Cheers: To going out with a bang. Before closing the doors for good, the owners of Beaches Restaurant & Bar hope to raise $300,000 for local charities. Mark Matthias and his wife, Ali Novinger, are auctioning items from the restaurant’s décor and holding several charity dinners before the doors close Dec. 31. “How do we want to end the 30 years? It just made sense to tie it into our charity work,” Matthias said.
In addition to operating a popular restaurant along the Columbia River for decades, Matthias and Novinger have been dedicated contributors to Clark County’s charitable culture. After the final day of regular business on Dec. 28, they will host private dinners the following three nights, with the New Year’s Eve fete costing $1,000 per plate. Proceeds from the auctions and the dinners will go to local nonprofits, a fitting end for a business that has been an integral part of the community.
Jeers: To bomb cyclones. A weather event with the harrowing name of “bomb cyclone” knocked out power for approximately a half-million people in Western Washington last week. As The Seattle Times explains: “As the massive low-pressure system spun off the coast, easterly winds, reaching hurricane strength in places, tore through the region, blowing over trees into power lines.”
Three days after the storm, some 170,000 people in King County still were without power, and experts say the event demonstrates the need for significant upgrades to the electrical grid throughout the state.
Cheers … and jeers: To recounts. Election results have been certified, but the count is not over in Clark County. Races for Clark County councilor from District 4 and senator from the 18th Legislative District are close enough to require a recount.
Cheers go to the candidates and to everybody who voted in the Nov. 5 election. The tight races signify that both candidates were able to connect with a significant number of voters, a circumstance that strengthens our democracy. Meanwhile, jeers to go those who opted to not cast a ballot in those races. In both contests, the number of write-in votes and the number of undervotes exceeded the margin between the candidates.
Jeers: To the REAL ID Act. A headline at Columbian.com summarizes an ongoing issue: “Do Washington residents need enhanced driver’s license to fly for holidays?” As the article from The (Tacoma) News Tribune answers — no, we do not.
In 2005, Congress passed the REAL ID Act following a recommendation from the commission that investigated the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Enhanced identification would be required to board a commercial airliner or enter federal buildings, but over the past 19 years, the deadline for compliance repeatedly has been delayed. If the act has not been enforced, it clearly is not a priority. Congress should repeal the measure.
Cheers: To a moo-ving investigation. Utility officials in Grant County have determined the cause of several power outages in the area — itchy cows. According to the Columbia Basin Herald, troublesome bovines were scratching themselves along a guy wire that secures power poles.
“As a cow rubs against the guy wire to conquer its itch, it shakes the entire pole, causing the attached power lines to sway and touch one another,” the newspaper reports. “This can cause electrical faults and flashes that could and did result in outages.” No cows were harmed in the making of the outages.
