Compass

COMPASS: BEN BLAKEY

Jewelers join the fight against Pebble

It should come as no surprise that someone like me -- whose family's business and financial interests are tied to the Bristol Bay fishing industry -- opposes the Pebble Mine. But I'm just one among thousands of other business owners and individuals whose incomes depend directly on the continued health of the region's salmon industry.

COMPASS: JANET MORANA

Maybe this is why feminists dislike Palin

It' has been more than a year since the election of 2008 and yet Sarah Palin cannot show up in the news without a barrage of vicious attacks from the media.

COMPASS: JANA TURVEY

We should be celebrating success of the 8(a) contracts

After Congress created Alaska Native corporations (ANCs) and told them to go forth and prosper, it gave them a tool to help them succeed.

COMPASS: GEORGE PLETNIKOFF

Aleutian tribes feel strain of poor fishery management

We Unangan -- Aleut -- people have lived and survived on the islands of the Aleutian Chain for almost 10,000 years. Our survival and our foods have always come from the waters surrounding our island villages.

COMPASS: GOV. SEAN PARNELL

Incentive aims to keep students in Alaska

Since becoming governor, I have spoken to many groups about my top priority: positioning Alaska's economy for growth and our children and families for opportunity. As Alaskans, we are blessed with resources in abundance -- fish and game, minerals, gas and oil, and water. I'm optimistic about the many prospects we have to safely develop these natural resources, and I'm working hard to pursue every opportunity.

COMPASS: REP. DON YOUNG

House health care bill was bad for Alaskans

Like most Americans, I am worried about the health care crisis in our country. In Alaska, 17 percent of the population is uninsured. Some of these individuals work for small businesses that cannot afford to offer insurance like larger employers do; some make a conscious decision not to purchase insurance because they are young and healthy and do not want to spend the money on it; and others have just fallen through the cracks.

COMPASS: LAWRENCE D. WEISS

For some, property taxes are too low

Anchorage property taxes are too low -- at least for some property owners.

COMPASS: LT. COL. ROB WALDMAN

As we pay tribute to our veterans, ask yourself this: Am I worth fighting for?

With the war on terror so prevalent in the news, we need to remind ourselves that those executing government policy on the battlefront are real men and women with families, dreams, and aspirations. They don't make the policy, but simply carry out their duties with honor, courage and commitment.

COMPASS: LEO THORSNESS

Ordinary Americans do the extraordinary when called

American veterans generally are not household names. Veterans blend in; they don't stand out in a crowd. At one time, however, they stood tall as they fought in the trenches, on the oceans and high in the skies. Because of these ordinary Americans, the rest of us live in freedom during peace and war.

COMPASS: TIM BENINTENDI

Our veterans' sacrifices deserve honor and reverence

This Veterans Day, we pause to recognize the sacrifices of family members, loved ones, friends, neighbors and even strangers who have worn the nation's military uniforms and defended our way of life.

COMPASS: JEFF PANTAGES

Gold is a good investment, right? Wrong

What is it about gold? Its price is soaring in the market and is now over $1,000 an ounce. There are more and more TV ads exhorting viewers to "Buy gold, now!" The higher it goes the louder the ads seem to get.

COMPASS: BRADFORD H. TUCK

Connecting highways won't solve problem

The H2H project is based on a flawed premise. The problem is time-of-day traffic congestion in downtown and Midtown (including the U-Med area) Anchorage, largely related to commuter travel. Connecting the two highways does not address the problem and will not solve the problem.

COMPASS: DEIRDRE CRONIN

Our youths are faces of homelessness

Recent news coverage has thrust the issue of homelessness into the spotlight. Most of the attention has been focused on chronic inebriates and providing housing alternatives to makeshift homeless camps.

COMPASS: SUSAN H. BOMALASKI

Bus cuts hurt those who need service most

I respectfully disagree with the reductions in the People Mover service proposed in response to the municipal budget shortfall for 2010.

COMPASS: VINCE BELTRAMI

Fagan uses fuzzy math in his attack on Begich, unions

I read Oil Can Dan (Fagan's) latest in a series of political attacks on Mayor Begich, but his figures don't exactly reflect reality.

COMPASS: J. JAMES ROHACK, M.D.

Let's repeal Medicare payment formula

Despite the best efforts of Sen. Begich, legislation that would have preserved the security and stability of Medicare recently fell victim to Washington politics.

COMPASS: DAVE MAYO-KIELY

Ride to school keeps homeless kids on track

MJ is in third grade. Sometimes she stays with her father; sometimes she stays with her grandmother. Since July, her father has had five different addresses. He is looking for work and is on the waiting list for housing assistance. He's concerned that MJ might be falling behind in school.

COMPASS: HILARY A. MORGAN

Invest in solutions, not more plans

As saddened as I have been to read about the numerous deaths of homeless street alcoholics over the summer in Anchorage, I am equally stunned that the city appears to be starting from scratch to address this issue.

COMPASS: JEFF DILLON

Anchorage can't afford to let parks deteriorate

The city is facing serious budget decisions as we struggle to find a balance between paying to "take better care of what we have," or slashing budgets to reduce property taxes. We all want a safe and healthy community, but at what price?

COMPASS: JIM MINNERY

Consent for flu vaccine but not abortion?

If it wasn't so irrational and detrimental, it might just be comical. A quick nasal puff of the H1N1 flu vaccine cannot be administered to underage schoolchildren without parental consent. Common sense tells us that parents should be involved in even the least intrusive of medical treatments of their underage children right?

COMPASS: MICHAEL HOWARD

H2H study needs to have broader scope

Folks around town were startled to receive a postcard telling them the state is looking at running the proposed Highway to Highway "through their kitchen," as Rep. Les Gara aptly put it. People immediately protested and Community Councils passed resolutions opposing the freeway through their neighborhoods.