If you have been following the presidential race you are aware the topic of “fracking” has come up. My career started as an engineer with Halliburton. I designed frack jobs and was on the well site when they were pumped into the well. I gained a lot of experience in the oil and gas ...

Where has the summer gone? If you are reading this today, remember that Daylight Saving Time begins this weekend. Before I get to my topic today, here are a few other events you might want to add to your calendar: Columbus Day, or in some locations Indigenous Peoples Day, is celebrated on ...

For the first time in several years, I did not spend any portion of the last weekend of September in downtown Barnesville. Covering the Barnesville Pumpkin Festival Weigh-Off has become an annual tradition for me. On the Wednesday evening before the festival officially gets underway, I join ...

This week I represented Shale Crescent USA as a guest on Perri Small’s Morning Show on WVON, Chicago. They are heard throughout Chicagoland and nationally on iHeart radio. Based on what I knew about the station from the internet and listening before I was on the air, we probably had ...

I have an important message for you: Take the necessary steps to ensure you are ready to vote on Nov. 3. In my opinion, voting is one of the most important things that each American can do. It is the foundation of our nation. Voting is the way we make our voices heard. It allows us to choose ...

This month we took time to remember the 19th anniversary of the events of September 11, 2001. I wrote about these individuals 19 years ago and I would like to re-introduce some of the people of September 11th. Our prayers go out to these families who lost someone then or through the war on ...

We all make people happy. Some people do it by entering a room. Others do it by leaving a room. You probably know both kinds of people. Which kind are you? The difference is attitude. We all have friends we like to be around. They make us feel good when we are with them. Maybe they ...

Last month marked a momentous breakthrough in our efforts to safeguard our public lands when President Trump signed into law my Restore Our Parks Act — bipartisan legislation that will protect and conserve our national parks for generations to come. I have worked for years to get this ...

I voted for President Donald Trump for many of the same reasons my friends and neighbors did.  We were tired of leaders who talked a good game, then rarely delivered on our values.  I reasoned there was nothing a novice president could do that our institutions and Congress couldn’t ...

Where has this summer gone? If you are reading this article today, we are staring at our final holiday of the summer. I hope we all take time to appreciate the hard work of our family members to maintain our lifestyles. Labor Day is usually observed on the first Monday in September- so the date ...

Crickets chirping. Weed trimmers whirring. Just a general, hazy hum. Those are the sounds of September in Belmont. Do you ever just take a few minutes to listen to the world around you? If you do, I’m sure you’ve noticed that every season has its own “song.” In the spring, it might ...

MAGA friends, I need your help. I need help explaining Donald Trump’s America to my daughter. My daughter turned five this month, and in between her princess videos and animated movies, she listens and learns. She sees strife in the streets, hears concern in the voices of her parents, and ...

Last week was the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II. It is hard for me to imagine what it was like to live through a war where the very existence of our country is at stake. My understanding of that time comes from my parents. My father was a Marine who fought in the Pacific. He ...

I experienced a little blast from the past on Friday, when I was caught in the first of several downpours to strike our area that day. I was leaving an appointment in Bridgeport and tried to wait out the heavy shower, but I decided it was going to make me late for my next stop and went ahead ...

For many Ohio college students this fall, the term “Back to School” is taking on a whole new meaning as the coronavirus shakes up higher education and leaves so much about the new semester in doubt. After all, it is hard to get excited about going back to school when there may not be a ...

Last year it was bunnies; this year it’s deer. At least one deer has to be the culprit behind the gradual destruction of our garden. In fact, it left some clear evidence behind during its last visit, if you get my drift. This was no bunny. The first event was pretty devastating. Something ...

For nearly 70 years, the Whirlpool plant in Clyde, Ohio, has produced some of the best washing machines in the world. I was proud to recommend to the Trump Administration that the president visit the plant, especially given the successful efforts we have undertaken with President Trump to ...

Last week, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy Mark Menezes visited Belmont County, Ohio, to tour the Dilles Bottom site of the proposed PTTGCA ethane cracker plastics plant and ​meet​ with “state and local officials and community members.” The event was publicized as a “roundtable ...

One thing I miss while working mainly from home is the drive back and forth to work. That may sound strange, since many people dread their daily commute. For me, though, it is a bit of time each day when I have to focus on just one thing — the road ahead. It also is an opportunity for me to ...

Last month, we celebrated the 30th anniversary of President George H.W. Bush’s signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The bill’s enactment was a defining moment for our country, and the ADA has drastically improved equality of opportunity for people with disabilities. July ...