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Editor's note: Due to a technical error, the letter below was not printed before today.
Writing in support
of Jerry Wagner
To the Editor:
I am writing in support of Jerry Wagner for Mifflin County Common Pleas Judge.
I had the opportunity to meet and work with Assistant District Attorney Wagner while completing a paralegal internship with the Mifflin County Office of the District Attorney during my final semester in the Fall of 2022. Immediately he came across as kind and considerate, as well as passionately animated and articulate when discussing various legal issues. He was always willing to bring me alongside him to court and have me help assist him in court. Attorney Wagner always gave me the utmost respect, which was greatly appreciated, being new to the workforce as a young woman. Additionally, I saw that he treated everyone in the courthouse the same regardless of status or position, which confirmed, to me, his sincerity.
Along with other responsibilities as an Assistant District Attorney, he was responsible for handling DUI Court where all DUI cases are prosecuted before the Court of Common Pleas through final disposition unless listed for trial. Once a case is listed for trial, Attorney Wagner was the prosecutor primarily responsible for the DUI trials while also handling other criminal charges at trial, which I had the opportunity to observe. Based on my observations of Attorney Wagner at trial, he was well-prepared with a sharp grasp of both the facts and the law, connected and communicated well with the jurors and delivered a passionate, well-reasoned closing argument, which resulted in the guilty verdict.
Finally, during my internship, I learned that Attorney Wagner had previously represented the District Attorney's Office in the juvenile treatment court, which was a program specifically designed to provide treatment resources for juveniles battling addiction along with real consequences for their actions that placed them in the court system. As a result of learning that and further discussion, Attorney Wagner's emphasis on ensuring that defendant's diagnosed with mental health and substance abuse disorders are subject to appropriately significant but fair sentences along with an opportunity for treatment and rehabilitation became clear. This stood out as a critical issue to me because Mifflin County struggles with addiction and there is currently an opioid epidemic in PA. Overdoses are the NUMBER ONE cause of death among young adults in the Commonwealth. As a result, families and communities have been devastated by the impact. I want a Judge that is aware of the disease of addiction and supports recovery.
Please join me in voting for Jerry Wagner for Mifflin County Court of Common Pleas Judge on May 16.
Kathryn Knepp
China is taking over
China is making inroads around the world and here in America.
National security / Pentagon officials have likened ship-to-shore cranes made by a China-based manufacturer to Trojan horses. The popular, inexpensive cranes are equipped with advanced sensors that could track the whereabouts of military-related cargo, and the cranes can be remotely controlled to disrupt trade from afar. Nearly 80 percent of ship-to-shore cranes in U.S. ports are made by China. Chinese nationals come to the U.S. on two-year visas to work on the cranes could pose another intelligence-collection avenue.
Chinese tycoon spent millions of dollars buying up at least 140,000 acres of land in Texas conveniently near Laughlin Air Force Base, which trains U.S. military pilots. China's government purchased 370 acres as a location for its new wet corn mill just a short distance from Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota, home to sensitive air and space operations. House Republicans repeatedly urged the Biden administration to investigate the "national security threat" posed by China grabbing up American farmland. "We've witnessed espionage and other malign activity when the Chinese Communist Party is allowed to purchase land by U.S. military bases," Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. When the Biden administration declined to block these sales, the Pentagon raised strong objections.
A couple of years ago, China was sending in invasive species seeds into the United States, unsolicited. "Now, if the Chinese were to own more and more agriculture (now 400,000 acres), they could very well plant those seeds and actually blight America's food production." Smithfield as the world's leading and most trusted vertically integrated pork processor and hog producer has been bought by a Chinese company. Others will follow.
We know that a Chinese spy balloon crisscrossed America only because a civilian noticed it. Then we learn US intelligence was aware of at least four other Chinese spy balloons but only through leaked Pentagon data. We allowed this intrusion until a civilian blew the whistle.
U.S. roads / bridges are being sold to foreign companies. Chinese investors are promised permanent residency under a U.S. law in exchange for loaning money to finance major projects like connecting the PA turnpike and Interstate 95. Foreign companies own Indiana Toll Road, Virginia's Pocahontas Parkway, a Texas tollway, and Chicago Skyway. The Illinois Tollway, two big New Jersey toll roads, and the Ohio turnpike are in the mill. All tolls go to foreign countries, not for repairs.
Michigan Democrat Senate clears $175 million for Chinese company EV battery component factory. In addition, Ford is investing billions in a Chinese EV battery plant as well. China which will help set up the plant and "have staff there". The battery materials will come from China.
China is moving to isolate us and replace our dollar as world reserve currency with China's yuan or digital currency. Result- our standard of living could decrease "dramatically".
We need a president that challenges China, not pay them lip service!
