New York City began its new policy of congestion pricing this week, where motorists are charged a $9 toll to drive into Manhattan. The idea is to reduce the traffic that chokes the city’s …

If you’re of a certain age, you might, in the dim recesses of your mind, remember the Pixie and Dixie cartoons, created by the Hanna-Barbera animators. They were two sly mice who regularly …

The Iowa Department of Education quietly released a draft of the new K-12 Iowa Academic Science Standards (IASS) for public review on Jan. 3, 2025, with a deadline for comment coming quickly on Feb. …

Iowa is among the richest places in the world. We have the soil, the water and abundant energy generation. We should be first-rate, but we are not. We used to be the best. We were Number One in …

Come home, all you expatriated Iowans in Los Angeles before the wildfire consumes you! Flee to safety! Get real: Iowa is not that safe anymore. Check your home insurance bill, and wince …

I'm sure that there are some that won’t agree, but that doesn’t bother me. I certainly don’t agree with many of the editorials that John and Art Cullen write on several subjects, …

We lost a great one when Paul Struck died on Monday at age 78. Our sympathies go to his wife, Darla, and family. The editor of the Cherokee Chronicle Times will be missed dearly. He was a wit. A …

Jimmy Carter, who was President from 1977-1981, passed away Dec. 29 at the age of 100. His funeral was held Thursday. He was the longest living former President in the history of the United States. …

I have been kicking myself since being reminded that procrastination comes with a price. This lesson arrived the week before Christmas when I spotted a small obituary in the Bloomfield Democrat. …

As I write, it is January 6, 2025. Four years ago, Congress met to certify the presidency of Joe Biden. All sorts of pundits will be writing, too, about the storming of the Capitol that day. Others …

Buena Vista County will spend more than $1 million to rehabilitate the Storm Lake Marina after agreeing to take over operation of the facility from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, which …

People are talking about Iowa’s alarming cancer rates, but they need to turn up the volume. “We have to start getting loud with our elected officials about doing something about …

Once again our governor has declined the Federal supplemental summer food program offering $29,000,000 in total ($120 per child for 240,000 Iowa children).  This helpful program is tiny in …

The four-page executive summary of the November-issued report on sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) doesn’t predict when or how the hopefully-named “green” aircraft fuel will be …

The only certainties in life are death and promises by Republicans to do something about property taxes in Iowa. So it goes again this year. House Speaker Pat Grassley said it’s the top issue …

If Iowa, particularly our western region, wants to keep our young people home and attract new business, we have to embrace the electric vehicles that are transforming transportation and lifestyle, …

My parents owned and ran a small-town hardware store in tiny Hospers, Iowa, from the late 1940s to 2000. My grandfather, J.P. “Jake” Zwagerman, whose photo appears in this space, took …

As 2024 wraps up, I’m reflecting on the past 12 months. What memories did our family make, how did things go on the farm, and how are things going in my community and across the state? One …

Fast-moving mutation and spread of avian flu to humans should set off alarms and be met with an all-out effort to protect health and a reliable, safe food supply. Unfortunately, there is a prevailing …

If you’re reading this, there is no avoiding 2025. It can’t be that bad. 2024 wasn’t the greatest, may old acquaintance be forgot. People poking in indiscreet places, a lot of that, …