~a column by Colleen O’Brien Did you know that of all our national institutions, our postal service predates our country, our Declaration of Independence and our Constitution? In 1775, at the first Continental Congress, Benjamin Franklin, because of his background working for the Crown delivering mail in the colonies, was appointed the first Postmaster General of the soon-to-be United States…
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Letter to the editor – Dean Hoskins re: Stumpf CAFO application
To the editor, On Monday of this week, a debacle of large proportion was visited upon our community. Another pair of CAFO hog factories were approved by the Greene County board of supervisors for submittal to the DNR for the issuance of construction permits.
Read MoreIntimidation, bullying used fight opponents of proposed CAFO
~by Janice Harbaugh The camera doesn’t lie. We’re all becoming aware of that in these strange days of pandemic when videoconferencing is becoming the way to meet. We’re getting good at reading people because we have time to study them without their actually being aware we’re doing it.
Read MoreThe allure of the postal aroma
~a column by Colleen O’Brien It was the smell that awoke me, the smell in the dream. I was in the Post Office in Jefferson, where my dad worked. I was a little girl and I had come in through the wide swinging doors off the loading dock at the back where I’d been hanging out after school. The compelling…
Read MoreA vulnerable food supply – Patti Naylor
The coronavirus pandemic that we face today will impact our lives in many ways, both in the near term and for years to come. A bright spot may be a change in how we look at the world and how agriculture fits into that world. News headlines from Iowa and the Midwest tell us some of those impacts and expose…
Read MoreLetter to the editor – In support of Bret Richards
To the editor: The Republican primary for the Fourth Congressional District is coming up fast. We are fortunate to have several good candidates running but one stands head-and-shoulders above the rest. I wish everyone in the Fourth District could meet Bret Richards personally. If they did, he would win by a landslide.
Read MoreThe diary of a coronavirus rebel
Diary entries by Cori O’Virus, as dictated to columnist Colleen O’Brien Dear Diary – Paradoxical parasite back on the job. My human is also back on the job also. At her computer, she writes about the “word war” that her president has started in her country, the war of true words versus alternative words. She calls it a civil war.…
Read MoreThe diary of a coronavirus rebel
Diary entries by Cori O’Virus, as dictated to Colleen O’Brien Last time I wrote, I was thinking of myself as the paradoxical parasite , Cori O’Virus on a mission to save my species – coronavirus, as well as my host’s species – humans. My human host has just fallen asleep, with the radio on, as usual, so I listen most…
Read MoreThe Diary of a Coronavirus Rebel, 2
~Diary entries by Cori O’Virus, edited by Colleen O’Brien When I left off last week, I was about to listen to my host’s radio. I am conversant with the language – all coronavirus know the language of whatever part of the world they’ve blown into. If we’re around individuals for any time, we begin to read their minds. In my…
Read MoreJust smile and go back to sleep
~a guest column by Sharon Whitehill As a teenager in love I romanticized the idea of falling asleep in my boyfriend’s arms, imagining his gazing tenderly down at my innocent face. Now, as a long-married woman, I hate the very idea of being watched while I sleep. Unlike babies and children, grown people look foolish at best when they’re sleeping.…
Read MoreThe diary of a coronavirus rebel
Diary entries by Cori O’Virus (as dictated to Colleen O’Brien) I have secured a safe place to watch. My name is Cori, short for Corona. I am from the Virus family. We have many friends and relatives who are categorized in that branch of human science that deals with viruses – “virology,” the study of us, named with the preciseness…
Read MoreIowa AG, Consumer Advocate urge H2O utilities to suspend disconnects
To avoid big balances, consumers should pay utility bills, if they are able DES MOINES — Iowans can get relief from many utility bills during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Iowa Office of Consumer Advocate recommends that consumers pay what they can to avoid problems in the future, however. The Iowa Utilities Board issued an emergency order on March 27 approving…
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