MMR, Measles, Mumps Rubella? Red Measles, German Measles, Hard Measles, 3-day Measles, Measles outbreak in southern Iowa? Three shots instead of one shot. Make American Healthy Again, MAHA? These terms and topics are appearing frequently in today’s news headlines. I am using this opportunity to share information with you. The President and Director of Health and Human Services are recommending…
Read MoreCategory: Opinion
First freedom
~by Colleen O’Brien I sit at my friend’s dining room table waiting for her as she gets ready to go out. In front of me is a pilsner glass of pens and pencils. After staring them down for a while, I choose one very sharp pencil with a never-used eraser. As if touched by a fairy wand, I am at…
Read MoreEnticing marginalia
~a column by Colleen O’Brien I receive many texts and emails that have to do with ageing. Sometimes I read them. It is apparent the advertising world has my number; they know more about me than I do. The volume of cajoling hints on daily exercise, ordering wonder drugs, practicing gratitude and seeking help from Dr. Oz-like ageing men is…
Read MoreView from my window: Avoiding the broad brush
Augst 9, 2026 Last week Congressional House Representative Zach Nunn visited Greene County. While here he toured a manufacturing site and viewed the renovated school that will soon house residents at the Jeffersonian. All good things. That evening, he was hosted along with other Republican public servants at the Courtyard. Constituents should interact with their government representatives. Again, all good.…
Read MoreSocial-ism
~by Colleen O’Brien Fear of socialism in the U.S. is widespread; most of that fear generates from capitalism-only individuals. They fire up fear of Democrats and other liberal folks for leaning toward socialism because they’re afraid the dreaded S is going to eat them up and spit out their million-billion-trillion-dollar gains. That sounds more like what capitalism does to the rest of…
Read MoreThe proof is in the pudding: A play
~by Colleen O’Brien Scene in a pub in Jefferson, Iowa, on a late summer day, 2026: Six townies lounge at the bar chatting, sipping, gazing into space. A lone woman sits at a table smiling dreamingly as she munches on French fried onion rings. The bartender chats with the old guy leaning against the wall at the end of the…
Read MoreView from my window – Corn back in the ‘old’ days
July 26, 2026 The corn in and around Greene County is showing its tassels. I used to have a quirky evil inward smile when I worked in the Lucas Building at the Capitol Complex. I smirked as I told my city slicker friends that “the corn was having sex at this time of the year.” The tassel is the male…
Read MoreIntentional living
~by Colleen O’Brien A longstanding piece of wisdom says that your eulogy isn’t written after you die; it is in fact written day by day as you live. This is a daunting pronouncement — who doesn’t live with at least a tad of regret or shame? But It’s a good guide for a life worth living. If one is responsible. this…
Read MoreView from my window: Aging or manipulation?
July 12, 2026 I may have had an epiphany this week or I may have used my age for exploiting two situations. I checked the dictionary; epiphany is defined as a sudden moment of insight or understanding. Manipulation is defined as influencing someone unfairly for your own benefit. Yes, I think it was an epiphany. I have not aged graciously.…
Read MoreTwo events on a Saturday
~by Colleen O’Brien The birds are singing wildly – it’s noon on a cloudless prairie day that’s heating up toward 90 degrees. I watch a nuthatch run down a 20-foot oak trunk as if something’s chasing him; a beige dove ducks under a limb, and a vain, unusually brilliantly red cardinal, the male of course, struts along a clothesline so…
Read MoreLetter to the editor: Summer travel with Mme Carlson
To the editor, As summer travel reaches its peak, a truly remarkable Greene County educator has just returned from leading yet another student trip to France. I want to take a moment to publicly recognize and thank Madame Carlson for her tireless dedication to opening the world to hundreds of students. I was fortunate enough to be one of those…
Read MoreAfter the Fourth
~by Colleen O’Brien The Fourth of July this year was perfect nostalgia – a late afternoon potluck in the country, friends and friendly people I’d not met before, interesting and fun conversations, happy children running around, fab food – a Chicago original chip dip of garlic and spinach, 20 pounds of smoked pork, mac and cheese [I think at least…
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