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Forest Festival history of chivalry

The tradition of chivalry was very much alive in the West Virginia hills when future Governor Kump and his brother were young. The knightly code of honorable conduct got its name from the French word cheval meaning horse, and horses were rural transportation and entertainment in the late 1800s when the Kumps participated in tournaments at Capon Springs Resort. In her book “Capon Notes” Debbie Boyce quoted a newspaper article printed November 2, 1893: “The lads and lassies of the valley, after toiling industriously with the wheat and corn … conducted a little recreation. They ...

Lost at sea

Foreign policy requires a delicacy that ideology cannot provide. With the United Nations meeting in New York, American clumsiness, indeed childishness, is on full display. And it is not just the administration that is to blame. Congress, in its zeal to carry water for Ukraine and partially for Israel, limits the United States in the methods that can be employed to preserve its influence, not only because of its power, but also as the premier moral leader in the world. Confusion reigns with Trump and the Congress resembling the St. Vitus’ dance. In the Middle East, Trump backs ...

Political pettinesss

If Donald Trump is not careful, he will be politically drowned in a sea of pettiness. Given that he has suffered taunts and has been twice impeached by Democrats, his brusqueness can be understood. But he should be careful of the admonition that “whom the gods would destroy, they would first make angry.” In the last weeks, he has enticed the gods and the furies. First, he expressed his views on Jimmy Kimmel. His chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr, announced the policy concerning what he perceived as anti-conservative bias by the networks. ABC allegedly ...

Road to a Healthier West Virginia

“Take the backroads, not the highway.” — Minnie Pearl On Sept. 4, we cut the ribbon on something I believe will change lives: a new, $37 million, state-of-the-art outpatient clinic in Elkins, West Virginia, a part of a broader, nearly $1 billion initiative that WVU Medicine is taking to expand healthcare access across our state. The WVU Medicine Elkins Corridor Medical Center represents more than bricks, mortar, and medical equipment. It’s a physical expression of our mission to change the trajectory of healthcare in West Virginia by bringing world-class care to places where ...

Charleston potpourri

West Virginians awaiting U.S. Senate confirmations will have to wait a little bit longer. Due to Senate Democrats dragging out votes on President Donald Trump’s appointees, the Republican majority has begun approving appointees in large batches. On Thursday, the Senate approved 48 Trump appointees. The next big block of appointees (hat tip Frank Thorp V at NBC News) will likely occur at the beginning of October, assuming the nation is not dealing with a government shutdown. The next block consists of 59 names, including three West Virginians. State Sen. Mike Stuart, R-Kanawha, ...

ABC has enough of Kimmel’s ‘comedy’

ABC stunned the media world on Wednesday by announcing they were suspending “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” indefinitely after several ABC station groups withdrew their support for the show. It was a similar shock to CBS setting a cancellation date for “Late Show with Stephen Colbert.” The Left went into conniption fits, grieving both festivals of partisan propaganda. We heard a thousand cries of the “First Amendment” being despoiled and the old reliable screech about President Donald Trump’s “authoritarian playbook.” ABC’s George Stephanopoulos mourned the assault on ...