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

Thursday, February 26th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  LIKE OIL AND WATER RELIGION AND POLITICIANS DON’T MIX! I guess the good Lord has to put up with politicians. Nary a week goes by when some governor or other political type is holding a prayer rally and declaring that the ills of the nation can be cured...Read More

Thursday, February 19th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana DON’T TELL ME TO EITHER SPEAK ENGLISH OR LEAVE AMERICA! My Louisiana governor has me puzzled again in his quixotic quest to be a player on the national stage. I thought Bobby Jindal was part of a Republican Party that tells government to get off our backs and...Read More

  February 12th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana AMERICA’S COACH-DEAN SMITH LOVED LOUISIANA! One of the all time great coaches in college basketball passed away this week. North Carolina’s Dean Smith had retired with more wins than any coach in history, along with capturing two national championships. But to those who knew him, and I consider...Read More

Thursday, February 5th, 2014 New Orleans, Louisiana  LOUISIANA TAXPAYERS AT RISK OVER BENSON FAMILY SQUABBLE! If you haven’t been following the Benson family soap opera that has dominated news across the state, you are missing a billion dollar power play that’s much better than fiction. New Orleans automobile tycoon and sports icon Tom Benson is...Read More

Thursday, January 29th, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LOUISIANA JOINS IN GIVING BAILOUTS TO WALL STREET! Well, here we go again. Big banks and major insurance companies are “high-fiving” each other after they won big in Washington last month. We thought lawmakers had learned an expensive lesson after the financial crash in 2008 that led to...Read More

Thursday, January 22nd, l2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  FOR BOBBY JINDAL- FIRST THE MUSLIMS, THEN THE WORLD!  Louisiana’s feisty absentee Governor Bobby Jindal sure knows how some things that are not politically correct, so brace yourselves.” So naturally, I held onto my desk, took a deep breath, assumed the worst, and braced myself.  The Republican presidential...Read More

Thursday, January 15th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  CAN REPUBLICANS SHAKE THE CURSE OF DAVID DUKE? Poor Congressman Steve Scalise. He should be on cloud nine having reached the pinnacle of political success by being elected majority whip in the Republican controlled congress. But out of the blue, he is blindsided by a 28-year-old democratic blogger...Read More

Thursday, January 7th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  HAS COLLEGE FOOTBALL BECOME A PRO SPORT? It’s the end of the college football season, and the year has produced a financial bonanza for top tier schools all over the country. ESPN will pay over 7 billion dollars for the rights to telecast just seven games a year...Read More

Friday, December 2nd, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  DUTCH MORIAL-A SPECIAL LOUISIANA POLITICIAN! I drove down to New Orleans for a funeral service last week. I find myself attending a growing number of funerals each year as I get older and as and long time friends pass away. I’ll turn 75 in May of this New...Read More

Friday, December 26th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  RHETORIC AND DEATH GO HAND IN HAND IN POLICE OFFICER MURDERS! Don’t let them tell you otherwise. Words matter. The old saying that “Sticks and stones can hurt my bones, but words can never hurt me?” Wrong! Dead wrong! Words can inflame, and the rhetoric can reach such...Read More

Thursday, December 18th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  SO DO WE AND SHOULD WE TORTURE? And we thought Jack Bauer on the Fox TV show “24” was heavy handed in his use of torture techniques. Jack was a piker compared to CIA operatives who utilized about every method of pain infliction imaginable. And then, Vice President...Read More

Thursday, December 11th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LANDRIEU FORGOT THE LESSON THAT ALL POLITICS IS LOCAL! Former U.S. House speaker Tip O’Neill said it time and time again. All politics is local. I interviewed Tip on a New Orleans television show I hosted back in the 1990s. He went on for sometime that you have...Read More

Thursday, December 4th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana TRYING TO MAKE SENSE OUT OF FERGUSON! Do you know anyone who does not have an opinion of just what happened in Ferguson, Missouri? The problem is that in trying to make some sense out of what has become a tragedy for everyone involved, misinformation has been spewed...Read More

