GREG HARTON: The president deserves our prayers
I don't care how much one disagrees or dislikes the sitting president of the United States, hearing that he's contracted a disease that's proven harmful or even deadly to people his age is unnerving a...
October 4, 2020
GREG HARTON: Covering news not really easy
It was a mostly peaceful parade until the convoy of cars passed the Texas Schoolbook Depository.
The massive dirigible had a mostly pleasant journey across the Atlantic before it descended for landin...
September 27, 2020
GREG HARTON: Trust great in government, but scrutiny is necessary
As Ronald Reagan suggested, "trust but verify" is a vital approach in governmental relations.
For every situation in which people are bilked, trust precedes deception.
One of my first big federal in...
September 20, 2020
GREG HARTON: Who's going to tend the fire?
Whether you're a young Boy Scout or a contestant on "Survivor," sooner or later you're going to have to learn how to make a fire.
You've got to figure out any chance for fire relies on the availabili...
September 6, 2020
GREG HARTON: A busy night for president, his challenger
On one hand, it's tempting to ignore the ramblings of the man who spoke Thursday night as Democrats wrapped up their national convention, attempting to draw the attention of Americans at a critical mo...
August 23, 2020
GREG HARTON: Absentee or not, voting a necessity
I haven't yet decided whether I'm going to apply to receive an absentee ballot for the Nov. 3 election.
According to the Arkansas Secretary of State's office, requesting the ballot by mail or electro...
August 16, 2020
GREG HARTON: Are law officers or political leaders the issue?
If you've spent most of your life viewing law enforcement officers as people who come to the rescue, a call to "defund police" sounds like an invitation to lawlessness and giving the "bad guys" contro...
August 9, 2020
GREG HARTON: Is city ready to turn back on officers?
Most of the time, when 71 percent of voters approve $37 million for a construction project, the city leaders who asked for that approval have the good sense not to backtrack on the project.
This week...
August 2, 2020
GREG HARTON: Barbara knew how to write a good letter
I heard the news last from a fellow editor the day before her obituary appeared.
Barbara Foreman died at 88.
Longtime readers of our letters to the editor submissions may recognize her name. From he...
July 19, 2020
GREG HARTON: Court guards religion as central to U.S. freedoms
Growing up, I had heard about Al Capone, the high-profile, Chicago-based crime boss who violently capitalized on bootlegging during Prohibition.
When I became a reporter in Hot Springs, I became awar...
July 12, 2020
Easier voting a step closer in Arkansas
Secretaries of state in Arkansas mostly function without a lot of public attention, unless and until the officeholder sets his or her sights on higher — or at least lateral — office.
The most memorab...
July 5, 2020
GREG HARTON: Got fever? Get tested, then wait
Last week, my family had a long wait to determine whether covid-19 had invaded our household.
Well, it seemed like a long wait. Waiting with the dark cloud of what seems a modern-day plague looming i...
June 28, 2020
GREG HARTON: Making sure a win really is progress
I've never been a wheeler-dealer on things like buying a car. When it comes time to buy, I'll think about tactics we've perhaps all heard about to broker the best deal.
Don't fall in love with any ca...
June 21, 2020
GREG HARTON: Do as we're told or as we're asked?
Gov. Asa Hutchinson's daily covid-19 press conference on Friday delivered the eye-popping figure of 731 new positive test results in the state since the day before. It was the largest single-day growt...
June 14, 2020
GREG HARTON: Riots reveal the divisions that linger
The turmoil in Minneapolis and other cities is astonishing, not so much because it's unique, but because in 2020 we're right back where we've been before.
Add Minneapolis to the list that includes pla...
May 31, 2020