When Russian President Vladimir Putin says he’s denazifying Ukraine, he no doubt expects some people, in Russia and abroad, to believe him. Many in the West and on the international stage have expressed bewilderment at these claims. But this does not mean his propaganda strategy is failing. He is engaging in “hard propaganda,” which is meant to convey the speaker’s power — not persuade.
Dave Damico, President, Missouri Coalition for Quality Care To the editor: Any Missourian who values health care for the elderly and disabled should be concerned about the Missouri Legislature’s effort to overturn the August 2020 vote of the people to expand Medicaid to low-income Missouri residents. House Joint Resolution 117 (HJR 117) would do just that and would put thousands of Missourians’ health care on the chopping block.
Steve Veazey Independence To the editor: I’ve been watching with more than casual interest the statements and activities of candidates for the Independence City Council. As one who highly values integrity, accountability and professionalism in local government, Jared Fears brings all the desired characteristics and more.
What’s the one chore you dread with a passion? The one that you keep putting off for as long as you can until that voice in the back of your head (mine sounds like my mother) says, “You might as well just get it over with, because I am not about to do it for you.”
DEAR ABBY: I have a girlfriend, "Dawn," who is one of my oldest friends. She's my only friend who stuck with me through the growing pains and different stages in my life. I married a man who I think is the love of my life. He's very macho and proud. We have built a life together, and through stepchildren, exes and family -- through thick and thin -- our love has endured.
It’s Sunshine Week, and the outlook in Missouri is cloudy, if not dark and gloomy. During the annual Sunshine Week, and we in the media are supposed to boost awareness of our state’s Sunshine Law.
A preacher I greatly admire once said the longer he was in ministry the more he questioned the idea of what’s normal. It’s a fair point.
DEAR ABBY: My longtime boyfriend passed away after an extended illness, and I’d like to offer a suggestion to your readers I wish I had thought of before his passing. After the funeral, I was thinking about what a wonderful man he was, so I decided to compile a list of his good qualities.
The assault on women’s reproductive rights in state legislatures across the country has ramped up since the Supreme Court signaled in December that it might uphold a Mississippi ban on abortion at 15 weeks of gestation and dismantle the landmark ruling in Roe vs. Wade that protects a woman’s right to an abortion.
When Russia invaded Ukraine last month, a spate of wishful thinking ran through the West that China, a great power with friends on both sides, might step in to mediate a cease-fire. China’s government struck a pose of neutrality, called for a peaceful resolution and said it supported the principle of “territorial integrity.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a public plea to China’s Xi Jinping to intervene.