Wednesday, November 26th, 2014 New York City, N.Y.  YOU OUTSIDERS, QUIT TELLING US WHAT’S BEST FOR LOUISIANA! The political termites are swarming into Louisiana. They are coming from everywhere; north and south-east and west. All with one purpose in mind. The want to tell us who we should vote for as the state’s next U.S....Read More

Thursday, November 20th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  KEYSTONE PIPELINE-LOUISIANA’S ECONOMIC SAVIOR? Almost overnight, the approval of the Keystone pipeline has become a key issue in Louisiana’s cantankerous senatorial runoff campaign. Incumbent Mary Landrieu is leading the charge in the U.S. Senate, while challenger Dr. Bill Cassidy is trying to one up Landrieu by being the...Read More

Thursday, October 13th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  NO MORE RETAIL POLITICS IN LOUISIANA! Remember the days when candidates for U.S Senator or Governor would speak to thousands of supporters at weekend rallies all over Louisiana? Huey Long was the master, mainly because he promised he’d give voters just about anything they wanted. A long line...Read More

Thursday, November 6th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  REDUCE GRIDLOCK IN WASHINGTON? GOOD LUCK WITH THAT! Voters sent a strong message on election night that congress needs to work across party lines and begin to get things done. No more gridlock. After all, the popularity of members of congress is at an all time low. Less...Read More

Thursday, October 30th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  LOUISIANA VOTERS — WON’T GET FOOLED AGAIN! To many electoral observers across the country, Louisiana is the synergy of the political universe. Nowhere is there such a concentration of political interest ““ right? Wasn’t it a Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives who said if you want...Read More

Thursday, October 23rd, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana WHAT VOTERS FACE AT THE POLLS! Election Day for the congressional and local elections is right around the corner. In fact, a Louisiana voter can absentee vote right now. The Secretary of State’s office predicts some 45 to 50 percent of registered voters will actually show up and...Read More

Thursday, October 16th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  LOUISIANA — THEY’RE GOIN’ TO WASH US AWAY! During the last few days of our family vacation, we ended up in Boston. The newspaper headlines were startling. “Boston Could Become the Next Venice,“ warned the Boston Globe. “Boston Sinking into The Sea,“ blared the New York Times. A...Read More

Thursday, October 9th, 2014 Charlotte, North Carolina  MORE PRIDE NEEDED IN LOUISIANA? One of the biggest priorities facing Louisiana’s next governor 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 whole focus of...Read More

Thursday, October 2nd, 2014 Quebec, Canada LOUISIANA CATCHING UP TO THE 21st CENTURY? With tax dollars scarce in Louisiana, this might be an excellent time to streamline on the state and local levels. Just how many boards, commissions, water districts, sewer districts, parish auditors, law enforcement offices, and other special districts are spread throughout Louisiana?...Read More

Thursday, September 25th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  WORST ABUSERS — FOOTBALL PLAYERS OR FEDERAL JUDGES? New allegations of physical abuse seem to surface daily. The most recent downpour began with the media release of a hotel surveillance video showing Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice punching his girlfriend in the face, leaving her knocked out...Read More

Thursday, September 18th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  ARE LOUISIANA CONGRESSIONAL MEMBERS READY TO LEAD US INTO WAR? Here we go again. Another prolonged military campaign in the Middle East. Is the President justified in waging a new war that will emanate in Syria, but raises numerous questions as to where it all will end? Louisiana...Read More

Thursday, September 11th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  DON’T WORRY, BE HAPPY IN LOUISIANA! Bayou State residents are well aware that Louisiana is a pleasant place to live. Some would sarcastically say that we are fat, dumb, and happy down here in the deepest of the deep southern states. The state motto is, after all, Laissez...Read More

Thursday, August 28th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  COULD A FERGUSON HAPPEN IN LOUISIANA? Is the Ferguson, Missouri community unique in its inability to deal with a troubling death with still unanswered questions? Of course not. Ferguson is any-town when reason disintegrates into the chaos of aggressive confrontation. Ferguson is not a community in decay or...Read More

