Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
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The most heinous crimes often target vulnerable members of our society. To protect our innocent, Nebraska is hard at work to expose human trafficking and root it out of the Good Life. Human trafficking is a despicable crime. It inflicts severe trauma on its victims and shows a sickening disregard for human dignity. It’s important that we recognize that human trafficking exists in Nebraska. It may not be visible in your neighborhood, but it happens across the state and is a scourge in our s...
Did you know that if you are a white person that you are currently being discriminated against and punished for what other white people did in the past? The current powers that be and the world health organizations are putting white people on the bottom of the list for federal benefits and medical care simply on the basis of their color; regardless of their health conditions and American citizenship. Non-whites and illegal immigrants are getting benefits and medical assistance before and often...
One year ago this week, I attended the inauguration of President Biden and Vice President Harris. While I was deeply disappointed in the election process and its outcome, President Biden campaigned as a centrist who wanted to unite our country, defeat COVID, and improve America’s standing in the world. When he took office, I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Instead, President Biden and his administration immediately began implementing a left-wing agenda out of touch with s...
Ever since being elected to the State Legislature back in 2016, I have received more emails in support of an Article V convention of the states than on any other single issue by a long shot. The emails I receive in support of a convention of the states out-number those in opposition to it by a margin of about twenty to one. So, there is no question that voters in the Panhandle of Nebraska support LR 14, the resolution which calls for a convention of the states. Once LR 14 passes in the...
In the southwest Pacific Ocean, the Hunga Tonga volcano erupted on Saturday. This ordinarily wouldn’t be a big news story because the same volcano erupted in 2009, 2014 and has been rumbling since December of last year. But Saturday’s eruption was far more powerful than those previously observed, and it triggered both a tsunami and a noise that were experienced thousands of miles away. I like volcanoes. They give humans a healthy dose of humility. The power of a single major eruption, and the wa...
I’m not sure if it is age, or seeing some of the lessons in classrooms past. It impresses me that some of my high school and college history classes went against modern perception, telling accounts factually without offering a slant or personal viewpoint in lecture. In recent time, I’ve seen some of the lessons from classrooms past refute or corroborate current issues. A few decades ago, a book was written that has been included in various sociology classes since. The book came out about the...
Here’s a short story to illustrate a dangerous trend being foisted on America. Hesitatingly he walked into the Java Shoppe. His downcast eyes refused to make contact with the patrons. Trying not to draw attention to himself he stopped inside the door and moved into the shadows. Minutes passed before the strange young man moved out of the shadows and slowly walked in to take a seat at the counter. Normally I would not have paid much attention to him. He did not appear to be any more or less t...
Nebraska’s economy has weathered the COVID-19 pandemic better than any other state in the Union. According to Politico’s State Pandemic Response Scorecard, Nebraska’s economy ranks first in the nation. Nebraska continues to enjoy record low unemployment, and last fall the Department of Revenue reported that our state’s incoming tax revenues beat the projection of the Forecasting Board by 7.7%. Despite our economy doing so well, the State of Nebraska has been given more than a billion dollars...
Roots, the television miniseries, aired over eight nights, from Sunday, January 23, through Sunday, January 30, in 1977, forty-five years ago. It proved wildly successful, despite ABC executives’ fears about showing white men kidnapping, buying, selling, and whipping black men, and women. It made television history though. Some 30 million people watched it every night, although I missed the episodes, something I now regret, because I was busy studying in college. Based loosely upon Alex Haley’s...
Change is a constant in life, and I have news of a big change in mine. But first, some backstory is in order. In 1990, my lovely new bride and I fled Minnesota to start a life together in the Black Hills of South Dakota. In seeking a new church to attend, we found Christian Life Center, a nondenominational fellowship in Belle Fourche pastored by Rev. Paul Howard. It became our church home and we made many new and wonderful friends there. Two years ago, I received word that Pastor Paul’s h...
On a trip to Central America several years ago, the group I was with was encouraged to be careful giving money to panhandlers and beggars. A little background. For as dysfunctional as American society is becoming, there are places we are still as a Shangri-la. I remember leaving the terminal and being greeted, almost accosted, by children trying to sell what looked like origami from plants. “Only a dollar,” still rings in my memory. One of our group shooed them away like stray dogs. That was...
News outlets – newspapers, radio and TV – sometimes use a rather fancy and greatly misunderstood word when they speak of the presentation of evidence. That word is “forensics.” We’ve heard and read it used in the reporting of the Kyle Rittenhouse trial. Forensics is a great word to use when writing or speaking to people who have no real understanding of the word’s meaning! Especially if you are trying to bulldoze them into agreeing with you! I first became acquainted with forensics in high sch...
Hello, Sidney Sun Readers! Looking for new this New Year? Deltas are triangular. This one has equal sides. Proverbs 4:7 tells us to get wisdom, get knowledge, and with all our getting get understanding. We may think this is pretty self-explanatory, but if it were, we’d all be operating in understanding. Understanding “dawns” on us. We ‘catch on’. We ‘get it’. We possess a new thought. Let’s say you are a young person taking a bat in your hands for the first time. Knowledge tells us that when we...
