OUR VIEW

Our View: Week in Review

CHEERS to news that the state may be in line for an unexpected windfall in the form of federal aid. It was learned last week that South Dakota could receive $36 million if the U.S. Congress gives final approval of a plan to give states extra money to boost Mediciaid.

March 15, 2010

Our View: Tax rollback was right thing to do

The state Legislature decided this week that large tax increases for residents within a handful of water districts are unfair, especially in the current economy.
When a 2008 law allowed the districts’ boundaries to be redrawn, it meant the districts were considered “new,” which exempted them from the normal 3 percent limit on budget increases. Legislators this year say that was not their intent and some of them felt duped.

By Editorial board , March 11, 2010

Our View: Another star accused, another lie by someone

NFL quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has been accused of assaulting a 20-year-old woman in a nightclub in Georgia earlier this month, marking the second time the Pittsburgh Steelers’ star has faced such an accusation.
Add him to the list of other professional athletes who have been accused of assault, boorish behavior or other degrees of hanky-panky.

By Editorial board , March 10, 2010

Our View: Leave well enough alone with season

The state Game, Fish and Parks Commission decided last week that South Dakota’s pheasant season will remain the same as it was in 2009.
The decision came after some have proposed in recent years to expand the season or enlarge the daily bag limit.

By Editorial board , March 09, 2010

Our View: Week in review: the best, worst

CHEERS to the donation made recently by Dan and Diane DesLauriers to the Mitchell Area Safehouse. More than 200 people attended the High Heels and Helping Hearts event — at which local men dressed in heels and served as wait staff, by the way — and helped raise $20,000 for the safehouse. Included in the donations that night was the gift from the DesLauriers family, which was a match for a previous $10,000 donation from the now-defunct Enchanted World Doll Museum. The Mitchell Area Safehouse is such a worthy cause, and we’re proud of the people who came forward to not only donate money, but also those men who donned high heels and helped create the fun atmosphere at the Helping Hearts event.

By Editorial board , March 08, 2010

Our View: Be careful with request to waive permit fees

If they’re not careful, members of the City Council are about to be painted into a corner.
Imagine Guild, a nonprofit organization that produces the annual Memorial Day in Mitchell event each spring on Main Street, has come to the council and asked that the city waive its usual fees for various permits that are associated with the event.

By Editorial board , March 05, 2010

Our View: Cooper good choice for commission

John Cooper spent 12 years as secretary of the state Department of Game, Fish and Parks. For 21 years, he worked with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, including duty as an undercover agent. He has been active with the Missouri River Association of States and Tribes, which addresses river-related issues.

By Editorial board , March 04, 2010

Our View: Wind farm at White Lake: Let’s make it a reality

Residents of White Lake and that town’s surrounding area appear more than ready to accept a massive wind energy project into their backyard.
Public officials — the town’s mayor, Public Utilities Commission members and the like — seem entirely for it.
And the company that wants to bring the wind farm to our region appears more than willing to follow through.

By Editorial board , March 03, 2010

Our View: Leave alone the Firesteel Creek project

The future of an ongoing project designed to clean up the Firesteel Creek watershed is in danger and could threaten more than a decade of work.
The Firesteel Creek/Lake Mitchell Watershed Project is due to see its funding expire in June. State environmental officials are proposing that when the funding ends that the project be rolled into the Lower James River Watershed Project, which covers all or parts of 11 counties and stretches from Wessington Springs to Yankton.

By Editorial board , March 02, 2010

Our View: Week in review: the best, worst

CHEERS to news that lawmakers have killed a proposal to lower the drinking age in South Dakota. The idea, as laid out by Rep. Tim Rounds, R-Pierre, was to provide a controlled environment for 19- and 20-year-olds to reduce the number of binge-drinking incidents among that age group. “We need to find solutions to this problem,” he told the House Commerce Committee last week. We agree that there is a problem, and that teens do binge drink.

By Editorial board , March 01, 2010

Our View: Should be a doozy of an election year

We are intrigued by the coming elections. Truly, it’s shaping up to be a doozy of a season, thanks to hot-button issues and an abundance of interested — and interesting — candidates.
Here is a rundown:

By Editorial board , February 26, 2010

Our View: Interested in full debate on gymnastics

The Mitchell High School gymnastics program has a rich history. Not only has the team won two state championships in the past five years, but it also has produced some of the state’s top girls’ athletes ever.
Brooke Cersosimo, Amelia Rew, Jeana Hoffman, Jenna Hoffman, Amy Sorrells, Barb Adams (now Bauder), Amber Winthers (now Determan), Audra Recker (now Rew) and Anne Dailey all were products of the local gymnastics program. Other standouts too numerous to name here have contributed greatly to the program’s various successes over the years.

By Editorial board , February 25, 2010

Our View: Extend plate life to save needed cash for counties

We hope South Dakotans like their current license plates, because it appears they’ll be stuck with them for a long time.
Our current plates — dominated by a white Mount Rushmore, with blue and red trim — likely will be kept in circulation for an extra five years, after the state Senate on Monday voted 27-8 to approve the measure. Although Senate Bill 65 next moves to the House of Representatives, we suspect lawmakers in that chamber will pass the proposal, too.

By Editorial board , February 24, 2010

Our View: Week in review: the best, worst

CHEERS to a report last week that ranked Davison County as South Dakota’s 12th healthiest county. The study, conducted by the University of Wisconsin’s Population Health Institute, gave Brookings County the No. 1 ranking. The rest of the Top 10 counties were, in order, Lincoln, Clay, Union, Turner, Hamlin, Spink, Brown, Hughes and Yankton. Whereas it’s a bit disappointing that no Mitchell-area counties were among the leaders, it’s also good to know that the Mitchell region wasn’t represented among the bottom 10, either. The study was based upon environmental, medical, educational, geographic and economic factors.

By Editorial board , February 22, 2010

Our View: Chamberlain deserves credit for its progressive work, ideas

Chamberlain always has had a bright blue-colored ticket to prosperity at its doorstep.
The Missouri River runs alongside the Brule County town. The river attracts fishermen, boaters and vacationers to Chamberlain, providing the town of 2,200 with potential for a steady stream of income.
Evidently, the town isn’t content to just let the river bring visitors, and those important visitor dollars, to town.

By Editorial board , February 19, 2010