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Columnists

BOB BROWN: The American Flag

All my life, I’ve loved the American flag. I was taught there is something special about our flag, that it is never trampled upon in war or peace, and...

ROBERT L. MARONIC: There Is No Need For A U.S. Ground War In Venezuela

The easiest way to overthrow Nicolás Maduro, the narco-terrorist dictator of Venezuela, is to finance an insurgency....

SCOTT DREYER: Lincoln’s Thanksgiving Proclamation

Americans celebrate Thanksgiving today, and along with Canadians in October, are the only people on...

DAWN CUSTALOW: Pocahontas Reframed and Thanksgiving

I just returned from the 9th annual Pocahontas Reframed film festival 2025 in Richmond, VA,...

SCOTT DREYER: “Forgive Me When I Whine”

This poem, of unclear authorship, reportedly comes from the dark Great Depression days of the...

Changing of the Carilion Guard

by Hayden Hollingsworth I remember when Nancy Agee, then Nancy Howell, was a first-year student nurse at the erstwhile Roanoke Memorial School of nursing.  She...

The Corvair-Powered Microbus

by John Robinson I loved that bus. It was one of the coolest vehicles I could imagine, and I should know; I was crazy about cars....

Independence Day – A Celebration of Self Reliance

by Keith McCurdy So what does the 4th of July mean to you?  The other day my daughter and I were coming down Grandin...

A Husband’s Diary – Entry #2

by Lucky Garvin We do things differently.  If we're going out, I get dressed once.  She averages 6-8 changes. "Does this match, Gahvin?" "I...

Recipe of the Week – Happy’s Super Hot Salsa

by Leigh Sackett I made this salsa Tuesday night on a whim. It turned out to be really delicious but HOT! I love spicy things...

All Trails Lead to Blue Ridge Mountains

by Fred First A city girl, my mother used to say wistfully that she was born with the country in her bones. I lived, early...