Breaking News

Opinion

Guest column/Keeping government open shouldn’t be a partisan fight

Local Columns

As a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, one of my primary responsibilities is ensuring that our government is responsibly funded so it remains open and working for the people we represent, including the hardworking West Virginians. That’s why I’m deeply disappointed to see Washington once again stumble into a completely avoidable government shutdown — this time because Senate Democrats have refused to join Republicans in supporting a commonsense, short-term measure that would keep the government open. Let’s be clear about what this measure — known as a ...

Fall fire season requires caution

Editorials

Fall fire season has arrived across our region. Don’t let a little rainy weather in September fool you, things are still dry enough to elevate the risk of wildfires. That risk is already higher now that leaves are hitting the ground, and other vegetation is either going dormant and drying out or dying altogether at this time of year. Lower humidity and fall breezes may be pleasant for us, but they, too, add to the risk. All those factors create “a situation where we have an elevated risk of wildfires here in Ohio,” according to the state Division of Forestry’s Aaron Kloss. ...

Voter registration deadline is here

Editorials

If you live in Ohio and have not yet registered to vote, you are nearly out of time. The deadline to register and be eligible to vote in the Nov. 4 election is 9 p.m. today. Our representative democracy allows residents to choose who will represent them on city and village councils, who will serve as township trustees, who will be their mayor and who will represent them on the local school board. Local voters get to determine the fate of tax and other issues. Those are among the items Ohioans will see on their ballots this fall. Many area residents stay on top of politics ...

Essay’s truth evident 60 years after written

Local Columns

When I was a teenager in the 1980s, I came across a copy of an essay in the newspaper that made me sit up and pay attention. It was pretty much the reason I began writing in the first place. You see, the words were so impactful, so truthful, that it made me stop and think — really think about the world, about life. When I first read it, the essay was only about 20 years old. But still, it was dead-on accurate and so well-put that I decided to cut the article out of the newspaper and I placed it among my poems, my keepsakes. I still have it to this day, 40 years later. ...

Celebrating residents’ rights month

Letters to the Editor

To the editor: Every October, communities across the country recognize National Long-Term Care Residents’ Rights Month, honoring the 1.3 million individuals who live in nursing homes, assisted living and other residential care settings, while bringing attention to the rights that protect them. It serves as a powerful reminder that residents deserve more than basic care. The federal Nursing Home Reform Law guarantees a set of rights that promote dignity, choice and a meaningful quality of life — rights that do not fade with age. In celebration of this year’s theme, Stand ...

Speak up about health care

Letters to the Editor

To the editor: Surely, I am too old to be writing letters to the editor. But, maybe not — maybe my age can be trusted as wisdom on this important subject. This is a subject of most importance — immunizations against contagious diseases. Aw, the word diseases — against ease, so says Noah Webster. The diseases I speak of now are becoming a national question — do we or should we immunize against them? Again, because of my age and profession, I speak from experience. I am 84 years old, a retired registered nurse and a survivor who benefited from vaccinations. My ...