Bond between pets and owners is stronger than death

"Heaven goes by favor. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in." - Mark Twain, 1835-1910 She looked so peaceful. I know everyone says that at funerals, but it was true. She lived a long, full life and although those who gathered to say goodbye were bitterly sorry to see her go, all agreed she had earned her rest.

(read more)

Letters to the Editor - 10/31/2009

Mudslinger

Editor: State Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Butler County, made a recent tirade in response to an invitation to meet with the Operation Free Veterans. It is totally unacceptable.

The party of Abe Lincoln has always been very supportive of members of the armed forces and needs to chastise him for his disregard of the veterans' First Amendment rights.

While I respect his First Amendment rights, I believe he had a choice to agree or disagree with their opinion. Instead he chose mudslinging and depicting fellow veterans as traitors, likening them to Benedict Arnold. His response to this invitation is absurd and not in character for a member of the state Legislature.

(read more)

On front lines of climate change

For climate change deniers who preach the fossil-based gospel of "Drill, baby, drill" and deride alternative energy advocates as unpatriotic Chicken Littles, Glenn Kunkel is an inconvenient man.

Like legions of activists who trust the fact-backed word of scientists over the empty rhetoric of energy-industry apologists, Mr. Kunkel is convinced that the greatest threats to American national security over the next 20 years are our dependence on fossil fuels and the social, political and economic effects of climate change.

(read more)

The case for Goon control

Meleanie Hain was seldom seen in public without a gun on her hip, but she died unarmed at home.

Her beloved Glock 9mm pistol was in a backpack hanging from the front door when her husband, Scott Hain, burst into the kitchen of their Lebanon County home and shot her several times while their three young children shrieked nearby. He then went upstairs and ended himself with a shotgun, according to police.

(read more)