Thursday, January 5th, 2017 Linville, North Carolina IT’S CRUNCH TIME FOR JOHN BEL EDWARDS! The honeymoon may be just beginning for President-Elect Donald Trump, but any such love fest has come to an abrupt end for Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards. 2016 was a year the new governor would like to forget, but things don’t...Read More

December 29, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana 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...Read More

December 22nd, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  THE HOLIDAYS OFFER US A SECOND CHANCE! Most of us have been swept up in the momentum of the holiday season.  We have passed the Christmas milestone and are approaching New Year’s Day, the third in the trilogy of holidays that we celebrate during this time each year “”...Read More

December 15th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana ARE REPUBLICANS FLIP FLOPPING ON OBAMACARE? Remember the old knock on presidential candidate John Kerry back in the 2004 presidential election?  “I was for it before I was against it.”Â Â  Today, about the single worst charge that can be made against any conservative Republican politician is that they support...Read More

December 8th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LOUISIANA HAS WORST DRIVERS IN AMERICA?  Say it isn’t so. The Bayou State, made up of docile souls who are law abiding, courteous and well-trained motorists, has just been tagged by several rating services as having the worst drivers in the nation. Look, the folks down here in the...Read More

Thursday, December 1st, 2016 New Orleans, Louisiana IS NEW ORLEANS UNDER SIEGE? The headlines resounded across the front page of both New Orleans’ daily newspapers. “AN UNCONSCIONABLE ACT” blared the New Orleans Advocate. “IT WAS PANIC,” shouted The Times Picayune. Bullets were flying all over Bourbon Street as a visiting Baton Rouge man was killed...Read More

Friday, November 25th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana MORE PRIDE IN LOUISIANA! One of the biggest tests facing Louisiana’s recently elected Governor John Bel Edwards is the challenge of re-instilling pride in the attitudes of many Louisianans. Government can only do so much. But a governor can be a catalyst in raising the public’s expectations. The...Read More

Thursday, November 17th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana TRUMP CAMPAIGN LIKE READING A NOVEL! Let me tell you just how Donald Trump became the nation’s president-elect. It’s really quite simple. He had a compelling story to tell that resonated with millions of Americans who have been browbeaten by the continuing and tiring clichés that have been...Read More

November 10th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana WAS THE ELECTION RIGGED? So was our recent presidential election rigged as winner Donald charged repeatedly throughout his campaign? Maybe there were no shenanigans on Election Day. But the election process itself was either unduly influenced or rigged from the get-go. Mainstream news organizations played a less than noble...Read More

November 3rd, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana MEDDLING IN OUR ELECTIONS! One of the hallmarks of America’s democracy is the right to vote on who are leaders will be. And implicit in the process is the guarantee that elections will be run fairly without any hint of corrupting the process. That includes a voter’s confidence that...Read More

Thursday, October 27th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LABOR OF LOVE TO VOTE!  People are early voting in record numbers all over America.  Here in my home state of Louisiana, election participation is up 25% over the presidential election just four years ago. Predictions are that as many of 40% of total voters will cast their ballots...Read More

October 20th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  WHY YOUNG VOTERS ARE DISENGAGED FROM POLITICS! Do young voters really care about who runs their local, state and federal government?  Whatever buzz inspired younger voters to support Barack Obama has been severely diminished by the gridlock in Washington.  Voters under thirty (and the rest of us, for that...Read More

Thursday, October 13th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  COST OF DRUGS NO ISSUE IN PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE!  If you watched the presidential debate last week, the only real winner was the guy who wore the red sweater and asked an intelligent policy question about energy. His Izod sweater has become a hot clothing item at stores all...Read More

Thursday, October 7th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana SENATE DEBATE ORGANIZERS DO DISSERVICE TO VOTERS! There are twenty-four candidates in the running for the open U.S. Senate seat in Louisiana. A televised debate has been set on the state’s public television network for October 18th, to give Louisiana voters a chance to size up the candidates....Read More

September 29th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana ALL ABOUT MONEY AT LSU! If you want to know what’s really important in Louisiana, just check out the front pages of newspapers across the state. There was a lot going on this past week, such as the presidential debate, the U.S. Senate race, climbing crime rates in several...Read More

