Opinion

Protecting Girls’ Opportunities in Sports is not Discrimination—It’s Justice

July 1, 2025

By Delegate Geary HigginsMember, Virginia House of DelegatesDistrict 30, Western Loudoun & Fauquier Counties When our daughters take the field, they should know they’re competing on a level playing field. That shouldn’t be controversial. But today, it is. My wife and I have experience with this having raised three daughters in the public school system…

The flawed Brady/Giglio List

June 4, 2025

By Lloyd Harting, a former federal and local law enforcement officer who lives in Purcellville On April 4, 2025, a Purcellville Police Department police officer was terminated from employment by Purcellville Police Department Acting Chief of Police Sara Lombrana, citing alleged “unsuitability” for continued service. Simultaneously, Acting Chief Lombrana reported an unproven allegation—that the police…

A Stupid Project is Getting Pregnant

June 4, 2025

By Charles Houston A handful of homes in Waterford have weak wells. A handful of houses in Paeonian Springs have problems with wastewater. These historic villages’ needs were each addressed by the County in 2022 and 2019, respectively. In the years since, nothing happened. Then last year, County bureaucrats had a eureka moment and said,…

An open letter to the School Board

June 3, 2025

By Delegate Geary HigginsMember, Virginia House of DelegatesDistrict 30, Western Loudoun & Fauquier Counties Dear Loudoun County School Board Members, As a former LCPS School Board Member and parent, as well as a current LCPS grandparent and elected State Delegate, I have sat in your seats, and I know first-hand about the responsibilities of a…

Help Preserve Rural Loudoun—Attend the May 7 Public Meeting

May 2, 2025

Dear Editor: A major transportation study is underway in Loudoun County—one that could impact traffic patterns and the rural character of western Loudoun for decades to come. A public outreach session is scheduled for May 7 at Woodgrove High School, and it’s critical for anyone who wants to preserve rural Loudoun to attend, get informed,…

Democrats Dropped the Ball on Oak Hill … Not Once, but Twice

April 30, 2025

By Delegate Geary Higgins For the better part of the past year, I have been working hard to turn Oak Hill, President James Monroe’s home in Aldie, into a State Park. Unfortunately, earlier this month, House Democrats killed what was the final shot at making Oak Hill a state park this year, and maybe ever.…

One Like and Many Gripes

April 30, 2025

By Charles Houston I seem to vacuum random facts, which my brain manufactures into various ideas and opinions. A basic topic is protecting Loudoun County. Some of my ideas can be expressed in short paragraphs, or even in a sentence or two. Here goes … National Ideas Securitize and sell roughly $1.6 trillion in SBA…

Our Nation’s Parks are at risk

April 29, 2025

By John P. Flannery We are a local community in a State that cherishes its historic and environmental resources, and we have worked hard to preserve and protect entrusted treasures in land and gardens and streams. We convey what we’ve learned to others, including our children, by our example and by the confidences we share…

Mountain Overlay District’s regulations are intentionally rigid for a reason

April 22, 2025

Dear Editor: I’m extremely concerned about the Board action on April 15 to suspend lawsuit enforcement on the Mountain Overlay District. After careful thought and discussion with County Zoning officials, stricter rewritten ordinances were enacted in the MOD ZOAM in 2023 and approved by the BOS. The MOD Ordinances are intentionally rigid to protect the mountains from…

Education against authoritarianism

April 17, 2025

Dear Editor: The alarming events of the past two and a half months since President Trump’s inauguration in January have no doubt been on everyone’s mind- accentuated by joy or fear. Yet we believe, as juniors in high school, that our view is unique and important. Superimposed on our teenage experiences is an ever present…