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A turning point in America

Local Columns

It was a week before Thanksgiving Day in 1963. I was halfway through my shift at the punch press at Waterloo Register. A manager came up to me on the assembly line and said, “JFK was shot.” I was 30 years old, moonlighting at the furnace factory to make ends meet between my other jobs as a state legislator and family farmer. Five years later, I was finishing hog chores on the farm late in the day. I heard the news about Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination on the radio. Just two months after that, Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated in California. The murders of these ...

Springer served up legacy of dedication at concession stand

Editorial

Over the years, thousands of people have enjoyed food and drinks from the concession stand at Dodger Stadium. The energy and dedication of Steve Springer helped to make that possible. Springer was a member of the Fort Dodge Community School District Board of Education and the Fort Dodge Senior High School Booster Club. As an outgrowth of those roles, he spent a lot of time in the stadium’s concession stand. He invested so much of his time there that he became more than a volunteer. As Tom Kinseth, the school district’s former activities and athletics director put it, Springer ...

President abuses power while senators do nothing

Letters to the Editor

To the editor: I am confused how The Messenger asks every day, “Let’s Hear Your Views,” but there is seldom, if ever, anyone’s views printed. I know firsthand it’s not because people aren’t expressing their views. I understand when they say they reserve the right to edit for length, taste and possible libel, as well as personal attacks and inflammatory statements about groups or individuals. I am confused though why this doesn’t apply to our elected officials when they attack their political rivals in their editorials, but the paper won’t publish an editorial ...

Keep Iowa’s roads safe during harvest

Editorial

This is the time of the year when big, slow-moving farm vehicles rumble out onto roadways dominated by faster-paced traffic. That shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone who lives in farm country. Even so, all of us should pay special heed to safety considerations as we share the roads with agricultural vehicles. In general, Iowa has been doing a good job of keeping accidents involving farm vehicles to a minimum. According to data from the Iowa Department of Transportation, fatalities and major injuries resulting from such accidents have been on the decline in recent years. That’s ...

Thank you, Messenger

Letters to the Editor

To the editor: On behalf of the City of Fort Dodge, we want to extend our sincere gratitude to you and your staff for more than 50 years of first-class coverage of the Iowa Girls State Softball Tournament here in Fort Dodge. The Sept. 10 announcement from the Iowa Girls Union of a 20-year extension is a tremendous milestone for our community. While the decision reflects the quality of our facilities, volunteers, and hospitality, it also recognizes the outstanding coverage that your newspaper has consistently provided over the decades. Your reporting has not only chronicled the ...

The power of showing up

Local Columns

Recently, our community lost Richard Higgins. For those who knew him, Richard’s passing leaves a quiet, but noticeable gap in our collective civic life. He was a man who showed up, not just once in a while, but consistently, determinedly, and with both a dogged purpose and a graceful respect. Richard attended meetings, asked hard questions, and in doing so, held our local leaders accountable. Sometimes that meant pushing us to think more creatively, to explain ourselves more fully, and/or to be able to justify publicly why a decision was made. He didn’t do it for attention or ...