Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
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For the past two months, we at the Observer have dedicated ourselves to uncovering the past, present and future of the famous Wheat Growers Hotel in Kimball. We have spent the equivalent of days pouring over old photographs and documents, and even longer researching in near-century old archived editions of the Observer. In that time, stories and recollections of years long gone have surfaced, and a flurry of emotions have overcome all of us. Happiness and near elation found us when we saw the sheer maginificence of the Wheat Growers Hotel, and...
Every year, in late May, Memorial Day comes around. Sometimes, we forget just why we have that three-day weekend, and focus instead on the cookouts, ball games and free time that we get. Well, if not for the men and women who served and defended the United States, we wouldn’t have that three-day weekend. We wouldn’t have the softball league that starts on Friday. And we certainly would not be able to go to the fairgrounds and watch the Ranch Rodeo this weekend, either. From the globe-engulfing World War II to the Korean Conflict and the dec...
Being located in such close proximity to the state of Colorado, it is not hard to find onself in the midst of a discussion concering the matter of marijuana use, or decriminalization of drugs. Forty-two years ago, then-President Richard Nixon famously declared a “war on drugs.” Despite his (and his successors’) noble intentions, this war has grown larger, fiercer and more dangerous in the decades that followed his declaration. It is estimated that the United States spends over $40 billion each year on the war on drugs. This includes polic...
Over the course of the past month, legislators have been going back-and-forth on the future of the death penalty in the state of Nebraska - only to see debate quashed by a filibuster led by supporters of capital punsishment. Those seeking to end the death penalty point to several claims: mainly, it’s too expensive and it’s inhumane. Supporters of it say that the criminals had their chance, and that the crimes they committed justify what some call an extreme sentence. In all, 32 states - including Nebraska - still have some form of capital pun...
“It is the true interest of America to steer clear of European contentions, which she never can do, while, by her dependence on Britain, she is made the make weight in the scale of British politics.” – Thomas Paine, Common Sense, 1776. Two hundred thirty seven years removed from the year the Declaration of Independence was penned, American foreign policy has changed drastically – and not always for the better. From 1689 to 1945, there were nine major wars in Europe, and the United States played a role in every single one of them. Since the end...
Following the tragedy that took place in Boston last week, countless questions have arisen: Why did these attacks take place? What caused these two young men to act in such a manner? Was extremism involved? Were they lone wolves or part of a larger terrorist organization? The younger of the two suspects, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19, is still in serious condition after sustaining several gunshot wounds, according to reports from The New York Times. Several high-ranking Republican lawmakers have called...
Nebraska’s open records statutes are designed to tread the treacherous ground between the public’s right to know and a governmental entity’s need for privacy in certain circumstances. It is a narrow and tricky path, indeed. The state prevents city officials from releasing the reason Kimball’s economic development director was sacked last week. Indeed, they cannot even confirm that City Administrator Daniel Ortiz dismissed Larissa Binod from the post she held for just over a year. This seems a bit strict. We understand the need to keep probati...
Last week produced so much fodder I hardly know which direction to look for inspiration. There was the moment when cowardly politicians opted for a spot of vacation rather than confronting sequestration head on—a topic especially worthwhile, since the damaging automatic cuts that make up sequestration were intended to force a cowardly congress into action. North Korea apparently tested a nuclear warhead, a fascinating prospect for a nation as yet incapable of mastering electric light, internal combustion engines or the simple act of feeding i...
I have often heard warnings in my time about the obvious dangers of the world. Don’t walk alone at night in a strange neighborhood. Don’t play with fire. Don’t give out personal information on the internet. If a stranger offers you candy, don’t get in the van. Some warnings I have ignored (the candy was worth it by the way), but there is one danger that often gets overlooked: complacency. Too often I hear people say the words “good enough.” Some of the biggest mistakes I’ve ever seen made by friends, acquaintances and even myself have all star...
In just over four months, celebrants in dozens—if not hundreds—of automobiles will pass through Kimball, Bushnell, Dix and Potter on their way to the Lincoln Highway centennial festivities in Kearney. Only four months in the future, participants in the annual Bike Ride Across Nebraska will stop in Kimball before embarking upon their cross-state excursion. These deadlines have been looming for some time. While the organizers of BRAN met with city representatives to discuss needs and amenities, community response to the 100th anniversary dri...
