Evon Peter

OPINION: Alcohol magnifies many different problems even as it seems to numb lingering personal pain, and fixing what ails our communities could start with ourselves.

A great number of factors, many from another era, contribute to incredibly high Alaska Native suicide rates. New federal commitments equal to those made toward assimilation and eradication would help finally make progress.

Although we deal with many kinds of losses, suicide is one of the hardest tragedies to face, because there is rarely a straightforward answer to the question: Why? What brought them to decide that suicide was an answer? Unlike many tragedies, suicide is not an accident. It is not forced upon someone. And it is clearly preventable.

John McCain's choice of Sarah Palin for his vice-presidential running mate has opened a political window into Alaska. The world is peeking through in hopes of discovering sordid information about Palin's life.