Each week the Standard-Examiner hashes out issues large and small and takes a thumbs-up, thumbs-down stance. Here’s what we recommend this week for praise and criticism:<strong>THUMBS UP:</strong> Let’s give a round of applause to firefighters and forestry ...

My friends, this is a dark hour. Intolerance, cruelty, racism, misogyny, xenophobia and environmental destruction have been let loose across the land.Donald Trump controls the Republican Party, the Republican Party controls the House and Senate, and Trump may soon control the Supreme Court.But ...

It came as no real surprise when Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy announced he will step down July 31, after 30 years on the high court.Barely had the announcement been made when the Democrats and the Republicans were at each other's throat.Liberals had hoped that Kennedy, 81, would hold ...

South Dakota had a problem.More and more people were buying their clothes, electronics and even groceries online.Because some of those companies didn't have a physical location in our state, taxes weren't being collected on those goods and state government's coffers were getting squeezed.But it ...

If Donald Trump can wind down the make-war projects of previous administrations in favor of a more profitable alternative, he will go down in history as one of America’s greatest presidents.Whether or not Trump will fully realize that potential, however, depends on two things: his ability to ...

Today marks the 242nd birthday of the United States. We’re certainly looking forward to the parades, ballgames, barbecues and other celebrations of our peculiar experiment in self-governance.We’re also looking forward to the fireworks displays, albeit with some trepidation. After a ...