Editorial
Guest Editorial: Melancon for Senate
In the race for U.S. Senate, the choice could not be clearer:
Oct 26, 2010 | 0 0 comments | 5 5 recommendations | email to a friend
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Pense Donc!!
RETIREMENT SYSTEMS . . . One of the constitutional amendments on the Nov. 2 ballot deals with state retirement systems and in trying to figure out whether I’d vote for or against it I discovered w...
Oct 26, 2010 | 0 0 comments | 5 5 recommendations | email to a friend
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Blame it on the rain
Perhaps not since 1989, when the number one song that year was Milli Vanilli’s “Blame it on the Rain,” has there been a more grand fraud, perpetrated upon the American people, than the incessant, o...
Oct 06, 2010 | 0 0 comments | 8 8 recommendations | email to a friend
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Politics versus gold
One of the many slick tricks of the Obama administration was to insert a provision in the massive Obamacare legislation regulating people who sell gold. This had nothing to do with medical care but...
Oct 06, 2010 | 0 0 comments | 9 9 recommendations | email to a friend
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Pense Donc!!
ELECTION NOTES . . . The Oct. 2 election is history, and it was an interesting one.
Oct 06, 2010 | 0 0 comments | 7 7 recommendations | email to a friend
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Looking over shoulders?
The November 2 elections will put a new face on Congress. The House of Representatives may well switch control from the Democrats to the GOP. Though the Senate is less likely to switch to the Repub...
Oct 05, 2010 | 0 0 comments | 6 6 recommendations | email to a friend
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Some random thoughts
Now more than ever, EAT LOUISIANA SEAFOOD!! It is delicious, healthy, and the best in the world. Test after test has shown conclusively that our seafood on the market is not tainted in any way by ...
Sep 07, 2010 | 0 0 comments | 6 6 recommendations | email to a friend
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My Mother told me a long time ago to never argue politics or religion.<!--break--> She said it was a no win situation and I believed her. For a long time I didn’t argue politics until I witnessed socialistic changes in the democratic party that were not to my liking. Thus I have argued politics in the past but never religion. I have argued politics because I was, for most of my life, a Democrat but my political beliefs transcend party affiliation. I believe in the capitalistic, free enterprise system and individual initiative: the qualities that made this country the greatest country in the world and I apologize to no one for this fact proven many times over. Until recent times, the Republican party best encompassed the things I believed in. Today I am not too sure it still does but the liberal left wing Democratic party, on its path to socialism, most certainly does not. I didn’t leave the Democratic party, it left me, and if the Republican party doesn’t soon get its act together, it will leave me too. But that’s another story. For the first time I want to discuss little known facts about the Catholic Church. Note that I said “discuss” not argue. This is a free country and every man, woman and child is free to believe whatever they choose. My Mother was always right so I will never argue religion but I thought the following article was interesting so I am presenting it for your perusal. <strong>Excerpts of an article written by Sam Miller, a prominent Cleveland Jewish businessman and not a Catholic:</strong> “Why would newspapers carry on a vendetta on one of the most important institutions that we have today in the United States, namely the Catholic Church? Do you know - the Catholic Church educates 2.6 million students everyday at the cost to that Church of 10 billion dollars, and a savings on the other hand to the American taxpayer of 18 billion dollars. The graduates go on to graduate studies at the rate of 92%. The Church has 230 colleges and universities in the U.S. With an enrollment of 700,000 students. The Catholic Church has a non-profit hospital system of 637 hospitals, which account for hospital treatment of 1 out of every 5 people - not just Catholics - in the United States today. But the press is vindictive and trying to totally denigrate in every way the Catholic Church in this country. They have blamed the disease of pedophilia on the Catholic Church, which is as irresponsible as blaming adultery on the institution of marriage. Let me give you some figures that Catholics should know and remember. For example, 12% of the 300 Protestant clergy surveyed admitted to sexual intercourse with a parishioner; 38% acknowledged other inappropriate sexual contact in a study by the United Methodist Church, 41.8% of clergy women reported unwanted sexual behavior; 17% of laywomen have been sexually harassed. Meanwhile, 1.7% of the Catholic clergy has been found guilty of pedophilia. 