Opinion

A winter\'s night (delayed) pre-game traditions

  The shovels are outside the door; the boots, hat and gloves await in your closet. The friend/neighbor/brother-in-law with the plow is on speed dial. The basketball game has been dela...

Budget debate must begin with uncomfortable questions about local impact

Warning: This column is going to make you uncomfortable. But if you want to be an informed participant in the debate over "sequester" or any other budget issue, you need to learn the ...

A personal introduction to Diversity, 101

  A few years ago, my oldest kid was hanging out with some friends here in Vinton, when one of them pointed out the window to the 1980s Ford LTD she had parked across the street. &ldq...

Remembering the most-loved -- and least popular -- Abraham Lincoln

What should you give the President whom most consider the most-loved in American history on the occasion of his 204th birthday. Having never spoken to any dead U.S. President, I can only guess,...

To the Editor: Working together is the solution to educational challenges

To the Editor: Educators in the Vinton-Shellsburg district are working diligently to provide valuable educational experiences for our children. And when I say educators, this includes: teachers...

A birthday tribute to the Gipper

Continuing my series of birthday tributes (last week, Charles Dickens, tomorrow Abe Lincoln), today I offer a memorial to Ronald Reagan on the 102nd anniversary of his birth, with the hope that tho...

Avoiding the armpit pitfalls of basketball photography

It will come as no surprise to many people who read my words that I didn't take journalism in college. My major was in public administration, but I quickly discovered it is more fun to wri...

Three cheers and a protonymic tiger for the trails of Googling

Why does Editor Dean, who has always considered “Dungeons and Dragons” as much of a colossal waste of time as Fantasy Football, have a page from the lesser-known role-playing game &ldqu...

5 Million.. and counting....

At around 10 a.m. this morning the "total page view" counter passed 5 million. We began Vinton Today believing but not knowing it would succeed, and every day our technology people, our r...

The worst of clichés and the best of gifts for Dickens' 201st birthday

  Today, Feb. 7, 2013, 201st anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens. So, what does a dead writer want for his birthday? He would – and I am only guessing, since I have ...