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There is a popular adage that religion and politics don’t mix. But state leaders of three major religious denominations clearly decided to test that theory at a recent meeting with U. S. Sen. Joe Manchin. They told Manchin they want the President and Congress to avoid the so-called “fiscal cliff” on Jan. 1, 2013 that [...]
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The story goes that Martinsburg’s historic Boydville estate and onetime home of Gen. Elisha Boyd was rescued during the Civil War by President Lincoln, who stopped a marauding army of Union soldiers from torching the place. Nevertheless, the Berkeley County Farmland Protection Board last week approved the sale for $500,000 of the property in what [...]
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The near-total isolation of U.S. diplomatic policy from that of the overwhelming majority of the world in its stance on Palestine ought to be troubling to us as citizens. The United States’ vote two weeks ago against granting Palestine non-member observer status at the United Nations General Assembly means our government stands virtually alone against [...]
Continue reading …This state’s gravy train of legalized gambling revenue is about to be derailed by surrounding states seeking a share of this easy money. So it’s no surprise that the state Lottery Commission approved a new policy last week to allow the use of the casino at The Greenbrier by people who book one-day bus trips [...]
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Someone asked me to write about bullying. As it happens, I have a story of my own. The day I graduated from high school, I watched the captain of the football team walk out the front door, surrounded, as usual, by friends. Walking past his habitual hangout, now empty, to return my graduation robes to [...]
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I first heard the last day of deer season referred to as Blasting Day just a day or so ago. While I’m not too fond of what it implies — the wanton discharge of high-powered rifles — I do like the sound of it, which reminds me of Canada’s Boxing Day. Boxing Day has nothing [...]
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KEARNEYSVILLE – Sugar cookies. Oatmeal-and-raisin. Snicker doodles. Peanut butter. Chocolate chip. So many delicious cookie recipes passed down the generations! While you can buy wonderful cookies at local bakeries and markets or go with an easy purchased mix, there’s something terrific about finding just the right recipe, measuring all your ingredients and heading to the [...]
Continue reading …The latest West Virginia soap opera centers on an abrupt decision by five members of the state Board of Education to fire state school Superintendent Jorea Marple. That vote came nine days after her husband — Attorney General Darrell V. McGraw — lost his $95,000-a-year job in the Nov. 6 general election. The plot thickened [...]
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Founding Father Benjamin Franklin was a true visionary who said, “Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning.” While Franklin said those words more than two centuries ago, the wisdom in them still applies today. It is a desire for the continual growth and progress of West Virginia’s [...]
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Just who is a “politician?” I’m one at the moment but I’ll cease being one in a few weeks since I’ll no longer be a member of the West Virginia House of Delegates, a political office I’ve held for the last 20 years. My Oxford English Dictionary defines “politician” as “a person who is involved [...]
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