Every election season produces a familiar ritual. Candidates run on ideas, critiques, promises and energy. Voters choose. Ballots are counted. And then, almost overnight, something profound happens. … more

If you feel exhausted or turned off by local politics, you are not alone. Too many people who get involved, whether running for office or simply volunteering, get caught up in endless personal fights … more

On the eighth day of Christmas, according to the popular holiday song, the gift was eight maids a-milking.  I can’t say if milking a cow would qualify as a taxable “live presentation” … more

Gratitude is a word we often reserve for holidays, milestones and the big moments that make it easy to feel thankful. But this past year has taught me that gratitude is something steadier — … more

Every December, something important happens in democracies that we rarely pause to appreciate. Across the country, leaders step down. Seats change hands. New voices arrive as experienced ones … more

I recently read Thurston County Commissioner Wayne Fournier’s post-mortem on the defeat of Proposition 1 in Olympia, in which he framed the loss as a rejection of poorly drafted policy.  … more

In the days since Olympia voters rejected Proposition 1, a tidy explanation has been circulating among the initiative’s proponents: renter-heavy precincts voted yes, homeowner-heavy precincts … more

Most people think of governing in terms of ribbon cuttings, groundbreaking ceremonies, and big public announcements. Those moments matter, but they’re the easy part. The harder work, the … more

Sometimes leadership isn’t about budgets or policies. Sometimes it’s about creating stories that make a town unforgettable. Why Peacocks? Every small town has its lore. Tenino has the … more