Opinion
News

Cat Urbigkit: I Live In The Rock Springs District Of The BLM, Here's What I See
Columnist Cat Urbigkit writes, "These sheep will journey 125 miles from north to south under their own hoof power, before turning north again next spring – an annual cycle practiced here for more than 100 years."
Cat UrbigkitOctober 13, 2023

Charlie Spiering: Here We Go Again -- Nominating Steve Scalise Puts Republicans Back at Square One
Columnist Charlie Spiering writes, "By abandoning Jim Jordan, Republicans lose their chance to take a major stand against Democrats and offer new leadership and a sharply different opposing agenda."
Charlie SpieringOctober 12, 2023

Rod Miller: Police Misbehavior And The Critical Role Of The Free Press
Columnist Rod Miller writes, "Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland has broken a couple of stories about police misbehavior in Thermopolis. We are watching a real life instance of the power of a free press play out before our eyes in real time."
Rod MillerOctober 11, 2023

Cat Urbigkit: It Doesn’t Matter What the BLM Says, What Counts Is What’s In Writing.
Columnist Cat Urbigkit writes, "Don’t give the BLM the benefit of the doubt – the agency doesn’t deserve it. What counts is not what agency officials say, or what it pledges it intends to do, but what is in writing in the official record."
Cat UrbigkitOctober 10, 2023

Dave Simpson: Hillary's Gonna Need A Bigger Boat
Columnist Dave Simpson writes, "I don't care if you disagree. I'm 72, too old to pretend this makes sense anymore. I didn't live my life like government operates in Washington – I saved - and you can't make me believe this kind of profligacy won't ultimately bring down our country."
Dave SimpsonOctober 09, 2023

Rod Miller: Politics Around the Ol’ Wyoming Campfire
Columnist Rod Miller writes, "Chatter around the ol’ campfire devolved into hoots and hollers as each cowboy sang the praises of his own favorite candidate and called everyone else a bunch o’ damn RINOs. The campfire vocabulary was reduced to one and two-syllable words, and finally to grunts, growls and chest thumps."
Rod MillerOctober 08, 2023

Dennis Sun: Calves Are Moving
Ag columnist Dennis Sun writes, "It is a good time of year for those in the livestock business. It’s busy but rewarding. There are a lot of cattle trucks on highways leading into the region, and it only means one thing – ranchers are shipping calves."
Dennis SunOctober 07, 2023

Bill Sniffin: Wyoming Is Far From Being A ‘Big Empty’
Bill Sniffin writes: “From my vantage point crisscrossing the state, Wyoming doesn't look empty. It looks like a kaleidoscope of colors as river-formed canyons, big mountains and unique buttes abound all around us.”
Bill SniffinOctober 07, 2023

Rod Miller: How Safe Are Our Persons And Houses In Wyoming?
Columnist Rod Miller writes, "A cop in Thermopolis broke down a citizen’s door without a warrant of any kind and against the advice of the county attorney's office. A gunfight resulted, with the household resident dying and the cop being wounded."
Rod MillerOctober 06, 2023

Clair McFarland: If I Don’t Outrun My Kid It’s The End Of The World
Clair McFarland writes: “I’m not ready for either son to beat me in a race. In fact, I still want to scoop them up in my arms and read to them. But that’s weird, since Firstborn is bigger than I am.”
Clair McFarlandOctober 05, 2023

Charlie Spiering: Kevin McCarthy Made Too Many Deals to Stay in Power
Columnist Charlie Spiering writes "A deal with Pelosi, a deal with Gaetz, a deal with Biden, a deal with McConnell. Perhaps the next speaker will have fewer enemies in the Republican Party and make fewer costly deals to get there."
Charlie SpieringOctober 04, 2023

Cat Urbigkit: BLM Claims Any Use Of Natural Resources Likely To Cause Adverse Impacts
Columnist Cat Urbigkit writes, "Non-use is preferred by the BLM. That’s not hyperbole but truth. We’re not talking about wilderness areas here, but millions of acres of public lands from the foothills of the Wind River Mountains south to the Colorado border."
Cat UrbigkitOctober 03, 2023