Friday, August 22ed, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  LANDRIEU CAUSES HER OWN PROBLEMS IN RE-ELECTION BID! Louisiana United States Senator Mary Landrieu has always been a survivor in Bayou State politics. She’s been successful in four races for the U.S. Senate, but the elections have always been close, and until now, her opponents have never had...Read More

Thursday, August 14th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  DID LOUISIANA MAKE A DEAL WITH THE DEVIL OVER OIL? Do energy companies have a responsibility to mitigate the damage caused by their drilling for oil and gas in Louisiana? That’s the issue now being litigated in the controversial levee board lawsuits now in the courts. Louisiana was...Read More

Thursday, August 7th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  RICHARD NIXON AND LOUISIANA! Forty years ago this week, Richard Nixon became the first and only president to resign from office. Those of you too young to remember the events surrounding Watergate missed one of the most riveting episodes of American history. Nixon survived a number of bitter...Read More

Thursday, July 31st, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  VOTERS UNHAPPY WITH CHOICES IN U.S. SENATE RACE! If recent polls are any indication, Louisiana voters are not too keen on any of the choices for U.S. Senator in the coming fall election. A number of national surveys have found that every candidate running has a higher negative...Read More

Thursday, July 24th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  TOO MANY INNOCENTS GETTING THE DEATH PENALTY! There is a reason the death penalty is rarely enforced anymore, particularly in the federal judicial system. Too many innocent victims are being convicted, based on cover-ups and the withholding of exculpatory evidence by some federal and state prosecutors. A recent...Read More

Thursday, July 17th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  WHY ARE PROPERTY INSURANCE RATES GOING UP IN LOUISIANA? What on earth is happening out there?  Is a major hurricane churning in the Gulf and taking dead aim at Louisiana?  Is the Mighty Mississippi on the verge of overflowing its levees and about to flood thousands of acres, driving...Read More

Friday, July 11th, 2014 New Orleans, Louisiana  THE SEARING OF A GREAT CITY’S SOUL! The Queen City of the South is under siege.  No, not from hurricanes. This time, the siege is from within.  New Orleans is known as the city that care forgot.  But it’s been hard to let the good times roll in...Read More

Thursday, July 3rd, 2014  New Orleans, Louisiana HURRICANE SEASON — DO YOU FEEL LUCKY?  WELL DO YA?  It’s the kickoff for hurricane season and forecasters are predicting 8 to13 named storms with anywhere from 3 to 6 of these storms growing into major hurricanes. Here on the Gulf Coast, we certainly perk up when this...Read More

Thursday, June 26th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  A LOUISIANA KID AND THE BERLIN WALL! Twenty-Eight years ago this week, President Ronald Reagan traveled to West Berlin, and at the Brandenburg Gate admonished: “Mr.Gorbachev take down that wall.”Â  The Berlin Wall had been erected by the puppet soviet state of East Germany. Unless you are over sixty...Read More

June 19th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  A HOUSE DIVIDED-IN AMERICA AND IRAQ! Iraq is imploding as Republicans and Democrats alike are scratching their heads as to what went wrong.  Meanwhile, party gridlock in Washington has brought any sense of responsible governing to a standstill.  The President faces what may well turn out to be his...Read More

Thursday, June 12th, 2014 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...Read More

Thursday, June 5th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  JOHN McKEITHEN ““ LOUISIANA’S TRANSITION GOVERNOR A popular Louisiana Governor died 15 years ago this week. John McKeithen was the first Governor I ever met.  When he was elected as chief executive in 1963, Louisiana was still a 19th century state struggling to operate in the 20th century. ...Read More

Friday, May 30th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  A NEW SUPERDOME TO GET A SUPER BOWL? COME ON MAN! There is a great deal of whining going on down in the Crescent City over the loss of the 2018 Super Bowl.  Many New Orleanians who were part of the bid process felt they were far and...Read More

Thursday, May 22nd, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  JINDAL AND OBAMA — TWO PEAS IN A POD!  A week doesn’t go by without Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal taking a potshot at President Obama. The Prez has kept a tight lip and publicly ignores Jindal, but it’s obvious from press reports that there is no love lost...Read More

