Thoughts from Warren doc

September 8, 2015

Some time ago (July 1, 2014) I wrote a community column about a quadriplegic friend of mine, the late Sid Latcham. Almost immediately, Dr. Rolf Nissen wrote me a note that he, too, was a good friend of Sid's. He filled me in on Sid's later life, and I subsequently included that information in a July 11, 2014, community column that told about "what happened then" with Sid.After I wrote about air raid sirens this past July, I heard once again from Dr. Nissen. He told me that the wail of air raid sirens reminded him of the time when he grew up in Berlin, Germany. They heard a lot of air ...

Study of ‘moral psychology’

September 1, 2015

An article recently appeared in our local Tribune announcing a $155,747 grant given for the creation of an institute on "Moral Psychology and Education." The proposed four-week institute geared for college teachers will be co-managed by Deborah Mower, professor of philosophy and religious studies at Youngstown State University. The attempt to link "moral" and "psychology" together caught my attention; this combination is most unusual, but not insignificant. Let me explain.To the average reader, the word psychology is familiar, seeing that it's one of the top college majors in America. As ...

U.S., U.K. politics mirror images

August 29, 2015

LONDON - It's remarkable how often British and American politics resemble each other; often only the accents differ.Following a disastrous defeat at the hands of Prime Minister David Cameron's Tories, the Labour Party appears ready to elect as its next leader, one Jeremy Corbyn, a hardcore leftist, self-described socialist and member of Parliament, who recently compared ISIS to the U.S. military and has called the terrorist group Hamas a "friend." Corbyn also wants to renationalize some British industries and increase taxes on "the rich," who are already paying more than half their ...

El Rio was landmark on Strip

August 25, 2015

EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the second installment of a two-part story about the family-owned El Rio / Fiore's Ristorante.On St. Patrick's Day, March 17, 1946, Vincent Fiore and Tony Prince opened the El Rio restaurant and lounge for business. It was one of the first to provide air conditioning back in the day, when movie theaters like the Robins and the Harris-Warren in downtown Warren were about the only places you could go to escape the summer heat. Remember the blue and white banners that hung below the marquees that advertised "It's Cool Inside?"Vincent Fiore immigrated from Italy in ...

El Rio / Fiore’s Ristorante: Part 1

August 11, 2015

Some time when you're driving southeast on Youngstown Road (422) downhill from Pat Catan's at Ridge Avenue and before you get to Cafe 422, keep glancing to your right. You just might spot a forlorn little red maple tree looking over a newly-leveled and filled-in plot of land. At first, you may not realize it, but that plot of ground was once the site of the El Rio Restaurant, later called Fiore's El Rio, and finally Fiore's Ristorante. Remember?The restaurant specialized in Italian food in spite of its Spanish name, which meant "The River." It was one of the great places to go on "The ...

Joyful times with Mary Joyce

July 28, 2015

The little boy in this story had a wonderful playmate named Mary Joyce when they were both 3 and 4 years old. She had a very deep voice, straight dishwater blonde hair, hazel eyes, a hint of dimples on her cheeks, and a pointy nose. He had very curly hair and was yet to experience his first haircut. It seemed they would be inseparable forever.She lived catty wampus across the street from his house on York Avenue. Living with Mary Joyce were her mom, her bedridden grandmother, her older sister, Esther, her older brother, Richard, and her Uncle Art.Doorbells? Who needs doorbells? These ...