 Contact 
Call 617-9696
Webmail
Letters
News Tips
Copyright Info
Archives
Quick News
Search
Alaska
Ketchikan
SE Alaska
Alaska News Links
Columns
- Articles
Dave Kiffer
Fish
Factor
Money Matters
Historical
Ketchikan
June Allen
Dave
Kiffer
Louise
B. Harrington
Ketchikan
Arts & Events
Ketchikan
Arts
Ketchikan
Museums
KTN Public
Library
Sports
Ketchikan Links
Public Records
FAA Accident Reports
NTSB
Accident Reports
Court Calendar
Court Records Search
Wanted:
Absconders
Sex Offender Reg.
Public Notices
Weather,
Webcams
Today's
Forecast
KTN
Weather Data
AK
Weather Map
AK Weathercams
AK Earthquakes
TV Guide
Ketchikan
Ketchikan
Phone Book
Yellow
Pages
White
Pages
Government
Links
Local Government
State & National
|
|
Wednesday
November 13, 2013
Revilla Island: Wolf
North of Ketchikan, six wolves were recently sighted. There was just enough time to capture a photo of one before they all ran off into the woods.
Front Page Photograph By JIM LEWIS ©2013
(Please respect the rights of photographers, never republish or copy
without permission and/or payment of required fees.)
Ketchikan, POW: Feds ESA status review for SE Alaska’s Alexander Archipelago wolves 2 years overdue - The Center for Biological Diversity and Greenpeace notified the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Tuesday that the Service is two years overdue in deciding whether to initiate an Endangered Species Act status review for southeast Alaska’s Alexander Archipelago wolves.
According to these two conservation & advocacy groups, a status review may lead to listing these wolves as threatened or endangered. Quoting a news release, "during the delay the situation of these unique forest wolves has dramatically worsened, largely because of large-scale logging of old-growth trees on Prince of Wales Island in the Tongass National Forest."
“Two years ago we were worried about wolves on Prince of Wales Island. Today we’re panicked,” said the Center’s Alaska director Rebecca Noblin. “If the Fish and Wildlife Service doesn’t step in, we’re looking at losing all of the wolves on Prince of Wales Island, an important and irreplaceable part of the Alexander Archipelago wolf population.”
The Center and Greenpeace petitioned to protect what they assert is a unique Alaska subspecies of gray wolf under the Endangered Species Act in August 2011. The agency is required to make an initial finding within 90 days about whether protections may be warranted — but two years later the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has still not acted say the petitioners.
The Alexander Archipelago wolves are not a unique species. According to information on the Alaska Department of Fish & Game's website, the Alexander Archipelago wolf found in Southeast Alaska is a subspecies of the gray or timber wolf. Based on common cranial characteristics, the Alexander Archipelago wolf was at one time considered by early taxonomists to be a distinct subspecies. However, recent taxonomic work suggests that these wolves may have originated from a larger subspecific group (C. l. nubilus) that at one time inhabited most of the contiguous Western United States.
Earlier this fall the Forest Service, in response to an appeal by the Center for Biological Diversity, Greenpeace and three allied organizations, halted the Big Thorne timber sale in the Tongass National Forest so the Forest Service could reconsider the sale’s impact on the Alexander Archipelago wolves. The decision was prompted by an expert declaration in the groups’ appeal by preeminent Alexander Archipelago wolf biologist and former Alaska Department of Fish & Game Biologist Dr. David Person. Person concluded that “the Big Thorne timber sale, if implemented, represents the final straw that will break the back of a sustainable wolf-deer predator-prey ecological community on Prince of Wales Island.”
According to Person, the Big Thorne project will log the last remaining high-quality winter range in the central part of the island for deer - the wolves’ primary prey - diminishing the wolf population. Logging elsewhere on the island, much of it on weakly regulated state and private forestland, will have a similar effect. The island’s predator-prey system, which includes hunters, will likely collapse; with less meat on the table in rural communities there will be “immense public and political pressure to kill wolves and bears.” - More...
Wednesday - November 13, 2013
Ketchikan - Statewide: Top 10 Best Boroughs in Alaska for Job Seekers - The Last Frontier is a top choice for job seekers. Alaska’s unemployment rate is only 6.5 percent, compared with the national average of 7.3 percent. NerdWallet crunched the numbers to find the best borough for job seekers in Alaska with 21 boroughs and equivalent census areas determined by the U.S. Census included in the analysis. Only boroughs with populations over 6,000 were considered and, of no surprise, they all made the top 10 list with Ketchikan #9 on the list.
|
|
Although it appears population was the deciding factor of boroughs making the list, the best borough for job seekers in Alaska, was determined by asking the following questions:
1. Is the borough growing? Nerdwallet assessed growth in the working-age population, ages 16 or older, from 2009 to 2011 to ensure that the borough was attracting workers and exhibiting a trend of population growth.
