Opinion

OPINION – Without local journalism, accountability falters

GUEST COLUMN, J. Basil Dannebohm

I have profound respect for good journalism, especially from small-town newspapers. I spent a good portion of my early career in the industry doing ad sales, then transitioned to writing, and eventually management. Today, my column is sent to publications in all fifty states. Many of them are so small they don’t even have websites. Some of them operate with a staff of one.

Having served as both an elected official and a member of the media, I echo the sentiments of Thomas Jefferson, who said, “Were it left to me to decide if we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.”

Recently, I received an email from the Virginia Local News Project (formerly the Virginia Press Foundation). The subject read: “When Social Media Becomes the News, Local Journalism Is at Risk.”

OPINION – What are your concerns?

LETTER TO THE EDITOR, Christina Yearick, Liberal

Dear Seward County Residents of District 4:

I would like to invite a conversation by giving my phone number to the people of my district in Seward County.

If selected in the interim, I need to know your ideas, thoughts, questions, grievances, and hopes to represent your wishes and desires for our community. Please call (417) 239-5948.

I look forward to visiting with you.

OPINION – New optimism for 2026 after recent events

L&T Publisher Earl Watt

When Thomas Payne wrote “Common Sense,” a pamphlet that helped encourage the American Revolution, he added a line that I believe is very appropriate for our current situation.

He wrote, “We have it in our power to start the world over again.”

Trusting the people over the government was a relatively new concept to the colonists who had been loyal royal subjects for generations.

But when taxes became unbearable, and the people had no say in their government, they revolted, and they did restart the world with a government that would be held to account to the people.

OPINION – When animals talk

THE POSTSCRIPT, Carrie Classon

In Sweden, there used to be a widespread belief that animals could talk on Christmas Eve.

My Swedish mother read me stories about this as a child, and it is true. Apparently throughout Scandinavia, folks would give their animals treats so they wouldn’t speak badly of them. This part makes me doubtful — not that the animals got treats, but that anything I gave my cat, Felix, would prevent him from giving his opinion — with or without the ability to speak.

Felix would tell you that he thinks he should get more treats all of the year and that he has grown tired of his current cat food and that he thinks he should get brushed at least an hour every day and that — under no circumstances — does he want his nails trimmed. He says this all the time. He just says it in Cat.

OPINION – Who will celebrate Christmas correctly?

GUEST COLUMN, J. Basil Dannebohm

In his book, “God Is in the Manger: Reflections on Advent and Christmas,” neo-orthodox theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer writes, “Who will celebrate Christmas correctly? Whoever finally lays down all power, all honor, all reputation, all vanity, all arrogance, all individualism beside the manger.”

Today, an epidemic of narcissism casts a cold cloud over our world. Humanity is rife with a lust for power, honor, reputation, vanity, arrogance, and individualism. Yet despite our shortcomings, God saw fit to send His only Son to save us. (John 3:16) And so, we find ourselves once again commemorating that joyous occasion.

Whether we are celebrating “correctly” is another matter entirely.