Freedom Newspapers Think of an elected official everyone admires. It’s not so easy, is it? Now try George Washington. Twice unanimously elected by the Electoral College, the first U.S. president probably comes closest to universal admiration. Others like Jefferson, Lincoln, Roosevelt (either one), Kennedy and Reagan have sizable constituencies with axes to grind, or worse. […]
Five-day work week not just for rest of us
December 12, 2006
By Kevin Wilson: CNJ staff writer Not that anyone missed me or even knew, but I have been out of New Mexico for the past few days. I left the office Thursday night and flew back to see my family in Montana, then flew back on Monday morning so I’d be ready for work on […]
Election process hindered, not helped, by feds
December 5, 2006
By Freedom Newspapers The curse of the hanging chads still haunts America. It isn’t all the fault of dunderheaded Floridians who threw the 2000 presidential election into turmoil because they couldn’t manage the simple mechanics of voting, however. The curse really began in 2002, when Congress attempted to fix what wasn’t really broken by passing […]
Despite efforts, there’s no pleasing environmentalists
August 29, 2006
By Freedom Newspapers Poor George Bush. Though the president has been trying desperately to win favor with one of the most powerful lobbies in Washington, Environmental Anxiety, Inc., nothing the president does will win him that shiny green star he can wear on his forehead. Bush recently established a mammoth new national monument near the […]
Essay celebrating independence still rings true
July 4, 2006
Freedom Newspapers Otto Whittaker wrote the following essay, “I Am the Nation,” in 1955 as a public relations advertisement for the Norfolk and Western Railway. According to “Respectfully Quoted: A Dictionary of Quotations,” the original version did not contain the phrase, “the steaming jungle of Vietnam.” On this Independence Day, we find its message suits […]
Local speller eyes spot on TV
May 30, 2006
By Tonya Garner: CNJ staff writer Lucas Donaldson is traveling more than 1,500 miles to spell words most people can’t pronounce. The Zia Elementary student, who begins sixth grade in the fall, will compete in the 79th Scripps National Spelling Bee beginning today in Washington, D.C. Donaldson said he would be studying late Tuesday in […]
4/5 Letters to the editor
April 4, 2006
Pork’s still pork, even if it’s for Cannon The duplicitous nature of our arguments never ceases to amaze. All of us, Republicans and Democrats alike, are upset at the astounding, “drunken sailor-ish” spending that’s currently going on in Washington. No offense to drunken sailors, but we demand answers! We demand accountability! We demand restraint! And […]
Jimmy Dean “Jim” Clayton
March 8, 2006
Jimmy Dean “Jim” Clayton, 68, of Clovis, died Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2006, at his home. He was born Jan. 13, 1938, in Clovis. He worked in hotel maintenance, and loved fishing and boating, family members said. He was preceded in death by his grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. L.F. Morris. He is survived by his mother, […]
First president’s policies paved way for U.S. freedom
February 26, 2006
Freedom Newspapers George Washington has become something of a mythical figure in our national consciousness, a distant and perhaps even dour personage. We may know that we’re supposed to revere him, but he was hardly cuddly. There is some truth in that image, which to some extent he himself cultivated. It is worth remembering, however, […]
2/19 Birth
February 17, 2006
Kelley Cannon Lane Kelley was born Dec. 2, 2005, at Arlington Memorial Hospital in Arlington, Texas. He weighed 6 pounds, 10 ounces. He is the son of Amy and Clint Kelley of Kennedale, Texas. Grandparents are Dale and Susie Severson of Weatherford, Texas, formerly of Clovis, Randy and Betty Jean Kelley of Paradise, Texas, and […]
Donabelle “Tippy” Smith
February 9, 2006
Mrs. Donabelle “Tippy” Smith, 81, of Portales, died Sunday, Nov. 27, 2005, at Heartland Continuing Care Center in Portales. She was born July 25, 1924, in Big Run, Pa., to Catherine and Ralph Fullerton. She married Thomas Smith on March 14, 1944. She was a Sunday school teacher and volunteered with Meals-On-Wheels. She was a […]
Bills address drug problem
January 21, 2006
By Andy Jackson: CNJ staff writer Local legislators are adamant about two bills they wrote that will hit the Roundhouse in upcoming weeks — separate yet connected propositions for mandatory drug sentencing and rehabilitation initiatives. Sen. Clint Harden, R-Clovis, said he’s introducing a bill that would impose mandatory methamphetamine sentencing, to “get cooks out of […]
Republicans: Bingaman out of touch
January 11, 2006
By Andy Jackson: CNJ staff writer Five men vying for Republican nomination to a U.S. Senate seat say incumbent Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., is disconnected from the people he serves. “Is he (Bingaman) committed to New Mexico or to a job?” asked Dr. Allen McCulloch, a Farmington urologist, on Tuesday at a forum hosted by the […]
Commander’s Corner
November 23, 2005
Col. John Posner In 1789, our first president, General George Washington, issued a proclamation designating Thursday, 26 November, as a day of “Public Thanksgiving and Prayer” – thereby officially establishing Thanksgiving as a federal holiday. It is not by coincidence that today – some 216 years later – we, as citizens, can still be thankful […]
Ornaments from N.M. students to be displayed on tree at nation’s capitol
October 25, 2005
Carol Dorazio, administrative assistant to the deputy superintendent of Clovis schools, sorts through Christmas ornaments that will be sent to decorate the New Mexico Christmas tree in Washington D.C. this year. (Staff photo: Sharna Johnson) By Marlena Hartz: CNJ staff writer Harvested from the Santa Fe National Forest, an 80-foot spruce is going on a […]
Money politics replace Republican ideals
September 26, 2005
Mona Charen It’s not possible, is it? Rep. Tom DeLay did not say the Republican Congress had achieved a “victory” over wasteful spending? What a sense of humor! This, just as Congress is rushing to blanket the Gulf Coast in a thick quilt of taxpayer funds? Who are these Republicans? A little over a month […]
Curbing liberty not appropriate response
August 24, 2005
By Walter Williams: Syndicated Columnist Driving through downtown Washington, D.C., a few weeks ago, I asked myself: What’s happened to the character of the American people? There were barricaded landmarks, armed guards and people waiting to be searched. Several weeks ago, I visited downtown Philadelphia in the vicinity of Independence Hall. Again there were barricades, […]
Reporter’s notebook: Clovis junior visits Washington for medical forum
August 3, 2005
Clovis High School junior Britni Montague gained insight to a possible career in medicine recently during a 10-day forum in Washington, D.C. Taking part in the National Youth Leadership Forum on Medicine, Montague was introduced to concepts in public health, medical ethics and general practice. “I listened to speakers and watched a triple bypass,” Montague […]
