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Opinion

Protect our endangered species

Letters to the Editor

As someone who has spent a lifetime studying, writing about and painting America’s wildlife, I am deeply troubled by the steady erosion of conservation protections taking place across our nation. Perhaps most concerning is the recent rollback of a long-standing Endangered Species Act regulation that recognized habitat destruction as a form of “harm” to endangered wildlife. While species remain legally protected from direct killing, narrowing this definition weakens one of the most effective conservation principles we have ever embraced: protecting the places wildlife depends upon ...

SB600 Smart Meter choice is needed

Letters to the Editor

Are these mandated Smart Meters causing physical and mental harm to the people and nature? I believe they are and I believe that is why Sen. Doug Mastriano submitted bill SB600. Many people have reported to Sen. Mastriano’s office that shortly after having the Smart Meter installed on their home they started experiencing health problems. People are reporting headaches, dizziness, heart palpitations, sleep issues, brain fog, fatigue, ringing in the ears, skin tingling and itching, anxiety and more. Our doctors and health care system know nothing about diagnosing or treating EMF ...

NS merger must be watched

Editorials

The fate of the proposed merger under which Norfolk Southern Railroad would be acquired by Union Pacific Railroad, creating America’s first transcontinental rail freight carrier, is beginning to undergo scrutiny by the U.S. Surface Transportation Board under what is being touted as a tough new standard. Therefore, the review, now just beginning, will not only decide whether the proposed merger would be in customers’ best interests; it also will deliver a verdict on the correctness and effectiveness of the new standard itself. For communities like Altoona that have a stake in ...

Skill games keep small businesses open

Opinion

Trust me when I say I know what many lawmakers are thinking: “Let’s just get the skill games issue over with.” I felt the same way when I served in the Pennsylvania House. But today, as a former legislator and the owner of a family bar and restaurant, I see this issue very differently. During my time in office, I never wanted skill games in my Shamokin tavern. I wasn’t sure what I thought about them, whether they really were true games of skill, so I just decided I wouldn’t add them to my bar. Then COVID hit and everything changed. Anyone who doesn’t own a ...

Term limits encourage fresh thinking

Opinion

How much faith do Americans have in Congress? The answer should concern every Pennsylvanian, regardless of political party. According to a recent Gallup survey, only 9% of Americans say they have “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in Congress—the lowest level ever recorded. When the institution closest to the people commands the trust of fewer than one in ten Americans, it is a clear sign that something is fundamentally broken. Washington has become a place where too many politicians spend decades building careers instead of solving problems. The result is ...

We are paying the cost of war

Letters to the Editor

President Donald Trump does not want a peace treaty, to negotiate, or an agreement with Iran. He demands what he calls a deal which is his way of stating that Iran must do what he wishes them to do. Under Obama’s Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action negotiated in 2015, Iran agreed to reduce its nuclear program by capping enrichment at low levels, reshaping the Arak reactor so it could not produce weapons grade plutonium. Iran also agreed to dismantle or convert centrifuges and facilities into a peaceful nuclear program and allow an expanded IADA inspection and monitoring. Trump ended ...