Breaking News

Editorials

Xylazine offers latest dangers

It is breathtaking to watch the manner in which the substance abuse epidemic in our region continues to evolve. Just last month, officials in Gallia County in Southeastern Ohio, warned a growing danger has reared its head — Xylazine. The powerful veterinary sedative, which is, of course, not intended for human use at all, has been found in the region; sometimes mixed with fentanyl and other opioids. This is a drug meant for large animals such as horses. There is no safe dosage of “tranq” for humans. In fact, overdosing is all too easy. The Gallia County Health Department says ...

Public should be able to speak

A group of Ohio lawmakers believes public bodies within the state should be required to allow public comment before decisions are made. It may come as a surprise to you that is not already the case, but state law requires only that the public be allowed to attend or listen to meetings. House Bill 609 would address that barrier to civic engagement with a revision “to require a public body to allow for public commentary and testimony before taking formal action on any item.” State Reps. David Thomas, R-Jefferson, and Meredith Craig, R-Smithville, are leading the bipartisan ...

Water quality must be priority

Ohio’s Environmental Protection Agency has extended the public comment period to Jan. 16 as it considers fast-tracking a general wastewater permit for new data centers in the Buckeye State. Right now, the state EPA’s draft permit includes “a lowering of water quality of various waters of the state associated with granting coverage under this permit necessary to accommodate important social and economic development in the state of Ohio.” But among the questions such a statement raises are why it is necessary. WCMH-TV in Columbus spoke with water quality advocate Amy ...

Rulli, Husted seeking answers

Ohio’s elected representatives in Washington, D.C., are doing their best to understand and overcome a bizarre federal decision to suspend the state’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership award. U.S. Sen. Jon Husted, R-Ohio, and U.S. Rep. Michael Rulli, R-Salem, along with U.S. Reps. Max Miller, Michael Turner, Robert Latta, David Joyce, Mike Carey and David Taylor, all R-Ohio, recently sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, asking him to restore the flow of funds to the Buckeye State program. This is in addition to a letter Husted sent to Lutnick on Dec. 11 ...

Trades offer opportunities

Those who have the opportunity to spend time with younger family members over this holiday break may be tempted to ask questions such as “What do you want to be when you grow up?” or “What are you studying in college?” A growing number of employers are hoping the answer to that question is plumber, carpenter or even conveyor belt repairperson. There are so few people entering (or staying in) the skilled trades that consulting firm McKinsey predicts an estimated imbalance of 20 job openings for every one net new employee between 2022 and 2032. Employers such as Wal-Mart and ...

Lawmakers, parents must protect children

A Pew Research Center study shows approximately 20 percent of teenagers report social media has damaged their mental health. Interacting with online platforms (this includes video games and chats) can create a host of ways for young people to endanger not just their mental health, but their physical safety, too. Republican U.S. Sens. Jon Husted of Ohio, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and John Thune of South Dakota are joining Democrats Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut. and Chuck Schumer of New York in supporting the Kids Online Safety Act, which would help protect the personal data of ...