No scene is more gorgeous than West Lake Okoboji at sunrise looking east from the Iowa Lakeside Laboratory. A bit of rain fell early Tuesday but the clouds gave way to blue sky, and the day was …

Thirty-three years ago on a snowy Friday in November, the nightmare of mass school shootings shocked Iowa like it has never been shocked before. It was 3:40 p.m. A former University of Iowa …

Each year from Sept. 15-Oct. 15, Americans celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month as a time to recognize the many contributions, diverse cultures, and extensive histories of the Hispanic …

After attending the townhall meeting in Waverly with Rob Sand and reading his column this week in the Waverly paper, I am appalled at our Iowa legislature for passing the law (SF478) to limit the …

If Gov. Kim Reynolds intended to run for re-election in 2026, it would be inadvisable to skip the Iowa Faith and Freedom revival in Des Moines on Saturday — for a trade junket to India, about …

JD Vance will float a lie to get your attention, and your vote. The Republican senator from Ohio, and Donald Trump’s running mate, acknowledged it during an interview last week with Dana …

I’ve been muddling through some thoughts about national politics after the Nov. 5 election. I will no doubt have more, but this week I have one for each party. FOR REPUBLICANS: …

Your Sept. 13 editorial (Harris Could Win Iowa) stated that the Harris presidential campaign should focus a little more on competing in Iowa. However, any campaign involves tradeoffs for using …

Cedar Rapids Gazette columnist Mike Hlas caught up with retired Hawkeye Coach Lisa Bluder and asked what she intends to do. What more could she do? She helped elevate women’s basketball to …

We were in Rochester a week ago. I had to have a little tuneup at Mayo Clinic. We hadn’t been there for about a year, and we marveled at how much the city has grown since then, thanks to …

As American grocery buyers await a Federal Trade Commission verdict on Kroger’s two-year-old, $24.6 billion bid to buy competitor Albertsons, the European Commission took just 35 days to give …

The economic challenges facing the ag sector right now cannot be overstated. With net farm income expected to drop by nearly 23% this year, it’s more important than ever to explore new markets …

Political winds shifted rapidly over the past two months. The Des Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll on Sunday reported that Democrat Kamala Harris trails Republican Donald Trump 47-43% among likely Iowa …

The debate camera zoomed in and cropped around Donald Trump’s jowels, angry eyes and puckered lips: “They’re eating the dogs! They’re eating the cats!” Later, at a …

My father passed away over a year ago. But the gifts keep coming. At 87, Ron Dierwechter packed a lot of years in his life, and even more life in his years. The last of the great rural …

The fatal school shootings in Perry in early January took place eight months ago. The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation has concluded its investigation of the tragic incident and turned it over …

In keeping with his plan for green energy, I am wondering if Joe has authorized using “organic” fertilizer on the lawn of the White House? No doubt Joe, Kamala and their Democrat …

Kamala Harris dominated Donald Trump in Tuesday’s televised debate. She played the methodical prosecutor. He took on the role of angry, incoherent gasbag. It was good TV for about 40 minutes …

Workers on the new Kwik Star convenience store going up across from King’s Pointe are busy as beavers, racing to complete it in time for a projected opening date of late November. It is …

I have fielded a bunch of emails, text messages and phone calls in the days since the school shooting in Winder, Georgia. Each one is from Perry, Iowa. Each one had the same question for me and …