[photo from NOAA] Those of you who have been breathlessly awaiting reports on the orange goo that washed up on the shores of the northwestern eskimo village of Kivalina, Alaska will be interested to hear the latest report, and that the mystery is closer to being solved. I deliberately didn’t say you’ll be “happy” to [...]

~The original Captain Zero Before I go off on some rant about how my forefathers fought the British to birth a country that could VOTE, and how siding with the British to take away the right of Americans to vote should be called treason, I’ll take a deep breath and explain a few things. Since [...]

In the light of Anthony Weiner resigning over a personal problem affecting his professional life, it would seem that someone actually guilty of a professional misdeed affecting her professional life might be called to account. If Mark Begich had been faced with the situation Lisa Murkowski was faced with this week, we’d likely hear the [...]

By AlaskaPi Parent corporation Calista is closing and liquidating  their Alaska Newpapers, Inc subsidiary.  While we understand the business decision, we are  sad that these newspapers will no longer be available for news of rural Alaska within their  communities, and for the rest of the state. We are in a time of change all over America regarding news, news collection, news [...]

~Thick and fast they came at last and more, and more, and more… Corrupt Bastards Seek to Flee the Scene of the Crime Former Alaska Speaker of the House Pete Kott (R), and former Alaska House Rep. Vic Kohring (R) have asked for a new venue for their impending retrial. Both were successful in having [...]

Here’s one not to miss if you are in town. The Mat Valley Coalition is having a free screening of “Coal Country,” a film about the effects of coal mining on communities and property values. This is an issue vital to Alaskans and those in other coal-bearing states. A recent victory in Chickaloon should not [...]

By Rep. Les Gara I’m not a big fan of failure, and not a big fan of spending money on wasted Special Sessions. I’ve now voted three times, including yesterday, to pass the Coastal Zone Management bill that passed the Bi-Partisan Senate Monday, but surprisingly failed by three votes in the House yesterday. Failure to [...]

  Alaskans have a (how shall I put this) prickly relationship with the EPA for the most part. You can live most anywhere in the lower 48, and chances are you’ve never had to personally interact with the EPA and don’t know anyone who has. You live in your house, you do your thing, and [...]

We here at Mudflats have great respect for the writers at the wonderful blog “Anonymous Bloggers,” who live and work in Rural Alaska and other locations outside of “Los Anchorage.” I am especially excited when they pool their experience and write a post on one of the most confusing aspects of Alaska life — fishing [...]

By Shannyn Moore I was 8 years old and Frank McMichael was the most curmudgeonly man I’d ever met. He was the first person I’d heard cuss. Oscar the Grouch had Frank McMichael eyebrows. Frank carried a .44 revolver. Instead of a mattress, he slept on stacks of cardboard. At the time, my family was [...]

~Thick and fast they came at last, and more, and more, and more! Grab your metaphorical cocktail sauce and belly up to the oyster bar for some tasty news nuggets from Alaska and beyond… Bigfoot Goes to Ketchikan? Stop the presses! Mysterious shaggy grey ape-like creature almost clearly spotted through foliage and almost conclusively captured [...]

By Hal Shepherd, Acting Executive Director, Kachemak Bay Conservation Society Homer, Alaska The BP Oil Disaster in the Gulf of Mexico last year should serve as a stark reminder to Alaskans just how vulnerable our fisheries and the families they support are to spilled oil.  Alaska is no stranger to such events. Cook Inlet, which [...]

I’ve been looking for a good time to post this and since I’m in the middle of a deluge (as are my cohorts the week before the Municipal election and three weeks before the end of the AK Legislative Session) this seems perfect. You’ll remember Palin’s disasterous attempts at shooting a caribou in December on [...]

I am lucky to know Dr. Carol Ann Woody. Her background in over the past 20 years in Alaskan fisheries and wildlife are a gift. The fear of Pebble Mine is more than paranoia.  Her science proves our struggle is a righteous one.  Her website is www.fish4thefuture.com. To sign up for more news on Pebble, visit Trout Unlimited’s Alaska Page.  Thanks [...]

In January, you may recall I hopped on the “Magic Bus” and went to Kenai with a group of concerned citizens from Anchorage. We were headed there despite a blizzard warning, because there was something that we were worried about more than being stuck in a snowstorm in the Magic Bus on the side of [...]