Opinion

The day is almost here! Bark in the Park will be this Saturday, April 23, from 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. Furry friends and volunteers from Have a Heart Pet Shelter are looking forward to seeing many of our friends there at the Yellville City Park Pavilion.

It’s been a few years and memories fuzz and fade, but I recall a history professor who seemed to think part of his calling was to get his students to prepare for “the cosmic cocktail party.” That’s not a euphemism for drugs or a four-figure weekend retreat of enlightenment at a spa. What he meant was, what if you found yourself at the ultimate cocktail party, surrounded by the smartest and most creative and successful people you could think of? Could you hold your own? This is not the time to drop the pig-with-the-wooden-leg joke.

A Day of Debates, featuring Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General and Gubernatorial candidates, will be held on Thursday, April 21 at Little Rock Union Station, lower level. A luncheon will also be part of the day’s schedule. The event is hosted by Arkansas Press Association and sponsored by Arkansas Farm Bureau and the Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas.

An important deadline is approaching if you plan on voting in the May 24 Preferential Primary Election and Nonpartisan General Election. If you have not already registered to vote, you have until April 25 to file your voter registration application with your county clerk.

Little Rock – Average teacher salaries in Arkansas ranked 47th in the nation in 2020, down from 46th in 2019 and 44th in 2018. Legislators on the Senate and House Education Committees heard a lengthy salary comparison last week, written by legislative staff.

Arkansans are unfortunately familiar with the devastating impacts of tornadoes. I’ve seen the damage left in their powerful wake and talked with homeowners, businesses and local leaders about the challenges they face in getting things back to normal. In the face of these trials, I have also seen the resolve of citizens determined to rebuild and the care of those who offer hope through words and deeds to friends and neighbors experiencing some of the greatest hardships of their lives.

Today, I would like to talk about the national increase in violent crime, and what we are doing to combat that here in Arkansas. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world felt like it came to a halt while we dealt with the issues of public health.

Little Rock – Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge today toured the Arkansas State Crime Lab in Little Rock and announced a $250,000 allocation for essential transportation related to opioid deaths across Arkansas. According to the Arkansas State Crime Lab, there were at least 493 drug overdose deaths in 2021; 281 of those were caused by fentanyl and 43 autopsies are still pending. In 2020, there were 329 drug overdose related deaths with 148 caused by fentanyl and in 2019 there were 263 drug overdose related deaths with 80 caused by fentanyl. The allocation will help the State Crime Lab transport victims of opioid overdose to the crime lab for an autopsy and determine the exact cause of death.