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Enjoy autumn at Applefest

Editorials

A tradition that has brought residents of the Tri-State Area together for nearly 50 years will be renewed this weekend. It’s the 45th Wellsburg Applefest, which will run Friday through Sunday along several blocks of Charles Street and the Wellsburg Town Square. The festival celebrates the town’s connection with the Golden Grimes apple, which was discovered in 1832 on a farm owned by Thomas Grimes that was located along Washington Pike. Seeds for the apple, which is related to the Golden Delicious, West Virginia’s state fruit, were first planted, legend has it, by Johnny ...

Vigilance needed to fight trafficking

Editorials

In naming its latest statewide human trafficking operation, the Ohio Attorney General’s Organized Crime Investigations Commission chose Operation Next Door as a way to bring home the message that the people committing these crimes are not distant strangers. They may, indeed, live right next door. With the help of more than 100 law enforcement agencies, 135 people were arrested for seeking to buy sex — some of them from minors, according to state Attorney General Dave Yost’s office. Included in those 135 people was a 45-year-old man from Weirton. In total, 103 were arrested ...

Ohio’s parks tops across the nation

Editorials

When you hear Ohioans brag about the state’s natural beauty and recreational opportunities, it might sound like hyperbole to hear we are the best. But an award from the American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration and the National Recreation and Park Association backs that up. Ohio won the 2025 National Gold Medal Award for Excellence in Park and Recreation Management. “Our state parks protect Ohio’s natural resources while providing incredible opportunities for people to explore, learn and connect with nature,” said Gov. Mike DeWine. “From protecting natural ...

Weirton parks face challenges

Editorials

For years now, the Weirton Board of Parks and Recreation has warned of the need to renovate Starvaggi Memorial Pool in order for it to continue for generations to come. The proverbial can was kicked down the road by various city administrations, most of whom cited a lack of funding or simply not feeling the project was a priority. Finally, some officials took the need seriously enough to pledge approximately $1 million, and the efforts to come up with a design began. Parks officials had hoped the renovations could begin this summer, so much so that they initially decided to go ...

What happened to free speech?

Letters to the Editor

To the editor: George Orwell’s book, “Nineteen Eighty-Four,” written in 1949, is a dystopian novel about a totalitarian society ruled by the omnipresent party and its figurehead, Big Brother — the Thought Police. This is where one’s personal and political thought was unapproved. I can’t help but think about the context of this novel and how it is being reflected in the United State today, in 2025. Are we undergoing a dismantling of freedom of speech right now? Brendan Carr, a Trump lackey, and a key writer of Project 2025 and current chair of the FCC has the power to ...

Guest column/Congress must restore IT protection to drive innovation

Local Columns

Founding a successful startup has never been easy, but a little-known U.S. Supreme Court ruling has made it even more difficult in recent years by enabling corporations that use startups’ patented technology without permission to get off nearly scot-free. Now, Congress has a chance to set things right. On Feb. 25, Sens. Chris Coons, D-Del., and Tom Cotton, R-Ark., reintroduced the Realizing Engineering, Science, and Technology Opportunities by Restoring Exclusive, or RESTORE, Patent Rights Act, a bipartisan bill that would enable startups and other patent holders to block infringers ...