Articles

OUR VIEW: Week in review: the best, worst w

A look back at the week that was, from school board debates to a wet spring to new playground equipment.

• OUR VIEW

OUR VIEW: Debates still should be held

The Mitchell Chamber of Commerce has decided to not host a debate featuring this year’s candidates for the Mitchell Board of Education.

• OUR VIEW

OUR VIEW: Longhorn moral: Start planning now

This soap opera should be teaching city officials that they need to get busy planning, budgeting and funding programs that will spark downtown rebirth or renovation.

• OUR VIEW

OUR VIEW: Sad news: Gambling potential rises in SD

While South Dakota does benefit — state government receives a portion of the proceeds — we worry that the benefit is coming at the expense of people who may be hooked.

• OUR VIEW

OUR VIEW: Disturbing trends about SD children

We understand that single-parenting is becoming more common, but that doesn’t mean we have to like or condone the trend.

• OUR VIEW
• Low pay, single-parent families put South Dakota children in poverty

OUR VIEW: Hisses and cheers from the week that was

From the Confederate flag flap to persistent drought to feeding the hungry.

• OUR VIEW

OPINION: Taxpayers shouldn’t pay for lawmakers' trips, memberships

ALEC — described on its own website as “a nonpartisan membership association for conservative state lawmakers” — is not nonpartisan in the sense that an organization such as the National Conference of State Legislatures is.

OUR VIEW: SDHSAA’s site choices don’t always measure up

The SDHSAA is not a business. It’s a nonprofit that, according to its own website, exists to “direct and coordinate interscholastic activities carried on by the member high schools of South Dakota.”

• OUR VIEW

OUR VIEW: Traffic violations down, and that’s good news

The real good news comes in the statistics related to traffic violations. If the numbers are any indication — and we feel they are — then Mitchell’s streets were much safer in 2012 than in 2011.

• OUR VIEW

OPINION: Geographic name changes needed

The new names should be based on local history, folklore, events or natural features of the area.

Columns

Editorial: Sentence in shooting makes key point about gun safety

We were surprised by the harshness of the sentence handed down Tuesday to William Davis, the 21-year-old Mitchell Technical Institute student from Burke who accidentally shot and killed his friend and classmate, Matt Montag, 19, of Big Stone City, in December.
Davison County prosecutor Pat Smith recommended a sentence including time in the county jail and 150 hours of community service, with a suspended penitentiary sentence that could be imposed if Davis were to break the terms of his probation.

Editorial: State not as open as it looks from gov’s office

Gov. Dennis Daugaard has pledged to continue his work to improve government openness in South Dakota.
At the annual convention of the South Dakota Newspaper Association, Daugaard outlined the improvements that have been made in the state in the past few years.

Editorial: Pay close attention to state’s pheasant statistics

The 2010 pheasant harvest was a good one, according to Department of Game, Fish and Parks statistics, and that should bode well for South Dakota towns in the pheasant belt.
Thousands of people directly rely heavily on the pheasant season for their livelihood. Most of the rest of us in central and eastern South Dakota feel an impact from the season, too. That’s why we’re concerned by a trend that shows fewer hunters have been taking to South Dakota fields in recent years.

Editorial: Week in review

CHEERS to the improvements made to the state system that warns motorists of dangerous driving conditions in South Dakota. Gov. Dennis Daugaard last week said changes in protocol — such as how often the 511 hotline is updated — have bettered the system since a glaring gaffe occurred early this year.

Editorial: Gov. opens Valhalla’s doors

Gov. Dennis Daugaard — in striking contrast to his predecessors — has crafted a new management plan for Valhalla, a historic cabin in Custer State Park.

Editorial: Local control works best

The Public Opinion’s editorial board has been a strong supporter of local control in education for years. The people at the helm of local control in our community, however, are now struggling with some difficult decisions thanks to the decision by the governor and Legislature to reduce the amount of state aid to education. Whether you like the actions taken in Pierre recently, the reality is there are some tough decisions that need to be made in the coming months.

Editorial: Time for compromise among D.C. politicians

As of late Wednesday, no agreement had been reached on a compromise-spending plan for the federal government and the clock is ticking toward a possible government shutdown.
If congressional leaders and President Obama do not reach a compromise by midnight Friday, parts of the federal government will start shutting down.

Editorial: Take the hint; slow down in work zones this summer

Motorists who zip through highway work zones face double fines if they are stopped for speeding. That would seem enough to end all careless driving in these areas, but for some reason, it’s not.
Perhaps that’s why South Dakota Transportation Secretary Darin Bergquist has spent time in recent days urging people to slow down as they pass through work zones along the state’s roads and highways. With spring comes road construction season in South Dakota, and we have little doubt that some people still don’t heed the slower speed limits while passing through those dangerous areas.

Editorial: Signatures needed in a hurry to bring vote

The ongoing effort to transform the city’s executive management has kicked into high gear, and now that effort needs the help of Mitchell residents.

Editorial: We deserve straight talk from those in Congress

We suppose someone out there feels we were tough on U.S. Rep. Kristi Noem in a story that was published last week in The Daily Republic.
During a Thursday conference call with reporters, Noem, South Dakota’s lone representative in the U.S. House, failed to be specific when asked what spending she wants to eliminate from the ballooning federal budget. When directly asked, we feel Noem avoided a direct answer.