Columns

National debt is beyond comprehension

The U.S. Debt Clock says our country is in hock for more than $36 trillion. How massive is a trillion dollars?

How will you celebrate the ‘Y2K bug’ 25th anniversary?

My wife recalls the night of December 31, 1999 as a time of anxiety and trepidation. (Of course she views every night as a time of anxiety and trepidation. Okay, I’ll trim my toenails!

Resolve to record long memories this year

Whatever gift for storytelling that I may have began when I was quite young, sitting at my grandfather Gallaugher’s knee. My ears, and those of all of his grandchildren, would perk up when he said, “I remember the time when …” and begin to tell a tale.

What I want for Christmas, but won’t get

Every year a few weeks before Christmas, my sweet wife asks me what I’d like for Christmas. And every year, I tell her, “Nothing! I’d rather spend our money on the kids,” meaning our three now semi-grown (but fully-spoiled) daughters.

The holidays offer us a second chance

Most of us have been swept up in the momentum of the holiday season. We have passed Thanksgiving, reached the Christmas milestone and are approaching New Year’s Day, the third in the trilogy of holidays. Sure, there is a lot of our attention on holiday shopping, football, and social events.

Memories of a 1970s Christmas

Why do Christmas memories from 50 years ago still hold so much power over me? I think I know now. Christmas was a huge event for our family.

Solutions to U.S. spending and inflation crisis

In order to solve problems, one must first adequately define the problems. America has a spending problem which has led to a national debt crisis and has unleashed inflation which, if not constrained, destroys the middle class.

Is 25 the new 50?

My Facebook “Memories” remind me that my son Gideon has always been ahead of his time. Fourteen years ago, I was reading a book of world history for his bedtime stories. I gushed about Alexander the Great becoming king and launching his conquest of the known world when he was young — only 20. “Hmph.

A long, long time between Christmases

During the week before Christmas 1940 several hundred young men from Lafayette, New Iberia, Breaux Bridge and other south Louisiana communities boarded a train that would take them to Fort Blanding, Florida.

A message for nation’s new citizens

Immigration is, and will continue to be, a controversial topic. The least controversial aspect, however, is naturalization. Becoming a U.S. citizen is the pinnacle of my practice, and it is the pinnacle of the immigration process.