Opinion

To the editor:It is essential we keep a strong national defense.But there?s a difference between defense spending and military spending. We do not need troops and embassies in 130 foreign countries. Our presence in some of those locations is making us more enemies than friends.Plus we can?t afford it! We are over $14 trillion in debt and climbing, paying our military bills by printing worthless dollars ...

To the editor:I would like to thank the members of the First United Methodist Church for constructing the seven path labyrinth, located on the southeast corner of Hempstead Avenue and Court Street. I appreciate your vision and effort to complete this wonderful project. I learned about labyrinths some 12-15 years ago from Dr. Wayne London, a Harvard Medical School graduate and Board Certified Psychiatrist, who ...

To the editor:If you?ve been paying attention to the news then most of you are already aware of the Occupy Wall Street protests. This weekend I went out of town with my family to Dubuque and I was amazed by how many people were protesting. But another thing I found interesting was there weren?t many high-schoolers there. And this was only the second time I?d heard about it as well. So it got me thinking about ...

To the editor:In November 1919, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed Nov. 11 Armistice Day to honor the memory of those Americans who were killed in World War 1, known as ?The war to end all wars.? Thirty-seven years later President Dwight Eisenhower changed the name to Veterans Day to honor the memory of the 500,000 Americans who lost their lives in World War ll; nearly 10 percent of our country, 16 million ...

I?ve seen auras all my life. Halos, if you will. I didn?t even know that what I was seeing wasn?t normal. I thought everybody could see what I was seeing. It wasn?t until college that I realized I had a ?special gift.?I was in a class, and there was a guest lecturer. It was a class on Bible Literature. The lecturer was quite animated, bouncing around the room like Peter Pan. Her light was so bright, it was ...

March 23, 2012Richmond, Iowa To the Editor: Although Residents for a Better Richmond (RBR) was originally organized in response to our county supervisors? attempt to force Regional Utilities Service Systems (RUSS) and a wasteful, unnecessary, and unjustified lagoon sewer system on our community, it is not the only concern that Richmond residents have about how our county supervisors operate.Indeed, Richmond?...

As I reflect on the 2011-2012 school year, this has really been a very good year for the Washington Community School District. There are so many good and positive things happening. The year began with the District being recognized by the Iowa Association of School Boards and we continue to get better. This is an excellent time to be a part of this district and the future looks even better.Let?s begin with the ...

I?ve written about Maid-Rites before, a loose-beef sandwich peculiar to the Midwest. I grew up on Maid-Rites, and they are still my favorite burger. In fact, I believe they are the original fast-food, having started in Muscatine, Iowa in 1926. I will drive out of my way for a Maid-Rite, always served with a spoon for scooping up the loose beef that tumbles out of the bun.One of the original Maid-Rites is in ...

This week was busy here in Des Moines as the House debated and passed numerous bipartisan bills. I am happy to say that we got a lot of work done here this week.With the economy being one of our top priorities here this session, the House passed several pieces of pro job legislation. However, many of these bills have died or are being held up in the Senate. Two very important bills, that have passed the House, ...

March 12, 2012Washington, Iowa To the Editor: I agree with Gerald Franzen ? why do we need a wellness park? Why? With the economy the way it is right now, it is not a good move. With gas prices, grocery, water, property taxes we do not need another camel on our back. We have had enough! Do you hear?If the City is offered a grant, before they accept this, they should make sure we have enough money saved to ...

To the editor: Everyone is invited to the Fairfield Public Library community room on Sunday, Nov. 6, from 2-3:30 p.m. to participate in the closing celebration of the 40 Days for Life campaign that began on Sept. 28. Through prayer and fasting by people throughout our nation and in foreign countries, as of Oct. 31, 417 lives of unborn children have been saved from abortion! We deeply appreciate all the ...

As combines roll across Fall-ripened fields across the state, Iowans like me who were lucky enough to spend a childhood growing up on a farm remember the ?good old days? and just how much work went into bringing a crop to harvest. Riding in a combine is the ?end game?; there were days spent shelling corn, baling hay, walking beans and spraying fence rows. Hard work and sweat, but it was an honor to chore with my ...