As we wrap up the month of June, this will mark two years since I came on board your newspaper as your state government reporter, keeping you abreast of all the goings on underneath the golden (now-wrapped-in-plastic) dome. I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the trade of journalism, ...
As we celebrated our state’s birthday June 20, West Virginians could take some pleasure in how well we’ve handled the COVID-19 epidemic. Though it has been bad here in several respects, we have escaped the horror experienced by many of our fellow Americans. Too bad we can’t say the same ...
There’s been plenty of talk lately about those who believe they are above the law. Last week, a three-judge panel from the U.S. District Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit had to remind some Mountain State bureaucrats that, no, they are not above the law, either. Appeals court judges J. ...
Has anyone else lately been wondering how to handle the version of themselves our “friends” feel comfortable sharing on social media? It’s uncomfortable. People we thought we knew; people who never reveal THAT side of their belief system in face-to-face conversation ... or, at least, not ...
June 20 of this year was to be the first of three days of celebration, recognizing two hundred years since the Town of Parkersburg was made official by an Act of the Legislature of Virginia; this Act was passed Jan. 22, 1820. Unfortunately, after months of planning for the three-day ...
After reading the letter containing the biased account of the 2000 election in Florida, in the Sunday, June 14 newspaper, I felt compelled to respond. In Florida, Bush carried the state by over 500 votes, a close election. The votes were recounted by the voting machines and Bush won, again by ...
As the virus continues spread even more in many states, have you stopped to think how our lives have changed in the past five months. It now seems and feels like we are prisoners in our own homes, plus the fear as to where or not we should go. Should we wear a mask ? Should we be sure to ...
If I’m playing golf for fun with a group of friends and hit a bad shot, I like it when they say, “Take a mulligan.” That means a do over. I remember in school, occasionally most of the class would not do well on a test. Our teacher went over the material again and then said, “We are ...
It is our goal at the Mid-Ohio Valley Chamber to offer programming to make our business community as vibrant and strong as possible, an important goal now more than ever. Below is a sampling of upcoming events that we hope you will take advantage of during the month of July. *** Lunch and ...
A wedding on a small island turns into a murder mystery in “The Guest List” by Lucy Foley. In alternating points of view between the bride, a wedding guest, the best man, the wedding planner and the bridesmaid, a lush wedding preparations are underway. The groom is a handsome television ...
From nearly the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States, it was clear the impact of the disease has a racial component. Black Americans have been affected far more severely than whites. Exactly why that is so has yet to be learned. Obviously, getting answers is critical. But ...
Before Mid-Ohio Valley residents had a grasp of the seriousness of COVID-19, it had already moved into nursing homes and other long-term care facilities all over the country. Many of the nearly 120,000 Americans whose lives have been claimed by the virus were residents of such facilities. We ...
There is no such thing as a carefree vacation this summer. That was made clear last week, though so many have been hoping to get away from it all for a few days. Eight West Virginians who made the trek to a popular vacation area for people in our state — Myrtle Beach — appear to have come ...
Some things never change. North Korean dictators’ determination to stay in power by keeping the rest of the world off balance is one of them. For a time, it seemed as if North Korean strongman Kim Jong Un might be altering course from that pursued by his father and grandfather. Kim and U.S. ...
Hello Mid-Ohio Valley farmers and gardeners! Although we got off to a slow start to the growing season, farmers around the area are harvesting hay and gardeners have planted plenty of tomatoes, peppers and sweet corn. Last week many of our nurseries and home garden centers were sold out of ...
UP: To Williamstown Mayor Jean Ford, who, after more than 23 years passed the baton last week to incoming Mayor Paul Jordan. In signing off, Ford said “This has been a wonderful 23 years and the city is blessed with a wonderful council.” We would guess there are plenty in Williamstown who ...
CHARLESTON — A handful of people took me to task last Wednesday when I asked Gov. Jim Justice a question about masks, not liking the tone of my question. The issues of masks and face coverings came after Justice once again warned the public about coronavirus outbreaks tied to several ...
Perceptions are everything to us. Reality doesn’t matter as much as what we believe it to be. That’s a key to race relations. Another factor we seem to be overlooking right now is that the problem with many black Americans’ mistrust of law enforcement personnel starts with traffic stops, ...
According to Gallup polling in 2019, Americans had either a great deal of or quite a lot of confidence in church or organized religion (36 percent), the Supreme Court (38 percent), Congress (11 percent), organized labor (29 percent), big business (23 percent), public schools (29 percent), ...
Saturday is West Virginia Day, the birthday of this wild and wonderful state we call home; and a chance to remember who we are. We celebrate that 157 years ago we were admitted to the Union as our own state, after breaking away from the state at the heart of a fight for an institution we ...