• Challenges of a new medium

    We hate SPAM. Not the meat product made memorable in an old Monty Python bit where every other line of dialogue was the word "Spam."

    No, we're talking about electronic junk mail that fills your e-mail box. We have a bunch of e-mail boxes here at The News & Reporter, but as many filters as we put up, it keeps on coming.

    It slows you down. There's no doubt it is an annoyance.

  • Independence Day

    We've seen some statistics that suggests to some young people, the holiday we celebrate this week is just the "Fourth of July," just fireworks and cookouts at family gatherings.

    We hope not.

    The Fourth of July is Independence Day. It is celebrated because 232 years ago, a group of men decided they were no longer subjects of a faraway king. They decided they were free men and that free men govern themselves by consent.

    They were brave. If they had not been able to back up their claims in a war, they were certain to be executed.

  • Arrest reports

    We notice it sometimes comes at us in waves. And we had such a wave Monday.

    A bunch of people get arrested each week. Many of them don't want their names in the paper. They call us and tell us they were told they could keep their name out. We also used to get people asking how much it costs to keep their names out of the paper. That's actually a rather insulting question to someone in the newspaper business.

  • Dual office ban

    We think the dual office ban in the state"s Constitution is a good thing, but it has, sometimes, unfortunate implications.

    Remember it is no guideline or recommendation. Remember it is actually not just a law. It is a provision of the state"s constitution that says no person can hold two offices "for honor and profit."

    The ban is there to prevent the dangerous accumulation of power in one person"s hands. Many times there are people who could perhaps be trusted with a lot of power, with different powers arising from different offices.

  • Primaries over, think about this

    We had a letter to the editor two weeks ago that called into question South Carolina's open primary situation.

    The practical result of the open primary system is voters have to make a choice what races are the most important to them.

    The Chester County Sheriff's and Coroner's races and one Council District races were all up for consideration. The first two were all on the same ballot -- the Democratic Party ballot, that is.

    There was also a race for the S.C. Senate District 17 seat, which traditionally has been held by someone from Chester County.

  • Our graduates

    We don't do what many newspapers do around graduation time and use an editorial as another valedictory speech, telling graduates some of the things they are going to face in the world, them to look back upon the good times but be eager with anticipation for the new challenges.

    Our only advice is get ready -- it's all for real now... unless you're going to college.

    No, what we'd like to discuss is not grades or future challenges, but just a couple of things that stood out to us, not just this year but the past couple of years.

  • Mill No. 2 issue

    We don't have a particular stand, at least not yet, on the issue now embroiling Chester County government.

    The Forfeited Land Commission has promised to sell the old Republic Mill No. 2 to a Virginia man. He wants to develop it into a furniture recycling center. It will be a basic commercial to industrial use for the mill, bringing heavy trucks in and out of the plant, which has been unused industrially for about a decade.

  • On Memorial Day

    We won't have a chance Friday to wish you a safe Memorial Day weekend.

    We're not sure how it became the start of summer holidays and the start of the big summer movie season and the grilling and cookout weekend.

    We're also not sure how it became a time to "Support the troops" and to honor veterans.

    For the latter, we have a Veterans Day, every year. It is intended to honor those who served our country and got back.

  • LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Taste of Spring was successful

    To the Editor:

    We would like to thank those who attended our first Taste of Spring Home and Garden Tour. Thank you to The Potting Shed Garden Club for co-sponsoring this event with us.

    A special note of appreciation to Vivian Ayers Allen, Jim and Gloria McGee and Jack and Beatrice Young for providing the homes and gardens on the tour.

    We are most appreciative of the volunteers who assisted the owners of the homes on tour: Betty Sue Bagley, Coleystein Beane, Irene Carayannis, Judith Hare, Suzanne Hunter, Jean Little and Martha Taylor.

  • Stealing signs?

    When we got the letter to the editor Tuesday, we were a bit concerned because the letter section of the paper was already bursting at the seams.

    At the same time, it is topical and can't wait. Best yet, we agree with it.

    Pam Love of Chester writes:

    Why is it that some candidate's signs disappear while others remain?

    Who would be so immature as to remove signs from people's yards?

    Some candidates don't have the time to go out and raise money for their campaigns. Most of it comes out of their own pockets.