Tuesday February 4, 1919 and the Legislature of 2019. Ideas that come around again. New four year schools.

It's interesting to look back and realize how some ideas that are current have been around for quite awhile.

Recently there's been discussion of allowing the state's several community colleges to offer some Bachelors degrees.  The way I understand it, and I may understand it incorrectly, they're basically applied degrees, although frankly the legislation that would authorize it is a bit confusing, at least to me.  That bill is House Bill 263.

2019

STATE OF WYOMING

19LSO-0524

HOUSE BILL NO. HB0263

Postsecondary education and economic development.

Sponsored by: Representative(s) Harshman and Simpson and Senator(s) Dockstader, Driskill and Pappas

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to postsecondary education and economic development; making legislative findings; authorizing community colleges to confer baccalaureate degrees; providing for community college commission approval of a limited number of baccalaureate degree programs as specified; conforming Hathaway scholarship statutes; specifying certain programs  to be reviewed for inclusion by higher education institutions; providing for review of baccalaureate programs provided by colleges; modifying duties of the economically needed diversity options for Wyoming executive council to include consideration of the need for postsecondary programs for continued economic development and diversification in Wyoming; requiring reports; authorizing additional uses of economically needed diversity options funds for required reviews; specifying date for approval of additional baccalaureate programs; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1.

(a)  The legislature finds that:

(i)  The availability of baccalaureate degree programs in Wyoming impacts Wyoming's ability to promote and achieve the goals of the legislative and executive branches' economic and education initiatives;

(ii)  There exists a need to increase the availability of baccalaureate degree programs in Wyoming to enable:

(A)  Increased educational opportunity, particularly for students who must remain close to home for reasons related to family, health or work while earning a college degree; and

(B)  Increased skill development, which will lead to economic expansion and diversification.

(iii)  Increasing the availability of baccalaureate degree programs in the state is compatible with the continued legislative support of the University of Wyoming.

Section 2.  W.S. 9‑12‑1402(a)(xii), 9‑12‑1404(a)(iii)(A) and (B), 21‑16‑1303(f)(iv), 21‑16‑1304(b), 21‑16‑1305(a)(iii), 21‑18‑102(a)(i), 21‑18‑202(b)(v), (d)(i) and (h)(ii) and 21‑18‑303(a)(xvi) are amended to read:

9‑12‑1402.  General powers and duties of the council; economic diversification policy and strategy; authority of governor.

(a)  The ENDOW executive council shall:

(xii)  In consultation with the University of Wyoming, community colleges, the department of education, department of workforce services and Wyoming business council:,

(A)  Review existing career technical education programs and develop recommendations regarding opportunities to better coordinate existing public and private programs, and develop or acquire existing career technical education facilities to further technical education opportunities in the state;. The

(B)  Review existing, proposed and potential baccalaureate degree programs which may be provided at a Wyoming community college to determine the need for the program in light of the state's economic development and diversification efforts and recommend specificbaccalaureate degree programs for consideration by the colleges and Wyoming community college commission;

(C)  Make recommendations regarding its review under this paragraph.  Recommendations shall be included in the council's twenty (20) year economic diversification strategy and may be included in the council's four (4) year action plan as determined appropriate by the council.

9‑12‑1404.  Economic diversification account created; authorized expenditures.

(a)  There is created an economic diversification account. All monies in the account are continuously appropriated to the office of the governor to be used for the purposes of this article and as otherwise specified by law, including per diem, mileage and other administrative expenses of the ENDOW executive council. Notwithstanding W.S. 9‑2‑1008 and 9‑4‑207, funds in the account or subaccounts of the account shall not lapse at the end of the fiscal period. Interest earned on funds in the account shall be deposited to the account or appropriate subaccount.  Within the account shall be subaccounts.  For accounting and investment purposes only all subaccounts shall be treated as separate accounts.  The subaccounts are as follows:

(iii)  The Wyoming workforce development‑priority economic sector partnership subaccount.  Funds within this subaccount may be expended:

(A)  As approved by director of the department of workforce services for administrative costs incurred by the department of workforce services associated with administration of the Wyoming workforce development‑priority economic sector partnership program under W.S. 9‑2‑2609 through 9‑2‑2611; and

(B)  As approved by the governor or his designee:

(I)  To provide funding for agreements entered into pursuant to W.S. 9‑2‑2609 through 9‑2‑2611; and

(II)  To fund expenses associated with the council's study under W.S. 9‑12‑1402(a)(xii) of education programs and, as specified by law, to fund other studies regarding the potential expansion of educational programs to support economic development and diversification efforts.

