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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...

Wounded Warriors Last Battle

With Veterans Day this month, my thoughts turn to a presentation made recently at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Salem. A nurse...

Talking Turkey – Very Long Distance

One November day long ago, our older son Harry, called home from UVA with an unusual request—“Mom, can you tell me how to...

“What Opportunity Would You Have Me Seize?”

At a recent football game, one team was yards away from scoring when the other team intercepted the ball and ended up winning...

Candied Walnuts

I was at the grocery store and I saw that all the holiday nuts were out and the apple cider. It made me...

Short Tales From the ER . . .

W hen he began to practice medicine, the only office Dr. Williams could afford was a small room over a saloon. A wooden sign ...

The Last Straw!

by H. Bruce Rinker, Ph.D. Recently, I’ve wondered about our seeming national obsession with hand-sanitizers, plastic drinking straws, and other products of a pampered,...