Viewpoints

To the Editor:

Have you ever taken a minute to consider what alcohol does to your body and the irreparable harm that could be caused when you drink and drive? Even if you think you’re not affected, science says otherwise. According to the Iowa Driver’s Manual, here’s what even a small amount of alcohol does to your brain:
• Within 20-40 minutes, the areas of your brain controlling judgment and skill are impaired.
• Your reflexes and reaction times slow down.
• You can’t see as well, and you are less alert.
• You have trouble judging distance, speed, and movement around you (such as other vehicles if you are driving).
• Your coordination is reduced.
• Your eye muscles relax, causing your vision to lose its sharpness.
• Your night vision is cut in half, and your side vision is reduced to one-third.

The Wanderings of a Wayward Follower of Jesus

As Followers of Jesus the Christ, we have received the free gift of God, which is eternal life. Romans 6:23. This free gift is available to all who turn their lives over to our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ.   And yet this free gift comes with a very high cost. The cost of this “free” gift is twofold. There was and is a cost to the provider of the gift, God and there is a cost to the receiver of the gift, which is us.    

Each persona of the Triune God has paid and continues to pay to make this gift of salvation possible.   John 3:16 and Romans 8:32 tell us of God’s sacrifice of His only Begotten Son. God gave up Jesus for us. Jesus sacrificed His Life for us. Even the Holy Spirit has a ministry in and through us that has spanned the ages, constantly trying to change or at least guide the stubborn hearts of sinful people. John 14:26.   

To the Editor:

I think President Trump is an expert at distractions. We’ve seen the East Wing of the White House demolished, the historic rose garden tilled up and replaced by concrete, the unveiling of unpresidential plaques at the White House deriding past presidents, and finally the renaming of the Kennedy Center in Trump’s honor. Over the next three years we will probably see much of the proud city of Washington D.C. renamed and redone to honor Donald Trump.

But again, these distract from his real purpose, that of taking away rights, destroying lives, and ignoring laws. Trump has a tendency to deflect and distract when there’s something he doesn’t want out there. Don’t be distracted. The Justice Department has failed to release the Epstein files which Congress required it to do in the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

To the Editor:

Mark 11:23: “Truly I tell you, whoever says to this mountain, Be lifted up and thrown into the sea and does not doubt at all in his heart but believes that what he says will take place, it will be done for him.” AMPC 

Job 22:28: “You will declare a thing, And it will be established for you; so light will shine on your ways.”

So if you declare (out loud) that you and every one you love will always be healthy and wealthy and wise, etc. and believe, it will be so in the future, you will have it. But if you declare that you will never be able to do this or that, etc. then that will also be so.

“Death and life are in the power of the tongue...” Proverbs 18:21 (NKJV)

“You are snared by the words of your mouth...” Proverbs 6:2 (NKJV)

“For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” Matthew 12:37 (NKJV)

To the Editor:

The Standard’s recent announcement to close their brick-and-mortar location and shift to remote operations reflects current industry trends. Newspapers across the country have been impacted by a flurry of evolving circumstances, all of which have forever changed the landscape of journalism. Digital transformation, revenue shifts, multiple platform options, financial pressures, and audience migration have imposed a new narrative.

But like anything in life, our response influences outcomes. The ability to adapt in an ever-changing world is an underrated quality, and probably one of the most valuable assets for any business.

The move to a home office points to resilience within the storms of change. In an environment that demands flexibility to survive, it is a necessary step to keep this legacy newspaper in circulation for years to come.  The value of having a local paper is immeasurable. It can never be truly appreciated until it is gone.

To the Editor:

For too long, higher education in Iowa has drifted from its core mission: preparing a highly skilled workforce and anchoring talent in our communities. This next legislative session, we have a clear opportunity to bring reform by allowing community colleges to offer a limited number of bachelor’s degrees supporting students going into high demand fields.

Many Iowa students don’t lack ambition or ability; they lack access. In rural Iowa, the nearest university may be hours away. Working adults and parents can’t uproot their lives for distant campuses, leaving hardworking Iowans shut out of completing their degree. Rural Iowa deserves better.

To the Editor:

President Donald Trump has given the farmers a Christmas present - a promise of $12 billion of bailout payments for the disruption of markets, which caused significant ag losses. However, these bailouts are like taking someone’s Ford truck worth easily $60,000, wrecking it, and then giving the owner a token payment, but not fixing the truck.

While $12 billion sounds like a lot of money, it doesn’t compare to the $20 billion (plus $5 billion more down the road) that Trump gave to Argentina’s president. Who is more important - farmers or a foreign government?

There is no buyout for livestock producers who are also hit with lower prices due to Trump’s tariffs, especially hog producers. The livestock producers won’t even receive a token payment, just a wrecked truck.

To the Editor:

Have you noticed the coffee prices these days? From May of 2024 to July of this year coffee prices climbed 33%. There have been recent extended droughts in both Brazil and Viet Nam, the two biggest world-wide coffee producers. But the administration’s 50% tariffs on Brazil’s exports have added much more to U.S. costs.

Drug costs grew by 10.2% in 2024 and are expected to grow another 9-11% this year. Those not on Medicare or Medicaid are bearing the brunt of these increases.

Anyone going to the grocery store these days has seen the cost of groceries climb higher and higher.  People are having to change to cheaper brands of products, cheaper meats and cut back on non-essentials.

To the Editor:

In small communities across our state, news travels fast - and sometimes not in the most helpful way.

Recently there have been several long term care facilities that have made the news. While it’s important that situations are handled properly and that accountability exists, I also think it’s just as important to remember something else:

There are so many good, hardworking people in these buildings who show up every single day with compassion, patience, and genuine care for the residents who call it home. Not every story makes the news - like the quiet kindnesses, the laughs during morning care, the extra time spent comforting someone who’s lonely, or the staff who go above and beyond without ever asking for recognition.

One incident doesn’t define an entire team or the countless positive moments that happen there every day.

Thanksgiving has often struck me as an odd holiday. I don’t mean that it’s odd that we gather with family and overeat - Americans do that on Christmas and the 4th of July, too. It’s odd that the American spirit has not found a way to commercialize this holiday.

Christmas is a multi-billion dollar bonanza, the 4th of July is a booming spectacle of spending, and even Easter now requires a full shopping basket of candy eggs and bunny decorations. But somehow only the supermarket has found a way to capitalize on Thanksgiving.

Why is this, I have wondered? Is it because Americans are universally a thankful, content people? Hardly! We have our share of grumpy, greedy people, longing for the next something. Or are we unthankful because we think that our own hard work is the reason for our blessings? We would pat ourselves on the back if only society wouldn’t think of us as completely self-centered.