President Joe Biden spoke with unwavering clarity during last year’s presidential campaign, calling for an end to the federal death penalty, as well as incentives for states to abolish their capital punishment laws. Read more

Alittle after 6:30 in the morning, Kay pulled her purple Suzuki into the parking lot, ready to start another shift at the nursing home. She had just dropped off her two kids at her parents for the day. When the clocked turned to 3, it was supposed to be the end of the shift and time to get h… Read more

Courage. It’s a big word to employ only seven letters. Read more

It is time again to celebrate Independence Day. America was established as “One Nation, Under God, Indivisible” and a destination that would provide justice for all. Miss Liberty smiled for those who came to our shores. Homeless immigrants from all over the world saw the Lady of the Harbor a… Read more

It’s nearing the time where masks will only be a memory of a horrible nightmare that we all had. It’ll be something that future kids will find hiding in the basement under old rusty computers and phones, wondering why there were so many. That’ll be the day when we sit down and tell the story… Read more

Newsrooms, long ago, were a pretty noisy, fast-paced environment, humming with activity, front to back, through the ranks and eccentricities of reporters and assigning editors, assistants and deputies, and back into the photo department – always located closest to the exit so they could grab… Read more

Governor Justice decided in May not to continue the enhanced unemployment benefits (UC) offered by the federal government. He believes that some are not seriously looking for jobs, citing as proof, signs in windows about job openings and complaints from employers having trouble hiring workers. Read more

You all know this common aphorism used to offer strength and support during trying times: “Life is 10 percent what happens to you and 90 percent how you respond.” Read more

House keys are important to take everywhere and so is pepper spray, but this time the lime green (probably expired) spray had to be taken off the keys and left behind. Not even that it’s useful for every day. In fact, it’s never been used. But after a few seconds, it finally unraveled from t… Read more

Not too long ago, this girl from somewhere in the Midwest was telling everyone that she was going on a date to a bluegrass concert. Usually, “Midwest” and “bluegrass” don’t typically go together. Surely, it wasn’t real bluegrass, the music of these hills.  Read more

The Peace Corps has its 60th anniversary this year. It was 1961.   President John F. Kennedy had come to the steps of the student union at the University of Michigan to announce the idea of the Peace Corps. I was a student and upon graduation, I joined to go to Africa, much to the concern of… Read more

President Joe Biden rode into the White House on a promise to provide economic relief for those Americans who were hardest hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. To get people back on their feet, he pledged to increase federal government spending on everything from secondary education to senior servi… Read more

Each year government leadership offers a new economic plan in hopes of improving the future of West Virginia. Read more

Container-size sunflowers stand guard over flats of bright orange geraniums, gold zinnias, red impatiens and white petunias. Read more

West Virginia has an opportunity, the likes of which we have not seen in a generation. The most important question is what will we make of it? Read more

During the past year, public safety officials across the United States have been fighting Covid-19, mass shootings and turmoil, many times a result of public safety officers’ misconduct. A closely related issue that has not received much publicity is the growing difficulty in recruiting and … Read more

Recently, there has been attention on the unionization effort by the Retail Warehouse and Department Store Union AFL-CIO at an Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama. Oddly, little attention has occurred on a major United Mine Workers of America AFL-CIO strike involving 1,100 coal miners 30 m… Read more

As the administration and Congress start to work out deals that will decide what investments will be made in our lives with the infrastructure package, you’ll hear a lot of: “What would Joe do?” And not President Joe Biden, but West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin. On Capitol Hill, Manchin is comm… Read more

Thoughts break through the silence. Clouds of fear darken a clear day. There was no chance of rain, so no umbrella. Just one thought of shame was all it took. I was just taking a break, doing nothing, closing my eyes and taking a breath. But, I think, what if that’s wrong? My thoughts catch … Read more

Covid-19 is loosening its grip on West Virginia thanks to an early, efficient and nationally acclaimed vaccine rollout that utilized community-based distribution centers, prioritized older people, and included educators as essential workers. We have learned from and lived through the various… Read more

Most people seem pleased with the Post-Pandemic stimulus payments designed to revitalize the economy.  However, there are lurking realities that must be realized. Read more

Vaccines are rolling out. Restrictions are being lifted. Restaurants are filling up again – well, kind of.  Read more

Ronald Reagan famously said, “the nine most terrifying words in the English language are: I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.” Read more

