There are two reasons I can remember some of the details around the Iran-Contra scandal (re: weapons in exchange for hostages) that became public when I was a kid.

There is a move afoot to change the name of Charleston’s Court Street to Martin Luther King Way. A bill to accomplish the switch is on a fast track to the City Council.

Measles. What’s the harm? All us old folks had them. Didn’t kill us and besides, there wasn’t a vaccine until 1963. Probably should just expose the kids to measles and keep them comfortable. That’s the view of at least some anti-vaccine activists within our community posting on Facebook. The…

Reuters reports, “Support for U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren dropped nationally to its lowest level in four months, and nearly one in three potential Democratic primary voters say they do not know which candidate to pick with the first nominating contests less than t…

With the Thanksgiving holiday summarily packed away, along with the memory of turkey and the trimmings, America moves on to the season of giving.

Do you have deer in your yard? I have deer in my yard. I live in South Charleston, and there are more deer on our street than there are in Tucker County.

Hey there. Member of Generation X, here.

Elizabeth Warren had great momentum for a while. Then her poll numbers leveled and fell. The standard explanation is that the Democrat’s “Medicare for All” plan comes across as too radical — both the price and the part that would force over 150 million Americans off their employers’ private …

There was a time when Republicans were against tariffs, mainly because they invoked unintended consequences. And now that the Trump administration has levied many new tariffs, he is proving Reagan, Bush and Eisenhower right. Here are details.

In her diary entry for July 15, 1944, Anne Frank wrote words that would harrow and challenge generations not yet born: “I still believe, in spite of everything, that people are truly good at heart.”

We all know that fresh water is essential for life. During recent decades, careless industrial usage, industrial agriculture and poor waste management caused significant damage to earth’s largest aquifers.

The focus here isn’t President Donald Trump. He is a creature unto himself. Rather, this is about his spineless political party, which stands mute, or even supportive, as he breaks U.S. military discipline, morale and leadership.

Reporters dug into the details of Gov. Jim Justice’s announcement on Monday that the “number of West Virginians who have jobs is now the highest it’s been in more than a decade.” Justice claimed that 19,000 more people were working in the state than a year ago.

To look at me now, you’d think the only time I ever run is when I’m being chased by someone with an ax, or maybe by a bear. You’d be right.

I hesitate to remind you that Thanksgiving was once a partisan issue, but you might find this useful to divert weird uncle Emmitt from talking impeachment during Thanksgiving dinner.

Given the tumult in the realm of government and politics, the dire state of the local newspaper industry might seem minor.

Do you have any friends who are serious artists? Would you like to wind them up and watch their heads explode? Tell them you like Bob Ross.

In past centuries, anarchists have taken various forms. Often, they have been left-wing groups, such as the SLA, SDS and the Weathermen in the 1960s.

While half of us are fixated on the incessant impeachment inquiry and the other half are fixated on avoiding the incessant impeachment inquiry, my thoughts turned to the wall. Yes, that wall. The one being built on our southern border. How’s that going? Here’s what I found.

It didn’t take long during the second day of public impeachment hearings, in which the House Intelligence Committee was questioning former Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch, to get not one, not two, but three examples of how President Donald Trump undermines those who try to defend him.

I’d like to personally bop over the head the next Democrat who says that Michael Bloomberg shouldn’t be running for president because he’s a billionaire. Let’s give thanks that a simple-minded dismissal of rich candidates didn’t sink FDR’s chances.

Nearly 15 years ago, comedian and singer/songwriter Stephen Lynch released the song “Little Tiny Mustache” on a live album. The ballad follows the first-person perspective of a dull-witted boyfriend who begins to put things together, realizing his girlfriend is a white supremacist and he nee…

Journalists — the good ones, at least — are always walking the line between unsparing truth-telling and sensitivity to those affected by their work.

It might seem strange to learn that you can save your soul by going to Oklahoma.

On Oct. 14, 27-year-old Freda Gibson was punitively arrested by the Charleston Police Department. According to her family, not only does she have special needs, but they are planning to sue over the incident.

Believe it or don’t, but political conversation isn’t one of my favorite things. I’m comfortable discussing politics, and I’m comfortable writing about the subject. I spend plenty of time doing both of those things, because I think it’s important.

In 2016, the West Virginia Legislature repealed the state’s prevailing wage law, which set pay standards for workers on public construction projects.

