Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
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“So this is Christmas, and what have you done?” The first line of John Lennon’s famous holiday song reminds us that the season calls for a personal account of our efforts to aid community and humanity. Another year is ending, he reminds us, and a new one—with a new set of needs—awaits just a few days away. Kimball and the surrounding area faces many challenges: economic growth, low income families, an aging population, homes and buildings in disrepair. Of course, most many parts of the world share in these. But we believe the residents of Kimba...
I’ve had some clever ideas in my time. For instance, it once occurred to me that figure skating would reap a much larger television market share if patches of thin ice were hidden around the rink. Just imagine the potential for excitement: “She’s attempting a double axel with a—uh oh! Her chance at a gold medal just disappeared into freezing water.” Similar logic could be applied to other lagging small screen genres. Imagine women’s daytime talk shows hosted by those guys from Duck Dynasty or morning news panels demanding nuanced, balanced an...
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow. This phrase from a popular Christmas song has never before been sung with such sincerity and intensity as it is this year across Nebraska. With more than 96 percent of Nebraska suffering from extreme or exceptional drought, we desperately need the moisture. Farmers and ranchers have been battling severe drought conditions across the entire state, in what has become one of the driest and hottest spells on record. Drought conditions extend to more than 60 percent of the contiguous United States and have...
Over the course of the past few years, we have seen the Environmental Protection Agency become prevalent in agriculture. The EPA is a government program that was established to protect human health and the environment, although, some believe they have become overbearing. The EPA has produced many acts dealing with agriculture. All of these acts have requirements, many of which require monetary action to conform to. In addition to the current acts, in a recent USDA Agricultural Air Quality Task Force meeting, an outline of new regulations was pr...
I have the honor of representing Nebraska’s Third District, which is one of the largest and most rural districts in the country. I love rural America, but oftentimes Congress and bureaucratic agencies in Washington make decisions without fully considering how laws, rules and regulations will affect rural populations differently from other Americans. For example, rural Americans tend to have greater challenges accessing quality health care because hospitals and physicians are more concentrated in urban areas. To see a specialist, rural A...
There is always a need for those who think big. Several of Kimball’s prominent, vocal residents and a few of its civic leaders, however, have made a point of the little things people can do to improve the community’s outlook. From clean up events fueled by volunteer labor to city grants to help with signage or beautification, small steps eventually work to ensure that shops and families thrive. So we believe a nod of thanks is due to Ken Smith, activities director at Kimball Junior-Senior High School. Smith spent months over the last sch...
Recently a photojournalist came under fire for snapping pictures. R. Umar Abbasi happened to be in a New York subway station when one man pushed another onto the tracks in front of an oncoming train following a brief argument. In the wake of the event, to quell hostility directed at him for failing to jump in and help, Abbasi claimed he clicked the shutter repeatedly hoping the flash would alert the train’s driver. More likely, his journalistic instincts kicked in. News photographers cover their share of tragedies. Someone must document d...
All too often in Washington, partisan gridlock seems to be the name of the game. But last week, in a reassuring display of will, the Senate put aside its differences to pass important legislation for our men and women in uniform, our veterans and our national security. The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which authorizes Department of Defense operations, passed in the Senate by a vote of 98-0. The NDAA included some important provisions for Nebraska as well as some bipartisan amendments I offered to help our veterans. One of these...
I am writing on behalf of the no-brainers. They are the people that voted to destroy the rest areas--those nice, well built buildings that were paid for by the taxpayers of Nebraska and used by everone that traveled the Interstate. There are some no-brainers that build new guard rails. Years ago, a semi went off the road between the the two lanes and landed down on the county road two miles west of Bushnell. Fortunately no one was seriously hurt. The state came out and put up the safest guard rails money could buy, from one lane of the...
Often during the holiday season, we take time to reconnect with family and friends over a meal. We’re able to do so because hardworking folks in rural America deliver the most abundant and affordable food supply on earth. It’s also the safest food supply--an achievement made possible by a wide range of skilled, dedicated people. It all starts with our growers and processors, who are always asking how they can produce a safer product. They have the support of USDA staff at more than 6,000 plants around the country and at U.S. ports of entry. The...
Over the next several days, Harold Farrar will attend his last city meetings in an official capacity. After serving Kimball as Clerk-Treasurer and as City Administrator, his commitment to family forced him to relinquish—very reluctantly—his commitment to this town’s people and government. Indeed, he was so hesitant to leave Kimball without all loose ends tied, he gave notice well in advance of his departure and took as active a part in the search for his replacement as the law and propriety allow. In that one act, as with his day to day work,...
There’s nothing like a little violent tragedy to get Americans talking. Well, not talking exactly--just following a well-worn script that contains plenty of drama and lots of character, but no real conclusion. The story generally opens with a few gunshots. Over the long weekend, Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher shot his girlfriend nine times and himself once. His senseless acts left two people dead and an infant orphaned. Reacting to the tragedy, columnists and--most notably--sports broadcaster Bob Costas referred to presence of h...