Columns

Two Fridays ago, on April 29, the Ellwood City Area Public Library hosted an authors’ fair. There were 22 published authors, which only represented about half of the total authors in the area. That alone is an impressive figure, and it was matched by a decent turnout of supportive Ellwoodians. Even though my current literary ambitions are on a hiatus, I appreciate the recognition from the community, as I’m sure my 21 colleagues do. Becoming a published author is no easy task. Getting published by a major publishing house is a nigh unobtainable feat. First, you have to write a…

Harriet Tubman is scheduled to replace Andrew Jackson on the front of the $20 bill in 2020. Americans around the nation will now be putting their germs on her face. I’ve always thought of the $20 bill as the iconic American bill. It’s what the bank gives you by default when you take cash out, it’s a convenient amount of currency and it’s the most commonly counterfeited bill inside the country. Now, who is on our currency is all about symbolism. There are no shortage of important Americans to choose from and only six faces get picked (not counting $2…

[Statements, opinion, and views expressed in this column are those of the author named and are not necessarily those of the EllwoodCity.org and Thought Process Enterprises team.] Tuesday is an exciting election here in Pennsylvania. By this time, the primaries in both parties are usually decided but come Tuesday, voters in either party have a choice between two candidates still running pitched campaigns. If we match the national trend, there will be a larger than average voter turnout, which in a democracy, is an essential aspect of government. This will be the first primary I vote in and first election…

A bill to legalize medical marijuana in Pennsylvania passed through the House and is under review by the Senate. You can read about it here. The legality of cannabis by state varies, but suffice to say Pennsylvania remains in the minority of 11 states that haven’t legalized any form of the cannabis plant. A poll in October indicated that 90 percent of Pennsylvanians favor medical cannabis prescribed through a doctor. I’m for legalizing medical marijuana. I’m for legalizing recreational marijuana. However, cannabis is not merely illegal under Federal law, its classification as a Schedule I substance means it has been…

The Lincoln High School food service policy is okay. Not great. Not bad. It’s just okay. The brief summary of the food service policy is that students in grades 7-12 with a delinquent account of $6.75, which is about three meals, can’t eat lunch. This, as I understand, doesn’t apply to free or reduced lunches. Those students’ meals are funded by the Federal government, so the district gets reimbursed. On one side, people feel that all students should get a meal and hungry students is a tragedy. On the other end, people say it’s a matter of responsibility for parents…

“It’s our property because we’re the tax payers,” said every American at some in their life. Upon first thought, this argument seems solid or at least something you can throw at elected officials when they make a decision you don’t like. After all, public property is for public use. Our tax dollars pay to upkeep it and we elect people to oversee the use of it, so we expect that when we want to use it, we can. However, it’s a bit more involved than it simply being “our property.” We pay taxes for the US government to manufacture stealth…

[Statements, opinion, and views expressed in this column are those of the author named and are not necessarily those of the EllwoodCity.org and Thought Process Enterprises team.] [The following review contains no spoilers.] I didn’t have high expectations for “The Force Awakens.” I’ve learned over the years that setting the bar too high leads to sitting in the theater in confused disappointment as the credits roll. After all, how good could a seventh movie in a series be, especially compared to the incomparable glory of the original trilogy? I can’t say I’ve been waiting 30 years for “The Force Awakens,”…