The second session of the 107th Legislature has already begun and new bills are now being introduced. Although new bills may only be introduced within the first ten legislative days of the session, I expect approximately 500 new bills to be introduced this year. Many of these bills will likely venture outside of the scope of what good government ought to do. Therefore, today I would like to remind my readers about what good government is supposed to do. Milton Friedman once famously said that...
We live in a time of incredible hostility. Hatred can be expressed openly without consequences, provided such animosity is directed at the right group or person. The internet and social media have made expressing opinions to a large audience fast and easy. Sadly, many choose to hide in the shadows of anonymity while directing all kinds of filth, threats, lies and profanity at those with whom they disagree. This must stop, and I know a good way to do it. The founders envisioned a nation in which...
It’s that time of year when trash cans have digested their diet of Christmas wrapping paper, and now is the time for poets to write the soothing rhymes of what we want in a perfect world. The very idea of New Year’s Resolutions invites image of cliche beauty contests. “I wish for world peace, and ending poverty.” The artificial smile reflects the spotlights but doesn’t go very far reaching toward the heart. I was recently asked what I wanted for Christmas. I frequently ask myself how I should...
Recently, selected members of the Leyton School Community received a letter concerning the upcoming recall vote of Rol Rushman & Suzy Ernest titled “Know Before You Vote.” Although the letter was unsigned and had no return address, it bears a very similar format to documents and speeches presented at Leyton School Board meetings from certain individuals! I’ve always thought opinions in an unsigned letter are worthless!! The anonymous letter states that this “mess” started when Suzy and Rol came on as new Board members. It started much earlier t...
We have surpassed our matching grant goal of $20,000 by almost $35,000! We would like to thank the following businesses and all the individuals, too numerous to list, for your donations to the Table of Grace. May God bless you all in 2022! Aflac- Jenn Powell, Andrews Trains, Anthem/Healthy Blue of Nebraska, Avon (Julie Matthews), Best Plumbing, Heating & Cooling, Bell Pole & Lumber, Bush Family Trust, Eagle Chevrolet Buick - Chadron, Fairfield Inn & Suites, Frat Order of the Eagles- Oshkosh, Golden Real Estate, JDNA Farm – Oshkosh, KK I...
Donald Trump lost the 2020 election on November 3, 2020. Although some 74.2 million voters voted for him, 81.2 voted for Biden, a difference of over 7.0 million. Then, Biden won 306 electoral votes to Trump’s 232. Despite those facts, Donald Trump vowed he would never concede. Instead of acting as a gracious political contender who had lost an election, he acted otherwise. Trump claimed that the election was stolen, that ineligible voters had mailed in ballots. He rallied his supporters with, “S...
In my July 10, 2020 article I wrote about the use of certain therapeutic re-purposed prescription drugs for the treatment of COVID-19 symptoms. I especially talked about the potential benefits of inhaled budesonide and hydroxychloroquine. After I published that article, I received some harsh criticism from several folks who accused me of not following the science. Well, it turns out 18 months later that I was right all along. Treating the symptoms of original COVID-19, along with its delta and...
If you’ve read my weekly columns, tuned into a press conference, or heard me speak before, you are no stranger to my guiding vision for the state: growing Nebraska. It’s been the mission of my Administration, and each year we have achieved success towards that goal. This year has been no different. In fact, Nebraska has made plenty of progress in 2021 worth celebrating. Last week, Politico ranked Nebraska number one in the country for our pandemic response in its State Pandemic Scorecard. Eco...
Let’s start the New Year by reaching into the past. As we look ahead into 2022 I’m reminded of a 1960’s Bob Dylan song: “The Times They Are A Changing.” Dylan tended to be a bit morbid with some of the lyrics he wrote for this song. Among them is this line from the first verse: “Then you’d better start swimmin’ or you’ll sink like a stone for the times they are a-changin’.” I’d like to quote the entire song, but space does not allow. I suggest you look ‘em up on line. I won’t call him a prophe...
This is the calm before the storm. The second session of the 107th Legislature is about to convene. This year the legislative session will start on January 5 and will go into the month of April. This year’s legislative session will be the shorter 60-day session. Because there will be fewer days on the legislative calendar, it will be even more difficult to get bills passed into law. Many of you would like to know what I have been working on for next year, so now I will tell you. The bills t...
There are certain stages in life that are tender, even extremely sensitive. Marriage, the birth of a child, tenderly caressing an infant as he sleeps on your chest, and saying goodbye when moving from this life to the next. The first time I recall attending a memorial, a funeral dinner, my attention was on the food, and probably a lot of questions of why are we here. I remember being quite young, and the concept of losing someone, especially someone I didn’t really know, didn’t add up. It was...
The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States is under attack from the Socialist Marxist left wing of the political party currently in the majority in our national government. Our current national government, along with the leftist controlled news media, Internet, etc. have joined together to virtually negate and eliminate the freedoms granted to you and I by the First Amendment. Quoting verbatim from our U.S. Constitution, Amendment One states: “Congress shall make no law r...
