Your source for news in Hot Springs County
Your source for news in Hot Springs County
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by Ann Turner Here’s the $3.5 million question: What does Wyoming need to do to develop an economy that isn’t so dependent on the minerals industry? The state’s economic development agencies (of which there are many), the Wyoming Business Council along with every governor’s office and legislator over the past 40 years have been trying to answer that question, particularly during energy bust times. But now there’s a new suggestion on the table to try to reverse Wyoming’s winds of fortune: Let’s hire Harvard! For $3.5 million, the minds at the...
by CJ Baker The COVID-19 pandemic couldn’t have come at a much worse time for the U.S. Census Bureau. Once a decade, the bureau takes a tally of all the people living in the United States at a certain point in time: in the most recent case, on April 1, 2020. Under normal conditions, counting heads in April is representative of the population, but 2020 was, of course, anything but normal. The Census date came as federal, state and local governments were shutting down businesses and other aspects of daily life in an effort to slow the spread o...
by Bill Sniffin, Cowboy State Daily In my opinion, there is no better way to appreciate this land we call Wyoming than seeing it from the air. And looking down right now is just about as good as it can possibly get. The valleys are glistening with bright snow while our purple mountains bask in the sunshine with still enough pearly white snow to sparkle in the distance. Ah, what a sight. Just love seeing Wyoming from the air. Nothing like it in the world. I write these words as a person who piloted his own airplane for 30 years. The l...
While most years, friends and family share well-wishes and hopes for the new year filled with resolutions to become healthier or achieve a longtime goal, this year’s well-wishes often included a tinge of dark humor. Memes of dumpster fires and others that include a reference to 2022 being, “2020, too,” have circulated as a way to collectively bemoan the country’s current circumstances. While acknowledging a shared experience offers a beginning, rebuilding trust in each other and institutions must start for any hope in a brighter future to surv...
Fake News might seem like a new concept, but it has actually been around for a long time. The internet and cable news networks have probably made it a little more apparent, but it has always been a part of our media consumption. And Fake News isn’t always produced by news outlets. It is just as likely to come from elected officials themselves, who don’t necessarily have to lie to mislead you. Sometimes all it takes is distracting you with a non-story in the hopes that you will fail to notice the real story because they fear negative public rea...
Mutt Mulligan, a rescue dog and the spokesdog of the TurfMutt Foundation, says a key to health and well-being is getting outside this winter Alexandria, Va. – Winter can be tough on people in the best of times, but it is particularly challenging during a global pandemic. Throughout the spring, summer and fall, the outdoors – including our yards, parks, and sports fields – were critical for buoying our mental well-being, physical health and enabling us to safely connect with others. For a decade the TurfMutt environmental education and stewa...
by CJ Baker As a general rule, if you run across a website promising an easy cash reward, you should click away and maybe scan your device for viruses. But here’s a safe one that’s worth checking out if you’re a current or former Wyoming resident: www.mycash.wyo.gov. Run by the State Treasurer’s Office, the site is a clearinghouse for various property that, for all kinds of reasons, hasn’t made it into the hands of its rightful owner. The items can include payments from insurance companies, refunds of phone bills, utility deposits or other sub...
by Bob Bonnar It doesn’t seem like anybody is very happy with the result of the Wyoming State Legislature’s Special Session…but it ended up being the ultimate victory for small government. When the dust settled, the legislature had drafted and passed a really big bill that actually did very little, and we should probably be grateful. I’ve always thought Wyoming was committed to limiting the role any government (local, state or federal) should play in our lives, and I think the legislature honored that commitment. Legislated opposition to fede...
by U.S. Senators John Barrasso and Cynthia Lummis Democrats in Washington are planning a far-reaching Big Brother initiative to squeeze every last penny out of everyday Americans. They need more money to pay for their reckless spending programs. Their target is middle-class families in Wyoming and across the country. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen wants Democrats to force banks to tell the IRS every time you write or deposit a check above a certain amount. The number they are talking about is $600. This dangerous provision brings the IRS...
by Tessa Baker Over the years, the State of Wyoming has spent a lot of time and resources helping the grizzly population recover and fighting for the ability to manage the bears. The fight is continuing as Gov. Mark Gordon announced Thursday that Wyoming is once again seeking state management of the species. “The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly bear has met and exceeded all scientific benchmarks for recovery,” Gordon said Thursday. Multiple presidential administrations have attempted to delist grizzlies over the years. Delisting was pro...
by Scott W. Meier Wyoming Bankers Association (WBA) Few things are more private than your household finances. In his American Families Plan, President Biden unveiled a tax compliance initiative aimed at closing the gap between taxes that are owed and what are paid. Most of the anticipated revenue, which the Administration estimated at $460 billion over 10 years, would come from requiring financial institutions to report account information that Treasury says would be similar to W-2 reporting for wages and other income reporting. The proposal,...
by Greg Johnson As somber, respectful and emotional commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks occurred on Saturday, we wondered why we go to such lengths to remember something so horrible. It’s certainly easier to bury and ignore the unpleasant than to go out of our way to relive it again. It’s simple. We remember days like the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, the space shuttle Challenger exploding and 9/11 so they may never be repeated. It’s why these events, as Pr...