We are all set for a lively radio weekend radio program, and we hope you will join us. Of course we will talk about the coming bizarre presidential election post debate. Then, what’s all this Wells Fargo scandal? We will learn about it with guest Professor William K. Black, Associate Professor of Economics and Law...Read More

September 22nd, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana WHAT TO WATCH-THE SAINTS OR THE DEBATES? Every now and then, we all face a “Sophie’s Choice” moment, where we have to pick what to accept and what to give up. Folks down in the Bayou State soon will have to confront a real dilemma. It’s a decision that...Read More

September 15th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana THE DEMISE OF ENTERTAINING POLITICS IN LOUISIANA! I have a sad announcement to make. Politics is just no fun anymore in Louisiana. Reams of books have been written about the colorful characters that ran the Bayou state throughout its history. And the average citizen got involved, attended rallies and...Read More

Thursday, September 8th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana DOES VOTING MEAN ANYTHING IN LOUISIANA? Election Day is less than two months away. It’s Clinton and Trump neck and neck in the polls, with Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson polling 10% of the total vote. So the candidates are crisscrossing Louisiana trying to squeeze out enough votes to...Read More

September 1st, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana PROPERTY INSURANCE RATES GOING UP? A local news reporter where I live posed the question this week as to whether insurance rates for property owners will begin to rise, following the recent South Louisiana flooding. My answer was simple. Of course they will go up. In fact, the cost...Read More

Thursday, August 25th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana NONSTOP TRAGEDIES IN LOUISIANA! An old out-of-state friend called to touch base, and asked, “how are y’all doing down there?” I told him we were hanging in there, in spite of what seems to be one confrontation and tragedy after another. Of course you have to be optimistic...Read More

Thursday, August 18th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana RAIN, RAIN, GO AWAY IN LOUISIANA! “What has happened down here is the winds have changed Clouds roll in from the north and it started to rain The river rose all day The river rose all night Louisiana, Louisiana They’re tryin’ to wash us away” Louisiana poet laureate...Read More

August 11th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana TRUMP OVER THE EDGE AGAIN? Whoooooa! He said what? If there were ever a poster child for continually sticking one’s foot in mouth, it would be Donald Trump. Rather than attack his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton, Trump can’t seem to help himself by going rogue and making outrageous statements...Read More

August 4th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana HE’S BAAAACK – DAVID DUKE!  No matter how hard Louisiana tries, it just cannot shake entanglements with David Duke. Some would call it a noose. But whatever, Duke is back gaining a lot of press as a candidate for U. S. Senator, as 24 candidates vie for the distinction...Read More

On our close at hand weekend radio program, Jim will talk about the dramatic slide downwards in the polls by Donald Trump. And what’s going on with David Duke? Is he a serious candidate? Oxford scholar Chris Kutarna will discuss his new book, “Age of Discovery: Navigating he Risks and Rewards of Our New Renaissance.”...Read More

Thursday, July 28th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  FINAL FAREWELL DRAWS OFFICERS TO LOUISIANA FROM ALL OVER AMERICA! The turnout for a special funeral was a sight to see. Hundreds of motorcycles and police vehicles from all over the nation were lined up to honor a fallen hero in Baton Rouge. Police officer Montrell Jackson was...Read More

July 21st, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  THESE ARE TRYING TIMES IN BATON ROUGE!  Early Sunday mornings are a quiet time for me. I’m generally at a local coffee house in Baton Rouge looking over the morning papers for ideas to discuss on my mid-morning syndicated radio program. Several police officers dropped in for a coffee...Read More

Thursday, July 14th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana FORTY-EIGHT YEARS OF POLITICAL CONVENTIONS  Some 4000 Republican delegates and party officials are converging in Cleveland this week, with Democrats heading for Philadelphia the following week. The old process of picking national candidates in the proverbial smoke filled room has gone by the wayside in favor of party...Read More

July 8th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana A KILLING IN BATON ROUGE! There is a perception around the country that high profile shootings are considered the norm in Louisiana. Nine police officers were killed in the line of duty last year, more than in any other state in the nation. New Orleans regularly heads the list...Read More

June 30th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  EDUCATIONAL REFORM IGNORED IN LOUISIANA!  With a major national election just a month away, the stakes continue to get higher.  A well-educated workforce is the key to pulling the country out of the present economic doldrums.  But in election contests nationwide, and particularly in my home state of Louisiana,...Read More

