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Fire safety important all the time

Near the end of an April 2 front-page Mirror article about a fire that damaged an Altoona home, a paragraph noted “there has been a rash of fires in the city lately, including two fatal fires on successive days — March 18 and 19.” For city residents old enough to remember the redevelopment decades of the 1960s and 1970s, the spate of recent blazes might have resurrected memories of the structure fires here that were not uncommon during those earlier years when the city began embracing an expanded character that was not deeply embedded in the railroad industry. Blazes in the ...

Retailers must work to meet shoppers’ needs

Shoppers here go about their usual routines, but seldom, if ever, can one be heard expressing “out of nowhere” what is on his or her mind while walking amid racks of clothing looking for a particular item or size. It might be refreshing to shoppers and be a future bragging point on behalf of this region’s brick-and-mortar retailers if at least some area stores would assign occasionally an assistant manager or some other designated employee to watch customers’ facial expressions for the purpose of inquiring about their shopping experience in progress and what might be ...

Bill to limit terms not likely to pass

Over the years in Pennsylvania politics— “decades” is the better word — some incumbent lawmakers, sincere in supporting the concept of legislative term limits, have stepped forward to advocate for such a change. Part of the thinking behind the proposal is the belief that legislative service is best when elected officials’ first concern is excellent work on their constituents’ and government’s behalf not built upon a priority of trying to ensure a political career lasting forever. That is the message state Rep. Jared Solomon, D-Philadelphia, seems to be projecting in ...

All prison options must be considered

It is easy to understand — and be sympathetic toward — the Alto-Reste Park Cemetery Association’s opposition to the Blair County commissioners’ decision to seize association land by eminent domain as part of the plan for construction of a new county prison. It also will be understandable — as well as predictable — for some families with relatives interred in the cemetery to join in opposition to the current prison plan, which would result in the new prisoner facility as a “next-door” neighbor to the cemetery. Geoff Behrens, the cemetery association’s vice president ...

Tragic stories highlight need for caution

Some readers who have followed the tragic story of Kathleen Ann Shea of Tyrone at any time over the past six decades might have paused at one particular point while reading Mirror reporter Phil Ray’s article last weekend marking the 60-year “anniversary” of her kidnapping. Here is a recap of the part of the article in question. Any parent with a child or children still in school needs to reflect on the important message that that part of Ray’s article delivered clearly, despite not actually stating the message. The paragraphs containing the unwritten, though relevant, ...

Trump must keep abreast of new threat

The COVID-19 pandemic is essentially a scourge of the past, although it has not been defeated completely. Unfortunately, though, what is happening at this time in Africa’s Democratic Republic of Congo, if it remains a mystery for very long and remains unchecked, could evolve into something even more horrific than the horrors that COVID-19 inflicted. This country must mobilize whatever protective measures and resources it can muster to try to ensure that Africa’s current challenge never reaches America’s shores. But even those most optimistic regarding America’s capabilities ...