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Category: Opinion

Branstad, Reynolds celebrate success of Skilled Iowa Initiative

Plan to prepare working Iowans for careers in demand has certified 45,000 individuals through National Career Readiness Certificate DES MOINES – Gov. Terry Branstad and Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds on April 9 were joined by Iowa Workforce Development director Teresa Wahlert at the administration’s weekly press conference as they celebrated the successes of the Skilled Iowa Initiative, two years after its launch…

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Iowa State researches find relationship between food insecurity and depression

~by Matthew Leimkuehler A new study by an Iowa State University professor and student links food insecurity and maternal depression in rural America. “We wanted to look at the depressive level that mothers in rural areas were experiencing,” said Kim Greder, an associate professor in human development and family studies and ISU Extension and Outreach family life state specialist. “The…

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“AlI know is what I have words for.”

~a column by Colleen O’Brien A 19th-century philosopher named Ludwig Wittgenstein said this, and it makes sense. If I don’t have a word for it, especially for an abstract thought or for an object that is not right in front of me, how do I tell someone what it is or what I think about it? Part of the anger…

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Tree Tracings

Greene County Genealogical Society by Valerie Ogren MEETING NOTICE: The next meeting will be Saturday, June 7, at 10 am in the basement of the Jefferson public library.  Guest will be Theresa Liewer from Des Moines. Her talk will be “Travel to Ireland.”  She has traveled there several times and also helps others find their Irish roots.  If you have questions…

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Branstad signs Home Base Iowa Act into law

Greene County first Home Base Iowa community DES MOINES – Gov. Terry E. Branstad, joined by Iowa Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds, on Monday signed the Home Base Iowa Act into law at the Iowa Gold Star Military Museum at Camp Dodge in Johnston. In addition, Branstad signed Senate File 2352 providing an additional homestead credit for disabled veterans. “Our bipartisan Home Base…

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A deuce of grads

~a column by Colleen O’Brien For a week, I have been the Jet-Setting-Grandma-Attending-College-Graduations-Across-the-Country. I am now temporarily at rest, far from home but no longer living out of a suitcase. Whew. The jetting around was worth it. I was privileged to see two of my grandkids graduate from college within a week of one another; one in Ohio, one in…

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Consumer alert: Miller urges eBay users to change passwords

E-commerce company discloses data breach of passwords & non-financial customer data DES MOINES –  Attorney General Tom Miller urged eBay users to change their passwords after the e-commerce company reported that criminal hackers infiltrated its system and compromised non-financial customer data, including passwords. According to an eBay Inc. statement, the “cyberattack” took place between late February and early March.  The…

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Mom talking: Listen up

~a column by Colleen O’Brien I like myself best when I’m noble. Or at least when I’m polite. I can throw a fit when my computer acts up or I drop the coffee grounds on the floor. But at least in public, I pretend I’m a grown-up; or what I was taught a grown-up acted like back in the dark…

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Branstad, Reynolds call for robust Renewable Fuel Standard

DES MOINES  – Gov. Terry Branstad and Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds on May 13 renewed their call for the Obama Administration to support a robust Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). As government official travel to Iowa to discuss the environment Tuesday and Wednesday, Branstad and Reynolds believe they should focus on empowering consumers with additional and lower-cost choices at the pump, diversifying our nation’s…

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