Opinion

“The newspaper business just isn’t what it used to be,” a good friend called to lament last week. Like me, he’s had that ink in his veins most of his life.

Late summer and early fall signal the monsoon season for West Texas. It is during this time that our area of the state receives the vast majority of its annual rainfall, which is estimated to be anywhere between six to sixteen inches. For those who have been in the area for an extended period of time, there has been a noticeable decline in average annual rainfall years, along with traditional monsoonal weather patterns.

The Biden Harris supporter, I recently read a strange letter to the editor in the Fort Davis Mountain Dispatch, on August 8, 2024. The letter glorified Joe Biden and Kamala Harris’s actions on the economy and their impact on the USA.

“Style icons always change, and they usually inspire my haircuts more than anything else” — Maya Hawke – American actress and singersongwriter. A haircut isn’t something I think about a lot these days.

With the start of a new fiscal year, Alpine ISD, like many districts across Texas, faces an uphill battle, compounded by our state’s ongoing underfunding of public education. Alpine ISD continues to grapple with significant financial constraints.

I first came to the Big Bend region in the summer of 2008 on a family vacation. I remember it being deathly hot and I vowed to never return.

“I’m going to finish my book of columns this year.” — I said that. Which means I really have to do it now Reviewing columns, you’ve written about people off and on for most of your life brings to mind some that stand out more than others.

It was a simple principle. And it worked.

Did you know that Sul Ross State University employs over 250 faculty and staff – folks who shop, buy homes, and pay taxes – on the campus in Alpine? In addition to our student population of nearly 900 (and growing) that either live on campus or in the city, they help to invigorate our community and support our local economy, creating a relationship that benefits both the institution and our Alpine businesses. Their contributions span a wide array of initiatives, from educational outreach and economic development to cultural enrichment and social services.

Climatologists at Yale University have described climate change in Texas as a battle between the “Haves and the Have Nots.” To the south, with the Gulf of Mexico warming, “huge influxes of moisture” are bringing more rain and flooding. However, the dry desert air in the West is producing droughts with much less moisture. Mexico is experiencing a severe, ongoing drought that, according to the National Weather Service, could be partly responsible for the drought experienced here in Jeff Davis County. Our drought persists, with half of the county suffering from severe drought, and the other half from extreme drought.