New Enforcement Vessel Officially Commissioned Into Service Governor Frank H. Murkowski speaks from the deck of the P/V Enforcer... Front Page Photo by Jessica Mathews

Ketchikan: New Enforcement Vessel Officially Commissioned Into Service By DICK KAUFFMAN - s Alaska's First Lady Nancy Murkowski prepared to cracked a champagne bottle on the Patrol Vessel Enforcer, she wished the crew and the vessel " Fair skies and fair seas and God bless all those who travel on her." And with a crack and the sounding of the ship's whistle, the P/V Enforcer was officially commissioned into service to protect the citizens and resources in the State of Alaska.

At a cost of $1.2 million, the Alaska State Troopers/Wildlife Enforcement's new 69.9 foot Patrol/Vessel Enforcer is replacing the retired 65-foot P/V Enforcer which was built in 1953 for the United States Navy.

Speaking from the deck of the Enforcer in Ketchikan Wednesday afternoon, Governor Frank H. Murkowski said, "It's important for us to recognize the significance of this vessel. Part of the responsibility of government is enforcement of laws and enforcement of regulations. - More...
Friday am - July 22, 2005

Invasive Plant Tansy Ragwort Blooming in Ketchikan Front Page Photo Courtesy USFS

Ketchikan: Invasive Plant Tansy Ragwort Blooming in Ketchikan - While some may think the Tansy Ragwort flower is attractive with its yellow star-like appearance, this weed is poisonous as well as destructive to rangeland and crop productivity in the lower 48, and now it has found a home in Ketchikan.

All plant parts of the Tansy Ragwort are toxic, with the highest amount of alkaloids in the flowers, followed by the leaves, roots, and stems.

Introduced from Europe and Western Asia, this non-native plant has taken over thousands of acres of valuable crop and rangeland in the lower 48, and has taken root along roadsides and on private properties in Ketchikan, particularly north of town. Tansy Ragwort reproduces by seed and also vegetatively through root and crown sprouts. Each plant can produce between 5,000 and 200,000 seeds per season. Tansy Ragwort is an aggressive invasive weed that will establish itself in disturbed sites such as roadsides and vacant lots.

The Forest Service is interested in keeping the Tansy Ragwort from spreading into National Forest System lands around Ketchikan. For now, it seems to be established primarily on state and private property. Only private landowners have the authority to eliminate it from their property. - More...
Friday am - July 22, 2005

Ketchikan: Listen to this KRBD story... The future of management at the Ketchikan Indian Community lies in the balance as the KIC Board of Directors next week is scheduled to decide whether to retain the Tribe's Chief Executive Officer. As Deanna Garrison reports, the KIC Tribal council Monday voted down a motion to retain CEO Georgiana Zimmerle.
KRBD - Ketchikan Public Radio - Friday am - July 22, 2005

Ketchikan: Listen to this KRBD story... A new $1.2 million state Wildlife Enforcement vessel was commissioned in Ketchikan Wednesday. As Deanna Garrison reports, the approximately 70-foot vessel, called the Enforcer, will be used for patrols and search and rescue missions in Southeast Alaska.
KRBD - Ketchikan Public Radio - Friday am - July 22, 2005

Ketchikan: Listen to this KRBD story... Ketchikan's Coast Guard Base ushered in a new leader as its commanding officer bid a heartfelt goodbye Wednesday. The base was the site of Wednesday morning's Change-of-Command ceremony, which marked the end of Captain Catherine McNally's second tour of duty in Ketchikan. Deanna Garrison reports.
KRBD - Ketchikan Public Radio - Friday am - July 22, 2005

Alaska: Bad debt driving up costs at Alaska hospitals By PAULA DOBBYN - A red tide is washing over Anchorage's Providence and Alaska Regional hospitals, and it's not blood. It's bad debt.

Both hospitals - mirroring national trends - are suffering from an explosive growth in unpaid medical bills. Since 1999, the amount of bad debt and charity care at both hospitals and related facilities has more than doubled, and in some instances tripled and even quadrupled. - More...
Friday am - July 22, 2005

National: Casualty of war: the U.S. economy By JAMES STERNGOLD - The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have already cost taxpayers $314 billion, and the Congressional Budget Office projects additional expenses of perhaps $450 billion over the next 10 years.

