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Shutting down federal bee labs threatens bees, beekeepers and the US food system

America’s bees and beekeepers are losing a valuable ally just when they need its help most. The U.S. Department of Agriculture plans to soon close the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, a 6,500-acre agricultural research station in Maryland that is home to the nation’s premier bee research and disease diagnosis hub, the Beltsville Bee Research Lab. The closure comes at a critical moment for bees. In winter 2025, many beekeepers lost over half their operations as pesticide-resistant varroa mites spread, bringing deadly viruses. The losses have led to low honey production, ...

Why Democrats need an ‘Operation Kibble’

There’s an ancient, almost surely apocryphal, story about a dog food company executive convening a big sales meeting. A very short version has the exec running through all of the company’s advantages: the best sales team, the best advertising, the best packaging, etc. He then irately asks, “So why aren’t we selling more dog food?” After a long silence, a small voice from the back ventures a guess. “Maybe the dogs don’t like it.” The story is a cliche, but a useful one, in business and politics. For instance, the pre-launch internal name for “Netflix” was ...

Dear Annie: Love at full volume

Dear Annie: My husband and I both work from home and each have our own offices. The problem is our walls are thin and his voice is LOUD. It travels through walls and doors and can even be heard by colleagues I’m speaking with when we both have meetings at the same time. It honestly sounds like he’s screaming in there. I’ve resorted to noise canceling headphones while doing focus work, but even then I can sometimes hear him. I love him dearly, but I feel like I’m co-working in a sports bar. Is there any hope? — Drowned Out Dear Drowned Out: There are ways to solve your ...

Support stockings should be removed before tucking in for bed

DEAR DR. ROACH: I’m 70 years old, and my whole family is prone to edema, varicose veins and deep vein thrombosis due to venous insufficiency. I’ve been wearing support pantyhose for 45 years whenever I get dressed, and I recently increased the compression. While I’m sitting, I elevate my legs. I am otherwise healthy and not overweight, and I have no cardiac issues, just the edema. Usually I’m OK except when I’m traveling (especially in airplanes) or when I’m dining in restaurants as I must avoid salt intake, so it’s easier to stay home. My question is whether it’s OK to ...

It takes a village to protect libraries, literacy

When I was president of the Downtown Lock Haven Rotary, my signature project was to create a system of Little Red Libraries for the Lock Haven community. Literacy has been a huge part of my entire life. I was a kid who regularly visited the bookmobile and local library as well as the school library where I grew up. I was always reading a book any time I had a spare moment in my busy spiritual, academic and athletic life. The Downtown Lock Haven Rotary Club provided the money and then found a builder for the little libraries. Tom Brown and Sons accepted the assignment and built two of ...

Hey, America: Stop complaining

Whatever the outcome of the “deal, or no deal” scenario with Iran, the public attitude toward the war has been disturbing. Despite President Trump’s constant admonition that Iran must never have a nuclear weapon, a majority of those polled oppose the intervention. A side effect of the war has been complaints about higher gas prices. That grumbling caused me to do some reminiscing about a different America and different Americans. Over Memorial Day weekend we again heard about “The Greatest Generation,” but do we take the time to consider what made them great? While ...