Stories by Greg Harton

OPINION | GREG HARTON: It’s getting more crowded in Northwest Arkansas; is there really a painless way to deal with it? One's perception of Northwest Arkansas is largely defined by his or her direct, day-to-day environment.For some, it's becoming the mountain biking capital of the Midwest, but if you've nev... August 7, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Being a slave to pre-agreed consensus isn’t what I remember from American Government One of my most interesting college professors taught me in my freshman fall semester.I hadn't grown up around many people who went to college. I had little idea what to expect at Arkansas State Un... July 31, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Sports radio specializes in debates that will never end Sports talk radio can be excruciating.No, let me revise that a bit: Summertime sports talk radio can be excruciating.And I'm a sports fan.In recent days, I've watched tennis matches from Wimbl... July 17, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Hamilton, the one from Indiana, knew respect for democracy, law is vital to America’s future Thirty-five years ago this week, a U.S. Marine Corps colonel sat before a joint congressional committee attempting to explain his part in secretly diverting money from arms sales to Iran, in hopes of ... July 10, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: The Supreme Court says Congress is the answer, but will it fulfill its responsibility? As the U.S. Supreme Court's term ended Thursday, a lot of Americans breathed a sigh of relief. At least until after October, the nation won't have to worry about a new ruling that upends some ... July 3, 2022

Greg Harton: Fairness has to be an effort When writing a news story, reporters always have to make choices about which facts are most important and which phrasing is most accurate in delivering the information.A primary example is when a repo... June 26, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Jan. 6 hearings let Republicans bear the facts: There was no stolen election Among reasons I voted Republican in the 2016 presidential election -- and yes, that means I voted for Donald Trump -- was the idea of bringing someone who wasn't a career politician into the White... June 19, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Is declining to wear a logo really “hate?” Last week, my beloved St. Louis Cardinals played the Tampa Bay Rays and, sad to say, the Rays beat them in all three games.It was tough for Cards fans, but the team they were playing was making bigger... June 12, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Don’t make nation’s challenges sound so easy to resolve Jim Hendren's Common Ground Arkansas last month attempted to make the politically moderate middle more relevent in the state's politics. And by the state's politics, I mean Republican poli... June 6, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: With political will, the nation can find answers to its violence Last week, every effort to write a Sunday column about anything other than the murders of a classroom full of fourth-graders quickly became pointless.I tried. It's not a column I want to write, ce... May 29, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Bigger jails or a moratorium on more jail beds: What’s the best approach to criminal justice? The fight over Northwest Arkansas' capacity for incarcerating people has intensified in recent days. The questions over how to approach the subject are varied.Are people in the mood to pay the tax... May 22, 2022

NWA EDITORIAL | Walton Arts Center stays true to the educational value of the arts When the Walton Arts Center opened on Fayetteville's Dickson Street back in April 1992, there was naturally a lot of excitement about the facility's capacity to attract big-time shows unlike a... May 18, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Dreaming of the ideal in politics I always struggle with romanticizing the early days of my political awareness. I grew up in central Arkansas during a time when Democrats ruled the roost pretty much statewide. Sure, there was that gu... May 15, 2022

NWA EDITORIAL | Hutchinson continues to tease what may come in 2024 It's not easy to become president of the United States.Donald Trump made it look easy in 2016, shocking most every political watcher. Hillary Clinton had the stronger political resume, but she lac... May 11, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: The Supreme Court springs a leak With more than 20 years of writing opinion columns, I've covered a lot of topics, from local political issues to national ones.The one I've tried to mostly stay away from is abortion. It's... May 8, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: O unity, wherefore art thou? I don't give money to political campaigns. I don't sign petitions. I don't put political campaign signs in my yard.I'm an American, free to support whoever I want, but as a newspaper g... May 1, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: A few thoughts about covid-19 changes and gubernatorial campaigning, Sanders style A few odds and ends on my mind:•••It's almost a pleasure to see covid-19 reports these days, comparatively speaking.Rather than hundreds of new cases in Benton, Washington, Sebastia... April 24, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: In Hollywood, the harshest penalty for a slap heard around the world appears to be denial of the limelight The longer a journalist works, the higher the chances he or she has been called out by someone in a public meeting over some piece of information reported in the newspaper or other news outlet.When it... April 10, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Voting laws passed in wake of Trump’s “big lie” deserve scrutiny, but how much? Through my many years of publishing columns, it's been quite clear that many readers never find my writing quite so skilled and brilliant as when I happen to agree with their own conclusions.Judge... April 3, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: United Methodists, after years of fighting, appear to know the end is near The Democrat-Gazette's March 19 Religion Page offered a review of the mostly united but occasionally tumultuous 54-year history of the United Methodist Church.Readers may be surprised its history ... March 27, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Gov. Hutchinson sits down for an interview as he approaches end of final term Term limits are a double-edge sword.In theory, they prevent the dreaded "career politician" that a lot of people think is a big part of the problem in government. President Joe Biden, these ... March 20, 2022

