In an age where there are all sorts of cure-alls on the Internet, Facebook, Twitter and other social media communications topics, one thought goes unaddressed: loneliness. During my 36 years in chemical dependency counseling and mental health work, loneliness goes unaddressed. There is no ...

What positive achievements has the Dunkirk Common Council completed in the past year? I have asked myself, residents and other community members this question since November. I wanted to be sure I was not the only person who could not come up with a meaningful answer. One common answer I did ...

The power of the story of renewable energy is right there in the Dunkirk OBSERVER’s headline Jan. 14: “Cuomo pushing for more renewable energy to help economy, fight global warming.” Of course we must fight climate change, and yes, investment in renewable energy manufacturing and ...

Suspecting its demise might be imminent, I feel it time to revisit my lemon plant. (Do I call it a tree? Or a bush? Or, simply, more accurately, a nuisance?) In spite of my usual superb record-keeping, I was unable to find anything on its origins. Oh, just looking in the wrong book: April 24, ...

All the creatures on earth spend their lives foraging for food — unless they are domestically kept and fed — sleep, and breed in season. Only humans have the capacity to worry or plan for tomorrow, to understand their situation, and govern their activities beyond the few mentioned above. ...

Today is a day to celebrate a great man. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a man of vision and who lived each day knowing that in order to affect change, one must be willing to change as well. Dr. King said, “change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous ...

We hear much about the US Supreme Court these days. The under-girding purpose of the American judiciary is to interpret the laws of the land in light of their constitutionality. This underlying function is vital to the maintenance of our Republic and to sustain the blessings of liberty to ...

Recent letters by those who promote offshore wind turbines in Lake Erie (Jan. 9) make assumptions and comparisons that deserve questions. Lake Erie wind may be abundant and free, but machinery needed to convert it to electricity is expensive, unreliable and environmentally disastrous. ...

Antifa. Where does this word come from? Literally, it means Against Fascism. What is fascism? The Nazis, were fascist. They believed white people (Arians) had a God-given duty to enslave or exterminate everyone else. In the 1920s and ’30s Germany was in terrible shape. They lost World ...

The crackdown and overreaction to last week’s Capitol Hill riot is so lacking in proportionality as to constitute pure pretext for what has and will continue to follow. In the last few years, there have been widespread riots, two attempted coups, and an election awash in fraud. Following ...

In response to Richard Makuch’s column of Dec. 14 headlined “Working for dream is no privilege,” I would like to point out that his discussion not only is illogical, but also shows a profound misunderstanding of the concept of “white privilege.” In his column, he describes the ...

A recent article in the OBSERVER was headlined “New York attorney general seeks to dissolve the NRA.” The New York attorney general sued the National Rifle Association, seeking to put the powerful gun advocacy organization out of business over claims that top executives used monies for ...

What a fool I am. I thought this Christmas was going to be different. Christmas 2020 was going to be the Christmas where I finally had obtained the perfect gift for my wife. I had visions of my wife becoming uncontrollable in never before experienced joy when she unwrapped the world’s most ...

I have been around this country now for many decades. Yet, I have never witnessed a sadder day in our history than this past Wednesday when a mob took control of the United States Capitol building. It was made especially sad because it was incited and supported by the President of the United ...

This is in response to the commentary noting turbines in Lake Erie would be “irresponsible.” (Dec. 26). To tell you the truth, my first thought on reading the commentary on wind turbines in Lake Erie was, huh? Climate change won’t be mitigated by renewable wind power? Turbines are a ...

Trust me, dear reader, I know nobody likes to listen to anyone else describe their ailments and maladies. It’s quite acceptable to go on (and on) about our own – that no one else wants to have to listen to. Got it? I do. BUT Twice this year I have ended up in Westfield at their ...

I would be remiss if I didn’t start this article with a sincere wish that everyone may have a very happy and prosperous New Year. May this pandemic that has taken over our minds, soon be quickly dissolved. Throughout my adult life I have not endorsed any particular church doctrine, ...

Resourcefulness appears to be one of the common threads that run through the tapestry of life. I remember well the frigid, blustery and wind driven snows during the winters of my youth back in the Depression days of the mid 1930s. Our family farm home was located in the Boston Hills of ...

Many believe solar power is better than using fossil fuels for energy. They argue solar technology has the potential to help the environment and make communities more energy independent. Federal and state incentives have also made renewable energy very attractive to developers. As with any ...

Begging your pardon, but I fear President Donald Trump is not done with his yet. There is more chaos to come. Trump began using his pardon power very early in his term. One of the first was “America’s toughest sheriff” Joe Arpaio, known for his cruel treatment of immigrants. Trump ...