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Utica Shale helping Ohio lead the way to a righter future

In a time of grinding inflation, increasing energy costs and continuing global instability, we Ohioans are lucky to live on top of the Utica Shale oil and gas basin. Stretching across Appalachian Ohio and into our neighboring states, the Utica Shale is a vast, underground reserve of energy containing an estimated 38 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, 940 million barrels of oil and 208 million barrels of natural gas liquids. While it would traditionally be impossible to access these energy deposits buried deep underground, new technologies like horizontal drilling and hydraulic ...

Celebrating the American Worker this Labor Day weekend

This weekend we celebrate the American worker with Labor Day. I grew up in a blue-collar family in Pittsburgh. My grandfather, most of my uncles and many of my cousins worked in steel mills in the Pittsburgh area. My Dad worked briefly in the steel industry. He didn’t like the ups, downs or occasional strikes. He chose less money for more stable employment and became a carpenter. We never had a lot of money for a large family of eight. (I had 5 brothers) But we always had food and a home. American labor using coal, steel, timber, oil, natural gas and other resources built the ...

We are not perfect. We can be better

I am not the biggest of movie-goers. I will go, but very rarely have time to sit for two to three hours watching a movie. It is just easer to wait for it to come out on other media outlets where I can see it on my own time. There is a movie that I want to see as soon as possible. It might surprise you of my choice. It is not, “Oppenheimer.” I hope to see it eventually. The one I want to see immediately is the movie “Barbie.” It’s not for the reason you might think. It is more about the co-founder of Mattel toys that made the Barbie doll. Ben Cohen, the writer of the ...

Enjoying summer’s bounty one way or another

It is the height of the summer produce season, and we are enjoying it despite our failure at gardening this year. As luck would have it, we aren’t the only people in our neighborhood who regularly raise crops. Of course my brother Larry has a garden again this year, and he has been quick to share with us. He has provided green onions, beets, kohlrabi and more. We also had some neighbors who started a nice little garden across the street. I say “had” because they recently moved away. Being kind and generous people, they sent me a message after they left, urging us to help ...

How are you thinking? Attitude makes a difference

The late hall of fame speaker, author and radio personality Earl Nightingale said, “We become what we think about. If you think in negative terms you will get negative results. If you think in positive terms you get positive results.” Last Saturday Herbert Hoover High School celebrated the opening of its new school in Elkview with a ribbon cutting ceremony attended by U.S. Senators Joe Manchin, Shelly Moore Capito and other dignitaries. Following the ribbon cutting the Huskies scrimmaged John Marshall high in football. The scrimmage was followed with a concert by West Virginia ...

Ready or not, another school year is here

It’s summer in the Ohio Valley! And kids are already back in school. The season has flown by so quickly this year that it has left my head spinning. But here we are in mid-August. Students returned to class in some local districts as early as this past Thursday, with football teams hitting the gridiron on Thursday and Friday nights and Saturday afternoon. It doesn’t seem possible, yet here we are. When it was time for me to head back to school each year, I recall that Mom would pull out a box that she had tucked away in May and assess what school supplies I had left over from the ...