Thursday, June 23rd, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LOUISIANA BEHIND ON INTERNET ACCESS! Newspapers are in trouble all across America.  A recent ax to fall is in New Orleans where The Times-Picayune has cut back to publishing three days a week. The reason is simple economics.  Since Katrina in 2005, The Times-Picayune daily circulation has dropped...Read More

Thursday, June 16th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LESSONS LEARNED: BASEBALL AND POLITICS!  Now that basketball is over, baseball season is in full swing. My college home team LSU just lost a heartbreaker that kept them from going to the college world series. I’m a die-hard Yankees fan and tune in to a number of their...Read More

Thursday, June 9th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana ARE PROSECUTORS ABOVE THE LAW IN LOUISIANA! Has prosecutorial misconduct become an epidemic in Louisiana? A number of national publications seem to think so. Nary a week goes by when there is not a story of some Louisiana prosecutor supposedly pursuing justice by breaking the law. Just this week, the...Read More

Thursday, June 2nd, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  ROLLING THE DICE ON HURRICANE SEASON! It’s the kickoff for hurricane season and forecasters are predicting 14 named storms with anywhere from 4 to 8 storms growing into major hurricanes. Here on the Gulf Coast, we certainly perk up when this time of year rolls around.  For years,...Read More

Friday, May 27Th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana TO GRADUATES “” THE WORLD ACCORDING TO ME!  Kids all over America graduated last week from kindergarten, grade school, high school, college and graduate schools. And there was always a commencement speaker. Most of you will never give a commencement address. But as a public official, I was called...Read More

May 19th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  A MAJOR SHAKE UP NEEDED IN CONGRESS? With a national election only months away, the approval rate for members of Congress seems to be in free fall.  Few constituents approve of the dysfunction taking place in the nation’s capitol.  Just 10 years ago, Congress had an approval rating of 65%. ...Read More

Thursday, May 12th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  TOO MUCH POLITICAL CORRECTNESS IN LOUISIANA! I don’t know about you, but I sure am confused about all this current debate over gender equity, gay rights, and transgenders. I keep reading in the newspaper about LGBT. I had to look up the lettering to even know what the...Read More

Thursday, May 5th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana HATE CRIMES IN LOUISIANA! There is a proposed new law that is roaring through the Louisiana legislature. Any physical attack on a law enforcement officer, firefighter or emergency services personnel will now be considered a hate crime. So what’s a hate crime you ask?  If someone is premeditatedly...Read More

Thursday, April 28th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana VOTER DISTRUST IN LOUISIANA AND ACROSS THE NATION! And I thought voters were distrustful, angry and confrontational a few years back when I held public office in Louisiana.  This coming federal election is viewed by many, including yours truly, as a herculean and rather grim battle between good...Read More

Thursday, April 21st, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana THE KINGFISH, LOUISIANA, AND PRESIDENTIAL POLITICS!  Huey Long would have been right in the middle of the current presidential election if he were still alive. He began a legacy of a long list of Louisiana politicians who had national aspirations. Later governors John McKeithen, Edwin Edwards, Buddy Roemer...Read More

Thursday, April 14th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana FREEDOM OF CHOICE IN MOTORCYCLE HELMET DEBATE! One of the hot issues in the current session of the Louisiana Legislature, meeting at the state capitol in Baton Rouge, is the repeal of a law that currently mandates the wearing of a safety helmet when riding a motorcycle.  Proponents...Read More

Thursday, April 6th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana CHILD ABUSE IN LOUISIANA! Since the time of Charles Dickens, the plight of children in state custody has been the source of great public anxiety. In the almost 200 years since Oliver Twist was published, many of us think of starving children immortalized by young Oliver who received...Read More

Thursday, March 31st, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana TRUMP AND LOUISIANA’S “CROOKED ELECTIONS”!  Donald Trump said he was stunned, shocked and livid about how elections are run way down in the Bayou State. He minced no words in giving his assessment of what happened in the recent Louisiana presidential primary. ” It tells you what a...Read More

Thursday, March 24th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana FROM CESSPOOL TO HOT TUB IN LOUISIANA POLITICS! Who cares about any budget crisis in Louisiana? After all, it’s important that the Bayou State’s new governor and legislature set priorities. And they apparently have. They were not able to balance the state budget in a recent special session....Read More

