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Prairie dogs are important

National Columnists

Last fall, I fell in love with prairie dogs on the American Prairie in Montana even though the hype for America's Great Plains pointed me to bison. As impressive as North America's largest land mammal is, the pipsqueak of the prairie piqued my interest and stole my heart, and I'm not the only one. Andy Boyce arrived on the American Prairie in 2018 as one of the Smithsonian's first folks hired onto their Great Plains Science Program. Like me, he arrived in Montana thinking of bison. Boyce is a research ecologist with Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology ...

Letter to the Editor: History preservation includes Indigenous people’s story

Letters to the Editor

As an Indigenous woman and a state representative from Mandaree, I was raised to understand that land carries memory. The hills, rivers, and plains of this region hold the stories of our ancestors. That is why I am troubled by the recent secretarial order issued by Doug Burgum, which has led to the removal and alteration of historical interpretation across our national parks. Our national parks are classrooms, cultural sites, and living archives of our country’s full history. Agencies like the National Park Service, operating under the United States Department of the Interior, have ...

What's going on with America's political parties?

National Columnists

As Donald Trump's Republicans look askance as he launches what looks to some like another long-term war in the Middle East, and as the anti-Trump Democrats hold up Homeland Security funding in what looks to some like prioritizing illegal immigrants over U.S. citizens, one is tempted to ask, what's going on with America's political parties? Something close to self-harm, you might answer. And yet it is apparent that the U.S. parties, the oldest and third-oldest in the world, are not in as much trouble as many old parties abroad. In Britain, both Conservatives and Labour are ...

Facts about energy policy

National Columnists

Given the energy disruptions in the Middle East and the topsy-turvy fluctuation in the price of crude oil in recent weeks, here are a few facts about the energy scene. First, "drill, baby, drill" is working. America today is producing more oil and gas than ever. Over the past six years, we've produced more than any other nation, including Saudi Arabia. The best way to inoculate ourselves from foreign supply disruptions is to generate every barrel of oil we can here at home. And we have many decades of abundant supply given ever-improving shale drilling techniques. Second, the ...

Our government is spending too much

National Columnists

Wherever you look in American politics right now, you'll find legislators saying the government still doesn't tax enough — especially when it comes to the wealthy. California progressives are pursuing a wealth tax on billionaires, advertised as a method to raise $100 billion in a single stroke. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is pushing for sweeping new taxes on the wealthy to fund a vast expansion of city services. And Washington state politicians are treating a preventable budget problem as a failure to sufficiently tax corporations and the rich. The same is true on the ...

What if those Iranian bombs had nuclear warheads

National Columnists

Criticism of President Trump's bombing campaign against the Iranian regime continues from most Democrats and a few Republicans. There was a time in America — unknown to younger generations — when once American troops were involved in a war the nation mostly unified behind them. Today, there are no restraints as a war is seen as merely a continuation of politics as usual. Criticism emboldens the enemy and puts more American military personnel in danger. That appears to be of little concern to the critics. A new poll by NPR/PBS News/Marist found 56 percent of those surveyed oppose, ...