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Recognizing those who protect us

Today is National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day, meant to recognize the men and women in blue for upholding the oath to protect and to serve. “Cops” — whether municipal, county, state, military or federal officers — have a very tough job made all the more difficult in today’s acrid environment where just a few bad apples cause people to judge all of our valued protectors. To appreciate our officers, one need only look at what happened to U.S. Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who died from injuries suffered in Wednesday’s riots when a mob stormed the Capitol ...

We are not enemies

Violence in any form is unacceptable. Yet, objections to the results of the presidential election have inflamed many Americans to the extent that a minority of citizens resorted to violence in our nation’s capital on Wednesday. Sadly, four people died from the chaos. Dozens were injured, including law enforcement officers. What happened on Wednesday in Washington D.C. is a permanent stain on this nation. The world views us in a different light. “We” view “us” in a different light. We mourn that this happened in America, that more than two centuries of peaceful ...

Constitution doesn’t protect your right to be negligent

The 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees that we Americans can own firearms. We venture to suggest those who wrote and ratified the Constitution did not intend it to promote the accidental shootings of children. In fact, it is likely accidental shootings of children were far less common in those days. Simply loading a firearm was more complicated and time consuming. Gunpowder had to be poured down the barrel, following by a lead bullet. A ramrod was used to force both into place. Then, a little gunpowder had to be poured into a small pan at the breech. The gun ...

A simple wish for the New Year

We want to keep our wishes for 2021 pretty simple so let’s just offer this: We fervently hope and wish that the grand gesture of a handshake will return. Oh, we do like the elbow bump meant to protect us from this awful virus, but nothing is like a grateful handshake as a greeting or affirmation of respect or a job well done. We miss greeting our friends, colleagues and patrons with a handshake. Of course, a handshake isn’t good without looking into the person’s eyes and sharing a mutual greeting, or that big smile that’s now hidden by masks that protect us from ...

Happy New Year: Please don’t put others at risk

It will not be a surprise if months of pent-up frustrations prompt many people to blow off more than a little steam this New Year’s Eve. The evening is viewed by many as the one time a year they let their hair down, anyway. There is nothing wrong with having a little fun, of course. But there is plenty wrong with putting others a risk. You know exactly where we are going — driving while under the influence of alcohol or other drugs. It is always a danger on New Years’ Eve and may be even more so this year. In some states, traditional partying venues will be either shut ...

Good riddance to 2020

We can only hope and pray that 2021will be a much, much better year than 2020. Eventually, anyway. It certainly won’t start out well, what with this God-forsaken pandemic stealing what we cherish. Let’s insist that our government leaders stop crying about most everything, get a handle on this pandemic and, moreover, work to prevent it from ever happening again. Of course, we’re not confident that will happen unless there is much more respect, cooperation and agreement on establishing methods to combat future pandemics. Our divisive politics continue to hurt — if not ...