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Selling national security

James Serene State College It’s no longer enough to say this administration blurs ethical lines. It’s erasing them. While ordinary Americans struggle with rising costs, those closest to power continue to profit. Consider Jared Kushner: while serving as a chief Middle East negotiator, he was also seeking to raise $5 billion for his private equity firm from governments in that region. That’s not a gray area. It’s a blatant conflict of interest—once unthinkable. And he’s not alone. From Don Jr. and Eric’s drone venture to Stephen Miller’s private prison ...

An opportunity to be heard

The powerless feeling that there is nothing we can do is pervasive in our modern society: a gnawing terror that nobody hears our needs, or perhaps that the people in positions of power are choosing to ignore us. Meanwhile, the world around us keeps moving forward, as it has ever done and, presumably, ever shall. Tendencies become patterns. Patterns become habit. Habits become...“well, that’s just the way it is.” Sometimes, though, we are afforded an opportunity to make ourselves be heard. Those who are highly engaged with local government know some of those opportunities. ...

D-dimer blood test causes confusion in 83-year-old male

DEAR DR. ROACH: What are D-dimers? Are they something I should be concerned about? I am an 83-year-old male with the usual problems that men my age have, such as an enlarged prostate, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. With medication and monitoring by my doctors, all of these conditions are under control. I also exercise and play golf every week. This past August, I started to experience an extremely intense pain behind my left knee. It was in one small area and would come and go. After several hours, I went to our emergency room, where they did a sonogram that did not show ...

Voter fraud without perpetrators

Tim Mannello Williamsport Republican lawmakers say voters should show photo ID because, they claim, voter impersonation is rampant. But every credible study—including those commissioned by Republicans themselves—shows the opposite: voter impersonation is virtually nonexistent. When confronted with the evidence, they simply repeat the claim anyway. The only thing that’s widespread is the myth. kept alive not by facts, but by constant repetition. That misconception didn’t appear out of nowhere. It persists largely because Republican leaders keep repeating the claim until, to ...

Duped

Sam Stea Cogan Station Friends: Which is more likely when it comes down to our current administration? Is it that the nation’s plunging GDP, rising unemployment, skyrocketing inflation and soaring gas prices, the exploding national debt, rising unaffordability, widening income gap and erosional of the middle class, declining geopolitical influence, and now war — are all parts of some genius plan to rain down prosperity on our citizenry; or, that we have been duped by a con man who hasn’t a clue how to run anything beyond self-promotion and self-interest? Folks out ...

Dear Annie: When a friend’s ‘help’ feels like a put-down

Dear Annie: I’m having a problem that feels small, but it’s starting to make me dread seeing someone I care about. One of my closest friends has gotten into the habit of “correcting” me in public. If I tell a story, she interrupts to adjust a detail. If I mention a restaurant, she jumps in with the exact neighborhood and the chef’s name. If I pronounce a word slightly wrong, she repeats it back the right way with a smile that’s supposed to be playful. At first, I brushed it off. She’s smart and she has always been a little particular. But lately, it feels constant, and ...