Opinion

Is it December already? The last month of the year really snuck up on me. With Christmas, or at least the Christmas rush, happening earlier every year, it is no longer a good gauge for when the year is winding down.This year, I actually selected nominees for the top 10 stories of the year relatively early. Finishing last week, the ballot is now running in the paper. With the year seeming to have gone by so fast, ...

I?ve never been much of a one for decorating my yard and front of the house with Christmas lights. Not that I have anything against them, and I certainly do my share of driving around to look at Christmas lights, it?s just that I?m lazy. Putting up outdoor Christmas lights is a lot of work. They?re only up for a short time, and you have to go out in the biting January wind (when I?d rather be watching football) ...

May is here, which means it?s time for my annual ?Woe is me. I?m a Chicago Cubs fan? column.Only, that?s not where I?m taking it this year. I figure the Cubs have been beaten up enough already ? by other teams, media men and online commenters, alike. They don?t need a schmuck like me jumping on the pile.Well, maybe one joke to appease you Cardinals fans.Have you heard the one about the lady who left her kids ...

To the editor:Give me a break! Now the City Council wants to charge a $40 fee to the volunteers who provide refreshments for the people attending the summer Municipal Band concerts. There are six concerts in the season; do you really think the Ladies Circle will make anything selling root beer floats after paying $240 in fees? How about the group that sells homemade ice cream and cookies ? will they see a ...

To the editor:The Jefferson County Sheriff?s Office and Sheriff Jerry Droz done a great service to our community by taking the old prescription drugs in Sat., April 28.People who had old drugs didn?t have a place to get rid of them in a proper way before.As a paramedic my thanks to you. ? Butch McKay, Hedrick

November 26, 2012Richmond, Iowa To the Editor:If anyone needs to find evidence as to why the Republicans got beat badly in the Nov. 6 general election, they need to look no further than Cynthia Anderson?s vicious, mean-spirited letter to the editor in the Nov. 20 Evening Journal, aimed at President and Mrs. Obama.As a proud Democrat my inclination is to encourage people of Mrs. Anderson?s ilk to continue to ...

I?m sitting at my computer wishing that I could find a column topic so compelling and so easy to write that I wouldn?t have to work hard at writing it.That?s happened but it?s about as often as a blue moon.It would be kind of like thawing out the turkey and wanting it cooked to perfection without spending a few hours in the oven.It would be a lot like wanting to make Mom?s apple pie without peeling and coring ...

November is a special month for me. It?s the month I sobered up.On Nov. 3, 1989, at 2:00 in the morning, I was so intoxicated in my own home, I fell through the glass top of my coffee table, cutting myself to smithereens, and almost bled to death.It was the best thing that ever happened to me. The handwriting was on the wall. I had a serious problem with alcohol and drugs and, what?s more important, I realized ...

November 7, 2012Washington, Iowa To the Editor:In ads aired REPEATEDLY Election Day, Mrs. Obama stated, ?Iowa is where it all began for us four years ago ? I know you (Iowa) will help us finish what we began. ??Seriously, Mrs. Obama? Let your husband and his administration ?finish? spiraling us downward into record-breaking debt at an unbelievable and frightening rate? This is Grassroots America you?re ...

To the editor:Please find the explanation of how Jefferson County ranks second in the state in underage and binge drinking as requested in [Ledger letter ?Adults need to set example with alcohol consumption,? April 19, by Carol Lee Kessel].Calculating adults offenses, the Iowa Department of Public Health divided the actual number of incidents (court records) into the county population to get a rating system.Adu...

To the editor:You still have time to think, study, research and investigate the truth. Don?t be lazy and believe everything your told.Stop blaming Bush for everything. Yes he made some mistakes, no one is perfect. At least he wasn?t a racist-Marxist-socialist pro communist, anti-government with Muslim affiliations, and he proved he was born in the U.S.A.Vote for the person not the party. Make your own decision ...

?They got their bird back,? said Fairfield Police Chief Julie Harvey Monday night as I walked into the Fairfield City Council meeting.Monday was a scramble at The Ledger and for a few, quick moments I didn?t know what she was referring to. Then she mentioned the police auction and the front-page picture of the bird sculpture.Less than 24 hours after the picture of the lost item was in The Ledger, the artist and ...