Stories from Monday, March 7, 2011

I was a budget hawk before budget hawks were popular and I'm happy to see the emphasis on reducing spending that is currently sweeping Washington. It's always been popular in Nebraska. When I was governor we balanced income with outgo every year and we did it by making plenty of cuts. Nebraska's Constitution requires a balanced budget but that doesn't make the task any easier. Tough decisions had to be made and I always kept my veto pen handy and wasn't afraid to use it...

No good intention goes unabused, it seems. The latest is the Nebraska Relay, which, according to its website, is a "free public service for communication between standard (voice) users and persons who are deaf, hard-of-hearing, deaf-blind and speech-disabled using text telephones (TTYs) or PCs via the Internet."...

There were some 65 million combatants on both sides in World War I, a war that claimed 9 million military lives. The last member of the Central Powers army (German) to die was Franz Kunstler, who passed away in 2008. In February 2011, the last American veteran of World War I, Frank Woodruff Buckles, passed away at the age of 110. ...

McCOOK, Nebraska -- The Southwest Nebraska Water Conference featured six different speakers at its 25th annual conference Friday at the Red Willow County Fairgrounds Community Building. Featured speakers included both the Upper and Middle Republican Natural Resource District managers, extension educators, and various agriculture specialists from around the state...

Sept. 4, 1925--March 1, 2011 McCOOK, Nebraska -- Caroline Rose (Harmon) Krizek, 85, passed away Tuesday (March 1, 2011), at her home in Highland Park Retirement Community. Caroline was born on Sept. 4, 1925, in Oberlin, Kansas, one of 12 children of Charley C. and Katie O. (Pauley) Harmon. She attended country grade school and graduated from Decatur County High School in May of 1944...

Aug. 26, 1925--March 4, 2011 SHAWNEE, Kansas -- Joseph Lee Logan, 85, died Friday (March 4, 2011), at Bryan Lincoln General Hospital in Lincoln, Nebraska, surrounded by his family. He was born Aug. 26, 1925, in Sandersville, Mississippi, to Robert Lee and Ruby Estelle (Lightsey) Logan. He grew up in Mississippi...

The Nebraska Shrine Bowl motto is "Strong Legs Run So Weak Legs May Walk." Two sets of perhaps the biggest, strongest legs in McCook will be part of the South team for the 2011 edition of the annual all-star high school football summer classic. Derek Chancellor and Ben Vetrovsky were named to the 35-player South roster for the 53rd annual Nebraska Shrine Bowl. This summer's contest is scheduled for Saturday, June 4, at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln...