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College football’s post-game skirmishes a disturbing trend

Editorial

Now that the dust has settled, responsible adults have a duty to look back on what we witnessed during college football’s rivalry week and understand it was all part of a larger and very disturbing trend we must reverse. The Atlantic Coast Conference fined four of its schools — North Carolina State, North Carolina, Virginia and Virginia Tech for in-game scuffles. But those didn’t top what happened after the Michigan Wolverines beat the Ohio State Buckeyes and violence broke out midfield to the degree that pepper spray was employed, one police officer suffered a head injury and the ...

Lawmakers look to extend infrastructure ‘life support’

Editorial

For a fourth time now, Ohio lawmakers are working toward placing on the ballot a renewal of the multi-billion State Capital Improvement Program, which one Mahoning County official referred to as “basically life support” for municipalities, townships and counties working to serve the needs of their residents. Lawmakers are discussing a pitch to extend the program for another ten years by issuing $2.5 billion in new bonds. According to the Ohio Capital Journal, the state Senate has passed its version of the joint resolution to place the measure on the ballot. State Sens. Brian M. ...

Cabinet nominees deserve hearings

Editorial

With plenty of buzz surrounding President-elect Donald Trump’s planned nominees for cabinet positions, it is understandable for opinions to form early. West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice was right, then, to suggest the candidates named should be given a chance. “He’s got to appoint the team that absolutely that he believes in,” soon-to-be U.S. Sen. Justice said. “We have to absolutely be fair about this, and we’ve got to give them time to get their feet underneath of them to do the job I know they’ll do.” It’s impossible to miss that in the same breath he is asking ...

Today is a great time to commit to generosity

Editorial

We’ve made it through Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday. Maybe we even managed to get the decorations up and catch a little football. What’s next? Giving Tuesday. In what’s been billed as a global generosity movement since 2012, today is a chance to take a deep breath and reflect on how we can make a difference for others — then take action. According to Giving Tuesday Data Commons, an estimated $3.1 billion was donated during last year’s event. Since its establishment 12 years ago, the event has brought in more than $13 billion. “We ...

Saving Art’s memorial bench

Community News

I called him Herschel in this column, but his name was Art. Art was a good father-in-law. I knew it when he was alive. With each passing year I appreciate and feel it more deeply. Which is why it was important to me to rebuild his memorial bench. June, his widow, had it made after his death in 2001. It wasn’t her idea. Their church in Wintersville wanted benches for an outdoor pavilion and asked for sponsors. Each had a personal message carved into the backboard. His was, “In Loving Memory of Arthur D. Ryan.” Though they were made of pressure-treated lumber, after 20 ...

Vigilance must be ongoing with East Palestine cleanup

Editorial

More than a year ago, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Norfolk Southern celebrated the “last load of contaminated soil” being removed from a site near the derailment of an N&S train in February of that year. Now, Chris Hunsicker, overseeing remediation efforts in East Palestine, has had to go before the Village Council to report exceedances of vinyl chloride, benzene, trimethylbenzene and 2-butoxyethanol have been detected through confirmatory sampling. “We are not saying it’s perfect. Nobody is saying that, but we are getting toward the end of the process,” ...