Andy Hallman

Radon gas is the leading cause of lung cancer for non-smokers. That is one reason the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has declared that next week is ?National Radon Awareness Week.? The EPA estimates that radon claimed the lives of 20,000 Americans in 2009 via lung cancer. Of these, about 2,900 were people who had never smoked.    Radon is a naturally occurring gas that is both colorless and odorless. It is

Members of the Armed Forces whose service was extended may be eligible to claim additional payments for extended time. Servicemen whose retirement was suspended and whose tours were prolonged between Sept. 11, 2001, and Sept. 30, 2009 are entitled to receive $500 for each month they were extended. Eligible recipients have until Dec. 3 to apply for those benefits.    The program is known as Retroactive Stop Loss

Laurie Roberts of rural Ainsworth has taken up a rather demanding hobby this year: caring for 38 chickens. Not only must Roberts care for the chickens, she must take pains to ensure they are fed a proper diet. Roberts raises the chickens according to cage-free and organic guidelines. That means the chickens are not given antibiotics and are fed a vegetarian diet. The feed comes from farms that are certified organic,

As you know, every even-numbered year is an election year at the state and national level. We are now in the thick of the political season, with the election less than one month away. Chet Culver and Terry Branstad debated one another last month, and candidates in other races have challenged their opponents to do likewise. I like the fact that politicians are willing to debate each other. However, an oral debate is

The Mills Seed Building on North Iowa Avenue was a topic of discussion at Wednesday night?s Washington City Council meeting. Councilor Mike Roth said he is disappointed in the progress the owner, Jeremy Patterson, has made in rehabilitating the building.    At a council meeting two months ago, Roth asked city staff to inspect the Mills building to see if it was a dangerous building and a fire hazard. City staff

Birds in southeast Iowa have never been fed in such style. Thanks to Mike Shannan of rural Washington, the birds that flock to his house eat from feeders of all different colors, shapes and sizes. Shannan has made bird feeders in his house for the last couple of months, and now sells them to other bird lovers.    Shannan?s feeders are composed of three main parts: a silver tray on the bottom with holes cut out for

Since the state of Iowa was admitted to the union in 1846, it has had 69 governors. Of those, only James Grimes of the Whig Party ? elected in 1854 ? was not a member of today?s two major political parties. The Libertarian Party of Iowa has fielded candidates to state offices since 1971, and this year hopes its gubernatorial candidate Eric Cooper will join Grimes on the list of third-party victors.       Cooper was

The Riverside City Council debated the issue of nuisance ordinances at its meeting Monday night. Councilor Rodney Waldschmidt said he is uneasy about dictating to people what repairs to make on their private residences.    ?I have a problem telling someone what to do with their house,? he said.    City Administrator Tina Thomas informed the council that the current procedure for nuisance abatement is to send the

Francis Thicke wants to protect Iowa?s air and water while restoring competition to the state?s agricultural markets. Thicke is a Democrat who is running for Secretary of Agriculture, a position held by Republican Bill Northey since 2006.    Thicke and his wife Susan own and operate a grass-based, organic dairy near Fairfield. He has been a farmer for 27 years and has a Ph.D. in agronomy/soil fertility. He has been

Young kids in Washington will receive instruction in ?stop, drop and roll? in the coming days as part of National Fire Prevention Week. The Washington Fire Department will visit Stewart Elementary, Lincoln Elementary and St. James School to teach the students what they need to know about fire safety.    Washington Firefighter Randy Tisor said the students are broken down into groups that do different fire safety

The attorneys representing Washington County and the City of Riverside argued their case today at a hearing in the Washington County Courthouse. The county filed a declaratory judgment against the city, seeking the two payments of $175,000 that Riverside has refused to make. The city has argued that the agreement under which the city owes the county that money is not a legal agreement and is unenforceable.    In

Alliant Energy has asked the Iowa Utility Board for a 16 percent increase in electrical rates from 2009 levels for residential customers. Alliant presented its case to the board at an evidentiary hearing that spanned four days last week. The Office of Consumer Advocate opposed the rate increase, and presented its case at the hearing as well.    Alliant spokesman Ryan Stensland said his company called 12 witnesses to

Monty Python?s Flying Circus was a British comedy series of the early 1970s that is one of my favorite shows of all time. The series was clearly an influence on sketch comedy shows that came decades later such as HBO?s Mr. Show with Bob and David of the mid-1990s, another one of my favorites. Until recently, I hadn?t given much thought to the Pythons? influences. The absurdity of their skits was wholly a product of

Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks is in the running for Iowa?s Second Congressional District, which includes Washington County. The seat is held by Democrat Dave Loebsack, who is serving his second term in the U.S. House of Representatives. Miller-Meeks ran unsuccessfully against Loebsack two years ago.         Miller-Meeks was born and raised in a town in Texas of about 1,500 called LaCoste. She left high school

The Communications Commission took a step forward in the direction of finding a new home for the dispatch center at its joint meeting with the E911 Board in Riverside Monday. The commission voted to send out a request for proposal (RFP) to architectural firms that are interested in designing the new dispatch center. The board and commission are considering two options for the future center: moving it to the second