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  • Judges order offers time to lessen pain from leasing ban

    Jul 1, 2021

    Days after taking office, President Joe Biden signed an executive order pausing new oil and gas leases on federal lands. The decision produced immediate concern across Wyoming. The state is heavily reliant on the energy sector — particularly fossil fuels — to fund government services. The industry is also a key source of jobs, both directly and through the myriad welding, machining and transportation companies that serve the industry. While Biden’s order was directed at all states where drilling occurs on federal lands, Wyoming felt its impac...

  • A solemn promise

    Jun 24, 2021

    “I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” For many of us, the Pledge of Allegiance is the first meaningful thing we ever memorized, and the words are imprinted in our memory through repetition — at school, sporting events, meetings, parades and anywhere else Americans gather in the presence of Old Glory. Because of that repetition, however, the true meaning behind the pledge we make to our flag and the count...

  • Enjoy the warm days safely

    Jun 17, 2021

    For more than a year, we were stuck inside, away from our friends and families. There was the pandemic to deal with, to protect ourselves from. Then along came winter, and we were further isolated and kept indoors. Spring crept in at its own pace, then suddenly in the last week, summer opened the door on its blast furnace. We love it, missed it and couldn’t wait to get out in it. But the combination of a long layoff without being active outside and the sudden spike in temperatures can create its own problems. Data from the National Oceanic a...

  • Colonial Pipeline shutdown shows need to guard against cyber attacks

    May 27, 2021

    Earlier this month, hackers collected $4.4 million in ransom after pulling off a cyber-attack that forced the temporary shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline. The shutdown was no small matter. The pipeline delivers about 45% of the gasoline consumed on the East Coast, according to The Associated Press. Not surprisingly, we witnessed panic-buying and shortages. While the halt in supply lasted only a matter of days, the fact that the cyber attackers received a ransom suggests that others with nefarious purposes will make similar attempts to extort...

  • Paying people not to work is 'un-American'

    May 20, 2021

    by Greg Johnson, Gillette News Record What began as a critical benefit for people directly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic has evolved to become an obstacle in our social and economic recovery. The CARES Act of 2020 was an unprecedented move to bolster economies at the national, state and local levels, and a critical part of that was a weekly $600 supplemental unemployment benefit. For many who suddenly lost their jobs because of the pandemic, the money was the difference between keeping their families treading water or drowning during a frig...

  • Joining the lawsuit was a good thing

    Apr 15, 2021

    Two weeks ago, the state of Wyoming filed a lawsuit challenging the moratorium on oil and gas leasing on federal lands issued by President Joe Biden and Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland. We applaud the decision to file suit. Basically, the suit claims the executive order by the president violates several federal acts including those dealing with environmental issues, administrative procedures and land policy management. While it is not specifically stated in the lawsuit, the basic premise for the suit is the moratorium on oil and gas...

  • It is bear season, be alert

    Apr 8, 2021

    The first bear was spotted out of hibernation in Yellowstone National Park about two weeks ago. That means the bear season has begun and residents need to shake off their own sleepiness about living in the same region as these bruins — both grizzly and black bears. There are the usual warnings to heed, such as being noisy when going into bear habitat. Wear a bell on a saddle girth, or on a belt loop. Stop and call out “Hey bear” frequently. Carry bear spray and know how to use it effectively. Travel in groups rather than alone. Pay atten...

  • Grizzly bears need to be delisted

    Mar 18, 2021

    Although we doubt there is little chance for success because of the current political makeup in Washington, we applaud Wyoming’s congressional delegation in their continuing efforts to delist the grizzly bear. Both Sen. Cynthia Lummis and U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney last month introduced bills in their respective chambers to delist the grizzlies in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem from the Endangered Species act. Cheney’s bill goes even further with the additional language of prohibiting any judicial review on the decision. If that bill passes, it wo...

  • Don't succumb to fear

    Mar 18, 2021

    by Bryan Golden Fear has an evolutionary foundation. The emotion of fear was intended to keep you safe. Fear triggered the fight or flight reflex. When you felt threatened, you would either run from the danger, or fight it head on. Fear remains as powerful an emotion today as it was eons ago. Fear is helpful when it prevents you from taking needless risks. However, fear can lead to acting contrary to your self-interests. Fear often leads to procrastination, or following the wrong path. Debilitating fears include fear of failure, fear of...

