To the Editor: What happened to George Floyd, the black man who died at the hands of a rogue police officer while in police custody in Minneapolis was reprehensible, outrageous and a tragedy. The behavior of the three other officers present not coming to the aid of Floyd was completely ...
A powerful symbol of the United States stands all by itself in the middle of the Des Moines River in Fort Dodge. It’s a large American flag flying from a pole that extends skyward from a block of concrete that once helped to support the Bennett Viaduct. Called Old Glory on the River, it ...
To the editor: I am writing an open letter to the police department . Do you train your officers to de-escalate? I just saw a man killed by Georgia police because he was perhaps drunk, fell asleep in his car and blocked traffic, hardly a capital offense. Perhaps, the situation could have been ...
Improving water quality throughout the state of Iowa is a massive task that has to start in small ways with projects that will add up to make a difference. One such project is getting underway in Webster County right now. A team of scientists is studying ways to control erosion along Soldier ...
To the editor: I am not shocked that a publication which continued to openly endorse congressman Steve King as recently as two years ago would use fear mongering to promote their political agenda. Claiming that calls to reform police departments through better allocation of funds is due to ...
Suppose you were strolling through Forest Park and came across a flattering statue of Adolf Hitler. Or Fidel Castro. Or Osama bin Laden. Of course, nations don’t generally bestow statuary upon enemies — unless those enemies happen to be Confederate leaders in the Civil War. Virginia Gov. ...
Every year, farm kids throughout Webster County spend hundreds of hours nurturing their livestock and working on their projects with the goal of winning a ribbon at the county fair. And to make it even more worthwhile, there’s the chance to make it to the iconic Iowa State Fair. As it has ...
As the nation began the process of “reopening” slowly but, we all hope, safely, there was encouraging news on the economic front. About two weeks ago, nearly 25 million Americans were receiving unemployment benefits, the Labor Department reported. By the beginning of June, the number had ...
To the editor: As more testing exposes more virus, we are more aware that the virus is out and about. Governor Reynolds is treating us like responsible humans to let us choose to make good decisions pertaining to our personal risk and the risk of others whom we are in regular contact. However, ...
Prosecutors in Minnesota made the right move by broadening the reach of their efforts in the wake of the killing of George Floyd. Now the three officers who stood by and watched Derek Chauvin press his knee into Floyd’s neck until he stopped breathing have been charged with aiding and ...
To the editor: Thank you to journalist Chad Thompson for your excellent reporting on “The change we seek” in the June 6 edition of The Messenger. How refreshing to hear Zachariah Nuzum’s message of community and peace and not days of reading and watching brick throwing, rioting, ...
After an absence of nearly five years, a pond has reappeared in a central location of Oleson Park. This new body of water isn’t as big as the pond longtime Fort Dodge residents remember being in the park, but it’s in about the same place. It is stocked with koi, a type of fish that’s a ...
Calls for massive “defunding” of law enforcement are simply insane. When political correctness addles our brains to the point we fail to recognize the critical need we have for the “thin blue line” to safeguard us from crime, we Americans will be in real, imminent danger. Yet some ...
To the editor: For 36 years, friends and supporters of St. Edmond Catholic Schools have gathered at the annual St. Edmond Ball to support the mission of our school. The support of not only the St. Edmond community, but the Fort Dodge community at the annual ball has made it possible to budget ...
As Americans are able to move toward the resumption of normal activities, the pace at which the transition happens will vary widely among individuals. For some, it will be a gradual and cautious return to public places. For others, it will be full immersion after a longtime delay. What ...
A bill heading to Gov. Kim Reynolds would support Iowa’s soybean growers and biodiesel plants while also helping to reduce air pollution. We urge the governor to sign it as soon as it hits her desk. The measure would extend a fuel tax incentive for diesel sold in Iowa that contains at least ...
To Roger Natte, history is a living, breathing thing. Even in these unsettled times. The coronavirus pandemic has given Fort Dodge’s preeminent historian time at home to recall similar circumstances facing residents of the city throughout the years of its existence. “I’ve been ...
About 156.5 million Americans are categorized as members of the civilian labor force. At least 41 million people who can work and by definition want to are unemployed. In other words, approximately one of every four people able to work is not employed — and is being supported by the rest. ...
To the editor: For 36 years, friends and supporters of St. Edmond Catholic Schools have gathered at the annual St. Edmond Ball to support the mission of our school. The support of not only the St. Edmond community, but the Fort Dodge community at the annual ball has made it possible to budget ...
In many American cities, clouds of smoke and shards of broken glass have come to symbolize the outrage over the death of George Floyd, who suffocated under the knee of a Minneapolis police officer. Floyd was black; the officer is white. The anger over the death united people of all ...