March 17th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LSU SHOULD NOT BE A QUITTER! Is LSU a quitter? When the pressures mount, and things just don’t go as planned, are there too many instances where the state’s flagship university seems to walk away and pull the plug, with the hopes that the problem will just go away?...Read More

March 10th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana SHOULD FEDS HAVE RIGHT TO BREAK INTO YOUR IPHONE? It sounds like a pretty straightforward request. The FBI wants to open up a criminal’s iPhone to see if a future crime can be stopped. This is the scenario of the San Bernardino shooter, who certainly forfeited his privacy rights...Read More

Thursday, March 3rd, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LOUISIANA NEEDS MORE HEROES! Psychologist Carl Jung wrote that we are born to need heroes. Having a hero in our lives nurtures us, gives us hope, lifts us up, gives us reasons to dream and be inspired. Every kid has a special champion they admire and look up...Read More

Friday, February 26th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  PUBLIC APATHY AND LOUISIANA POLITICS! When it comes to exceptional creative talent in America, Louisiana seems to always come out on top. I thought of the state’s remarkable musical virtuosos this week on the third anniversary of the death of concert pianist Van Cliburn, arguably one of the...Read More

Thursday, February 18th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana NEW LOUISIANA GOVERNOR FACING REALITY! New Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards has jumped head first into the abyss of state government’s seemingly endless financial problems, and his popularity is already taking hits. A recent Southern Media and Opinion Research poll has his popularity rating at a low 42%....Read More

February 11th, 2016 New Orleans, Louisiana BEING POLITICALLY CORRECT IN LOUISIANA! Political correctness continues to be on the march in the Bayou State from Shreveport to New Orleans. Just about everywhere a Civil War commemoration or monument is located, there seems to be some local group calling for a re-writing of history by eliminating such...Read More

February 4th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LOUISIANA BIG LOSER IN IOWA CAUCUS! The biggest loser in the recent Iowa presidential caucuses was not Donald Trump or any of the other candidates who did not meet expectations in garnering voters. No, the title for the real loser was, hands down, the state of Louisiana. Because of...Read More

Thursday, January 28th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana ARE NEW LOUISIANA TAXES REALLY NECESSARY? Paraphrasing but updating former Louisiana Senator Russell Long’s famous saying about how to raise revenue, “We’re going tax you, we’re going tax me, we’ll even tax that guy behind the tree.” With only a few days in office, Louisiana’s new Governor John...Read More

January 21st, 2016 New Orleans, Louisiana WAS THE COURSE OF HISTORY CHANGED IN LOUISIANA? Two hundred years ago this month, Louisiana was the center of a major turning point in both American and world history. The War of 1812 was the first time in the short time of the nation’s history that the U.S. had...Read More

Thursday, January 14th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana UPHILL BATTLES FOR LOUISIANA’S NEW GOVERNOR! Louisiana’s newly elected governor began his inaugural day on a high note with religious services at St. Joseph Cathedral in downtown Baton Rouge. But before he could even begin his inaugural address, things got dicey. The Louisiana House of Representatives rejected his...Read More

January 7th, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana ELECTIONS NEVER STOP IN LOUISIANA!  Less than two months ago, Louisiana voters were beaten to exhaustion with a barrage of mostly negative campaign commercials. Try as one might, it was impossible to dodge the onslaught of attack ads delivered by TV, radio, mailers, newspaper, and internet saturation. What a...Read More

January 1st, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana FOOTBALL AND EDUCATIONAL REFORM IN LOUISIANA! It’s that time of year for college bowl games and NFL playoffs. And when you look at the winners, it’s all about the coach. Top college teams like Alabama and LSU don’t build winning programs by setting up boards and committees. The job...Read More

December 24th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana 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 the coming year brings with it a greater foreboding than we have experienced in the past.  I would rather be absorbed with...Read More

  Thursday, December 17, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  TOUGH QUESTIONS FOR LOUISIANA UNIVERSITIES! With a new governor about to take over the reins of state, LSU and other Louisiana colleges are making a full court press for more funding. They have a good argument to make. But what do taxpayers get in return? Have universities...Read More

