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Focus on accountability

The resignation of Harvard economics professor and former university president Larry Summers was only the latest repercussion from the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files — the millions of documents gathered by federal prosecutors that Congress ordered the Department of Justice to release to the public. There are no doubt more heads are about to roll: The disgraced financier burrowed his way deep into the worlds of academia, business, and government. The files show that even after he was convicted in 2008 in Florida of soliciting a minor and served a short prison sentence, he ...

Environmental protection starts with families

An article in the outdoors section of Tuesday’s Williamsport Sun-Gazette details how festive releases of Mylar balloons pose deadly risks to birds. A local birding expert shared how birds mistake the remnants of the balloons for food and eat them — and how the remnants of balloons can block digestive systems, leaving the birds to starve. We continue to maintain that the best measures our communities and region can take to preserve the environment don’t involve eliminating thousands of jobs developing conventional sources of energy, pushing energy bills higher for families and ...

Bill good start to examining role of rural pharmacies

Since 2020, more than 1,000 pharmacies have closed in Pennsylvania. That means it’s harder for many in rural counties like ours to get their prescriptions filled. Customers have to drive longer distances and, at times, pay more. The mass closure crisis has led to expanding pharmacy deserts, defined as an area where residents no longer have reasonable access to a local pharmacy, throughout the state. It’s one reason why a bipartisan bill introduced recently in the state Senate to protect local pharmacies is interesting. Senate Bill 1186 seeks to protect patient access to ...

Neighboring states lose out to low-tax Pa.

It’s a story common for regions of West Virginia that border Pennsylvania, Ohio and Kentucky. A recent college graduate of West Virginia University lands their first job in Pennsylvania. When it comes to deciding which state is more appealing on the tax front, the choice is clear: Pennsylvania. The same goes for Ohio and Kentucky. How many high-income professionals work in Wheeling, Parkersburg or Huntington, yet live in Ohio or Kentucky because of a lower personal income tax burden? And now, instead of proposing a meaningful plan to make West Virginia more competitive with its ...

California’s inferno of regulations

Last year, California wildfires destroyed 13,000 homes. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass announced: “We are 100% committed to getting this neighborhood rebuilt again!” Gov. Gavin Newsom echoed that, saying his officials were “responding to it at scale, with efficiency ... addressing building codes, permitting issues, and moving forward to rebuilding.” Great! It sounded like bureaucrats would get out of the way and let fire victims rebuild quickly. But no. Not when government bureaucrats are in control. More than a year later, fewer than 30 of the 13,000 destroyed homes have ...

Eagles’ rebound fitting for America’s 250th anniversary

Eric Beiter, city council president, recently observed that the number of bald eagles in Lycoming County has rebounded. “I remember being a kid growing up and they were nonexistent and now we have quite a few,” Beiter told city council during a recent meeting, as reported in last Monday’s edition of the Williamsport Sun-Gazette. “I would not even venture to guess how many.” In the successes of fostering a healthy population, we see a conservation effort rooted in tangible, measurable results — and we are grateful to see that success. Preserving habitat and managing ...