Feb 2, 2024 3 min read

HIT: In the three years since the bedlam of Jan. 6, 2021, there’s been a conscious attempt by those on the political right to play down what happened. They suggest it was merely a “protest,” things got out of hand, and those who have been convicted and jailed because of their actions on that day are now “hostages.” Refreshingly, U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth, who serves on the Washington, D.C., bench and was appointed by President Ronald Reagan, has heard just about enough. Lamberth said in a recent court filing, “In my 37 years on the bench, I cannot recall a time when such meritless justifications of criminal activity have gone mainstream.” He further wrote that he has been “shocked to watch some public figures try to rewrite history,” and that such efforts are “preposterous.” Lamberth also warned that he fears “such destructive, misguided rhetoric could presage further danger to our country.” Lamberth deserves credit for reminding everyone that participants in the riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, should be objects of disdain and contempt, not held up as heroes.

HIT: The mental health of young people took a beating during the COVID-19 pandemic, and officials in school districts in Pennsylvania say that mental health issues affecting students are among their greatest challenges. That’s why a proposal in the Pennsylvania House of Representative to allow students to take three excused days off each school year for mental health purposes is sound. With a little more than 40% of students reporting feelings of persistent sadness or hopelessness, according to the National Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, these three days would give students a chance to regroup and, perhaps, alert teachers and administrators to any problems a student may be having. Other states are considering mental health days and 12 have already added them. Pennsylvania should join them.

MISS: Washington County’s government was subject to a cyberattack last month, and if misery loves company, the county has plenty of it. Cyberattacks on local governments, school systems and other so-called “soft targets” have increased in recent years. Washington County’s attack was so disruptive that agents from the U.S Department of Homeland Security are among those who have been called in to try to sort it out, and meetings of the county commissioners and the Local Share Account committee were postponed. Part of the reason local entities make such an attractive target for cyberattackers is that they carry out duties that impact the daily lives of citizens. Richard Forno of the University of Maryland wrote in 2022 for the Center for Internet and Society at Stanford University that crippling the technology that local government relies upon “disrupts the heart of U.S. society by shaking confidence in local government and potentially endangering citizens. Once this is resolved, Washington County officials – and those in nearby counties – need to make sure their systems are properly protected, and devote resources to the task if they are not.