Opinion - Pierce County Journal

Letter to the editor: An open letter to American Legion Post 61 and Prescott

To the editor, To the esteemed members of American Legion Post 61 and the amazing community of Prescott. Since the bar at the Legion was taken over, it has been an honor to witness the true … more

9/10/25

Letter to the editor: DNR audit truth

To the editor, In the Sept. 3, 2025, Pierce County Journal, State Sen. Rob Stafsholt provided a nuanced partisan summary of the recently released DNR audit that he and other legislators … more

9/10/25

Letter to the editor: End gerrymandering in WI forever

To the editor, We aren’t all that far from 2030, and after the next Census, Wisconsin will get new voting maps to account for changes in population size and distribution. Right now, we … more

9/10/25

My View: I've made it this far

If you’re reading this, you’re still aging. We all are. I, for one, am really starting to feel it. I’m already dreading winter, a couple months away. After the cool … more

By John McLoone | 9/10/25

EDITORIAL: You can help prevent the ‘gut punch’ of newspaper closures

A gut punch.” That’s how Dave Bordewyk, executive director of the South Dakota NewsMedia Association, described the abrupt closure of four newspapers in the state last month. On … more

By Tim L. Waltner Publisher Emeritus Freeman Courier | 9/10/25

From the editor's desk: Fear Of Missing Out

I need to get my body and my FOMO under control. What is FOMO you might ask? According to Wikipedia, “Fear of missing out is the feeling of apprehension that one is either not in the know … more

By Sarah Nigbor | 9/10/25

Back Home: Confused about Labor Day

Labor Day has come and gone, marking what many celebrate as the last blast of summer. Technically Labor Day is a holiday to celebrate the social and economic achievements of American workers and … more

By Chris Hardie | 9/10/25

Village President column: Steps that connect us

The Lawton Steps are a public stairway on the Summit Hill bluff in St. Paul, connecting Grand Avenue up to Summit Court. Built into the hillside, they stretch upward in about 77 steps. There’s … more

By Becky Beissel Ellsworth Village President | 9/10/25

Woodworking again: Introducing ‘one cool cucumber’

I grew up leery about pickles, especially the storebought types. I liked my mom’s always done at home and packed in Ball Jars, but she died when I was in third grade and I moved to town to live … more

By Dave Wood | 9/3/25

Sen. Stafsholt column: Release of Fish and Wildlife Account Audit Report

On Wednesday, the Legislative Audit Bureau (LAB) released a report summarizing its audit of the DNR Fish and Wildlife Account. The report found that, in FY 2023-24, Fish and Wildlife Account … more

By Sen. Rob Stafsholt | 9/3/25

Letter to the editor: Transparency & credibility

To the editor, I would like to invite everyone to take 60-90 minutes out of their busy schedule once a month and go to their local municipalities' monthly meeting to learn where their local … more

9/3/25

Letter to the editor: A letter to USDA Secretary Rollins

To the editor, A letter to Ms. Brooke Rollins, Secretary U.S. Department of Agriculture: We write to applaud the recent announcement by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to no … more

9/3/25

From the editor's desk: Living a TV episode

After our adventures in Vicksburg, it was onto the crown jewel of the trip, the whole reason behind this 3,300-mile journey: New Orleans and further south, to where the Mighty Mississippi empties … more

By Sarah Nigbor | 9/3/25

Ask Andrew: How to host a gathering

I come from a long lineage of outstanding gathering hosts, most notable my aunt Patti Schmid of Prescott. It is no easy task to simultaneously make a dozen-plus different people all enjoy their time … more

By Andrew Harrington | 9/3/25

Woodworking again: Egg Festival

Nowadays every town has a yearly event celebrating an edible the town is known for, be it curds or whey. My dad especially welcomed Blair’s Egg Festival every autumn because it … more

By Dave Wood | 8/27/25

Op Ed: Keep medicines out of the tariff crossfire

Washington is on the verge of making a costly mistake. The Trump administration is planning to extend tariffs to medicines and their ingredients for the first time in decades. … more

By Karen Roesler | 8/27/25

From the editor's desk: Vivacious Vicksburg

As we left the scorching city of Memphis behind, we headed down the Great River Road to our next destination, Vicksburg, Miss. Home to a large number of antebellum mansions and Civil War sites, this … more

By Sarah Nigbor | 8/27/25

Woodworking again: Death of Tom Lehrer

July 28, 2025. I awoke to discover in the Sunday Star Tribune that one of my heroes and in my opinion the greatest satirist of the mid-20th century was dead at age 97: Tom Lehrer. Who’s that? … more

By Dave Wood | 8/20/25

Sustainability Matters: Rethinking the 3 ‘R’s’ in a world addicted to more

Take a walk through the grocery store or scroll through your social media feed and it becomes pretty obvious that convenience is king and excess has become normalized. The environmentalists of the … more

By Robin Boles | 8/20/25

Letter to the editor: Invitation to Jim Harsdorf

To the editor, In the mid-1970’s-early ’80’s, Jim Harsdorf was my Assembly Representative and State Senator. At that time, I worked for a volunteer advocacy group, … more

8/20/25