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Columnists

BOB BROWN: Decoding the New “Structure of Feeling”

This is the time to marshal up hope for the New Year. Hope is wanting something to happen or be true, with a reasonable expectation that it will, but...

ROBERT L. MARONIC: The Heroism Of Ahmed Al-Ahmed At Bondi Beach In Sydney, Australia

Not all Muslims are bad people. In fact, most Muslims are good and decent people....

DAWN CUSTALOW: THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD

For all who wait For all who hunger For all who’ve prayed For all who wonder Behold... Christmas is...

SCOTT DREYER: Christmas Through the Eyes of a Child

As adults, it is important to think of what messages we are giving the children...

FRED FIRST: Birds of a Feather

We were invited to join some geologist-birder friends for an outing last week that would...

From The Older Brother’s Room

“The Roanoke Valley is a great place to raise a family.”  I hear that statement a lot.  As a father to four children...

Will Wars Ever End?

by Hayden Hollingsworth President Obama announced last week that the war in Iraq will end on December 31.  That this came as a surprise...

Celebrating Mediocrity

by Keith McCurdy Recently a friend told me a story about his son’s football banquet.  As my friend put it, they weren’t even close...

A Great Line Can Always Be Improved

by Mike Keeler Take, for example, the Battle of Trafalgar, fought 206 years ago this week.  Horatio Nelson had been ordered to find and...

Wilson Memorial – A Unique High School

by Mary Jo Shannon In September 1948, students from four Augusta County high schools were joined together in one huge consolidated high school.  That...

Fed by Ravens by Gary Robbins

When I was a youngster, I would sometimes find myself outside in late April or early May when it began to rain.  These...