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Freedom to speaking our mind is what United States is all about

Letters

To the editor: As Americans, we all want a country where we can speak our mind and live our lives within societal norms… without restriction. The United States has done well for over 250 years; but, tempers are flaring. People are polarizing…right/left, red/blue. The more polarized we become, the more violent the rhetoric, the wider the chasm between us gets. It is time to stop, to listen. We all want to be able to speak from the heart, the mind. And, we should. We all grow, if we listen, and integrate, thoughts from others with our own. Different perspectives, ideas and thoughts ...

Adapting to disaster

Columns

You can hardly watch the news or read a newspaper without learning about yet another disaster. It almost seems normal that something terrible is happening to someone somewhere. People losing their lives, far-ranging damage, and consequent hardship are the fruit of disaster. The prolonged psychological impact of these experiences cannot be overstated. One of the things that gets us through a disastrous experience is called Resilience. Simply put, resilience is a person’s ability to adjust to, adapt to, and recover from, exposure to a difficult or even terrible situation. Another way ...

Blaming the left for violence

Letters

To the editor: I write letters to the editor. I try to share my Christian, conservative (right of center) views with anyone who might care to read or listen. I receive many words of support from passers by on the street. Words from people I know, and complete strangers who recognize me. I thank you all for the kindness. I always ask everyone to join me in standing up for Christian, conservative issues by writing letters as well. I can’t do this alone, and other prospectives from conservatives need to be heard. I also receive hate mail. Always anonymous. The last one came to my ...

A call for the return of civility and respect for fellow Americans

Editorials

The state of politics in the U.S. took another ugly turn last week with the assassination of Charlie Kirk, a popular conservative activist. He was killed at one of his debate events held at an Utah college. He was allegedly killed by a young man who apparently immersed himself in the “dark corners of the internet,” according to Utah Gov. Spencer Cox. Unfortunately, it didn’t take long for the political finger pointing to heat up. Unfortunately, it’s this kind of political rhetoric that spurs threats and more potential violent acts. That is why we once again praise U.S. ...

Making a board

Columns

I recently decided to expand my woodworking skill set by making a board. It turns out that this is much more difficult than it sounds. Yes, I could have simply gone to a lumberyard and purchased some wood. Or I could have wandered into a home improvement megastore where I likely would have gotten lost and forced live off the land by swilling sports drinks and chewing on leather tool belts. But buying a board would have been the easy, wimpy way of doing things. This might be due to my Norwegian heritage, but I believe that anything worth doing is worth doing the hard way. That’s why ...

Thumbs up/down

Editorials

THUMBS DOWN Political violence on the rise On Wednesday, conservative activist Charlie Kirk was murdered while giving a speech at Utah Valley University in Orem. This is just the latest in politically motivated violence. In June, Minnesota State Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband were murdered in their home. Last year, there were multiple assassination attempts against Donald Trump. This is a level of politically motivated violence the United States has not seen in many years. At the same time, school shootings continue to occur frequently, with another shooting occurring at a ...