Jefferson County Commission Split on Obscenity Ordinance

When it comes to defining “hard-core pornography,” the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart provided an explanation for the ages: “I shall not today attempt to further define the kinds of material I understand to be embraced within that shorthand description, and perhaps I could never succeed in intelligibly doing so. But I know

Sgt. Maynard: A Casualty Along The Thin Blue Line

West Virginia State Trooper Sgt. Cory Maynard died in the line of duty.  He was shot and killed last Friday in Mingo County while answering a call. The same day, Cpl. Shawn Kelly with the Denham Springs Louisiana Police Department died from gunshot wounds he sustained several weeks ago. Maynard and Kelly were the 46th

Thank God for Mississippi (Seriously)

New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof recently went to Mississippi to gather facts for a piece in his series on “How America Heals.”  He came away inspired by how the poor southern state is making dramatic improvements in education. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores have risen from the bottom to equal to

Hope for the Pleasants Power Station, While Officials Warn of Grid Reliability

Last December, residents of West Virginia and 12 other states were in danger of seeing their Christmas lights go dark.  PJM Interconnection, which operates the power grid for 13 northeastern states, warned that a severe cold spell was draining power supplies and rolling blackouts were possible. Fortunately, we made it through with the lights still

Justice in Pole Position

Governor Jim Justice heads into the 2024 U.S. Senate race at the top of the hill looking down. Consider the latest poll of West Virginia voters by the East Carolina University Center for Survey Research:* –Justice’s job approval rating is at 57 percent, while only 29 percent disapprove. –Senator Joe Manchin’s job approval rating is

Is Panhandling Protected Speech or Conduct That Can Be Regulated?

Monongalia County is moving ahead with plans to restrict panhandling. The proposed ordinance would make it unlawful to ask for money or distribute materials to “the drivers of motor vehicles or their passengers… on highways within the unincorporated areas of the county.” County Commission President Tom Bloom is pushing the ordinance after repeated complaints from

Yes, Opposing Sides Can Make a Deal

The debt ceiling deal reached between President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy represents—wait for it—a compromise. Unfortunately, that has become a dirty word in Washington, and in politics in general, because our politics have devolved into a winner-take-all showdown. If you are not winning, you are losing to an evil opponent. We are already

Our Unending Debt

(This is a reprint of a commentary I have posted previously about Memorial Day.) Imagine a debt that can never be fully repaid. That obligation is so great that it is nearly incomprehensible to think about, so we block it from our thoughts and pretend that it does not exist. But each of us who

Jim Justice’s Unpaid Bills Stack Up

  There have been three more news stories in recent days about bills left unpaid by companies owned and operated by West Virginia Governor Jim Justice and his family. One in the Gazette-Mail detailed how a federal judge found  Justice family coal company liable for six years of unpaid premiums for a United Mine Worker

Happy Birthday Big Brother

I don’t think much about personal identity. Most of what makes me who I am, I take for granted. I’m a husband and father, a journalist and commentator, a sports fan, an avid reader and, sometimes, a fitness buff. Both of my parents are gone now, but I will always think of myself as their

No Commitment From “No Labels” on Manchin

A co-founder and senior leader of the centrist bipartisan political group No Labels says they are impressed with Joe Manchin, but the organization is months away from choosing candidates for a “unity ticket” to run for president against the Democratic and Republican Party nominees. “I’ve never been in a room or a conversation with him

Will the Lights Always Come On?

One of the great benefits of living in a wealthy country with lots of energy is that there is always enough electricity to keep the lights on and power everything else that needs electricity. However, the reliability of the service that we take for granted is now threatened. Nine states experienced rolling blackouts during the

Ben Salango Considers 2nd Run for Governor

Charleston attorney Ben Salango is seriously considering a second run for Governor of West Virginia. Salango, who is also a member of the Kanawha County Commission, was the Democratic Party’s Gubernatorial nominee in 2020, but lost to Republican Jim Justice in the General Election. Salango joins Huntington Mayor Steve Williams as the leading Democrats who

One Small Step of Regulator Approval, One Giant Leap for MVP

The U.S. Forest Service’s “Record of Decision” concerning the proposed Mountain Valley Pipeline does not make for very exciting reading. The 29 pages are long on bureaucratic terms, dry language and lots of acronyms and abbreviations. However, deep in the report is this key sentence: “The environmentally preferable alternative seeks to attain the widest range

MANCHIN WATCH: Will He or Won’t He?

There is a lot of speculation that West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin may run for President in 2024 as an independent candidate.  Manchin has done nothing to dissuade those discussions, and he simply will not be pinned down yet about his plans. He likes to say he will do what is in the best interest

When I Wasn’t Throwing Up or Falling Down, My Vacation Was Great.

My two-week long vacation did not turn out as planned. My wife and I scheduled a series of day hikes along the Appalachian Trail in Virginia. We would start in the southern Virginia trail town of Damascus and work our way north, hiking a section of the trail each day and then staying in a hotel

Bob Huggins’ Second Chance

  WVU basketball coach Bob Huggins is getting a second chance. Many may question the decision by WVU President E. Gordon Gee and Director of Athletics Wren Baker to give Huggins an opportunity to make right the ignorant and hurtful comments he made on a Cincinnati radio show. In just a few seconds, Huggins managed

Gone Hiking

Gone hiking.   I’ll be back… when I get to the end of the trail. Hop

The Knowns and Unknowns of the WV Senate Race

We are more than a year away from the West Virginia Primary Election and a year-and-a-half before the 2024 General Election, but the political chatter in the Mountain State is already at a high volume. Two-term Governor Jim Justice is officially in the race for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Joe Manchin. Representative

The EPA Prepares To Go After Fossil Fuel Power Plants… Again

Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in favor of a West Virginia-led coalition that Congress did not grant President Obama’s Environmental Protection Agency broad authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants that burn fossil fuels. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the majority opinion: “A decision of such magnitude and consequences rests