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December 31, 2007
Taking wheel is serious business
Tradition dictates at this time of year that we, along with police and parents, distribute admonitions about the perils of driving under the influence. The perils are so obvious and the solutions so clear, we hardly think the point needs reiterating.December 30, 2007
All hail the fall of the neocons
Here is something worth celebrating at the dawn of a new year: the ebb of neoconservatism, the dread movement that brought us war in Iraq and other lesser maladies.December 25, 2007
Memo to Santa: Here is our list
Having gotten no word back from Santa, we are beginning to question - albeit a tad late - whether he received our letter.December 23, 2007
Religion, again, moves to fore
So here we go again, wading through more pontification, contemplation and consternation about presidential aspirants and their religion. Now that former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has informed us that he would not run the country based on Mormon fiat, fellow Republican contender Mike Huckabee, the other man from Hope, has taken his place in the pundits' spotlight.December 22, 2007
Help needed from business owners
It is encouraging that business leaders worked together to keep alive Waynesboro's annual Christmas in the River City event, which went off without a hitch Friday only weeks after the town's local Main Street group considered shelving it.December 18, 2007
Schools should be controlled locally
Following an issue as it is debated in Washington can be like trying to get a clear view from beneath the water's surface as a river bottom is dredged.December 16, 2007
Visions needed for downtown
Throughout the fall, we have pointed to Waynesboro's abundant potential. Leaders in many communities would relish the opportunity to build on even one of our town's amenities. Almost none could hope to do so in a location as unique as Waynesboro's.December 14, 2007
Augusta strikes careful balance
The quandary for Augusta County officials is considerable: How to maintain the area's rich, rural character and robust agricultural industry while also making way for waves of development in Stuarts Draft and Fishersville-December 09, 2007
Sales stats show Valley’s promise
That the housing slide that has gripped much of the rest of the country has scarcely been palpable here is instructive.December 08, 2007
Mormon Mitt’s faith stale topic
Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney reached for a Kennedy moment Thursday on the topic of personal religion.December 04, 2007
Editorial
Few things in politics - and free societies, for that matter - are more sacred than elections. Fundamental to the process is voters knowing precisely that for which they are voting and why.December 01, 2007
Big bucks give cause for paws
Leave it to our federal judicial system to make it almost possible to conjure sympathy for Michael Vick.November 29, 2007
Bison run herd over playoff foe
A thumbs-up, thumbs-down assessment of newsmakers here and beyond:November 28, 2007
Council clamps down on speech
City Council's decision to limit public comment to three minutes for each speaker is a welcome move in the minds of many, reasonable in the eyes of others who might even disagree in principle and unassailable under the law if applied properly.November 27, 2007
Paul prods GOP back to its roots
Much of 2007 has served as a sort of presidential spring training, with even the weakest of contenders ' like, say, the Washington Nationals or Baltimore Orioles ' fancying a run deep into fall.November 11, 2007
Robertson cuts Faustian deal
It is difficult to conceive of a poorer match for musings on the transcendent than presidential politics.November 07, 2007
In cases of need, council must act
The voters have spoken. Now City Council must respond. In a referendum Tuesday, Waynesboro voters backed stormwater management improvements, a new fire station and a library addition. Ballfield and sidewalk and crosswalk improvements were rejected.November 04, 2007
Getting out vote crucial this time
Turnout for general elections has been on the wane for decades, a reflection of Americans' growing apathy and dissatisfaction with empty promises from elected leaders.October 24, 2007
Megasite silence far from golden
Few principles in government are more basic than this: When officials decide to spend the public's money, the public should know about it.October 21, 2007
Sidewalks plan short on details
The case for spending city money on adding or extending sidewalks, at first glance, seems clear enough. Children who walk to Westwood Hills Elementary School along Rosser Avenue, for example, must cross a busy street. Sidewalks in the area end a block away from the school. Something obviously needs to be done.October 20, 2007
Free press gets important win
Victories for a free press have been rare since President Bush migrated to Pennsylvania Avenue, but journalists scored a big win Tuesday, when the House overwhelmingly approved a bill extending new protections to reporters and their sources.October 16, 2007
Drug program needs repairing
Authorities seizing cash and property from citizens is a dirty business, even when the citizens in question are drug dealers, a group that resides already in society's mire. Police say snatching ill-gotten gains from suspects deprives bad guys of valuable resources. Opponents argue that civil forfeiture programs like Virginia's force people who have not yet been convicted of a crime to prove they have done nothing wrong.October 07, 2007
Let’s unite to fix city’s downtown
The heart of any city is its downtown, regardless of whether other districts or neighborhoods are thriving. The heartbeat in Waynesboro is faint.October 06, 2007
New firehouse should be built
Asking whether to spend money on adding a fire station in a bustling area seems akin to asking whether firefighters should tap a hydrant as flames shoot out a second-story window. Isn't the answer obvious- Well, not quite.October 02, 2007
Soldiers return to another war
Our view of the human cost of war in Iraq will become increasingly more vivid, provided we are willing to look. Waves of soldiers maimed by bullets, bombs and improvised explosive devices are in the final stages of relearning such daily tasks as dressing and feeding themselves. Their next battle: preparing to return to the workplace.September 27, 2007
Kaine’s fed rant ringing hollow
A particularly feisty Gov. Timothy M. Kaine took verbal aim at the federal government Tuesday on the subject of illegal immigration, and he hit the bull's-eye. Almost.September 26, 2007
America loses its civic sense
When school board races go uncontested, it is a fairly safe bet that the district superintendent is pleased. Effectively CEOs, superintendents wield considerable power running districts that are the equivalent of mid-sized businesses, with hundreds of employees and multimillion-dollar budgets. Still, these top administrators must answer to school board officials, who sometimes have altogether different ideas about the way things should be run.September 25, 2007
D-State models smart response
Virginia Tech officials have formed a policy group to decide what to do about a series of recommendations made in the wake of Seung-Hui Cho's April 16 rampage. Perhaps the group's to-do list should include giving their counterparts at Delaware State University a call.September 23, 2007
Prosecutors put justice on hold
Black activists tell us that the case of the so-called Jena Six is evidence of how far America still has to go in realizing Martin Luther King's dream, and maybe they are right. Prosecutors in the small Louisiana town charged five black teenagers with attempted murder in the beating of a white student. Juvenile charges against a sixth black teen were sealed.September 22, 2007
