Puffs

Something borrowed:

Saying “I don’t need newspapers, I get my news from the internet” is the same as saying “I don’t need farmers, cause I get my food at the supermarket.”

A O

If you are a ‘sports fan’ in Nebraska, you had a good weekend. The Nebraska football team won Saturday giving them a winning season going into the second half of the season. A record of 4-3 may not sound “great” but it is better than we’ve had for some time.

Many folks are talking about the Husker Volleyball team as well. They are still undefeated for the year and on Saturday they defeated the No. 1 rated and also undefeated Wisconsin University team.

This year, we can’t overlook the Husker Women’s Soccer team as well. They are nationally rated this year. (Maybe the first time ever?) The women have a record of 13-2-3 as they prepare for the Conference Tournament next weekend.

Of course, if you happen to have ties with the towns of Lawrence or Nelson, or others around this area, you may have enjoyed the L-N Raiders first round football victory last Thursday.

Talk about having a good year.

A O

And . . . talking about a bad year, would someone explain all the wars in the Mid-East? ? ? ?

A O

I’ve mentioned in years past what I considered an increase in “specialty” publications and how many get put in newspapers to be delivered.

Last week was a good example. A publication called “The Weed Watch” came out with a lot of good information about all kinds of weed in Nebraska. The first thing that caught my eye was the headline on the front page. An acronym, NAISMA, caught my attention. I had never seen it before. What it stands for is “North American Invasive Species Management Association.”

The full names is quite a mouth full to spit out every time it was used, but I’ve come to the conclusion that there are just too many of them in use today. I suppose it is just another change in society that has come about and I’ll just have to get used to it.

Another such publication also came out last week. It is called “Out of the Blue,” the newsletter for the Little Blue Natural Resources District. It usually contains interesting information.

This issue’s main topic was “Nitrate Testing.” “Nitrates” is something not many of us think about every day and they can do bad things to us humans. To quote the newsletter: “The long-term upward trajectory of nitrates in the groundwater continues, however, we hope to see less increases in the years ahead, and eventually more declines, as producers become more aware of how their land management decisions play a role in the health of the aquifer.”

There are large areas of the NRD with high enough levels of nitrates that people should be concerned. However, it seems progress is being made to reduce the problem. Education and time . . . hopefully we can solve the problem.

A O

The United States seems to be more and more divided into “Liberal” and “Conservative” circles. It also seems that they talk to each other less and less as time goes by.

For example, when I have stated my opposition to abortions, I get hit with the proclamation that I “hate women.” Conservatives must hate women if they believe in the “Right To Life” for all humans. Liberals are never condemned as hating babies. Why is that?

Conservatives were condemned as hating Black people when they questions the “Black Life Matter” movement of a few years ago and all the destruction that happen during their protest. What I heard was: why did all the destruction of property have to happen? I never heard one person express a dislike of Black people, but that is what the Liberals contented.

There are many examples where Liberals stop talking about the topic and start condemning the person who hold an opposing view point. It is something that has taken me a while to fully understand.

The Liberals are not stupid and know they can look good in the eyes of some others by taking the path they do. They do it so often, it is often not recognized. And this is the point I’m trying to make this week.

I’ve been reading more and more as of late of something like the following quote: “As one biblical commentary puts it: “Flesh and blood are Satan’s mere tools, the real foe lurking behind them is Satan himself, with whom our conflict is.”

St. Thomas Aquinas stated the following in layman’s terms: “Evil men are horses, and the demons the riders.”

It helps to know who the enemy is, and this concept gives me a lot more to think about.

Not all Liberals are “evil” and not all conservatives are “good” but this concept that a lot of public policy is now being driven by some ‘not-so-good’ people controlled by forces beyond their understanding, and maybe our understanding as well.

“Condemn the sin . . . not the sinner,” is a popular saying in the past few years.

Now, if we can only practice what we preach.

A O