Opinion

The following was written by Jon McKinney, President of the Union Parish Chamber of Commerce, who has traced his family’s Irish heritage back 600 years. Sunday is St. Patrick’s Day.St. Patrick’s Day originated as a religious feast day honoring the patron saint of Ireland. He died on March 17 in the year 461. Today he is honored not only as …

Age has never seemed to be such a big issue in American politics. Do we let our elected officials stay in office way too long? Should there be restrictions as to when older politicians must step down? Or should we just let the voters decide as to when someone is too old to serve? Jim BrownJim Brown is a former …

The way we perceive something has a major impact on how we respond to a stimulus or how we visualize our environment. Perception is defined as, “a way of regarding, understanding, or interpreting something; a mental impression”. We can hear about a place in the world or an action taking place in a distant location and then make a judgement …

Editor’s note: The following commentary was submitted the Council on Criminal Justice and was co-authored by Marc A. Levin of Houston and Scott Peyton of Washington, La.There is no more vital function of government than protecting public safety, and that solemn duty must include anchoring criminal justice policies in evidence.While Louisiana leaders are rightfully making crime a priority during this …

Blue Cross, Blue Shield is Louisiana’s largest health insurer, and one of the state’s largest employers. A major effort was undertaken by the Blue Cross Board to sell the whole system to a company called Elevance Health located in Indianapolis Indiana. Elevance is no new kid on the block, and has gobbled up Blue Cross companies in fifteen other states, …

Just what is Devine intervention? Most religions have their definition and a good description is, “The involvement of a deity in the affairs of humans”. When it refers to the Christian doctrine, Devine intervention is identified as being delivered in three distinct ways. They are big showy miracles, ordinary displays of God’s mercy, and one act of love so powerful …

The Union Parish Police Jury fired Public Works Director Tommy Durrett a little more than two weeks ago without stating, publicly, why they took this action. At the time, we at The Gazette assumed whatever prompted the action would be made public shortly thereafter.That didn’t happen and this week we learned that the Jury has filed a complaint against Durrett …

Alright all you Swifties. I have some bad news for you. When you go to the polls to vote for president on election day, no Taylor Swift hats or shirts will be allowed. This policy of cutting off poor Taylor’s paraphernalia will no doubt be in effect in a number of states across the country. Particularly in states where Republicans …

Our beautiful country is in a dilemma. For that matter, our beautiful planet, that glowing blue sphere floating in space, is in a dilemma. Chaos is everywhere. Some say we are on the eve of destruction. Some will even say that even if changes are made there is no coming back from the abyss. The world is doomed; or is …

Editor’s Note: February is Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month. The following commentary was submitted by the Union Parish DART program. In 2010, Congress declared February as Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month. It is a great reminder for DART, parents, caregivers and teachers to begin a conversation about preventing dating violence.We teach our children from a young age to be kind …