That could make the combined campaigns, especially the war in Iraq, the most expensive military effort in the last 60 years, causing even some conservative experts to criticize the open-ended commitment to an elusive goal. The concern is that the soaring costs, given little weight before now, could play a growing role in U.S. strategic decisions because of the fiscal impact. - More...
Friday - July 22, 2005

International: U.S., Russia descend into mutual mistrust By ANNA BADKHEN - Growing disputes between the United States and Russia are threatening to significantly chill the once-warm relations between the two countries. They also may seriously undercut a major front in the U.S. war on terrorism.

The new fault lines lie in the rugged terrain of Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, two former Soviet republics in Central Asia that the Pentagon has been using as launching pads for military and humanitarian operations in Afghanistan. - More...
Friday - July 22, 2005

National: U.S. food supply vulnerable to terrorist attack, experts say By LANCE GAY - America's complex food-supply system remains vulnerable to a terrorist attack, government and academic experts say, but they are embarking on a campaign to shore up some of the vulnerable spots.

Robert Buchanan, a senior science adviser with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, said mounting an attack on the food system would not require a great deal of knowledge or sophistication, and the result could be catastrophic. - More...
Friday - July 22, 2005

Viewpoints Opinions/Letters Termination? By Steven Booth - Friday am RE: Gravina Bridge By Rob Glenn - Friday am Public Service By Cecelia Johnson - Friday am The Pakistani terorist threat to Britain By Mark Neckameyer - Friday am Sorry to bust your bubble By Sharon Fraley - Friday am More Viewpoints/ Letters Publish A Letter Worldcom Sentence By: Tab The Calgary Sun Distributed exclusively by Cagle Cartoons, Inc. Political Cartoonists Ketchikan Calendar, Meetings, Events Today's Forecast City Police Report AK Troopers Daily Dispatch Classifieds & Announcements July 2005 Click on the date for stories and photos published on that day... S M T W T F S 26 27 28 29 30 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31             Front Page Archives

National: Gas prices changing car-buying attitudes, survey finds By THOMAS HARGROVE and GUIDO H. STEMPEL III - Most Americans say the skyrocketing cost of gasoline will make them re-think their future car and truck purchases, according to a Scripps Howard News Service survey.

Fifty-six percent said gas pump sticker shock would make them "consider buying smaller, more fuel efficient automobiles in the future," while 37 percent said gas prices will not alter their future vehicle choices and 7 percent were undecided. - More...
Friday - July 22, 2005

National: Gas prices changing car-buying attitudes, survey finds By THOMAS HARGROVE and GUIDO H. STEMPEL III - Most Americans say the skyrocketing cost of gasoline will make them re-think their future car and truck purchases, according to a Scripps Howard News Service survey.

Fifty-six percent said gas pump sticker shock would make them "consider buying smaller, more fuel efficient automobiles in the future," while 37 percent said gas prices will not alter their future vehicle choices and 7 percent were undecided. - More...
Friday - July 22, 2005

Dale McFeatters: Echo bombings in London - While the latest attack on London's subways and buses caused little damage and just one injury, it was an eerie and frightening reminder that the more deadly blasts of two weeks ago could be easily repeated.

As of late Thursday, British police were trying to determine why the copycat attacks were so amateurish and ineffective. The most serious explosion blew out some windows on a bus, while another barely blew a hole in a backpack and yet another appears to have fizzled altogether. - More...
Friday am - July 22, 2005

Betsy Hart: Parenting isn't fun with a child pedestal in the home - Desperate for answers, one beleaguered mom wrote to the experts at Parenting magazine this month.

The mother of three kids - ages 4, 3 and 14 months - told the folks at the "Smart Solutions" page: "I can't even go to the bathroom alone. How can I get some peace - and privacy?"

Here are a few ideas from the experts at Parenting for all those dealing with this problem: - More...
Friday am - July 22, 2005

Dan Thomasson: Medicare, Medicaid costs out of control - When it became painfully evident that my mother would soon be unable to manage her own home, her three surviving children discussed where she would spend her remaining years when the time came. Someone suggested that time already had arrived for her to divest herself of her estate so that her long-term care would be paid by the government under Medicaid.

The person remarked that he already had taken such steps in his own mother's case, making certain that the divestiture took place three years in advance of her moving to a nursing home. That's the required look-back time to be eligible for the program. Applicants can have only $2,000 in cash to qualify.

We thanked him for his advice, but explained that our mother, while not wealthy, certainly had enough money to last her and would regard such a devious idea for putting the load on her fellow taxpayers as not only deplorable but dishonest. We, as her sole heirs, were in complete agreement, and barely three years later, with her mind beginning to fail, we followed her wishes when we moved her to the nursing home. By the time she passed away, she pretty much had made her life and her money come out even, leaving us very little. - More...
Friday am - July 22, 2005