In the 2008 election, 69.5 million Americans voted for Barack Obama, and 60 million voted for John McCain. About 100 million did not vote. Each of us was given a gift: the gift of selecting who governs our country. Most did not earn this gift; most have not paid for this gift; but we all possess this gift equally with all other Americans....

Hospital clowns always ask permission first This is a rebuttal to the May 2 editorial titled "Don't laugh."...

Are you sick of what's going on in America? I don't know about anyone else, but I am sick of the abuse of Medicaid in our country. I am sick of our gas prices, and I am sick of working my butt off every day to provide for others who are capable of working but have their hands in my pocket because they choose to do nothing or do not have U.S. citizenship....

Read the Bible before you attack its content This is in response to Michael Eppers' op-ed ["Anti-Planned Parenthood rant ignored truth," May 9]....

It was so exciting to see that Spotsylvania County is considering shooting ranges in lot sizes of more than an acre ["Board mulling firearm change," May 13]. That means on 100 acres there could be at least 50 shooting ranges. What a wonderful neighborhood to live in....

FALL RIVER, Mass.--"Bass-ackwards," my old man would say, using a polite '50s locution to describe my way of going through life. Not that Pop was destroying my self-confidence or anything. Pop was a '50s dad, and except in the matter of sex, he didn't watch his mouth around his son....

'Oh, what times!' For comment on fickle, apathetic voters in recent years, I need say no more than "Keith Judd." And I thought a vote heretofore on an Election Day for Mickey Mouse was a commentary! At least the voter had to write Mickey's name on the ballot. Keith Judd qualified and was listed on the ballot....

DOES ANYONE still think Amer-ica's melting pot means Britons, Germans, Irish, and Poles? Protestants and Catholics? Then it's time to brush up on your demographics. The U.S. Census Bureau has made it official: Minorities are the new majority in the United States. It is being called a "watershed moment" and "important landmark" in American history. For the first time, there are more nonwhite than white newborns in this country. The news should be a source of pride across America, where, from the origins of this great republic, people of varied races, ethnicity, cultures, and religions have been welcomed to our shores either to escape oppression or to pursue a new life here. That has made America the most diverse nation on the planet, a place where the residents defy any stereotype. Indeed, it is impossible to describe what "an…

Thank an emergency worker this week Emergency providers across the U.S. will recognize National Emergency Medical Services Week from May 20 to 26. This special week brings together local communities and medical/EMS personnel to showcase safety and to honor the dedication of those on the front line of crisis care who provide day-to-day lifesaving services....

FOLLOWING hard on the heels of the death of singer Donna Summer is the loss of another music icon, Robin Gibb, one of the Bee Gees. Mr. Gibb, 62, died of colon cancer on Sunday in London. The British-born singer teamed with his brothers Barry and Maurice (his fraternal twin) to form the Brothers Gibb in the late 1950s, playing small venues in England and Australia (to which their family had moved) before joining the British Invasion and appearing as the Bee Gees on the American pop scene. They sang soulful songs about love such as "Words," using their characteristic close harmonies and heartstring-rending lyrics....