  • More than just cows, plows and sows

    Mar 11, 2021

    When the 4-H and FFA programs started in 1902 and 1928, respectively, they were intended to help rural youngsters learn production and record keeping best practices. In those early days it was predominantly hands-on work and production agriculture, although 4-H had many so-called girls’ programs, like sewing, cooking and baking. As the years passed and there were fewer and fewer people on farms and ranches, and more emphasis was placed on young people getting a college education, the clubs faded in popularity in many areas. However, there w...

  • Teens, young adults still need guidance with social media

    Mar 4, 2021

    It has long been the mantra of parenting gurus for adults to monitor social media posts for the children in their lives and have access to their phones. It was for their own protection, to keep them safe from child predators and the like. As the student got older and developed perception, the basic advice was the oversight could be gradually decreased as the child approached adulthood. But recent events have opened that advice to re-examination. One event was the overdose death of the 16-year-old son of a prominent California doctor who gives...

  • If an emergency strikes, let's be better than Texas

    Feb 25, 2021

    by Steven R. Peck, Publisher Riverton Ranger, Feb. 18 The cold-weather emergency in Texas is more than a typical case of warm-weather residents shivering when the temperature drops into the 40s. What’s happening there would be cold for Wyoming, too. But it would be pretty ordinary weather, and it sure wouldn’t paralyze us. If there’s one moral to the story from the bursting pipes, frozen infrastructure and widespread power and water outages that are now stretching into their fifth day in that huge state, it’s this: Hope for the best, but pre...

  • Presidential suspension on mineral development bad for Wyoming's wildlife

    Feb 18, 2021

    by Brian Nesvik, director of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department For decades, the Wyoming Game and Fish Department has stood out for our ability to successfully manage wildlife on the same shared landscape that mineral development occurs. We’ve done this on Wyoming’s terms, working collaboratively with industry to understand specific development impacts to wildlife. Our approach ensures critical wildlife habitats are protected simultaneous to mineral production. However, the new Presidential Executive Order restricting mineral development doe...

  • Don't turn out the lights on Wyoming's energy

    Feb 4, 2021

    For decades, Wyoming workers and the rest of our country enjoyed a mutually beneficial arrangement. Oil workers and coal miners provided the nation with a steady supply of energy. In return, those workers could count on well-paying, blue-collar jobs that offered an opportunity to buy a home, support a family and send kids to college. That arrangement started to fray over the past decade, thanks in part to structural changes in how the U.S. powers itself. Demand for fossil fuels has been tempered by climate change, new technology and competition...

  • Content with cardboard

    Feb 4, 2021

    Most parents recall this prototypical Christmas morning scene, when the youngest offspring clumsily ripped open a large gift box, that was carefully selected and tediously wrapped with care. Staring at the contents, momentarily, but quickly casting the gift aside, now content to play with the cardboard box for hours. It seems to be a long standing tradition with the under four crowd-content with cardboard. Try that on a eight year old. Fast forward to 2021, our nation has, as far-fetched as it sounds, been snookered into being content, once...

  • Do not vote blindly or by name recognition

    Jan 21, 2021

    WE THE PEOPLE have been abandoned by our elected representatives. It matters not which side of the political aisle your ideals fall; we can all agree that our elected public servants should represent the views of their constituents. A public servant is just that, a servant. They are employed by us. Change in the political sphere can only be obtained by starting at the local level. Its high time our representatives are held accountable by us. When we try to contact our public servants they are obligated, by job description, to respond. They...

  • Will the 66th Wyoming Legislature choose to be bold?

    Jan 21, 2021

    This editorial ran in the Jan. 17 edition of the Wyoming Tribune Eagle, If anyone ever gets bored enough to write a history of the 65th Wyoming Legislature, one word that would never appear in it is “bold.” In fact, you probably have to go back more than 50 years to find an action taken by state lawmakers that anyone would consider bold. And even then, it was a proposal from the executive branch, led by Republican Gov. Stan Hathaway, who, in 1968, proposed a bill to institute a severance tax on mineral extraction in the state. That bill passed...

