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Memorial Day – A day to remember

Memorial Day is a holiday perhaps unlike all others. There is little pressure on most of us. We generally aren’t expected to host big gatherings that take days or weeks to prepare for. There are few decorations to put out – just an American flag if we choose to even do that. It’s here and then it is gone. We can just kick back and enjoy a day off from work and our routines if that is all the effort we care to put into the day. Hopefully, though, we will remember that that kind of leisure, that freedom to do whatever we choose to, comes at a cost. Hopefully we will remember ...

In support of front-liners everywhere

Hospital personnel such as nurses and doctors, ambulance crews and other full-time health care professionals are viewed by many Americans as the front-line heroines and heroes of the COVID-19 epidemic. An episode last week reminds us first responders such as police officers and firefighters are risking their own safety to be there for us, too. New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot plunged headfirst into hot water in March, in a telephone conversation reported last week by the New York Post. She was talking with city police Chief Terence Monahan, about protective face ...

Supplemental funding needed for summer school

Many public school districts are ending the academic year early or plan to do so, The Associated Press reports. In some, use of distance learning via online tools has been pronounced a disappointment. But come August and September, when American children return to school — we hope — millions will be behind academically. If it has done nothing else, COVID-19 has demonstrated the importance of in-school education. With students in the classroom, teachers are able to provide both comprehensive learning and individualized attention that simply is not possible online. Face time is ...

Inside traders are not to be tolerated

Nearly every American has suffered financially from the COVID-19 epidemic. At least 36 million of us were laid off from our workplaces. Even those still on the job have seen their retirement savings decimated. But a few people — those who had some forewarning of the economic havoc to come — may have profited from the epidemic, or at least avoided the investment losses most suffered. Good for those who did so by paying close attention to the pandemic as it was building in China, in preparation for spreading globally, then thought carefully about investments. They deserve to have ...

Must be curbs on government’s ability to spy on Americans

Unanimity over how much power intelligence agencies should have to pry into Americans’ personal affairs has disappeared with reports during the past few years of unconstitutional invasions of privacy. Victims of that have ranged from high-ranking government officials down to millions of other people. So, passage by the U.S. Senate of legislation to revive surveillance powers that had expired was far from unopposed. The vote last week on the measure was 80-16. Members of the House of Representatives will have to approve it, too, for the bill to become law. It is aimed at allowing ...

Statewide celebration for graduates will be remembered

High school seniors graduating this spring are losing a lot. Many traditional moments that other graduates get to experience and look back on as they grow older are being stolen by COVID-19. But, in North Dakota the Class of 2020 will have something special to remember their senior year by. One that will hopefully take some of the sting out of an otherwise scaled-back senior celebration. Gov. Doug Burgum and State School Superintendent Kirsten Baesler announced Friday that Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz, actor Josh Duhamel and Nashville recording artists Tigirlily will ...