10% of the Protestant ministers have been found guilty of pedophilia. This is not a Catholic Problem. A study of American priests showed that most are happy in the priesthood and find it even better than they had expected, and that most, if given the choice, would choose to be priests again in face of all this obnoxious PR the church has been receiving. The Catholic Church is bleeding from self-inflicted wounds. The agony that Catholics have felt and suffered is not necessarily the fault of the Church. You have been hurt by a small number of wayward priests that have probably been totally weeded out by now. Walk with your shoulders high and you head higher. Be a proud member of the most important non-governmental agency in the United States. Then remember what Jeremiah said: ‘Stand by the roads, and look and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is and walk in it, and find rest for your souls.’ Be proud to speak up for your faith with pride and reverence and learn what your Church does for all other religions. Be proud that you’re a Catholic.” Now that it has been mentioned, it seems to me that Catholics as a rule do not defend or promote their religion as much as many protestant religions do. The national news media, as Mr. Miller points out, has long had a vendetta against the Catholic Church and they have been vindictive in trying to totally denigrate the Church in every way possible. I am not saying they and the Hollywood types don’t defame other religions because I believe they do but not with the vindictiveness meted to Catholics. I don’t know why this is but I have noticed they don’t treat Muslims with the same disrespect. How can that be? I don’t know. And I am not arguing! Coincidentally, there will be an Acadiana Festival of Life, (“a harvest Crusade to win the lost for Jesus Christ and help establish them in a local church where they can grow in grace, learn to serve and determine the Lord’s perfect will for their life”), conducted at the Acadia Parish Rice Arena in Crowley on March 14 thru 17 beginning at 7 p.m. It will be interdenominational and unlike anything ever seen in Crowley according to the participants. It’s free and everyone is invited. And you are urged to bring a non-believer! That’s my story and I am sticking to it. <em>Milo A. Nickel is the former president and COO of Louisiana State Newspapers.</em>
The Man: Overwhelm the System
The following, according to Urban Legends is correctly attributed to Mr. Root. The change Mr. Obama and his ilk preached before the election is not the kind of change most Americans want but th...
Sep 07, 2010 | 1 1 comments | 6 6 recommendations | email to a friend
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There is a certain number of Americans who feel any criticism of the Obama administration’s policies are actually a personal affront upon the President himself.<!--break--> Their claim is often that such disapproval is, at its best, merely partisan or, at its worst, racist. Last September, former President Carter said as much, saying that “an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward President Barack Obama is based on the fact that he is a black man…” From time to time, pundits and pontificators suggest the same of other critical thinking Americans, from the Tea Party to the Grand Old Party. Nevermind that a Wall Street Journal/NBC poll last week indicated that 60% of Americans believe that the country is off on the wrong track. Or that only 17% of Americans approve of how lawmakers in the Democrat controlled Congress are doing their jobs. Or that 50% of Americans would vote to defeat every single member of Congress, including their own representative. So, with all that pushed aside, and for all of those Americans who believe that criticism of this administration reveals some psychological deficiency, within the rest of us, let’s try illustrating how you can be quite disagreeable with someone’s actions, even if you don’t know their political party, race, or even gender. Let’s take the apolitical and mun-dane kitchen trashcan for illustration purposes. From time to time, this trashcan in the break room overflows. And instead of some folks simply emptying the trashcan, they seem