Opinion

The Sturgis Rally is one of the biggest gatherings for motorcycle enthusiasts in the world. While the rally has always promoted an independent spirit, these past two years have taken on a new meaning of freedom.

In South Dakota, habitat destruction has been the major reason for the population decline of both the Piping Plover and Least Tern. Construction of the Missouri River dams has resulted in the loss of much of their sandbar habitat. Those remaining sandbars are susceptible to human activities, predation, and water fluctuations as the result of dam operations. Also lost with the flooding of the bottomlands behind the dams was the cottonwood trees which grew all along the river from Nebraska to North Dakota.

Dear Editor, This letter is in response to Jack Billion’s letter to the editor in the Burke Gazette, August 4, 2021. The problem, from the very outset of this pandemic, has been politics, and the involvement of government.

During the 1800’s, the Missouri River below the mouth of the James River possessed a large number of sandbars but almost no islands. Both north and west of the James where the Missouri River trench narrowed and the river’s course became less erratic, luxuriant islands sprawled out in the river channel. Certain islands became popular among keelboat and steamboat passengers for their breathtaking beauty.

America is the land of opportunity. We’re a nation where anyone can make anything of themselves if they work hard and play by the rules. But when those rules are abandoned – when we lose respect for our Constitution and the rule of law – that’s when the system breaks. And that’s exactly what is taking place at our Southern border. Rule of law has collapsed, putting our border in crisis and risking our national security.

“Le Compte Island” was an island on the Charles Mix side of the river between C a m p - bell Creek and Benge Creek. “Le Compte” was a name frequently found in the records of the early fur trade; however, the specific connection to the island cannot be determined. No other information on the island is available.

Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg announced on Thursday, July 22, a historic $26 billion agreement that will help bring desperately needed relief to people across the country who are struggling with opioid addiction. The agreement includes Cardinal, McKesson, and AmerisourceBergen – the nation’s three major pharmaceutical distributors – and Johnson & Johnson, which manufactured and marketed opioids. The agreement also requires significant industry changes to prevent this type of crisis from happening again, and also resolves investigations and litigation over the companies’ roles in creating and fueling the opioid epidemic.

In the past when Americans were planning their vacations, their top destinations were always beaches and big cities. For the first time in decades, that’s changing. Now, the American people want to visit the great outdoors. They want to see beautiful parks and small towns that remind them how life used to be. Well, South Dakota has that in spades.

The magnitude and rapidity of the changes of the river channel were remarkable. Many times there would be a shifting of two or three hundred yards in a few weeks into the bottom lands. Suddenly, land that was on one side of river was on the opposite shore.

The National Rifle Association (NRA) is all in with the Biden Administration’s radical 30 x 30 land grab. The organization joined the “Hunt Fish 30 x 30 Initiative,” and committed to support action to implement the program. The NRA’s press release states: