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Letters to the editor

The long battle for Black humanity

Tim Mannello Williamsport For centuries, America has waged a relentless fight over whether Black lives would be treated as fully human or as merely disposable. Today, successful attempts to rewrite and sanitize the story of Black Americans and to reverse civil rights laws downplay the brutality of slavery and the persistence of racial bias. They erase our memories of the resilience, resistance and cultural contributions that define the history of Black Americans. School boards in several states have recently softened descriptions of slavery. They suggested, for example, that ...

Has the American ship just arrived or long ago set sail?

Kimball Shinkoskey Woods Cross, Utah Many Americans believe we have arrived at the highest reaches of military, political, economic and social glory. Our president regularly tells us he has been given an overwhelming mandate to govern in the interest of the people and that we are finally entering America’s “Golden Age.” America won both World War I and World War II. No foreign national government has attacked our homeland since 1812. For 250 years we have basked in the “rule of law” rather than given in to any despot’s arbitrary and capricious rule. We have gorgeous ...

The evolving role of nurses — and why they deserve our thanks

Teresa Conyers Williamsport As we celebrate National Nurses Week (May 6–12), I’m filled with deep pride and gratitude for the nurses who care for our community every day. Nursing has always been the backbone of health care. It’s built on long days, sleepless nights, and countless hours on foot, often in moments when patients and families are facing some of the most difficult experiences of their lives. While nursing can be incredibly rewarding, it is also demanding, and it requires both resilience and heart. That’s why it’s so important that we continue to support and ...

Thompson’s retirement is overdue

Patty Satalia State College Representative Glenn “GT” Thompson’s weekly newsletter is a reminder of what he chooses to say—and what he carefully avoids. This week’s lone “Bad News” spotlighted misconduct in Congress. Yet Thompson named only a Democrat, omitting serious allegations involving two Republicans. Representative Tony Gonzales resigned following a House Ethics Committee investigation into an inappropriate relationship with a staffer. Representative Cory Mills is under investigation for alleged sexual misconduct, dating violence and campaign finance ...

Selective outrage

Bob Potter Boalsburg If a Democratic president had done even a fraction of what Donald Trump has done, Republicans would be screaming for impeachment hearings. Imagine the reaction from Republicans if Barack Obama or Joe Biden had run for office with 34 felony convictions and a trail of bankruptcies. Or if either tried to overturn a presidential election and incited a mob to storm the U.S. Capitol. What if a Democratic president talked about suspending constitutional rights, deployed federal forces into states over governors’ objections or bypassed Congress’s constitutional ...

Iran: Winning ourselves into another defeat?

Tim Mannello Williamsport Iran doesn’t need to defeat the United States outright to win a long war. It only needs to make the cost of staying in the fight unbearable. That is the uncomfortable truth at the center of any extended conflict with Tehran. Iran can strike American positions across the Middle East through proxy militias, launch waves of cheap drones that force the United States to burn expensive interceptors and threaten the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for global energy supplies. The imbalance is stark. Iran can spend thousands to launch a drone; the United States ...