Americans typically consider questions about the meaning of the Constitution through the prism of their political views and values. As a consequence, they tend to defend as constitutional the acts of officials whom they support, and criticize as unconstitutional the acts of those representatives whom they oppose. This approach implies that the meaning of the Constitution turns on whose ox is being gored. Politics, partisanship and party affiliation are the controlling levers of constitutional understandings. This method of constitutional...
by Harriet Hageman One thing that can be safely said about the Biden Administration is that when you think they could not become even more extreme, they make clear that you underestimate them at your peril. Take President Biden’s Executive Order 14008, entitled “Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad.” Buried on page 9, is Section 216, with the heading, “Conserving Our Nation’s Lands and Waters,” the goal of which is to develop a plan to “conserve at least 30 percent of our lands and waters by 2030.” Known as the “30x30” program...
It wasn’t supposed to end this way. After 42 years in elected office, the last 24 in Congress, Mike Enzi said farewell to the U.S. Senate earlier this year. At 77 years of age, retirement was overdue, and in addition to a little hunting and fishing, he most looked forward to time with his family. “I was able to see my kids grow up before I went in the Senate,” he told the Gillette News Record when he announced in May 2019 that he planned to retire. “Now I want some grandkid time.” Unfortunately, life is uncertain, and what Mr. Enzi no doubt...
A straw poll conducted informally over an evening refreshment among friends (you know the kind) recently revealed that many people have grown sick of politics. The bickering, the divisiveness and the fluid status of facts have created a weariness with all things elections and politics. It’s time to snap out of it. While the next round of elections won’t take place until 2022, filing begins in just 305 days. That’s right, beginning May 12, 2022, candidates will begin officially declaring their intent to seek public office. Perhaps you will...
Days after taking office, President Joe Biden signed an executive order pausing new oil and gas leases on federal lands. The decision produced immediate concern across Wyoming. The state is heavily reliant on the energy sector — particularly fossil fuels — to fund government services. The industry is also a key source of jobs, both directly and through the myriad welding, machining and transportation companies that serve the industry. While Biden’s order was directed at all states where drilling occurs on federal lands, Wyoming felt its impac...
“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” For many of us, the Pledge of Allegiance is the first meaningful thing we ever memorized, and the words are imprinted in our memory through repetition — at school, sporting events, meetings, parades and anywhere else Americans gather in the presence of Old Glory. Because of that repetition, however, the true meaning behind the pledge we make to our flag and the count...
For more than a year, we were stuck inside, away from our friends and families. There was the pandemic to deal with, to protect ourselves from. Then along came winter, and we were further isolated and kept indoors. Spring crept in at its own pace, then suddenly in the last week, summer opened the door on its blast furnace. We love it, missed it and couldn’t wait to get out in it. But the combination of a long layoff without being active outside and the sudden spike in temperatures can create its own problems. Data from the National Oceanic a...
Earlier this month, hackers collected $4.4 million in ransom after pulling off a cyber-attack that forced the temporary shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline. The shutdown was no small matter. The pipeline delivers about 45% of the gasoline consumed on the East Coast, according to The Associated Press. Not surprisingly, we witnessed panic-buying and shortages. While the halt in supply lasted only a matter of days, the fact that the cyber attackers received a ransom suggests that others with nefarious purposes will make similar attempts to extort...
by Greg Johnson, Gillette News Record What began as a critical benefit for people directly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic has evolved to become an obstacle in our social and economic recovery. The CARES Act of 2020 was an unprecedented move to bolster economies at the national, state and local levels, and a critical part of that was a weekly $600 supplemental unemployment benefit. For many who suddenly lost their jobs because of the pandemic, the money was the difference between keeping their families treading water or drowning during a frig...
Two weeks ago, the state of Wyoming filed a lawsuit challenging the moratorium on oil and gas leasing on federal lands issued by President Joe Biden and Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland. We applaud the decision to file suit. Basically, the suit claims the executive order by the president violates several federal acts including those dealing with environmental issues, administrative procedures and land policy management. While it is not specifically stated in the lawsuit, the basic premise for the suit is the moratorium on oil and gas...
The first bear was spotted out of hibernation in Yellowstone National Park about two weeks ago. That means the bear season has begun and residents need to shake off their own sleepiness about living in the same region as these bruins — both grizzly and black bears. There are the usual warnings to heed, such as being noisy when going into bear habitat. Wear a bell on a saddle girth, or on a belt loop. Stop and call out “Hey bear” frequently. Carry bear spray and know how to use it effectively. Travel in groups rather than alone. Pay atten...
Although we doubt there is little chance for success because of the current political makeup in Washington, we applaud Wyoming’s congressional delegation in their continuing efforts to delist the grizzly bear. Both Sen. Cynthia Lummis and U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney last month introduced bills in their respective chambers to delist the grizzlies in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem from the Endangered Species act. Cheney’s bill goes even further with the additional language of prohibiting any judicial review on the decision. If that bill passes, it wo...
by Bryan Golden Fear has an evolutionary foundation. The emotion of fear was intended to keep you safe. Fear triggered the fight or flight reflex. When you felt threatened, you would either run from the danger, or fight it head on. Fear remains as powerful an emotion today as it was eons ago. Fear is helpful when it prevents you from taking needless risks. However, fear can lead to acting contrary to your self-interests. Fear often leads to procrastination, or following the wrong path. Debilitating fears include fear of failure, fear of...
