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Lung cancer threat is real

With Halloween just behind us and Thanksgiving coming up in a couple of weeks, it might be easy to forget that November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month. You should not. Lung cancer, according to the American Cancer Society, is the second most common form of cancer, with only prostate cancer being more common in men and breast cancer more common in women. Estimates are that 226,650 new cases of lung cancer will be diagnosed this year (115,970 of which will be in women and 110,6800 in men) and, sadly, that there will be 124,730 deaths due to lung cancer this year (64,190 of which will ...

Compromise in Columbus

Give credit where credit is due to Ohio lawmakers who worked together to come to a compromise on a redrawn Ohio congressional district map that has its critics, but came as a bit of a surprise to those who expected something much worse. According to the Statehouse News Bureau, Democrat lawmakers acknowledged the decision wasn’t easy — there is still anger and frustration on both sides — but Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio, D-Lakewood, called it “the best of a worst-case scenario.” In fact, U.S. Rep. Emilia Sykes, D-Akron, told the Akron Beacon Journal she was ...

Ohio has chance to make difference

Ohio lawmakers are missing an opportunity to show they are capable of stepping up when federal lawmakers do not. According to a report by the Ohio Capital Journal, there have not yet been any hearings — nor are any scheduled — for House Bill 502, “Appropriate funds for SNAP, TANF, WIC upon lapse in federal funds.” Introduced by state Rep. Latyna M. Humphrey, D-Columbus, the measure would be a safety net — similar to efforts in other states — for the nearly 1.4 million Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients in Ohio. As Humphrey points out, “Grocery stores ...

Warner delivers important message

Imagine being 18 (or nearly 18) years old and having someone like the West Virginia secretary of state tell you that, at least in one aspect, you are just as powerful as someone like Taylor Swift or the president of the United States. That’s what local students learned when Secretary of State Kris Warner visited Brooke and Oak Glen high schools to encourage them to register to vote when they are eligible. “No one is any greater or less than anyone else. We’re all equal when we get to the ballot box,” Warner told the students gathered at their respective schools. Warner ...

New chapter opens for Hancock shelter

A new chapter has been opened at the Hancock County Animal Shelter. Following a contract signing Friday morning, operations at the shelter, located near New Manchester, will be overseen by the nonprofit Jefferson County Humane Society, which oversees the Jefferson County Animal Shelter in Wintersville. There will be some changes as part of the transition. Humane society managers will be working with existing animal shelter staff to review the operations at the facility and finding out what works and what improvements can be made, sharing ideas and making upgrades to the shelter ...

Be involved — cast your ballot

This year’s general election might not be generating all of the attention and big spending that the one we had last year did, but that doesn’t mean it is any less important. Voters have, in elections such as this one, the opportunity to have a real say on the level that impacts their lives the most: In municipal and township government, on school boards and with tax levies. When they cast their ballots in Tuesday’s election, residents of Steubenville, for instance, have contested races for mayor and in the Second and Fourth wards. There are contested council races in Toronto, ...