September 25, 2023
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 25
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 27
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 28
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 29
(Bannock County Press Release, September 23, 2023)
Monday, September 25, 2023:
More about BOCC Meetings
The Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) is comprised of the three elected County Commissioners: Ernie Moser (District 1, Chair), Jeff Hough (District 2), and John Crowder (District 3).
The BOCC generally meets twice a week: regular business meetings are on Tuesdays at 9:00 a.m. and work sessions are on Thursdays at 9:30 a.m. Meetings are generally held in the Commissioner’s Chambers at 624 E Center, Room 212, Pocatello, Idaho, unless otherwise noted. Times subject to change within 15 minutes of stated time.
During these meetings, the BOCC may: approve contracts, expend funds, hear testimony, make decisions on land use cases and take care of other County matters, and are open to the public.
(Bannock County Press Release, September 21, 2023; Cover photo credit: Bannock County)
A fundraiser for the annual Shop with a Cop in Bannock County is scheduled for Oct. 6 and 7 at the Chubbuck Walmart.
Officers from the Bannock County Sheriff’s Office, Pocatello police, Chubbuck police and Idaho State Police will be collecting donations in Santa hats and stockings in the parking lot of the Chubbuck Walmart, located at 4240 Yellowstone Ave. The fundraiser will be held on two days — noon to 6 p.m. on Oct. 6 and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Oct. 7.
Cash, check and Venmo donations are accepted. To donate via Venmo, go to account.venmo.com/u/Bannock-FOP or search Bannock-FOP on the Venmo app. Checks can be mailed to “Shop with a Cop,” PO Box 4064, Pocatello ID, 83205. All donations benefit the Bannock County Shop with a Cop program.
For questions, please contact Sgt. Jodi Weaver at 208-236-7133. To register a child for the Shop with a Cop program, contact the Southeastern Idaho Community Action Agency (SEICAA) at 208-232-1114. The 2023 Shop with a Cop event is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 9.
The Shop with a Cop event pairs local officers with a child who would benefit from a positive experience with law enforcement in hopes of building or improving relationships between law enforcement and the community.
The children participating will receive breakfast provided by McDonald’s, have their picture taken with Mr. and Mrs. Clause, and drive in a patrol car with the emergency lights flashing. At Walmart, the officers help the child shop for holiday gifts for the child’s family. All gifts are paid for using the community’s donations.
Law enforcement from the Pocatello Police Department, Chubbuck Police Department, Idaho State Police, Idaho State University Public Safety, Idaho Fish and Game Southeast Region, Bannock County Adult Probation and Parole, Bannock County Juvenile Probation and the Bannock County Sheriff’s Office participate in the event.
The event is sponsored in part by Chubbuck Walmart, McDonald’s, Southeastern Idaho Community Action Agency Inc. and Pocatello-Chubbuck School District No. 25.
September 21, 2023
What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits
With apologies to the Doobie Brothers. It’s a brave new world
By: Martin Hackworth
Hardly a day goes by anymore without some new revelation concerning an athlete caught up in a gambling scandal. It’s nothing short of amazing that few saw this coming when the rules on sports gaming were relaxed a few years ago and gaming interests almost immediately partnered with every professional sports league and franchise in the country. I mean, who’d a thunk it, right?
We currently live in a brave new world where what were once vices are now habits. Gambling, drug use, and general personal irresponsibility are currently at all-time highs, with little amelioration anywhere in sight. I don’t know where it’s all headed, but I’m pretty sure that the ride is going to be bumpy until we sort some things out.
The closest thing that I have to a general political philosophy is a strong inclination towards libertarianism. I’m generally big on putting the onus on individuals rather than the government to regulate their personal behavior. Just because I’m not down with something doesn’t necessarily mean that I think that ought to apply to you.
Even though I do not condone either gambling or drug abuse, I’m reluctant to support most bans on these activities. What you do with your life along these lines is mostly your business, at least in my view. Vices have to be bad enough that personal regulation is simply an unworkable solution to a societal problem before I’m for government intervention. The flip side of this is that it’s my belief that if you screw up because you can’t handle your vices, that’s on you. It’s not society’s obligation to bail you out.
