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Editorials

Outbreak

It doesn’t take long for a single case of the measles to turn into a genuine outbreak. In Ohio, the number of cases in Ashtabula County alone in early April had grown by 11 in a week. There were seven in Knox County and one each in Allen and Holmes counties. It takes even less times, it seems, for irresponsible political rhetoric and misinformed (or just plain dishonest) social media nonsense to spread in a way that is just as dangerous. By mid-April, the U.S. has more than double the number of measles cases it saw in all of 2024. There are outbreaks in Ohio, Texas, New ...

Real ID

Starting today, all those flying domestically will only be able to board an airplane if they have a Real ID or a valid passport. It’s been 20 years since Congress passed the Real ID Act. It’s been delayed numerous times but is now set to take effect this week. If you don’t have one, and you don’t have a valid passport, it’s simple: you won’t be able to fly. With only days remaining, DMV offices are busy getting people signed up. In West Virginia, the Division of Motor Vehicles offers a couple of options. Those who are ready to hop online to start the process can go to ...

Dangerous

At first glance, the topic of this editorial might seem like someone else’s problem, since the numbers serving as the foundation for this writing are not locally based. But it should not take long for most readers to realize that the topic is very much relevant to our region and to other places of this size that usually harbor a sense of security that people of large metropolitan areas oftentimes do not. In fact, any place that is home to an airport — no matter the size — needs to pay as much attention as anyone who lives near big ones like those of New York, Washington, ...

Worth Waiting For

A project 10 years in the making was unveiled recently with the grand opening of the Hellbender Preserve and Recreational Trail. This new trail, set to be a link in the Great American Rail Trail and the first multi-use trail in Jefferson County, will join the various recreational offerings of our region, while also helping to showcase some of the area’s history. Located in Bloomingdale, the trail features the Lincoln Bridge, a sandstone structure built under order of Abraham Lincoln, as well as train tunnels from the 1850s. As with many local walking and bicycle trails, the ...

Struggling

“We know West Virginia has some real challenges,” Gov. Patrick Morrisey said last month, on his 100th day in office. And, as he said, he HAS been busy during those early days of his term. Unfortunately, we learned during this year’s legislative regular session, the sense of urgency in addressing the state’s genuine challenges was sorely lacking for too many elected officials. Morrisey was correct to note our struggles in education, economic development, health and health care, infrastructure, population loss and so much more. He would have been right to add that very little ...

Smart Call

Though a step behind some of our neighboring states, lawmakers and Gov. Patrick Morrisey did an important thing with House Bill 2003 this year. It bans the use of cell phones and other personal electronic devices in K-12 classrooms during instructional time, and requires county boards of education to implement policies for storage of those devices during the school day and establish consequences for breaking the rules. “I think this is going to make a significant difference for teachers and students,” Morrisey said Tuesday. “We know that the use of personal electronic devices in ...