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Opinion

Our opinion: A wrong way to balance budget

Our Opinion

We knew there would be pain when President Donald Trump said he was going to right-size federal programs in an attempt to bring the federal budget under control. The only way to get control of federal spending is through spending cuts. Of course, now we’re finding out just how dependent on federal programs we really are - and some of these cuts come with real pain for people who are struggling to get by. Among them are the 189 Pennsylvania farmers and 14 Pennsylvania food banks that participated in the federally-backed Local Food Purchasing Assistance Program that gave money to ...

Our opinion: Tread carefully with lake renewables

Our Opinion

We understand why New York lawmakers are so desperate to put wind turbines in Lake Erie. We’re not so sure why some Pennsylvania lawmakers are so enthralled with the concept. New York lawmakers have set some incredibly aggressive targets for renewable energy use with their Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act. The only way to meet the state’s demand for power is to scour the landscape for places to put wind turbines and solar panels, though Gov. Kathy Hochul is beginning to consider nuclear power as an option to meet New York’s power demand. But even New York, with ...

Schools don’t consider lost revenues

Local Commentaries

With all of the other issues with the plan to close the Sheffield and Youngsville High Schools, is there the possibility of the district losing revenue due to this decision? Have they already lost revenue due to just the discussion of closing schools? What happens with yet another empty building? What happens when the district finally sells a building? Is there a gain? Is there any costs to the district by a vacant building? So how would the district lose revenue? Well considering that every resident in the attendance area of Youngsville will be losing a high school, which is huge ...

Philosophy to ‘build up’ brings better way of life

Local Commentaries

Preface: It often takes a lifetime of interactions within one’s community and with loved ones to establish a philosophy that guides a person’s ethos for their professional development. I was lucky to come across the “we build up” theme in the summer of 1991 on the Pleasant Township summer playground. My educational and coaching philosophy expanded in the early 2000’s upon learning of the Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility model (TPSR) and meeting its creator/author Mr. Don Hellison. In the following paragraphs, I hope to provide parents, caregivers, teachers, and ...

Readers Speak

Letters To Editor

Assistance awaits Dear Editor, Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania works hard to support families, seniors, veterans, and children facing hunger every day. Going to any grocery store, it’s clear that food prices continue to stay out of reach for our neighbors in need. This is leading to rising demand for support from Second Harvest and our partner food pantries, soup kitchens, and schools. We need strong federal programs like The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) to support this vital need. TEFAP provides over 20% of the food moving through the Feeding ...

Offering perspective to rise in Autism

Local Commentaries

There’s been a lot of buzz lately about the dramatic rise in autism diagnoses. In 2023, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) reported that 1 in 36 children have autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a staggering increase from 1 in 10,000 in the 1970s. To understand this surge, we need to look at the history of ASD. In the 1960s and 1970s, autism was often misdiagnosed as childhood schizophrenia or attributed to emotional trauma. The turning point came in 1973 when Congress passed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), mandating schools to support students with ...