Arthur Keller, Beavertown
Abortion bans threaten women's lives
To the Editor:
Almost a year has passed since Roe v. Wade was repealed by the Supreme Court, sending the decision on abortion access to individual states. Since the repeal, thirteen states have banned abortion, some with exceptions for rape and incest, some without. Two others have instituted a ban after fifteen weeks. The Iowa Attorney General's office has halted its practice of paying for emergency contraception for victims of sexual assault. A Texas district judge has ordered a hold on an FDA-approved abortion medication, mifepristone. The Supreme Court has put a stay on this ruling for the time being. These legal decisions affect women in ways that the casual news follower may not be aware of.
Many women have had miscarriages or have loved ones who have had. The medications mifepristone and misoprostol, taken in combination, are often used to treat the results of miscarriage. Misoprostol is also used in combination with methotrexate to terminate ectopic pregnancies, in which the fertilized egg implants and grows outside the uterus. Mifepristone has been difficult to access, even before the recent ruling. Women are required to travel to a hospital or clinic that is designated as a mifepristone supplier, and to sign a document saying that they are aware of the risks associated with the drug. Misoprostol alone is not as effective in treating the miscarriage. A surgical treatment, dilation and curettage (D and C), is also used for miscarriage. Medical providers in states that have banned abortion are increasingly becoming wary of providing these treatments for women, for fear of being prosecuted for providing an abortion. In Texas, for example, where a doctor violating the abortion laws can face the loss of his medical license and a possible life sentence in prison, at least one woman having a miscarriage has been made to wait until her life was at risk before getting treatment. For the story of one such incident, follow this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMkmhitaERA
Methotrexate, mentioned above in connection with ectopic pregnancy, is approved by the FDA for the treatment of autoimmune conditions, including rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma, and lupus. Methotrexate is also used for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease and a variety of cancers, including breast cancer, lymphoma, leukemia, and lung cancer. Rheumatologists in states with abortion bans have become reluctant to prescribe the medication.
The military is being affected by the push against abortion. Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama has put more than 160 military promotions on hold to protest the Pentagon's recently enacted policy that covers expenses and grants leave to troops who have to travel to obtain abortions. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke of his concern about the rising backlog of promotions during an appearance before the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), saying that the holds impact national military readiness.
Bans on abortion and restrictions on abortion and miscarriage medications are placing women's lives at risk.
Joan D. Loewen
Lewistown
We should be
supporting Ukraine
Did you know that potentially more Russian soldiers have died in the battle for Bakmut in the Ukraine than we (U.S.) forces lost in the Korean Conflict?
Did you know that potentially more Russian soldiers have died in the first year of the Russian invasion of Ukraine than we lost during the entire Vietnam war?
Many people may be unaware of the gravity of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Its toll on human life. How it has displaced millions of people, women and children and subjected millions more to the outright cruelty of the invader's. These facts are facts that support that the beacon of the light for the free world must always rise to support those who cannot basque in its light, due directly to the unlawful aggressive acts of the suppressor.
It is not an issue over territory any more than if the Russians were to claim Poland or East Germany or any other territory over which Russia "liberated" and then for almost a half of a century tightened its 'iron fist' around the cause of liberty and freedom. It is not a pro or anti Trump issue that dominates our political forefront. It is an issue of right or wrong.
Prime Minister Chamberlain tried to appease Hitler because, at first, it was just the Sudetenland and in the Nazi's mentality there was a legitimate claim.
Charles Lindbergh in 1941 beseeched Americans, with the America First Committee, on April 23, 1941 he stated "…England is losing the war.." and concluded that "we cannot win this war for England, regardless of how much assistance we extend."
Unquestionably, history has taught us that Chamberlain and Lindbergh were wrong.
When we support Ukraine, we are not supporting a nation of our enemies or people of opposition to western ways and beliefs. To the contrary, the main reason this conflict exists is because the many peoples of the Ukraine, the Ukrainian people, want to be our allies. They share our beliefs. We are not funding people in the fight for freedom and democracy on the potential or possibility they may become our ally, they are our allies.
We have learned since the invasion of Crimea in 2014 that the ambitions of evil are fueled by evil's success and success equates to escalation and evil can only be repelled by good.
Even in our modern world of revisionist history, Chamberlain and Lindberg are still remembered and remembered for being outright wrong.
The moral principles of what represents the United States of America alone is sufficient to gain your support to Stand with Ukraine. However, many people do not know the legal reasoning for our government's financial support of the people of the Ukraine.
Upon the fall of the USSR "the Ukraine" became the third largest possessor of Nuclear weapons in the world. Much if not most of the Soviet Nuclear Arsenal was in the Ukraine. The Ukraine people did not want to possess any nuclear weapons but concerned about Russia's future ambitions, wanted to ensure its independence and sovereignty were respected. The superpowers of the world quickly responded and the U.S. and the United Kingdom offered to the Ukraine that if it gave up its newly acquired nuclear arsenal, the U.S. and the United Kingdom would give their respective "assurance" that if Russia would attempt to contradict the sovereignty of the Ukraine or invade the borders between the Ukraine and Russia as of December 1994, the time of what has become known as the 'Budapest Memorandum' was agreed upon by the U.S. and the United Kingdom.
