Iâm back. Not that I ever really went away. As announced at the time, my last official day as the BDNâs editor was Nov. 20 after 44 years with the paper. An old friend and colleague, Sid Schwartz, assumed regional editor management duties for the Adams Publishing Group of Southern Wisconsin, including Beloit. Sidâs calling the shots now, with a talented team in Beloit, and heâll be good at it. Meanwhile, BDN subscribers know Iâve always had a lot of thoughts and opinions about, well, nearly everything going on around the Stateline Area, in Wisconsin, in Illinois, and now and then the country as a whole. Fact is, I have enjoyed opinion writing for decades and, at the risk of being a bit immodest, a multitude of industry awards for those efforts suggests I have some knack for it.