Local writer Rick Wimer underwent surgery for a knee replacement last month, and all went well. But before going under the knife, he shared this: Today is the 23rd of January; now 24th, now …

“Words, words, words, I’m so sick of words!” Eliza Doolittle rebelled. Henry Higgins recreated her as a “lady.” What was her privilege?   It was education. Eliza was taught to speak …

Standard majority rule now governs state income tax decisions in Iowa. The state’s constitution requires that five procedural steps be taken to change that. Three of those steps have already been …

If growing corn is a religion among Midwestern farmers, its Vatican is somewhere in central Iowa. That fact was confirmed in late January when a Des Moines-based ag consulting firm released a …

As funnel week approaches, it is important that legislation begins moving forward, and we keep making progress on the issues Iowans have brought to us over the last several months. Last week the …

Attorney General Brenna Bird announced on Jan. 29 she has filed a lawsuit against 18 Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) and insulin manufacturers asserting they manipulated and inflated insulin prices …

Rural Iowa schools are deeply committed to maintaining quality education, but they must continually navigate the fiscal pressures of shrinking enrollment and stagnant local tax bases. In some …

Kim Reynolds has occupied the spot as the most unpopular governor in America nearly as long as Terry Branstad wore a mustache in Terrace Hill. She ran up a whale of a deficit and is skedaddling after …

The First Amendment to the Constitution is first for a reason: It is the fundamental building block of freedom. Our basic freedom is under withering attack as federal agents shoot and gas peaceful …

For the past 35 years I have written an annual accounting of the state of affairs of this newspaper. As I have noted each year, we do this to maintain the trust of our readers, since the founders of …

I used to read like a house on fire. Then cable TV appeared, and the banquet of classic movies lured me in. The internet continued to diminish my once-robust reading habit, and social media …

Ten years ago on Jan. 7 Ofelia Valdez, now Ofelia Rumbo, of Storm Lake, stood up at a campaign rally for GOP presidential candidate Ted Cruz at King’s Pointe. She identified herself as one of the …

January ended with a notable week for federal courts because of the voices of its judges. Judges in Minnesota and Texas spoke with clarity in these troubled times. In between them, a longtime …

Laws and leaders that ban diversity, equity, and Inclusion (DEI) practices of public institutions, and even try to extend the ban to the private sector, argue that DEI potentially discriminates …

Drinking. Bathing. Washing. Swimming. Fishing. Rafting, boating and canoeing. Through pipes, through treatment plants, through wells, through rivers and through lakes. We’re in Iowa’s …

The mostly for-profit nursing home industry, funded by untold billions of taxpayer dollars, has nearly once again succeeded in undermining the health, safety, welfare and rights of our Nation’s …

Our daughter and her young family live in Minneapolis, and we are horrified at what they are living through. People in her circle have begun carrying their passports in case ICE stops them, because …

It’s been said that February is the longest shortest month of the year. If so, it might be because freezing, snowy January often feels like the longest long month of the year. That's true this …

Safe neighborhoods are a top priority for Iowans. The requirement that hardworking families can raise their kids without fear, safely go to work, and build strong communities rooted in time-honored …

Last Tuesday Iowa welcomed President Trump to the Horizon Events Center. During the event, President Trump highlighted federal efforts to advance legislation authorizing year-round, nationwide sales …