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Sen. Reinbold mixes it up with Alaska Airlines over onboard mask policy

Suzanne Downing
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60
Sen. Reinbold mixes it up with Alaska Airlines over onboard mask policy

State Sen. Lora Reinbold was noncompliant with her face mask on a recent Alaska Airlines flight, and took her time complying with the airlines’ mask mandate, which brought her the attention of not one, but three flight attendants. The photo she took of them trying to get her to comply says a thousand words.

Reinbold was not amused.

“Mask bullies in full force on Alaskans Airlines- all because a scaredy cat Karen whined loudly and was a Tattle tail when I took my dumb worthless suffocating mask off, a bit longer than she wanted, for my food and drink. The flight attendants in Portland are overbearing. Sadly Alaska airlines is part of mask tyranny and not providing proof required in law they help stop the spread (I can show they cause health problems). I asked for proof masks helped they couldn’t provide and handed me a Alaska Airlines mask and asked if I’d put one on top of my other mask I said it was hard to breath and they didn’t care. I honestly hope they get sued for being ridiculous! They are wrongly giving medical advise without a medical license, against the advise of doctors, and should be sued for forcing medical advise without a license- it’s simply wrong and it will hurt their bottom kind!” Reinbold wrote on Facebook.

Alaska Airlines has a “yellow card” policy that it uses to blacklist passengers who do not comply with the mask mandate. Will Reinbold be prevented from boarding a jet for Juneau in January for the start of the legislative session? Doubtful.

Reinbold posted her experience with the airline mask mandate on Facebook and received a mix of responses — some supportive, some not-so-supportive, and one calling her a “snowflake.”

Poppycock

Anchorage Daily Planet
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8
Poppycock

Anchorage mayoral hopeful Forrest Dunbar is telling potential campaign contributors he and his pals on the Assembly are following the city charter in deciding to not have a special election to fill the seat vacated by disgraced former Mayor Ethan Berkowitz.

Poppycock.

The idea, apparently, is too retain in the mayor’s office for as long as humanly possible Austin Quinn-Davidson, a member of the leftist cabal now running the Anchorage Assembly. It certainly does not have much to do with what the charter has to say about filling he vacancy.

Anchorage’s charter is specific on the matter and is chock-full of “shalls,” which is legalese for “just do it.”

It says: “A vacancy in the office of mayor shall be filled at a regular or special election held not less than 90 days from the time a vacancy occurs. If less than 90 days remain in the term when the vacancy occurs, the vacancy shall not be filled. When a vacancy occurs in the office of mayor, the chair of the Assembly shall serve as acting mayor until a successor is elected and takes office. The acting mayor has the veto power, but may not vote on Assembly action. The Assembly by ordinance shall provide for further succession to the office of acting mayor.”

Berkowitz bailed Oct. 23, and 90 days from that date is Jan. 21. Anchorage residents should about then be voting on a temporary mayor who would serve until July 1, when the mayor-elect from the regularly scheduled April 6 election takes office.

If the liberal wing of the Assembly does not like the current charter language, if its members believe such an election would be too costly or logistically impossible, if they want to make “not less than 90 days” mean “whenever we feel like it,” they should try to persuade Anchorage residents to change the charter’s language at the polls. Until that happens, the Assembly should be following the charter’s dictums. It is not, after all, advisory.

All of this leaves us to wonder: Should a guy who has difficulty reading and comprehending the charter really be thinking about running for mayor?

Firearm sales skyrocket

Anchorage Daily Planet
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14
Firearm sales skyrocket

With nearly two months left before the end of the year, firearms sales in the U.S. already have blown past the record set in 2016.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation says there already have been 17.2 million National Instant Criminal Background Check System background checks this year, compared to 15.7 million in 2016.

Firearm purchases increased in every month since March, and more than 1.7 million background checks were conducted in October alone. That is about a 60 percent jump over the same period last year.

So far this year, nearly 5 million Americans have bought firearms for the first time.

What is driving the purchases? The pandemic. Violent protests. Promises to defund the police. Looting. Lockdowns. A general feeling that if you want a gun, you should get now because a Second Amendment advocate’s worst nightmare may be about to come true.

