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Diamonds to those who staged D-Day memorial events, to those who participated, to those who attended and, of course, especially to those who served, serve or will serve in our military. Speakers at the Wilkes University event Thursday — which doubled as the dedication of the school’s Veterans Memorial Court — may have put it best, particularly Global Cultures Assistant Professor Jonathan Kuiken who asked, then answered the question “Why do we commemorate this day?” Kuiken posited that it’s not simply to mark the start of victory over Nazi Germany — that, some leaders believed at the time, was already a forgone conclusion. What was yet to be determined was the state of Europe following victory, especially with the still young Soviet Union moving eastward as an uneasy ally. “The promise that we were coming to set them free had not yet been met,” he said. The allies invaded “not just to win a war, but to build a better future.”
Coal to mothers-to-be who use drugs during pregnancy, or perhaps more accurately to female drug users who do not kick the habit before conceiving. It’s one thing to put yourself at risk, it’s much different to put an innocent infant in harm’s way. As data from the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council has shown over the years, the number of newborns suffering from withdrawal symptoms due to Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome had soared for more than a decade before leveling out from 2017 to 2018. But the numbers are still disturbing, particularly locally. Luzerne and five other counties have a rate of NAS-related hospitalizations above the state rate. Such babies stay longer and suffer more complications, but more importantly they should not burdened with a health problem they could not avoid, but their parents could have.
Diamonds to the newly created Hunlock Creek Historical Society and any others responsible for moving forward in restoring the Oakdale one-room school, the last of its kind in Luzerne County. To be clear, there is nothing particularly romantic about the reality of these American icons. They lacked central heat, air conditioning, electricity, indoor plumbing and pretty much any other modern amenity. They were the antithesis of “differentiated learning,” lumping all grades into, as the name makes clear, a single room, typically with a single teacher. Yet they are an essential part of our history, the early incarnation of a public education system that, despite being routinely denigrated in recent years, was the engine that helped create a prosperous middle class. This building is well worth saving for posterity.
Coal to Preston Bonnett and others who turned the Luzerne County Courthouse into chaos-central after Bonnet was found guilty of murder and arson Tuesday. Bonnett’s attempt to defy the verdict by threatening to “burn this up” was hardly the best way to convince anyone of innocence, but that’s not the issue. There is legal recourse for those who truly believe they are wrongly convicted of a crime in this country: appeal. Mount a case, craft the documents and file your arguments, don’t clench a fist, slur individuals and start to swing.