It was Christmas Eve. The gifts were laid beneath the Christmas tree at the home of Merlin and Nelda Powers in Urbandale. But the family’s holiday celebration ended abruptly that day in 1968 …

A few days ago a team effort by U.S. military, intelligence, and law enforcement personnel seized Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, and took them into American custody. …

I’m writing today with a heavy heart but a clear purpose because I am tired and deeply concerned: our rural communities are facing a healthcare crisis, and we need help — especially when it comes …

One of the few stances I was on board with from our current president was “No New Wars.” I am deeply disturbed, and have been for a long time, with the actions of this administration against …

Today, a grave and illegal line was crossed — and it did not make the United States safer or stronger. The U.S. carried out an unauthorized act of war by bombing another country’s capital, …

Should Iowans really be so concerned about Artificial Intelligence? Yes, but why? Physicist Frank Wilczek provides us with a straightforward observation on why: “What worries me is not so much …

One of the most under-reported stories of 2025 — the departure of more than 20,000 U.S. Department of Agriculture employees — finally surfaced just before the quietest, most unwatched news …

Those with high hopes for a two-party system in Iowa must put their minds and means on reaching rural voters. We had a balanced government a decade ago, before shelled-out river towns went …

We can hope for 2026. Be realistic, but good risings could be just over that horizon. Wish might be a better word than hope. We wish for your health and prosperity, for peace and friendship among …

As we consider New Year’s resolutions this week, I’d like to suggest that in 2026 we all try to be more generous, not just financially, but spiritually as well. This came to me last week, …

Many things can go wrong with holiday plans. This year, wow, yes. Weeks ago, I locked my car keys in my car using the auto-start. I always keep car keys in my purse, but I threw my purse in the …

Days removed from the winter solstice, when Iowa’s nights are the longest, we have another example of the absence of sunshine in Iowa government. And this example shows why the Legislature has much …

My next experience with fishing wasn’t until around 1975. I was working in property management and living in San Jose, Calif. A former work associate from Madison, Wis. on his way to do some …

In my column last week I discussed five of 10 people I much admired in 2025: Liz Cheney, Art Cullen, Jose Andres, Audi Crooks and Volodomyr Zelensky. Here are the other five (taking some license for …

Congrats to the winner of your annual cover art contest! One detail I noticed that wasn’t mentioned in the copy that ran alongside the artwork was the artist’s byline which included his middle …

Mark Twain would have loved this. The story goes that Twain, arguably America’s greatest writer and humorist, was the originator of the witticism “Figures don’t lie, but liars do …

State and local officials in Nebraska are giving Tyson the business after the giant meat packer announced plans to shut down the Lexington beef plant and put 3,200 people out of work. Tyson …

A backhoe blocks the end of the driveway this sunny Monday morning as water rushes down Irving Street. It’s not deja vu. The backhoe was in the same spot last winter when the water pipe broke. They …

For a lot of families today Christmas season begins at Thanksgiving (or before) and lasts until the Epiphany, Jan. 6. Not at the Cullen homestead on Geneseo Street when I was growing up. We …

I grew up hearing and reading the King James Version of the Bible, and even though the language was sometimes archaic and difficult to understand, its sentences were beautifully constructed. Poetic …