Letters to the Editor

Ethanol does not make sense environmentally, economically
Ethanol is an industry built on government mandates, subsidies, tariffs and the farm lobby. Heralded as a boon to make America less dependent on foreign oil it has become just another government boondoggle. An independent study by Professor David Pimentel of Cornell University, estimates it takes approximately 1.3 gallons of oil to produce a single gallon [...]

Stu Ellis

So, Do Ya Think It’ll Rain?
In a typical year, and this one is certainly not an example of typical, farmers are vexed when it rains on the other side of the road, but not on their field. When your crop needs rain, and the neighboring field gets a “million dollar” shower, that is a reason to ask why? [...]

KURT ERICKSON

Budget stalemate is getting stale
This nearly annual stalemate over the state budget is getting stale. Here’s what we wrote on July 1, 2008: “In what is becoming a trend: Another fiscal year is set to begin with no state budget in place.” Even though some of the players have changed, they still seem to be merely cutting and pasting their way through [...]

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KEN LOWE

Humanity?
Step this way, gentlemen. It’s time to show you why I’ve called you all here today. I apologize, but the face masks and goggles are necessary - and I’m really sorry about having to put you through the decontamination airlock. Remember, no matter what, don’t tap on the glass. We have finally recovered the specimen we’ve sought [...]

Mark Tupper

Miller cut by Panthers, hoping for a call
I heard Brit Miller was returning to Decatur Tuesday and confirmed that when I bumped into his sister waiting for a mouth-watering lunch at Krekel’s. So I text messaged Brit and asked if he’d have a little time for me on Wednesday, hoping to catch up and give readers an update as he tries to win [...]

The Sports Desk

Best days in sports
Part of it is because of the two weeks of hype. Part of it is because of the commercials stuck in between. And a lot of it is because so many parties are built around the game. But it has all come together to make Super Bowl Sunday the biggest day is sports. That’s now indisputable as [...]

H&R Preps

One strange afternoon
In terms of the weird-o-meter, my Thursday afternoon was up there. I started a bit bummed, because I thought Wednesday’s rain was going to force me to miss my slow-pitch game on Thursday. Eisenhower and Lincoln had a 4:30 p.m. sectional showdown in Lincoln, and unless they played a quick, 1-0 game, no way I had [...]

Tim Cain

A thumbs-up from Mark Whitacre
He liked it. Since the release of the trailer for “The Informant,” one of the questions I couldn’t answer definitively was Mark Whitacre – the titular subject of the film – thought of it. My suspicion was Whitacre was at least all right with the film, especially since he’d seen much if not all of the [...]

Mommy Talk

Wisconsin Dells, part two
The next day, Sunday, was bright and sunny, so we had high hopes for the day’s activities. We started with breakfast at a log cabin restaurant in the nearby town of Baraboo. Max had quite a fit in there – refusing to eat or sit with us. I spent most of the meal outside with [...]

H&R Health

Thinking pink
This past Saturday, I had the chance to do something I don’t do very often. I took off my reporter hat, put my notebook away and melted into the crowd of an event I otherwise would have covered for the newspaper. Not many things can make me get up early on a Saturday morning. In college, [...]

Control Freak

Michael Jackson?s role in gaming
Unless you live under a rock, you probably heard that Michael Jackson died today at age 50. While I mostly liked his music (particularly the older stuff), I wasn’t a huge fan. Still, I don’t think anybody can deny his important place in the history of music. Anyway, I wanted to point you in the [...]

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H&R Business

Survey shows dropping food prices
As we've seen gas prices creep back up, the good news is food prices have started to go back down. Retail food prices decreased slightly for the third consecutive quarter, according to the latest American Farm Bureau Federation Marketbasket survey. The survey shows the total cost of 16 items that can be bused to prepare a [...]