Posted Sun, Feb 6, 8:38 a.m.

This article is very true. Unemployment in Europe has been in double-digits for years, with the young being especially hard hit. The solutions are clear: lower minimum wage to allow young people to more easily enter the work force; less union power to stop the excessive pay and benefits, inefficient ...

Posted Tue, Jan 4, 1:45 a.m.

kkt--The reason we can't bring private pensions to government pension standards--is that they are too expensive. No private company could afford to have employees retire at age 50 and then be on paid vacation for the next 35 years, as takes place in the government sector.

Posted Mon, Jan 3, 6:45 p.m.

Most of the nation's 100+ million private-sector workers are forced to accept 401(k) plans and other defined-contribution pensions -- in which the employer makes a fixed contribution to the employee's retirement account, rather than guaranteeing a fixed payout. By contrast, nearly all of the more than 22 million federal, state ...

Posted Sat, Nov 13, 5:55 p.m.

When illegal aliens are identified, they should be deported, rather than being allowed to subvert our democracy. The fact that the Obama administration won't enforce our immigration laws is unforgivable, but understandable with all the new Democrat voters they represent. Really sad that so much of the Hispanic community is ...

Posted Sat, Sep 25, 5:32 a.m.

The increases in spending by the state have been breathtaking. The state does not need more taxes, it needs far, far less spending. Public employee unions are basically the government organizing itself to extract way-above-market pay and benefits for public employees. This whole system of public employees being granted defined ...

Posted Fri, Jul 2, 7:42 p.m.

For what it's worth, I'm just a plain citizen. No one important. I had one personal interaction with him when he was Governor, and he was a sarcastic jerk. Oh well. Maybe he was having a bad day.

Posted Thu, May 13, 8:05 p.m.

Excellent article. And to think that Greg Nichols is now teaching at Harvard, given the utter irresponsibility with which he governed this city. This scam of politicians providing payoffs, receiving support from the beneficiaries, and then being long gone when the bills come due--has got to stop. We need leaders ...

Posted Thu, Apr 15, 8:41 p.m.

Good column. To the list of examples of "unreality," I would add the notion that a country can continue providing massive trillion-dollar entitlements, when it is running massive trillion-dollar deficits. The unreality of continuing to spend and spend when we don't have the money, is just as unrealistic--indeed far more ...

Posted Tue, Jul 14, 5:54 a.m.

Wow. Best column I've read succintly summarizing exactly where Boeing has gone wrong. TA Wilson is rolling over in his grave over the mess Condit and the McDD management have made of a once great company.

Posted Thu, Jun 4, 7:27 p.m.

Great column. Losing Russell would be a massive blow to Tacoma. For Seattle, the overall impact would be minimal.

Posted Tue, Jun 2, 8:15 p.m.

The Aurora Bridge a beautiful historic landmark that has to be preserved as is? You have got to be kidding. Must be the same people who wanted to maintain that old ugly restaurant in Ballard. Give me a break.

Posted Tue, May 5, 7:18 p.m.

The whole idea of public employee unions is a joke. As if these are poor workers exploited by an evil corporation. Public employee unions are the government organizing itself to extort above-market pay and benefits from the citizens. They should be banned. They make it impossible to fire incompentent or ...