal. These ones are our Blue Ribbon Finalists, which means they were among the top four finalists in their categories. […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
I’m Still Worried
This week’s cover story is a scholarly write-up by Journal News Editor Thadeus Greenson about the General Plan Update process — and how money may or may not influence decisions. He started with a public records act request to county supervisors for emails during a specific time period last year when they were changing the […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
Monday, March 10, 1:30 p.m. — Enough!
As I wrote in this column last week, I’ve been having flashbacks. I started as a reporter for the Arcata Union in 1981 covering the perennially contentious Humboldt County Board of Supervisors, my favorite assignment. Once in a while, the county planning commission beat overlapped, too, and, always, politics. After 33 years, I’m mostly retired, […]
Posted inNews
Planning Commission Seeks Guidance from ‘Bosses’
Facing a riled-up public, some of the newest members of the Humboldt County Planning Commission found themselves on the short end of two votes Thursday night. For the second meeting in a row, Supervisors Chambers was about half-filled by angry and demanding trail advocates, along with a smattering of fisheries biologists. One contested vote was […]