Thank you for your service

America was born out of conflict. The first line in the Declaration of Independence threw down the gauntlet.  “When in the course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another…” The second sentence established precisely why the separation from England was necessary, even

WV House Speaker’s race is on again

This week’s election has reopened debate over who should be the Speaker of the West Virginia House of Delegates. Last summer, Kanawha County Delegate Tim Armstead resigned his seat in the Legislature to run for the State Supreme Court, opening up the Speaker’s position.  After some jockeying and a closed-door caucus, Republicans chose Roger Hanshaw

How Joe Manchin won

Months before the 2018 General Election, politicos wondered how Democratic Senator Joe Manchin could win re-election in a state that had flipped to red and given Donald Trump a 42-point victory over Hillary Clinton.  Early on, Manchin was tagged with the “vulnerable Democrat” label. Yet, he won. It was not an overwhelming victory over Patrick

A last wish from Major Taylor for today’s election

Last month’s long-delayed parliamentary elections in Afghanistan were chaotic and dangerous.  A suicide bomber blew himself up at a polling place in a northern Kabul neighborhood, killing three people and wounding as many as 20 others. Hundreds of polling places did not open on time or at all, and in some places people waited in

We should insist on more debates

The debate between Democratic Senator Joe Manchin and Republican challenger Attorney General Patrick Morrisey had just ended when another debate between the two broke out off the air.   Manchin challenged Morrisey on why he turned down an earlier newspaper debate.  Morrisey countered that he had accepted. But whatever happened, the debate fell through. I’m not

How the Cultural Lag Fosters Fear and Loathing on Social Media

The creators of Instagram launched their program just a few years ago as an easy way for users to share photos and videos and their friends and followers can leave likes.  People liked it…a lot.  Take a picture, add a filter and share it.  Great fun. However, Instagram, like other social media outlets, easily becomes

Dept. of Ed Hopes Plan for Improving Math Adds Up to Better Scores

Last month, the state Department of Education released the first “Balanced Scorecard” to provide a snapshot of how public school students are performing and to provide a baseline from which to measure future progress. The math scores were terrible. Eighty-eight percent of the state’s 116 high schools were rated “substantially below the expected level set

Judge Arthur Recht’s Impactful Life

Judges often struggle with the issue of how far their authority should reach.  Strict Constitutionalists prefer a restrained bench that is careful to leave public policy to the legislative and executive branches. More activist judges believe they have a responsibility to use their power to right a wrong. Sunday, Arthur Recht died in Wheeling following

There is an answer to hate

On a drizzly and otherwise peaceful morning in the Squirrel Hill district of Pittsburgh, Robert Bowers, 46, carried out one of the deadliest attacks on a Jewish community in this country.  Bowers, armed with an AR-15 rifle and three handguns, murdered 11 people and wounded four police officers and two others at the Tree of

Manchin-Morrisey Race Features October Surprise

It’s not unusual for high-level campaigns to have an “October Surprise,” when some previously unknown piece of information emerges—often released by one of the candidates—that may impact the race. That surprise in this year’s hotly contested U.S. Senate race between incumbent Democrat Joe Manchin and Republican Attorney General Patrick Morrisey hit right on time, just

WV Catholic Church Promises Full Disclosure on Sex Scandal

The Catholic Church sex abuse scandal is one of the great tragedies of our time, with thousands of instances where men in positions of respect and authority abused children. The scandal was made even worse by church leaders who covered up the abuses. Most recently, a Pennsylvania grand jury report detailed how the Catholic Church

The General Election Starts Today in West Virginia

Today is Election Day in West Virginia. Okay, it’s not THE Election Day, but it is the first day of the early voting period that runs through November 3rd.   Some counties have just one location—often the courthouse—but others have three or four.  There are 84 early voting polling places in the 55 counties. Here is

Truth and Politics Don’t Mix on Entitlements

U.S. Senator Hiram Warren Johnson, a staunch isolationist, is believed to be the author of the quote, “The first casualty when war comes is truth.”  The same might be said for politics today.  Politicians often avoid the truth because it can be unpopular. For example, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, in an interview with

Emotional debate over Amendment One

Twenty-five years ago, the West Virginia Supreme Court  issued a decision on abortion that pro-life and pro-choice advocates have been arguing about ever since. The Court ruled 3-2 in Women’s Health Center of WV, et al. v. Panepinto, et al., that the state had an obligation to pay for an abortion for a woman if

Why so many school teachers are worn out

During the teachers’ strike in West Virginia earlier this year, educators complained most about their health care benefits and their pay. However, they also cited what they believe to be a general lack of respect for the teaching profession. These teachers are not alone. USA Today published an in-depth report on the state of public education.

The rise of the independent West Virginia voter

Virtually every person elected in next month’s General Election in West Virginia will be a member of the Democratic or Republican parties. However, that belies the fact that Mountain State voters are increasingly likely to say “none of the above” when it comes to belonging to either of the two major parties. New figures released

West Virginia’s M.C. Escher Supreme Court impeachment process

The ongoing controversy over the impeachment of current and former members of the West Virginia Supreme Court reminds me of one of those mind-bending images by the artist M.C. Escher where stairs appear to be ascending and descending at the same time. The people in the pictures are caught on a kind of gravity-defying treadmill.

WVU has given frats enough rope

Four years ago, Nolan Burch, a WVU freshman from New York, died from alcohol poisoning during a fraternity hazing.  His blood alcohol content was 0.493, six times the legal limit for driving. That was not only a great tragedy for his family and friends, but also for WVU.  The University may be huge, but it

Obamacare, once a yoke for Democrats, now a talking point

Remember when Republican politicians made a living running against Obamacare?  It wasn’t that long ago.  The rage against the Affordable Care Act contributed to Republicans winning the House and picking up six seats in the Senate in 2010. But eight years later, the paradigm has shifted. Now it is the Democrats who are running hard

West Virginia’s massive loss of potential

Governor Justice is right to be bullish on West Virginia’s economy. It is growing and creating jobs.  That’s reflected in the latest numbers showing state government collected $119 million more in tax revenue than projected for the first three months of the fiscal year. It is also true that unemployment is low, just 5.3 percent