Opinion

Gov. Mike Dunleavy speaks during a press conference at the Alaska State Capitol on Monday, May 19, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)

Opinion: Dunleavy hides in the shadow of Trump’s assault on free speech

Using the power of the presidency to censor anyone who recognizes that is not only un-American, it’s an act of utter cowardice

Gov. Mike Dunleavy speaks during a press conference at the Alaska State Capitol on Monday, May 19, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)
Sunlight gleams through the Tongass National Forest in Juneau on Saturday, March 29, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)

My Turn: An open invitation to Secretary Rollins

I will introduce you to our communities and forests

  • Sep 28, 2025
  • By Marina Keli’ikuli
Sunlight gleams through the Tongass National Forest in Juneau on Saturday, March 29, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)
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Letter to the Editor: Taxes pay for the services we need

Taxes are not money donated to the government for nothing in return

  • Sep 28, 2025
  • By Katherine Wilson
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The nameplate of Brendan Carr, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, at a hearing in Washington on Feb. 27, 2025. While “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” returned to ABC on Sept. 23, Carr has promised to continue his campaign against what he sees as liberal bias in broadcasts. (Tierney L. Cross/The New York Times)

My Turn: Freedom vanishing: The authoritarian takeover has begun

The warning signs are everywhere

The nameplate of Brendan Carr, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, at a hearing in Washington on Feb. 27, 2025. While “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” returned to ABC on Sept. 23, Carr has promised to continue his campaign against what he sees as liberal bias in broadcasts. (Tierney L. Cross/The New York Times)
Juneau’s cruise ship dock is seen July 11, 2025, in Juneau, Alaska. (Photo by Erin Thompson/Juneau Empire file)

My Turn: Keeping Juneau affordable means setting the right priorities

The city already has the resources it needs

Juneau’s cruise ship dock is seen July 11, 2025, in Juneau, Alaska. (Photo by Erin Thompson/Juneau Empire file)
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Letter to the Editor: Property tax cap could limit Juneau’s services

I am opposed to Proposition 1 that caps property tax

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In this Nov. 6, 2018 photo, voters fill the voting booths at Glacier Valley Baptist Church on Election Day. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)

My Turn: Voting yes on Proposition 2 calls for a yes vote on Proposition 3

Proposition 2 would give financial relief to every person in Juneau permanently

In this Nov. 6, 2018 photo, voters fill the voting booths at Glacier Valley Baptist Church on Election Day. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)
A sign to guide voters to the City Hall Assembly Chambers Voter Center. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

Letter to the Editor: Vote no on Propositions 1 and 2

If voters decide to cap the mill rate and/or eliminate the tax on food and utilities the Assembly will have to make hard decisions about what to cut

A sign to guide voters to the City Hall Assembly Chambers Voter Center. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)
People walk past City Hall in downtown Juneau. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

My Turn: Look before you leap on property tax cap

The property tax cap will limit the contributions of those people most able to pay them: property owners

People walk past City Hall in downtown Juneau. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)
Juneau ranked eighth out of 12 communities in an annual study asking business leaders how they feel about the business climate in Southeast Alaska. (City and Borough of Juneau)

My Turn: Don’t kneecap Assembly with unaffordable Proposition 1

The CBJ would not have the flexibility to raise the property tax above 9 mills without first submitting it to an areawide vote

  • Sep 24, 2025
  • By Stephen Sorensen
  • Opinion
Juneau ranked eighth out of 12 communities in an annual study asking business leaders how they feel about the business climate in Southeast Alaska. (City and Borough of Juneau)
The U.S. Capitol in Washington, on April 2, 2025. (Kenny Holston/The New York Times)

Letter to the Editor: Time for Congress to do something!

Does anyone there have the guts to push back against this death march of democracy?

The U.S. Capitol in Washington, on April 2, 2025. (Kenny Holston/The New York Times)
The Edward Webster House (top center in grey), named for a former owner who located his Juneau and Douglas Telephone Co. there for decades beginning in 1915, is the oldest house still in use in Juneau. (Photo courtesy of the City and Borough of Juneau)

My Turn: Telephone Hill homes stand as historic symbols of freedom and fresh starts

The history of Juneau’s beginnings is under attack

The Edward Webster House (top center in grey), named for a former owner who located his Juneau and Douglas Telephone Co. there for decades beginning in 1915, is the oldest house still in use in Juneau. (Photo courtesy of the City and Borough of Juneau)
Sun shines through the canopy in the Tongass National Forest. (Photo by Brian Logan/U.S. Forest Service)

My Turn: Southeast Alaska’s economy thrives through balance, not timber alone

For 17,000 years, Indigenous people of Southeast Alaska have thrived on these lands

Sun shines through the canopy in the Tongass National Forest. (Photo by Brian Logan/U.S. Forest Service)
Win Gruening (courtesy)

Opinion: New city hall plan deserves voter scrutiny

In a Committee of the Whole meeting on Sept. 8, CBJ Assembly members voted to advance an ordinance directing staff to “negotiate and execute the… Continue reading

  • Sep 22, 2025
  • By Win Gruening
Win Gruening (courtesy)
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Letter to the Editor: Charlie Kirk’s voice cannot be silenced

All Americans should abhor political violence

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City and Borough of Juneau City Hall is photographed on July 12, 2025, in Juneau, Alaska. (Photo by Erin Thompson/Juneau Empire file)

My Turn: We know the City’s finances. We think the stakes couldn’t be higher in this year’s local election

The ballot will ask voters three questions that seek to change how Juneau collects the money needed for public services

  • Sep 20, 2025
  • By Christine Woll and Neil Steininger
City and Borough of Juneau City Hall is photographed on July 12, 2025, in Juneau, Alaska. (Photo by Erin Thompson/Juneau Empire file)
Pins supporting the repeal of ranked choice voting are seen on April 20, 2024, at the Republican state convention in Anchorage. (James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

My Turn: Juneau doesn’t need ranked choice voting

Save taxpayer money and reject ranked choice voting

  • Sep 20, 2025
  • By Murray R. Walsh
Pins supporting the repeal of ranked choice voting are seen on April 20, 2024, at the Republican state convention in Anchorage. (James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
A switchback ramp leads up to Telephone Hill Park downtown in July 2023. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

Letter to the Editor: Speak out against razing of Telephone Hill

I am hopeful that our assembly will put a stop to this ill-conceived idea when they hear the outcry from the community

A switchback ramp leads up to Telephone Hill Park downtown in July 2023. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)
A makeshift memorial on the Utah Valley University campus, where Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk was assassinated by a gunman a few days earlier, in Orem, Utah, Sept. 14, 2025. (Loren Elliott/The New York Times)

Opinion: Attentive listening humanizes our political adversaries

Today, we Americans are good at talking to like-minded people

  • Sep 20, 2025
  • By Rich Moniak
A makeshift memorial on the Utah Valley University campus, where Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk was assassinated by a gunman a few days earlier, in Orem, Utah, Sept. 14, 2025. (Loren Elliott/The New York Times)
An overhead view of Telephone Hill in downtown Juneau. (Photo courtesy of the City and Borough of Juneau)

My Turn: Some facts regarding Telephone Hill

There is every appearance of “fire, aim, ready”

  • Sep 20, 2025
  • By Larry Talley
An overhead view of Telephone Hill in downtown Juneau. (Photo courtesy of the City and Borough of Juneau)