Opinion

I am consistently amazed at how little news coverage has been given to the 500 major city riots that occurred during the 2020 summer. Almost no one has been prosecuted, despite there being 23 people murdered and $1 billion dollars in property damage caused by fires set by the rioters. ...

As Nancy Pelosi commemorated the anniversary of the Jan. 6 insurrection on the floor of the House of Representatives, all Republican House members except Liz Cheney (R-Wyoming) chose not to attend and recognize the tragic event which caused the death of six House security officers. ...

The 2022 legislative session has officially begun. It was an amazing experience and one I will never forget. During this first week of session, I heard a number of speeches from our legislative leaders, the chief justice and the governor. These speeches are important aspects of the 2022 legislative session, and they give us a good idea about the goals of each caucus and branch of government. ...

The legislative session began on Jan. 10, and since then we have been busy doing the business of the state. We have already had several major speeches, including the governor’s Condition of the State Address, the Judicial Branch Condition Address and the Condition of the National Guard. We also met as committees to begin examining various legislative issues and started the process of filing bills to become law hopefully...

On Jan. 10, the Iowa legislature gaveled in to the second session of the 89th General Assembly. We kicked off the week with many ceremonial activities, including swearing in our new State Senator from Senate District 1, Dave Rowley. I am excited to have Sen. Rowley at the Capitol and know he will do great work for our team...

The 2022 session of the Iowa Legislature will begin today, much as lawmakers have convened for most of the past 175 years: with speeches and ceremony, the reuniting of friends and the renewal of partisan enmity. One significant difference: The Iowa Senate will exclude the Statehouse media from access to the floor of the chamber. ...

Chuck Schumer and Washington Democrats can’t seem to find their way. After a largely unproductive year in 2021, just before Christmas, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-West Virginia) torpedoed the Democrats’ reckless tax-and-spending bill, citing the concerns of many Iowans and Americans regarding skyrocketing inflation and the trillions it will add to our nation’s debt. Since then, they’ve struggled to earn support for their radical, unconstitutional plan to take over elections...

A:  As we enter the third year of the pandemic, Congress has a full plate heading into the New Year. No doubt Americans are ready to turn the page and move on with their lives without worrying about COVID infections disrupting travel, school, work and the economy. ...

The blank page on the front of this week’s sports section is no mistake. Rather, it is a visual representation of a very real possibility. Without an increase in support from the residents and businesses of this county, the Dickinson County News will go the way of the Nara Visa News. It will vanish.

There's a solemn perspective that comes after a few years in the newspaper business. Sure, we write about the bad and the good. We cover the homecoming parades and the county fair. We also write about the murders and the destructive fires. We write about the abuse case, but then in the same edition we'll also turn around and tell you when the Christmas parade is going to start. It's a pretty hilly road sometimes, and it's not always easy to travel...

Iowa Workforce Development will launch its new Reemployment Case Management program next month, formally beginning a new chapter in how the agency will approach unemployment moving forward. Beginning the week of Jan. 9, the new program will offer extensive job search assistance to newly unemployed Iowans with the goal of getting them back to work more quickly. ...

A:  In our state’s 175-year history, Iowans are no strangers to natural disasters. For the better part of the year, Iowans managed recovery efforts from the derecho that swept across the state in August 2020. The National Weather Service identified last year’s wind storm as a progressive derecho. ...

Once upon a time, in a somewhat heated but of course entirely civil comment section, I was told editorial cartoons and other opinion content were well beneath the former Spirit Lake Beacon, because its staff "had more class and intellect to know to keep a local paper unbiased." Putting aside the fundamental purpose of an opinion page and how it relates to bias, I knew very well that claim couldn't be true. ...

The three-member Revenue Estimating Conference held its annual December meeting on Dec. 13 to revise state revenue projections for the current fiscal year and to set the official revenue estimate for the next budget year. Just like its last meeting in October, the panel maintained its view that Iowa’s economy and tax revenue are continuing to grow, in spite of various challenges...

The rumors are true. I have proposed that people in public positions of trust and power who steal large amounts of taxpayer funds receive at least some prison time, every time. One of the worst things about our system right now is the incredible willingness and ability of insiders to avoid serious consequences. ...

Fraudsters are clever. And that’s not a good thing.   Over the years, scammers have employed no shortage of tricks or traps to get what they want from consumers, whether that’s money or personal information. One long-used scam involves intimidating potential victims with threats of lawsuits or arrest unless they hand over hefty payments.  ...

In today’s polarizing environment, building bipartisan consensus on legislation isn’t easy. With one party in control of Washington, Democrats have spent most of the year focused on their reckless spending spree with little concern for Republican input or support. ...

The pandemic fueled online shopping as more Americans turned to e-commerce to purchase everyday goods and gifts. Estimates project record-setting online shopping this holiday season, with sales reaching $207 billion in online sales. As the U.S. economy struggles to navigate bottlenecks and low inventory in the supply chain, concerns about slow shipping and late deliveries aren’t the only issues consumers need to watch. ...

There's a not-so-famous line that's past among some of my family this time of year. It goes, "Christmas isn't about getting people presents. It's about getting people good presents" (and to those who know the reference, yes I paraphrased it to keep from losing everyone else before the third paragraph)...

  Every four years, Iowans have the unique opportunity to personally meet and vet the candidates vying for their party’s nomination to serve as the next President of the United States. It’s a serious responsibility; one Iowans do not take lightly. We understand the importance of our state’s grassroots nominating process and the dialogue our caucus system encourages. Folks take pride in staying informed on the pressing issues facing our state and nation...

The U.S. Treasury Department manages the revenue coming into the federal treasury and the money going out the door to pay the bills. Congress sets a debt ceiling that limits the amount of debt the U.S. Treasury is allowed to extend to finance government operations. ...

Dickinson County now has two informational meetings under its belt when it comes to carbon pipelines. I'd imagine many of us didn't know underground carbon sequestration even existed before this year — and I'd put myself in that category. So it's a bit daunting in some respects to think our little patch of northwest Iowa might be home to two such pipelines in a matter of years...