An uncomfortable topic
An uncomfortable topic By Arvid Huisman So, did you ever consider marrying a cousin? I didn’t either. Don’t misunderstand, I have dozens of cousins and about half of them are fem…
The Document Divide: Why public record laws are failing average Americans, and what to do about it
Sunshine Week column The Document Divide: Why public record laws are failing average Americans, and what to do about it By David Cuillier Brechner Freedom of Information Project Fr…
The challenge of small cars and ceiling fans
The challenge of small cars and ceiling fans By Arvid Huisman Several years ago a Facebook friend who is a past schoolmate from the mid-1950s sent me some copies of yearbook phot…
Enjoying a non-irritating retirement
Enjoying a non-irritating retirement By Arvid Huisman Compared with a lot of men, I’m a rather boring guy. I have no major hobbies. Many men enjoy golfing. I tried it; even took…
Feature Columns: Strengthening Iowa’s Voice: Iowa’s cancer rates
Feature Columns: Strengthening Iowa’s Voice: Iowa’s cancer rates Editor’s Note: The Iowa Newspaper Association presents questions to the Republican and Democratic parties in a feat…
Guest Column: Farmers shouldn’t need permission to fix what they own
Guest Column: Farmers shouldn’t need permission to fix what they own By Aaron Lehman When something breaks on our farm, my first instinct is the same one my father had, and his f…
Ten Commandments
Ten Commandments By Arvid Huisman Some 3,300 years ago ̶ give or take a century or two ̶ Moses came down a mountain with a code of law authored by God Himself. Those laws, th…
To see a person as more
To see a person as more By Arvid Huisman As a society we are too often preoccupied with the superficial. Good looks and athletic ability too often carry more weight than a pleasa…
Atlantic school board teaches a lesson in accountability
Atlantic school board teaches a lesson in accountability By Randy Evans It’s funny how a government body can learn and teach an important civics lesson in the time it takes a stu…
Guest Column: Inside the Iowa Legislative process
Guest Column: Inside the Iowa Legislative process By Rep. Cindy Golding, District 83 Each General Assembly in Iowa lasts two years. 2026 is the second year of the 91st General Assemb…
Opa’s and my memories
Opa’s and my memories By Arvid Huisman My paternal grandfather, who I knew as Opa, was born in 1899, the year the first automobiles were displayed in Iowa at the Linn County fair…