back to top

Columnists

ROBERT L. MARONIC: A $1 Trillion Defense Budget Could Soon Bankrupt The U.S.

Rich Lowry, the editor of the National Review, wrote a column in the New York Post on April 11, entitled “Unless we spike military spending — and FAST — the next...

FRED FIRST: The Bitter-sweet Memory of Smells

This bit of writing (which was also a radio essay on WVTF) comes from February...

BOB BROWN: Anger, Forgiveness, and Atonement

Every poll from Gallup to Pew Research Group confirms that anger is engulfing America. We...

FRED FIRST: Small Wonder

This is all I’ve got: a few unremarkable images and some brief words about them....

ROBERT L. MARONIC: Stop Bullying Denmark and Greenland

The last time that the U.S. seriously wanted to purchase Greenland from Denmark was in...

The Recipe of the Week from The Happy Chef: End of Summer Vegetable Casserole

By Leigh Sackett I don’t think of summer as being just a "season" . . .   or even a state of mind -...

Planning for School Success – A Very Good Idea

Now, I am not saying that summer is almost over, but, school IS just around the corner.  Many kids in the area return to...

Growing Up In Prison

Most of my friends are unaware that I spent the summer in prison before moving to Roanoke in 1953. During my senior year at...

Preacher’s Corner: The Bread of Life – What Is It?

One of the strange things about us is that we have difficulty talking about what we find to be most important. And, the...

Health Care for Everyone: There Is No Quick Fix

Most believe that everyone should be covered by health insurance.  From that point on, no one agrees about anything.  That there are huge arguments...

Dr. Dad’s Not Always Right, But He Usually Gets Close

The hallmark of a truly great newspaper column is the ability to weave the important national and international issues of our day into the...