Opinion

In the coming weeks, high school students in Iowa and across the country will don their cap and gown to receive their high-school diplomas. Many of them will look forward to attending college in the fall. It’s an exciting time in the lives of so many young adults, but for a lot of families, it also comes with the stress of deciding what type of higher education makes sense financially...

In late March, the Senate Ways and Means Committee released a proposal to change Iowa’s property tax system by having the state assume all costs when it comes to mental health services while also eliminating the mental health property tax levy. This is not the first time a major change in how mental health services are funded in Iowa has been proposed. While there have been many proposals for change, only a few have actually been implemented...

In the beginning, God created the universe and everything in it, including the planet earth, where upon he created mankind in his own image — both male and female he created them. God concluded his six days of creation by stating that “it was very good,” a true indication that in God’s sovereignty he created everything perfected and without sin. ...

What is your first thought when you see this logo? It takes a lot of work to host RAGBRAI for an overnight stop. When Spencer hosted the first overnight stop in 2007, I was a member of the organization’s marketing and publicity team on a local level. I loved our “Licensed to Thrill” theme tied into the whole 007 thing, and I give big kudos to the creative minds who crafted the logo to go with it...

In order for a farmer to have had first-hand experience with inflation, he would need to be over 60 years old, having farmed prior to 1980. Farmers under 50 have only seen deflation interrupted by brief periods of relief rallies. I began farming in 1973, when inflation was the economic reality and not just some concept. ...

Planning a few long weekends or a vacation may have you rethinking your garden plans. Don’t let time away from home stop you from growing flowers and vegetables in containers. Irrigation systems with timers and self-watering pots are options to make container gardening and vacation care easier. You may, however, just be looking for ways to adapt your existing container gardening care while on vacation...

Class of 2021: Wow. You made it. You. Made. It. You went through one of the most important times of your life, one filled with rites of passage that are totems in your emotional growth, in the midst of the worst global pandemic of our lifetime. Nothing was normal. Nothing was according to tradition. Nothing was the way you thought it would be when you were young...

It was sure nice, Windy thought. Just sitting out here in Mamie’s yard with my dog, Ramses, and some refreshments Mamie brought out that did not include raw meat or vegetables no one could pronounce. “Don’t that there sun feel good, Mamie?” She smiled and nodded and drank more tea...

With the weather warming up, a lot of people are starting to get more active and explore their local parks, neighborhoods or even their own backyards and gardens. While exploring, you may encounter an odd bug or a strange-looking plant or mushroom and want to learn more about it. The Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Horticulture and Home Pest News website, hortnews.extension.iastate.edu, is an excellent source of information...

People like to talk about what the law says. And in Iowa, the law has a lot to say. Just look at the Iowa Code. It now fills eight volumes and costs $295 for a complete set. But common sense costs nothing — although the 18th Century thinker Voltaire once observed, “Common sense is not so common.”...

Sometimes the obvious is not so obvious. We'd like our nation to be more harmonious. We're tired of divisiveness. Too many folks are turning to pursuits, activities and the like that are not wholesome, or in anyone's best interests. Maybe it is time to embrace the oxymoron. Allow me to explain...

Small towns don’t need to mirror the vitriol of national media where hate has become a current obsession. We can choose differently and we can do better. The division is exhausting and it has trickled down to us at a local level, keeping us collectively from moving forward. While we don’t have to all agree, we do have to get along with each other so that we can tackle the big challenges within our community that require us to sit down at a table together...

The April 16 edition of the SDR carried an opinion piece ("Response to hate and mental illness — a deadly combination"), in reaction to an editorial of the same name, which you had penned previously. The 1,000 or so words attributed to 40 individuals/couples is significant of itself. When have so many people offered so many words about a topic of our times? Providing another perspective on racism is the premise, and this is a worthwhile effort to undertake...