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City licensing issue must be decided

As most Altoona residents probably are aware — to some degree, at least — one of the significant issues currently facing the city council is whether to end the requirement that workers in the plumbing and electrical trades be required to have a city-issued license in order to work within the city’s borders. The issue has been discussed in the past; each time it “went away” without major changes resulting. However, according to a Nov. 4 Mirror article, the council, several years ago, liberalized the licensing rules slightly by reducing the number of years of experience ...

We’ll be missing you, Judge Miller

Blair County Judge Fred B. Miller is likely to be remembered as a common pleas court judge who died during his first year on the bench. But Miller deserves to be remembered for what he brought to the bench and the great future he would have had. Miller, who grew up in Tyrone and served 21 years as a magisterial district judge in the northern part of our county, had an ability to connect with people in a way that served him well and helped him get elected a year ago to the county court. In his new role that began in January, Miller had a learning curve and a heavy load of criminal and ...

NS minute inspections problematic

Being truthful and committed to good intentions and promises-made plants the right seed for new accomplishments, positive achievements not heretofore realized, attracting the support of others and, even, establishing protections for one’s self as well as one’s best interests. Too bad Norfolk Southern Railroad has chosen to deviate from full support of such a strategy and, instead, has opted to take a step backward, as an Associated Press article published in the Mirror’s Nov. 7 edition revealed. Under the headline “NS railcar inspection rule sparks safety concerns,” the ...

Veterans Day offers chance to reflect

As people of this country are well aware, loyalty to the best interests of the United States and the Constitution, which is the foundation of it, were virtually constant topics that permeated the just-completed presidential campaign. Even with the election now past, fears persist regarding the directions that America will pursue in the coming years, and whether the wounds that the election campaign inflicted will ever heal completely. Those are reasonable concerns and fears in these initial days after the national balloting. But today this nation celebrates Veterans Day, which ...

Resolutions for healthy life always in style

Although New Year’s still is more than seven weeks away, there are people who already are pondering resolutions for 2025 — for their own personal satisfaction, perhaps to impress a spouse or other significant other, or just for humor’s sake. A funny thing about New Year’s resolutions: No matter how far in advance they might be planned or whether they are just spur-of-the-moment, a good bet is that many, if not most, will be long forgotten by the time Groundhog Day — Feb. 2 — arrives. Human nature plays a big part in that and, for that reason, much humor is attached to ...

County has much budget work to do

This is the time of the year when county units of government have their taxpayers cringing about prospects for a significantly higher tax bill to help finance the next fiscal calendar — this time, 2025’s. It is reasonable to suggest that some Blair County taxpayers might have done a double-take when they read the Oct. 29 Mirror article reporting that their county commissioners had launched budget considerations for the coming fiscal year facing a projected $9 million shortfall. “Blair County’s budget requests for 2025 add up to $55.08 million, leaving commissioners to figure ...