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Make safe toy selections this holiday season

In just a few days, children will eagerly be opening new toys and other items that have been left by Santa Claus. And, while Christmas morning can be an exciting time, we remind parents and other adults that not all toys and gifts are safe for all children in all circumstances. In 2023, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, there were 231,700 toy-related injuries treated in emergency rooms. Of those injuries, 45 percent were to the head and face area. CPSC numbers show 167,500 of those injuries, about 72 percent, happened to children 14 and younger. Another ...

Bowl season sure has changed

So much has changed in the world of college football during the past couple of years. The addition of name, image and likeness money has helped to transform the game, as has the transfer portal. Not only are players now compensated beyond the traditional scholarship, but if they feel a school no longer is the right fit, they are able to look elsewhere and find a new place to play — without having to wait or lose any eligibility. Then there has been conference realignment, which has turned decades and decades of tradition on its head. For example, many fans can remember when a game ...

Sticking together for the holidays

The holidays aren’t always a happy time for everyone. In fact, it can be a very lonely time for some of our residents who might not have family living nearby. A group of local organizations are, once again, coming together this week to bring some holiday cheer to some of those residents by providing a warm meal for them to enjoy. In its second year, the dinner is focused primarily on residents of the city’s high rise complexes, especially the local senior community, as well as shut-ins. These are residents most likely to not have anyone to share the holidays with, or unable to ...

Ensure mineral appraisals are correct

As December sets in, West Virginia mineral rights owners can be assured of one certainty: receiving a notice in the mail of their new mineral rights valuation. And just as it’s a certainty that notice will arrive, it’s also clear that the valuation, as far as anyone can tell, continues to remain either inaccurate or wildly out of bounds. That’s what you have to appreciate about government — make a major change riddled with mistakes and then put the burden on, in this case, the mineral rights owner to hopefully get it fixed. Or, as this issue also has taught us over the past two ...

Offering people a second chance

A day before President Joe Biden announced the largest act of clemency in one day in modern presidential history, Sens. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., Cory Booker, D-N.J., John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., celebrated the earlier passage of their Second Chance Reauthorization Act of 2024. Both events are important acknowledgements of the need to support those who are paying the consequences for having made mistakes, but are ready to seize new opportunities to succeed. “The vast majority of people incarcerated today will come home to our communities at some point,” ...

Remember the giving of the season

Life is getting busy now, with the end of the gift-giving season staring us all in the face. We’ve started to get wrapped up in Christmas, from shopping to family get-togethers and other events that consume so much of our thoughts and time. But we ask again that you don’t let the hustle and bustle become overwhelming and take over this year. Instead, take a moment or two to reflect. Look at your family and friends, neighbors or even the average passerby. Some might be struggling through unemployment and could be finding it difficult to take care of their basic necessities. ...