Community

To the editor:The original idea behind biofuels was good: to create a farmer-owned industry to produce home-grown fuels ? preferably for on-farm use -- with the expectation that over time feedstocks would transition from erosive and nutrient-leaky row crops (corn and soybeans) to more sustainable perennial cropping systems. That didn?t happen.The ethanol industry was mostly taken over by large corporations, and ...

Mason City Globe Gazette, Jan. 23.Legislation aiding veterans belongs on fast track Gov. Terry Branstad says he wants to make this legislative session a landmark one for the state?s veterans. We support that support for those who have served and are glad that legislation to aid them appears on a fast track.Legislation to exempt military pensions from state income tax is moving quickly through the Senate, ...

To the editor:It?s a mistake, to me, for Fairfield Parks and Recreation to turn an excellent recreational facility, the racquetball courts, into ? a lobby.Those courts were actually very busy when they were built ? tournaments included.I think the problem was the past administration?s mentality that said, ?Here?s a money-maker. Let?s raise the price like that other town did.?Thus, when the cost soared to $10 ...

To the editor:Benjamin Franklin had a low opinion of people pretending to be lovers of liberty and freedom while they begrudged paying for the defense of it.Shame on you, Washington D.C., as some of you have recently been guilty of holding hostage America?s veterans and the men and women of an all volunteer military that have taken the oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States from ...

To the editor:October is National Principals Month, and Gov. Terry Branstad has also issued a proclamation honoring elementary, middle and high school principals and recognizing their importance in ensuring that every child has access to a high-quality education.I want to capitalize on this occasion to thank the principals of the Fairfield Community School District for their commitment to the students and staff ...

Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Oct. 6The circus comes to the Capitol It?s like the big-top circus came to town in national news last week.The federal government shutdown played the role of the lion show, with the nation?s eyes glued to the center stage, glancing briefly at the clowns while paying rapt attention to see who would flinch first inside the cage.However, high above and drawing less attention, the ...

Quad-City Times, Sept. 27?No Child? continues its miserable failure Education is evolving at lightning speed. High school students are earning college credits before their graduation. Students are blogging homework assignments so their work can be evaluated by peers as well as teachers.Many school districts are putting laptops and tablets in the hands of every student, allowing access to online instruction, ...

My oldest daughter, Addi, is just beginning her second year of a two-year radiology technician program. Wanting to make herself marketable, she?s also taking EMT training two nights a week. What does this mean for my husband and me, or Pop and Mia, as we are now called? More time with our grandson, Garett.I have not yet accepted the impossibility that four of our six children have graduated from high school. As ...

To the editor:On May 13, American Legion Post #47 Commander Jim Kennedy and I, Department of Iowa Vice Chairman, addressed your city council. We are encouraging community support for a public awareness effort so that we can continue to do the great things that we, as a patriotic community, may have taken for granted.While being a member of the local American Legion Post #47 is beneficial to the military ...

In my 15 years experience as a newspaper reporter, Tyler Webster?s murder trial earlier this month in Jefferson County was the first of any type of trial I have covered for an assignment.At my previous newspaper, the Daily Gate City in Keokuk, (1997-2010) another reporter covered the police beat and courthouse. I sat in with her one afternoon during a murder-by-arson trial and another time in a sex abuse trial ...

To the editor:Many former ?Parsonites? will be gathering at the civic center to be a part of the dedication of the beautiful windows that had been loved so many years ago in Barhydt Chapel.I well remember the evening we were all gathered at the Barhydt Chapel. It was people who came from near and far, who had close attachments to Parsons. There were many tears.The vice president of the ?new? owners of the ...

To the editor:I?ve been reading about ?Future of the former Nelson Nursing Home? debated and a few things come to mind.Through the ages it seems like some things are OK, just not in my neighborhood! Long time ago it was people of a different color and recently a dog park and the list goes on.This I don?t know for a fact, but I heard some of the neighbors at the time did not want Nelson Nursing Home there, ...