Sunday, June 24, 2018

Gladish gymnasium

Photo of Gladish gym by Robert Ashworth, Bellingham, Wash., from Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository. Photo apparently taken 5 September 2017

Fortunate to have Oscar Gladish as her Pullman High School teacher, principal


Her View: A lesson in intelligent protesting

By Lenna Harding, Moscow Pullman Daily News April 5, 2018

I have enormous respect for the teenagers in Parkland, Fla., as they demonstrate to the country the proper way to lobby and protest.

They are a far cry from the destructive and disorderly protests by young people during the Vietnam War. I suspect many older adults who disparage their efforts are those same earlier protesters. I have long felt the reason the earlier protesters acted as they did was because of a failure of our school system to teach them how to work within the system to achieve their goals. They belong to the same generation as my daughter, who never had a civics course from elementary to graduate school.

It was a required course in Washington high schools when I was attending, and I was even more fortunate to have Oscar Gladish as my teacher. He not only taught civics and an American history course - also required - but as principal, he had set up an elaborate student government program at Pullman High School.

Making policy was a student council composed of elected officers and a representative from each class. Then there was also student control in charge of discipline. If a member spotted an infraction of school rules, the miscreant would be cited and had to appear before the council for trial.

Punishment was so many minutes helping either the janitor or home economics teacher after school. The infractions might have been sitting on desk surfaces, defacing desks (punishment was resurfacing the top under instruction of the shop teacher), being in the halls during class time without a pass (there were hall monitors at key locations in the halls) and running in the halls.

Another "agency" was the fire patrol in charge of checking fire extinguishers, arranging fire drills with the city fire department and monitoring them for the time it took to evacuate the building.

This gave us practical lessons about the function and structure of government at various levels. It also demonstrated that government is the people, both by their vote as well as actual participation by running for office and lobbying. I've often wondered how the war protesters would have acted if they had a better understanding of the workings and system of government.

These Parkland students are doing almost everything right and setting a marvelous example to their peers elsewhere as demonstrated by the many peaceful, meaningful demonstrations throughout the country in support of Parkland and other schools that experienced violence.

Registering new voters strengthened their clout as they vow to elect new legislators who will listen and act to correct what they perceive are the causes of the violence. They directly lobbied leaders and simply protested. The marches were well planned and orderly, and the speeches eloquent. The fact that other teenagers throughout the country are taking their cues from this is heartening.

The big question now is: how long can this momentum continue if they don't get what they want? Will they lose heart or simply run out of steam? It's so nice to see the number of adults in the marches with them, but I'm not sure that is enough. I think it falls on the rest of us grown-ups to take up the sword as well and help maintain the momentum.

Instead of ridiculing or demonizing them as some adults are doing, we should be bombarding those in Congress and state legislatures with organized group lobbying, letters to the editors, phone calls and all the other correct ways to lobby. I believe these teenagers deserve our validation of their efforts.

Our children only want safety in schools, the right to life and the right to not live in fear. The measures they ask are reasonable and well within the Second Amendment provisions. I personally think we could enact even further restrictions and still be well within the Constitution.

Lenna Harding lived her first 20 and past 43 years in Pullman. A longtime League of Women Voters member, she served on the Gladish Community and Cultural Center board. lj1105harding@gmail.com, ljharding.com

Wednesday, June 13, 2018

PULLMAN IN ‘TOP 30’ OF MOST BEAUTIFUL TOWNS IN AMERICA, SAYS EXPEDIA IN JUNE 2018



On June 7, 2018, Expedia posted this by Chloe Mulliner

Most beautiful towns in America: Part 2
 

Searching for beauty high and low

Of course, beauty is subjective, but there are some things on which we can all agree. A charming downtown oozing with character, sparkling waves under the glow of a sunset, and wide-open ranges void of human handprints are all undeniably beautiful in their own ways.
Not too long ago, we curated a list of our favorite beautiful towns in America, and we’re back at it again. From endearing architecture and preserved nature trails to serene coastlines and mountaintop views, we’re bringing you even more pretty towns and cities from sea to shining sea.
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(Here's what the June 7, 2018, Expedia posting said about Pullman.)
  30. Pullman, Washington

The small town of Pullman is especially good looking when the trees turn amber along Main Street and the Pullman Riverwalk, but some might consider the surrounding Palouse region the real draw; a magical display of rolling hills and wind-blown silt.


(For more info, PULLMAN :: Cup of the Palouse, provides the following amplifications.)


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Oh, you noticed "wind-blown silt" in Expedia text? If you are curious about that silt, go to "The Seven Wonders of Washington State" at URL below ... 



... text there says, "The Palouse is the most serene and pastoral of the seven wonders of Washington State. It is a region in south eastern Washington characterized by gentle rolling hills covered with wheat fields. The hills were formed over tens of thousands of years from wind blown dust and silt, called "loess", from dry regions to the south west. Seen from the summit of 3,612 foot high Steptoe Butte, they look like giant sand dunes because they were formed in much the same way. In the spring they are lush shades of green when the wheat and barley are young, and in the summer they are dry shades of brown when the crops are ready for harvest. The Palouse hills are not only a landscape unique in the world, but they are beautiful to behold, making them my favorite of the seven wonders of Washington State."
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Expedia mentions Pullman Riverwalk. About it, TrailLink says, “Pullman's Downtown Riverwalk trail is part of system of trails that make a loop around the city. The Riverwalk runs for a short distance through downtown, linking with the College Hill Climb Trail on the north end and the Koppel Farm Trail on the south end. Sign posts guide you along the trail system.”


More info here: