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Readers’ Forum

A Speech Whose History Lives On Today To The Reader’s Forum: Americans are ending an election year in which there has been no shortage of political speeches, most of which were quite mundane. However, if we could travel backward in time 925 years to the 27th of November, 1095, in Clermont, France, we might have heard what some historians claim was the single most effective speech in history. With the tomb of Jesus in the hands of infidels and the Byzantine Empire overrun by Seljuk Turks, Pope Urban II summoned Christian warriors to take up the cross and their swords against ...

Readers’ Forum

County Heath Dept. Is Neglecting Duty To The Reader’s Forum: As Chautauqua County is seeing an increase in positive COVID-19 cases, the Chautauqua County Health Department has been less and less forthcoming with information. When someone dies, it is now simply noted as a new death on the dashboard. The only way to know the age of the person is to compare the previous day’s dashboard. Gone are the condolences to the family. We need to remember this is a person who died, and not just another statistic. I also find it curious that the reporting of ages ceased the moment ...

What Jobs?

What Jobs? To The Reader’s Forum: So much has been said, is being said, and will continue to be said about jobs in our economy. Indeed, every politician, especially when seeking election, insists they have the ability to “create” jobs. All political boasting aside, the reality of jobs and employment is really quite easy to describe yet never easy to accomplish. A person’s employment comes from (created if you will) only two root sources. One is the government, or the public sector, whether federal, state, or local. The other is the private sector. That is, anything ...

Chautauqua Lake Board Of Education Thanks Those Working Hard

To The Reader’s Forum: It is often said that in times of tragedy, in times of hardships and in times of uncertainty, when you stop and look, what you will find are your helpers. In June of 2020, Chautauqua Lake Central School set up a team of over forty people who were presented with the daunting task of creating a reopening plan for school, during an uncertain pandemic. This team was comprised of the district leadership team, faculty, staff, community members, board members and students who all shined as our communities “helpers” in these uncertain times. Not only did this team ...

To The Reader’s Forum: On Friday, December 11th, the U.S. Supreme Court denied a motion by the attorney general of Texas — backed by 17 other Republican state attorneys general, 126 Republican congressional members, and Donald Trump — for permission to file a lawsuit to overturn the election results in Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan, and Wisconsin. The Court’s order denying the motion reads as follows: “The State of Texas’s motion for leave to file a bill of complaint is denied for lack of standing under Article III of the Constitution. Texas has not demonstrated a ...

Is There More We Could Be Doing About Mental Health Struggles?

To The Reader’s Forum: Mental health has been evolving in the recent years. We know a lot more on mental illness than we used to. But is there more we could be doing to help? Crime and mental health can have a close connection to themselves. When we really start to think about why someone behaved the way they did maybe we could have prevented it. Would the proper treatment from a young age and equal opportunity changed things? A stable environment could do so much for someone. Jails and prisons unfortunately have held many people trying to recover from mental illnesses. These ...