Nov 22, 2002 4 min read

A couple weeks ago an American flag appeared suspended over Route 51, providing a great mystery for the two young frequent travelers in my car. They have given a lot of thought to this flag, wondering how it got there and who placed it. Did they do it under the cover of darkness? In the middle of the night? What type of equipment was used? The questions are endless.

But it’s a mystery that might not be unraveled despite PennDOT’s announcement this week that unless someone comes forward, claims responsibility and applies for the proper permits, the agency might just take it down.

As far as safety goes, PennDOT doesn’t have a problem with the flag. It’s just that bureaucrats aren’t that fond of banners of mysterious origins flying over state highways.

In our recent travels we have come across another mystery. Stuck inside the inbound lanes of the Liberty Tunnels two weeks ago, we noticed a blackened banana placed on a ledge inside the tunnel. This has been cause for just as much speculation as has the flag. Where did the banana come from? Who placed it there? Will it still be there?

On Wednesday evening we again went through the Tubes, looking for the banana. We found not one, but four abandoned bananas. The mystery has deepened and the speculation has increased. Does someone’s mom pack them a banana every day that they don’t wish to eat and need to dispose of before returning home? Is a bored commuter playing a game of toss the banana?

We figure we will never know the answer, which isn’t as fun as a mystery that has the potential to be solved. Still there is a difference between a mystery and a surprise. Since surprises can sometimes be unwelcome, we thought it best to inform readers of changes planned for this page.

Starting Dec. 1, we will introduce a redesign for the Editorial Page that will allow enough space to run two columnists daily, along with Letters to the Editor, editorials and an editorial cartoon. It is a change that you, the readers, told us that you would like to see.

In a recent poll, many of you wrote that you wanted to read more commentary. You told us you want more Charley Reese. You wanted us to pick up a couple columnists that we didn’t already publish. Many overwhelmingly picked George Will, Ellen Goodman and Cokie Roberts as columnists that you would enjoy reading. We have already started running those. But it has left little room for some of the other readers’ favorites, such as Joseph Perkins, Nat Hentoff and William Rusher.

With our current design, we are limited to just one columnist a day unless we forgo Letters. But Letters are also of primary importance, readers said.

So we looked at the things that many of you marked that you didn’t read, can’t stand, or think belong elsewhere in the paper.

So starting Dec. 1, Upper Room and Today will find a new home on the Society page, and the Doonesbury cartoon will no longer be published.

It remains a mystery as to why these three features were originally placed on the Editorial page. No explanation is offered as to Upper Room and Today. They have just been long-time fixtures and more or less have become part of the wallpaper. Some have speculated that at a time when Doonesbury was highly political and controversial, and other comic strips weren’t, it was moved there. At one time it also held high reader interest.

Doonesbury heydays have long since passed. Last year in a poll of all the comic strips we publish, readers told us the daily strip was one of their least favorites. And it hasn’t gained in popularity since then. We have given thought to moving it to the comic pages but that would require dropping some other comic that has a more intense, loyal following.

Quite frankly, we didn’t think the Doonesbury message was worth the swap. We will still publish the Sunday Doonesbury strip in the comics section.

With these changes we are hoping to deliver to readers more opinion from syndicated columnists who are in step with today’s changing world. And we hope to create more space for your views. We expect to hear from the Doonesbury fans outraged at the changes. But we wanted to let you know in advance so that on Dec. 1 you aren’t surprised and begin wondering where did they move Doonesbury?

We hope that most of you will enjoy the changes that we plan, and as always we welcome your comments.

Luanne Traud is the Herald-Standard’s editorial page editor. E-mail: ltraud@heraldstandard.com.