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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Dear Editor: I want to speak of some items concerning Sidney Police Chief B.J. Wilkinson’s treatment and situation at the hands of the city manager and almost, by the members of the city council, which meets Tuesday evening. The director of Public Works broke the law and was issued a citation to appear in court by the Police Department. By city policy, he (John Hehnke) had to report what happened to his boss, the City Manager (Gary Person). The two of them must have talked the situation over and came up with an action plan (what to do). One o...
Dear Editor, I and a lot of other people agree 100 percent with Larry Nelson’s letter from Monday, July 20 titled “Jail time for chief is way out of line.” I would venture to say every police officer in the country (including Sidney) has at one time or the other used his discretion or authority to scrap a possible citation for a friend, family member or someone of importance, or even just to give someone a break. Even judges have been known to rhow citations and charges out of court. One hundred percent enforcement of the law could get prett...
Dear Editor: The headline in The Sidney Sun-Telegraph read “Chief gets jail time.” The Chief of Police. Who would make such a complaint that would result in such a sentence? Was it the city of Sidney official who was out of control? I doubt it. Was it the city manager who wanted this energetic man to be gone in such a short time? I doubt this too. When all this took place, Chief Wilkinson had been on the “job” for a little over six months when one of his officers responded to a call about suspicious activity. The officer did the best he coul...
Dear Editor, This could get interesting. The county can’t afford to hire a man to grade the roads and then the sheriff says we need a new $16 million jail. Meanwhile, we still have that school bond issue lurking out there. Mike Hartzler Sidney...
Dear Editor, With the repeal of the death penalty and ensuing referendum, we have been asked if we have a position on that issue. From its inception in 1973, National Right to Life and its 50 State Affiliates, of which we are one, has had a single issue focus. Our mission is to bring as many people together from all walks of life to work to restore legal protection to innocent human life from conception through death. That does not include a position on the death penalty or any other unrelated issues. We welcome people on both sides of the...
Dear Editor, The Iraqi Army has a history of moving to the rear and exposing their back sides to attacking forces. The Iraqi Army melted like butter when we attacked them in 2003. They faded away when ISIL attacked them, and then lost Mosul and most of northwestern Iraq along with large quantities of U.S. equipment. Recently they turned tail and abandoned U.S. military equipment when they ran from Ramadi. The Iraqi Army cannot be relied upon to fight ISIL or any other insurgent groups, and we should not supply them with weapons we could...
Dear Editor: It just feels great to know that our “Red Raiders” high school track and field team are Nebraska’s Class B state champs! The early-season goal setting, dreams of improvement, setting personal records, winning districts and, finally, securing dibs on winning the state title, well, that’s just terrific. I’m sure that I am speaking on behalf of all of our hometown fans in exclaiming, “We are so proud and happy that you guys are the mantra in helping make this sport so much fun.” Have a good summer of healthy and easy running. Stan...
Dear Editor: With the current fiasco in Iraq and Syria, the President is telling the Coast Guard and the American public that the real problem we are facing is “global warming.” The mess in Iraq is his problem and he can no longer blame it on G.W. Bush. Tell this fable to those families who have lost loved-ones or who are living with service men who have been injured for life in the Iraq war which was won only to have been foolishly abandoned by our Commander in Chief over the objections of his military advisors, and even now is attempting to c...
Dear Editor: The Obama administration finally listened to our military leaders, and they are now planning on leaving 9,800 troops in Afghanistan through 2016 and probably beyond. Originally they were going to draw down to 5,500 troops. The Taliban continues to pose a threat in Afghanistan and ISIS could rear its ugly head. Our troops could be needed to quash enemy attacks in the region. Compared to our prior strength of 100,000 troops, the U.S. troops remaining in Afghanistan might not have the numerical strength to counter the Taliban...
Dear Editor, “With Malice Toward None” is the title of Jack Levin’s new book. This quotation is from Abraham Lincoln’s second inaugural address when the termination of the Civil War was in sight. “With firmness in the Right as God gives us to see the Right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in: to bind up the nation” wounds: to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphans – to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all nations.” These are words of Abr...
Dear Editor, Stateliner’s Extension Club would like to thank Sidney High School student Kade Price for demonstrating strong leadership and citizenship by expressing his concerns about Road 8 to the Cheyenne County Commissioners at their April 20 meeting. Our club members are quite familiar with the decaying condition of Road 8 since we travel it, or part of it going to and from home, shopping or working in Sidney, visiting neighbors and attending Stateliner’s meetings. The opening question at any meeting along the Road 8 route the past few yea...
The Nebraska Legislature is on the brink of raising the gas tax and Nebraska families will pick up the tab for the poor management of our tax dollars across the state. Nearly $240 million in new taxes would be generated by the end of the decade from the tax increase. That is on top of what Nebraskans already pay in gas taxes, vehicle registration fees, wheel tax and other taxes. The projected state biennial budget is more than $8.6 billion. With this tax hike state senators are implying they can’t find 2.8 percent of that huge budget to fund i...
Dear Editor, With the beginning of spring, many residents will begin home repair projects. With this in mind residents should be aware that several projects require permits from their city’s Building Department. The projects range fences, new furnaces, air conditioning units, water heaters, decks, patio doors, garages, sheds, etc. All new construction projects also require permits. Home owners and business owners must make sure those doing the work are licensed for installation projects and properly insured for construction projects, as r...
