Serving the Platte Valley since 1888
Serving the Platte Valley since 1888
Sorted by date Results 391 - 415 of 1480
My father may not be on this earth any longer, but I’m pretty sure he is looking down from above, very happy I eventually moved to Carbon County. Do I think that is because of the beautiful landscape which is varied and abundant with all sorts of wildlife? I guess he would appreciate the nature but honestly, having lived in Hawaii, Queensland Australia, and directly on the Severn River in Maryland (very close to the historical city of Annapolis) there could be a case made I have lived in more s...
Yes, it is time to get out of our 20-year never-ending war in Afghanistan. But first, let me tell a bit about editorial writing, including how the name of this far-off country relates to it. Three decades ago, when I was a hell-on-wheels editorial writer for a local newspaper, it always seemed important to me to write forceful editorials about local issues. I was rewarded for those efforts by measured changes in my communities, the wrath of various portions of the population, and awards from journalism organizations. But I stayed away, at all...
Is it just me or did this summer fly by at the speed of light? I’m struggling to process the fact school begins in less than two weeks—August 23—let alone the fact July 4 was a month ago and we’ve just survived Carbon County Fair week. How Mike Armstrong and I were able to make it through this past week with our sanity, mostly, I have no idea. We’re just covering the event, I can’t even begin to think of the sheer amount of work it takes to organize the Carbon County Fair. Honestly, my hats off...
Friday’s funeral service for former U.S. Sen. Mike Enzi left no doubt about the amazingly high regard in which he was held in by his fellow U. S. senators. He was loved and respected by his Senate colleagues as he was loved and respected by the people he represented here in the Cowboy State. Some 20 U.S. senators traveled to the isolated county seat of Campbell Country in northeast Wyoming to celebrate the life of their friend. Enzi died July 26 from complications of a bicycle accident. He had retired in January after representing Wyoming in t...
Recently I was listening to a person I respect on many fronts, about how there are those in power trying to push revisionism of history. To me, southern boy and Virginian born guy that I am, I don’t think there is a revisionism movement, just an effort to put the truth about how our country developed in perspective. No person who fought on the South’s side in the Civil War should be considered a hero. It wasn’t always this way for me. 4th grade had me going to school in Arlington, Virgi...
Dear Editor, This letter is to inform the town of Riverside that, as of July 30, 2021, I will no longer serve on the town council as a council member. My resignation is due to several things that have been done that I did not agree with and, unfortunately, I anticipate procedures concerning legal obligations will not change. As a write-in, I agreed to serve the people of Riverside. The following statements highlight some of the things that steered my resignation. I feel that the way some of the town council members read and/or interpret the...
Well, here it is. The final issue of Volume No. 134, which marks 133 years the Saratoga Sun has been serving the Platte Valley. I’m not sure if other newspaper editors pay this close attention to the final issue of a volume but, for me, it’s kind of hard not to. As we end one volume and begin another, I am aware of a number of anniversaries. The first, and the hardest to think about, is the loss of Keith McLendon. This second anniversary of his passing is a little bit more acute in that our fin...
I love music, but I can’t play a thing on any instrument, not counting chopsticks on a piano. Even then, my version is pretty shaky. I took drum lessons when I was 14, but I quickly learned I didn’t have what it took to become a drummer. I think my folks were actually relieved. My voice is okay, especially in shower mode, but my days of singing in public are done. In the past I have done a decent enough job on “Danny Boy” that people would walk up to me surprised I could do the song. As a kid,...
What’s this? The Saratoga Sun changed format, again? If you’re reading the print edition of the Saratoga Sun this week, you’ll notice a change to how things have been the past few months. As many of our readers may recall, in April we changed printers. While we had been printing in Cheyenne for several years, we made the move to Riverton, home of the Riverton Ranger. We are still printing at the Riverton Ranger, but have decided to change from the broadsheet format to the tabloid. When we first...
Confused Asians, crazy drunk van drivers, monstrous RVs, nervous semi drivers, and thousands (perhaps millions) of tourists were among the highlights of a recent trip to Jackson and Pinedale. We were headed north on Highway 287 to Jackson to attend the open house for the new home of the Hughes Charitable Foundation. But a lot happened before we got there. For starters, we groaned as a flagman stopped us just as a huge line of cars ahead of us headed off in the distance behind a pilot car. This was barely 8 miles from home. Was this a harbinger...
It is sometimes really difficult to narrow down the subject matter for a column. Without a doubt, I have my drought periods trying to think of what to write about but, often enough, I have a couple ideas and it is hard to decide what I want to put forth. This week’s column is a perfect example of this dilemma. First, I was going to write about how visitors and truckers driving on US 30, 130 and I-80 are coming back to form in their lack of consideration on these roads after a year hiatus. T...
Independence Day has passed and the largest party in Saratoga every summer has concluded. From the Festival of the Arts to the Old Fashioned Family Carnival to, yes, even Chancey Williams and the Younger Brothers Band headlining Saratoga Days it appeared to be a successful weekend. Thought that may depend on how one defines success. Was it economically beneficial to the restaurants and businesses on Bridge Avenue? Yes, we would imagine so. When not taking part in the fun family games on West Bridge Avenue or the increasing festivities on East...
Right now, there is a clear path ahead for Liz Cheney, and it does not involve the state of Wyoming. She will deny this. And she may not even believe it now. And for the rest of this year, she will continue to represent us to the best of her ability in the U.S. House of Representatives. But I could see her traveling a different path, based on a number of steps that could very well happen. Three events have set the stage for this scenario. The first was when she voted to impeach President Donald Trump after the Jan. 6 insurrection at the...
This weekend, many of us will be celebrating the 245th birthday of the United States of America. Traditionally, this national holiday is filled with barbecues, fireworks, parades and concerts and this year will be no different. A full slate of events are on schedule for Valley this weekend including the return of the Festival of the Arts, the 3rd Annual Saratoga Days, the 3rd Annual Firewater Fifth, the inaugural Old Fashioned Family Carnival and so much more. Of course, we’ll also have the para...
(Note: The Oxygen Cable TV network on Monday night aired a new documentary on the 1980 murders of Virginia Uden and her sons. It will be aired repeatedly on into the future.) Back in 2013, I wrote: “After 33 years of one cold case and 16 years for the other, it has always been easy to believe that some unsolved disappearances will just never be explained.” In Lander, for decades we pondered about two gals who vanished. Virginia Uden and Amy Bechtel both disappeared and I wrote the news stories about them while I was the Lander newspaper pub...
Wow, it is hot outside. It has cracked 90 a couple times in the past few days. I love it. There are a million reasons I love warm weather in Wyoming, not the least of which is I don’t like bitter cold and winter road conditions. I am reveling being outside doing yardwork where I work up a sweat. Not many times do I get to sweat in winter. Warm weather also reminds me the 4th of July is around the corner. It is definitely one of my favorite celebrations. The day has been my favorite since I w...
