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The Perils of Isolation: Mental health impacts and the path to substance abuse and suicide

Columns

In an increasingly digital and often disconnected world, social isolation has become a growing concern for millions. Whether due to remote lifestyles, life transitions, geographic moves, or personal challenges, lacking meaningful connections can take a heavy toll on mental well-being. Far from being just a fleeting feeling of loneliness, prolonged isolation acts as a serious risk factor, quietly eroding emotional health and opening the door to more dangerous outcomes like substance misuse and suicidal thoughts. The mental health consequences of isolation are deep and wide-ranging. ...

Property owners can’t keep taking hits

Letters to the Editor

To the editor, Someone in Columbus has made the decision that our properties are worth more money and therefore more taxes. Supposedly house bills 129 and 186 were passed that will give (some) property owners a temporary refund in the next half of 2025. St. Clair police have an additional levy on for May, and Beaver Local is already complaining about the money they will lose. Our police do a good job and it’s not that I don’t want them to have the equipment they need, but property owners just can’t keep taking these hits. St. Clair Township is number two, out of 18 in township ...

Credit Card Competition Act is needed

Letters to the Editor

To the editor, It is in the DNA of small businesses to do everything possible to keep prices down while serving their communities. But there’s one cost businesses can’t control and it’s being passed down to people across Ohio and the country. The swipe fees that are charged every time a customer pays with plastic are a hidden cost that we need to address. The fees are set by a duopoly, and the lack of competition means small businesses and consumers are left with no choice. The nearly $3.5 billion (https://insights.cmspi.com/ccca-25) a year Ohio spends in swipe fees are dollars ...

Perry Township resident: The annexation fiasco

Letters to the Editor

To the editor, I have never written to a newspaper before, but I guess there is always a first. I am writing in reference to the proposed annexation of Beechwood Road, Hampton Place, Colonial Drive, and Countryside Drive. I have followed the antics, intimidation, threats, and falsehoods provided by the mayor of Salem and her city council. It is a shame that our local government sometimes act like children in a very vindictive way. I feel very sorry for the Sean and Laurie Butcher family for their hardship in dealing with the city, especially during her daughter’s wedding. I will not ...

Devil is certainly in details with Ohio House Bill 583

Editorials

Perhaps without meaning to, Ohio Rep. Johnathan Newman, R-Troy, demonstrated perfectly the problem with a portion of Ohio House Bill 583, “regarding the provision of online library database resources by public schools, public libraries, and state agencies.” The bill would amend state code to target “inappropriate” content that has made its way onto InfOhio and the Ohio Web Library — vendors used as online information databases in most public schools and libraries. HB 583 would establish “safety policy and technology protection measure requirements” for the companies. ...

Mahoning Valley’s future begins in the classroom

Columns

Five years ago, we saw the Mahoning Valley on the cusp of economic growth it hadn’t seen in years, perhaps decades. It frightened us. It frightened us because we weren’t sure we could provide enough human capital to fill all the jobs being created by large companies, including Fortune 200 firms, locating and expanding here. Any failure could come at the expense of our existing, locally owned businesses who might not have the wherewithal to compete for their workforce needs. Then, last year, we assisted Hubbard art teacher Josh MacMillan’s volunteer effort to organize the ...