What can we reason but from what we know? -Alexander Pope
What can we reason but from what we know? -Alexander Pope
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We all hope to enjoy long, healthy lives, retaining the ability to think clearly and make our own decisions. But life doesn’t always work out that way — which is why you need to prepare for a potential incapacity that could affect your independence and possibly create financial problems for your family. So, in thinking about incapacity planning, you may want to consider the following arrangements: • Health care power of attorney – When you establish a health care power of attorney, you name so...
Far too many politicians speak to desires of owning the electorate, blinded in part by suppositions of sweeping mandates that are crudely called forth but lack definition. A weariness has descended on us this election cycle, a reflection of being reduced to categories of color, age, gender, faith, sexuality, nationality and any number of unnamed groupings that presumedly define who we are, depending of course on who interprets the data. Unfortunately, voters caught in the process can become...
As we gear up for another winter driving season, motorists on mountain grades need to remember to gear down. Braking unnecessarily can cause your vehicle to slide with no ability to steer or control it. Gearing down keeps your vehicle's tires rotating which gives you traction and keeps you in control while still slowing the vehicle on downgrades. The good news is that Colorado is cyclical and for those of your who enjoy milder temperatures and driving conditions, these conditions are temporary....
No cat has more lives than Donald Trump’s political fortunes. To be sure, he is as skilled at retail politics as anyone since Bill Clinton, but he also benefits from being habitually underestimated by his adversaries. His unprecedented political rehabilitation wasn’t merely a product of Republican support. Democrats and the dominant liberal media must ask themselves, “Did our relentless obsession with demonizing Trump instead breathe new life into him?” Democrats were convinced they could b...
[The body of this article was first shared some fifteen years ago, and it continues to generate robust conversation whenever the topic arises. We have ceremonies to properly dispose of worn flags. Might there be something similar for old Bibles? Oh well, into the abyss once more!] Nearly every family has them and doesn’t know what to do with them. Should they keep them, throw them out, recycle them or (gasp) burn them with the other paper trash? “They” are the Bibles of generations, some torn,...
Share and share alike is a nice, if not noble, standard to embrace, but it is not enough. Say what? You mean that the relief work and humanitarian efforts spent on behalf of others do not measure up? To the contrary, they matter. Greatly. There is a need, however, to examine the implied reciprocity that naturally develops alongside responders when addressing the hurts of others. It is part of our human condition, the expectation of reward for the good works that faith demands of us. We cannot...
According to some, the hoppers are bad this year. But then again, who has hoppers and describes them as not bad? Even the most forgiving neighbors agree that the smallest of grasshopper populations can be problematic, noting the insect’s mostly indiscriminate attacks on garden produce, shrubs, trees and ornamentals. We decided to tame the high grass of the back wind break and discovered countless hoppers happily decimating all vegetation in their path. It gave us some degree of sadistic p...
Like most of us, you may someday want to enjoy a comfortable retirement. Your ability to achieve this goal will depend on how much you save — but it also matters how much you spend. And saving and spending are certainly related: The more you can reduce your spending, the more money you could have available to save for retirement through your IRA and your 401(k) or other employer-sponsored retirement plan. Over many years, even relatively small amounts diverted from spending to saving and i...
We are awash in grace and don’t know it. How can that be? For all our declared best intentions, the world is still a challenging place. It shouldn’t be so hard given the resources and advantages at hand. Unfortunately, we need only look a short distance away to confirm our blindness in that regard. Natural and unnatural disasters have ravaged places that look eerily like the communities we live and work and play in. Is it fate or simply our turn to bear the griefs borne by so many others? Nev...
In the popular imagination, receiving an inheritance always sounds like a good thing — after all, who doesn’t want a financial windfall? And inheritances can certainly be life-altering events. But they can cause challenges, so you’ll want to help your heirs be prepared. To assist in this preparation, try to address some key questions affecting your heirs: • Do they know what’s in your estate plans? Your family and other heirs will be much better prepared to deal with an inheritance if they know...
Letter to the Editor, Prop 131 will give us a chance to have a say, not only in our local representation, but also in the state-wide races. Vote yes on 131. Here in the ruby red part of Colorado, if you want to have a say in who our state representative or state senator is, you have to vote in the Republican primary, but that means that you won’t have any say at all in who will be the next Governor, United States Senator or Attorney General because, more likely than not, those races will be settled in the Democrat primary. Proposition 131 s...
Why is it when it comes to weather that “traces” always linger? Traces of snow and rain linger as well as traces of clouds, sunshine and fog. A lingering frost is not very fast on its feet, particularly in the shadows of the morning and the haze of humidity in mid-summer loiters as much as lingers throughout the long day. One would think it impossible to get a complete weather picture if all we have are but traces of conditions. Somehow or another, however, the traces end up adding up and the...
