UAF seeks Denali road lottery tickets to introduce Alaska to new faculty
Published Wednesday, September 10, 2008
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Stumble It!Weather permitting, hundreds of motorists are expected to visit Denali National Park this weekend.
The 1,600 winners of the annual Denali National Park road lottery will be able to drive the park road on one of four days. The park allows up to 400 vehicles a day from Friday through Monday.
The National Park Service received about 8,000 applications for the lottery this year and the winners will pay a $25 permit fee, along with a $20 park entrance fee.
The entire park road will be open, if the weather allows.
There was no snow in the forecast as of Tuesday afternoon.
The lottery dates back to the early 1990s, instituted as a way of regulating traffic in the fall after the buses have stopped running.
Meanwhile, the University of Alaska Fairbanks is still asking if there are any lottery winners who don’t plan on using their tickets this weekend who would like to donate them.
Joy Morrison of UAF is trying to make the road trip available for new university staff and faculty members. She said among the 35 new staff members there are families who would like to make the trip if tickets can be found.
The permits are transferable. Call Morrison at 687-4493 if you have one you will not be using.
•••
PALIN VISIT: The buses for the rally at the airport to welcome Gov. Sarah Palin back to the state are scheduled to depart the Carlson Center starting at 4 p.m. The program for the event today will start at 5:30 p.m.
The rally is set for the Sadler Business Plaza and the Alaska Aerofuel facility on the airport grounds, which is on the south side of Airport Road near Pike’s Landing.
The shuttles will leave every 15 minutes, and a handicapped access bus will be available, the McCain-Palin campaign said.
•••
MESSAGE CONTROL: It’s one thing to show support for our governor in her bid for the vice presidency. It’s another thing for the Republican party to invite the public and then take extraordinary steps to control what messages might be communicated at this afternoon’s rally.
It was counterproductive, at best, for a party spokesman to proclaim “we’re encouraging you not to come” unless you support Palin for vice president.
Likewise, the decision to have all signs made Tuesday night on the premises and to ban people from showing up with their own signs was a move to allow the GOP to control the content of the messages contained on those signs.
This may be standard practice elsewhere, but there is no need for this heavy-handed approach in Alaska.
•••
NEEDS HOME: Tabitha Hughes, who is a student in the paramedic program, saw one of the dogs at the Farmers Loop transfer site near the university and took pity on it about a week ago.
Like the other animals running around there in recent weeks, it was emaciated.
She caught it in about a half hour, she said.
The dog weighed about 30 pounds and was friendly, but was in such bad shape she thought it would have to be euthanized. She took it to a vet for care.
The vet estimated that the dog is about 6 to 7 months old. It looks like a cross between a greyhound and a husky.
“It seems as if it was someone’s pet at one time,” Hughes said.
She said the dog has gained a couple of pounds already and is doing well. Hughes said she already has a dog, however, and wants to find a good home for this one.
If you are interested, call her at 942-3066.
Community Discussion
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Regarding the signs patrol at the Palin welcome home....
Come on Dermot. Have you been to an event outside of Fairbanks lately?
What you failed to mention is that in addition to asking people to leave their signs at home - they also requested that everything be left at home including water bottles. Security is an ISSUE even in Fairbanks! IN the lower 48 you can't get into sporting events with beverages (even water), umbrellas, knives, guns, and sometimes coats, and bags. That is right - with signs come more than benign messages - they often can hide other weapons besides good and bad words. People bring big signs, and signs on lollipop sticks or even yard signs on huge stakes. Danger buddy! Maybe you should protest those signs out on the highway in front of the Airforce base. "Don't take pictures" - how horrible for tourists. Why aren't you fighting for the right to take pictures of a military base? Because it doesn't make sense, just like your comment today.
Your arch enemy Sarah Palin is no longer a local face. She is famous around the world now! Can't you leave the Palin hatred out of your column?
Can we focus on something nice again?
What are they building next to Sunrise Bagels over on Airport and the Parks? There are two new buildings going up there.
The UAF staff get quite enough benifits from their emploment at public
expense, let them wait in line like the rest of us. They aren't special
just folks like the rest of us!
