Merri Ann Simonson's Lifestyle Video is about shrimping season. She says, "Shrimping season is open and we are looking forward to shrimp cocktails, shrimp pasta and shrimp on the BBQ." LINK
On Saturday, May 26th, the Friday Harbor American Legion Post 163 will be open to the public for a special Memorial weekend visitors’ day event. And I’ll be there. No, I am not a veteran of Vietnam. But my life was profoundly affected by those who are. “War Never Ends” is the name of the local Vietnam Veterans exhibit at SJIMA—and it is true. War lives on, shaping lives and destroying them too.
I find myself compelled to comment on the trending “college admissions scandal.” If you haven’t been following the saga, you may be shocked to learn (hold on to something to steady yourself) that wealthy parents often use their influence, fund endowments, pay for building construction and brazenly just bribe elite institutions to get their mediocre academic offspring admitted.
To the Editor:
Perhaps you’ve noticed us standing at the corner of the courthouse lawn every Friday from noon until one. Ten to 15 to 20 guys with a couple of banners and a couple of signs. We are the Stand Up Men and are united in supporting efforts to end domestic violence in our island communities. As such, we are part of an entity called Safe San Juans.
This month we are beginning a fund raising campaign that we think will have a positive effect on the islands for years to come. Our goal is to raise $45,000 to support sexual assault and domestic violence prevention education for our kids, their teachers and their parents. The goal behind this program is that students and adults will learn how to detect and correct unhealthy relationships and how to create and maintain healthy ones.
Is there a need for such a program? Don’t we live in paradise with few of the problems associated with the big cities? One interesting statistic is that our San Juan County Sheriff’s office reports domestic violence accounts for more than half of all the calls they receive. More than half! And nationwide statistics say that one out of three women and one out of six men will experience domestic violence in their lifetimes.
What can you do to help? Perhaps you could consider donating to help raise the $45,000 needed for this educational project. The Stand Up Men will be canvassing the business community and we also want to encourage individuals to check out the Safe San Juan website. At the website you’ll be able to see what Safe San Juans is all about and to find out more about Stand Up Men. And there are some cute yellow buttons there just in case you may care to make a donation.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
The Stand Up Men
There are three press releases from the San Juan County Prosecutor's office posted Sunday evening. The press releases were dated March 25, April 2 and April 5. They were sent to other members of the media but not to San Juan Islander. I had to file a Public Records Request to obtain them. My efforts to find out why San Juan Islander was removed from the media list have been unsuccessful.
Stand Up Men chose April, Sexual Assault month, to launch a campaign to dramatically upgrade SAFE San Juans' in-school and community prevention education programs. SAFE’s mission is to make our community and youth free from sexual assault and domestic violence.
The Stand Up Men can be seen every Friday from 12 noon to 1 p.m. in front of San Juan County Courthouse. Matt Pranger photo
Looking backward from 2099, will 9/11 or 4/11 be remembered?
British police carried Julian Assange from his seven-year asylum in the Ecuadorian Embassy as, in cuffed hands, he held Gore Vidal History of the National Security State and cried, "They must resist. UK resist."
The first quarter results for San Juan Island were very similar to the first quarter results last year. San Juan Island’s dollar volume for the quarter reflected a decrease of 12.5% as compared to the same quarter in 2018. The first quarters are often a roller coaster for our islands and are affected by weather, local and national events. The number of transactions was down 31%.
San Juan County currently has several mechanisms for legally renting a home in the County.
This San Juan Island Lifestyle video shares winning the big pot in the St Patrick’s Day San Juan Island Yacht Club sponsored derby. The video can be viewed at the bottom of this page or here's the direct link to Youtube.
Tiny microbes are on the prowl to undermine the health of our oceans. Epidemics of our ocean biota are often unseen beneath the waves, so I have written a book about the impacts of underwater outbreaks, a first-hand account of our trials and adventures while chasing epidemics from Mexico and Hawaii to Indonesia and back to the Salish Sea. I focus on the stories of four of these outbreaks to describe how the epidemics unfolded, to figure out what microbe(s) were causing the outbreaks and to record the impacts to both ocean biodiversity and people. As a group, my students, colleagues and I have spent a lot of time underwater, so this is also a tale of our explorations, struggles and triumphs in strange places.
I write this at Deer Park Institute (www.deerpark.in) in Bir, Himachal Pradesh in the foothills of the Himalayas. It is my tenth anniversary of coming to Deer Park where I facilitate writing workshops for participants who come from throughout India as well as the rest of the world.
Mr. Fowler is correct that the Mullis Center is discontinuing the practice of saying the Pledge of Allegiance at its Senior Lunches. We have come to realize that some seniors are not comfortable with this practice.
Our aim is to better fulfill our mission to serve ALL seniors on San Juan Island without regard to race, color, creed, religion or national origin, gender, sexual orientation or disability, etc. Our decision has nothing to do with patriotism.
We certainly do not intend to disrespect veterans or the flag!
Our Meals Program receives federal funding, as well as funding from non-governmental sources, that require we be open to all. We note that in offering Senior Lunches the Mullis Center is not a legislative body engaged in the people’s business, nor are we a patriotic organization where the pledge is central to its functions. It’s just lunch. You don't say the Pledge of Allegiance before a meal at a restaurant.
In response to a complaint from some participants, the Operations Committee has adopted a policy that Senior Meals will include the Pledge of Allegiance on those special occasions where a patriotic gesture is appropriate.
As the Mullis Center moves to offering meals three times a week in April, we particularly want to welcome all seniors and people with disabilities on the island to join us for lunch. Note that lunch is open to everyone, not just seniors! Please join us ( Monday/Wednesday/Friday at 11:30) and bring a friend!
Rita Weisbrod, Chair, Mullis Center Operations Committee
The Mullis Center Operations Committee has decided to discontinue the practice of honoring the American Flag at the majority of Senior Lunches, served twice weekly, at the Mullis Center.