Opinion

“Faith is a bird that feels dawn breaking and sings while it is still dark.” ~R. Tagore Chicago may be the “Windy City,” but in Nebraska. . . From the sand hills of the north, across the central flat lands, to the deep canyons of the south; March is the windy month. ...

I had intended to write about the Electoral College this week, but sometimes other stuff gets in the way. We can cover that in another article. Today, I want to tell you about my friend Cloyd Clark, whom we recently lost. He was a District Judge, a founder of the Buffalo Commons Storytelling Festival, a friend to all, and I’m pretty sure I have seen his likeness on Mount Rushmore...

Dear Editor, What a heartwarming story in Friday’s Gazette about the lost Yorkie, Bella, being reunited with her family after being missing for six months. That part of the story is fantastic, but I wish Paul Harvey were around to tell us “The Rest of the Story”...

Dear Editor, In William Shakespeare's play, "The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark."  Act I, Scene II, we hear the famous words of Hamlet, to wit:-   "My father's spirit--in arms? All is not well.. I doubt some foul play. Would the night were come!...

When we first returned to live in Nebraska from Air Force life we used to chide my mom for attending a lot of funerals. Now that Grannie Annie and I have reached that age we have begun to understand. Too many of our friends seem to be passing on and attendance at their celebrations of life is the way to say the inevitable good bye. It is a peace that will come to all of us eventually and a last way to tuck their remembrance into our hearts...

It’s never too late to learn, and I have done a bit of that this week. In discussions surrounding the nomination of Merrick Garland as Attorney General, and his flaccid support for the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms, I learned that the Second Amendment was somewhat tied in with the Fourteenth Amendment. I never knew that...

Last Friday was day 30 of the 90 day session, which means we have made it a third of the way through this session. Even though we still have a few weeks left of bill hearings, the committees have been busy advancing bills to general file so once morning debates commence there will be bills on the agenda to discuss. ...

For the next three days, I will be hanging out in Lincoln for the Nebraska State Swim and Dive Championships. Three days of a middle-aged woman among teenagers in skin-tight speedos, jammers and speed suits. My ego will be in check. But I digress. First, I would like to wish all of the McCook swimmers and divers good luck as they compete against swimmers and divers from across the state. ...

In today’s political world we are treated to a never-ending cascade of back-biting decisive rhetoric. It come daily on TV and most of the rest of mainstream media and sadly social media can be worse. Fortunately for those of us who live in flyover country here in a more rural setting life isn’t that way...

It’s been quite a week. New variants of the Covid-19 virus originating in the UK, South Africa, and Brazil have made their way into the United States, threatening to be more contagious. The mutations have also called into question the efficacy of the vaccines in which so much hope has been placed...

Nebraska statehouse reporters feel obligated to point out that our one-house Legislature is “officially” nonpartisan, but political affiliations have never been a secret. As a result, despite George W. Norris’ best intentions in furthering the spirit on nonpartisanship, Nebraskans often are left with an either-or, lesser-of-two-evils choice in the ballot box...

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.” ― Mark Twain (Samuel Clements), The Innocents Abroad (1869)/ Roughing It (1914)...

Carbon proposal interesting, internet speed a definite need We had a morning of floor debate on Tuesday this week, but we will not engage regularly in debate until Tuesday, March 2.  We are doing our best to get through as many bills in committee as possible.  The second week of March we will have morning floor debate followed by afternoon committee hearings and executive sessions as needed. ...

It appears that our Senator Sasse doesn’t want to be reelected as a Nebraska Senator again. His vote to impeach Past President Trump was the clincher for all that I’ve visited with recently. But then a friend notes that the Lincoln residents that are of a more liberal persuasion want him to run for president in 2024. Divided we are...

As we endure the dumpster fire that is the current impeachment effort, it will ironically enough, overlap with President’s Day, or the observation of George Washington’s birthday next week. Although it’s Washington’s birthday, adjusted for the government calendar to the third Monday in February, we are instructed to reflect on all Presidents, including Adams, Jefferson, Madison, Lincoln, and the other greats. Instead, it is usually observed in the form of auto and mattress sales...

Dear Editor, January 6th was a catastrophic day of historic consequence. The U.S Congress had the courage to return to their deliberations after the unprecedented attack on the U.S. Capitol building. Later, in the dark of night, Nebraska 3rd District Congressional Representative Adrian Smith voted to object to accept the Electoral College votes that were certified for Joe Biden...

When I mention that my husband and I are chaperoning a high school dance, people usually have one of three reactions: pity, sympathy or bewilderment. I, on the other hand, really enjoy sponsoring dances. It gives us a chance to hear music of which we have no idea what they are saying...and probably don’t want to know. ...

We have had 2 five-day weeks of all-day hearings. There have been some hiccups in the new schedule and also with the new testimony submission options. The days are busy for senators and staff alike. However, for the most part, it is going pretty smoothly. Some committees have a bigger load than others, and therefore their days are packed and make for long days...

EDITOR’S NOTE: The writer, one of the organizers of a local petition to censure Sen. Ben Sasse, responds to statements by the senator: “Politics isn’t about the weird worship of one dude” – Senator Ben Sasse Senator, this is not about the “worship of one dude.” This is about the American People – that we had a president who fought for our needs and concerns, and delivered on what he promised...

Two below zero this morning. A bit brisk. It kind of makes my California grandkids grumble a bit. Welcome to Nebraska. It reminds me of a winter trip my air refueling tanker crew was privileged to fly back in 1968. After all we had spent the summer in the near-equatorial heat of Southeast Asia participating in the Vietnam War so it was only reasonable that we’d be chosen to spend Christmas in Alaska...