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The illusion of control in a time of war

Columns

In times of war, leaders often project the outcome they hope to achieve. Confidence can rally a nation, strengthen morale, and signal resolve to adversaries. Yet history reminds us that war rarely unfolds according to the plans or predictions of any single leader. The gap between projected outcomes and the complex, often obscured reality on the ground remains one of the defining features of modern conflict. Today, that gap is widening under what military strategists have long called the “fog of war.” Recent statements from President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ...

Determining whether the MMR vaccine is necessary to get now

Columns

DEAR DR. ROACH: I have a question about possibly getting a measles vaccine at the age of 67. I do not recall ever getting measles. But I am the youngest of four, so it is likely that I was exposed through them. I happen to have my vaccination records as a child, and it does not show any inoculation for the MMR vaccine. The last recorded vaccination was in 1967 after the introduction of this vaccine, which I believe was in 1963. Can I assume that I wasn’t given it because I had already had the disease? Or should I play it safe and get the vaccine now? I currently live in Florida, ...

Dear Annie: The last tie to an ex

Columns

Dear Annie: Three months ago, I ended a two-year relationship with my boyfriend. We lived together in my apartment. The breakup was painful and overdue. I’ve blocked his number and have no interest in reopening that chapter. The problem is that his mail is still arriving here. Not just catalogs, but things that look important — a bank envelope, something from the DMV, even what appeared to be a medical bill. I feel uneasy throwing them away, but reaching out to him is absolutely off the table. I just want to be done. What is my obligation here? I don’t want to screw him over by ...

No longer a young man, but still an angry one

Columns

During the academic year, I live in a college dorm. The subjects of chats in the dining hall are not too different from what they were when I was in college: classes, careers, sports, movies and dating. When the conversation gets more serious, I tell my dorm mates that no matter how much older than them I look on the outside, inside I am an angry young man — in fact, far angrier than I was back when actually a young man. After finishing my own formal education, I went to work on Capitol Hill where I met the original Mr. Conservative, Republican Sen. Barry Goldwater. Years before, ...

Council should keep the ship steady for Lock Haven, staff while searching for the next manager

Our View

Frustration seems to be endemic within the Lock Haven City Council chamber lately. Following the abrupt firing of former city manager, Greg Wilson, to start the year, city staff have been doing an admirable job holding it together under assuredly stressful circumstances. To all outside appearances, city staff had a healthy — and efficient — dynamic with Wilson, and shaking that up has caused challenges enough on its own. However, city council seems unwilling to let those challenges be all that the staff have to deal with, as the once-settled new police building is now being ...

Lowering the temperature starts with truth

Letters to the editor

Terry Hansen Grafton In response to the accusation of Israeli apartheid, Governor Josh Shapiro recently asserted: “We’ve got to be acknowledging that language matters here. That words matter and that we’ve got to use words that are actually rooted in reality and are able to bring the temperature down.” Notably, in 2021, two former Israeli ambassadors to South Africa, Ilan Baruch and Alon Liel, co-authored an op-ed concluding that Israel has indeed become an apartheid state. They cited the two-tiered legal system in the West Bank, illegal settlements, the demolition of ...