Viewpoints

To the Editor:

I grew up in the Iowa of long ago. My father, a small farmer, was able to provide all four of his children with a college degree from one of our state universities.
In those “before times” when the wise leaders in Iowa provided nearly 80% of the funding to those schools, tuition was affordable for the masses. Our legislature currently only provides 30.5% of Regent funds. A two- or four-year degree allows for more choices and employment opportunities.

To the Editor:

On the 4th of July, we celebrate our nation’s freedom and independence. Freedom is a bedrock value for nearly every Iowan and American.  We all want the freedom to make our own choices and be in control of our lives and our long-term pursuits.

Freedom allows us to make decisions that benefit our families and future generations, to think for ourselves, and to stand up for what we believe. We want the freedom that an education provides: to pursue a meaningful life, and to have the opportunity to thrive, and to retire with dignity.  But how free are we?

“Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Holy Spirit. There are varieties of services, but the same Lord. And there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.” – the apostle Paul, 1 Corinthians 12:4-7

The more things change, the more they stay the same – or so goes the clichéd formula.

But you’d think followers of Jesus, empowered as we are by the promise of God’s Holy Spirit in Christ, would enjoy immunity from such apathy and inaction.

Yet, if you compare what the apostle Paul writes to early Church to what he might write to us some 2,000-odd years later, the similarity of message is stunning. In candid assessment of the sorry state of our affairs these days, a colleague pointedly observes: “If Paul could see the Church in America today, we’d be getting a letter.”

To the Editor:

Way back in the 1930s, President Roosevelt instituted the Social Security Scheme because we Americans were too stupid to handle our own money. Back in the 1930s, the Christian Church was very strong and they helped people in need and our communities were safe and had very little crime.

Now, the Democrat Party is disrespecting the Christian Church and our law officers with Defund the Police policy. David Horowitz, the very strong Democrat for years, has come full bore for Trump. I say, what took you so long to see the light? Horowitz says the Democrats have the mentality of gangsters, and how true that is.

To the Editor:

I talked to a friend recently about how I was bothered with all the abortions taking place in this country, and he told me the soul doesn’t enter the body until after you are born, so it was just a fetus. I told him that I read, in the Bible in Jeremiah 1:5, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.”

So God has the whole life planned out for this child and someone kills it. Do you think that makes God happy? Then I told him I listened to Andrew Wommack the other day and he said that if you vote for a pro-abortion politician, you are an accessory to murder. He wanted to change the subject, so I just said that it is something to think about.

Dick Kistler
Waukon
 

To the Editor:

The following is in response to numerous accusations and attacks that WMT radio has been waging against me and my office on multiple media and social media platforms.

WMT Radio out of Cedar Rapids sponsors and hosts an annual “Tractorcade” event. WMT (branch of iHeart Media Incorporated out of New York, NY) is a large, private, for-profit business. The $150 entry fee plus additional costs, that go directly to the coffers of WMT/iHeart Media, is charged to each participant wishing to participate. Furthermore, there are multiple businesses and corporations that sponsor the event and that WMT profits from.

WMT has been sponsoring this event for many years. During this time, they have successfully been able to get publicly-funded law enforcement agencies to go along with providing private security functions, such as shutting down highways and busy intersections to motorists, for their private event and subsequent personal profit.

To the Editor:

According to the Midwest Farm Report of May 31, 2023, “Iowa State University economists estimate pork producers lost $49.47 per market hog sold in April, making it the sixth consecutive month of losses. Market hog prices are at their lowest level since January 2021.”

Farm markets do fluctuate. U.S. hog producers were hoping for large pork exports to China, but this is unlikely to happen since China now plans to prioritize their own pork production within their country.

Add to this concerns about hog diseases that can wipe out an entire livestock facility, and industrial-size hog production is becoming a more dangerous proposition. Is it wise for farmers to seek risky financial expansions into the CAFO industrial model at this time?

To the Editor:

When I was married to my first husband, he did not want any more children. We had three at the time. I became pregnant again with the fourth child.

It was the year they passed the law that it was legal, in 1973, to kill babies. He said I had better get an abortion.

I was so young at the time, and he was extremely violent. There were no advocates at the time, when families were threatened, to go to for safety.

I begged him to “let me have this baby,” and if he did I would get my tubes tied. I did, and I am so grateful I had the baby.

Today, it is no big deal to murder babies. It also includes selling baby parts to various agencies after a torturous murder. They also call a baby fetus a glob of tissue.

God created baby human beings between one man and one woman. It starts at conception. So, why do we think we have the right to murder God’s creation?

To the Editor:

June 15, 2023 is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. Northeast Iowa Area Agency on Aging is proud to join communities in the USA and all over the world to help raise awareness of this systemic social challenge.

As Americans, we believe in justice for all. Yet we fail to live up to this promise when we allow older members of our society to be abused or neglected. Older people are vital contributing members of American society, and their maltreatment diminishes all of us. Just as we have confronted and addressed the social issues of child abuse and domestic violence, so too can we find solutions to address issues like elder abuse, which also threatens the well-being of our community.

To the Editor:

During the last few years there has been an amazing shift in the world of mental health. People have begun to understand that the mental health issues that someone may struggle with do not define them, and that they need support and love from their family and peers.

The stigma that once hung over depression, anxiety and other mental disorders is lifting, making it easier for people to come to terms with their illnesses and seek the help they need to heal. An extremely beneficial way to combat mental illness is to attend peer support groups for mental health. Here is a list from clinical psychologist David Susman, PhD of six reasons a support group could best serve your needs.