Congratulations go out to Chuck Wieland for his recent letter conveying his thoughts on the state of the economy in the good old USA. There are a few things that I do agree with him on. One is the fact that the extension of the 2017 tax cuts do help the rich, however he did fail to mention that the tax cuts helped a huge majority of the taxpayers and they definitely helped the middle class. Perhaps the ones it didn’t help are the nearly 40 percent of the people who pay little

As too many Americans wonder how they can pay their monthly bills AND buy Christmas presents, let’s peek at economic affordability. It was a DAY ONE important issue in last year’s election. The president has put coal in our stockings. He cut taxes for the rich at the expense of the middle class and the poor and imposed tariffs that raised prices for American consumers. He grades himself on the economy as A+++++. But now, as most Americans disagree with him, he calls affordabi

So, it seems the U.S. Treasury has finally done it. They have decided to stop making the penny. I am curious to know what this transition will do for those of us who like to pay cash for things. Will we get the correct change back? Will they round up or will they round down? Who will get the benefit of the rounding, the customer or the store? These are all important questions.  The news about the penny made me think about how valuable a penny can be. I remember a time, early

With the possibility of a growing operating deficit, Madera County Supervisors still found much to celebrate before addressing the pressing deficit issue by taking further steps to reduce the operational cost gap. Proclamations were given recognizing the retirement of two fire captains after decades of service, along with the crucial ambulatory services provided by the Pistoresi family for nearly a decade, and a week was dedicated to the clerks of the county board of supervis

Wendy Alexander/The Madera Tribune Peter Gallegos from the City of Madera Wastewater Treatment Plant talks about upgrades currently in progress at the facility. Construction is underway on a $10.3 million upgrade to Madera’s Wastewater Treatment Plant, a project described as one of the most significant public works investments in recent years. The plant, located on Avenue 13 and Road 211/2, treats millions of gallons of wastewater each day and serves every home and business i

Our national government and corporate titans rob the poor to feed the rich. We vote for politicians who fail us. Working-class Americans feel left behind.  We struggle to recover from a worldwide pandemic that killed hundreds of thousands of Americans, shuttered small businesses, and divided communities with anger and distrust. Small men threaten war. Gun violence headlines our newspapers. Racism infects hearts and minds. Snake oil salesmen take advantage of religious believe

The government shutdown will start to have a direct impact on Madera County families who receive CalFresh benefits. CalFresh is a federally funded program, also known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. The November CalFresh benefits distributed monthly to 16,621 households or 33,832 people in Madera County will be delayed. It’s unclear how soon the benefits will be restored to EBT cards once the government reopens. CalFresh benefits are issued through

In a 2016 issue of Forbes magazine, Helen H. Wang wrote, “The new Silk Roads already have momentum.Earlier last year, Beijing announced...