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Columnists

BOB BROWN: “Portraits of the Human Person”

On the night of June 21, 2025, President Donald Trump said all seven B2 Bombers had safely returned from an unprecedented successful attack on Iran’s fortresses of nuclear weapon...

BECKY MAUPIN: The After Bedtime Search

Picture this: You manage to get everyone fed and the dinner aftermath cleaned up. Then...

ROBERT L. MARONIC: Israel’s Second Sum Of All Fears

I first heard about a dirty bomb in early September 1993 when an IBM coworker,...

BOB BROWN: What Happened to Happiness?

We can quibble about the origin, even the definition or meaning of “happiness,” but I’m...

FRED FIRST: Homeward Bound

It would happen: the trip back to Floyd. And then it wouldn’t. And then it...

Mother Nature or Father God?

In a recent Bible study group, a participant was reflecting on the volcano in Iceland that not long ago spewed ash and debris...

One Man’s Treasure Indeed

China provides the U.S. with lots of inexpensive goods.  In return, the U.S. sells back to China many high-end luxury products. Here's a case...

A Perspective on Teachers

It’s that time again – back to school season.  Nearly every advertisement is telling us about hip new fashions and clever new school...

Groundhogs, Bananas, Bluebirds, Peanuts and Other Miracles

It’s a reasonable question to ask: Why do groundhogs love a tropical fruit, bananas? Why do monarch butterflies set forth on...

Recipe of the Week: Watermelon Banana Split

I was cutting a watermelon for a cook-out at my neighbors and it occurred to me very suddenly, that watermelon is such a...

Wretched Bits of Being

In the great outdoors of the Roanoke Valley, have you noticed all those odd yellow, orange, or gray patches on alpine rocks or...