A broad definition of “common knowledge” is information an average, educated person can accept as reliable and accurate without having to verify it. However, what we individually consider “common” is often completely unfamiliar to those outside our individual sphere of experience and understanding. In the workplace, for example, common knowledge[Read More…]
Columns
Guest Column: Legislative action on wildfire
By Dylan Roberts | State Senate District 8 Even after a winter with substantial snowfall and a spring and early summer full of considerable rain and cooler temperatures, we now enter August and the Fall with drier conditions and an increasing risk of wildfire. As of this writing, several fires[Read More…]
Guest Column: Grand Army of the Republic, Part 2
Read Part 1 I have two ancestors who fought in the Civil War. One on each side. This is not unusual. There were many families torn apart with this issue. It was a matter of personal conscience. One side claimed victory but both sides lost in my opinion. A whole[Read More…]
Editor’s Column: Entitlement check
When I was in elementary school I contracted a case of “tick fever.” I was puny enough that the doctor was called, which didn’t happen often. The offending critter was found under my hair at the nape of my neck and urged to relocate with a hot match and a[Read More…]
Loose Ends: Language lessons on repeat
“All het up”is a phrase one doesn’t hear too often these days. You might hear your friends and family have occasional exchanges, where old-fashioned expressions get tossed into the mix and teasing ensues. Casual conversations often come to a halt because young and old alike have stopped further conversation after[Read More…]
Guest Column: The Grand Army of the Republic: Honoring the Civil War veterans
Before our V.F.W. (Veterans of Foreign Wars) and V.A. (Veterans Administration) and American Legion, there was an organization called G.A.R. which stands for Grand Army of the Republic. It was a fraternal organization made up of American Union soldiers and sailors who served in our Civil War. There had been[Read More…]
Museum Musings: Letters from History, No. 7
The White River Museum has a collection of letters that Meeker founding father Thomas Baker kept for many years. There are letters from Nathan Meeker and prominent figures like Chief Ouray, ex-Indian Agents, and the violently anti-Indian Colorado Governor Pitkin, as well as various Army officers from 1874-1879. The letters[Read More…]
Guest Column: Speak now, and impact 2024 legislation
When I was teaching at Steamboat Springs High School, one of the things that we covered in my social studies classes was the concept of a representative democracy. My students and I would discuss the importance of leaders reflecting the wants and needs of their constituents. A truly representative democracy[Read More…]
Guest Column: The problem that just won’t go away
When I read the Salt Lake Tribune editorial on July 2, my heart sank. A Utah man with severe mental illness had died in a poorly regulated care home, with a mere $8,000 fine levied against the managers. The editorial was fierce: “It doesn’t seem to matter how horrible the[Read More…]
AI and You, Part 4: The end of humanity?
Part 1: Guest Column: Artificial intelligence and you, Part 1 Part 2: How AI and ChatGPT work, Part 2 Part 3: AI and You, Part 3: How to use ChatGPT wisely RBC | In this series of articles I tried to expose the influence of artificial intelligence on our[Read More…]
Editor’s Column: Outrageous outrage
The digital world has created an outrage economy where there is money to be made … if you can stand the heat. Robert Shrimsley, “Financial Times,” 2015 Call it “poking the bear” or “shaking the jar” or whatever you want to call it, the “outrage economy” is a cheap marketing[Read More…]
Loose Ends: One-sided conversations
You are doing less walking than the week before. Congrats! you have exceeded your reading goal today. You got less sleep yesterday than today. These are not messages left on the phone by just anyone. No one is trying to tell you anything that you are not already fully aware[Read More…]
