Custer County Chronicle

Getting our state back to normal

Published by admin on Thu, 05/07/2020 - 8:58am
I know everyone is eager to get back to their daily routines and dive back into what they love doing. But it’s important to remember that some people will never get to return to normal. I lost my dad at a very young age. That experience greatly changed the path that I was on. Similarly, this COVID-19 pandemic has greatly changed the path so many South Dakotans were on as well.

Black Hills long-term sustained yield

Published by admin on Thu, 05/07/2020 - 8:58am

Legislation I sponsored this year

Published by admin on Thu, 04/30/2020 - 9:14am
Greetings! Looks like we might be opening up a bit from this COVID-19 nightmare we all have been experiencing. Some businesses are opening and trying to comply with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines yet still make a profit. I’m going to switch gears and report back to you about legislation I sponsored in the 2020 legislative session.

Some overreach their authority

Published by admin on Thu, 04/30/2020 - 9:14am
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in our country has brought out some of the best and some of the worst in our leaders, specifically state governors. While our own Gov. Kristi Noem has been praised for her more common sense suggestions for state residents, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer seems to have gone a little overboard with her executive powers.

We are living on bug-out land

Published by admin on Thu, 04/30/2020 - 9:13am
I always said if something like this current pandemic or some other natural or economic disaster ever hit our country we would be living in a pretty good place. Most of us are used to social distancing on a regular basis because we are not crammed together like sardines in a can, unlike the most heavily populated urban parts of our country.

Checking on my report card

Published by admin on Thu, 04/23/2020 - 9:00am
Greetings again! Happy early voting again as I wrote extensively on voting for June 2 Primary Election last week. To recap, there are three ways to vote:
1 Early voting, taking place now at your county courthouse, April 17 through June 1.

20th year of Progress!

Published by admin on Thu, 04/23/2020 - 8:59am
This week’s Progress Editions of the Custer County Chronicle and Hill City Prevailer News mark the 20th consecutive year of their publications, and they come at a time when our readers could use a lot of good news for a change. The coronavirus has kept us apart for too many weeks. Hopefully, these editions in their respective communities can help bring us together again.

Three questions for our governor

Published by admin on Thu, 04/23/2020 - 8:56am
When it was last my turn to write a column several weeks ago the COVID-19 situation was just getting started here and was not particularly bright on my radar. I pondered for days trying to figure out what to write about, finally settling on a column about my weekly cartoons. 
Today, when the nation is in full corona meltdown, there is so much low hanging fruit that I’ve had to pick and choose among several equally ripe options.

Time to cut China ties

Published by admin on Thu, 04/16/2020 - 8:26am
If anything positive comes out of this COVID-19 pandemic tragedy it should be that the United States finally should cut its dependence on China for the vast majority of our goods and services. It should have been the last straw when that country momentarily threatened to cut off the supply of needed medicines to fight the pandemic here and in other countries. They didn’t make any friends over that veiled threat, that is for sure.

Love in the modern era

Published by admin on Thu, 04/16/2020 - 8:24am
People use the word “love” casually. They talk about how they love their shoes, their favorite shows and pumpkin spice lattes. Has our concept of love changed? Have we changed? 
I like those stories of couples who are married for 60-some years who die within hours of each other. OK, not the dying part, but the rest of it. They spent their lives together and couldn’t exist without each other. But is that love or something else?