Breaking News

Other Commentaries

Stories of heartache and service

Three days before the Independent Hose Company No. 1 in Jersey Shore was to hold the funeral service for one of their own at their station on Pennsylvania Avenue, members of the volunteer fire department answered the call three times that day to serve those in need. It was Monday, Jan. 15, a national holiday, but it was no holiday for Independent Hose. As they wrestled with their own grief of suddenly losing 37-year-old fire Lt. Ronald Dailey, the firefighters continued to put on their protective gear, jump in their fire trucks and answer the call. Actually, the fire company ...

The long-COVID journey of a husband and father

My name was Sam. I was a loving son, husband, father, father-in-law, grandfather, brother, brother-in-law, and friend. I was a Navy veteran and a retired high school math and physics teacher. I enjoyed hunting in my younger years, doing yard work, hiking, and golfing. My wife, Debbie, and I enjoyed traveling after we retired; we were so excited about our upcoming 50th anniversary cruise scheduled for February 2024. During the evening of March 2, 2022, I tested positive for COVID with a home test, and verified it by re-testing at an urgent care center. I had very mild symptoms. At the ...

Israel and pleas to deal with the devil

In a Faustian deal with the devil, a mortal trades something of importance, usually the soul, for a worldly benefit such as money, power or sex. At the end of the game of life, the recipient of worldly pleasures trades in the human soul. The “deal with the devil” finds its origin in Christian mythology, where the devil tempts mankind into giving up eternal bliss in return for temporary gain. Judaism sees Satan as the accuser, the prosecutor; an angel whose job it is to challenge the goodness of God. Job, in spite of the horrors which befall him in life, refused to denounce ...

Bipartisan bill needed to keep affordable connectivity afloat

Unless Congress acts soon, a federal program that connects low-income Americans to the internet, the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), will run out of money, and the fallout will not only impact millions of low-income internet users but the Internet Service Providers (ISPs) that provide them service. Bipartisan legislation, the Affordable Connectivity Program Extension Act, which will provide $7 billion in funding has been introduced in Congress, but at least one analyst, New Street Research’s Blair Levin, gives the bill less than a 50 percent chance of passage before ACP ...

Saving Social Security should be a greater priority in Congress

Last month, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, told former White House aide Steve Bannon that some lawmakers want to reduce Social Security benefits so that the federal government can send more money to Ukraine, which Vance argued would flow through to Ukrainian President Zelensky’s underlings to “buy a bigger yacht.” While Vance’s statement may come across as an amusing sound bite, the ultimate butt of his joke are millions of American seniors and the others who rely on Social Security. The fact is that Social Security faces significant financial challenges over the next few years. ...

Green agendas and political cliffs

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon are riding the same “green energy” horse, trotting into the sunset — or toward a political cliff. After voicing concerns, Shapiro is pressing ahead with Pennsylvania’s proposed participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, appealing a Commonwealth Court ruling barring the governor from unilateral action. He also has proposed expanding subsidies for “alternative energy” sources. In the Cowboy State, Gordon advocates “decarbonizing the West” with a facility that would suck carbon dioxide from the ...