Serving O'Brien & Clay Counties
Serving O'Brien & Clay Counties
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To the editor: I have always heard we are “Iowa Nice!” But if that is true, how can we support Mr. Trump and his MAGA Republicans? Trump’s behavior of lying, cheating, calling people names and threatening them is not an example of “Iowa Nice.” Trump’s rhetoric has encouraged violence, which we are seeing play out as judges, court employees and political opponents are receiving death threats. And increasingly his rhetoric has taken on a tone of Hitler and Mussolini. It has been reported that in private conversations there are Republicans...
Shopping has become an exercise in convenience over the last two decades. Everything we could ever need or want is a simple click away on the internet, and you don’t even have to leave your house to shop for the holidays. Sure, it’s nice to avoid crowds, but online shopping leaves a gaping hole in communities like ours whose backbone is comprised of hard-working small business owners trying to make their hometowns thrive. The reasons for keeping your money local are many, but sometimes easy to forget when advertisements from big box stores flo...
‘Tis the season to be busy. It feels like I’m constantly doing something, yet accomplishing nothing – more so than usual. I still haven’t put Christmas lights up outside. I’m in a bit of a cold war about it with my wife, who has asked me to scale a ladder and get them hung several times. I’ve said no at each instance, which has forced her to threaten to do it herself. I tell her no way, and then we grumble back and forth before returning to whatever we were doing before the squabble. I’m hoping she’ll just give up since Christmas is a...
A few months ago, I bumped into a former aide to Gov. Robert Ray. As we reminisced about the governor, our conversation turned to his nearly daily meetings with journalists. The aide said yes, those press conferences provided reporters with access to the governor and his comments on issues the state was handling and hearing about from Iowans. But Ray believed the daily press gatherings had another important benefit, too: Ray could do his job more effectively by listening to the journalists’ q...
Agriculture is the economic engine of Iowa, the livelihood of farmers and their families, and the lifeblood of our rural communities across the 4th Congressional District. Our producers work long hours in all types of weather conditions to grow the food and produce the fuel that our country and the world depend on. Their hard work is the reason that Iowa remains the breadbasket to the world and that our district in particular leads the nation in corn, pork, egg and biofuel production. However,...
Revenue to the State of Iowa from legalized gambling is taking divergent paths in the new fiscal year. While casino gaming receipts are falling, sports wagering continues to grow. In October, the state collected $26,741,690 in casino gaming taxes. This is a reduction of $2.3 million from what the state collected in October 2022, when casino gaming tax revenue came in at $29,025.047. For the first four months of Fiscal Year 2024, the state has received $105.2 million in casino gaming taxes. This...
We added a new member to the family on Tuesday night. Puppy Tucker, a Border Collie mix, was picked up from People for Pets in Spencer. He was found abandoned near Primghar recently and was brought to the shelter for adoption. He’s a friendly pup. German Shepherd, Bo, gave him a warm welcome upon his arrival home. Our hope is that the ol’ girl will be able to share some of her “good dog demeanor” with Tucker. Time will tell – Kaity claims she’s always wanted to be a mom. Cat Phyllis wasn’t impressed, however. Tucker had a feline friend at the...
How well I remember the time Santa came into my house in the middle of the night on Christmas Eve. I saw him! Yes, I did! We were living on the ranch in Montana in a little white house across the yard from my uncle’s log house. I was about 4 years old. My little brother, Jerry, and I slept on the couch in the living room. I can still hear my mother working in the kitchen that night doing some baking for Christmas dinner. Soon, the house was quiet and we finally fell asleep. We didn’t have a fir...
“’Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.’ So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: ‘Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,’ which is translated, ‘God with us.’ ” (Matthew 1:20-2...
Glenda Swanson was born in Hartley on July 18, 1942. Her sister, Sandra, was born in 1940 to parents Adolph and Ella Swanson. The Swansons married in 1936. Adolph owned a gas station in Everly along Ocheyedan Street. In 1945 they moved to a farm a few miles north of Everly. Glenda graduated from Everly High School in 1960. She was a member of the high school basketball team. She married Jon Roberts, of Estherville, in 1961. They moved to Omaha, Neb., where Jon joined the police department. Glenda was a secretary at Mutual of Omaha for many...
I’ve felt a bit stupid this week speaking with advertisers about the upcoming winter sports tab. After wrapping up the conversation with more than a few of them, I’ve ended with, “Have a Merry Thankgiving!” It seems rather apt that my brain is already on Christmas despite it being Thanksgiving. Like the rest of the year, this fall has simply flown right by. I think the recent stretch of great weather helped trick my brain, but nonetheless, we’re a month away from Christmas. I’m already putting off buying gifts. **** Last weekend I headed down...
Turkey Day 2023 is upon us once again – a time when family and friends come together to give thanks for the many blessings we’ve been afforded over the past year. While there are many things to complain about these days, there are far more important things to be grateful about. We can be thankful for community. Our neighbors are there for us through thick and thin, whether we realize it or not. Oftentimes, the strength of communities like ours is only fully realized in times of tragedy or great concern – mealtrains are organized when someone su...
