I OFFER this account of tragedy and hair-raising excitement as a warning. Before you get the idea to try ice-fishing, please keep a few things in mind. One, never take a new truck to the ice. Two, never mix explosives and animals.
GIVEN Covid is virtually preventing any gatherings, I am humbly and respectfully asking readers when driving today to PLEASE drive with your headlights on BRIGHT to honor & commemorate in solidarity the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for his contributions to “Civil & Human Rights in…
IN March 1972, the third issue of the newly published weekly Marianas Variety reported that a local man charged with murdering his wife in Sept. 1970 was acquitted by a Trust Territory trial court judge due to the circumstantial nature of the evidence presented. “The court is not free to spe…
NONPROFIT organizations have been and will continue to play a vital role in building resilient communities by providing services that contribute to economic stability. They also strengthen communities in other important ways by caring for the needs of the local community. When issues arise, …
THE recent show of support at the Legislature with Republicans far outnumbering all the other concerned citizens (Democrats, Arnold & Dave and Independents) groups combined but it reminded me of one of the greatest battles in the history of the world “David v Goliath.” While the outcome …
ABOUT this time of the year back in 2014 I wrote a letter to the editor titled “Let’s Keep Moving Forward” as a response to individuals, who in the runup to an election, were attacking former Governor Eloy S. Inos. Some of these individuals are the same ones who have relentlessly attacked Go…
THIS is a formal reply to the 3,101 words of opinion by the Governor’s Emissary “deflecting & gaslighting the Governor” in an attempt to sway Public Opinion in favor of the Governor. I really found it amazing but not a surprise to read this opinion thanking Governor Torres that was a PAT…
“30 by 30” is a proposal to declare 30% of the Earth’s surface off limits to human use. Part of the 30% would consist of land and part would be seas. As of now, around 16% of the world’s land is off limits to human development, protected as national parks, wildlife preserves and the like. …
THE Governor has figuratively stirred up HIS-Hornet’s Nest and they are all over the comment section stinging people whenever they can for simply looking at the facts from a fair & balance perspective. I reiterate that when the JGO first started “I predicted that the real test of Legisla…
IN the 1960s, American ethologist and behavioral researcher John B. Calhoun (1917-1995) conducted mouse experiments for the National Institute for Mental Health. According to Lawrence W. Reed of the Foundation for Economic Education, “Calhoun enclosed four pairs of mice in a 9 x 4.5-foot met…
THIS past year saw the continuation of the challenges brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic to the CNMI community and economy. The dramatic reduction in tourism arrivals and the constant threat of widespread outbreaks have led to severe impacts on employment, business revenue, and our way of l…
WHEN Arthur took up his post as island administrator for Makin, an island in the Gilberts, he knew the best way to carry out his duties was to get to know islanders on their terms, not his. He set about learning their customs and religious beliefs, always speaking to them in the language of…
IT was YOU Governor who PROMISED Retirees a Bonus and not the Legislature but YOU chose to blame the Democrats instead of explaining what really went wrong with YOUR decision. YOU should know Governor that “the buck stops at YOUR desk” and not in the Legislature which tells me you continue t…
Do not go gentle into that good night,
MARIANAS Variety’s year-end edition in 1973 announced that the NMI population would be “80,000 Within 6 Years,” according to the Marianas Planning Office of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. The (Northern) Marianas was among the six TT districts which also included Palau, Ponape (P…
AS 2021 ends, we look back on an extraordinary two years of fighting the Covid-19 pandemic. Many of us experienced loss, sorrow, and heartaches. We made necessary changes in plans, expectations, traditions, and adapted to the “new normal.” As we move into the new year with refreshed minds an…
HÅFA Adai yan Tirow Wóómi! It has been 90 days of research and information gathering for the Universal Garbage Collection or UGC Task Force volunteers. We are pleased to report that we have submitted on-time our draft report to Gov. Ralph DLG Torres for his review and comments. After the Gov…
ON a dark and stormy night, I put my nose to the grindstone and, having gotten up on the wrong side of the bed, decided to put my foot down and get to the bottom of clichés. Knowing opposites attract, I sought the advice of a man who was both fit as a fiddle and a chip off the old block.
IT seems the Governor and his emissary want to turn the JGO Impeachment into another “DEFLECTING the issue by pointing fingers at members of the JGO and even past Governors — GASLIGHTING by continuing to claim total innocence when there has been a single thread of evidence to exonerate himse…
ON Dec. 15, 1972, Marianas Variety reported about the start of the political status talks between the representatives of the U.S. president and the NMI leadership at the Mount Carmel School auditorium. These discussions would result in the signing of the Covenant to establish the Commonwealt…
FROM buying and wrapping gifts to decorating your home and planning your holiday feasts, you’ll be surprised to learn that you can have an eco-friendly Christmas and New Year. Because we live on an island surrounded by nature, let’s consider how we can go green while we celebrate.
