MEEKER | Tall tales of the winter-that-was abound this time of year. It is the time that people of all ages seem to dredge up their old stories. The mention of “Fool’s Spring” describing the mild temperatures and the long days filled with sunshine brings to mind all of the[Read More…]
Columns
Editor’s Column: Groupishness
In his book “The Righteous Mind,” moral psychologist Jonathan Haidt writes about “groupishiness,” the innate tendency of humans to lump themselves together based on likes or dislikes, similarities in culture or appearance, hobbies and habits, and more. It’s a different way of saying, “birds of a feather flock together.” It’s[Read More…]
Editor’s Column: “Cancel culture” is nothing new
I’m aging myself again, but I remember the tumult over the “Parental Advisory: Explicit Content” stickers slapped on cassette tapes and records in the 1980s in an attempt to protect the sensitive ears of children from hearing bad words and suggestive lyrics. The actions of the Parents Music Resource Center[Read More…]
Loose Ends: Arbor Day connects past and present
MEEKER | “Last spring we urged our town authorities to set our trees around the town park. It is too late to take action this season, but such action should be taken next spring and town made comfortable and attractive for visiting autoists.” The editor of the Meeker Herald apparently[Read More…]
Editor’s Column: Fool’s Spring
These deceptive days of blue skies and warm temperatures are likely — if we’re lucky — to be followed by the usual March and April snowstorms, but a brief respite from snow and cold is welcome this time of year. I’m going to take up ink and paper this week[Read More…]
Loose Ends: Thankful for sunshine
MEEKER | There ought to be a law. Ever hear someone mutter that phrase when they are frustrated or angry? Lately it might have been used in regards to recent decisions and actions taken by the County Commissioners. There are a couple of legislative mandates addressing the lack of openness[Read More…]
Editor’s Column: A Sad Milestone
The United States marked a sad milestone this week: 500,000 deaths attributed to COVID-19. You can argue about the numbers. You can insist that the doctors who are treating those patients are fudging the numbers for nefarious reasons. You can say most of those people would have died anyway because[Read More…]
Loose Ends: Shop at home first
MEEKER | Supporting small businesses has always been a part of community life. That is, it was the underpinning of a healthy local economy, until the economic upheaval caused by COVID-19 threatened to make shopping for the necessities of life more difficult. The bloating of the corporate conglomerates such as[Read More…]
Loose Ends: Wasn’t Born Yesterday
MEEKER | “I wasn’t born yesterday, you know.” Each time I hear someone say these words or a facsimile, I want to say, “I know, you keep telling us that!” However, I restrain myself. These days when I hear people use such an old folksy expression that asserts the rest[Read More…]
Loose Ends: This is how it is now
MEEKER | This is how it is now — no same old/same old, no business as usual — as we all attempt to go back to our daily lives. Reading a magazine article recently I came across that phrase and the obtuse “new normal” that is used to describe daily[Read More…]
Editor’s Column: The Best Laid Schemes
Those of Scottish heritage may know that last Monday, Jan. 25, was Burns Night, the celebration of 18th century Scottish poet and bard Robert Burns, whose most well-known ode is “Auld Lang Syne.” Burns also wrote a poem in 1785 titled “To a Mouse” after he accidently upended a field[Read More…]
Editor’s Column: Bad apples, and what to do about them
We’ve all heard the phrase, “one bad apple ruins the whole bunch.” It’s an old school idiom. (Like, really old school … Shakespearean, maybe even earlier.) Benjamin Franklin’s “Poor Richard’s Almanack” (circa 1736) put it this way: “The rotten apple spoils his companion.” In these days when we buy a[Read More…]