2. Can you afford to live in the borough comfortably? Nerdwallet measured a borough’s median household income to see if workers made a good living. They also analyzed the monthly homeowner costs, including mortgage payments, to see if the borough had a reasonable cost of living.
3. Are most people employed? The unemployment rate was looked at. - More...
Wednesday AM - November 13, 2013
Alaska: Indian Law and Order Commission Releases Roadmap with Recommendations to Make Indian Country Safer - To address the public safety crisis in Indian country, the Indian Law and Order Commission released its report, “A Roadmap for Making Native America Safer,” detailing recommendations for law enforcement in Indian Country.
The Tribal Law and Order Act (TLOA) of 2010 created the bipartisan Commission to develop a report with recommendations to strengthen tribal justice and to improve public safety for people living and working on and near American Indian and Alaska Native communities. The TLOA requires the Commission to submit its findings and recommendations to the Congress and the President.
“American Indian and Alaska Native communities and lands are frequently less safe, and in some instances dramatically more dangerous, than most other places in our country,” stated Commission Chairman Troy Eid, who served as a U.S. Attorney for the District of Colorado from 2006-2009. “The report is called a ‘roadmap’ because the Commission has a particular destination in mind – to eliminate the public safety gap that threatens so much of Native America.”
After visiting Indian tribes and nations across the United States, including Alaska, and hearing from numerous tribal, state and federal leaders, non-profit organizations, and other key stakeholders, the Commission recommends a new federal policy that focuses on jurisdictional changes with the goal to release tribes from undue federal control, promote local control, recognize the inherent authorities of tribes, and support effective tribal justice systems. - More...
Wednesday AM - November 13, 2013
|
|
Ketchikan: Did Sir Francis Drake visit Southeast Alaska? Author/historian contends Drake was here long before Bering By DAVE KIFFER -
History tells us that Vitus Bering “discovered” Alaska in 1741.
Francis Drake, nicknamed “my pirate” by Queen Elizabeth I, was among the so-called “Sea Dog” privateers licensed by the English government to attack Spanish shipping.
Photo courtesy Wikipedia
And by the 1790s, English explorers (Cook, Vancouver), French explorers (LaPerouse) and Spanish explorers (Malaspina. Caamano) were also exploring the Alaska coast, primarily in search of the fabled Northwest Passage. No one argues with that.
But, what if European explorers had actually arrived nearly a century and a half before Bering?
What if the famed English explorer and pirate Sir Francis Drake had made a secret trip up the coast during his global circumnavigation in the 1580s?
That is the belief of Canadian historian and geographer Samuel Bawlf and it led to a 2001 book called “The Secret Voyage of Sir Francis Drake, 1577-1580”
Actually, Drake’s voyage of 1577-1580 was not very secret. It was the second circumnavigation of the world, following Ferdinand Magellan’s 1519-1522 voyage.
At a time when England’s Queen Elizabeth was looking to assert her nation’s authority (the famed English battle with the Spanish Armada would come in 1588), Drake’s circumnavigation heightened England’s prestige as a growing world-wide power. - More...
Monday PM - November 11, 2013
|
|
Viewpoints
Commentary
Opinions/Letters
Basic
Rules &
Freedom of Speech
Questions, please contact
the editor at editor@sitnews.us or call 617-9696
Sitnews reserves the right to edit.
 The Skatepark is Happening! By Bob Fultz -
The Shane Howard White Memorial Skatepark is nearing completion. After years in the making, Ketchikan is about to become the proud owners of a 21st Century skatepark that meets the criteria of all skaters - skateboarders, inline skaters and scooters. Best of all, a 24/7 streaming web camera system will make use of the park totally transparent, available at any time—promoting safe and appropriate usage - accessible for your viewing pleasure by going to www.kyiyouth.org from the convenience of your computer or smart phone. Very nice huh! - More...
Wednesday AM - November 13, 2013
Thank you By Kathy Paulson -
I hiked the Carlanna Lake Trail this morning and was once again reminded how lucky we are to live here. Thank you to all involved in building and maintaining our trail system. I appreciate being able to hike so close to town. - More...
