By Curmudgeon
For all that the Standard-Examiner often falls short of the standard some of us, myself included, would like to see it meet, it is also true I think that most of the grousing has to do with the SE's coverage of Ogden and Weber County political matters, and in particular, its coverage of Ogden's municipal government. Being your basic policy-&-politics wonk, I understand [and often share] the frustration in re: the SE's local political coverage.
However, the paper covers a great deal more than just local politics, and this morning's front page is a good example of why it's well worth subscribing still. There are three main stories, all local, all important, all well worth reading. The first, "Drug Database Use Up" by Jesse Fruhwirth, reports on increasing use of a state-run drug prescription database to limit "doctor shopping" by drug abusers.
The second story , by Loretta Park, headlined "1 in 30 Students Homeless", talks about the [for me] shocking number of school children in N. Utah who are homeless, and the consequences of that for their education and health. The story says that in any given N. Utah classroom, one child doesn't know where he or she is going to sleep that night with any certainty. One in every classroom. The story focuses on overwhelmingly Republican Davis County. This in particular caught my eye:
Davis County, in general, has a difficult time admitting there are adults, let alone children, who are homeless, McKinnon said. "Davis County's dirty, little secret is sending their homeless to Salt Lake or Ogden," he said. "Cities in Davis County believe something should be done and somebody ought to do it, just not our city. People seem to think the homeless arrive from out of town. "They are our children and our neighbor's children. They live here because this is their home."Finally, also on the front page, Charles Trentelman [who covers water issues for the SE], reports on March being a disastrous water-month for the Top of Utah, and on resulting significantly reduced estimates of the spring runoff. Much in it worth reading, knowing about, thinking about.
And inside, a story about how mandatory fees are hiking the cost of attending public high schools in Ogden and in Weber County.
The news is not all about the Mayor and Council, not even in Ogden. And however annoyed I may get about how the SE handles a particular story [or more to the point, doesn't] about Ogden's municipal government, the paper still reports, regularly and often well, much worth knowing about the Top of Utah in general, and about Weber County and Ogden in particular. Today's issue is a good example. Well worth the subscription price, warts and all.