21‑16‑1303.  Hathaway scholarship program; eligibility requirements.

(f)  Students meeting the requirements of this subsection shall not be subject to the six (6) academic year limitation on scholarships under this article, the satisfactory academic progress requirements of W.S. 21‑16‑1304(c)(i) and 21‑16‑1305(b)(i) or the continuous enrollment requirements of W.S. 21‑16‑1304(c)(ii) and 21‑16‑1305(b)(ii), but shall be subject to the following:

(iv)  Within the earlier of eight (8) years of initial Hathaway scholarship eligibility or four (4) years of last attending an eligible institution while receiving a Hathaway scholarship, have enrolled at the University of Wyoming or a Wyoming community college to complete a baccalaureate of applied science degree and have applied for reinstatement of the student's Hathaway scholarship;

21‑16‑1304.  Hathaway opportunity, performance and honor scholarships.

(b)  Scholarships under this section shall be for a maximum of the equivalent of eight (8) full‑time semesters.  Except as specified under subsection (g) of this section, A scholarship under this section shall be available for attendance at a Wyoming community college for not more than a maximum of the equivalent of four (4) full‑time semesters,. except as follows:

(i)  As specified under subsection (g) of this section; or

(ii)  A scholarship for a student enrolled in a baccalaureate degree program at a Wyoming community college shall be for a maximum of the equivalent of eight (8) full‑time semesters.

21‑16‑1305.  Hathaway provisional opportunity scholarships.

(a)  Any student who meets the criteria under W.S. 21‑16‑1303 is eligible to receive a Hathaway provisional opportunity scholarship to pursue a certificate or degree as follows:

(iii)  A student who receives a scholarship under paragraph (i) of this subsection and who earns a certificate from the community college with a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.25 may extend the provisional opportunity scholarship to pursue either a certificate or a degree at a Wyoming community college or if the student earns a degree from the community college with a minimum GPA of 2.25, may extend the scholarship to pursue a degree at the University of Wyoming if the student maintains a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.25 and otherwise remains eligible for a scholarship under this article. A student who receives a scholarship under paragraph (i) of this subsection, is enrolled in a community college baccalaureate program and has received a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.25 after four (4) full‑time semesters may extend the provisional opportunity scholarship for an additional four (4) full‑time semesters to complete the baccalaureate degree if the student maintains a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.25 and otherwise remains eligible for a scholarship under this article. The scholarship under this paragraph shall be for the same amounts and subject to the same limitations as provided for scholarships under paragraph (a)(i) of this section, except that the student may continue a baccalaureate program or pursue either an additional certificate or a degree and the student may use this scholarship while attending a Wyoming community college or the University of Wyoming.

21‑18‑102.  Definitions.

(a)  As used in this act:

(i)  "Academic program" means those programs approved by the commission which provide credits:

(A)  Resulting in a two (2) year associate degree;

(B)  Resulting in a baccalaureate degree; or

(C)  Which may be transferred to an accredited four (4) year college or university.;

21‑18‑202.  Powers and duties of the commission.

(b)  The commission shall perform the following coordination functions. In performing these coordination functions all affected colleges and the commission shall be involved:

(v)  Coordinate the provision by means of electronic internet or similar proprietary or common carrier electronic system technology, by a community college or several community colleges, the general education courses  necessary for completion of an educational program in the field of nursing at a community college, including a baccalaureate degree if offered, or a baccalaureate degree program in nursing at the University of Wyoming;

(d)  The commission shall perform the following approval functions:

(i)  Approve all new programs, including baccalaureate degree programs, qualifying for state funding pursuant to the statewide community college strategic plan developed under subsection (h) of this section;

(h)  The commission shall prior to the beginning of each biennial budget period, review, update and modify the statewide college system strategic plan.  The plan shall clearly prescribe the components of the educational program and attach program components to statewide system priorities.  This plan shall serve as the basis for state operational andcapital construction budget requests and funding of the statewide college system for the applicable biennial budget period.  In developing, reviewing and updating the strategic plan, the commission shall:

(ii)  Include mechanisms within the planning process which adhere to the state's interests in establishing a statewide college system identified as assuring statewide access to:

(A)  Academic programs, including one (1) baccalaureate degree program at each community college, and an additional baccalaureate degree program at each community college if a community college demonstrates sufficient community need;

(B)  Career‑technical education and training programs;,

(C)  Dual and concurrent enrollment programs;, and

(D)  Remedial and continuing education programs responding to needs of students, employers and the state workforce, including program access through outreach or coordinated electronic system technology.;

21‑18‑303.  District board generally; powers; board approved additional mill levy.

(a)  The community college district board may:

(xvi)  Confer degrees, including baccalaureate degrees in programs approved by the commission, and certificates and grant diplomas as are usual for community colleges and authorized under its accreditation by the regional accrediting agency;

Section 3.  

(a)  In consultation with the University of Wyoming and community colleges, the community college commission shall evaluate the funding, other implementation needs and appropriate timeframe to:

(i)  Establish health care provider programs at community colleges.  The commission may consider potential undergraduate and postgraduate health care provider programs under this paragraph;

(ii)  Re‑establish a career and technical training program by the University of Wyoming as an outreach program at Casper, Wyoming;

(iii)  Establish a baccalaureate program in education at Central Wyoming community college.

(b)  The community college commission shall consult with the department of workforce services, the department of education, the economically needed diversity options for Wyoming executive council and Wyoming business council regarding the effect the programs specified in subsection (a) of this section could have on economic development and diversification efforts in Wyoming. The community college commission shall report the results of the study under subsection (a) of this section, including any responses by the entities specified in this subsection and recommendations of the community college commission, to the joint education interim committee not later than September 1, 2019.  The joint education interim committee shall sponsor legislation implementing recommendations of the commission as it determines appropriate for consideration in the 2020 budget session of the legislature.

(c)  The governor or his designee may authorize funding from theWyoming workforce development‑priority economic sector partnership subaccount as provided by W.S. 9‑12‑1404(a)(iii)(B)(II) for purposes of the commission's study under subsections (a) and (b) of this section.

(d)  The community college commission shall not approve a baccalaureate program pursuant to this act prior to April 1, 2020.  The community college commission shall review each baccalaureate program offered by a Wyoming community college and report on the costs and benefits of each program to the legislature by June 1, 2025. In its report, the community college commission shall recommend whether community colleges should continue to have the ability to offer baccalaureate degrees and report on any recommended changes to this act.

Section 4.  This act is effective July 1, 2019.

(END)

A person can read the legislation set out above and realize it does more than just that, but the basic gist, I think, is to allow for four year degrees that have a technical aspect.  I wouldn't call these trade degrees, as they are not, but they're degrees that differ in that fashion from classic BS and BA degrees in that they have a technical aspect to them.  Not surprisingly, the University of Wyoming is opposed to this.

The bill will be taken up for consideration today.

I've written on this earlier, but there was  move back in the 1970s to allow at least Casper College to become a full university.  This was a hugely popular idea here locally but adamantly opposed by UW.  UW responded, after the move failed, by coordinating with the community colleges so that some UW programs could be offered at the community colleges, so there's some ability to get some four year degrees here now.  Indeed, while it hasn't drawn much attention, Casper College has an arrangement with at least one other four year university to offer some of its degrees, up to the masters level, locally.

Given that, you'd think there'd be more support for this now than there was in the 1970s, but my suspicion is the bill will fail.

As a graduate of Casper College and the University of Wyoming, I can see both sides of the argument actually.  I've never developed the huge romantic attachment to UW that some people, including some people who never went there, have, but my undergraduate level was taken to the next level up after I left Casper College and went there and its likely a good thing, for me, that a four year program wasn't available at CC back then.  Indeed, I've heard some people claim that leaving your home and going to a distant university is part of the necessary part of an education, although that would leave some open questions about people who simply go to work after high school (a diminishing few) or those who go to work after finishing an associates degree.  I can see both sides of the argument, but I do think UW has one.

Anyhow, I was aware of the move in the 1970s, and the bill in the 2019 legislature, but I wasn't aware of such a bill in the 1919 one. There was.

UW is a land grant college so it's always had a close relationship to agriculture, so its all the more surprising to see that back in 1919 a Goshen County legislator wanted the Agriculture out of UW and vest it somewhere else.  I'm sure UW was not thrilled.  I don't know what motivated the move at the time, but Laramie is in Albany County which features a high plains environment that isn't suited for farming. That may have been on the mind of a legislator from Goshen County, which is.

