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Thank you to our local first responders

Editorials

Those who live in places such as Washington and Monroe counties know their local first responders are often doing the job because they love their communities — and for very little other reward. They never know what they might encounter here. On Monday, the emergency was an orphaned well explosion inside the Wayne National Forest that injured six people — five of them critically. Responding to the scene were the Reno, Grandview Township, Sardis, Little Muskingum and Newport volunteer fire departments and the Marietta Fire Department. Once the flames were extinguished and injured ...

Hoping students thrive with the Team Tressel Fitness Challenge

Editorials

Ohio is getting ahead of the game in terms of student fitness with a new plan from the lieutenant governor. The Team Tressel Fitness Challenge for students in grades 4-8 is a program developed by Jim Tressel — who has some experience in keeping students fit and healthy. “If we can add just a little better fitness and health, it will make us that much better,” Tressel said Monday. His idea is a solid one. Rather than outdated and intimidating goals that might throw a young person off track, the Team Tressel Fitness Challenge would let students pick their own activities and set ...

Back to the buckeye state

Editorials

Ohio State University isn’t letting its former President E. Gordon Gee rest for long, after his departure as president of West Virginia University. They’ve asked him to return to Columbus for a one-year consulting role. According to a report by The Columbus Dispatch, that role will include working with OSU’s new Salmon P. Chase Center to recruit faculty and increase the center’s presence on campus and nationally. Chase was Abraham Lincoln’s secretary of the treasury and later the sixth chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, serving in that role until his death in 1873. ...

‘Homelessness is everyone’s problem’

Editorials

It takes teamwork to tackle some challenges, and those taking part in a new Washington County effort no doubt understand they are stronger together as they work to connect those experiencing homelessness with the resources and county agencies that can provide support for them. The Washington County Homeless Outreach Team is being facilitated by the Washington County Behavioral Health Board and includes law enforcement, medical providers, social service organizations and behavioral health specialists. “Our mission is simple but powerful – to improve the well-being of individuals ...

It’s God’s will for you to grow up

Life

By Mark Wilmoth Would you like to know God’s plan for your life? About 40 years ago a respected Bible scholar, Knofel Staton, wrote How To Know The Will of God. In his book, Staton taught that God’s will for your life is revealed in Scripture. Here’s what God wants for you: First, you are to exercise dominion over the creation. In Genesis 1:28 (NIV), God instructs humanity to “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” Thought must be ...

Is our drinking water safe from fracking brine?

Letters to the Editor

At a special meeting on July 29, the Marietta City Council heard testimony from experts on the risks of expanding a brine injection facility by DeepRock Disposal Solutions LLC, located just outside of Marietta. The chamber was filled beyond capacity with residents voicing concern. The planned expansion is designed to take in more fracking brine and “other” waste from West Virginia and Pennsylvania, where injection permits supposedly cannot be obtained as easily. Fracking brine comes from the drilling of natural gas wells in shale layers. It is a residue that must be treated or ...