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How one boy overcame loneliness and brought a neighborhood together

Many people across the nation were touched by the heartwarming story of Roman Butzlaff, a 4-year-old boy in Concord, North Carolina, who befriended several of his elderly neighbors and became their adopted grandson. When the CBS Evening News aired its July 10 “On the Road” feature on Roman, I was amazed at his genuine desire to connect with individuals decades older. I’m sure others found this odd at first, as Roman was spending his mornings saying “hey” to everyone walking by his home instead of being immersed in a video game. Many children his age would have ignored the ...

The American presidency and perpetual war

One of the defining failures of modern American government has been the steady erosion of Congress’s constitutional authority over war. The Constitution grants Congress — not the president — the power to declare war. Congress decides to go to war. The president wages it. Over the past several decades, presidents of both major parties have increasingly treated military intervention as an executive prerogative rather than a congressional requirement. The last six presidents have not reflected distinct foreign policy doctrines but a uniparty continuum of executive overreach. While ...

Dear Annie: Not looking to cause a stir

Dear Annie: I have a family problem for which I would appreciate your opinion. My wife and I are Americans living in a small village in Italy, in an area popular with tourists. Recently, I contacted my sister and her husband from the States and expressed our interest in having them visit us and stay at our house, since we haven’t seen them for many years. We’re all retired, they easily have the means to make the trip, and our house has plenty of room for visitors. Her reply caught me unprepared. She said that they were expected by their church to do a mission outside the U.S. and, ...

Why the debate over life-saving vehicles?

Somewhere in Los Angeles this year, someone will get home who otherwise wouldn’t have. You’ll never learn her name. There will be no headline, no celebration, no council resolution — only an unremarkable Tuesday that ends the way Tuesdays are supposed to end. The same nonstory will eventually play out in more than a dozen other metro areas where autonomous vehicles will serve as cabs. Last year, 36,640 Americans died in traffic crashes. That was the fewest since 2019, yet it still works out to more than 100 fatalities per day. The new generation of vehicles quietly accumulating ...

Dear Annie: Always the afterthought

Dear Annie: My husband and I have one daughter, and family has always been important to us. She has several cousins around her age, and we’ve always hoped they would grow up close. Over the years, we’ve been the ones reaching out to make plans, but the effort is rarely reciprocated. I don’t believe anyone is intentionally trying to hurt our daughter. It simply feels as though she’s an afterthought. She often isn’t included in birthday parties or family get-togethers, and when relatives gather nearby, no one thinks to invite her. Recently, several of her cousins spent time ...

Antique carnival glass comes in a variety of colors and patterns

Ice cream and carnivals are two of summer’s best treats, but, for glass collectors, they are a delight any time of the year. Ice cream bowls are a favorite type of carnival glass; their size and shape make them an excellent showcase for the rich colors, pressed patterns, and iridescence. ...