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In response to another war, Harrisburg must act to break our addiction to foreign oil

Columns

If you’re feeling a sense of deja vu when you look at your utility bill or pull up to a gas pump, you aren’t alone. For the second time in four years, global instability is reaching into the pockets of Pennsylvania families and shaking out every spare cent. First, it was Putin’s invasion of Ukraine that sent shockwaves through the global oil trade. Now, with Donald Trump’s war against Iran driving oil prices above $100 a barrel and pushing American gas prices to nearly $4 per gallon (as of March 24) , the message is clear: as long as we remain addicted foreign oil, our ...

Where is the arc of justice headed?

Columns

Former President Barack Obama liked to quote the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s line that “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” Of course, what was an expression of optimism for the moral reformer King was more in the nature of a victory spike of the football for a competitor in a zero-sum electoral contest like Obama. More importantly, the belief that things are moving toward justice comes more naturally to believers in American exceptionalism, of which Obama isn’t one. He famously said that he believed in America’s exceptionalism only as much ...

Dear Annie: A coffee shop connection worth exploring?

Columns

Dear Annie: I’m writing with a small story that left me with a surprisingly big question. Every morning before work, I stop by the same little coffee shop down the street. I started going there because it was convenient, but over time it’s become something more than that. The barista remembers my order, the regulars nod hello, and there’s an older man who always sits by the window reading the newspaper like it’s still 1985. It’s a quiet, ordinary ritual — but somehow it makes the start of my day feel steadier. A few months ago, I started noticing a young woman who comes ...

Sixty-year-old woman is mysteriously unable to gain weight

Columns

DEAR DR. ROACH: I have a sister who is in her mid 60s and has a very low weight. She cooks a lot but doesn’t eat much. Is there something to suggest to make her gain some weight? She weighs 80 pounds and is 5 feet, 2 inches tall. By contrast, I’m 5 feet, 4 inches tall and weigh 150 pounds. I am worried that if she gets sick, she will not have anything to live off of. — P.L.W. ANSWER: With all the recent press about GLP-1 medicines helping people to lose weight, there has been much discussion about the health risks of being obese. However, there are health risks of being ...

Dear Annie: Seeds of suspicion

Columns

Dear Annie: This situation has been bothering me for four years and is much more complicated, but I’ll try to be brief. I’m a horticulturist and plant collector and have lived in my home for 38 years. I’ve put my extra time and money into my perennial flower beds, and some of the plants in my collection are worth as much as $200. Whenever my husband and I leave town — which happens often in the summer when we stay in another state — someone comes into our yard and digs up plants and flower bulbs. At first, I thought my son had taken them, but he said he hadn’t and then ...

Havenite memories

Columns

At Woolworth’s Lunch Counter, late Express publisher Charles Ryan once quipped, “Steve, what would life be like without memories?” If you share some of these memories, you’re a bona-fide “Havenite.” While newbies are welcome, Baby Boomers might recall toting ice skates down to Flemington’s Grove Pond, gathering golf balls at the classy Clinton Country Club or watching Commissioner and Silversmith Dan Reinhold paint the old Millbrook Barn to attract a summer stock theatre. If near the “Bully” before Lowes, Sheetz and Walmart, you could buy tire retreads from Bob ...