Opinion | GREG HARTON: A coach’s mid-field prayer gets a constitutional penalty flag Leslie Rutledge continues her practice of globbing onto distant litigation as long as it provides a partisan opportunity for state-paid promotion of, well, Leslie Rutledge.Last week's subject was ... March 13, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Have Americans lost the art of getting along when it comes to opinions? It seems easy for some folks, but I've always had a hard time classifying people as either entirely upright, good and moral or entirely evil and lacking in human decency.Unless we're in a disc... March 6, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Vaccines’ trigger of body’s amazing defense seems miraculous Got religion?If anything good might be said of the worldwide spread of covid-19, it's that the disease has prompted a lot of people to find God.Well, not exactly.Rather, it seems it's inspired... February 27, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Governor helps heat up jail, prison debate with expansion plans Arkansas would be an even more wonderful place if it didn't need new jail or prison space.People within our judicial systems and law enforcement agencies say the status quo isn't working. The ... February 20, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Stay alert to changing community conditions Civic involvement doesn't have to mean running for mayor or serving on a city council.People seem busy these days. Too busy, it sometimes seems, to be involved in the community decisions that must... February 13, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Little Rock's woes could visit Northwest Arkansas Our neck of the woods is home today to a lot of people who could declare "I wasn't born in Northwest Arkansas, but I got here as fast as I could."Count me among them. I grew up in the &#... February 6, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: In the opinion of a possible prude, one particular coarse word has gained too much popularity in everyday language Judging based on recent vacation trip, if I were to slip a particular curse word beginning with "F" into this opening paragraph and sprinkle it liberally throughout today's column, I&#39... January 30, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Rogers revels in the rumble as motorcycle rally relocates from Fayetteville I'm still not sure whether Bikes, Blues & BBQ, the massive motorcycle rally hosted in Fayetteville since 2000, is permanently departing for Rogers or making a temporary shift.My message left w... January 23, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Where is Mr. Smith today, and what can he do with Washington? "Half of official Washington is here to see democracy's finest show: the filibuster. The right to talk your head off. The American privilege of free speech in its most dramatic form. The leas... January 16, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: The year that was: Vaccines, invasions and surprising developments The news never stops.This year was no different. But the holiday lull provides a chance to catch our breath and think about the year gone by. In 2021, as in every year in bustling Northwest Arkansas, ... January 5, 2022

OPINION | GREG HARTON: The best gifts any time of the year are the meaningful ones that last Christmas always brings back memories, a gift that can't be packaged but can deliver heartwarming smiles more meaningful than anything purchased at the store or online.Ask me to conjure up a memor... December 26, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Holidays are a time to watch out for each other We're smack in the middle of the season of good tidings of joy.At least that's the mass marketed message, because happy people probably shop more and spend more money.The original good tidings... December 19, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Fayetteville's "Ramble" lives up to its meandering moniker Last week at Fayetteville City Hall, the majority yielded, unexpectedly and likely temporarily, to the minority.Mayor Lioneld Jordan's administration asked the City Council to approve the change o... December 12, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Discovering a new way of writing, by accident In the category of "you don't know what you've got until it's gone," the human body has probably thousands of functions we all take for granted every day.Take, for example, heari... November 28, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Aggressive gun attitudes don't help with responsible firearms use If anyone ever doubted the United States is the gun capital of the universe, the last few weeks has delivered plenty of sworn testimony to that status.I'm among the many Americans who in recent we... November 21, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: State's federal lawmakers say 'no' to $4 billion for Arkansas infrastructure It's an indication that we live in astonishing political times when Arkansas' two GOP senators and four Republican House members oppose an infrastructure bill expected to bring more than $4 bi... November 14, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Arkansas has an intriguing history of presidential contenders; who's next? I'd always heard, although not from any sources directly experienced on the matter, that one aspect people admired about the United States is that anyone can grow up to be the president. Perhaps it's... November 7, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: A Gander worthy of another glimpse I ended up in an unexpected place Thursday night. Having just returned from a vacation getaway with my wife, there were no big plans for the week other than getting back into the work groove in my cl... October 31, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Defunding police didn't work, but new thinking is still important "Defund the police" is perhaps one of the worst slogans of any campaign for change I've ever heard. That particularly push seems to have lost its steam, not that those who advocated it have necessari... October 17, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Conversations, even among people who disagree, build community For public figures, one of the least pleasant and difficult things to do is to walk into a room full of people when you know the audience is largely at odds with you on one or more issues. Most peopl... October 10, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: In Benton County, even persuasion on vaccines proves too much for some leaders Gauging by a Benton County Quorum Court vote last week, vaccination mandates aren't the only pandemic idea some politicians want to stop. Just trying to persuade people of vaccines' benefits appears t... October 3, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: All mysteries, issues don't get equal attention, and never have A newspaper has only one front page. Until we figure out how to bend space, time and physical dimensions, the A Section where the "big" news appears can only have one Page 1. That means choices have ... September 26, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Sept. 11 united Americans, but does resolve still exist in the face of challenges? Twenty years isn't just the measure of how long the United States has been in Afghanistan. It's also the measure of how long it's been since anyone old enough to have memories from 2001 have had the ... September 5, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Revelation of jailhouse covid medication's use stirs debate You know something interesting has happened when a lot of people start to care about what happens to jail inmates. If we're really being honest, inmates are often only the concern of their families a... August 29, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: U.S. pullout messy, but it's the right policy in Afghanistan As a child, I would from time to time hear someone make a comment to the effect that "You could grow up to be president of the United States." They meant it, I think, as a message of encouragement, w... August 22, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: If you're afraid you're wrong, just shout louder Publishing stories in a newspaper 365 days a year, reporters sooner or later will make a mistake. Hopefully it will be a small one, although to people striving to get it right, there really aren't sma... August 15, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Region's growth will demand more mass transit Can you ever imagine yourself catching a ride on a bus when you've got a perfectly functional car sitting in your driveway? What would it take to make mass transit a viable option to get around your ... August 8, 2021

OPINION | GREG HARTON: Arkansans are giving covid-19 another chance to attack Thirty years ago, director James Cameron and lead actor Arnold Schwarzenegger thrilled movie-going audiences with the second installment of a hit franchise with "Terminator 2: Judgment Day." Since th... August 1, 2021