Well, it turned out to be a pretty good game, in my view.

As have the last several.

I'm not really qualified to comment on that sort of thing, but it wasn't all one sided, as they can be.  People seem to think poorly of the Rams for some reason, or so I hear, but both sides played well.

And on the big game day. . . . a blog mirror; The N.F.L.’s Obesity Scourge

 The great running back Jim Brown. . . who played before the field was all giants.

As anyone who stops in here knows, I'm not a football fan.  Not even close.

Indeed, I used to claim that I didn't follow the sport, or wasn't in to it, but I really dislike it.

Well, that's too strong.  I don't detest it, but I do dislike all the endless hype.  Around this time of the year somebody will inevitably stop in my office and ask who I'm rooting for in the "big game".  I usually don't know who is in the big game, and I don't want to discuss it.  I'll end up watching it, sort of, as my wife loves the game and its sort of a minor holiday.  I'll actually managed to watch it without really ever watching it.  I've been present for entire games and not known who was in it within fifteen minutes of it being over.  

My problem with football is that its the most boring sport ever concocted.  Portrayed as if its a stunning example of modern gladiatorism, it actually has just about as much action as s knitting circle in a retirement home.

None of which means that I'm not sympathetic to the human toll it takes.

Head injuries have gotten a lot of press regarding football in recent years, and well they should. As that's occurred, I've continued to be simply amazed by how people continue to urge their kids into it.  My son didn't play high school football, which is no surprise as I'm so disinterested in it, but he was large enough and athletic enough that he could have if he'd wanted to.  I'm glad that he didn't and frankly I'd discourage any kid of mine from doing so, a view I share, I'll note, with an orthopedic surgeon and Marine Corps veteran who held that view a good forty years ago. 

But this time, I'm not commenting on that, but on another aspect of the modern game.

Over the years as I've not watched football I've none the less observed as the player got bigger and bigger.  Some have speculated that this is due to the modern diet, but I doubt that. There's always been really, really large men.*  With a larger and larger American population competing for just a select number of spots in the game, and the game getting slower and slower and slower, it makes sense that we'd see it gravitate to the very large.  

And I don't mean the very tall.  I mean large.  Indeed, some of these guys are downright fat even while they're playing professional ball.  And I've wondered, as a result of that, what happens to them after the game.  It turns out to be as bad or worse than I'd imagined, as this New York Times article spells out.

In the past few decades, the N.F.L.’s emphasis on the passing game and quarterback protection has led teams to stock their offensive and defensive lines with ever-larger men, many of them weighing well over 300 pounds. But their great girth, which coaches encouraged and which helped turn some players into multimillion-dollar commodities, leaves many of them prone to obesity problems.

In retirement, these huge men are often unable to lose the weight they needed to do their jobs. Without the structure of a team and the guidance of coaches for the first time in decades, many of them lose the motivation to stay in shape, or cannot even try, as damage to their feet, knees, backs and shoulders limits their ability to exercise. 

This is a big reason that former linemen, compared with other football players and the general population, have higher rates of hypertension, obesity and sleep apnea, which can lead to chronic fatigue, poor diet and even death. Blocking for a $25-million-a-year quarterback, it turns out, can put linemen in the high-risk category for many of the ailments health experts readily encourage people to avoid.

This doesn't mean we should ban the game or something.  It's just something worth noting.  Football has gone from a fairly fast paced high school and college game that was centered in schools at those levels to a professional sport involving millions of dollars. As that's occurred, it's become a slower game played by massive people, a fact that's aided by the fact that its leisurely pace is augmented by time outs that stop the game constantly (how else can an  hour of play last for three or more hours?).  Really large guys couldn't play a fast moving game like soccer, for example, as the fatigue on their big bodies would be just too much.  Indeed, Army Rangers tend to be fairly small and mid sized lean men, not giants, for the same reasons.

I'm not proposing to do anything about this.  It's just worth noting.  If professional football wanted to do something about it, it could just by reducing the padding and armor and eliminating most of the time outs and the half time.  But that's not going to happen. 

________________________________________________________________________________

*Indeed, one of the reasons that I don't like football is that its simply impossible for me to relate to it.  A game that can only be played by physical giants is sort of a circus, and I've never been very interested in the circus either.  With other professional sports, save for basketball which I also don't care for, you can related to the action as  you could play the game, even if not on that level.  I was a fair baseball player when I was young and I've retained an interest in that.  Soccer looks like a game that any young person can play.  I can ride a horse and all equestrian sports interest me.  But a game played by huge and increasingly overweight men?  M'eh.

