I Pledge Allegiance to…
If you don’t count Sunday School, I attended my first classroom in Ringold, Oklahoma somewhere around 1951. It was a two room affair; my Primary class (the equivalent of Kindergarten, I guess) and all classes below High School met in the large room while all the Big...
Everyone Gets Needled From Time to Time
(This is a column that the local newspaper printed. The "debate" started when a local suggested that the high school mascot be changed from Redskins to something a less offensive.) A co-worker once told me his biggest take-away from college was his Economic...
It’s Getting Scary Out There
Getting out of the house was a breeze for eight year old J.R. His family’s large Victorian was packed with costumed partiers talking at a level three feet over his head. The werewolf preaching to the man in an Obama mask did pat J.R. on the head as he snuck by. Wonder...
Titus, Julius and Me
One of the most common complaints I heard in high school was “How in the world am I ever gonna use this out in the world?” For a lot of us in pegged pants and Pendleton shirts that question pretty much covered all our classes. Since the science staff had deemed that I...
The Minstrel Mentality
Recently we observed the 50th anniversary of MLK’s “I Have a Dream” speech, a classic plea for racial equality in the US (with most commentators, of course, conveniently leaving out King’s lamenting of the growing legions of poor in this country and his growing...
The 2013 Georgie Awards
To augment this year’s Academy Awards, I’ve collected my own Best (or Worst) of entertainment for your reading pleasure. The following lumiaries have been designated to receive the coveted Georgie (as in George Washington) Award. Best Actor in a Dramatic Series: John...
Smoke Gets In Your Nose
I woke up this morning with another headache. And the fear that the house was on fire. Out of bed and on the way to inspect the property without being properly dressed, I finally realized that the smoke from the Rim Fire had returned. Back inside I went to my medicine...
Weed Abatement
Philosophers constantly warn that if we forget the past we are doomed to repeat it. I used to believe that we hadn’t learned a thing from Prohibition since we repeated that same warped piece of legislation with pot. I was wrong. Actually, pot began to be banned in...
Drug Epidemic Is Not Just On The Streets
I’ve always appreciated the “Elephant in The Kitchen” metaphor for dysfunction. Many of us have a resident pachyderm. We just choose to acknowledge it for the sake of harmony and compromise. Still, elephants like drug abuse can turn rogue and tear apart entire...
NFL or the Next Felon League
Yes, for those that know me they will immediately counter any of my thoughts with "hey, aren't you a Raider fan?" True. George Blanda's incredible field goals and quarterback heroics in 1970 got me hooked. I soon became a season ticket holder until Al Davis did me a...
Jerry Tuck
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