If you’re a parent, you want to do everything you can to help your children succeed in life. Therefore, you might think that one of the best things you can do is to save for your children’s college education. And this is certainly admirable, but could it conflict with your ability to prepare for another key goal — your own retirement? Of course, this would not be a problem if you had unlimited means, but most of us don’t fall into that category. So, given the financial resources and income...
Colorado highways are among the worst in the nation. That's hardly news to anyone who travels across our state. Only two states report a larger share of interstate highway in poorer condition than Colorado. Less-traveled highways are even worse. In 2021, the Democrat-controlled legislature passed a $5.4 billion package of new "fees" – including an annual increase in fuel prices and that irritating 29 cents only Coloradans pay on every Amazon order – supposedly to boost the transportation bud...
With the presidential election just a few weeks away, the public is naturally interested in not just the outcome but what the results will mean for issues of national importance. As a citizen, you likely share these concerns - but how about as an investor? After the votes are counted - or even before - should you make some moves in anticipation of possible changes in policy? Let's look at the big picture first, through the lens of history. The financial markets have performed well - and at...
It is not difficult to hate these days. One could go as far to say that hate has become the tool of choice for many, a cheap and efficient instrument to vanquish modern day foes. How unfortunate that lowest common denominator intellectualism has supplanted thoughtful studied approaches to incumbent cultural and political concerns. Hate comes easily when we are one-on-one. We need only best the person before us through inference and innuendo, planting seeds of derision based on marginal truths an...
If you work for a midsize or large company, you may soon be able to review your employee benefits package, as we are entering the open enrollment season. So, consider your options carefully, with an eye toward making changes appropriate for your needs. Here are some of the key areas to look at: • Retirement plan – Depending on your employer, you could change your 401(k) or similar retirement plan at any time of the year, but you might want to use the open enrollment season to review your con...
Brilliance is often defined in terms of intellect: prowess, genius, ability, skill. We attribute it to scientists like Einstein, Edison or Tesla, and a host of others whose imaginations are not bound by limitations of the mind. Brilliance stands apart from most standard, often obligatory, patterns of thought. A different view of brilliance engages the senses by implicating wonders that surround and move us. Innovations in literature, music, theater and the visual arts tug at us with a gentle...
If you’re planning to retire in a few years, are you looking forward to it? Or are you somewhat apprehensive? Are you asking yourself: “What sort of retirement can I afford?” It’s a good question — because the answer can make a big difference in your ability to enjoy life as a retiree. And retirement can indeed be enjoyable, exciting and fun. Consider this from a recent survey by Edward Jones and AgeWave: A majority of respondents said retirement should be looked at as a whole new chapter o...
I love the fall palette of colors: burnt oranges, bronzes and yellows, deep gray greens and dazzling reds. I also love the anticipation that accompanies them, anticipation of holiday gatherings, cooler nights and campfires, fall sporting events and the company of friends. Yet for all their wonder, colors alone are never enough to evoke the full sense of fall. That takes a bit more; texture in the form of flower petals and knobby gourds, dry rustling corn stalks, creases and stems of pumpkins and bearded seed heads on perennials. Fall harvest...
We love structure even when it means restricting one’s own views. Structure prescribes rules and defines arenas for the games that we play — mental, political, relational, spiritual — in forms that are acceptable to the governing culture in the moment. When things are going well, we laud the architects of such structure, praising them for their prudence and foresight. When things sway in opposite less desirable directions, structure remains visible, though it is often used as scapegoat mater...
Letter to the Editor, The annual meeting of the Haxtun High School Alumni will be held from 2-4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 28, which is the day of the Corn Festival in Haxtun. This year the location of the gathering has been changed. There will be an Open House reception held at the Immanuel Lutheran Church in Haxtun. This decision was made by myself, LaVonne Hart, coordinator of the HHS Alumni. I have several reasons for the venue change. Most of the local alumni know me as being the coordinator for the organization for around 23 years. I am at...
The summer garden is winding down. Vibrant colors still abound, but they are distinctly more mature, bringing a different view of beauty into the fold. Deep yellows and golds permeate the garden as dusky sage and durable sedum provide a muted backdrop. Fall berries adorn many of the perennial shrubs, drawing late summer birds fueling for migration. And, while bumble bees are still making the rounds, they are fewer in number though welcome pollinators nonetheless. Garden wise, it has been a good...
Investing involves risk — and so does not investing. You should know how both these types of risk can affect your ability to reach your financial goals. Let’s start with the risks associated with investing. There’s not a single investment risk because different types of investments carry different types of risk. Here’s a look at three investment categories and some of the risks connected with them: • Stocks – When you invest in stocks or stock-based mutual funds, you will incur the risk that t...
So, 2024 is beginning to wind down amid some of the most childish and rancorous hyperbole attendant to presidential politics in modern history. Each party’s gloves are off, political prizefighters championed with ferocity by their respective corners and coached into landing every possible blow to inflict the most damage. The greatest damage, however, is not to the opponents, but to the very soul of the country. Is there yet a place for religiosity to ease our pain? I am a late sixties, white, pr...