Wednesday AM - November 13, 2013
New Rain Gauge By D.A. Johnson -
I read with interest the plan to replace the rain gauge on the dock for $96,000.00. How a panel of local Arts people decided to hire some artist from somewhere overseas to paint it and erect it. Is this town INSANE? People talk about out of control spending on the Federal level, and it is right here in Ketchikan. - More...
Wednesday AM - November 13, 2013
Open Letter: Obamacare - NOT AFFORDABLE HEALTHCARE ACT - By Laura Plenert - I am a normal, average, healthy American/ Alaskan. I have paid for my own Health Insurance for the past 4 years as a conscience choice. It has gone up incrementally each year with NO changes in coverage. I CHOSE the plan, it suited me had everything I wanted/needed, it was affordable and it met my needs (I DO NOT NEED OR WANT PRENATAL OR CHILDBIRTH COVERAGE AND DO NOT WANT TO PAY FOR SOMETHING I WILL NEVER USE). - More...
Wednesday AM - November 13, 2013
RE: Affordable Care Act By Norm Noggle -
As we have seen, the implementation of the Affordable Care Act has been less than stellar. Yes, there are people who are going to pay more as the act stands now. Is that a good reason to throw out an entire law that has been voted on and approved by the Senate, House, and President. I don't think so. - More...
Wednesday AM - November 13, 2013
KTUU By Robert Finlay -
As a locum tenens practitioner, frequenting these communities, it has been only a negative experience I have had with GCI. They do not seem to play nicely with anybody. My AT&T iPhone doesn’t work due to greed, and despite paying dearly for the use of phone, and supposedly getting cable news, at least they did not replace KTUU with FOX NEWS. - More...
Wednesday AM - November 13, 2013
Harley Riders 2013 Dinner By James Schenk -
On Saturday, November 9th, Ketchikan Harley Riders will be putting on our 2013 Spaghetti dinner with an auction to follow. - More...
Thursday AM - November 07, 2013
RE: Open Letter: Affordable Care Act By Marvin Seibert -
I'm appalled at a group of Doctors in Alaska supporting the destruction of our Health Care system by way of Obamacare. There is nothing affordable about this and it was passed with lies and deceit by our current President, Barack Hussein Obama! - More..
Thursday AM - November 07, 2013
Re: Affordable Care? By Alan R. McGillvray -
Affordable care, to whom is it affordable? Only to a Senior Citizen who is getting most if not all his medical expenses paid by some one else, even if his 'diabetic test strips' were costing him $75.00 to $100.00 a month. Which, because he is on Medicare, some one else is picking up the costs of his testing supplies. - Mor..
Thursday AM - November 07, 2013
Obamacare By Duane Hill -
I don't see how those praising Obamacare can say anything about it. Hardly anyone has been able to sign up for it and nobody has had time for their claims to be processed, and add to that time the 3 to 7 days it takes for a letter to be printed here. These letters to the editor are either speculation or lies. - More..
Thursday AM - November 07, 2013
Re: No More Traditional Paper Marine Charts By Donita O'Dell -
Paper copies of charts will still be available as POD (print on demand) and from NOAA-certified third parties (complete with updates!). NOAA is ending production of the traditional litho versions because they have declined in popularity as more convenient options (for hard-copy as well as digital) have emerged. - More...
Thursday AM - November 07, 2013
Gun Free zones and other things By A. M. Johnson -
Small snippet of data gathering. Could be interesting to your readers then again, depending on political leaning, maybe not. I found them informative and useful in future discussions on gun control. - More...
Thursday AM - November 07, 2013
Federal tax system "abominable" By Wiley Brooks -
The Tax Foundation has released a report providing an eye-opening look at many facets of the federal tax system - which the foundation calls "abominable."
The report is titled "Putting a Face on America's Tax Returns: A Chart Book."
The Foundation states: "The income tax system in the United States is a sprawling mass of provisions spread across dozens of volumes and has been called everything from a 'disaster' to an 'abomination.'
"It takes Americans as many as seven billion work hours every year just to complete the paperwork required. The IRS' own National Taxpayer Advocate estimates that it costs individual and corporate taxpayers more than $165 billion annually to comply with the income tax code.
"In order to figure out what we need to fix, we need to understand how the system works now. We've compiled this chart book to not only 'put a face on American taxpayers,' but to provide some must-know background information on the key issues of the tax reform debate." - More...
Thursday AM - November 07, 2013
Webmail your letter or
Email Your Letter To: editor@sitnews.us
|
Articles &
photographs that appear in SitNews may be protected by copyright
and may not be reprinted or redistributed without written permission
from and payment of required fees to the proper sources.
|
|
Weekly Specials |
'
|
|
|
