Just when you’re starting to fret not having a reasonable idea for a column for this week’s paper, along come the good folks from Oklahoma willing to try to skirt the U.S. Constitution for their religious beliefs.

There’s plenty of reason to believe former Minnesota Rep. Bob Vanasek of New Prague was correct when he said the current debate over school districts handling the facilities use of transgender and gender non-conforming students is a legislative issue and will not be settled in a school board meeting room in New Prague or any other school district across the state.

As journalists, we rely on open government and freedom of information principles to keep the public informed about its government. Sometimes, we are met with roadblocks.
Sunshine Week, which is spearheaded by the News Leaders Association, champions open and transparent government at all levels. That means from the local school board or city council meetings, to the emails a state representative sent that supports a bill, all the way up to the President at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. in Washington, D.C.

Daylight saving time has returned, prompting many to celebrate with an eye toward warmer temps and the change of seasons. As if on cue, this is a great time as well to celebrate newspapers and the sunshine they deliver to all of our lives and communities.
Reminding citizens and public officials about the public’s right of access to government information is the focus of “Sunshine Week: It’s Your Right to Know,” March 14-20. At its foundation, Sunshine Week underscores preserving the free flow of information for an open, effective and accountable government.

So much has changed in the world in the last few weeks.
We’re entering unchartered territory in this fight against COVID-19.
Everyone at Suel Printing Company's newspapers (Montgomery Messenger, The New Prague Times, Waterville Lake Region Life and Elysian Enterprise) remains dedicated to providing you with a high-quality newspaper with consistent news coverage and delivery.
That said, we’re doing what we can with the resources we have to keep ourselves, our families, and our sources healthy.