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Dear Annie: Leaving the nest

Columns

Dear Annie: I need your advice. My very musically gifted high school senior appears to want to go to college and major in music performance. But he is refusing to visit colleges. He won’t discuss why; he just gets very belligerent when the subject comes up and won’t expand on any reasons. Should I let it be or make the contacts for him and force him to go? — Music Man’s Mom Dear Music Man’s Mom: It’s possible that your son is afraid to leave home — which would show his intelligence; it’s a big scary world out there. Courage arises not when we suppress our fears but when ...

Get Involved

Letters to the editor

Stephen Poorman Lock Haven Thank you to folks who enjoyed articles about people and places in “Old Town,” Lock Haven’s (“LH”) original name. Years ago, I audited LH expenses. But little weight is often given to historical performance and destructive actions unless young people get involved. Everyone should be made aware of numbers that affect them. Property owners should understand why taxes skyrocketed. As a member of the Pennsylvania Retailers Association Board of Directors, we studied influencers and I brought results to the city so it might minimize negative ...

Wanted: A congressman who delivers

Letters to the editor

Connie Schulz State College Central Pennsylvanians are worried about prices for everyday needs, affordable health care, an unjustified war, quality education and a corrupt administration. Representative Glenn GT Thompson did nothing in his last term to show he understands Central Pennsylvanians’ concerns, and his re-election campaign makes clear he won’t change. When Thompson was asked about the district’s most pressing issues, he cited his “great legislative success” restoring whole and 2% milk in schools and added a vague statement about the need for a long-term farm ...

What happened to initiative?

Columns

Two years after voters tossed Democrats from power in Washington, polls show they are ready to switch sides again. Does it make sense to welcome back a party and its ideas that were so recently rejected? The reason so many voters are frustrated by both parties is that they have been putting too much faith in government and too little faith in themselves. It’s called initiative and the lack of it has contributed not only to dysfunctional government but also to a loss of the things that built and sustained America through challenges greater than high gas prices and “unaffordable” ...

Shedding light on the condition of MOGAD and its symptoms

Columns

DEAR DR. ROACH: Over the past 20 years, my now 65-year-old son-in-law has been tentatively diagnosed with Lyme disease, Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis (MS) without a definitive diagnosis. He has cognitive impairment and some physical limitations. Now, after a spinal tap, they’ve made the diagnosis of myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody-associated disease (MOGAD). What can you tell me about this condition and how it can be treated? — S.R. ANSWER: MOGAD is an autoimmune disease of the brain and spinal cord that’s similar in some ways to MS, so the two are ...

I’ve been studying election integrity for 26 years, and here’s why I expect a normal election this November instead of chaos

Columns

Fear of federal interference in the 2026 midterms, from intimidation stoked by armed officials at the polls to seizure of ballots, has been growing in the United States. That’s led state and local voting officials across the country to draw up plans for scenarios requiring them to summon law enforcement or prepare legal filings so they can keep the polls open. In an interview with The Conversation’s politics and legal affairs editor Naomi Schalit, election law scholar Justin Levitt takes the temperature down a bit. Levitt says that while voting officials’ preparations mean they ...