content to just stack their garbage upon the already piled high garbage; like they are playing a rancid game of Jenga. And if your trashcan has one of those pivoting top lids, this adds a whole other level of complexity to the matter. Folks come by and shove empty pizza boxes, their 64 oz. foam drink cups, and their to-go box of seven-day old kung pow chow chicken into the already filled trashcan, wedging it all into the little remaining space beneath the pivoting top lid. And when these folks decide that they cannot continue building the tower of trash to stretch any taller to the ceiling, these same folks will begin placing more trash around the trashcan; almost as if they are paying homage to the trashcan. At this point you wonder why someone just didn’t empty this overflowing trashcan, instead of just jamming more trash into it. It’s unsightly, and sometimes smells. This illustrates the point that any opposition to this unsanitary condition has nothing to do with the personality of the person who contributed to it. It does, however, have everything to do with their position on cleanliness, which according to an ancient Hebrew proverb, is next to godliness. Now, you may simply not be in favor of participating as a bystander to this mess and want to clean it up yourself. You may speak out, post a memo in the breakroom, or send out an e-mail to everyone in the company. In fact, Americans are responding the same way to the direction our country is moving, but not because of the personality, color, or political party of our President…it’s about the effect of his policies on our country’s future. You see, I am opposed to the effect of Obama’s policy initiatives, not Obama’s personal characteristics. Just like I am opposed to the policy some folks have of not emptying an overflowing trashcan. I guess folks view emptying an overflowing trashcan as someone else’s responsibility). They seem unconcerned how their obliviousness will affect the next guy who comes along. This is like Obama’s 2010 budget that, over the next decade, would raise taxes on all Americans by nearly $3 trillion and increase each American household’s share of the publicly held debt an additional $74,000. And I guess folks may simply not have the time to properly dispose of their trash, like the members of Congress who were too busy last year to read the details of the $789 billion stimulus bill (before voting for it). Perhaps your co-workers intended to return and fix the mess that they left behind. The problem is, like Congress’ intentions to fix this, or that, tomorrow never comes, does it? This year, Social Security will pay out $29 billion more than it takes in. In fact, the Congressional Budget Office reported last week that Social Security will now be in the “red” in perpetuity. But we’re still expanding government. You see, despite those who say criticism of the White House is rooted in racism, or animosity towards the President, they're wrong. The particulars of anyone who won’t take the time to empty an overflowing trashcan is insignificant, but it’s not about their personality, skin color, party affiliation, etc… It's about the effect that the actions of a few will have on the many. And if we can have such fundamental differences regarding a relatively insignificant matter as the breakroom trashcan, then for goodness’ sake, we can have the same fundamental differences on important policy initiatives set forth by this administration…and without being labeled or admonished for having them. <em>Louis R. Avallone is a Louisiana contractor and attorney. He is also a former aide to U.S. Rep. Jim McCrery and editor of The Caddo Republican. Follow Louis on Facebook, on Twitter @ louisravallone, or by e-mail at louisavallone@mac.com.</em>
You can, but should you?
Is this a dream? If you pay close attention to the current political, economic, and social metamorphosis that is well underway in our country, you must feel confused or disoriented, at times. Our ...
Sep 07, 2010 | 0 0 comments | 6 6 recommendations | email to a friend
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Moral hazard & politics
One of the things that makes it tough to figure out how much has to be charged for insurance is that people behave differently when they are insured from the way they behave when they are not insur...
Sep 07, 2010 | 0 0 comments | 7 7 recommendations | email to a friend
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Pense Donc!!
DWINDLING RESERVES . . . As last week’s story on the 2010-11 school budget reported, the St. Martin school district will be facing serious budget shortfalls in the next fiscal year (2011-12) unles...