Thursday, December 10th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana THE UNCERTAIN FUTURE OF LSU! Huey Long was the best friend and supporter LSU ever had.  He was called the father of the modern LSU by the Virginia Quarterly Review in commenting: “Huey stroked LSU as if he had been coddling a newborn pet elephant.  During fiscal stringency...Read More

Thursday, December 3, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana ALL THAT MATTERS IS THE FOOTBALL COACH! With a new governor soon to take office in a state that is facing a massive government financial crisis, a litany of problems continues to mount. Higher education is on the ropes both financially and academically. Healthcare costs continue to spiral,...Read More

Friday, November 27th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  LOSERS IN LOUISIANA GOVERNOR’S RACE!  Four months ago in the Louisiana governor’s race, Senator David Vitter was a slam-dunk. He seemed to have it all. Gobs of PAC money flowing in from all over the U.S., strong support from most of the Republican establishment including his GOP colleagues...Read More

Columnist and freedom fighter John Whitehead has been a guest on my syndicated radio program, and is one of the nations leading voices on government intrusion into our basic freedoms and right to privacy. Check out his engaging and cncerning vido below.Read More

Thursday, November 19th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana THE DEMISE OF BOBBY JINDAL! Former Louisiana state senator Sixty Rayburn was well know for his folksy sayings during legislative sessions. He often urged his colleagues to never forget the folks back home when deciding issues at the state capitol. Sixty put it this way. “Always dance with...Read More

Thursday, November 12th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana BETRAYING YOUR POLITICAL PARTY IN LOUISIANA  You may not have heard, but there is apparently a strict code of loyalty among Republican candidates in Louisiana. They follow the rule of never speaking ill about a fellow republican, and they always rally behind the parties’ choice against any democratic...Read More

November 5th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  TURN PRISIONERS LOOSE IN LOUISIANA?  We have been hearing for years that Louisiana has the world’s highest incarceration rate. There are currently some 40,000 Bayou State residents behind bars, at a cost of $350 million a year. The conventional wisdom from numerous officials in Louisiana is that our prisons...Read More

October 29th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LOUISIANA ELECTIONS? WHO CARES! Do a majority of folks in Louisiana even care about who governs them in the coming years? You wouldn’t think so based on election turnout in last week’s gubernatorial election. Election officials had projected just under 50% turnout. As a former head of elections during...Read More

October 22nd, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana WHAT TO DO ABOUT LOUISIANA’S FISCAL MESS!  In the numerous gubernatorial debates that have taken place over the past year, candidates have been asked time and time again what they will do about the massive state debt that continues to grow. How will they fill the financial hole that...Read More

Thursday, October 15th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana IS ANYONE INTERESTED IN VOTING IN LOUISIANA? Remember the 1970 song by Chicago; “Does anybody know what time it is, does anybody really care?” Well it’s close to Election Day in Louisiana, and it would seem by early voting and general lack of interest that Louisianans are not...Read More

October 8th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana WHY HAVE AN ELECTED LT. GOVERNOR IN LOUISIANA? Leave it to a preacher to ask a serious and relevant question about ways to save money in a state that faces a huge financial crisis. At a recent forum of candidates running for Lt. Governor in Louisiana, Pastor Lewis Richerson...Read More

Thursday, October1st, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana TIME FOR BOBBY JINDAL TO COME BACK HOME!  Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Don Meredith spent 20 years in the broadcast booth with Howard Cosell on Monday night football. When the game became out of reach in the waning minutes for the team behind, Meredith was famous for singing: “Turn...Read More

Thursday, September 24th, 2015 New Orleans, Louisiana THE POPE AND LOUISIANA! The Pope is taking the country by storm having made visits to three American cities in the past week. His schedulers made one oversight in planning Pope Francis’ first trip to the U.S. He should have come to Louisiana. More than half the population...Read More

  September 17th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LITTLE INTEREST IN COMING LOUISIANA ELECTION! According to national political pundits, there is a revolution going on all over America. Voters are in a rebellion mode with little confidence in the political leadership at both the national and state levels. Being an incumbent politician is no longer a...Read More

September 10th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana DON’T GIVE JUST ANY KID A SPORTS TROPHY? As far back as I can remember, Saturday mornings were spent at a playing field, or a basketball court, or at swimming pool, cheering on kids — and now grandkids — to participate and be a part of the team. Of...Read More

