On Oct. 4, Utah Sen. Mitt Romney spoke out about the president’s unusual request for China to assist in opposition research against Joe Biden, the leading Democratic candidate for the 2020 election. As of this writing, Romney is one of only four Republican senators to express his concern abo…
In 2017, according to the U.S. Census American Community Survey, one in every six U.S. homes did not have a conventional home broadband connection (cable, DSL or fiber), or a satellite Internet link, or even a mobile data account for a smartphone or tablet. The numbers in Utah are similar wi…
Beginning October 2019, engaged couples in Utah will be eligible to receive a $20 discount on their marriage license, as well as additional discounts on a variety of wedding products and services, when they complete approved premarital education or counseling. It’s money that could both save…
With National Women’s Equality Day barely a month behind us, it seems fitting that it coincided with WalletHub releasing its report on 2019’s Best & Worst States for Women’s Equality. As the founding director of the Utah Women & Leadership Project at UVU’s Woodbury School of Business…
The Utah Foundation recently released a study titled “Making the Grade? K-12 Outcomes and Spending in Utah” that tries to make sense of why Utah, which spends less on K-12 education than any other state (at $7,179 per pupil, $5,000 below the national average), still does well in most areas m…
As a public servant and the chairman of the Utah Legislature Social Services Appropriations Committee, I’ve been focused over the past two years on finding ways to reduce the costs of health care.
It was quite a communion of saints that tried to take down the Rev. Erik Richtsteig, Catholic priest and longtime Ogden pastor, for the alleged sin of “hate speech.”
High drug prices in the U.S. significantly contribute to the high cost of health care and health insurance. Rand Corporation found that in 2016 Americans spent $10,300 per person on health care, and 17% of that was on drugs. The U.S. has 5% of the world’s population but spends half of the to…
One year ago today, I rolled over in bed and thought, “Why does it feel uncomfortable to lay like this?” A quick inspection yielded a large lump and a sinking feeling. I immediately called my primary care doctor who saw me that same day. He assured me that I had no risk factors for cancer, b…
South Weber is a city rich in heritage and tradition. For the last 43 years (since 1976), South Weber has celebrated its heritage by holding Country Fair Days, a weeklong celebration packed with fireworks and festivities. In 1976, activities included balloon dart games, fish ponds, food nook…
An impressive collection of stories about the Apollo program became available through the media in the last few months. The 50th anniversary of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walking on the moon brought out the locally relevant to the bizarre. Of course, I have my own perspective. The most b…
We don’t usually think of a city as a living thing, but I look at Ogden as a place to experience the five senses. I may not be up to date on Ogden’s program of senses improvement, but here is a list of ideas that any mayor of Ogden should consider.
Recent research on Americans’ well-being and happiness is finding that the American dream is fading. These findings are at odds with some in the media parroting the current administration’s and its sympathizers’ announcements that the economy is very healthy with plentiful jobs, better than …
Despite the rather obvious origins of my name, I often dreaded answering the question, “Are you Irish?” Growing up Catholic in Ogden, far from extended family, and in the land of the Utah Latter-day Saints, seemed to leave me unprepared to discuss what it means to be Irish-American.
Weber County’s many outdoor spaces and activities are the foundation for generations of beautiful memories. Nights remembered of thoughtful conversations over beautiful campfires, rising in the early mornings to ski the glass like water, and afternoons hiking in a city named after one of God…
Occasionally, you run across valuable legislation that requires some public engagement to be fully realized. Such is the case with Utah House Bill 411, the Community Renewable Energy Act, which was passed with overwhelming bi-partisan support by the Utah State Legislature and signed by Gover…
Imagine you’re a well-funded company from out of state and you purchase what you think will be a profitable multimillion-dollar business in Utah — a 2,000-acre piece of ground permitted for a landfill. You develop a business plan, invest lots of money and start construction. But as it turns …
The Washington, D.C.-based Tax Foundation recently weighed in on Utah’s ongoing dialogue about tax reform. Their headline conclusion is that Utah should impose a sales tax on more of the services performed in the state. But, we should recognize that the report is, at least in part, the found…
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness … we had everything before us, we had nothing before us.” — “A Tale of Two Cities” by Charles Dickens.
A recent opinion article, “The Myth of Wage Stagnation” by Phil Gramm and John Early (GE), in The Wall Street Journal on May 18-19, caught my attention. Contrary to my understanding of the economic status of most Americans in the newly structured economy, they paint a very rosy picture of th…
As many homeowners dust off their grills for Memorial Day BBQs, this year there may be a new offering on the party menu: Fake meat.
