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Local Columns

Slices of Life by Jill Pertler-Late Night TV Guy pays no heed to bedtimes

For the most part, my husband is a rational and logical human being. There is an orderly and predictable pattern to his days. He showers in the morning; brushes his teeth after meals. He rises early and goes to bed at a reasonable hour. He is a reasonable man - for the most part. On occasion, ...

Slices of Life by Jill Pertler-Holding heaven

You forget how tiny they are. And helpless. So utterly, completely helpless. And exhausted. And hungry. And explosive. So literally explosive. Eat, poop, sleep, repeat. Cry, but not often if you are lucky. Babies - of the human variety. They are born helpless and remain dependent on parental ...

Tama Co. Economic Development By Heath Kellogg

Are you committed? There is an old joke in which a chicken and a pig are talking and the chicken says, “Let’s start a restaurant.” The pig replies, “Good idea, but what should we call it?” “How about ‘Ham and Eggs’” says the chicken. “No thanks,” says the pig, “I’d be ...

By Jim Bonser (jbonser@usa.net)Touring the Skies

Ps. 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. “Greetings, greetings, fellow stargazers!” This was how Jack Horkheimer always opened his show on public television. Like this column, Jack usually stuck to what you could see in the night sky with ...

Q&A: Farm Bill Update With U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley

Q: What’s on the table for renewing the next Farm Bill? A: The Agricultural Act of 2014, more commonly known as the Farm Bill, will expire on Sept. 30. The sweeping farm and food law typically is updated every five years. It sets the legal framework for administering a broad range of public ...

Slices of Life by Jill Pertler-A summer for the books

School’s out! Summer stretches out before us like a long and indulgent novel. We pull out shorts, flip flops and bathing suits and stock up on sunscreen and bug spray. We plan for time on the boat, days on the beach, bonfires at night, barbecues in the backyard and the activity I always look ...

Q&A: Transparency in Federal Judiciary with Senator Chuck Grassley

Q: Why are you pushing for better transparency in the federal judiciary? A: Justice Louis Brandeis hit the nail on the head more than a century ago. The future associate justice of the Supreme Court wrote that “Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants.” Through my experience ...

Tama Co. Economic Development By Heath Kellogg

A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin. It was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes - during that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that at least a thousand or so people went through the station, most of them ...