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Columnists

ROBERT L. MARONIC: Is Phase Two Of Trump‘s Peace Plan In The Gaza Strip Doomed To Fail? – Part I

Phase one of Trump‘s twenty-point peace plan in the Gaza Strip, which began on October 9, called for a ceasefire, cessation of military operations, along with a hostage and prisoner...

FRED FIRST: Approaching the Longest Night

Yes, you’re right—if you’ve even noticed—that this space has been neglected for some weeks now,...

A Life Well-Lived: Shirley Padgett Lester (1947-2025)

Shirley Padgett Lester of Vinton went to her heavenly reward October 4. Below is the...

BOB BROWN: How the White House Functioned With a Diminished Biden “Presidency”

Permit me to think out loud as an old-fashioned person who respects authority, history, and...

JOHNNY ROBINSON: The Gratitude Perch

On the old road up Mill Mountain, part of Roanoke’s fabulous greenway system, there’s a...

SCOTT DREYER: “Forgive Me When I Whine”

This poem, of unclear authorship, reportedly comes from the dark Great Depression days of the 1930s. How easy it is to throw a pity...

BOB BROWN: Recent Sale of Brooklyn Bridge, Part Two

In 2025, America’s fertility rate reaches a historic low, while Muslim and Arab communities maintain larger family growth. These groups have bigger households than...

ROBERT L. MARONIC: Trump‘s Decision To Release The Epstein Files Is Overdue

I read an article in the New York Post on November 16 entitled “Trump says House Republicans should vote to release Epstein files in stunning reversal: “‘Nothing...

ANDY PITZER: Amtrak Trek: Lake Shore Limited/Southwest Chief/Empire Builder

NYC TO CHI: Lakeshore Limited (NY, MA, PA, OH, IN, IL) The first leg of the Amtrak train trip out west from NYC to Chicago (Lake Shore...

BOB BROWN: The Recent Sale of the Brooklyn Bridge, Part One

The 2025 election results in New York, New Jersey, Virginia, and Seattle are troubling to me, a student of the human mind. The election...

ROBERT L. MARONIC: Trump’s “Great Gatsby Party” At His Mar-a-Lago Club on October 31 Was In Poor Taste

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, is our country’s largest anti-hunger program for men, women, and children. 42 million poor Americans lost their...