Opinion

Credit Card Competition Act a common-sense bill backed by Moreno

Letters to the Editor August 24, 2026

Dear Editor: Ohio’s families and small businesses are that much closer to seeing some financial relief thanks to Senator Bernie Moreno’s recent decision to become a cosponsor of the Credit Card Competition Act (CCCA). We’re glad to have an elected official putting Main Street’s concerns over Wall Street’s bottom line. For businesses already stretched thin by other operational expenses, the swipe fees charged on each credit card transaction accumulate rapidly and are a major burden on local shops. As a result, many owners pass that burden down to their customers through ...

A starving horse does not suffer less because Ohio calls it livestock

Letters to the Editor August 24, 2026

Dear Editor: I am part of Northeast Ohio’s horse community, and I want people to keep paying attention to the Heather Birkmire animal-cruelty case. Five horses are dead. Prosecutor Vito Abruzzino has said necropsies found evidence of starvation and dehydration. Yet the cruelty charges are misdemeanors. Birkmire, the former operator of Pure Gold Stables and Equestrian Center in Salem Township, has pleaded not guilty to five second-degree misdemeanor cruelty counts and four fourth-degree misdemeanor counts involving the disposal of dead animals. Four dead horses were found at the ...

Columbiana County's economy and industries influenced by its original land and resources

Columns August 9, 2026

The land and resources that were here when Columbiana County was formed in 1803 influenced how its economy and industries developed. At the end of the Paleozoic period, about 400 million years ago, the land that is now Ohio was a huge sea that was being filled by sediment washed westward ...

The FPCCC maintenance staff at Firestone Park and new features forthcoming

Columns August 6, 2026

This year’s unusual weather resulted in a challenge for the small group of workers attending to the landscape beds in Firestone Park. The weeds have been numerous and continuing rain has resulted in promoting them at a prodigious level. Who takes care of these beds? Many walkers in the park have approached the workers and in general have been supportive of their continuing efforts, but a vocal few have been insulting. Therefore it is time to identify who does the work and its nature for all to appreciate their efforts. The landscape beds are the responsibility of the Firestone Park ...

Action requested to address dangerous intersection in Perry Township

Letters to the Editor August 1, 2026

Editor's Note: The following is a letter submitted to the Columbiana County commissioners and state Rep. Monica Robb-Blasdel. For years I have lived at the four-way intersection of state Route 344 and Cunningham Road in Perry Township. Sitting at the table, I see accidents all the time. A recent head-on, car versus semi disaster violently claimed the life of a woman who doesn’t seem to have seen the approaching semi. There is something about the visibility of this intersection that renders it so frequently dangerous. Let’s prevent future deaths, injuries, screaming, smashed ...

Grateful for downtown Lisbon veterans banners

Letters to the Editor July 25, 2026

Dear Editor: I wish to send my congratulations to all those responsible for the banners in downtown Lisbon honoring our veterans. The banners are of high quality and easy to see. They are a very fitting tribute to those who served to protect the freedoms that we enjoy every day. C Ashley Pike Winona