Whether you’re taking a break after the holidays or “dry curious,” many are forgoing alcohol for Dry January. But as you look at 2025 so far, you may be thinking you’ve made a huge mistake. You’re not alone facing our hellscape without even the thinnest veil of numbing booze between you and reality’s horrors. Plenty […]
Politics
Posted inNews
State of the State: Will Gov. Newsom do More to Reduce California Inequality?
Gov. Gavin Newsom is an unlikely champion of California’s down and out. Yet the wine entrepreneur, who built his political career and fortune with help from the state’s wealthy elite, campaigned on a promise to address California’s disparities – and do so boldly. From his first day in office in January 2019, Newsom called the […]
Posted inNews
What’s at Stake for Newsom’s Biggest Recall Campaign Donors
As Gov. Gavin Newsom wraps up a month of high-stakes decisions about what should become law in California, he’s also making calls that impact many of the donors who just spent millions of dollars to help him defeat the historic Sept. 14 recall. Labor unions, real estate moguls, tech titans — interest groups that lobby […]
Posted inNews
Huffman Blasts Extremist Colleague, Urges ‘Decent People’ to Leave ‘Moral Rot’ of GOP
There’s a growing rift in the Republican party and North Coast Congressman Jared Huffman, never one to be confused for a political wallflower, has joined the fray. Tensions between the GOP establishment and a new wave of politicians who have ridden to prominence on a wave of populism and Trumpism have been growing for years […]
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Cash Blitz: A Look at Who’s Spending to Influence Your Vote for California’s Legislature
State law caps the amount donors can give to a legislator’s campaign — but these special interests can spend as much as they like mounting their own campaigns to praise or trash candidates. And the money interest groups are pouring into these “independent expenditure committees” has reached dizzying heights. So far more than $31 million […]
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Incumbents Hold Large Cash Advantage in Supes Races
When it comes to financing a supervisorial campaign, it sure is nice to be an incumbent. That’s the primary takeaway from the first round of campaign finance disclosure reports filed with the Humboldt County Elections Office in advance of the March 3 primary, which will see five challengers battle a pair of incumbents for seats […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
Localize Your Impact
Forty years ago, a young couple lobbed a rock of altruism and hope into the middle of the pond that is Humboldt County. Decades later, the ripples from Joe Abbott and Ann Morrissey’s actions in 1977 continue to reverberate, having grown into something beyond their wildest youthful imaginations. They started small. In this week’s cover […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
Tribalism and Polarization, And Why We Should Be Concerned
A Google search of tribalism in America returns 664,000 results with headlines like “The New Tribalism and the Decline of the Nation State” and “Can Our Democracy Survive Tribalism?” Recently, a bounty of new books has arrived with titles like: Political Tribes: Group Instinct and the Fate of Nations and Us Against Them: How Tribalism […]
Posted inNews
Memorial Planned for Famed Pollster Jim Moore
Friends and relatives will gather tomorrow evening to celebrate the life of Jim Moore, an Arcata native who became one of California’s must trusted political pollsters. Moore, who had been in declining health, died unexpectedly in his El Dorado County home Jan. 1. He was 66. Born March 28, 1951, the son of Herb and […]
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The Political Climate With Jill Stein at HSU
Jill Stein stepped on stage as a welcoming crowd of more than 300 community members clapped and cheered. She raised a peace sign in the air, which brought people in the Humboldt State University lecture hall to their feet. Stein, the Green Party presidential nominee, came to campus to discuss a wide array of political […]
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Huffman Thumps Trump
North Coast Congressman Jared Huffman blasted presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s planned visit with the leaders of the Westlands Water District in an absolutely scathing press release sent out this afternoon. “Donald Trump, who continues to refuse to release his tax returns and show the public his personal accounting, will be sitting down with […]
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Our Assemblyman Golfed Pebble Beach Last Year for Free
Politicians are just like us. Who hasn’t been given $460 tickets to a Warriors or Giants game from a powerful state union or private corporation? The LA Times just released an article detailing the sports-related gifts handed to California lawmakers and there was our very own 2nd District Assemblyman Jim Wood, leading the state in […]