Two times within two years, I’ve had my House of Delegates member picked for me. Being that I was considered as a potential candidate and participated in the interview process in 2018, I have a recommendation for a better way to fill the seat. Why? So, the selected delegate ends up beholden …

The latest Washington Post-ABC News poll should send a shudder through the Republican Party. Only 38 percent of Americans approve of President Donald Trump’s performance, while 58 percent disapprove, 48 percent strongly so. The majority of the poll was taken after the killing of Abu Bakr al-…

Congressional Republicans, aghast that the process they devised to investigate Benghazi is being applied to one of their own, appear on the verge of collapsing onto their fainting couches as they indignantly claim that the process is unconstitutional. If their hypocrisy bothers them, it does…

On Oct. 25, Rep. Alex Mooney, R-W.Va., bragged about his and other lawmakers’ intrusion into the impeachment inquiry hearings by tweeting “Great coverage of my efforts to expose the secret, Soviet-style impeachment process. All West Virginians and the press have a right to know what is takin…

A couple of weeks ago, the little guy had his first real soccer scrimmage. I wasn’t sure what to expect. He doesn’t yet have a great interest in any particular sport and is at an age where explaining rules and objectives is probably pretty boring for him.

Thirty years ago this fall, the savings and loan crisis penetrated America’s living rooms. Televised hearings of the House Banking Committee investigated the political might and corruption masterminded by Charles Keating Jr., one of the nation’s most powerful business executives.

To my taste, it was only mildly newsworthy that Gov. Jim Justice’s family farms got $125,000 in federal agricultural subsidies in recent months. The story, broken by Anthony Izaguirre of The Associated Press last week, got legs and ran in many outlets around the country.

An average is the best of the worst, and the worst of the best. So, is the average increase in inflation as reflected in the Consumer Price Index (CPI-W) an adequate amount of change in Social Security benefits for seniors? I don’t think so. Here’s the deal.

It increasingly seems that the fate of Donald Trump’s presidency will be settled by that old political standby: public opinion.

There are moments when the U.S. Capitol feels like a sanctified space, a holy temple dedicated to ideals that transcend the partisan squabbles of the politicians who work there. The enormous paintings that tell the story of America, normally like wallpaper to those who work in the building, …

It’s not yet November, and the New Year’s resolutions have already begun. Or maybe they’re just now kicking in.

Along the East River, which is not really a river (it is a 16-mile-long tidal estuary), perhaps 20,000 people actually chose to spend a gorgeous autumn afternoon last Saturday listening to socialist Bernie Sanders, who is not really a socialist — he just wants to confiscate capitalism’s boun…

Sit back and allow me to regale you with the astounding tales of heroism concerning the amazing, spectacular Gary America.

I usually enjoy holiday customs and rituals, especially those sanctioned by age and tradition.

In her post-mortem on Hillary Clinton’s failed candidacy, Donna Brazile noted that her students at Georgetown University truly disliked identity politics.

Isn’t it obvious that seat belts are needed in school buses? Yet, there are no state or federal regulations mandating them. And the West Virginia Department of Education doesn’t require them on newly purchased buses. What’s up? The issue is more complex than it seems. Here’s my take.

No one has worked more aggressively to trigger impeachment than the president. You may remember that, during the campaign, then-candidate Donald Trump suggested that, should he win, he might become one of the most “boring” presidents in history. There was in this curious pledge — which, as w…

The Fifth Avenue Murder Theory now faces its toughest test.

We’ve seen this movie before. The top economists at the International Monetary Fund — the global agency created after World War II to promote stability and growth in the world economy — unveil their latest forecast, which is almost always weaker than its previous forecast. The economists hol…

Presidential aspirant Beto O’Rourke, thrashing about in an attempt to be noticed, says tax exemptions should be denied to churches and other institutions that oppose same-sex marriage. O’Rourke’s suggestion, and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s plan to tax the “excessive” exercise of a …

I am willing to be adopted by Joe Biden, if that will lead to a board of directors’ position at $50,000 a month. Doubtless, candidate Biden’s political status was a key to Hunter Biden’s success. However, not content to let the relatively benign Biden incident stand, Donald Trump manufacture…

It was 1984. I doubt very much Big Brother was watching.

Public opinion exploded last week after Charleston Mayor Amy Goodwin decided to rename the city’s Christmas Parade. She explained it was going to be called the Winter Parade because the new name would make it more inclusive.