On the male aspect, I can't help but note once again that we oddly live in an era in which we'll pretend that the oldest and most dangerous sport, the game of kings, warfare, which has been an exclusively male game since the first rock was thrown at a fellow combatant is now equal opportunity, while the sports we all watch and we know are physical, but not lethal, and sometimes not even as physical as soldiering, are not in any sense.  That's simply because we're familiar with them personally, whereas for most of us we know no more about real warfare anymore than we do about life in the Amazon rain forest. We just imagine to know it.

It's Superb Owl Sunday! (Apologies to MKTH).

As well it should be.  Owls, indeed, are superb.

And its high time the nation recognized that, right?

Which is apparently what's finally going on.

Right?

(Apologies to MKTH who made the original observation).

Arctic Owl out on the prairie

Monday, February 3, 1919. The Legislature passes a Joint Resolution Favoring National Women's Suffrage. Paris ponders abolishing submarines.

Today In Wyoming's History: February 3:

1919  The Legislature passed a joint resolution in favor of national women's suffrage.

Wyoming in Wyoming, of course, could already vote and had that right since 1869, but it was on the march nationally.

Oddly, the Wyoming State Tribune in Cheyenne barely noted it on its front page, where it did at least make front page news.  The Casper paper, which of course was publishing from 150 miles away, didn't note it at all that day.  In fairness, there was a lot going on, but  then in fairness again, this would seem, in retrospect, to be pretty significant news.

The lasting impact, including the human impact, of the war was being dealt with everywhere on that day.

As in this school established by the American Red Cross in France for "mutiles", i.e. those mutilated in the war.  This was clearly a trade school.

Some folks were on their way home.



In Paris there was talk of some of the weapons of the new war being abolished.

Oddly, the Casper paper didn't think anything important was going on in the legislature that day, voting wise, but in fairness to it, it was referencing legislation, which a resolution is not.  Plenty of other stuff was certainly going on, however.

Sunday Morning Scene: Churches of the West: Church of St. Nicholas, Old Believers Russian Orthodox, Nikolaevsk Alaska

Churches of the West: Church of St. Nicholas, Old Believers Russian Orthodox, Nikolaevsk Alaska

Church of St. Nicholas, Old Believers Russian Orthodox, Nikolaevsk Alaska

This is the Church of St. Nicholas in Nikolaevsk Alaska. The church is an Old Believers Russian Orthodox Church.

I've generally avoided describing doctrinal matters on this blog, but because there are Russian Orthodox churches that appear hear, and because this stands to be confusing, I will here, although only very briefly.  The Old Believers descend from Russians who separated from the main Russian Orthodox Church when they refused to accept certain reforms that came about in the 17th Century.  By almost any outside standard, the reforms were very minor, but the Old Believers rejected them and separated from the Russian Orthodox.  Some priests were included in the group, but no bishops were, so within the lives of those priests the clergy died out, as there was no valid way to ordain new ones.

To add to the confusion, however, starting in the 20th Century various Old Believer groups have come to have priests once again, as they've located bishops willing to ordain priests for them.  Not all have accepted this, however, and today there are Old Believer Russian Orthodox churches with priests, and without, as well as some that are in communion with Rome, while most are not.  

This church in located in an Old Believer community, as almost all of them are.  Nikolaevsk, which is outside of Homer, once had two churches, one priestless, and this one, but the other one burned down at some point (I'm not suggesting fowl play) and the parishioners relocated to another town near Homer.  

These photos fail to show the entire church, which is being added to, as the vegetation in the area is so dense.

Best Posts of the Week of January 26, 2019

Best posts of the week of January 26, 2019.

French War Memorial, Reconnaissante France.

It's cold. It's January.

Blog Mirror: A Hundred Years Ago: 1919 Advice About Substituting Foods in U.S. to Help Needy Children Abroad

The M1943 Field Jacket and Its Children.

So what happened in the Legislature this past week?

Well, we already updated you on quite a bit.  But here's a tad more.



Advancing:

House Bill 145 eliminating the death penalty passed the House and went on to the Senate.

House Bill 10, a controversial bill imposing fines on protesters at certain industrial facilities went to the floor from committee.

House Bill 230, a bill that would prohibit employer discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation went from committee to the floor.