LAST week’s Trash Talk column discussed how trash is everybody’s business. Similarly coined is the Marianas Visitors Authority’s core message: Tourism is everybody’s business. Littering and illegal dumping have, and continue to, affect our tourism product, our industry, and our destination. …
TO the 22nd House of Representatives:
BEACHCOMBERS and refugees, criminals and missionaries. The islands are full of visitors both temporary and permanent. It has been said that there are only two kinds of plots: a person goes on a journey and a stranger comes to town. If that is true, the history of the islands has been full…
I WILL be formally offering this testimony as citizen of the CNMI to offer my complete support for the Impeachment of Gov. Ralph Torres who is viewed as “the Godfather of a Criminal Organization” by the Feds and just one of the major reasons why he needs to be impeached. The evidence of the …
FORTY-NINE years ago, a 10-month-old weekly newspaper, Marianas Variety, reported about the upcoming political status talks between the representatives of the U.S. president and the NMI which was then part of the U.S.-administered Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. The negotiations woul…
I AM grateful that our small business, the Naked Fish Bar and Grill, has grown successfully in the past 17 years. However, when the pandemic struck in March 2020, our business suffered the most when safety protocols were put in place to help mitigate Covid-19. As Covid-19 cases continue to r…
TRASH is everybody’s business. Over the last few months in this column, the Universal Garbage Collection or UGC Task Force has listed the many ways that the improper disposal of garbage affects our homes, health, safety, and environment. However, before we even begin to tackle the solutions …
THE testimony of the DPS Commissioner who has less training than a lot of the experienced police officers on the force actually contributed more proof of guilt by the alleged Godfather of the CNMI, Gov. Ralph Torres. He is truly looking more and more like a real Godfather in a crime movie g…
A COMMON problem faced by parents living in the Pacific islands is getting access to quality education for their children. Every parent wants to give their child the opportunity to succeed in life, and more than ever, success is directly related to getting an education that prepares young p…
“BUSING, no matter where you are, is never black and white.” That was the conclusion of Variety’s special report in the spring of 1973 regarding the school bus situation on Saipan, then the capital of the U.S.-administered Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, and the main island of the (N…
CHRISTMAS is a season of peace, joy, and hope for a fresh start and a brighter new year ahead. For my family and I, Christmas is a time for us to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, my favorite tradition. Our family Christmas tradition goes far back as far as the ’80s when my Tudela family …
TRASH. It’s everywhere — along our beaches, buried underneath the soil, in our ocean, and illegally dumped in various parts of the islands. It is unsightly, unhealthy, and threatens our environment and natural resources.
AS a real Political Scientist who doesn’t let emotions get in the way, I can tell voters without any doubt that the GOP is literally taking all of us-regular folks for “granted, for fools and even for being stupid.” The recent outburst by the DL Guerrero Brothers is the application of their…
MY fellow Democrats and people of the CNMI, I want to express my concern and share with you my personal perspective on the present organization of the NMI Democratic Party. This perception is not to be interpreted as a tool to undermine the party and the efforts of many members, with excepti…
THE recent decision by Governor Torres to terminate Special Assistant for Management and Budget Virginia "Vicky" Villagomez is just more proof for me and thousands of voters of the alleged Godfather imaged in the FBI’s RICO Investigation. This woman has been at her post since 1998 under diff…
DEAR Senate President Jude U. Hofschneider and Speaker Edmund S. Villagomez:
“COUGH, cough. Ahem.” So many encounters between islanders and foreigners have begun that way. Two hundred years ago, when Europeans first ventured into these waters as traders, not explorers, things went badly more often than not. Mutual suspicion, assumptions about the other, even the b…
OVER 48 years ago, Marianas Variety marked its first anniversary by reiterating that it was “For the People, by the People.” Then and now, however, “the People” are various individuals who do not agree with each other on so many things most of the time. “The People” can also believe two or m…
ON March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a pandemic. After a year and a half into the pandemic, our preventive measures to mitigate Covid-19 have been working. However, CNMI residents and those around the world have seen our cases rise over the past few weeks. It wo…
THIS week I had the honor of meeting our CNMI trash collection companies to share with them the Universal Garbage Collection or UGC initiative and to get their feedback on moving the UGC forward. I say honor because trash collection is a dirty and under-appreciated job in our community. We a…
PACIFIC anthropology has come a long way in the last fifty years, as theories of the origins of island peoples have gone through many revisions. Did Polynesians migrate from Asia or from South America? Where did Australian Aborigines come from? Can Chamorros trace their lineage back to Ta…
IT may seem that I dislike the Governor but I don’t, I just detest his behavior as the leader of the CNMI who continues to deflect and gaslighting issues with half-truths and even outright LIES! I’m just astounded that he thinks he can get away with it, as if We the People are stupid. Don’t …
1991 was a midterm election year in the CNMI, and among the news stories Variety highlighted 30 years ago was an interview with “one of three Saipan homeowners who use solar photovoltaic…panels to bring them electricity.” Long story short: “Solar power suits Saipan homes well,” says the MV h…
IT is common to think that village beautification is a government or private sector function. However, as residents, we are the bigger number with helping hands. This is the reason I knew my family from Chalan Piao had to be part of The Marianas Village Pride or MVP Campaign. My husband Mark…
THERE are a lot of voters in the CNMI who are truly sick & tired of this Governor with his “Deflecting Gaslighting Shows.” It is just shaming and even damming to see this Governor getting in the news with his politics of deflecting and gaslighting. GOVERNOR Ralph DLG Torres said “he has…
IN last week’s column, Hon. Mayor Efraim M. Atalig shared that one of the greatest challenges in Rota’s solid waste collection and disposal processes is the island’s lack of commercial trash collection services. Unfortunately, the same is true for our beautiful island of Tinian. Our current …
THE Covid pandemic is slouching on to its inevitable conclusion. Infection rates are down in most parts of the world as immunization efforts continue. Who could have guessed a year and a half ago that a global argument would commence over receiving vaccination shots?
IN 1991, when the local economy was still thriving, the education commissioner told CNMI officials that public schools might shut down. Why? Because, MV reported, “there is nobody to pick up the garbage at the schools.” Why? Because the central government allotted an annual budget of $10,000…
WHEN the Governor’s Council of Economic Advisers presented its Marianas Village Pride or MVP Campaign at the CNMI Public School System State Level Parent Summit on Oct. 9, our staff, teachers and parents were immediately drawn to the concept. Within a week, GCEA received great feedback and s…
