Viewpoints

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1)

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being.” (John 1:1-3)

Some years ago, on a family vacation to Chicago, we visited the Field Museum of National History. Most captivating for me during our visit was a detailed, special exhibit on the Big Bang Theory, science’s leading hypothesis for how the universe began.

Simply put, the Big Bang Theory suggests that the universe as we know it started at an infinitely hot, dense, single point that exploded in a nanosecond some 13.8 billion years ago. That enormous blast created all the chemical elements now composing the universe. The conflagration also triggered a warp-speed cosmic expansion that continues today.

To the Editor:

The editorial page citations on whether humans are the main cause of climate change should include the observations of writers like Peter Brennen who, in “The Ends Of The World”, notes that past extinctions have “frightening echoes in our own world - which is undergoing changes not seen for tens of millions, or even hundreds of millions, of years.”

To the Editor:

In response to the January 19, 2022 letter to the editor by Gary M. Stewart, it does not take much to discern that this gentleman is a disciple of the demise of the earth due to man-made climate change and that it is going to come really, really quick - “The Earth doesn’t have time for this,” as he ended his letter to the editor. His cognitive dissonance began immediately when he began his letter to the editor with, “He (that’s me) revisits and recycles a litany of repeatedly and thoroughly debunked climate change denial claims.”

To the Editor:

During the Governor’s 2022 Condition of the State address, a $1,000 bonus was unveiled for teachers who worked through the pandemic. This is a great first step. However, it was not mentioned that the funds paying for these bonuses came from the American Rescue Plan created by President Biden but only voted for by one of Iowa’s four U.S. Representatives.

The bonus is a good start, but should be followed with permanent measures to reward our teachers. Restoring collective bargaining, increasing the raises to more than the cost of living, providing art and music funding, and reducing class sizes are a few measures that would help all teachers. Teachers need higher salaries overall, not just a one-time bonus.

To the Editor:

There are no quick-fix ways for how to get sober fast, and there is not one simple formula for staying sober either. Whether you are looking to get sober or maintain your current state of sobriety, there are definite obstacles that must be overcome for your greatest chance at success, and they are as follows:

Get Honest With Yourself: In the depths of addiction, lying to yourself about the severity of the problem is very common. And of course, accepting the fact that you have a problem is the first step to getting the help and treatment that you need.

Have An Open Mind: You may be able to get sober without an open mind, but an open mind is necessary for lasting recovery. For those new to recovery, sobriety is a scary thought. It is an entirely new world. Literally, everything has changed around you, and it is this feeling that can often spiral people into relapse.

submitted by Allamakee County Attorney Anthony Gericke

COVID
In 2020 and 2021 our office, like almost every institution across the country, had to deal with the COVID virus and the ensuing fall-out it created. After Governor Reynolds signed an order prohibiting gatherings of more than ten people, the Iowa Supreme Court suspended most in-person court services beginning on March 17, 2020 to limit in-person services in order to mitigate the spread of the virus.

Many restrictions were put in place and many government buildings were closed. Our court system in the state of Iowa, however, did not shut down.

To the Editor:

Allamakee County received nearly $2.7 million as part of its allocation of State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds through the American Rescue Plan, and the County should use a portion of that funding to create a countywide commercial building facade improvement program.

A facade is an exterior, public-facing side of a building, which typically means the front, but can also include the side if the building is on the corner of a block. An improvement program would allow building owners to do a variety of work, including but not limited to painting, removing siding, replacing windows, updating awnings, tuckpointing and restoring historic features.

To the Editor:

The letter from David M. Johnson is a stroll down Memory Lane. He revisits and recycles a litany of repeatedly and thoroughly debunked climate change denial claims.

Robust documentation of global warming does not rely strictly upon any one organization, such as NASA, or any one scientific method. I will offer only three specific red flags in Mr. Johnson’s letter.

First, the RSS data cited by Mr. Johnson underwent a major correction of technical distortions, and data published 10/1/2017 in the Journal of Climate revealed that since 1998, global warming had occurred at a rate 140% faster (2.4 times as fast). Mr. Johnson has ignored this.

To the Editor:

The traditional idea of a young adult going off to residential college to explore academics and choose a career isn’t always appropriate for current circumstances. Instead, high school students should explore potential careers to make an informed choice about the post-high school education or training that is most fitting for their goals.

Focusing on potential careers before specific college choices provides several benefits:

When we consider the nativity scene, we see that everyone that gathered to worship the Christ child had a special messenger sent to tell them of Christ’s birth.  Mary received a visit from the angel Gabriel; Joseph heard from God in dreams. The shepherds’ quiet night was interrupted by a host of angels, and the wise men heard the message from a silent star. Though each heard in a different way, they all responded to God’s message.

There were others in the Christmas story who heard the message, but did not find a place beside these faithful worshipers.

Herod heard the message from the religious elite of Jerusalem. But he received it as any pagan king might - with fear and hatred. His mind could understand that God’s promise would be born in Bethlehem, but his heart was so full of a desire for power and fear for his throne that he could not accept the blessing of God’s king of love and salvation.