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Letters To Editor

Call for blood donors Dear Editor, The American Red Cross has declared only the second national blood crisis in its history — and patients may already be feeling the impact. Blood donations have fallen to a four-year summer low, worsening this summer’s emergency shortage. Donors are asked to act immediately to help save lives. All blood types are needed, but the situation is especially dire for type O blood as the Red Cross is now limiting distribution of these blood products to hospitals. The supply of type O positive blood has now fallen below a one-day supply. There’s ...

Editor’s corner: Subpar renewables jolt electric costs

Our Opinion

Long before wind turbines and solar panels began engulfing upstate and the Southern Tier, New York had a healthy power supply. It was built upon generating stations that were near the shores of Lake Erie and the New York Power Authority based in Niagara Falls that produces renewable ...

Growing up alongside the tube

Local Commentaries

Recently, a friend mentioned that as a kid she watched Howdy Doody. When she laughed and sang the musical intro, “It’s Howdy Doody time,” I stunned myself by singing every word to the show’s opening song. Where did that come from? That night I reminisced about Howdy and some of my ...

Our opinion: Vaccination website brings mixed results

Our Opinion

Proficiency rates from schools across the state are not the only items the public will have access to at the moment. Earlier this month, the state announced it has launched a tool that makes it easier for parents and community members to view annual vaccination rates at individual schools -- not just at the state or county-level like before -- boosting transparency and giving families a clearer picture of how well protected their children's classrooms are. "Knowledge is power, and Pennsylvania parents deserve clear, accessible data about the health of their children's schools," said ...

Our opinion: Time to come up big for children

Our Opinion

Warren County’s Court Appointed Special Advocates is looking for a few good advocates. CASA volunteer advocates are appointed by the court to represent the best interests of children involved in abuse and neglect cases, providing consistent support throughout the legal process. The organization currently serves 22 children, with 12 still waiting to be matched with volunteer advocates. At present, CASA has only eight active volunteers. Children who need CASA’s help are children who need someone to speak up on their behalf, something that requires an empathetic ear and an ability ...

Our opinion: State can go further on CDL safety

Our Opinion

Gov. Josh Shapiro recently signed legislation cracking down on unlicensed “CDL mills.” Act 50 of 2026 increases the penalty for running a CDL training center not approved by the state Board of Private Licensed Schools from $2,500 to $25,000. It does not impact private employers that provide CDL training to their own employees at no cost. The bill will help decrease the number of poorly trained commercial driver’s licensees coming from Pennsylvania - a point of contention after a CDL holder issued in Pennsylvania to a migrant from Uzbekistan was involved in an accident and ...