In America today, approximately 45-47 million, or 1 out of 5 Americans, is suffering with a mental health issue; and approximately 1 in 25 adults is currently experiencing a serious mental illness that substantially interferes with one or more major life activities. Sadly, the rate of suicid…
On the precipice of the American Civil War, Utah’s delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives, William Henry Hooper, recognized that “A great band of Union throughout the family of man is a common interest.” Hooper petitioned Congress in his belief that “a Central Road would unite that in…
When I first saw the original print of Andrew J. Russell’s “East and West Shaking Hands at Laying of the Last Rail” from the Union Pacific’s Historical Collection at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts, I found it surprisingly ... small. I had always imagined this iconic photograph, also known as t…
When the first train rolled into Ogden March 8, 1869, citizens of the small town had just a small glimpse into how the world around them was about to change. When interviewed 50 years later in 1919, many adults remembered how scared they had been as children to see the massive engines and to…
Today, May 3, World Press Freedom Day, is not a day to celebrate in our Americas. We cannot celebrate when journalists Miguel Mora and Lucía Pineda continue imprisoned in Nicaragua without due process. We cannot celebrate when the authoritarian regimes of Daniel Ortega, Nicolás Maduro and Mi…
A summer job has become a rite of passage for American teenagers. From scooping ice cream to lifeguarding at the community pool, summer jobs have allowed teens to earn some extra cash before heading back to school in the fall. But over the past few decades, the rate of teenagers looking for …
It is unfortunate that Mr. Brian Wood had a disappointing experience in the Department’s HOPE program – a substance abuse therapeutic community at the Gunnison prison site. His article was published by the Standard-Examiner (originally in March 2018 and rerun in December) under the title, “B…
By Will Coggin
In a case of legislative railroading spurred on by national real estate brokerages, Utah lawmakers cast aside a longstanding consumer protection in passing 2019 Senate Bill 121. The sole purpose of SB 121 is to allow real estate brokers and home builders to own and receive hidden profits fro…
Utah consumers want the freedom to choose. That is what Senate Bill 121 is all about. It repeals the law that grants a monopoly to one class of title and settlement agents. SB 121, which recently passed the House and Senate by comfortable margins, allows consumers the choice of one-stop shop…
" The political equality that is required by democracy is always under threat from economic inequality, and the more extreme the economic inequality, the greater the threat to democracy." — Angus Deaton, 2015 Nobel Prize winner in economics
Martha Hughes Cannon: pioneer, physician, polygamist, suffragette, senator. Any and all of these labels apply to one of Utah’s most accomplished foremothers. As March is Women’s History Month, it is a wonderful excuse to brush up on history and celebrate a woman who is still making news, eve…
Legacy Parkway residents are fighting to protect a cherished Utah roadway. In the face of opposing forces, they’re not giving up.
”Leadership is a privilege to better the lives of others. It is not an opportunity to satisfy personal greed.” — Mwai Kibaki
This submission is to encourage everyone to get their own and their child’s measles vaccination. Parents, please make this a priority for your children. I know that my letter will not be well received by those opposed to vaccines, but I feel, because of my personal experience with the measle…
The Daily Herald Editorial Staff
The collapse of our nation's housing market in the summer of 2008 didn't come from out of the blue. Though it surely did seem that way for many, those who were plugged in saw warning signs aplenty before all hell broke loose. One critical red flag: There were people getting home mortgages wh…
“A national debt, if it is not excessive, will be to us a national blessing.” — Alexander Hamilton
Last year was Utah’s driest year on record. As commissioner of the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDF) and a rancher, I am concerned about the drought. But, I am also filled with optimism.
I love baseball, and I loathe the Senate’s filibuster rule. Please humor an old history teacher and let me tell you what one has to do with the other.
The number of ballot initiatives seen in Utah in recent elections is historically high. Some have divided communities (e.g., medical marijuana), while others created legal conflicts and left state legislators to clean up the mess (e.g., Medicaid expansion).
This past summer, my wife and I were blessed to visit Atlanta, Georgia. There are many great sights to see in that metropolitan city. It was our goal to see the sights referring to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We were blessed to go to his birth house where we heard stories of how he did not l…
We enter 2019 holding our breath. As the federal shutdown continues, I am watching friends, neighbors, students and others struggle to make ends meet. While we anxiously await elected leaders to effectively do their jobs and find workable solutions to our nation’s budget problems, we might f…
This message is to communicate to the Weber County public that I have served of the successful completion of our year-long property/evidence room audit, review and inspection.
Very soon end-of-year festivities will be put aside in favor of new year resolutions. Before we reach the rush of a new year, I would like to reflect on the progress over the previous one.
Editor’s note: The following is the most reprinted newspaper editorial in history. Eight-year-old Virginia O’Hanlon wrote a letter to the editor of New York’s Sun and the response by newsman Francis Pharcellus Church was printed as an unsigned editorial Sept. 21, 1897.
I recently saw a list of the 10 most common New Year’s resolutions. The majority of the list were goals aimed at improving health in some way or time management (such as spending more time with family and friends). These are great goals, but for someone struggling with various health concern…
Following a special legislative session called by Utah Gov. Gary Herbert Dec. 3, the Utah Legislature passed HB 3001, and the Utah Medical Cannabis Act was signed into law. The Act will allow the cultivation, harvest, and processing of Cannabis plants in Utah for Cannabis-based medicine. The…
“Nice people can be found all over the world, But if you can’t find one then always be sure to be one,” said Saint Mother Theresa.