Joe Biden has promised draconian gun control measures. He even says he will use executive orders to carry out his vision of a disarmed America. Those increased numbers of firearms purchases may, indeed, make it tougher for him to pull it off, but no doubt he will try.

As always, we encourage training and gun safety courses for new gun owners, while we all do the only thing we can:

Wait and see.

Read the Anchorage Daily Planet at this link.

Trump supporters continued their Sunday rallies

Suzanne Downing
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8
Trump supporters continued their Sunday rallies

Over 60 people turned out at the corner of New Seward Highway and Northern Lights Blvd. in Anchorage to show their support for President Donald Trump.

They’ve been out every week for months, and now their focus is on a fair election.

The temperature in Anchorage was 20 degrees as they waved their signs and waved their mittens at those honking their horns in support.

Over the weekend in Washington, D.C., hundreds of of thousands of Trump supporters converged to protest perceived illegal elections and to rally in support of the president’s legal challenges.

Their “Million MAGA March” was blacked out, given no coverage by the mainstream media, but was covered on Twitter by participants. At the end of the event, Black Lives Matter and Antifa rioters attacked numerous participants, also not covered by the mainstream media.

Politico posted that the crowd was in the hundreds and that they were falsely asserting that the vote was stolen, a narrative repeated throughout mainstream media:

New health orders from governor include in-state travel restrictions

Suzanne Downing
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33
New health orders from governor include in-state travel restrictions

People traveling from the villages to Anchorage are picking up COVID-19 and taking it back to their villages. In a new set of travel guidance “orders,” Gov. Mike Dunleavy is giving off-road and off-ferry communities the authority to limit travel to their villages. There are exceptions for critical workforce individuals.

Dunleavy is also asking people if they travel to Anchorage or Fairbanks to get tested before they return to their villages, or if they go back without a test, to quarantine 14 days.

The rest of the orders are basically as they have been for many months — loosening regulations, increasing Telehealth, and allowing company board members to meet electronically.

Effective Nov. 16, the following COVID-19 Outbreak Health Orders are issued under the new disaster declaration that goes into effect as the previous disaster declaration expires at midnight, Nov. 15:

Order No. 1, Suspension of Regulations and Statutes, suspends certain regulations and statutes to allow agencies to best address the COVID-19 emergency.

Order No. 2, Telehealth & Courtesy Occupational Licenses, authorizes telemedicine, access to licensees from other jurisdictions, and flexibility to certain licensing boards.

Order No. 3, Virtual Meetings & Electronic Communications for Boards, allows business to be conducted virtually and via electronic communications for boards of corporations, non-profit, and ANCs.

Order No. 4, Non-Congregate Sheltering, provides FEMA reimbursement eligibility for temporary sheltering and quarantine.

Order No. 5, Critical Infrastructure, provides guidance for critical infrastructure workers in Alaska. Appendices with specific guidance for the following industries: commercial fishing, independent harvesters, and seafood processing plants.

Order No. 6, International & Interstate Travel, provides guidelines for residents and non-residents traveling into Alaska.

Order No. 7, Online Raffles & Prize Drawings, allows charitable gaming permittees to conduct raffles, lotteries and other contests online.

Order No. 8, Intrastate Travel, specifies the limitations on community restrictions, and that Critical Infrastructure must be allowed to travel into rural towns, but follow safety plans; defines critical personal needs for residents that need to leave communities; and implements a testing strategy and protocols for individuals traveling from road system communities to off-road system. 

Intrastate Travel Guidance

COVID-19 Outbreak Health Order No. 8 provides guidance and requirements for travel between communities located off the Road System or the Alaska Marine Highway System (AMHS).