  • Wyoming hardest hit by pledge to ban development

    Dec 24, 2020

    by Ryan McConnaughey Petroleum Association of Wyoming A ban on oil and natural gas development on public lands by the U.S. President-elect would severely harm the economies of eight western states, according to a Wyoming Energy Authority study conducted by University of Wyoming Professor Tim Considine. Over the next four years, the human cost of fulfilling the campaign pledge would be an average of 72,818 fewer jobs annually. Lost wages would total $19.6 billion, economic activity would decline $43.8 billion, and tax revenues would drop $10.8...

  • Small Business Saturday

    Nov 26, 2020

    by Dan Nordberg, SBA’s National Director for Rural Affairs and Region VIII Administrator Small Business Saturday is a relatively new American tradition. While Black Friday has been an informal holiday for more than 60 years, it wasn’t until 2010 that the Saturday after Thanksgiving earned its official title, designating it as a day to shop local and support hometown retailers. In a year where businesses have faced profound challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s Small Business Saturday may be more critical than ever before. In fa...

  • Wait for the results

    Oct 29, 2020

    In an unprecedented year, it’s only natural that we have an unprecedented election. It’s the first in our lifetimes to occur during a global pandemic, and one in which an unprecedented number of absentee ballots in Wyoming will be cast early or by mail. While we’re used to watching the results roll in on live TV on election night, this time it may take days — possibly even weeks — for final results. And that’s OK. Accessibility and accuracy are far more important than immediate results. During the primary election in August, about 40 percent...

  • Leave 'legals' alone

    Oct 22, 2020

    Wyoming legislators have been working this fall on further erosion of public notices in newspapers. This time the target is the publication of the salaries of local government employees. A bill changing state law so that those no longer have to be published is in the works. A committee passed it in September. As it stands now, our taxpayer-funded municipal governments, county governments and public school districts must, at the very least, publish a list of positions and how much the people who hold them are paid. In some cases the actual...

  • Dedication to Hot Springs County

    Pat Schmidt|Oct 15, 2020

    The late Jack Johnson’s obituary in your Aug. 27 edition gave a fine summary of a life well lived. Jack would have liked that modest treatment. I’m not going to let that modest recollection happen. I hope Hot Springs County citizens don’t either. Jack’s dedication to the county in which he spent a lifetime should earn him a plaque in the courthouse Hot Springs County Hall of Fame. The biggest reason is the Grass Creek Road, the public’s only guaranteed access to national forest lands in the county and the H Diamond W 4-H Youth Camp area. In...

  • Let's exercise our brains

    Sep 3, 2020

    by Kenneth A. Bartholomew, M.D. Albert Einstein conducted thought experiments to figure out theoretical problems. Let’s do one of our own. Suppose that you fell and broke your left leg and had to be in a cast for eight weeks. Would you expect your left leg to be as strong as your right leg when the cast was removed? Of course not. You know that muscle that is not exercised gets smaller and softer. Secondly, would you expect that, by sitting in a recliner for the next two months, your left calf would magically grow back and strengthen to w...

  • COVID scams high

    May 7, 2020

    by Sam Shumway AARP Wyoming State Director Scammers are on the prowl with Americans’ increased anxiety over the coronavirus pandemic. This is of particular concern as we commemorate May’s Military Appreciation Month given veterans and military families are twice as likely as civilians to be targeted by con artists. According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), there have been over 20,300 COVID-19 complaints carrying an estimated $15.6 million in losses since the start of 2020 – and that’s just the ones reported. U.S. service members and vet...

  • That's love

    Apr 30, 2020

    by Jill Kruse, DO When my mom called me and said that my dad found four N95 masks in the garage and she wanted to send them all to me since I’m a doctor – That’s love. When I reassured her that we had enough in clinic for now and that she should keep them, or at least keep two for her and dad – That’s love. When I received the box in the mail, all four masks were there, lovingly wrapped in tissue paper with a note of encouragement – That’s love. When I come home from work my children run to the top of the stairs yelling out, “Mommy’s home...

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