But I’m also not at all reluctant to acknowledge that issues such as rampant drug abuse and a seemingly endless propensity for eschewing personal responsibility do pose significant threats to our well-being as a society. We have an interest in at least keeping an eye on what’s going on. And despite my libertarian leanings, I do have some discomfort with the current trends toward legalizing some vices, specifically recreational drug use and gambling. I think that we ought to think long and hard about what lies at the end of the road for both of these activities.
My reasons for eschewing drugs are simple. I have ample and unfortunate first-hand experience with the dangers of drug abuse. I grew up in a household where drugs and alcohol were routinely abused. I spent most of my early years wishing that drugs and alcohol had never been invented. The last thing that I wanted to grow up to be was anything like many of the adults around me as a child.
I am, I must admit, somewhat of a prude. I’ve never even smoked a cigarette, much less a joint. And my alcohol use as an adult was confined to fine bourbon and Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer, generally in great moderation, until I gave it all up a few years ago because my kids asked after watching a show on TV about the dangers of alcohol.
I have never found gambling even remotely attractive, except for the occasional office pool. I spent too much time working in casinos back in my sound, stage, and lighting days. The last thing I ever wanted to end up being was a retiree squandering their retirement savings away in a casino. For me, that would be a sad fate worse than death.
But again, that’s just me. If you want to indulge in drugs, alcohol, or gambling, and you can do so without taking the rest of us along for the ride, well, good for you. I’m reluctant to forbid anyone from doing anything just because I think that it’s a bad idea. But I do think that at least some of these activities have an impact on the rest of us, and these impacts may be quite deleterious at times. That means that there is a case to be made for at least paying attention to what’s going on.
Who can deny the impact of impaired driving (and sometimes impaired working) on all of us? Who can deny the impact of the current opiate crisis on our entire country? Who can deny the impact of open drug abuse on joblessness and homelessness and the gutting of entire major cities? It’s just a matter of time before the first major sports gambling scandal in one of the big five pro sports is uncovered, and it’s already happened in college. It’s not like there is no downside to these activities.
Associated Press and Idaho Press Club-winning columnist Martin Hackworth of Pocatello is a physicist, writer, and retired Idaho State University faculty member who now spends his time with family, riding bicycles and motorcycles, and arranging and playing music. Follow him on Twitter @MartinHackworth.
September 24, 2023
On Monday, September 25, the group “Patriots for Liberty & Constitution” will continue discussing social psychologist Jonathan Haidt’s book, “The Righteous Mind.” The event notes read: “Next week we will be discussing Chapter 3, “Elephant Rules.” A chapter dedicated to the understanding of human passions and logic.”
The group meets at Mountain Valley Baptist Church, 202 S. 7th Avenue in Pocatello, from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m.
For more information, click here.
(City of Pocatello Press Release, September 23, 2023; Cover photo credit: Fort Hall Replica FB)
September 24, 2023 (Cover image credit Bannock County Historical Museum FB)
Pocatello–The Bonneville Neighborhood Association and NeighborWorks Pocatello are hosting a festival this weekend to keep alive the history of the Triangle Neighborhood, at one time the most diverse in the state of Idaho.
Drawn by railroad jobs, immigrants from around the globe created their own new culture in the triangle of land extending from the current City Hall to the Black Swan Inn and down Center St. to the rail yard. Though the neighborhood lost its unique identity by the end of the 1900s, a monument honoring the original families still stands at 305 N 3rd Avenue.
This Saturday, September 30, the ‘Lasting Legacy’ Festival will “bring the community together to celebrate the rich and diverse history that was part of Pocatello, specifically the Triangle Neighborhood. The attendees will be able to listen to music, visit vendor booths and partake in food cooked up by the Pocatello Police Department.
“A storytelling booth will be set up where many of the historical stories of the Triangle Neighborhood will be displayed. There, even more stories will be collected from residents and descendants of the Triangle Neighborhood.”
The Festival will take place at the intersection of N 3rd Avenue and E Lander Street, from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 30. For more information, click on the flyer below.
September 22, 2023
Idaho Republicans Defend Truth Against the Tyranny of Lies
By: Dorothy Moon, IDGOP Chairwoman
The great anti-communist Russian dissident Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, who warned the West about the communist Evil Empire, had a maxim: “Live not by lies.”
Something so simple, yet so profound, is increasingly difficult in the current era. Consider some of the lies that have been passed off as truth by our national media — the Russian collusion hoax, the idea that Hunter Biden’s laptop was “Russian disinformation,” the lie that January 6th was an armed insurrection, the repeated claims that the Covid vaccine was effective and prevented transmission of the virus.