Thursday, September 3rd 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana Louisiana Has The Highest Insurance Rates And The Worst Drivers!  The results are in for 2015, and it comes as no surprise that Louisiana continues to lead the nation in having the highest automobile insurance rates. A new study, just released by the Bankrate Group “ranked all 50...Read More

August 27th, 2015 New Orleans, Louisiana  Ten Years Ago Katrina Tried To Wash Us Away! Just as most Americans remember where they were on 9/11, those of us living on the Gulf Coast remember the fear and concern that enveloped our region ten years ago this week. A lady named Katrina changed many of our...Read More

Thursday, August 20th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana GET HEALTHY-DRINK MORE COKE? There’s always been a disconnect between the accolades LSU gives itself for academic achievement and the bottom line results that come from national rankings. Louisiana’s flagship rarely cracks the top 100 universities in the U.S., with a majority of SEC schools outperforming LSU year...Read More

Thursday, August 13th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LEGISLATURE STICKS IT TO INSURANCE POLICYHOLDERS!  If there was one area of financial help that could have and should have been addressed by the Louisiana legislature in its recent session, it was insurance reform. After all, a Dallas-based research firm completed a new study last month that concluded...Read More

Thursday, August 6th, 2015 New Orleans, Louisiana SANCTUARY CITIES FLOUT IMMIGRATION LAWS! Can the City of New Orleans pick and choose which federal laws it will acknowledge and enforce? Most of us understand that if you violate a federal law, then there are consequences. You most likely will be prosecuted and punished. Federal laws on...Read More

Thursday, July 28th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana DOMESTIC TERRORISM IN LAFAYETTE! My home phone rang around 9:00 pm. It was my wife Gladys who was in New York with grandkids. “Turn on CNN. They are reporting a mass shooting at the Grand movie theater in Lafayette. Apparently, several people were killed.” The Lafayette theater is...Read More

Friday, July 23rd, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana TRUMP DISPARAGES LOUISIANA HEROES! There is no politically correct way to explain it. Donald Trump blew his chance in a big way. He seemed to be on a roll, rising in the presidential preference polls and talking about issues other Republican candidates were ducking. Here in Louisiana, he...Read More

Thursday, July 16th, 2015 New Orleans, Louisiana GARTH BROOKS AND ME IN LOUISIANA! If you come from Louisiana, it’s almost a congenital requirement that you are born with a love for music. Particularly string music, from country, zydeco, blues, rock and even an abundance of classical aficionados. I’m certainly in that number. Two of my...Read More

Thursday, July 9th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana MISS USA TRUMPED BY IMMIGRANT DEBATE!  Donald Trump sure has things stirred up right now down here in the Bayou State. International television attention was supposed to highlight Baton Rouge and the whole state of Louisiana. But coverage of the Miss USA pageant has turned more on “The...Read More

Thursday, July 2nd, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana RE-WRITING LOUISIANA’S HISTORY FLAGS, MONUMENTS AND ALL! It looks like it’s time to get out the soap powder in Louisiana. Some elected officials and the state’s largest newspaper are jumping all over themselves to call for the banishment of whatever tattered remnants are left from the aftermath of...Read More

June 25rd, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LOUISIANA TO THE TREASUREY DEPARTMENT- LEAVE OLD HICKORY ALONE!  There is a major push by the bureaucrats in Washington to put the first woman on the face of paper currency. There are a number of choices, and you will get no argument form me that there certainly is a...Read More

Thursday, June 18th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana MEDICAL MARIJUANA OPENS UP CAN OF WORMS IN LOUISIANA! Who would have thought that the most notable legislation in the recently completed session of the Louisiana legislature was increasing taxes by over one billion dollars, and legalizing marijuana use for certain purposes. Some observers around the state capitol...Read More

June 12th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana ALL LIVES SHOULD MATTER!  The rallying cry by protesters that has gained momentum after Ferguson and Baltimore is that “Black Lives Matter.” Within the context of all society, that’s a truism. But like so many other older citizens, I volunteered to join the military (something few protesters or politicians...Read More

June 4th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana WALKER PERCY’S IMPACT ON LOUISIANA!  Many readers who love Louisiana literature will gather this weekend in St. Francisville to celebrate the live and works of novelist Walker Percy. He was, to me, a literary icon who spent most of his life in Louisiana. Many consider him to be America’s...Read More

