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WISE women truly make a difference

WISE Women of Blair County deserves applause for another successful Tribute ceremony and for the contribution it makes to our community. The organization, which hosted this year’s annual dinner on Wednesday at the Blair County Convention Center, honored seven women for their contributions that have made our community better. At a time when it’s easy to get caught up in governmental politics and the rhetoric among leaders who may or may not be making wise decisions, the Tribute ceremony provided a chance to hear about seven women whose interactions with others truly make a ...

Education is to train future leaders

The Hollidaysburg Area School Board engaged in a refreshing discussion April 8 about whether to approve for adoption a psychology textbook that eventually was approved — correctly — by a 6-3 margin. At a time when virtually everything is available to young people via the internet, should relevant — even if sometimes controversial — topics such as social justice and gender identity, including LGBTQ issues, be considered topics that would “poison” young people’s minds? If the information is presented correctly, as the course would seem to dictate, the answer should be ...

NFL Draft exposes crisis of homelessness

In preparation for the vast crowds expected to flood Pittsburgh for the NFL Draft, proactive steps are being taken. Businesses are allowing — or encouraging — employees to work from home. Pittsburgh Public Schools will have students attend remotely. Allegheny County courtrooms won’t close down, but they won’t be working at full capacity either. The message is clear: With up to 700,000 football fans descending on the Steel City, locals who don’t need to be in the mix should stay home. But what if you don’t have a home? The area is nearing the end of months of effort to ...

Congress, IRS, feds to blame for tax woes

“Overtime-tax claims top expectations” was the headline of an April 6 Wall Street Journal article, followed by the message “Some payers may be claiming deductions beyond law limits, preparers suggest.” But who is to blame for all that? That’s easy. It’s Congress, the Internal Revenue Service and the federal government in general. It’s the same culprits who failed to calculate the terrible impact on certain casino employees nationwide who are being hit hard this year — and presumably will be hit hard beyond this year — because of Congress’ shortsighted action ...

Compliance with rules a worthy goal

Logan Township isn’t alone in having been remiss about enforcement of some local ordinances. Not enforcing some of such laws — or not enforcing them to the fullest extent intended when the laws were enacted — is much more common in Pennsylvania and elsewhere across the nation than most people can imagine. However, an appropriate question remains consistent: Why have laws on the books if they’re not going to be enforced? Still, as Logan officials have pointed out, it’s appropriate that the goal be compliance, not burdening residents and others with fines. An overly ...

Easter brings hope, call to help others

In the Review section of its March 26-27, 2016, edition, the Wall Street Journal featured an article, “The Challenge of Easter,” that began with the following question: “When was the last time you felt stressed out by Easter?” Compared with Christmas preparations, the Easter stress level probably is negligible, but each person or family must be the actual judge of that. The Rev. James Martin, a Jesuit priest, author and editor at large of America magazine, who wrote the 2016 Journal article, answered the original question in part with another one, followed by an ...