Lately we’ve heard news anchors claim that there is zero evidence that President Joe Biden ever acted improperly or traded his influence for money. And, of course, a shocking number of people have decided that boys can be girls, and girls can be boys.
It’s crazy, isn’t it?
All of these are lies, peddled by a media establishment that has become little more than a lapdog for the leftist-technocrat complex. They want you to believe that a grandmother walking through the Capitol foyer on January 6th was a dangerous insurrectionist, that elderly men and women praying in front of abortion clinics are domestic terrorists, but BLM rioters, arsonists, and looters are engaging in “mostly peaceful” protests.
The Communists that persecuted Solzhenitsyn had an official newspaper called “Pravda,” which means “truth” in Russian. Yet Pravda was notorious for its lies. Today we have an American Pravda that is absolutely shameless.
Idaho’s mainstream press is no better. If you only read the big newspapers you might think that the biggest issue facing our state is a group of far-right extremists — you know, those crazy people who are concerned about what their children are being taught in school or where their tax dollars are going. Idaho’s news media wants you to believe that following organizational rules is “bullying” and that a jungle primary ranked choice voting system is “common sense.”
A recent column by the failed Democrat candidate for Attorney General Tom Arkoosh claimed that ranked choice voting is “one person, one vote” — as clear a lie as has ever been told. Ranked choice voting is many things, but it is not “one person, one vote.” Now why would Idaho’s news media want to amplify a failed candidate in this way? What is their agenda?
You may have heard claims that the Idaho GOP has engaged in bullying tactics against local Republican committees. Like so much else you read in the news, this is also not true. Like any organization, the Republican Party has rules, and those rules must be enforced if they are broken. Without rules, there is chaos. Who benefits from chaos? There are people out there who are so invested in destroying the good work we are doing in the Republican Party that they will use any excuse to attack us, and the lying media cheers them on.
Jordan Peterson says that “tyranny feeds on lies,” and he is absolutely right. Would-be tyrants, whether in DC or Idaho, spin outrageous lies to maintain the false narrative they have created. We in the Idaho Republican Party will always stand for order and truth, the only possible correctives to chaos and lies.
September 23, 2023
Bannock County is looking for people to fill the following positions:
For information or to apply for any position, visit: Human Resources | Bannock County
(Office of the Attorney General, September 22, 2023)
As Idaho’s Attorney General, one of my primary responsibilities is to safeguard the rights of Idahoans in conducting business while promoting fairness and transparency in commerce. In the wake of China’s accession to the World Trade Organization, American companies have faced a series of unfair trade practices that demand our attention.
The Chinese government’s actions include:
Moreover, Beijing’s potentially illegal subsidy programs have allowed Chinese companies to gain dominant positions in the global market. These practices occur alongside discriminatory actions towards foreign firms, such as Idaho-based Micron Technologies.
As Attorney General, I remain committed to protecting the interests of Idaho businesses and ensuring that the principles of fair trade and market integrity are upheld nationally and internationally. That is why I and 14 of my fellow Attorneys General issued a joint statement concerning SHEIN, the China-founded fast-fashion retailer, and its potential Initial Public Offering (IPO) launch later this year.
In a letter directed to Gary Gensler, Chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), I expressed deep concerns about SHEIN’s business practices, specifically the troubling reports of forced labor associated with the company’s operations. In this letter, we collectively urged the SEC to establish a requirement for foreign-owned companies seeking listing on U.S.-based securities exchanges. This requirement would mandate that these companies certify their compliance with Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930, which unequivocally prohibits the importation of products manufactured wholly or partially by forced labor.
Additionally, our joint letter highlights SHEIN’s exploitative tendencies in riding trends, a practice that blurs the lines between intellectual property and copyright. Furthermore, we emphasize the company’s extensive data collection activities targeting American consumers, which are harnessed within intricate algorithms. This data collection by a Chinese company should be subject to the same level of scrutiny as TikTok, another Chinese-owned entity.
I remain dedicated to safeguarding Idaho’s commerce and ensuring our businesses have a level playing field to thrive. Together, we will work tirelessly to ensure that the interests of all Idahoans and American companies are protected and promoted.
