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Blair prison needs some serious ideas

It is instructive for officials of local-level governmental entities to watch what is happening in units of government around them. By doing that they can avoid others’ errors but also obtain valuable guidance on how to pursue their own projects or other initiatives. They also can obtain valuable perspectives on how to justify what they are seeking to do and regarding the steps and strategies necessary to accomplish their objective or objectives. Apply that thinking to the situation involving the Blair County Prison, which has been on “life support” for decades as county ...

Holidays crucial to our national healing process

Although much of the national attention is ­— and will continue to be — focused on developments related to the Nov. 5 presidential election, the world beyond the political front is far from being in slumber mode. For example, on the retail front, merchants are not sitting back, intent on waiting until after Halloween to make important decisions associated with the busy Christmas shopping season. Many merchants already are “knee deep” in planning for the products with which their shelves will be stocked in the weeks leading up to Dec. 25. Also on their mind and capturing ...

NS delays bad news for Amtrak

For the most part, adhering to laws, rules, regulations and/or just plain, routine expectations avoids many problems over the long run. Under a law passed by Congress in 1973, trains of the rail passenger service Amtrak are required to be given priority when they cross a freight railroad’s tracks. That requirement makes sense. However, the Norfolk Southern railroad company, regarding its New York to New Orleans route, is accused of causing what have been described as “chronic delays” by forcing Amtrak trains to wait while its trains of massive length pass. For instance, ...

Fears surface as report eyes railroad safety

Be forgiving toward anyone who is concerned, or even fearful, about the safety of railroad freight cars these days. Most of the people who read this past week’s Associated Press report about railcar safety inspections no doubt still are amazed that there have not been numerous other serious rail accidents, especially like the one last year that caused so much havoc, damage and fear in East Palestine, Ohio. Regarding fear, that reaction continues to be real even today, in and around the Ohio community. And it is important to note that any trepidation still oozing from knowledge of ...

Peoples’ secrecy questioned

Residents of this part of Pennsylvania who always have had good reason for all-around trust in Peoples Natural Gas Co. have had their confidence shaken as the result of the findings of a Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission investigation into the tragic July 26, 2021, gas explosion in Tyrone. The blast claimed the life of an 83-year-old woman, destroyed her home, injured four other people and damaged two other residential properties. Based on the PUC’s probe, it now seems reasonably certain that the initial, immediate Peoples response to the gas leak that triggered the tragic ...

Airport must meet needs of passengers

Not everyone will be happy about the Altoona-Blair County Airport Authority’s decision to redirect its 30-passenger jet service to Charlotte-Douglas International Airport in North Carolina, rather than continue the current service to Philadelphia International Airport. Seldom is there a change that is in everyone’s best interests, but the newly announced change, which will take effect Oct. 1, seems like it will better serve most of the people who fly out of and into the Martinsburg facility. That always must be the airport’s primary goal — to meet the needs of the would-be ...