Ice Skating
Luke Murdock was photographed recently while
ice skating over on Gravina Island.
Front Page Feature Photo By MOLLY MURDOCK ©2016

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Ketchikan: Delegation Announces Chere Klein to Serve Ketchikan Constituents - U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan today announced that Chere Klein has been hired as their Ketchikan Delegation Representative. Klein will serve constituents in Ketchikan and other communities in the Southern Southeast region by helping them with specific concerns and problems with federal agencies and offices. Klein replaces Penny Pederson, who served in that role for 2 years.

Chere Klein
Photo courtesy Chere Klein

Klein is a lifelong Alaskan, with deep ties to the communities of Ketchikan, Metlakatla, Wrangell, and throughout Prince of Wales, and as well as experience working across Southeast Alaska. Previously, she served as Primary Legislative Resources Aide and Constituent Liaison for Alaska Representative Peggy Wilson. Prior to her legislative experience, Klein worked as an office manager and licensed insurance agent at Diversified Investments & Insurance, of Ketchikan, and before that as a principal at Wetland Delineation & Design Services, LLC. Klein has also as a board member for the Ketchikan Community Foundation, Ketchikan Chamber of Commerce Transportation Committee, Ketchikan Charter School and Ketchikan Hospice Support Group, among many others. - More...
Thursday PM - December 22, 2016

Southeast Alaska: Wolf Hunting and Trapping Seasons Closed in Unit 2 - The Thorne Bay and Craig Districts Ranger, Matt Anderson, under authority delegated by the Federal Subsistence Board, closed the Federal public lands of Unit 2 to the harvest of wolf from 11:59 p.m., Wednesday, December 21, 2016, through the remainder of the Federal seasons. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) also closed the state wolf hunting and trapping seasons in Unit 2 at 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, December 21, 2016, through the remainder of the State seasons.

As of Friday, December 16, 2016 ten wolves have been harvested in Unit 2. Trappers remain active and have 14 days to report harvest, so this closure is necessary to ensure the harvest does not exceed the combined Federal/State harvest quota set at 11 wolves. ADF&G and the USFS continue to refine population estimation techniques used to establish Guideline Harvest Levels for Unit 2 wolves. - More...
Thursday PM - December 22, 2016

Southeast Alaska: Deer hunting season in Unit 2 extended - The Federal Subsistence Board recently extended the deer hunting season in Unit 2 through January 31, 2017 and required that harvest ticket number five be used for recording the harvest of a female deer.

The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) would like to inform hunters of the following items related to Federal subsistence deer hunting regulations in Unit 2: - More...
Thursday PM - December 22, 2016

Southeast Alaska: City of Angoon is Closer to Having an Airport - Alaska Department of Transportation Commissioner Marc Luiken met with representatives of the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and Federal Aviation Administration at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport in September to tie a ribbon around the Final Environmental Impact Statements (FEIS) for Angoon Airport.

City of Angoon
Photo courtesy Angoon Airport EIS

With the publication of the FEIS and the subsequent Record of Decision that was signed on October 21st, design will begin on the new airport to serve the City of Angoon which is the largest community in Alaska without a runway.

Efforts to build an airport in Angoon date to the late ‘70s, but the current project began with a new Reconnaissance Study that was completed in 2003, followed by a Master Plan, and the EIS that began in 2007. The process that culminated in the FEIS required substantial efforts to coordinate and negotiate with federal resource and permitting agencies concerning a process – ANILCA Title XI – treading a path that none had been down before.

The Alaska Department of Transportation covered a lot of uncharted territory, sharing a significant learning experience with the federal agencies. The collaboration that resulted in the acceptance of the ANILCA application as a complete document and provided a preliminary analysis will be a useful study for future efforts and a valuable result of the process.

DOT&PF is now able to move forward with building an airport for Angoon, a long desired transportation improvement for the community. The DOT&PF requested both funding and approval for the proposed airport from the FAA.

The FAA Alaskan Regional Administrator signed the Record of Decision on October 21, 2016 making a decision to approve Airport 12a with Access 12a. Right of Way acquisition, design, and airport construction will be led by the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities. The Airport Alternative 3a location was the Department of Transportation and Public Facilities' proposed location. - More...
Thursday PM - December 22, 2016

Columns - Commentary

CHRISTINE FLOWERS: America Turns Away as the World Ends in Aleppo - A Muslim student at NYU says some Trump supporters pulled off her hijab and yelled epithets at her on a bus, then admits it was all a big fat lie. It's disgusting and unacceptable.

But Muslim women in Aleppo are being raped.

Feminists are freaking out because Texas passed a law requiring clinics and hospitals to respectfully bury the remains of babies who have been aborted. It's disgusting and unsurprising from abortion-rights militants.

But babies are being massacred in Aleppo. - More...
Thursday PM - December 22, 2016

SUSAN STAMPER BROWN: Michelle Obama's 'Hopelessnes' Shows it Sucks to be a Liberal - "Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul, and sings the tune without the words and never stops at all." ---- Emily Dickinson

It's a shame that Michelle Obama says she's feeling hopeless this Christmas, especially after all the wonderful opportunities she's had as America's first lady. It goes to show you that liberalism is like a disease that won't be satisfied until it devours all of you. Undoubtedly, all the designer gown-wearing, Hollywood hobnobbing, $100-per-serving wagyu steak indulging and taxpayer-funded globetrotting won't fix the hopelessness which ails her. It's hard to be hope-filled when you tangle yourself in a web of bitterness and resentment over America's past.

Just last year, Mrs. Obama shared how she really feels during a racially-divisive commencement speech at Tuskegee University that would have made its founder, Booker T. Washington, grieve. In fact, in his book, "My Larger Education," Washington warned readers about people like her, calling them "problem profiteers." - More...
Thursday PM - December 22, 2016

TOM PURCELL: If the Mainstream Media Covered Jesus' Birth - Network news anchor Brent Fullworth: We bring you a live update on the birth of Jesus Christ from our correspondent, Bethany Smug, who is standing by in Bethlehem. Bethany?

Bethany: Brent, what we know is that a carpenter named Joseph and his alleged virgin wife, Mary, traveled from Nazareth to Bethlehem to pay a tax that had been decreed by Caesar Augustus. It's rumored the two were delinquent, but finally consented to pay.

Brent: A couple of tea-party types, Bethany?

Bethany: That's the rumor, Brent. When they arrived, they couldn't find a room at the inn ---- even though Mary was with child ---- because of the heartless cuts Republicans made to housing vouchers.

Brent: By electing conservatives, don't these tea partiers understand they are voting against their own interests, Bethany? One other thing puzzles me: You said Mary was with child? How can that be if she is a virgin?

Bethany: An alleged virgin, Brent. Members of the religious right are making the ludicrous claim that the child is a result of some kind of miracle. - More...
Thursday PM - December 22, 201