The Opinion Blog

If Connecticut Doesn't Want Gun Jobs, We'll Take 'Em

Sunday’s first editorial:

A hundred new jobs and another company headquarters in the county? Yes, please.

News this week that gunmaker PTR Industries is considering Horry County as it gets ready to leave Connecticut is exciting news for our area, which is recovering from the recession, but not as quickly as we would like. Dozens of new well-paying jobs (averaging $20-21 an hour) would be a noticeable and welcome boost to our area.

Congratulations to Chamber on 75 Years

Thursday’s second quick editorial:

Congratulations to our compatriots down the street at the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, which celebrated 75 years of service at its annual meeting on Tuesday.

Working on the Railroad

Tuesday's first editorial:

As the months drag on and the Carolina Southern Railroad continues to sit idle, our hopes for a quick and easy solution have dimmed.

No magical grant programs have surfaced to help the Conway-based railroad repair the bridges that shut it down last spring. No buyers or investors have jumped at the chance to sink their money into a struggling railroad. But with the exhaustion of each simple or easy fix, we do believe the railroad is moving closer to getting back on track.

On the Upswing at Last

Is the area poised for a comeback? Sunday’s editorial sure hopes so:

Spring is nearly here. Blooms are starting to peek out and pollen will soon fill the air. It’s an optimistic time of year as the world wakes from its wintry slumber, and this year we’ve got even more reason for optimism: building signs are popping up around town, and construction sites are buzzing once more.

The national jobless report released Friday morning held good news for all of us concerned about the economy, but particularly good news for our region, as many of our main industries were among the top job creators. Construction businesses added 48,000 jobs. Leisure and hospitality added 24,000. And retailers added 23,700. All three are major drivers of our local employment situation, and after years of attempting to claw our way out of the hole dug in the recession, it’s encouraging to see some daylight at last.

Lazarus Stands Out

Sunday’s editorial weighs in with our thoughts on the race for Horry County Council chairman:

As Horry County ponders who to put into the role of County Council chairman, two major, ongoing issues come to the fore.

The first is no surprise. It’s the same concern we’ve had for the past few years: How can we improve our local economy and get more people back to work? While local jobless numbers are showing some welcome improvement, our recovery from the crash of a few years ago remains painstakingly slow. More than 11 percent of Horry County workers were without jobs in December, the latest numbers available from the state Department of Employment and Workforce. Job seekers in our region outnumbered job openings 5 to 1.

Why the Minimum Wage Debate Matters to Myrtle Beach

Friday’s second editorial explains why local folks should be paying attention to the ongoing debate over raising the minimum wage:

When the president unveiled his plan to raise the minimum wage from $7.25 to $9 an hour during his State of the Union address earlier this month, we sat up and paid attention. After all, the Myrtle Beach metro area, with its emphasis on tourism and hospitality industries, consistently ranks right at the bottom of the nation when it comes to hourly and annual earnings for local workers.

Worthy Plans for Beach Protection

Sunday’s editorial takes a look at the shoreline management report that came out on Monday and what it might mean for us around here:

The report on managing our state’s beaches released this week after two years of study by S.C. leaders is a mixed bag for beach lovers. As you might expect after prolonged negotiations between competing conservation and development interests, it ended up a fairly flaccid, middle of the road report, with no radical recommendations for state lawmakers. As state Rep. Tracy Edge, a member of the committee that put together the document, told us recently, “the report is kind of milquetoast.”

Bright Spots Persist for Road to Strand

Tuesday’s editorial is on that most perennial of subjects, a new highway to the area:

It’s easy to become cynical about the prospects for any new highway to the Grand Strand. After all, we’ve been promised one since the 1980s and have yet to see it materialize. But while proponents of Interstate 73 – or any new road to our area – may seem locked in limbo, there are a few bright spots on the horizon.

News Flash: Roads Cost Money

Sunday’s editorial urges lawmakers to act sooner rather than later to address our state’s crumbling infrastructure:

South Carolina’s roads are crumbling beneath us, and ignoring the problem will not make it go away. Action is needed soon -- this year, this month -- because the cost to fix our roads rises with every day that passes. And it will mean tough decisions that require substantially more funding, not just leftovers and scraps that are found here and there.

Not convinced? Read through the report on South Carolina’s road system put together for the state and issued in December by a diverse group of transportation experts. It’s only 13 pages long, but it sets out in stark detail the enormous challenges facing our state and the almost total lack of solutions in the works to meet those challenges.

What We're Watching for in 2013

Sunday’s editorial is our annual piece laying out our priorities as an editorial board for the coming year:

As Myrtle Beach, Horry County and the state continue to grow, issues of all kinds compete for our attention. Election integrity, development, transportation, energy policy, education, gambling, we could spend years and fill books on any of these subjects.

But time and space is limited, so each year, as we on The Sun News editorial board finish celebrating the New Year with friends and family, and pack up the Christmas decorations, we ponder our priorities for the coming year. What are the most pressing needs of our region? What is not being talked about elsewhere? How should we budget our time for the coming year?