Failed:

House Bill 305 which would have studied ways to gain public access to 3,000,000 acres of public land without it in the state died.  It would have devoted $50,000 to that effort.

House Bill 234 which would have eliminated felony level punishment for possession of marijuana at a certain amount failed.  The expressed concern is that there was little way to tell if a person at that level had an intent to distribute or not.

The M1943 Field Jacket and Its Children.

The At The Front Blog, part of their on line store website, has a highly detailed article on the M1943 Field Jacket.

Soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division wearing the M1943 Paratroopers uniform which featured the M1943 field jacket and M1943 field pants worn over wool trousers and shirt.  This was the start of the Army's current uniform.  These same paratroopers are wearing M1943 Combat Boots which were not a paratrooper item.

I'm not going to go into great detail on it, and indeed I don't need to, but the post does a great job of detailing one of the really great items of modern military apparel, the field jacket.

The U.S. adopted the M1943 field jacket as part of a uniform for paratroopers and in order to replace an earlier uniform (that later inspired the Tropical Combat uniform, which inspired the Battle Dress Uniform).  Soon after doing that, however, it realized the field jacket was a lot better than the jackets and coats it was otherwise issuing for servicemen and it made the jacket a general issue item.

The M1943 Field Jacket

Worn with the liner, it was tolerably warm if not super warm, but you could also move in it.

Three types of winter gear in one Battle of the Bulge photograph.  Left to right, M1943 Field Jacket, Wool Great Coat, and winter mackinaw.  The two items on the right were prewar times still issued in the war.  The M1943 would replace them following the war when stocks of them were depleted or withdrawn.  Of these, the wool great coat is undoubtedly the warmest (I have one around here), but it was also extremely heavy,.

After the war it went on to be modified several times until it finally culminated in the M1965 Field Jacket (the M65) which was a really great item of outdoor gear.  It was a general issue item until 2009, but even now, if you buy one in the current camouflage pattern, you can still wear it as a serviceman.

Me wearing a Woodlands Pattern M65 field jacket in South Korea.

I used to have a bunch of M65s.  Several OD ones and a couple of Woodlands ones.  I don't know where the old OD ones all are, although I gave some away.  And the Woodlands ones I have no longer fit.  I have one that was given to me, a late desert pattern one, I wear hunting, but it's actually a little large.

They were a great field item.

And they remain, I'd note, so popular that they've become a bit of a fashion item.

More bad news for Coal

A report in the Tribune earlier this week indicated that employment in coal dropped again in 2018.  Maybe that reflects a new normal level of employment, but at any rate its not good news for those who were banking on a return of coal for various reasons.  Among those this is not good news for is the State, which has been funding education on the coal severance tax for a very long time.  Mine employment, of course, isn't directly tied to that tax, but the tax reflects production as does employment in the mines.

Also, the same week I ran an item about a bill in the legislature to require coal companies to try to sell coal fired power plants before closing them, a unit at just such a plant in Kemmerer in fact shut down.  This would reduce the plants capacity by a third, at least in the context of it being a three unit plant.

When I ran the item on the bill I had to admit I didn't know how many coal burning power plants the state had and I wasn't aware of this one.  I am now, of course, but only because of that news. The reason given for the shut down was that the plant was doing it as it couldn't comply with environmental regulations and it wasn't worth the cost to upgrade the unit.  While that's undoubtedly true, that ties back in with long term trends we've been noting on coal having reached a point where it now no longer has a big cost advantage over other power generating means.  Of course, it could be noted that regulation is what caused this to come about, but be that as it may, that regulation is there and is, at least presently, part of the cost of doing business.

Oddly enough, at the same time, a proposal for a solar electrical generation facility near Kemmerer has been made.  There's no connection between the two, but it has a weird element of synchronicity to it.

The voice of the reliable pundit? "President Alexandria Oscasio-Cortez? No chance that it happens."

The title of a recent Michael Reagan column:

President Alexandria Oscasio-Cortez?  No chance that it happens

That's the exact same thing I thought about Donald Trump.

And I heard somebody express that about Barack Obama, when he was a candidate.

Never?

I'm not advocating for that (assuming her positions on everything remain unchanged by the time she's old enough to run, which she presently is not).  But the fact that a pundit has declared it to be an impossibility makes it, it seems to me, that much more likely.

Friday Farming. February 1, 1919. Wyoming Stockman Farmer