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At Moment, Rural Red Has Grip On Congress

Do not expect a level playing field when it comes to the races for U.S. Congress in this region that spans two states. Both incumbents Nick Langworthy of New York and Glenn “G.T.” Thompson of Pennsylvania appear to have plenty of support in their highly Republican districts. Langworthy ...

Innovation Now Needed Because Nuclear Power Demands Grow

As America’s energy demands grow exponentially, the country won’t be able to keep up without more nuclear power. For decades, the climate-friendly industry has been held back by overly burdensome regulations, but that’s beginning to change. In the 1960s, plants took about four years to build, and they cost, in today’s dollars, about $1,500 per kilowatt of electricity generated. Now the idea of building a reactor in less than a decade is unheard of, and the cost of construction is six times greater. The Energy Department took steps this month to exempt certain advanced ...

Securing Our Elections Hinders Cheating

Let’s suppose. Let’s suppose you went into a bank and tried to open an account or take out a loan without proving your identity. Let’s suppose you tried to get a hunting or fishing license without proving your identity. Let’s suppose you tried to buy a gun legally without proving your identity. And the list goes on and on. Let’s suppose that, without proving your identity, you tried to: • Start a new job. • Get a marriage license. • Get a driver’s license. • Rent a vehicle. • Lease a vehicle. • Buy a vehicle. • Register a vehicle. • Get ...

Water’s Fine For Chautauqua Lake Fishing

We all should be able to acknowledge that Chautauqua Lake needs work if it is to return to the type of hub for summer activities that many south county residents remember. But it was interesting to read about the opinions of DEC Fisheries officials after a recent presentation to the Chautauqua Lake Watershed and Management Alliance board meeting regarding the lake’s fish populations. We’d have loved to be able to report on the DEC officials’ presentation in person, but alliance meetings have been closed-door affairs for more than a year. But we digress. Jim Markham and Justin ...

Voting Should Never Depend On Paperwork

In the art world, the provenance of an object establishes a documented history of ownership—a “biography” of sorts, integral to verifying authenticity and establishing legal ownership. Tracing provenance is instrumental in identifying forgeries or fraud. To prevent fraud in elections, the SAVE Act would require proof of citizenship through a legally verifiable document trail before registering to vote—a sort of provenance of identity. Representative Nick Langworthy voted yes when the House passed the SAVE Act on February 11, 2026. At first glance, proof of citizenship for ...

Lawmakers Are Generous With Your Money

Deb Makowski, county human resources director, said several times during last week’s Audit and Control Committee meeting that increasing salary ranges for management employees doesn’t automatically give the affected employees salary increases. She’s technically right, of course. Salaries for 2026 were set in the 2026 Chautauqua County budget. But there would be no need to change the salary ranges in the first place if there weren’t raises coming soon for those employees. Makowski told county legislators there are 128 employees who are getting close to the maximum salary in ...