Opinion

Last week a very disturbing incident took place that discloses the rise in man’s hatred for man for no reason other than religion. Two members of the Israeli dip- lomatic mission in Washington were visiting the Jew- ish Museum when an assassin walked up and shot the couple dead. The man had recently bought an engagement ring and had planned …

We gathered at a Ruston coffee shop – a trio of former Louisiana Tech journalism professors who continue to live in the area and one who still has family ties here but now calls Asheville, North Carolina, home. Eddie Blick, Reggie Owens and I didn’t have far to drive. We three remain rooted in Ruston and Grambling. Ron White had …

In July of 1978 I loaded up my wife and six-month old daughter and moved to Saudi Arabia for sixteen won- derful years of work and adventure. While the work was challenging and exciting it was the local Saudi Arab that was a true delight to be associated with. The company was not an old aging mega-gi- ant as compared …

Living without limits. Living your life to the fullest. Living with happiness. Living your dreams. Living free from fear and worry. You have the power to live your life any way you want. You will never be as young as you are today. So squeeze the most out of every day. Whatever has happened to you in the past is …

Life is what happens while you are making otherplans. I have devoted a lot of space in this column toplanning and goal setting. Reality offers an endless barrageof diversions, detours, challenges, and obstacles.This fact doesn’t negate the benefit of preparation. Itsimply requires an understanding of the typeof forces at work.A sailor would be remiss if he didn’t understandhow to handle …

I saw a castle rising out of the sea – or so I thought.It was a photo that popped up on my computer screen:a breathtaking shot of the southern coast of Australia. Anisland sat in the middle of the water, waves lappinggently against its rugged edges, and rightin the middle stood something that looked likean old-world fortress, straight out of …

Several years ago it was announced about the executionof a Syrian archeologist, historian and curator of oneof the most spectacular archeological sites in the MiddleEast. ISIS took this eighty-one year old scholar to thecity square of Palmyra and during the busiest time of theday ISIS decapitated him. His headless bodywas hung from a pole in town. His crime wasspending his …

What’s the saying? All good things must come to anend? We experience a number of “lasts.” In the secularworld, I recall The Last Picture Show, the Last of the Mohicans,The Last Samurai. In the religious world, Christianitysays there are four last things: death,judgment, heaven and hell. We give the dyingfaithful last rites, and we recall the Last Supper.Taverns have a …

In 1965 Otis Redding wrote and released his song “Respect”. The music was rearranged and released by Aretha Franklin in 1967 and became the hit song that we probably remember today. Though the arrangement changed, the message was the same; respect is import- ant in anyone’s life. “Respect” is defined as “due regard for the feelings, wishes, or rights of …

Evenings at our house tend to follow a familiar script – a lineup that features John Wayne one night, Charlie Chaplin the next and a Disney moment when the mood’s right. Yes, we’re talking about Hubby’s movie re- runs. And by “reruns,” I mean the same hand- ful of films that seem to play on a never-ending loop.