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Letters to the editor

By any other name

Daniel A. Reeder Lock Haven A few years ago, 2016, I received a phone call from a friend complimenting me for a Letter to the Editor that I had written and he urged me to write more. He, now deceased, had been a respected Republican public official and my high school chemistry teacher. In that letter, I had criticized a presidential candidate who had as a top advisor a Nazi sympathizer, Steve Bannon. It is now 2024, and we are furiously rowing, for the sake of our country, in the same boat. I paraphrase an article from a well-known journalist, Heather Cox Richardson, written on Oct ...

Deadbeat Trump

Bob Potter Boalsburg Whatever the fees are for a campaign rally at the Bryce Jordan Center, and also for the associated local law enforcement and first responder support, let’s hope that Donald Trump actually pays his bills here for his Oct. 23 event, unlike in other towns. Cities and municipalities across the country have been left with $750,000 in unpaid fees when Trump came to town and left without paying. It appears they are unlikely to ever see the money they are owed. With full knowledge that Grifter-in-Chief Trump has stiffed others across the country, PSU and our local ...

In praise of newspapers

Diane Grimm Baden, Pa. In a world of social media, viral videos and alternative websites, some have forgotten the immense value we get from newspapers. We rely on papers so-called “traditional media” not just to stay informed but to engage with our community and the world. Whether we’re reading news stories, opinion pieces or sports scores, newspapers keep us connected, entertained and educated in ways that other media just can’t match. Facebook and other social media platforms may seem to offer free news, but their content is designed not to inform us but to keep us ...

Choose character for a better America

Ron Williams Pennsylvania Furnace I have children and grandchildren. My deepest desire is for them to be healthy and able to lead happy, meaningful lives. Yet I worry about whether that is possible in an America where the value we place on qualities like civility, honesty and integrity has been diminished. Lying has been normalized to the extent that it is making truth harder to discern, sometimes even negotiable. Verbally attacking and demeaning others because they hold different views is okay, too, even when it might lead to physical violence. Has disrespecting, misleading and ...

Don’t be fooled

Martha Young State College MAGA Republicans think Pennsylvanians are foolish, gullible and unworthy of respect. Just look at their political attack ads and signs; they lack context or are outright lies. What fool believes that Harris, a former district attorney and attorney general, cares more about criminals than she does about us? Or that she laughs about economic woes? Unfortunately, truth-in-advertising rules don’t apply to political ads; broadcast stations must accept all ads. Don’t be bamboozled; verify claims made in Republican political ads. Trump will keep us safe? ...

Never again

Tom McNichol Boalsburg My Uncle John, a Marine who fought in WWII, was killed at the battle of Tarawa in the South Pacific on Nov. 23, 1943. He was reported “non-recoverable, missing in action.” In 2017, DNA evidence, including dental records, identified his remains, which were returned to the United States. 74 years later, he was interred in a full military honors funeral at Arlington National Cemetery, in the presence of extended family. A horse drawn procession carried Uncle John’s casket to his gravesite. Silence prevailed as family and Marines in ceremonial “Dress ...