Life After 50: Got Hats?
A hat crafted by a friend for a friend diagnosed with skin cancer on the top of her head. Courtesy/Bernadette Lauritzen
By BERNADETTE LAURITZEN
Los Alamos
Recently, I went to schedule a physical appointment, only to find out that a great practitioner at MANNM is moving away. A year ago, I had the pleasure of seeing some great medical personnel, so why send a thank you when heralding people in the media is so much more fun!
Shenika Carter is a Family Nurse Practitioner and may have provided the most pleasant annual physical I have ever had. Her bedside manner, sense of humor and kind disposition made Read More
Dannemann: Welcome Relief On Gross Receipts Tax
By MERILEE DANNEMANN
Triple Spaced Again
© 2023 New Mexico News Services
New Mexico doctors got a bit of relief in an amendment to the tax law enacted this past session.
Doctors have had to pay New Mexico gross receipts tax on co-pays and deductibles – the portion of the bill paid by the patient. That was eliminated by this law.
It used to be worse. Until the late 1990s, we required gross receipts also on the portion paid by the insurance company. A 2022 report by the New Mexico Medical Society said New Mexico is one of only 4 states that tax medical services in any way (the others are Ohio, Michigan and Read More
Fr. Glenn: The Light Of Truth
By Fr. Glenn Jones:
A blessed (and safe!) Memorial Day weekend to all. Please remember reverently those for whom Memorial Day is dedicated—those who have given their lives in the service of our nation. As mentioned here last week, there are few better descriptions of the ideal of dedicated service men and women than in General Douglas MacArthur’s last speech to the cadets at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. If you want to have more of an “immersion” experience of Memorial Day, listen to the general’s speech, watch the video of Chris Stapleton’s national anthem from this year’s Superbowl, Read More
New Series: Background To The Movie ‘Oppenheimer’
The Romero Cabin near Fuller Lodge in downtown Los Alamos. Photo by Chris Judson
By CHRIS JUDSON
Presented by the Los Alamos Historical Society and Team Oppie
Historical Background: Chapter 1, The Pueblo People and the Homesteaders
As the opening date approaches for Christopher Nolan’s highly-anticipated major motion picture, Oppenheimer, it seems like a good idea to offer a series of short articles on the historical background to the story and the characters presented in the movie. The list of characters is based on the cast as shown in the movie’s website. These articles will be brief introductions; Read More
Tales Of Our Times: Groves Saw In Oppenheimer A Rare Mix Vital To The Mission
By JOHN BARTLIT
Los Alamos
Our town eagerly awaits the release of the movie “Oppenheimer” in the U.K. and U.S. July 21. Townsfolk know that Oppenheimer’s genius fit well with the different genius of General Leslie Groves, played by Matt Damon in the film. Many of us wonder which parts of the story the film will tell. Full disclosure: My wife Nancy chaired the committee whose work resulted in the life-size bronze statues of Oppenheimer and Groves engaging in Los Alamos life since 2011. See the two at work and “Oppie” at his April birthday below.
Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer was the director of the wartime Read More
Dannemann: Cannabis Is Not Without Risk
By MERILEE DANNEMANN
Triple Spaced Again
© 2023 New Mexico News Services
New Mexico has passed the one-year anniversary of legalizing recreational adult-use marijuana. The news releases were bursting with excitement. Government and business leaders were celebrating, saying the industry is off to a great start.
These announcements focused only on the business side – lots of money, lots of tax revenue – not mentioning the effects on New Mexico consumers.
In one year, New Mexico had $300 million in adult-use cannabis sales. The state issued around 2,000 cannabis licenses, including 633 retailers, Read More
Robinson: FEMA Not Helping Disaster Victims For 20 Years
By SHERRY ROBINSON
All She Wrote
© 2023 New Mexico News Services
Wildfires in northern New Mexico last year quickly destroyed homes, property and trees in a race to the horizon. But the agency that’s supposed to help victims with housing and reimbursement operates in slow motion, if it operates at all.
As a recent story by Source New Mexico and Pro Publica made clear, the Federal Emergency Management Agency has done almost nothing, hogtied by its own regulations and bureaucratic inertia. On May 10, U. S. Sens. Martin Heinrich and Ben Ray Lujan, along with Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, wrote FEMA Read More
