Breaking News

Editorials

Driving practice is essential

As has always been the case, young drivers need not just lots of practice, but lots of guidance from experienced drivers before they get their driver’s licenses and hit the road on their own. One would think that would go without saying, but Ohio officials are worried enough about a growing trend that Gov. Mike DeWine announced a new media campaign to encourage parents to help teen drivers learn driving skills. State law requires teens to complete 50 hours of driving practice with a parent or guardian before receiving their probationary license. But the Ohio Traffic Safety Office ...

Congratulations, spellers!

Brett Kuprowicz, an incoming freshman at Bridgeport High School, represented Belmont County at the Scripps National Spelling Bee last week, spelling his word in the preliminary round of competition correctly but missing an answer in the definition portion of the competition. Spelling under number 174, he took the stage Tuesday afternoon and, in Round Two, correctly spelled “muktuk,” an Aleut word for whale skin used as food; however, he missed the definition for “declamatory,” which is: “Characterized by rhetorical display.” As a result, he was eliminated Tuesday, but he ...

Phones Down, Eyes Up

Most of us understand and follow the rules when it comes to keeping our phones out of our hands and remaining focused when we drive. But those little devices can distract us at other potentially dangerous times, too. How many times have you been puttering through a parking lot, only to have to slam on your brakes when a person with their eyes buried in their cell phones walks in front of you? Or, how many times have you been asked to watch pets or children — perhaps at a park — and gotten sucked into scrolling on your phone only to be jolted back to reality just in time to ...

Cheers & Jeers

CHEERS to Brett Kuprowicz, a Bridgeport student, for representing Belmont County at the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C. Although he was eliminated, he made his hometown proud. JEERS to word that a new variant of the COVID-19 virus is on the rise in some parts of the world and that it has made its way to the United States. CHEERS to Heather Austin for being selected as the next superintendent of the Belmont-Harrison Vocational School District. She will succeed Richard Schoene in August. JEERS to the need for anti-corruption legislation that is being considered by ...

Improving foster care system

U.S. Sen. Jon Husted, R-Ohio, signed on last week to be a cosponsor of a bill that would recognize May as National Foster Care Month. That resolution later passed. He was not alone, of course, in addition to sponsors Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., there were 14 cosponsors for the bill. It’s a sign of how important most senators understand our foster care system is. “Loving foster families offer stability and guidance when kids may need it most. My parents adopted me from foster care. I’ve seen how transformational a child’s first years of life can ...

Setting a better example

Belmont County Western Division Court Judge Eric Costine made an important decision last week, determining that the prosecutor’s office made the right call when it decided not to file criminal charges in the wake of an altercation at a high school football game in October. But he also conveyed an important message to everyone as part of his ruling. Costine declined to second guess the prosecutor for opting not to charge Union Local football coach Vaughn Butler or Flushing resident Brent Gay after they exchanged words — and reportedly a bit of shoving — at a game where UL lost ...