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Editorials

Homecoming safety

Homecoming celebrations for area high schools have begun. The festivities give students the opportunity to get out and enjoy themselves during this time of year, joining friends, family and alumni as they cheer on their team hopefully to victory, getting dressed up and dancing the night away. But they also should remember to do all of these things as safely as possible. There is certain to be lots of fanfare surrounding all of these events, but precautions must be taken. As during any time when students are out on their own, they must make certain to be careful if they are driving. ...

Freedom to express ourselves

Public discourse has devolved to a dangerous degree as we approach another general election in November — that’s not news. But what is noteworthy is the manner in which public officials who SHOULD be held to a higher standard are willing to indulge in frightening rhetoric. Portage County, Ohio, Sheriff Bruce Zuchowski is entitled to his own opinions, of course. But as the chief law enforcement officer for the county, he must be more responsible than he was on social media late last week. Imagine living under the jurisdiction of a man willing to publicly declare “I say … write ...

Overdoses on the decline

Something is changing the numbers on overdose deaths in Ohio and across the country — and the change is a welcomed one. According to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention preliminary data, the Buckeye State in 2023 experienced its first significant decrease in overdose deaths since 2017. Dennis Cauchon, founder and president of Harm Reduction Ohio, told The Statehouse News Bureau he’d been watching the data and by early 2024 realized these were more than just incremental changes. “When I realized it wasn’t a quirk, it made me cry, because every one of these deaths ...

Cheers & Jeers

CHEERS to Ohio Sen. Brian Chavez, R-Athens, and state Rep. Don Jones, R-Freeport, for helping to secure $500,000 in state funding to renovate portions of the Sargus Juvenile Detention Center. JEERS to the ongoing threats to schools, businesses and government institutions in Springfield, Ohio. It is time for the political rhetoric to be set aside. CHEERS to Crossfit for Change participants who helped American Legion Post 312 remove used flags from veterans’ graves this past week. Their youth and fitness level made it easy for them to lend a hand. JEERS to word that as many as ...

Voters can’t be deterred

“This must stop, period.” The National Association of Secretaries of State followed that comment on the “disturbing trend” of threats to elections officials and workers and a second apparent assassination attempt on Donald Trump by saying “Our democracy has no place for political violence, threats or intimidation of any kind.” Well. It SHOULDN’T have any place for those things, but they are, sadly, nothing new. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s office is among the 15 elections offices across the country that received suspicious packages this week. The packages ...

Tax credit, rebate needed

The struggle for affordable housing has become a pressing enough issue that there is a bipartisan effort in both the Ohio House and Senate to give homeowners and renters a break. The idea is to give homeowners an income tax credit or rebate if property taxes amount to more than 5% of their income. This would apply to renters for the portion of their rent attributable to property taxes, too. According to Rep. Dani Isaacsohn, D-Cincinnati, who spoke with WBNS, taxes are taking too much out of Ohioans’ pockets. But Isaacsohn is not alone in understanding that. Rep. Thomas Hall, ...