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Today's Opinions

  • Grayson should invest in education

    The Grayson County School Board has requested only level funding for our school system for the upcoming school year.

    This budget request is conservative and includes significant cuts in personnel, transportation, instructional materials and services.

    Our budget supports academic programs, career and technical education, technology, band, arts and sports.

    Our children in Grayson County deserve the same educational opportunities as children in surrounding counties.

    Click here to read more...
  • Dialect Discrimination

    Holly Padgett Parker of Raleigh, N.C., is a Galax native and the city was her home for 27 years. “I miss it every single day,” she says.

    Let’s talk a little bit about dialect and colloquialisms.

    A few years ago, I was offered a hostess position at a very ritzy restaurant in downtown Raleigh, N.C. The owner and my company had done some business together and the owner was so impressed with my demeanor and professionalism that he asked me to come to work on a part-time basis and train potential hostesses about customer service and attitude.

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  • Put felons to work

    Money is hard to come by, and Grayson County is working on a new program that could help spend taxpayers' money more wisely.

    Recently, the county decided to embark on a plan to open a Day Reporting Center, similar to one in Giles County. The idea is to take people with minor felony charges — such as bad checks or minor drug violations — and put them to work in the county, instead of in a jail cell. The idea will cost the county around $5,000 to get started, but could save thousands of dollars each year.

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  • Letters to the Editor for 4/20/09

    No excuse for rude behavior

    How can a school teacher be so rude to parents and get away with it?

    I talked to the principal on many occasions. And all he said was that he would have a little talk with her. But she is being so rude again.

    How many times is it going to take for them to do something about it? They have no right to tell you how to punish your child

    Like for instance to break a child from pulling his shoes and socks off, to take them outside barefoot and it’s a cold and rainy day. Or to hit his rump a little bit harder.

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  • Take care with the public's records

    Grayson County Commonwealth's Attorney Douglas Vaught appears to be a decent and caring person and — to his substantial credit — he does respond to his mail. Others in Grayson County governance, including Vaught's predecessor, refuse to put pencil to paper. I want to share an issue on which he and I disagree, as it forms an introduction to a much larger contemporary issue.

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  • Letters to the Editor for 4/6/09

    Boucher voting record 'pro-abortion'

    At a town hall meeting in March, Rep. Rick Boucher responded to questions about the inappropriately named Freedom of Choice Act.

    He stated opposition to radical proee'abortion provisions in question and denied that such a bill existed.

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  • Letters to the Editor for 4/13/09

    Dog bear hunting is cruel

    I would like to reply to the March 18 article “Bear License About Control, Not Revenue.”

    I find the article offensive to Virginia hunters by indicating they were out to kill anything they found just because the species was a legal kill. The hunters I know don’t just blow something away because they came across it.

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  • Reinventing the Economy

    As our ongoing series, "Adapting to the Economy" has shown, local businesses are reshaping the way they do business in order to survive. We've been impressed by their ingenuity.

    They're doing it on their own, with their own initiative and creativity, not relying on government handouts or taxpayer dollars.

    As the national economy falters, it's encouraging to see our hometown entrepreneurs try new things, scrap what doesn't work and, in some cases, reinvent themselves for today's world.

    Click here to read more...