May 28th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  SAME OLD, SAME OLD IN LOUISIANA GOVERNOR’S RACE!  Fifty years ago this month, rock band The Who released their megahit rock opera called “Won’t Get Fooled Again.” The song ended with the lyrics: “Meet the new boss, Same as the old boss.” From the early debates in the approaching...Read More

Thursday, May 21st, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana CAN AN INDEPENDENT SHAKE UP LOUISIANA GOVERNOR’S RACE? This fall’s Louisiana governor’s race has settled down into a four-man contest. U.S. Senator David Vitter is far out front, and conventional wisdom points to a republican-democratic runoff between Vitter and Rep. John Bell Edwards from Amite. But is the...Read More

Thursday, May 14th, 2015 New Orleans, Louisiana  WHAT LOUISIANA’S NEXT GOVERNOR SHOULD DO FIRST! Louisiana’s next governor will take office in less than eight months, and will jump into the abyss of a state with massive fiscal problems, an educational system that is dysfunctional, a healthcare system that needs a major overhauling, a highway system...Read More

Thursday, May 7th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  GETTING OLDER AIN’T ALL THAT BAD! There is a disturbing article in this month’s Atlantic Magazine by a prominent physician at the University of Pennsylvania. Ezekiel J. Emanuel is an oncologist, a bioethicist, and a vice provost of the University, and is the author or editor of 10...Read More

April 30th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  HAS LSU DUG ITS OWN HOLE? Chicken Little has got nothing on King Alexander. The LSU president is shouting from the rooftops that the state financial commitment is crumbling to the ground, the LSU fiscal sky is falling, and he is about to declare “academic bankruptcy.” Academic bankruptcy? I’ve...Read More

April 23rd, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  JINDAL TIRED OF US HYPHENATED-LOUISIANANS! Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal is mad. Really mad! He’s had his fill of all these hyphenated-Americans ballyhooing and expressing pride in their ethnic heritage. Jindal joined a group of 18 presidential wannabes in New Hampshire over the weekend trying to impress Republican diehards. And...Read More

Thursday, April 16th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana OFTEN, LITTLE CONCERN FOR JUSTICE IN LOUISIANA!  Remember the scene in the movie, The Fugitive, where Harrison Ford is about to jump off a cliff into a raging river?  He turns to his pursuer, a federal agent played by Tommy Lee Jones, and says: “I’m innocent!”Â  Jones shakes...Read More

Thursday, April 9thy, 205 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  LOUISIANA PLAYS MAJOR ROLE IN THE CIVIL WAR FROM START TO FINISH! The Civil War came to an end 150 years ago this week when an exhausted confederate army, led by General Robert E. Lee, formally surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at a farmhouse in Appomattox,...Read More

April 2nd, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  LOUISIANA IS HOLLYWOOD EAST BUT PAYING ONE HECK OF A PRICE! How much is it worth for Louisiana taxpayers to have movies made throughout the state?  Apparently, quite a lot.  Recent studies have shown that for every new dollar created in jobs, equipment, catering and all the spin off income,...Read More

Thursday, March 16th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  LOUISIANA COULD HAVE THE FIRST PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY! Louisiana is scheduled to have its presidential primary on March 5th of next year, but there is one little problem. The state is broke and the Jindal administration has allocated no money for the legally required election. So what happens next?...Read More

Thursday, March 19th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  LOUISIANA GOVERNORS TRAVELING LOUISIANA. We all know that Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal is a traveler. He seems to be constantly crisscrossing the country in his unlikely and quixotic quest to obtain national office. But now he says he is also the unrivaled champion of governors who travel all...Read More

Thursday, March 12th, l2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  E-MAIL SCANDALS-CLINTON AND JINDAL? It’s going to take a lot more than old emails to derail Hillary Clinton’s grasp of the Democratic presidential nomination next year. Few voters really care how she communicated with her staff while serving as Secretary of State. Republicans think they are circling the...Read More

Thursday, March 5th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  IN LOUISIANA THEY’RE ASKING “” WHO’S IN CHARGE?  In his quixotic quest to run for president, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal has been out of the state 50% of the time in recent months. He’s rarely been visible in his home state, but voters are getting to know him...Read More