Sep 07, 2010 | 0 0 comments | 7 7 recommendations | email to a friend
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There is a certain number of Americans who feel any criticism of the Obama administration’s policies are actually a personal affront upon the President himself.<!--break--> Their claim is often that such disapproval is, at its best, merely partisan or, at its worst, racist. Last September, former President Carter said as much, saying that “an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward President Barack Obama is based on the fact that he is a black man…” From time to time, pundits and pontificators suggest the same of other critical thinking Americans, from the Tea Party to the Grand Old Party. Nevermind that a Wall Street Journal/NBC poll last week indicated that 60% of Americans believe that the country is off on the wrong track. Or that only 17% of Americans approve of how lawmakers in the Democrat controlled Congress are doing their jobs. Or that 50% of Americans would vote to defeat every single member of Congress, including their own representative. So, with all that pushed aside, and for all of those Americans who believe that criticism of this administration reveals some psychological deficiency, within the rest of us, let’s try illustrating how you can be quite disagreeable with someone’s actions, even if you don’t know their political party, race, or even gender. Let’s take the apolitical and mun-dane kitchen trashcan for illustration purposes. From time to time, this trashcan in the break room overflows. And instead of some folks simply emptying the trashcan, they seem content to just stack their garbage upon the already piled high garbage; like they are playing a rancid game of Jenga. And if your trashcan has one of those pivoting top lids, this adds a whole other level of complexity to the matter. Folks come by and shove empty pizza boxes, their 64 oz. foam drink cups, and their to-go box of seven-day old kung pow chow chicken into the already filled trashcan, wedging it all into the little remaining space beneath the pivoting top lid. And when these folks decide that they cannot continue building the tower of trash to stretch any taller to the ceiling, these same folks will begin placing more trash around the trashcan; almost as if they are paying homage to the trashcan. At this point you wonder why someone just didn’t empty this overflowing trashcan, instead of just jamming more trash into it. It’s unsightly, and sometimes smells. This illustrates the point that any opposition to this unsanitary condition has nothing to do with the personality of the person who contributed to it. It does, however, have everything to do with their position on cleanliness, which according to an ancient Hebrew proverb, is next to godliness. Now, you may simply not be in favor of participating as a bystander to this mess and want to clean it up yourself. You may speak out, post a memo in the breakroom, or send out an e-mail to everyone in the company. In fact, Americans are responding the same way to the direction our country is moving, but not because of the personality, color, or political party of our President…it’s about the effect of his policies on our country’s future. You see, I am opposed to the effect of Obama’s policy initiatives, not Obama’s personal characteristics. Just like I am opposed to the policy some folks have of not emptying an overflowing trashcan. I guess folks view emptying an overflowing trashcan as someone else’s responsibility). They seem unconcerned how their obliviousness will affect the next guy who comes along. This is like Obama’s 2010 budget that, over the next decade, would raise taxes on all Americans by nearly $3 trillion and increase each American household’s share of the publicly held debt an additional $74,000. And I guess folks may simply not have the time to properly dispose of their trash, like the members of Congress who were too busy last year to read the details of the $789 billion stimulus bill (before voting for it). Perhaps your co-workers intended to return and fix the mess that they left behind. The problem is, like Congress’ intentions to fix this, or that, tomorrow never comes, does it? This year, Social Security will pay out $29 billion more than it takes in. In fact, the Congressional Budget Office reported last week that Social Security will now be in the “red” in perpetuity. But we’re still expanding government. You see, despite those who say criticism of the White House is rooted in racism, or animosity towards the President, they're wrong. The particulars of anyone who won’t take the time to empty an overflowing trashcan is insignificant, but it’s not about their personality, skin color, party affiliation, etc… It's about the effect that the actions of a few will have on the many. And if we can have such fundamental differences regarding a relatively insignificant matter as the breakroom trashcan, then for goodness’ sake, we can have the same fundamental differences on important policy initiatives set forth by this administration…and without being labeled or admonished for having them. <em>Louis R. Avallone is a Louisiana contractor and attorney. He is also a former aide to U.S. Rep. Jim McCrery and editor of The Caddo Republican. Follow Louis on Facebook, on Twitter @ louisravallone, or by e-mail at louisavallone@mac.com.</em>
Not Obama’s fault?
‘Sudden wealth syndrome’ may be to blame Much has been written (and spoken) that is highly critical of President Obama’s choices, from economic policies to the number of vacation days he has spen...
Aug 09, 2010 | 1 1 comments | 6 6 recommendations | email to a friend
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