Citizens groups join suit to block I-81 widening

Chris Graham

Story by Chris Graham [email protected] The New Jersey Turnpike in the Shenandoah Valley. That’s what critics of the Virginia Department of Transportation’s Interstate 81 widening plan envision happening if the engineers get their wishes. “For us, our mission is to protect farms, forests, open spaces and cultural heritage – and this is impacting all of…

Budget numbers worsen

Chris Graham

General Assembly Report by Rob Bell One of the General Assembly’s biggest jobs in 2008 is to craft the two-year budget that will begin on July 1. This year, the economic slowdown – especially in the housing industry – has meant that revenue is $1.4 billion below projections. Although the overall budget is increasing slightly,…

Institutional racism alive and well

Chris Graham

Op-Ed by Larry Yates We should all welcome the recent decision by the U.S. Sentencing Commission to allow crack-cocaine sentences to be reduced retroactively. But we should also pause to recognize what it means. This decision is a clear statement about a social phenomenon that most Americans want to deny – institutional racism.

Impact of Waynesboro referendum to be felt beyond Election Day

Chris Graham

Story by Chris Graham [email protected] Yes or no – whatever Waynesboro residents end up saying about five bond issues in a nonbinding referendum on the ballot tomorrow will go a long way to determining what happens in next year’s city-council elections. “This is a good gauge for me, really, to see what the people want….

Asking big questions

David Cox

Column by David Cox Amid the ruckus over abusive driver fees, a budget shortfall, mental health care in light of the Tech murders, and other issues of the moment, larger questions get overlooked. Yet these are often the questions that underlie the issues that elections turn on.

Inside the Beverley Manor District race

Chris Graham

The Top Story by Chris Graham Jim Bailey announced his retirement from Augusta County politics earlier this year, leaving the Beverley Manor District seat on the Augusta County Board of Supervisors an open seat. The contenders for the seat – Democrat Lee Godfrey and Republican Jeremy Shifflett – answered questions on the issues of the…

Goodlatte, a great pumpkin, Marro, adult store in Staunton

Chris Graham

Winners and Losers column by Chris Graham LOSER: Bob Goodlatte not seeking Senate nomination Talk had been out there for years that Goodlatte might be interested in succeeding John Warner when the senator stepped down – and that talk intensified when Warner put the Sixth District congressman’s name on a short list of people he…