The New Era - All about Sweet Home since 1929

By Dr. Caleb Fuller “Economics,” wrote Henry Hazlitt, “is haunted by more fallacies than any other study known to man.” True. No epoch is immune to the scourge of economic illiteracy. Yet, we find ourselves in a moment of especially...

Many rural Oregonians have DNA that includes a streak of “don’t tread on me” and that’s certainly true in Sweet Home. But, as we’ve seen from the deliberations emanating from City Hall, “live and let live” sometimes must needs have limi...

Editor: The closure of the Linn-Benton Community College facility in Sweet Home (Feb. 22) is disappointing but not a surprise.  I offered two classes there in the fall and had two people sign up.  But that was not a surprise either, because there...

Editor: If there’s anything we’ve learned over the past three years, it’s: “Always trust the experts.” Right?  Not so much. First, it was COVID. Now it is floating UFOs. And do not forget the borderless mass migrations. More than from...

By Therese Bottomly Ever heard of Pappy Van Winkle before this past month? Me, neither. But lots of people apparently covet the high-end bourbon, including some managers of the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission. Their insider scheme came to...

By Dr. Eric Fruits What do spy balloons, a state liquor scandal, and Oregon road tolling have in common? The short answer is “not much”… except they are all examples of our government hiding stuff from us. And, when the government doesn’t wan...

Sweet Home has certain qualities that endear it to people who arrive here and who end up staying – often for decades. We all know it, even those who complain about the way the downtown looks, the inertia that seems to keep improvements from happeni...

Editor: Thanks to Roberta McKern for her always-interesting stories from our museum. I had wondered for decades why “Lyma” Ohio, but “Leema” Peru. I found out, when I went to Peru in the 1990s.  The Spanish conquistadores asked the locals wh...

Editor: We are indeed fortunate to have our New Era and Lebanon Local reporting our news. Thank you especially for the great pictures and coverage of the outdoor school and many other events of our youth. Thank you for finding another printer when...

Creating a solution for Sweet Home’s homeless problem has been a long road, which is still leading us to new places for our community. It’s a relief that the Family Assistance Resource Center was finally able to get all the boxes checked that...

Feb. 1, 1973 Reducing the high school student lunch time at the beginning of the semester was delayed. Several complaints were registered with administrators following a recent announcement that the lunch period would be reduced from one hour to...

The title above might seem self-serving, but it reflects an increasing concern in Oregon, and not just for newspaper publishers. I’ve heard from readers, from government officials, from businesses who are worried about where the state’s...

Editor’s note: Although we are a nonpartisan newspaper, we think this “open letter,” written by the chair of the Oregon Republican Party, highlights concerns shared by Linn County’s rural residents, so we’re giving it some space. Dear Gov....

Editor: I am very fed up with gas stations in Sweet Home. I went down today to get some gas and was asked how much and I said, “fill it up” and was asked how much again and I again said “fill it up” and was told I still had to say how much!...

Editor: An open letter to Gov. Kotek: I love your goal of increased housing of Oregonians; it is so very needed. There are, however, two snags observable on the way to that wonderful goal. First, new housing must be available for all Oregonians....

Editor: America’s world has become infested and occupied by a Marxist secular religion. It is a religion because people give it deep commitments. It offers a counterfeit, undefined “salvation.” It’s a doomed mistake to take any pieces from...