Seriously.
I don't like the sign thing. Why are people making signs if they can't bring them and wave them?
I don't get it.
I want to make my own sign today. It's a good one. But why; where are these signs going to be? Stuck in front of the building?
And I agree with Dermot about the message thing.
Sarah should just be Sarah, as she has always been to us. By being herself, she does fine.
Dermot Cole has always considered himself a journalist when in fact he is a columnist, loaded with his righteous views on issues of today. Much like his far-superior liberal colleagues at MSNBC, Cole believes he is a journalist because he belongs to media. I beg to differ. You don't become a journalist by acting like one, or even working beside them. His continued criticism of anything Palin borders on a new title, that of a left-wing propagandist who is obsessed with tweaking any story or news event to condemn her actions or intentions.
Dermot Cole's article does not merit a lofty reserved section the local section of the DNM. His colum should be reassigned to the Opinion page. His column is slanted and full of his own ideology. I concede that his column should continue, but only in the Opinion section.
Ive been here for many years and have never won the Denali lottery. UAF folks, especially newbies, should apply just like the rest of us!!!!! I would NEVER donate my tickets to them, Id rather throw them away!!!
This isn't the Governor’s Picnic. Now that she is a VP candidate a heightened amount of security is just a fact of life. I'll just choose not to use a sign (which are annoying and more for lame protestors anyway).
Those that want signs and can't carry them, go out and have a tee shirt made and wear em. Less weight to carry. Wait, you may be asked to remove them.....:)
Really? You would rather throw away your road lottery ticket than give it to someone (anyone)? What a selfish and pathetic excuse for an Alaskan you are.
Let them take the bus into the park. We can probably get Whitaker to have us Borough tax payers pay for it.
Better to give it to a charitable group, such as low income seniors, people who are disabled, wounded war soldiers at Wainwright etc. New faculty members should have the income to afford their own trip in their own vehicle. For new faculty members reading this, you have just discovered the type of university you have chosen to work at.
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There were no 'slams' in that article. But what I do see is overwhelming sexism (ok so maybe it's mixed with self-serving Alaska pride in some cases) in the form of Palin supporters on this site insisting that they must protect the governor from any questioning and that any questioning whatsoever must inherently be a slam. She is running for national office. Everyone running for office goes through the same thing. People have legitimate questions; the McCain campaign is acting like she is a prop by saying they will "give access to her if and when they want to." They slightly retreated once it became clear that wasn't going to fly. But the question is: who is running this campaign McCain? Palin? or the lobbyists-turned-advisers?
"This may be standard practice elsewhere, but there is no need for this heavy-handed approach in Alaska."
Come on now, surely you've seen the goofballs at University and Geist? Do you really want the goofballs to be what the cameras from the outside see as "Fairbanks"?
And why should anybody expect the "right" to bring their own signs onto private property? Hosts aren't obligated to invite party poopers.
tok242, is that sort of like the Obama/Biden campaigns refusal to answer questions about Obama's association with Ayers and Davis, or his time spent as a "community organizer" working for ACORN?
tok, i think the point being made, and rightly so is that cole needs to be moved to the editorial page. If you are unaware he is in the printed version of the paper on the front page of the local section, where he sometimes excels with news of bake sales and other charity events. His political opinions do need to be moved elsewhere.
I agree -
From the slant of his columns of late - time for a new page for Dermot!
The 'Local' Section is no place for his 'opinions' - hence...the Opinion Page....
How about it Dermot - ask the paper to move you if you are now an opinion writer
Has anyone noticed that Dermot's picture is the only picture of a News-Miner employee featured on the front page of the on-line DNM? Why is this? Also, Dermot's picture is placed above and to the right of Sarah Palins' own picture. Was there any discussion to this placement? Hmmmm.....
In drilling down to find the other columnists, one has to dig down to locate even their writings. Funny thing that those DNM columnists who are featured with a picture in the hardcopy paper, are not shown with their writings on-line. Hmmmm.....