I suggest that in 1994, when the Ukrainian government agreed to give up all of its nuclear weapons in complete reliance on our assurance and the United Kingdom's assurance to defend Ukraine in the event the Russians invaded, that the Ukrainians believed assurance meant boots on the ground not financial aid or the supply of weapons and ammunition. However, we have all learned that the difference between our 'guarantee' and 'assurance' is whether the U.S. military is directly involved. And what has transpired as a result of this interpretation?
Crimea is the modern equivalent to the Sudetenland.
How can we choose not to honor our obligation?
Applying the lesson of history, why would we choose not to honor our obligation?
What happened to the German civilians who lived in Königsberg or must we say Kaliningrad?
Should we wait until Poland is annexed? East Germany is annexed?
We should honor our commitment and support of those who want to defend themselves from tyranny.
Donald Zagurskie
Mifflintown
Turn It Off
The Writers Guild is on strike! Horrors! Forgive me for neither noticing nor caring. The poor, pampered glitterati who prance and preen on red carpets before ogling fans have nobody to write the words for them to recite on their teleprompters and cue cards. Boohoo.
The people we SHOULD be celebrating on red carpets are the nurses, teachers, first responders, entrepreneurs, grocery store clerks, police officers, and all the hard-working men and women who do their jobs faithfully day-in and day-out with no fanfare and very little thanks. They protect us, educate our children, help us in times of need, provide jobs so we can support our families, and strengthen our economy. They are authentic, gritty, salt-of-the-earth folk - not scripted Hollywood on-camera pretenders.
How long will the terrible strike last? Hopefully long enough for us to recognize the ugly blight that Hollywood is in our society and realize we don't need its narcissistic, self-adoring "celebrities" who need armies of writers to tell them what to say.
May I offer a simple solution to the strike - one in which all of us can participate? Turn it off! That's right, just turn the TV off! You can do it. Calculate the many hours you can reclaim for more worthy and valuable alternative activities. What will you do with all that extra time on your hands? Consider some possibilities . . .
1. Visit elderly people in nursing homes.
2. Attend live concerts (there are some great ones in our region).
3. Attend the house of worship with which you affiliate.
4. Read a book.
5. Memorize and recite poetry.
6. Write your own poetry.
7. Take a walk.
8. Walk a stretch of highway with a trash bag and pick up litter.
9. Organize a street party so your neighbors can get to know each other.
10. Read the Bible, Torah, Koran, or the texts that provide your ontological bearings and moral compass.
11. Learn to play a musical instrument.
12. Join a community band or ensemble.
13. Sing in a chorus.
14. Join a local theater group.
15. Write a letter to a friend you haven't seen in a long time.
16. Start up a pen-pal relationship.
17. Visit your parents and ask them questions about their lives.
18. Visit your grandparents and ask them questions about their lives.
19. Visit your great-grandparents (if you're lucky) and ask them questions about their lives.
20. Join a fitness center and exercise regularly - healthy body, healthy mind!
21. Plant a tree.
22. Read the U.S. Constitution.
23. Read the Declaration of Independence.
24. Read the Federalist Papers.
25. Read the speeches of Martin Luther King Jr.
26. Read the literary works of people whose skin color, ethnicity, or socio-cultural identity is different from yours.
27. Read and contemplate the writings of people with whom you disagree.
28. Make a new friend.
29. Organize a book club.
30. Attend a local little league baseball game.
31. Attend a local girls' softball game.
32. Support and attend local school events (sports, concerts, musicals), even if your kids aren't in school any longer.
33. Bake a few dozen cookies and visit your neighbors.
34. Bake a pie, brew a pot of coffee, and invite your neighbors to come enjoy it with you.
35. Find a local area that needs some cleaning up, and then CLEAN IT UP!
36. Volunteer to help with a Boy Scout troop.
37. Volunteer to help with a Girl Scout troop.
38. Volunteer to help at the Lumina Center in Lewistown.
39. Organize a food drive to help the hungry in our region.
40. Take up a new hobby.
41. Help some young kids get interested in your new hobby.
42. Take a kid fishing.
43. Offer to take care of a friend's children so the parents can have an evening out.
44. Weed the garden of an elderly neighbor.
45. Do the grocery shopping for a neighbor who can't get around easily.
46. Invent a new game and teach it to some kids.
47. Volunteer to read to children in schools, libraries, and community centers.
48. Help the neighborhood kids set up a lemonade stand or cookie sale so they can learn basic economic principles.
49. Collect items to send to needy children and families around the world.
50. Participate in a church-sponsored mission trip.
How's that for starters? I'll bet you can think of 50 more! If we set about doing just a small fraction of these 50 (and other) possibilities, we'll be so busy we won't have the time or energy to care who is on TV or strutting like a peacock on a red carpet. Writers' Guild strike? Yawn. We didn't notice, and we're much too busy to care.
Kevin Zook
Lewistown