Karl Rove is no friend of democracy. To suggest so would be much like calling the History Channel an educational outlet. How many episodes of “Pawn Stars” or “American Pickers” do you have to watch to hear one reference to George Washington or ancient Athens? You could, of course, switch to the station formerly known as History International—now H2—and catch up on such scintillating shows as “Ancient Aliens” or “Modern Marvels.” No wonder American understanding of the past is somewhat fuzzy. Rove’s nascent days in politics involved pec...
Roses are red, Violets are blue, Was there no better thought in your head, Than to simply buy a card that says “I love you”? Let me start out by saying I like Valentine’s Day. I always have. Perhaps it’s because it is a day when people give you candy, and I was a fat child. However, as years go by, this holiday is getting more and more unbearable. It’s not because of the commercials and not because of the candy (I apparently still have a problem), but rather it is the Valentine’s Day cards. I know that there are people who are paid to phrase t...
Despite Wall Street’s newfound optimism and other indications of stuttering economic growth, close to 15 million Americans remain out of work according to reasonable estimates. This figure accumulates the unemployed, the long term unemployed and the “marginally attached”—meaning those who have flat out given up after dozens of months on or off the dole. Now, there are countless plans to correct this problem. One group wants to cut taxes, especially for the wealthy. Another prefers to raise them, specifically targeting the wealthy. Others...
Over the weekend, Lieutenant Governor Rick Sheehy resigned. The decision came suddenly, after reports surfaced regarding improper use of his state-issued mobile phone. Apparently Sheehy logged more than 2,000 calls to four women, one of whom admits to a romantic relationship with the now former Lieutenant Governor. Of course, this is not the first time a politician has been caught with his pants down, literally or figuratively. We wish to call attention to Governor Dave Heineman’s performance when he learned of the scandal. He immediately calle...
With the recent tragedies and shootings around the nation, I find myself like most of you wondering "Why?". I do not wonder why it happens, because most of the time there is no good reason or even a reason that will in any way soothe the pain inflicted or make enough sense so that we can point to it and say "Oh, that's why." I wonder why we blame the people who we blame for the act itself. Take the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut for example. Residents of Newtown were quick to offer sympathy to the families that had...
Does Kimball really need two elementary schools? Logic would suggest a negative response, as students and staff from West will reportedly fit into space at Mary Lynch. But the thought of leaving Kimball with another empty shell must be a cause for concern. We acknowledge that budgets generally rule in these matters. Kimball Public Schools receives no equalization funds from the state, giving administrators little room for maneuver. Yet we have no enthusiasm for the alternative--however necessary. The city already features too many ghostly...
A number of articles appeared in print recently cringing over the future of America’s vaunted middle class. Once upon a time, white collar jobs and well paid union labor—as well as a global war that left this country in a most enviable position as the only completely intact, up-to-date industrial complex on earth—ensured that a good chunk of the population had access to merchandise and other aspects of the good life. Yet all the while, it seems, modernization incubated the seeds of middle class destruction. Well, that’s what I’ve been read...
This is a follow up on my Sheriff’s Corner about gun control. First, thank you to all the people who thanked me for the article and my stance. I’d be remiss if I didn’t address firearms safety and use. Tragic accidents happen and it is so important to be careful with firearms. Many years ago when I was Scout I was asked to be a pallbearer for a boy in my troop. He was visiting his father and as it was common at his father’s house to look at the guns, a fascination that many children have, his father removed a shotgun from the gun cabinet and ha...
The Man died on Saturday. On the surface, Stanley Frank Musial was one of the greatest hitters ever to step onto a baseball diamond. A member of the Hall of Fame, a 24-time all star, player of the decade, 475 home runs, a lifetime batting average of .331—there’s no way around his stature on the field. Back his playing days, between 1941 and 1963, a songwriter even plugged the line “he’s the finest in the land, swingin’ Stan the Man” into a ditty dedicated the Cardinals’ legend. Now, I grew up hearing stories of Musial and his exploits. St....
Recently a number of sheriffs around the country, including Kimball County’s Harry Gillway, insisted they would refuse to enforce any decision they considered unconstitutional. Specifically, these officers were referring to as yet unclear (and as yet theoretical) limitations on gun ownership. Defense of the Constitution is an admirable thing. Those signatory to the initial document and the first ten amendments intended this nation’s founding paper to defend the rights of individuals within a government and define which decisions should rig...
