Opinion

Imagine a city park. Those of us in rural communities don’t consider parks as much because we have lots of wide open spaces in which to wander. But an urban area where there are blocks of apartments, businesses and busy streets, without any green spaces between, Green space (land that is partly or completely covered with grass, trees, shrubs, or other vegetation) is without real life. One article I read talked about active and passive green spaces. Our parks serve both purposes and we need to protect them both. I want to explore that a bit.

Three events on consecutive mid-November days show farmers, ranchers, and all Americans where U.S. agriculture now is.

Thanksgiving is a great time for counting our blessings and expressing gratitude. In challenging times, an attitude of gratitude is all the more important, and this year has been one of the most difficult for so many! Nevertheless, we’ve seen many people in communities across our country who have risen to the occasion and gone above and beyond to serve their fellow citizens in the face of all of the difficulties and heartbreak that COVID-19 has wrought.

When “All in the Family” hit the TV screens in 1971, the war in Vietnam was raging, cities from Washington, D.C., to Detroit were charred from riots in the wake of Martin Luther King’s assassination, and many young people like me were leaving those cities, moving west to rural America.