Beginning November 16, 2020 at 12:01am:

  • Local communities are permitted to enact travel restrictions to minimize the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

Beginning Nov. 21, 2020:

  • Travelers in a community on the Road System or the AMHS for less than 72 hours are recommended to test for COVID-19 5 days after arrival at final destination and follow strict social distancing until negative results are received, or follow strict social distancing for 14 days at final destination if no test was taken.
  • If a traveler is in a community on the Road System of the AMHS for greater than 72 hours, they should get a molecular COVID-19 test within 72 hours prior to travel to a community off the Road System or the AMHS and should not commence travel until a negative test is received. If return travel cannot be delayed until the test result is available, the traveler must follow strict social distancing until they receive a negative result.
  • Anyone who is currently infected with COVID-19 must not travel to a community off the Road System or AMHS until they are cleared from isolation by a medical professional. 
  • Asymptomatic people who have recovered from a documented COVID-19 infection within the past 90 days are exempt from travel testing.

Additional information on the new COVID-19 Outbreak Health Orders can be found here.

All COVID-19 Outbreak Health Orders can be found here.

Snyder slips ahead of Pruitt in race for District 27

Suzanne Downing
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16
Snyder slips ahead of Pruitt in race for District 27

Anchorage’s House District 27 has been a nail-biter of a race. On Sunday, Democrat Liz Snyder slipped ahead of Rep. Lance Pruitt by 17 votes.

Must Read Alaska has learned that there are between 114 and 120 absentee votes left to be counted. Pruitt would need more than 57 percent of them in order to overcome Snyder’s lead.

Pruitt was first elected to the district in 2010. But the East Anchorage district has grown more progressive over the years. This year in the presidential race, Joe Biden won the district over Donald Trump, 4,476 to 4,072. But four years ago, Trump won the district with 4,085 to Hillary Clinton’s 3,729 votes.

Check back for further updates on whether this house seat has flipped to the Democrats.

Document drop: Gasline agency turns down Walker request for meeting

Suzanne Downing
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13
Document drop: Gasline agency turns down Walker request for meeting

In a letter from Alaska Gasline Development Corporation Board President Frank Richards, the state-owned agency has declined to meet with the former governor of Alaska, who has put together a consortium that proposes to take over the Alaska Gasline project from the agency:

November 11, 2020

The Honorable Bill Walker Mr. Keith Meyer
Mr. A.J. “Joey” Merrick II Mr. Bernie Karl

Alaska Gasline & LNG, LLC. 2501 Commercial Drive Anchorage, AK 99501

Gentlemen,

On behalf of AGDC’s Board, I am responding to your letter dated November 9, 2020. Thank you for your continued interest in the Alaska LNG Project.

In April 2020, the AGDC Board of Directors authorized our current strategic plan to transition leadership of the Alaska LNG Project to a third party or parties with the qualifications and capitalization to successfully unlock the benefits and value of Alaska’s North Slope natural gas.

AGDC is already collaborating with parties with whom we have an existing relationship to potentially achieve this goal. These parties have provided significant funds and in-kind contributions during the recent economic reevaluation, which successfully reduced the estimated cost of the Alaska LNG Project to a more competitive level. Collectively, we are working toward identification of a new lead party that can advance the project to Front End Engineering and Design, the next appropriate stage gate.

In early 2021, the Board will assess whether there is sufficient interest and progress towards our leadership transition goal. In the event that new Alaska LNG leadership is not identified, AGDC may formulate an open solicitation of interest to present to other qualified parties. Should AGDC offer such a solicitation in 2021, we will be sure to notify Alaska Gasline & LNG LLC.

Accordingly, we respectfully decline your request to meet until such time that we are ready to share a formal solicitation of interest. AGDC and the Board appreciate your keen interest in the success of the Alaska LNG Project.

Sincerely,

Frank T. Richards, P.E. President, AGDC

Cc: AGDC Board of Directors

Former KDLG reporter dies, age 29, in New Mexico

Suzanne Downing
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18
Former KDLG reporter dies, age 29, in New Mexico

According to KDLG and KUNM, reporter Hannah Colton died last week. She was 29. The reports of her passing suggest the cause was suicide.

“KDLG is heartbroken by her passing. Colton came to Dillingham in 2015. She dedicated a year of service as a journalist to the people of Bristol Bay, lifting their voices with compassion and going to bat for the concerns of this community. Colton constantly pursued the truth, and she will be deeply missed,” the Dillingham public radio station reported.

