I would respectfully but stridently disagree with Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Bill Gates or anyone else who might suggest that remote learning is an effective way to reimagine education. It has never been more apparent. There is no substitute for a willing student, in the classroom of a good teacher, at ...

This November will mark 28 years since I first set foot on the property I call DUCK! Whether in the grass or on the lake or in the woods (with parts there I have yet to explore), I continue to make new discoveries. That surprises me. Since it’s hardly that large an area, one might think ...

I would like to tell the story of a real American hero, a native of Western New York who played a pivotal role in the American victory over the Japanese in the crucial Naval Battle of Midway an event that we will mark the 78-year anniversary of on Thursday, June 4. Clarence Wade McClusky, ...

Is it any wonder that the skies are a brighter blue and the smog has lifted from our cities? Are the oceans cleaner, the creeks and waterways clearer, the air a little easier to breathe, albeit through a mask? If there has been one positive as a result of the coronavirus it is that the ...

Writing and making public one’s opinions guarantees people will respond. Writers, performers and every human likely desire his or her thoughts, and even their life, to matter to others. The alternative is to become hermits. Like other opinion writers I get my share of positive and negative ...

As a young boy, living in a small town (Gowanda), I spent a lot of time in the summer playing, and yes sleeping at night, in the woods. Right on the edge of town was a woods referred to as the glen, which was our playground day and night. I think that inasmuch as my formative years were ...

Sacrifice is a keep element to consider as we come to another Memorial Day. As we remember those who sacrificed to serve our nation in conflict and gave their all, we also remember others who sacrificed. Now we also use this time to remember our loved ones who have died. May we also remember ...

I offer congratulations and a challenge to the Chautauqua Lake Central School Class of 2020. Everybody feels the disappointment of your class not being able to experience a traditional, formal graduation ceremony. Some of the pomp and circumstance has been “stolen” from you. It seems ...

What’s green — or black, perhaps red or brown? Should we try pink? Or maybe “some other color”? “The Bug Review” continues “these pear-shaped insects are slow moving and range in size from 1/16 to 1/8 inch long. They have conspicuous slender antennae and near the rear end of ...

Let’s meet Aida. She’s 51, gainfully employed until recently, married to Steven for 28 years, and has four grown children together. Three are on their own, two married with young children, and one son living at home. She’s 5 feet 2 inches tall and weighs 138 pounds. She has dark hair ...

For decades, high-tax, big-spending, and big-regulation policies from New York state government have decimated much of New York. These policies have hurt people, particularly young people. Many who grew up here, and benefited from our tremendous schools, have fled New York. Pick any label ...

Thank you to our governor for your valuable advice in recent weeks. We all appreciate knowing that most of our lives and jobs are non-essential. For those who own their own businesses, are furloughed or laid off it is a good thing that we have you, Andrew Cuomo, to tell us that the solution ...

When I was 7-years-old, there was a pond where the local boys usually went for a swim. On this day there were several of us there. I had not yet learned to swim, and carelessly jumped into the water over my head. That was easy to do at age 7 since I was not very tall. I was flailing in the ...

The Manufacturers Association of the Southern Tier and the Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce have been working diligently and with urgency with leaders at the federal, state and local level, our boards of directors and a variety of stakeholders in the community to forge forward ...

Our region in Western New York is a very special place! With its magnificent rolling hills, expansive beautiful valleys, and majestic lake plains .... our region stands out as a wonderland of nature. With our four seasons of the year, there is something very special about our region ... be ...

The emergence of the COVID-19 virus over the last three months has challenged us to think and act differently as physicians and as a medical community. The first phase of this pandemic found us actively scrambling to respond to the health needs of our patients while keeping them safe from ...

Over the past couple of weeks the people of this country, and this area, have been put in front of an impossible, and in my opinion totally made up, dilemma. Either stay safe and deal with an almost certain economic catastrophe, or open up the economy and face serious illness and possible ...

The celebratory date is May 16 and, while I’m writing this at the end of March, that date ranks high on my list of things to look forward to. She might prefer her birthday, which is May 1, and I’m not forgetting that for a moment. My calendar already has the appropriate ...

Since I began writing this column over five years ago, I’ve written time and time again that Chautauqua County and its long-suffering taxpayers can no longer support its many small school districts that place a great strain on taxpayers while still depending on large infusions of state ...

It’s hard for those who have never been wrongly accused of something serious to understand what it’s like. Imagine that happens to you. Unless the accusation pertains to a specific time and place, and you have a convincing alibi, you may well find yourself in the impossible position of ...