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How the free press helped free America

Editor’s Note: Brenda J. Linert’s column, “From the editor’s desk,” will return July 28. “Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.” — Thomas Paine, “American Crisis” This week, as I do around July 4 every year, I pondered on the bravery and nobility of our Founding Fathers and marveled at their wisdom to protect the freedom of the press. I have always thought that, without a free press, the authors of the Constitution would have had a hard time protecting any ...

Projects with the highest return on investment

Are you looking to remodel your home? Remodelers across the country took a hit last summer as the cost of building materials spiked dramatically, and the picture for 2019 isn’t much rosier, according to RIS Media. The percentage of return on investment (ROI) is projected to trend downward for all the replacement projects listed in Remodeling magazine’s newly released Cost vs. Value Report. Larger indoor remodel projects took a hit as well, but weren’t impacted as greatly as replacement projects as they rely more on labor costs rather than material costs. Nationally, here are the ...

We are now in the land of opportunity zones

Special to the Tribune Chronicle We start this column out by saying that everything written here needs to be discussed with your accountant or financial adviser before you talk to your Realtor. Thousands of people build wealth through ownership of real estate and defer or avoid paying income taxes on it. All of this is legal under the IRS code, but there are rules you must follow. The rules drastically improved in 2017 for the Mahoning Valley. The question is “Can we leverage it to make things better here?” Let’s start with your home. If you buy a home and live in it as ...

Education is the ticket up

As a former human resources professional, I have read a lot of resumes and job applications and helped make a myriad of decisions about whom to hire. Many times the decision was difficult because there were plenty of qualified prospects and any one of the finalists could do the job well. But, increasingly, employers are struggling to find qualified employees. They’re looking to hire individuals with strong educational backgrounds and sound technical skills. Oftentimes today, if an applicant doesn’t have a credential or a 2-year or 4-year degree, he or she doesn’t even get ...

It’s not too late to go back to class

According to current research, up to 65 percent of the jobs that children entering elementary school today will end up doing havenát even been invented yet. That's an exciting thought but also a disquieting one. The statistic has tremendous implications for what we need to be teaching children, and also for what today's adult workers need to do to stay competitive for good jobs. New jobs and new job requirements are being created now. To help the citizens of our state keep up with the changing world of work, Ohio has established a goal: by 2025, 65 percent of all working-age adults ...

County needs Rockwell, Butler

SMH. I’m not a fan of social media abbreviations. But lately even I have been using “SMH” — shaking my head — to the point I feel like a living bobblehead doll. The latest SMH took place when I learned that Foundation Medici intends to sever its operating agreement with the Butler Institute of American Art. The idea stems from one disagreement over an issue that could rectify itself with calm and collected people sitting at a table like leaders should. The issue, of course, is the Butler’s board in January tabling action to bring Norman Rockwell’s collection of Boy ...