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Pats on the Back

- To leaders of the Ohio District Council of Pentecostal Churches, which spent the week in Ohio County for its January Conference. That week including helping serve meals and donating care packages and clothing to those in need at the Soup Kitchen of Greater Wheeling. - To former Intelligencer sports editor Doug Huff, who was recently included in MaxPrep’s list of the top 25 most influential people in high school football history. He joined a list that included President Teddy Roosevelt, Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, football legends Red Grange and Jim Thorpe and ...

Tax Cuts Should Come Cautiously

Gov. Patrick Morrisey is right to note West Virginians are “feeling the impact of inflation,” as he pointed out Monday. “People know that groceries cost more. Gas has (cost) more. Utilities have (cost) more,” he said. It is easy, then, to understand why he wants to find a way to do something about that by speeding up the state’s path to already approved cuts, and is proposing reducing the state’s personal income tax rates by between 5% and 10%. It’s exciting talk, but once lawmakers dig into the idea, they will likely have to pump the brakes. Revenue from the personal ...

A Good Use Of Airport

The Ohio County Commission got some good news this week for the Wheeling-Ohio County Airport, as Marshall University has agreed to offer aviation classes for the general public at the airport. Ohio County Commission President Zach Abraham said the goal of the new program is to bring more takeoffs and landings of planes to the airport, he explained. This should also result in a greater sale of fuel there and use of mechanic resources on site. When Marshall and West Liberty universities originally agreed to put a branch of MU’s Bill Noe Flight School at the airport, this is exactly ...

Xylazine A Danger In The Ohio Valley

It is breathtaking to watch the manner in which the substance abuse epidemic in our region continues to evolve. Just last month, officials in Gallia County, Ohio, warned a growing danger has reared its head — Xylazine. The powerful veterinary sedative, which is, of course, not intended for human use at all, has been found in the region; sometimes mixed with fentanyl and other opioids. This is a drug meant for large animals such as horses. There is no safe dosage of “tranq” for humans. In fact, overdosing is all too easy. The Gallia County Health Department says symptoms of an ...

Tobacco Remains a Health Hazard in West Virginia

Initiatives such as the Mountaineer Mile walking program or efforts against certain food dyes and sugary sodas may have West Virginians thinking more about their health habits these days, but a report last month from the West Virginia Tobacco Use Prevention and Cessation Task Force suggests we’ve got a long way to go to tackle our unusually high tobacco product usage rates. Tobacco and nicotine product use here is among the highest in the country, with MORE West Virginians (10.1%) reporting use in 2023 than in 2022 (9.3%). “While the use of traditional tobacco products in the ...

Fitting Honor for Cross

The Brooke County Prosecutor’s Office now bears the name of the man who held that position longer than anyone — a fitting honor for someone who spent decades representing the county in court. Last week, the prosecutor’s office was dedicated to former prosecutor David B. Cross, who was in that role for 33 years. That’s the longest anyone in West Virginia has held the elected office of county prosecutor. For more than three decades, Cross not only presented countless criminal cases to the local justice system, but also served as legal counsel to both the Brooke County ...