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Better assessments needed

It should take no time at all for a proposed bill by the West Virginia Association of School Administrators to find a sponsor. After all, state lawmakers have become acutely, sometimes tragically, aware in recent years of the cracks in our home- and micro-school monitoring through which some children can slip. Tracking homeschool students and monitoring their academic growth is essential — both to ensure they are receiving the education they deserve and keep an eye on their safety. “Regrettably, the level of reporting is an insufficient check and balance to ensure the safety and ...

Have your pets spayed or neutered

It’s a proven fact — spaying and neutering are effective, and humane, ways to save the lives of animals. These procedures are among many important responsibilities that come with owning a dog or cat. So along with providing a safe, warm home, food and water and daily exercise, we ask that animal owners please have their animals spayed or neutered to help stave off pet overpopulation problems. This also is the plea made on World Spay Day — it’s Tuesday — to remind pet owners of their obligations. The most recent estimates compiled by the American Veterinary Medical ...

Getting poison off our streets

In the last week, local law enforcement agencies have announced the arrest of 10 individuals as part of various investigations into the trafficking of drugs in the Tri-State Area. On Feb. 11, the Hancock-Brooke-Weirton Drug Task Force initiated a search warrant at a house on Gardner Avenue in Weirton, which resulted in the arrests of five suspects – three from Steubenville, one from Weirton, and one from Baltimore, Md. - as well as the seizure of cash and various illegal substances. The operation was announced two days later by Weirton Police. A similar operation took place ...

Use our tools to save lives

Those living in Appalachia have long been accustomed to the idea there are greater risks to our health here than in many other regions. New research from the American College of Surgeons confirms that, while cancer diagnoses and deaths are decreasing in Appalachia, the numbers are still significantly higher here than in other parts of the U.S. And where are we at greatest risk? The central subregion — a small part of southern Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia and Virginia — has the highest rates of cancer incidents and deaths among the larger Appalachian region. “The ...

Legislature must focus on real issues

Joining the chorus of socio-cultural distractions being pitched in Charleston at the start of the 2025 Regular West Virginia Legislative Session was House Concurrent Resolution 33 — one of the most nonsensical pieces of sycophantry ever to be placed in the legislative records. HCR 33, is intended for “Recognizing the tallest point in the State of West Virginia, Spruce Knob, as ‘Trump Mountain,’ and Honoring the accomplishments of President Donald J. Trump.” Lead sponsor for the measure was Del. Elias Coop-Gonzalez, R-Randolph, with Dels. Chris Anders, R-Berkeley; Jordan ...

Stand together, help each other

It is the reality of living in this wild, wonderful land we love that it seems almost annually — sometimes more often than that — flooding and mudslides turn our waterways and hills into a deadly landscape. We have almost become accustomed to the news reports — and the calls for help. But that must not mean we become less responsive. At this writing, at least two deaths in West Virginia are attributed to the massive flooding in our southern counties. The effects on homes, property and communities have yet to be fully revealed. In southeast Ohio and Kentucky the devastation is no ...