Opinions

Texans would not listen to “Old Roman”

This Week In Texas History By Bartee Haile

Friday, October 15, 2021

After 22 weeks in solitary confinement, a former U.S. Senator and member of the Confederate cabinet was released by his Yankee captors and allowed to go home to Texas. John Henninger Reagan was born in 1818 in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains in eastern Tennessee.

High-wire daredevil defied the odds

This Week In Texas History By Bartee Haile

Friday, October 8, 2021

Ivy Baldwin, hero of the high wire, passed away in his sleep on Oct. 8, 1953 after 87 action-packed years. Who would have guessed that the little man, who lived so dangerously, would die so peacefully?

Abbott wants to increase illegal voting penalties

Capital Highlights By Gary Borders,

Friday, October 8, 2021

Gov. Greg Abbott has asked the Texas Legislature to increase the penalty for illegal voting, adding the item to the third special session now underway. However, House Speaker Dade Phelan, R-Beaumont, quickly rejected the proposal, according to the Austin American-Statesman.

Newspapers by any other name; still journalism at its best

A Story Worth Telling By Leon Aldridge

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

“Newspapers cannot be defined by the second word—paper. They’ve got to be defined by the first word—news.” — Arthur Sulzberg, Jr. American journalist, New York Times publisher 1992 to 2018 This week is National Newspaper Week. October 3 - 9 to be perfectly clear.

Who are our “friends?”

From My Perspective By Toni Walker

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

If you are like me, you probably spend a good amount of time on social media. Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and so many more that I don’t even have a clue about, all give us various ways to keep in touch with and keep tabs on those we care about.

Why we need a community forum

Brian J. Allfrey

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

I am not sure what I expected our country to look like in 2021, but I certainly did not expect it to be so fractured and so bogged down in hate. My oldest son was a year old on September 11, 2001. The wave of patriotism following that day gave me hope for the America that my kids would inherit.

Those magnificent oaks, part two

On Gardening By David Wall

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

Last month the origin of oaks was discussed. Now, let’s discuss how they came to spread and be such a dominant species throughout the planet, and it’s that time of year when oaks are dropping their seeds (acorns).

A chauffeur may have been easier and cheaper

A Story Worth Telling By Leon Aldridge

Friday, October 1, 2021

“Adolescence is a period of rapid changes. Between the ages of twelve and seventeen, for example, a parent ages as much as twenty years.” —Henny Youngman, c. 1960s I’ll be glad when Chance gets his driver’s license.

Popular gambler tangles with Will Bill

This Week In Texas History By Bartee Haile

Friday, October 1, 2021

Always willing to do fellow Texans a favor, Phil Coe agreed on Oct. 4, 1871 to give four dozen cowboys the grand tour of Abilene when they arrived the next day in the Kansas cowtown.

The friendship they forged would last 51 years

A Story Worth Telling By Leon Aldridge

Saturday, September 25, 2021

“True friends are never apart, maybe in distance, but never in heart.” — Helen Keller, 1880 – 1968 American author, disability rights advocate I don’t know what day it was when my mother, Indianola “Inky” Aldridge, and Betty Rust met.

Subscribe to