It is time to set the record straight on S. 1, the Senate’s version of H.R. 1 or the “For the People Act,” which is the federal legislation currently being discussed by the U.S. Senate that gives the federal government authority over elections in all 50 states. The Senate leadership recently… Read more

 Many know about past major programs designed to rescue the economy and save capitalism. They include the New Deal, the New Frontier and the Great Society. The overall premise was voiced by President Franklin Roosevelt, who in 1932 said, “The millions who are in want will not stand by silent… Read more

U.S. Senators Joe Manchin and Shelley Moore Capito joined local leaders May 5 in unveiling new signage for the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve and later joined a roundtable at Adventures on the Gorge to discuss priority regional community and economic development needs to grow the… Read more

Robot babies. Advanced baby dolls. The ones that scream, need their fake diaper changed, get hungry for a plastic bottle with nothing in it all while keeping the same blank baby doll face. Rumors said it was a fun and easy class to take just to catch up with friends. From the outside, it loo… Read more

The brown sandal is my favorite summer shoe. Sassy, yet sensible – and comfortable even with a high heel. Better yet, it matches everything. From blues to greens to khaki, it is my go-to footwear when the mercury rises on the north side of East River Mountain. Read more

There are those who believe there is a fast track to regain socio-economic normalcy in the country. There are clear signals that this thinking has major flaws. Read more

He leaves for work around seven in the morning. He climbs the three flights of stairs to the apartment and fumbles for the keys to the door around three, then he walks inside and slams the door behind him. Sometimes, I hear the pop of a bottle opening around five. My last neighbor used to sc… Read more

Fifty years ago the famous African American folk singer Paul Robeson forcefully sang the spiritual “Go Down Moses/Let My People Go” about people seeking to leave Egypt due to economic and social conditions by the Pharaoh. Read more

Full disclosure: I’m biased when it comes to the New River Humane Society. As the husband of Kathy Gerencer, who is the New River Humane Society Board President, I get a ringside seat to all the selfless, free work the 40-plus shelter volunteers do for this county and its animals every day. … Read more

Hundreds of children in overcrowded spaces. Looks of exasperation on the faces of those working on the ground. A porous border susceptible to trafficking of all kinds. Read more

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Today’s political discourse and campaign finance system have been poisoned by an influence machine that, for too long, has been able to operate from the shadows. West Virginians are no strangers to “dark money” peddlers attempting to influence our elections. We’ve long endured attack ads and… Read more

It’s time to better define above ground storage tanks and right-size duplicative regulation that only adds costs, not safety. Not all these tanks are equal. Some hold chemicals that would be toxic if they leaked. Others don’t. Read more

The foundations of our democracy have been under attack in recent years. Some of these assaults have been overt, such as foreign meddling in elections and the storming of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Others have been more subtle, such as the rise of billionaires spending millions of dollars t… Read more

We hear the talk about how politics makes for strange bedfellows. Maybe none stranger than the two of us now going all-in to support an income tax cut proposed by our former rival, Gov. Jim Justice. Read more

For most West Virginians, taxes are destined to increase without providing any benefits. In essence, services will decline and living costs will go up. Read more

In the shadows of Covid, bills have passed during the 2021 Legislative session that will move West Virginia backwards. From the weakening or elimination of state licensing for electricians, plumbers, crane operators, elevator technicians, among others, to the weakening of drinking water stan… Read more

Almost every day, I hear someone complain that something “isn’t news” and asks why it was even shared within a news organization. Read more

He is everywhere. The Washington Post, Fox News, CNN and more. Read more

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As we hope for a renewed sense of normalcy in the Spring of Year 2 A.C. (After Covid), the enduring sport of baseball comes to mind.  To attract young talent and convince our next generation to stay, rebuild, and succeed in West Virginia, we can start with a line from the classic baseball mo… Read more

Before my feet hit the floor each morning, I know what will be waiting when I check my phone: messages from constituents regarding roads or water. Infrastructure is – by far – the issue I hear most about from the citizens in the 8th senatorial district. It is likely the most pressing problem… Read more

Today, Appalachian-produced natural gas is the primary power source for one out of every eight American households. And as the nation’s fourth-largest energy producing state and seventh largest natural gas producing state, West Virginia has a monumental opportunity to become the region’s lea… Read more

After a noisy election season of discontent, Republicans see their road to recovery in discouraging eligible Americans from voting. Read more