Opinion
Mugged by the Great Depression, my father lived his life waiting for it to happen again
Editor’s Note: To mark Father’s Day, this piece written about my dad in 1983 in The Des Moines Register seems remarkably relevant 25 years later as economic troubles beset a new generation of Americans. Dad would have seen it coming.
By James P. Gannon
For most of his life, my father lived in a psychological shadow […]
At the end of the campaign trail, a new road for Hillary Clinton?
Commentary
By James P. Gannon
After a campaign marked by her tenacity, resilience and late-blooming effectiveness as a presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton reaches the end of the trail Saturday. The question facing her–and the Democratic Party and its new leader, Barack Obama–is whether there is a place for her that’s right for all concerned and for […]
Round Two: Plan to build parking lot for Old Rag hikers stirs opposition from Rappahannock neighbors
Report and Commentary
By Linda Heimstra
A group of concerned neighbors in Nethers, Virginia has formed a citizens group called The Friends of Old Rag Mountain, and is challenging Shenandoah National Park’s plan to build a large parking lot for hikers climbing Old Rag Mountain.
In the spring of 2003, Park officials made public their intention to […]
Why is enrollment declining in Rappahannock County public schools?
Commentary and Analysis
By James P. Gannon
The question posed in the headline above is fundamental to charting a future course for the public schools of the county. Yet, curiously, in covering uncounted hours of School Board meetings and budget work sessions in the past 18 months, I have not yet heard any board member ask that […]
If starting teacher salary is too low, it’s the School Board’s fault, not the Supervisors–Ron Frazier
Commentary
By Ron Frazier
At the April 25 Board of Supervisors public hearing on the proposed 2008-09 school budget, one thing was quite evident. Most of the speakers obviously spoke with the idea that they were addressing the right board. But, many of the statements should have been directed to the school board not the Board of […]
A tale of two papal visits: Memories of John Paul, the rock star, contrast with Benedict, the rock in times of trouble
Commentary
By James P. Gannon
In October 1979, when I was the newly installed Executive Editor of The Des Moines Register, I had the privilege of accompanying Pope John Paul II to a tiny, rural parish of St. Patrick in Cumming, Iowa, during the pope’s historic first visit to the United States.
John Paul came to Iowa, the […]