Based on several comments made recently in letters to the editor, I’m starting to wonder if maybe we do not have a transportation problem in Stafford. That certainly does not jive with the feedback I often receive from commuters continually stuck in traffic or slug riders who can not find a parking place in the morning or from the sheriff who deals with the rising number of fatal accidents.

On November 4th, Stafford County citizens will vote on a $70 million dollar road projects bond.  I urge you to vote “NO” on this fiscally irresponsible proposal.

Rob Wittman gets support 
With the presidential election dominating the headlines it is easy to forget that we are also casting votes for our Congressional representative.

An issue recently occurred in neighboring Spotsylvania County that has caught the interest of many Stafford County residents and beyond. A dog that belonged to the Blevins family, of Spotsylvania, was euthanized without the family’s consent.

It’s time for the fall baseball classic. No Washington Nationals or Baltimore Orioles championships, but area residents find other favorite teams to root for, I’m sure.

Merciful heavens, my favorite bank is about to change its name, again.

Imagine you’re Russian, and a VP candidate has just been nominated.

For Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, economy begins at home.

Presidential elections are an important business with sometimes dramatic consequences, so people can be forgiven for taking themselves a little too seriously.

It’s a wonderful autumn day, and I am taking a break from fishing alongside Aquia Creek, fishing rod propped up against the car, sipping a Diet Coke, and all in all rather pleased with myself at the rather large catfish I just caught.

The Stafford County Board of Supervisors recently pared back severely the county’s capital improvement program in response to bad economic numbers.

The presidential debate season is upon us again. No doubt these TV beauty contests will get the highest viewership ever.

Only in Stafford County…

Are you afraid of black holes? Well some people are. They attempted to halt an experiment called the Large Hadron Collider, a project at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, which they feared would cause miniature black holes that would destroy the planet.

There’s this problem, you see. I can no longer remember many words I want to say while talking with other people, so I went to a doctor. He reassured me that for an otherwise healthy guy halfway through his seventies, my problem was cause for no alarm. He called it MCI — minor cognitive impairment — but offered no remedy. It’s just the aging process.

I got home, checked my computer, and saw this on the Internet:

When I write about certain topics, ones I think are controversial, or at the very least ones I am convinced will prompt a response from our readers, I am sometimes disappointed that I don’t hear from anyone. The silence can be disappointing. But there is one topic, and this still amazes me, one that always gets a reaction and that’s anything to do with squirrels.

The new Stafford Hospital “ state of the art medical facility”, being built on U.S.1 has a new chief to help guide the facility. Cathleen Yablonski is ready for the hospital to open and has been preparing, making plans and hiring people to help make this a working and functional medical facility. Ms. Yablonkski has a great background in hospital administration and operations.

As a breastfeeding mother of five children, I am very concerned about the Street Talk question on page A7 of the August 29-Sept. 4 edition. In this day and age, when so many benefits of breastfeeding are known, what would cause you to even ask this question? 

Obama may be an abomination and McCain can really be a pain.

This week on Sept. 11, 2008, you’ll wake up blessed with a new day. You may think it’s like any other, and in some ways, it is. But, just think of it as a reminder, perhaps, as what should be gratitude for life.

I’ve gotta tell ya. I’m up to here with people who are so full of themselves. Exhibit A: Barack Obama. But we’ll get to him later.

Virginia’s very popular former governor, Mark Warner, the Democratic candidate this year for U.S. Senate, had a very humbling experience last week in Denver.

Why did they build more schools than they needed?

The Olympics is a time when the world comes together to give all they have athletically. Often, the events are viewed as a sort of international coming together, a show of diversity, a symbol of solidarity.

The presidential nominating conventions and the buzz over VP picks have overshadowed another campaign that is also important to area residents: Election for House of Representatives in the First Congressional District, a district that includes Stafford County. A lot has happened since incumbent Republican Congresswoman Jo Ann Davis died last fall.

Campaign 2008 is one of the most significant opportunities in recent history for Americans to choose the future direction of our country. Not only is there a difference in personality and style, but there also are clear differences between the two candidates when it comes to the issues.

Having spent time around rescued chickens, I view National Chicken Month, September, as a time to celebrate these sweet, inquisitive birds. I only wish everyone would learn to appreciate chickens for their personalities — not for the taste of their flesh.

There has been a lot of rhetoric on BPOL with views on both sides of the issue. What has been written, especially in the Letters to the Editor section of the Free Lance-Star, has expressed views for or against the BPOL tax or criticizing or supporting the supervisors who voted for or against it. But what seems to have been lost in the debate is a much greater issue of the disgraceful manner in which the public hearing process continues to be conducted.

With just a few days left in August and Labor Day fast approaching, summer is just about gone. But, that doesn’t mean the sun is.

You would think so, given the doomsday talk about us endangering Planet Earth and I don’t know what all.