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PennDOT improvements vast over past

Editorials

The Mirror’s April 14 edition provided a detailed look at the 2026 schedule of highway work in the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s District 9, which encompasses Blair, Bedford, Cambria, Somerset, Huntingdon and Fulton counties. The work schedule will continue the record of progress that has evolved at PennDOT over the past 50 years. Many older residents of this region can recall the 1970s, when large potholes were common on area roadways. One story emanating from that troubled highway era was that a northern Blair resident, apparently to call attention to a ...

Children should be allowed to explore

Letters to the Editor

I read with interest about the dilemma regarding the “attractive nuisance” posed by the restored Beaverdam Branch of the Juniata. I grew up in Coalport beside an unspeakably polluted creek which we were absolutely forbidden to go near. At age 86, I am here to tell you that no force on Earth will keep children away from water. The country, and even Blair County, must be full of rivers that are longer, swifter, rockier and more dangerous than the Beaverdam Branch and yet are not fenced. Very little children ought to be supervised. If they are not, a stretch of still water may not ...

Corp. welfare for hospitals raising costs

Editorials

Hospitals are not as unpopular as other health care sectors, such as drug manufacturers and insurance companies. But like other businesses, they are prone to rent-seeking and fiercely defensive of special breaks. Case in point: The 340B drug discount program. The federal program was created in 1992 to help hospitals and clinics in poor communities. In recent weeks, it has become the target of new lawsuits over complaints that wealthy health systems are abusing the benefits and driving up costs for everyone else. The program requires pharmaceutical companies to sell drugs at a ...

Children should be allowed to explore

Letters to the Editor

I read with interest about the dilemma regarding the “attractive nuisance” posed by the restored Beaverdam Branch of the Juniata. I grew up in Coalport beside an unspeakably polluted creek which we were absolutely forbidden to go near. At age 86, I am here to tell you that no force on Earth will keep children away from water. The country, and even Blair County, must be full of rivers that are longer, swifter, rockier, and more dangerous than the Beaverdam Branch and yet are not fenced. Very little children ought to be supervised. If they are not, a stretch of still water may not ...

War with Iran costly in lives and money

Letters to the Editor

Do the math. Whether you consider Mr. Trump’s war stupid may depend on how you vote, but there’s no denying it is insanely, inhumanely, expensive. According to The Guardian, the Times of India and other reputable international news sources, a geolocated video Feb. 28 confirmed a U.S.-fired Tomahawk Missile costing $15 million was launched from the USS Spruance by Commanding Officer Leigh R. Tate and Executive Officer Jeffrey E. York. (Mr. Trump blamed Iran). The missile struck a school in the village of Minab, killing at least 175 children, at a cost of $85,714.29 per child. ...

High fuel prices require explanation

Letters to the Editor

Somebody, anybody please explain why our country’s gasoline prices are so high? We are told by anyone and everyone in both political and media arenas that this country doesn’t need oil from anywhere else, especially the Mid-East oil producing nations. Here in Altoona, we have so many gasoline storage tanks taking up most of Canon Station that gas should be a dollar cheaper than anywhere else due to shipping savings. We are told that the USA is an oil exporter, yet we depend on world oil prices to affect us? We don’t allow world prices to affect eggs, apples, oranges, beer or for ...