The state Education Department released guidance Monday detailing how New York’s 713 school districts can make plans to reopen. President Donald Trump is demanding all schools reopen, even in areas where COVID-19 is resurgent. New York is taking a far more prudent and sensible approach.
State authorities have expressed their strong support for ensuring everyone in New York has access to high-speed internet.
New York has joined many other states in developing plans for loosening restrictions established to deal with the novel coronavirus pandemic.
The state Department of Environmental Conservation seeks to reduce confusion about regulations pertaining to migratory game birds.
If more people throughout the state refuse to wear masks or follow social distancing rules while interacting with others, authorities may tighten the reins on reopening procedures.
IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.
In an emphatic illustration that the pandemic is far from over, the state Department of Health is investigating COVID-19 exposure in four virus clusters after officials traced multiple new infections to a student who recently traveled to Florida and attended a downstate graduation ceremony.
To commemorate our decision to no longer live under British rule, John Adams believed we should make a lot of noise on Independence Day.
It’s time to stop denying the realities of the coronavirus and put your masks on. The disease has killed 120,000 Americans and 30,000 New Yorkers have died from it. If those numbers don’t convince you, probably nothing will.
This weekend that many high school seniors across the GLOW region are graduating. Though it is likely not the graduation they were expecting.
For a few moments I felt like Tony Soprano as I stood in the quiet woods.
The level of protection that gay, lesbian and transgender people had against employment discrimination previously depended on where they lived.
The daily briefings that Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo offered for the past three months on the novel coronavirus pandemic gave him a national platform.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Friday ended a remarkable streak of 111 days briefing New Yorkers and, if the numbers are true, a good part of the nation, about the COVID-19 pandemic and how we were coping with it.
I am now officially a victim of COVID-19.
Affirmation that New York continues to have the lowest COVID-19 transmission rate in the U.S. at 0.77% is encouraging at a time when 22 states in the South and West are hitting the pause button on reopening their economies.
Summer won’t officially begin until this weekend, but people have already ventured onto local waterways for recreational boating.
With everyone’s attention focused this year on the novel coronavirus pandemic, it would be easy to overlook another seasonal health concern: ticks.
The state Senate on Tuesday repealed the law prohibiting the public release of police disciplinary records.
Once again, President Donald Trump seemed determined to further enflame a volatile situation.
If Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo doesn’t want to be thought of as a control freak who can’t relinquish even a modest amount of power, he’s not doing a good job of communicating this message.
Some of you may recall that I rescued two young squirrels from almost certain death.
Critics of Gov. Andrew Cuomo like to pan him because he isn’t the orator his father, the former Gov. Mario Cuomo, was in his prime.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo took New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and city police officers to task Tuesday for rejecting state National Guard assistance to control vandalism and citywide looting following last week’s death of an unarmed black man at the hands of Minneapolis police.
The horrific legacy of black Americans needlessly killed by police officers in this country has continued, and many people have had enough.
People in Washington, D.C. joined others this week in publicly opposing the use of controversial practices by law enforcement agents that have killed many black Americans for no apparent reason.
Who knew it was until last week illegal for masked New Yorkers to loiter?
Coronavirus transmission may be primarily airborne, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday. That’s not exactly breaking news, but it goes to the heart of public safety, protecting our health and plain old thoughtfulness for your fellow man.
Only time will tell how the novel coronavirus pandemic has hurt people, companies and organizations throughout Upstate New York.
“White folks get a ticket, they pull over ‘Hey officer! Yes, glad to be of help. Here you go.’ (Blacks) got to be talkin’ about ‘I AM REACHING INTO MY POCKET FOR MY LICENSE! CAUSE I DON’T WANT TO BE NO ACCIDENT!’
In dealing with the devastating effects of the novel coronavirus pandemic, many aspects of life have been put on hold.
The stakes for the Allied forces in securing victory during World War II could not have been higher.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Scott DeSmit is on vacation. This originally ran in 2010.
Some nursing homes in the area are reeling from the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. All nursing homes are now being asked to ramp up testing on their employees. All nursing homes are responsible for conducting twice-weekly COVID-19 testing on their workers beginning next week, according…
Entering Week 11 and I grow weary, as if I’m stumbling around inside an Edgar Allen Poe tale.
Nobody would believe three months ago that restaurant workers in May would be on the frontline, masked and gloved, risking their lives serving food in take-out lines as a pandemic raged around them.
Back in 2016, I had the honor of being commencement speaker for my alma mater, Royalton-Hartland. My speech was mostly on point, celebrating our school and community and the great students that came from them.
There’s no doubt that New York has been hit with a mind-boggling number of claims for unemployment insurance as a result of stay-at-home orders.
Dairy farmers just can’t catch a break!
Even as the state prepares for the complex task of restarting a virus-ridden economy, we are weighing the cost to keep nonessential businesses closed and the cost of human lives if reopening unfolds too quickly, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday.
In enduring this global health care crisis, the future we’re all looking forward to is one without the frightening prospect of severe illness and death.
Imagine being trapped alone in a small cell for two months with no visitors, knowing that a fire was raging outside your cage, getting closer and closer with each long, passing day.
This editorial was originally published in the May 10, 2015, edition of the Watertown Daily Times:
As state officials and community leaders determine how different sections of New York will reduce restrictions on commercial activity, businesses need to find innovative ways to promote their services to potential customers.
Seven weeks in and all I hear is the pitter-patter of little feet ...
State officials debated the merits of banning certain single-use plastic bags for two years.
Hospitals must not exceed 70% capacity. The virus transmission rate must not exceed 1.0%. There must be a 14-day decline in COVID-19 hospitalizations.
Some business owners have expressed concerns that a provision of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act could persuade employees who were laid off to accept only limited hours if asked to come back to work.
From afar, the COVID-19 pandemic is generating news of such terrifying magnitude that it is nearly too overwhelming to comprehend. Millions are suffering and thousands are dying. Economies are collapsing. The world seems out of control.
It was on a sun-kissed morning that Coco the squirrel found himself clinging for life against the base of an old pine tree.
