Opinion

When a recent local issue arose that struck a chord with my muse, I decided to send off a letter to the editor and opine about that issue, as I am a strong believer in the open forum offered by print media and have...

I couldn’t help it, I had to cough. My throat became the most horrendous tickle fest. It was coming; everyone was looking at me. Noooo! Then, once I started, I couldn’t stop. The lady near me swung around in her chair with her latte...

It’s kind of strange to start a column like that, but I have been struck with a book I have been reading and I haven’t even finished the first chapter. It’s called “Hillbilly Elegy,” by J.D. Vance. This is the guy the Republicans have...

When will the pandemic end? That’s a complicated question, and difficult to answer. There will be no “light switch” moment where our lives suddenly return to what we call “normal.” In many ways, this pandemic has been like a long, destructive storm, perhaps a...

Bucket lists are funny things. Most people forget to empty their buckets as they fill them, or they notice there are a few holes in the bucket, and everything is then a bit pointless. It has been my dream forever — since I was...

I had to do it, the time had come, so I walked stoutly to the middle of the Oak Avenue overcrossing and stepped over the rail, took a long look around me at my hometown of Greenfield, California, then jumped to the dirt below. That...

To the Editor: At the schools, we feed our students breakfast, lunch, afternoon snacks and dinner. If it is not safe at McDonald’s, Burger King, Taco Bell and Carl’s Jr. here in Greenfield and other cities in the county, then it is not safe in...

When I was a very young man, I rode around with my dad as he went from field to field down in Santa Maria. It was just about my favorite thing to do. My dad was the foreman of a company that grew flowers...

I made an honest effort at reciting words I learned years ago only to find that I had left out three sections, just a few words, but those omissions were as integral and important as any others. I am talking about the preamble to...

To the Editor: This time last year I wrote to express my disappointment that the Rustler had not given the Ricky Graham Memorial Short Track Race any coverage; not one word, not one photo. You published my letter and in an Editor’s Note explained that you...