Dear Editor: Well the polls are out and it’s ugly – only 31 percent of the country thinks we are headed in the right direction. Could it be that “headed in the wrong direction” was a by-product of this: local school textbooks teaching pages and pages of Darwinian evolution without one single word to question it, while at the same promoting animosity toward the views of our founding fathers in the Declaration of Independence who said we are “created by our creator with certain unalienable rights?” The unfortunate position of too many in our...
Dear Editor: Following the expression of opinions regarding Sen. Chamber’s choice of “image” in talking about the police in Omaha, might it be useful to move the discussion forward by considering some related issues such as the following? Is there some degree of agreement on the following assumptions? One, life in Nebraska is very nice, but it is not 100 percent perfect, and two, “Post-Ferguson,” it seems likely that people of color may feel quite differently about the quality of their daily lives, compared to how white people feel. Are these...
Dear Editor: Adrian Smith is just another establishment Republican. Nebraska’s 3rd District is just about the most conservative congressional district in the United States. Yet with a Heritage Scorecard of voting conservative just 60 percent of the time Smith ranks toward the middle to lower end of Republican congressmen. Even John McCain on the Senate side votes more conservative. Recent votes bear out this out. In December, Smith voted with Nancy Pelosi for the Omnibus spending bill that fully funded all of Obama’s agenda (except illegal amn...
Dear Editor, The reigning headliners in the current administration remind me of a variation of an adage: “There is no honor among liars.” With all of the scandalous activities provoked by the former head of the Department of State, the Attorney General’s racial bias and our current President, who spends huge sums of money to hide his past and seeks to make a stupid agreement with the Iranians who have never lived up to the provisions of a treaty in the past, we wonder if there are any in the inner circle who know how to tell the truth. Our ...
Dear Editor: Do Native Americans have a lock on the definition of “half breed?” A member of the Nebraska Board of Education used this term to describe our President and has received flak for doing so from many sides, including our Governor. The truth of the matter is the President is half white since his mother was Caucasian. The other half is mostly Arab and he is referred to an African mostly because of the color of his skin. It seems to me that it is the board member’s prerogative to refer to him as a half breed and it should not raise...
Dear Editor, I just wanted to write and thank the Sun-Telegraph and terrific sponsors for challenging us with those 18 weeks of college and pro football picks this past season. The contest was a lot of fun. It was challenging. It required clairvoyance, intuition and some luck. I looked forward to the contest each week. Thank you for that! Stan Fox Sidney...
Dear Editor, The truth is that cannabis is a plant that won’t go away: it grows in nearly every climatic zone on the planet, without even needing to be tended. Its eradication is fundamentally impossible; prohibition has proved futile. And it is also an undeniable truth that cannabis can make you feel good. The cannabinoids contained in the plant can cure or ameliorate pain and suffering in numerous ways. Cannabis has been used by humankind as medicine for millenia. So I hail the introduction of LB643 for consideration by Nebraska’s Uni...
Dear Editor, Becoming a parent is one of the most difficult roles an adult will face. Our walk through parenthood comes with no manual, no chat line for help, no “app” on our phone. We set out at the task blindly with the goal of raising healthy, happy, responsible, successful and educated kids. We have a dream of a better life for each of them. We envision making a difference in their world, so that in time they can make a difference in their own world. We desire facilitating change for positive outcomes, and strive to offer them the best too...
Dear Editor, That was an excellent story written by Will Castner about the history of the Sidney elementary schools (Jan. 20 edition). Having attended the Sidney schools from 1940 to 1953, I would like to add to Will’s story (Will’s grandfather Lloyd Castner was a classmate of mine). None of the schools I attended are in Sidney anymore, the high school being torn down when the new one was built several years ago. We lived on the southwest corner of 12th Avenue and Linden Street when I started school. Across the street north, where the fire dep...
Dear Editor, Every New Year brings about ambitious goals, a feeling of accomplishment from the previous year and a general sense of excitement about the possibilities that lie ahead. The year 2015 is no exception. Our community is faced with an important decision on Feb. 10 about whether or not we are going to move forward with a new elementary school bond issuance. My work experience at Cabela’s and now Adams Industries has taught me to realize that if I want to be a part of positive change in my community, all I have to do is get involved a...
Dear Editor, Early on Christmas morning and 20 miles west of Sidney, my car blew a fuel pump and quit running. Sidney people came to our aid in spite of the holiday and stormy weather. Thank you to several people at the rest area – Dave from Almost Free Towing, Lee and Tom at Sauders Automotive, the staff at Perkins, two policemen and Wayne and Carrie at Sleep for Less motel. This thoughtfulness and extra effort over 48 hours left my daughter and I thankful for these kind and generous people in Sidney. Teri Hlava Lincoln, Ne...
Dear Editor, We are starting a new year and our council will be working on the new water park. I would like to remind council that back in November 2012, the voters voted for a ½-cent sales tax to help pay for our deteriorating streets, a new swimming pool and to upgrade the golf course. The golf course has already spent their share of the tax money plus. Now, council wants to build a water park. One of the reasons they said we need a new pool was the current pool was too small and it leaked. And, we needed a bigger pool so they could have...
