For those who remember, Mattel’s Chatty Cathy talking doll was revolutionary when it came out in 1959. For those too young, I’ll explain. The doll was a toy sensation. Kids would pull the …

I don’t believe the proposed multi-multibillion-dollar Alaska North Slope gas project will be built. It’s too expensive. The risk of construction delays and overruns are too much for investors to …

As of this week, the state treasury already can bank on depositing about $200 million more in oil revenue than it would have received at prices before the president started a war against Iran, …

I started my journalism career 57 years ago this month, when as a freshman I wrote a news story for the college paper. There is a bigger point to this than reminiscing about my college days, so stick …

Alaskans in November will decide for the third time on ranked-choice voting. They approved it in 2020, rejected an initiative in 2024 to repeal it, and now will vote this fall on another repeal …

Though it’s been almost 24 years since Lisa Murkowski left the Legislature to go to work as a U.S. senator for Alaska, she remembers well the problems and challenges that confront state lawmakers …

I had started a column for this week, criticizing — in a humorous way, of course — how some people are so quick to break off a conversation because their cell phone pings or rings or dings. As …

Spending money can be a lot of fun, while saving money can be pretty boring. Sure, you get to watch your account grow — assuming you invest it wisely — thinking about spending it someday, though …

No one knows what tomorrow’s oil price will be. And no one in Alaska can control the price. Yet because oil is the largest taxpayer to the state treasury, many Alaskans, particularly legislators, …

Alaskans like to take chances, buy raffle tickets and place bets. Whether fun trips to Vegas, time at their local bar playing pull-tabs, guessing where the sanitized and hardened moose “nuggets” …

Just as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 drove oil prices higher — over $100 a barrel for several months — so too will the U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran, and Iran’s counterattacks, …

Spending on political campaigns in this country, including Alaska, is reaching new highs, which means the election process is sinking to new lows. Candidates don’t win on clear and honest debate …

This is a tax tutorial for gubernatorial candidates, for legislators who will report to work next year and for the Alaska public. Think of it as homework, with more than eight months to complete …

Most of us can remember where we were and what we were doing when big events occurred in our lives. Those memorable moments stick with us for decades. What’s frustrating is that I can recall so …

Everyone needs a break from reality — myself included. It’s a depressing and distressing time to think about what’s happening in our country and the rest of the world. From shameful …

Gov. Mike Dunleavy, in the final year of his 2,918-day, two-term career in the job, is picking at the plate of a long-term fiscal plan for the state, much like a kid skips the broccoli and wants to …

This is for all of us who don’t have perfect hair — and for those of us with no hair left to style, fluff, slick or comb. It’s for those of us who haven’t had our teeth straightened, …

More than 60 years ago, when I was in eighth grade, I was playing outfield in the annual softball game between the seventh and eighth graders of Luella Elementary School on Chicago’s Far South …

The Alaska Legislature will reconvene in Juneau in less than two weeks, with a stack of difficult issues weighing on lawmakers: School funding, disaster rebuilding, chronic vacancies in the state …

It’s the season of warm wishes, goodwill, families and friends. It’s a time for gifts, sharing old memories and making new memories with the new year. It’s a break in everyday life to remember …