The Observer-Reporter’s recent opinion piece by Gary Stout, “Study History to Gain Perspective,” which appeared in the March 17th edition, was shallow and unconvincing. It was shallow because Stout suggested he would give readers a “study of recent historical events” to provide ...
By Gary Stout In the face of declining student enrollment, lost revenue, and mounting conservative political scrutiny, university administrators are putting humanities programs on the chopping block. This issue dominated the local news last summer when the West Virginia University Board ...
By Gary Stout “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” –George Santayana In today’s 24/7 media cycle, minor news stories can run for a week and important ones disappear in a flash. On cable news and social media, biased news sources seek to build up or ...
By Gary Stout Local county government is more complex than most citizens realize. Voters elect three Washington County commissioners and are informed about their deliberations at regular public meetings. Following minimal discussion, votes are taken on all manner of county business. In ...
By Gary Stout “Woh-uh-oh, listen to the music…All the time.”-- The Doobie Brothers This year’s Grammy Awards brought back some great memories. Watching an 80-year-old Joni Mitchell perform her beloved 1969 hit “Both Sides Now” took me back to my college dorm room, where ...
By Gary Stout No one should be surprised that the local print newspaper you are reading is becoming as rare as the typewriter or the touch-tone telephone. Chances are high that people you know under age 30 have never read any print news media, saved an article for a scrapbook, pored over ...