My good friend, Brenden, is an avid cyclist. He races bikes professionally all over the country and has done so for the better part of the last decade. He’s good at pushing pedals. All that success comes from extensive training, both indoors and outdoors. When the ground isn’t covered in snow, he spends countless hours each year traversing highways and byways here in the Hawkeye State to build his strength and stamina. I’ve always said his affection for cycling will kill him. Not from over exhaustion or a bad crash, but from some stupid drive...
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds turned heads this month when she endorsed Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis in the 2024 Iowa GOP Caucus. The Florida governor is currently sitting in second place (depending where you look) in polls, trailing significantly behind former President Donald Trump. You can debate the significance of endorsements, but Reynolds' decision is certainly impactful – if not immediately, historically. Caucus endorsements from Iowa governors for presidential candidates o...
It is said that you are as young as you feel. I have yet another birthday coming in a couple months, and I don’t feel young at all. As a matter of fact, if someone were to sneak another 20 candles on my cake, I probably wouldn’t know the difference. Oh, who am I kidding, they don’t bake cakes big enough to hold that many candles! Recently I spent a couple of days pheasant hunting with a group of guys that come to our area from Ohio every year. A couple guys in our area organize the weekl...
To the editor: Landowners targeted for eminent domain by Summit Carbon Solutions won several substantial victories in recent weeks, but the fight is far from over. Our celebratory high-fives must wait. Summit is wounded but remains a very real threat to the private property rights of thousands across Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota. Three companies have proposed CO2 pipelines in Iowa: Summit, Navigator and Wolf. Navigator cancelled its project last month after permits were denied in South Dakota and Illinois following...
A memorial service for Donna F. Thorn was held Monday, Nov. 13, 2023 at the United Methodist Church in Sutherland. Pastor David Morris officiated. Honorary pallbearers were Evan and Rachel Thorn, Erica and Dillan Anderson, Easton Thorn, Justin Thorn, Braeden Thorn, Matthew Hines, Nathan Hines, Trevor Thorn and Tia Thorn. Interment was in Waterman Township Cemetery at Sutherland. Hartley Funeral Home assisted with the arrangements. Donna Faye Thorn, third child of Leo Earl and Marguerite F. “Faye” (Meehlhause) Groen, was born July 11, 1948 in...
To the editor: I can attest to the urgent need for a safe crossing for our children at the elementary school. Last Monday, I was picking up my grandchildren at the elementary school. As I turned into the drive, I was horrified as I watched a young girl trying to cross Highway 18. She would take a step forward to make a mad dash, then change her mind and step back as cars and semis whizzed by. She did this more than once, and I hoped I wasn’t going to see a child die today! I was relieved to see her finally make it across. I also saw children w...
Their sacrifice cannot be ignored Saturday marks our annual celebration of the men and women who so selflessly served the country as members of the United States Armed Forces. Veterans Day is an important holiday, and one that every freedom-loving American should acknowledge. Sometimes it’s easy to ignore occasions like this one. People are busy, work is hectic and there’s just simply too much else going on. However, all of those excuses seem futile when you really stop and think about it. Our veterans gave us a commitment that’s almost impos...
Iowa was recently involved in several lawsuits against pharmaceutical drug companies, drug distributor firms and giant pharmacy companies regarding opioids. Over time, these suits generated a number of separate settlements with states and local governments to address the impacts of opioid abuse in the United States. This approach was modeled after the actions of the mid-1990s when states banded together and sued tobacco companies for the costs of smoking-related illnesses. However, there are...
To the editor: This letter is to catch the ears of the Hartley City Council members and those citizens of Hartley who have requested from the Hartley Rec Trail Committee a safe crossing across Highway 18. Our committee has until June 30, 2024 to finish work on a crossing across Highway 18 or we will lose the $20,000 grant that we were awarded by the Rural Community Revitalization Program. Our committee has worked tirelessly to get a crossing approved by both the city council and either the H-M-S School Board or local land owners, to benefit...
"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2Timothy 3:16-17) October is a time of when farmers are harvesting their crops, kids are at school and many people are preparing for the holidays, including the birth of Jesus Christ. However, there is one other event in history that took place that is rarely celebrated. On...
On Friday, Oct. 6, the world watched in horror as Hamas terrorists launched an all-out assault on Israel. Terrorists parachuted into a music festival killing hundreds of innocent people, broke into homes murdering entire families, and in one of the most gruesome displays of evil, murdered innocent babies. The details are sickening, but we cannot turn a blind eye to the atrocities that Hamas has committed and continues to inflict on the innocent people of Israel. The truth must be widely known....
In a time of intense division in Washington, one thing Republicans and Democrats still agree on is that no child should ever go to bed on an empty stomach. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as food stamps, helps ensure that does not happen. But, with rising prices hitting hard and tens of thousands of families across the country waiting in a backlog to be approved for aid, some administrators of the program are jumping the line to snatch up the SNAP dollars, either...
There are moments in my life that stay with me for no apparent reason. Some are national events that everyone seems to know about, and some are personal events no one knows about. There are also moments I can’t remember, but others won’t let me forget. I have been around for several decades of our nation’s history, and probably the first big news story I remember was the Russian launch of Sputnik. There was a lot of talk about a Cold War and a space race, but as a young boy, I didn’t underst...
