Columns

Bad idea to keep Trump off the ballot

Here is the election question dominating the national news. Can a minor state official decide the outcome of the presidential election? The Maine secretary of state apparently thinks so.

Tom Smothers was serious about politics

Tom Smothers wasn’t the first performer to weaponize comedy for political purposes, but he was perfectly suited for it. During the height of his career with brother Dick in the ’60s and ’70s he took on Lyndon Johnson over his Vietnam policies and Richard Nixon over, well, just about everything.

Aaaaay! Is ‘Happy Days’ really turning 50?

Oh, for simpler times with fewer adult responsibilities and fewer high-tech distractions! Then I might manage to finish reading two excellent autobiographies (Henry Winkler’s “Being Henry: The Fonz – And Beyond” and the late Garry Marshall’s “My Happy Days in Hollywood”) before The Big Day.

The urgency to become cyber-secure in 2024

Cyber attacks will be significantly worse in 2024 for anyone who uses a digital device. Yet few are aware of, or prepared for, the threats they face — or how their poor cybersecurity skills are putting them and their families at incredible risk.

Second thoughts about her senator

Regular readers weren’t surprised when I voted against John Fetterman in last year’s Senate race in Pennsylvania.

Could you pass a citizenship test? Really?

Okay, maybe I’m approaching this from a position of privilege. One of my earliest memories is of tagging along to my mother’s former grammar school when she voted. Social Studies was one of my favorite elementary school classes.

Celebrate the New Year with a sweet orange

Until relatively recent times, the New Year was the time to exchange gifts in many south Louisiana households, and it was almost a certainty that a sweet orange or two would be one of the things stuffed into a stocking. Gifts were simpler then and oranges were plentiful.

How my sister ‘gave’ us Sandra Day O’Connor

This week America said its final goodbye to Sandra Day O’Connor. The first woman appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court was eulogized at Washington National Cathedral on Tuesday by President Joe Biden and Chief Justice John Roberts.

New Year thoughts from the Bayou State

Do you make New Year’s resolutions? I always do. A New Year always brings with it promise and uncertainty, but this coming year brings with it a greater foreboding than we have experienced in the past. The Chinese have a saying: “May you live in interesting times.”

LSUE food chief says service to expand

LSU Eunice’s dining hall is open to the public as well as its’ students. The dining hall operates from 7:30 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.