Colton’s stories appeared frequently in the Anchorage Daily News during the year she lived in Alaska. She wrote about Katmai bears, fishing, hydro power at Chignik Lagoon, and the Pebble Project.

National Crisis Hotline: 1-800-273-TALK (8-2-5-5). Call 24/7 

National Crisis Text Line at 7-4-1-7-4-1. Call 24/7

Colton accepted a job as the education reporter and news director at KUNM, a public radio station in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

There, she had been a champion for social justice.

“She was passionate about equity and racial justice. She fought those fights in the field, in news content and on behalf of her staff,” KUNM wrote.

“Hannah loved being a reporter. She was a gifted storyteller. She was great at meeting people and talking with them, asking good questions and really listening to the answers.

“She well-understood the urgency of this moment, and she gave it her whole heart, working around the clock to cover equity and education, the dangers of the virus for people who are incarcerated, protests and the pandemic’s impacts on people without shelter,” the station wrote.

Colton was said to have suffered from depression.

She recently wrote, “The older I get and more work I do, the more convinced I am that most or all of us are traumatized to some degree by this messed up, unjust, patriarchal, white supremacist society. Healing is possible, but we cannot heal alone. And that’s why I love making pieces about mental health. Especially when I get to speak with compassionate, expert elders.”

Of her passing, U.S. Sen. Tom Udall wrote, “Heartbroken to learn of the loss of Hannah Colton of @KUNMnews. Hannah was an incredible person dedicated to independent, thoughtful reporting. This is a devastating loss for the journalism community in New Mexico. Jill and I extend our deepest condolences to Hannah’s loved ones.”

LaFrance concedes; James Kaufman will represent House District 28

Suzanne Downing
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26
LaFrance concedes; James Kaufman will represent House District 28

A call from Assembly member and House candidate Suzanne LaFrance to winner-apparent James Kaufman put an end to the suspense for District 28 today. LaFrance left a message on Kaufman’s answering machine conceding the race.

LaFrance was the plug-and-play candidate for the Democrats, skipping the primary, but being inserted in the General Election to take on the winner of the Republican Primary, Kaufman. Adam Lees had won the primary for the Democrats but ceded the position to LaFrance, who was thought to have a better chance of beating Kaufman.

Kaufman said he was out and about in the South Anchorage hillside neighborhood taking down campaign signs and missed the call.

342,624 votes have been counted in the state so far, with more to be counted on Sunday.

LaFrance tightened up the race with 5,416 votes to Kaufman’s 5,851, and in her message she admonished him that he needs to listen to the people she represents.

LaFrance had postured as a conservative to voters but, in fact, is part of the Anchorage Assembly’s progressive leadership group. Kaufman is a conservative.

Liar? LaFrance says she opposes recall of Dunleavy, but she signed petition

District 28 is a high-engagement area of the state, encompassing Girdwood, Indian, Bear Valley, O’Malley, and Huffman neighborhoods. Many voters cast absentee ballots in the district, which is one of the last to have those absentees counted.

11,744 votes were cast in the race, including 463 that peeled off for a third candidate, Benjamin Fletcher. But Kaufman won nearly 50 percent of the vote.

If ranked-choice voting was being used in this race, it’s likely that LaFrance would have won, as both she and Fletcher were liberal candidates, while Kaufman is conservative. The most likely scenario would be that Fletcher’s votes would have been assigned to LaFrance. Ranked-choice voting passed with Ballot Measure 2 and will be used in the next election in 2022.

In the district, Joe Biden edged out Donald Trump 5,906 to 5,823, reflecting the overall “bluing” of Anchorage as resource and private-sector jobs have been driven out of the state, and government jobs become a greater share of the job market.

With this race completed, a couple of others are still waiting for a batch of votes to be counted on Sunday: David Nelson in District 15 leads Lyn Franks, and Rep. Lance Pruitt leads Liz Snyder in District 27.

Both Franks and Snyder are Democrats, Nelson and Pruitt are Republicans.

Nelson leads in District 15 by 116 votes, while Pruitt leads in District 27 by just 58 votes.

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