Let Us Not Forget We Are Americans

July 19, 2024

In the moments following the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump Saturday, there was horror and confusion. Trump emerged defiant from the pile of Secret Service members who rushed to protect him, but as the nation breathed a sigh of relief we learned the attack had, indeed, been deadly. Corey Comperatore, a former fire chief who was attending the Butler, Pa., rally with his family, had dived in front of his wife and daughter to protect them from the bullets. He died for them. Meanwhile, Trump was able to let the nation know he was injured but “fine” after the ...

Jail Escape Foiled Quickly, But How Was Roof Accessible?

July 18, 2024

Chautauqua County Sheriff’s deputies did a good job of quickly corralling a man who tried to escape from the Chautauqua County Jail on July 11. A perimeter was quickly set up after Eric Ryals made it to the jai’s roof. Unlike other jail escapes, deputies were actively chasing Ryals as he made his way to the jail’s roof, and officers got to Ryals quickly after he landed on the jail lawn to put an end to the escapade. In all, the incident could have been much worse. Deputies handled the attempted escape well and there wasn’t much danger to the public. Deputies have obviously ...

City Should Do What It Can To Police Illegal Fireworks

July 16, 2024

Both Mayor Kim Ecklund and Councilman Jeff Russell are right with suggestions last week to cut down on the number of illegal fireworks going off during Independence Day celebrations in Jamestown. Russell said he heard from police officers that they suspect some temporary fireworks sellers that popped up in the city limits sold fireworks that are illegal to have in New York. He suggested spot checks of these sellers in future years to make sure they aren’t violating the permits they received to sell fireworks. It’s a good suggestion that, frankly, should extend throughout the ...

Why Is It So Hard To Fix Medical Transport Fraud?

July 15, 2024

It should be obvious after the July 3 announcement of two Medicaid fraud cases totaling $3.4 million that the state must make major changes to its Non-Emergency Medical Transportation system. The system is a necessary one that relieves the stress of non-emergency transportation to medical appointments from ambulance companies while helping those who can’t get rides from friends or family members to get to medical appointments. Companies providing rides are paid through the state’s Medicaid program. For years these rides were arranged by counties throughout the state, but the ...

School Districts Should Keep Teacher Evaluations Simple

July 13, 2024

Almost lost in the avalanche of legislation passed in the closing days of this year’s state legislative session was a bill untying teacher evaluations from state-mandated tests. Good riddance to bad rubbish. We don’t necessarily disagree with the idea of creating ways to hold poor teachers accountable and remove them from classrooms. There should be a way to remove teachers who can’t teach. It’s up to supervisors to set standards and make sure employees meet them. That’s how things work in the private sector. If you can’t handle a job, you can be fired. There is no better ...

Our View: Special Ed Needs More Attention

July 12, 2024

Unfunded mandates, products of the federal and state governments, do not sit well with local-level units of government. Neither do those mandates sit well with school districts and institutions of higher learning, especially as they are trying to prepare and balance new budget packages. Depending on the scope of such a mandate, an unfunded or weakly funded edict can wreak havoc on the most well-thought-out of spending plans, not only for a year but possibly extending far beyond. Why is it a good time to be reflecting on budget challenges, especially in regard to ...