Tocher: The news that really matters

You are holding in your hands right now a very important, consequential, personal, and public documentation of the world you live in.For years, we have been told print is dying. The future, we have been assured, is digital, where news can move faster, reach farther and cost less.

Tocher: Data center debate could soon reach Putnam

A new Politico poll suggests Americans are becoming increasingly skeptical of large-scale data centers, a shift that could have significant implications for largely rural communities like here in Putnam County.According to the Politico poll, opposition to data centers has risen sharply over the...

Tocher: The contrasts are unavoidable

I keep thinking about how far away they are.Literally as I write this, four astronauts aboard NASA’s Artemis II mission will travel farther from Earth than any human beings have ever been before, peaking at 252,756 miles away as the crow flies.

Tocher: Sled hockey gold resonates beyond rink

When the United States and Canada met for the Paralympic sled hockey gold medal game this past Sunday in Italy, the moment was already historic.For the first time in the same Olympics, all three international hockey championships — the Olympic Paralympic tournament, the Olympic women’s tournament,...

Tocher: We’ve got an ‘all of us’ problem right now

I’ll be honest, I’ve been deeply disturbed by the reaction of many of my friends, acquaintances, and colleagues to the horrific, televised murder of right-wing commentator Charlie Kirk last Wednesday at Utah Valley University.Now, I haven’t seen the footage myself; I’ve chosen not to because, to be...

Tocher: Public media on the Trump chopping block

Public media is facing an imminent threat, if not extinction, at least of becoming an endangered species.The Trump administration intends to cut federal funds that support public media — predominantly National Public Radio (NPR) and the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) — threatening the survival of...

Tocher: Missing a dear friend

I endured one of the most disturbing and sad moments of my life upon returning home from work in the wee hours last Monday night/Tuesday morning.Upon opening the front door, I was ready to issue my usual hello to “Kitty Cat Number One, and Kitty Cat Number Two,” better known as Ziggy and Mannix,...

Tocher: Canada is not a state

I’ve told many people before that I’m a true Son of the South; it just happens to be from Southern Ontario, about a hundred miles east of Toronto.

Tocher: A Canadian’s concern over U.S. expansionism

When I was two years old, my parents brought me and my six-month-old sister from Scotland to Canada. Late in 1997, I moved to Atlanta with my then-new, U.S.-born wife, and 20 years later, I finally officially became a U.S. citizen.

Tocher: Looking forward to the future?

I don’t know about you, but I’m looking forward to gasoline at $2 per gallon and my car insurance rate being cut in half.