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Opinion

American labor savors successes, faces challenges

Editorials

On this weekend of the national holiday dedicated to the brains and brawn of the American worker, let’s take the pulse of our 170-million-strong U.S. labor force. More and more Americans are actively participating in the labor market. The most recent unemployment rates from July 2026 show only 4.1% of U.S. citizens are unemployed and even fewer Ohioans (3.4%) are out of work. Those percentages have dropped precipitously in recent years with Ohio’s rebounding economy reportedly adding 55,000 jobs this July alone. In addition, more and more of us are producing goods and ...

A message for men over 50

Editorials

The diagnosis was not a surprise — well, yes it was, because like many men with a health issue we try to deny it, or delay treatment when everyone knows that “early detection” is critical to a cure. My PSA (prostate-specific antigen) had been slowly creeping upward for the last two years. When it reached 9.0 along with a Gleason score of 9, my doctor said it was time to do something about it. This meant a prostate biopsy. It came back positive for a cancerous tumor pressing against my rectal wall. Two options were explained to me — a complete removal of the gland, or radiation ...

Were the bombs of August 1945 ‘demonic?’

Editorials

Did demons create the first atomic bombs? Every August, debate renews over both the wisdom and the morality of dropping the two American atomic bombs, 81 years ago, on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima (Aug. 6, 1945) and Nagasaki (Aug. 9, 1945). August 2026 was no exception. As ever, many critics have faulted the United States for the bombings: two gruesome blasts — aimed at dual-use military and industrial targets in both cities — that may have caused some 100,000-120,000 immediate deaths among combatants and civilians. And not all these critics are on the Left. Two years ago, ...

Lesson learned in New Philly

Editorials

A New Philadelphia municipal court’s creative sentence for a 21-year-old’s 17 wildlife crimes is fitting, yes; but also an important reminder to all of us about the boundaries we seem to forget when social media is at our fingertips. According to a Yahoo News report, Carter J. Hickey pleaded guilty to charges involving taking wildlife out of season, hunting without permission, illegally possessing animals, using a vehicle to spotlight and kill wildlife and failure to follow game-check rules. A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service investigation spanned 17 states. That investigation ...

Mayor McDowell, where are the deliverables?

Editorials

Youngstown Mayor Derrick McDowell likes the language of business. Strategy. Transparency. Action. Results. And, perhaps most importantly, deliverables. It is a good word. In fact, it may be the perfect word for evaluating the McDowell administration. Because a deliverable isn’t a vision. It isn’t a listening session. It isn’t a slogan, a social-media post, a committee, a meeting or another promise that something better is coming. A deliverable is something that was promised — and then delivered. Mayor McDowell took office Jan 1. His campaign website laid out an ...