Dave Simpson: Is 'Gender Queer' Author A Book Banner?
Columnist Dave Simpson writes, "Is it the equivalent of Nazi Germany for library boards to decide that some books are appropriate for children, and others aren't? Even when the author agrees that her book is inappropriate for young children?"
Dave SimpsonOctober 02, 2023

Rod Miller: Friday Night Lights in Wyoming’s Lower East Side
Columnist Rod Miller writes, "Confession – I’m a sucker for high school football. My son Vic and I caught the first win of the season for the 2A Burns Broncs in that bucolic little southeastern town out on the edge of America’s amber waves of grain."
Rod MillerOctober 01, 2023

Dennis Sun: Value-Added Dairy Cattle
Ag columnist Dennis Sun writes, "The dairy industry is taking advantage of higher cattle and meat prices and bringing in new genetics to provide more value-added beef products. Their timing is perfect."
Dennis SunSeptember 30, 2023

Bill Sniffin: Bird’s-Eye View Of Wyoming – There Is Nothing Quite Like It
Columnist Bill Sniffin writes, "One of my most extraordinary flying experiences ever was floating in a helicopter near the face of Wyoming’s highest mountain - Gannett Peak."
Bill SniffinSeptember 30, 2023

Rod Miller: The Empty Head of the Sagebrush Rebellion Raises Itself Again
Columnist Rod Miller writes, "If the Freedom Caucus was too lazy or too proud to get involved in the fed’s planning process on the BLM’s Draft Management Plan from Day One, but then cry crocodile tears when the horse is out of the barn, they aren’t worth listening to."
Rod MillerSeptember 28, 2023

Cat Urbigkit: BLM is Tired of Misinformation About Rock Springs Plan, But The Plan Itself Is Misinformation
Columnist Cat Urbigkit writes, "While the BLM had previously claimed that its preferred alternative would not result in reduced vehicle access by imposing road closures, that claim is false, since the plan includes closing 4,505 miles of routes to all use and removes another 10,000 miles of routes from the transportation network."
Cat UrbigkitSeptember 28, 2023

Charlie Spiering: GOP Debate 2 -- A Sequel Worse than the First
Columnist Charlie Spiering writes, "Voters who tuned into the Republican presidential debate last night probably regretted that decision and they were not alone."
Charlie SpieringSeptember 28, 2023

Cat Urbigkit: BLM Misinforms The Public About Rock Springs Plan
Columnist Cat Urbigkit writes, “Of the four alternatives examined, Alternative D seems the most balanced approach to management, offering something for every public land user. So why did the BLM select the most stringent alternative as its preferred?”
Cat UrbigkitSeptember 26, 2023

Dave Simpson: 'Silver Wings,' Not 'Barbie,' Got Raves
Columnist Dave Simpson writes, "Sorry I missed 'Barbie' with my friends Bill and Nancy Sniffin, but the highlight of the summer had nothing to do with sitting in a movie theater. It was sitting around a campfire while a retired eye doctor/musician from Nebraska sang 'Silver Wings.'”
Dave SimpsonSeptember 25, 2023

Rod Miller: Government Secrets vs. The Wyoming Public Records Act
Columnist Rod Miller writes, "In a free society like ours, citizens should know more about government than government knows about us. Knowledge is power, right? When government keeps secrets from its citizens, it becomes a secret government."
Rod MillerSeptember 24, 2023

Bill Sniffin: Wyoming Is Full Of Beautiful River Towns, So Which Is The Prettiest?
Bill Sniffin writes: “One of my all-time favorites is Evanston, which has taken its Bear River and made it a dominant item on its landscape. This town might deserve the prize for best use of its river.”
Bill SniffinSeptember 23, 2023

Dennis Sun: Climate Change And What To Believe
Ag columnist Dennis Sun writes, "Lately, we’ve heard a lot of news stories saying climate change is the reason for the extreme weather patterns we’ve experienced. The bad news is climate change is so political, we don’t know what to believe."
Dennis SunSeptember 22, 2023
