Breaking News

Letters to the Editor

McGuffey Reader can help today’s kids

DEAR EDITOR: Youngstown and Ohio face a persistent literacy challenge, with only 35% of fourth graders reading at grade level, and worse results among eighth graders. While new mandates focus on the “Science of Reading,” we should also consider proven methods from the past — specifically, the McGuffey Reader. Created by William Holmes McGuffey, a former Ohio University president, these readers shaped generations of literate, thoughtful and morally grounded citizens. For over a century, they formed the backbone of American education, selling over 120 million copies and ...

Modern Medici against feudal globalism

DEAR EDITOR: Donald Trump’s economic vision echoes that of Cosimo de’ Medici, the 15th-century Florentine banker who used wealth and commerce not just to build an empire, but to stabilize and empower the middle class. Like Cosimo, Trump promotes a policy of national mercantilism — favoring domestic industry, strategic protectionism, and capital reinvestment over the diffuse power structures favored by globalist elites. Under Trump, America first meant manufacturing first. This mirrors Cosimo’s model of using state-influenced capital to fuel internal economic development, ...

Consider donating to Mathews playground

DEAR EDITOR: My name is Madelyn Fetty and I am a second grader at Mathews Elementary School. This is the first year kindergarten through fifth grade all go to the same building. At Currie, which was closed last summer, we had a wooden jungle gym to climb with monkey bars, a fireman pole, and a slide. We also had a ball court, a pretend car and a big set of swings. But at this school they added a primary playground for K-2 with only a small wooden bus and train that no one is allowed to climb on. Several parts have fallen off. Since there is not enough room, the second ...

Where have we heard this before?

DEAR EDITOR: It was toward the end of Barack Obama’s time in the Oval Office and a rabble of Obama’s White House staff was having a gabfest on “The Charlie Rose Snow,” a PBS program of exalted reputation. It was about the eight years of a scandal-free presidency. A chorus of laughter broke out after that statement. They chuckled because they were all in on the joke that nothing was ever leaked to the public. It’s deja vu again with Joe Biden’s four-year White House reign of absurdity. JAMES COLLINS Newton Falls

Shades of ‘Fahrenheit 451’ in Portage County

DEAR EDITOR: I was appalled to recently learn that the Portage County Sheriff has taken to helping himself to free copies of a local Portage County newspaper (The Portager) and burning them in a fire pit for enjoyment. To make matters worse, he has encouraged his supporters to engage in the same misconduct. The sheriff tried to justify his behavior by claiming he dislikes the work of one of the reporters employed by the newspaper. In the dystopian novel, “Fahrenheit 451,” the people who burned books were referred to as “firemen.” Sheriff Bruce Zuchowski may not be a ...

Why put off the inevitable with dam?

DEAR EDITOR: At some point in time, someone is going to have to pay for the repair/replacement of the Leavittsburg dam. The choice is very clear. You have a dam that serves no useful purpose anymore. It is 116 years old with a useful life of 100 years. Eventually It will need major repair or removal at county expense. You can have it professionally removed by a company that has successfully done this in the past. They will remove the pollutants and allow the river to revert to its natural state. This will all be done at NO COST to the county. OR you can do nothing, allowing a ...