When I first wrote about my support for our country’s actions in Iran, it was mid to late February. A la my “cancel culture series,” I was following through on the promise I made to my fellow Islanders back in January. Each month, I would explore harms caused by cancel culture and share my thoughts…
Island Voices, Poetry
Vashon Island Used to Be
By March TwisdaleVashon Island used to be,a land for you and me.Then Cancel Culture came,and we were wiped away.What’s a girl to do,who’s been raised Red, White & Blue?Speak up, express, explain:“A free thinker I remain, no matter what you do.”For all who were, who are, and those yet to be.I will not drop our…
February 2026, Island Voices
I Love Strong Borders
By March Twisdale I recently got a new job. During the hiring process, I filled out government forms warning me of severe consequences should I answer the questions dishonestly. Falsifying my identity is (and should be) a serious crime. Even my new boss could get in trouble! As I signed my name, feeling the weight…
Island Voices, January 2026
Kick the “Cancel Culture” Habit With Me, in 2026
By March Twisdale Recently, I attended the first inaugural meeting of Freedom Sisters, hosted by Harborview Fellowship Church in Gig Harbor. Women living in Western Washington gathered on a cold, rainy night in early December to discuss how best to recover and move on from our region’s epidemic of cancel culture, virtue signaling, and skyrocketing…
December 2025, Island Voices
A Community Requires People We Don’t Agree With
By March Twisdale Recently, I wrote an article for The Vashon Loop. A local business owner read the article, or a portion of it, and told a customer of his that he was (1) offended by the article and (2) would no longer offer The Vashon Loop on his countertop to customers. That customer also…
Island Voices, November 2025
Do We Have an Obligation to Think Twice Before Hitting Send?
By March Twisdale Yes. Yes, we do. Remember that game you played in early elementary school? It’s been called various things. My generation called it “Telephone.” Put 20 kids in a circle, have them whisper a short phrase in their neighbor’s ear, and by the 20th person, the message inevitably changes. The moral of the…
Island Voices, October 2025
Charlie Kirk Spoke for the Voiceless. Now, We Speak for Charlie.
By March Twisdale Over the past few weeks, we have witnessed the perfect proof that social media can churn up a hurricane of inaccurate memes, cherry-picked quotes, and other sloppily shared content that utterly misconstrues the true breadth and width of a person’s very public and very well documented life. As the world responded to…
August 2025, Island Resilience
Navigating the “Cash vs. Plastic” Landscape Gracefully
By March Twisdale Throughout most of 2023, I wrote about the ubiquitous “transaction fees” that have quietly infiltrated our modern lives. I refer to them as “Bank Taxes” because they occur with all debit and credit card transactions, skimming money off the top of communities with every purchase. These are an unavoidable burden placed on…
April 2025, Island Voices
Domesticated Animals Have Value, Too
By March Twisdale For eons, there were no coyotes on Vashon Island. For 10,000 years (or longer), human beings have lived in and around the Puget Sound, along with wolves and bears and cougars and many other animals native to this region. But not coyotes. We humans are native to this land. And, like all…
Island Voices, March 2025
The Curation of an Opinion
Our skills at onboarding and offboarding information determine the quality of our opinions By March Twisdale Hundreds of books are written, lectures are given, and manuals are printed every year, educating businesses on “How to Onboard and Offboard Employees.” This is because bringing in new individuals, and shedding those who are problematic or no longer…