Columnists

The following is the text of the author’s remarks during the commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Saipan at American Memorial Park on June 15, 2024. FIRST, of course, my congratulations to the Honorable Mayor of Saipan, RB Camacho, along with my Chamolinian brother Gordon Marciano…

BC Cook “IT was not much of a living, but taking money from people just so they could look at my tattoos seemed like an easy way to get by.  But the markings were nothing compared to the story of how I got them.  Have you ever heard of Pohnpei?” Whatever we say about the life of James O’Connell, we…

Jim Rayphand TODAY’S article is likely not for everyone and could be offensive to some, so read at your own risk.  I don’t know how many of you have ever been fat before?  And whether you have or have not, you still may not want to hear what I have to say about it here.  The simple truth is that be…

IN 2019, prior to the pandemic, 487,008 tourists visited the CNMI. The average HANMI hotel occupancy rate was 80.43%. Of these tourists, 249,211 were Koreans, 185,526 were Chinese and 17,121 were Japanese. (Japan ceased to be the CNMI’s primary tourism market in 2014. China was the top market in 20…

Ambrose M. Bennett THE TRUTH of the matter is each time WE (opponents of the GOP) try to take one step forward there are those who try to make us take two steps backwards. My online critics (elkapitan, JusticeFighter7, and Saipan Man) who think they know-it-all are clearly “backward thinkers” focus…

Ambrose M. Bennett THE TRUTH of the matter is the perception of the Governor’s statement to “pivot away from China” seems to have been totally misinterpreted, as it’s just a poli-trick! The assertion that the Governor and those who appreciate his pivot of dedicating our resources away from China ar…

Glen Hunter I HAVE seen a few reactions to my previous opinion piece. I must address the misinformation in some of them and clarify my stance on tourism and economic diversification in the CNMI. Since the Governor took office in 2023, he has not enacted any laws or regulations that prevent tourists…

GOVERNOR Palacios and his advisors are currently conducting a fire sale of the CNMI Commonwealth to the United States military. His policies and actions depend on a strategy that relies on growing Chinese-American conflict. With no short-term economic plan, this Administration’s bet is to reduce th…

BC Cook FOUR score years ago, our forefathers stormed the beaches of a continent in a great invasion of a not-so-distant war and rescued an idea, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all mankind is created equal. Now the world is engaged in a great time of troubles, stained w…

Ambrose M. Bennett THE TRUTH of the matter is Rep. Ed Propst is SOOOO RIGHT, “what took so long for the Casino Commission (CC) to act.”  Thanks & KUDOS Rep. Props on behalf of the many People who truly “appreciate ALL you’re doing and what you have done,” as WE say in Mass. I have been yelling …