I have noticed that my favorite DNM interest columnists haven't strayed from their focus to include anything on Palin. Why is that? It would certainly be a stretch for Linden Stacokias (Gardening columnt) to include much on Palin, but Dermot is stretching too! I don't think it would be a big stretch for our Bush writer Julie Collins to write on Palin. After all, she is an Alaskan Woman, as is Linden. So maybe they should both write about Sarah next week.
Oh - here is an update, Scott McCrea, a local freelance writer, with a weekly DNM column came the closest to discussing politics, with his recent piece, "Scott McCrea, next President...." His piece was light and fun with a few jabs, but more of a "general interest" political piece than what Dermot can't seem to achieve. Maybe the answer is to move let McCrea focus his happy go-lucky self as the neutral political columnist at the DNM?
Actually, I think the one who has the most in common with the Palins is actually Tim Mowry (Oudoors column). How ironic is it that a search of "Mowry and Palin" along with one of "Mowry and Obama" results in nothing. Why should Dermot continue to write and bash Governor Palin, if Tim Mowry continues to abstain from the fray?!
Maybe the University should have thought about that before they built that $40m museum and didn't even lay new carpet in the part that hints at the outdoors. Maybe the University should have thought about installing a virtual simulator - ride to Denali instead of putting in the "quiet room" or the ample seating upstairs - four chairs and a tv! Some say, "If you build it, they will come." My addition to that would be... .If you don't set the chairs out, they might not stay long.
I now see who the UAF really bestows its hospitality on... not the students, not the community! Nope they want to steal from the poor and give to the rich!
I'm sure glad we got to here about their plight today! What about those old ladies in town that need some woodchopped to keep warm this winter. Why does UAF's poor plight for lottery tickets take priority?
A blog mostly of frustrated writers who wish THEY had columns in the DNM! This cracks me up. Can't (most of) you people think of something constructive to write about? Try to put Dermot's column in perspective. He raises interesting points, sometimes with opinion, sometimes with just enough information to make you THINK -- an uncommon quality judging from the responses in this blog.
Why not make a useful original contribution to the community dialog instead of going on the attack? Dermot's column challenges convention on smaller issues without being preachy. It supports community groups without whining -- like looking for homes for abandoned pets, raising awareness about the reckless distribution of roadside signs, questioning that cell tower in the cemetery, and park passes for new UAF faculty. I have worked as a trained journalist and an editor. His column is well placed where it is. By the way, subject matter in a community column like this often come from people WHO BOTHER TO CALL AND ASK!
I have found that, when necessary, this column asks important rhetorical questions. The anger found here seems to spring from people who find Dermot's inquiries too challenging to mesh with their heavy-handed, single-minded, lopsided perspectives which seemingly do not allow for complex thought and alternate ideas. When he devotes an entire column to larger issues like the PFD, a candidate's qualifications, or pork barrel spending, his writing is well-researched and well written -- apparently to the consternation of folks who can't stand the challenge.
Incidentally, the DNM should not be your only source of information. Here's an idea. Try doing something unusual: Get out more, read more, think more.
After last nights great rally, 1000's for Palin--10's against Palin, I realized Fairbanks is better than it's newspaper. No more comments from me.
Dermot, Please stop begging for the UAF newcomers! Let them wait in line like the rest of us.Let's just wait and see which of them are here next spring!
Careful posters - don't appear to attack Dermot or your post will be removed like mine in the Georgia article - "baseless personal attacks on any other user, public officials or employees of the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, or otherwise threatening, or baiting someone into such comments" will be removed.
Regarding Message Control - so if you hate a movie, will you go anyway and talk through the whole thing making it unbearable for other movie goers who really enjoy it (ie, Hell Boy2, etc.)? No.
Will people go eat somewhere they hate and yell at the cook and owner while others are enjoying their overpriced halibut? No.
Unless you are rude SOB.
Private property owners make their own rules; thank you Alaska Aero Fuel for the opportunity to watch a little history.
I agree, this staff's column should be moved to the Opinion page.
But will Cole appear? That is the question. He has yet to appear for any responses. And I would love to hear his application to the editorial page, he needs off the local.