Breaking News

Opinion

America’s love affair with the road endures

Columns

For the briefest of moments, a line of vintage Rolls-Royce automobiles chugged along the curving Cumberland Road. They passed over the Cumberland Run a handful of times and wound themselves down the mountains, away from Pennsylvania and toward the city of steeples, Cumberland. The sight gives the bystander a moment to imagine what it looked like in the early days of American road tripping. These 1922 Rolls-Royce vehicles, which included the New Phantom and the Silver Ghost (some of the first cars designed expressly to be owner-driven rather than chauffeured), were not what many ...

Dear Annie: Teen’s cold shoulder leaves mom feeling shut out

Columns

Dear Annie: My 15-year-old daughter and I used to be extremely close. She was the kind of child who would climb into the car after school and tell me everything before I even pulled out of the parking lot: who sat with whom at lunch, what her teacher said, which friend was mad at which friend and what song everyone was listening to that week. Now, I feel like I am living with a very fashionable attorney who cross-examines everything I say. If I ask how school was, she says, “Fine,” in a tone that makes it clear the conversation is over. If I ask whether she has homework, she says ...

What James Madison can teach Americans about religious freedom today

Columns

As the United States marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, debates about religious freedom continue to occupy the center of American public life. Since taking office for a second time, the Trump administration has issued a number of executive orders on religion that raise new questions about religious freedom. On May 1, 2025, the administration established the Religious Liberty Commission. The commission will advise the White House on policies intended to protect the free exercise of religion and to prevent discrimination against people of faith by the ...

Dear Annie: When a rock becomes sand

Columns

Dear Annie: My husband of five years has dementia. We’ve known about it for two or three years. He retired last year, and I work full time. It’s getting harder. He argues every point, doesn’t want me to go anywhere without him and repeats himself. He says he will just “wait for me” when I ask for things to be done or when I try to get someone to help him with things. I financially can’t stop working yet. To make it harder? Almost everyone has ghosted us. He’s home by himself most of the day. His family doesn’t call or come by. Some of my family and a couple of my ...

Memorial Day offers somber reminders ahead of America’s 250th birthday

Our View

As we approach the dawn of our 250th year as a nation, we would be remiss if we did not take time to reflect on the sacrifices of those countless ancestors who gave their lives to help bring us to this point. We find it particularly poignant at this time that the prototypes for Memorial Day were originally created in honor of the Union soldiers who died during the Civil War — a stark reminder that, were it not for their backs and their lives, the United States would never have made it to its 100th birthday, let alone its 250th. In our modern moment of great division, high emotions ...

Dear Annie: Scaling back without guilt

Columns

Dear Annie: For years, I’ve made it a point to remember every birthday in my extended family — my nieces, nephews and now their children — by sending cards with a little money tucked inside. It’s been my way of staying connected since I don’t see them often. Now I’m retired and living on a fixed income, and the cost has quietly added up. The truth is, everyone in my family is financially comfortable, and I’m beginning to feel the strain of keeping up this tradition. I’d like to scale back and send monetary gifts only to those 19 and under, while still sending cards to ...