Thursday, May 15th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana DARK MONEY DRIVING U.S. SENATE RACE! Millions of campaign dollars from all over America are pouring into Louisiana in a calculated effort to influence the outcome of the state’s up and coming U.S. Senate race. Incumbent democratic Senator Mary Landrieu is in the fight of her political life and...Read More

Thursday, May 8th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana EDUCATIONAL REFORM  LIKE PULLING TEETH! Achievement in U.S. elementary schools lags behind many industrialized countries. The U.S. comes in16th in science and 23rd in math. Our major economic competitors — China, Japan, Canada, Germany and Korea — are far ahead. So why is it so hard for us...Read More

Friday, May 2st, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana     FLOOD CONTROL HINDERED BY LEVEE BOARDS? Legislation is working its way through the Louisiana legislature that would strip levee districts of their autonomy.  Board members of several large levee boards are crying foul, and charge that flood protection will suffer and emergency responses will slow down. ...Read More

Thursday, April 24th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  TO BOBBY JINDAL —-JUST DO IT! Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal made a splash of headlines a few weeks ago by proposing his alternative to Obamacare.  Many of his ideas are the part of the same list he’s been shopping around for years, some of it pieced together from...Read More

Thursday, April 17th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  THE KISSING CONGRESSMAN AND FIFTH DISTRICT VOTERS! Down on the Bayou in my home state of Louisiana, there’s a feeding frenzy going on.  Now, if you live in the state but have been on vacation, say in the Ukraine, you may not be aware that the Fifth District...Read More

Thursday, April 10th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  WHY ARE LOUISIANA DRIVERS THE WORST IN THE UNITED STATES? For the fourth year in a row, Louisiana is number one.  That’s right!  Once again, the Bayou State has been named as the home of the worst drivers in America. One of the major causes of such ranking...Read More

Thursday, April 3rd, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana MARCH MADNESS ARE COLLEGE ATHLETES BEING SHORTCHANGED? Millions of rabid college basketball fans have been glued to their TVs over the past month as March Madness reaches its crescendo. And the big bucks have been rolling in.  With coaches getting bigger salaries, and colleges splitting huge TV and...Read More

Thursday, March 27th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  POLITICIANS GIVE FALSE HOPE ON FLOOD INSURANCE RATES! Louisiana’s congressional members of both parties were throwing cheers and high fives. They had done it.  They had put an end to the proposed outrageous flood insurance rates. “I’m very proud,” beamed democratic Senator Mary Landrieu.  Her challenger in the coming...Read More

Thursday, March 20th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  THE CAJUN PRINCE — HE’S BACK! It shouldn’t have surprised anyone paying attention to Louisiana politics.  Former Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards made it official this week. He will be a candidate for the U.S. Congress in the coming fall election.  The political prognosticators say the congressional district has...Read More

Thursday, March 13th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  THE PUZZLING RISE AND FALL OF BOBBY JINDAL Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal threw a hissy fit in front of the White House earlier this month. He joined other governors in having a non-partisan luncheon with the president, then walked out on the lawn and began blasting away at...Read More

Thursday, March 6th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  GOVERNOR JIMMIE DAVIS BROUGHT US SUNSHINE! It could be the most recognized American song worldwide. Go to a small Asian community were little or no English is spoken.  Start humming, You Are My Sunshine.  More likely than not, the locals will join in singing the song in English. ...Read More

Thursday, February 27th, 2014 Tampa, Florida ARE BASEBALL AND POLITICS INTERTWINED? Just what is America’s favorite pastime? Is it politics or baseball? Politics has always been a major spectator sport, particularly here in my home state of Louisiana. But don’t sell baseball short. Not only has baseball been around longer than any of America’s professional...Read More

Thursday, February 20th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  WHO’S AT FAULT FOR HIGH AUTO INSURANCE RATES? When political courage wanes and politicians, often in desperation, search for a quick fix to age old problems, particularly as election times draws near, these men (and a few women) of supposed courage often seek out a scapegoat to blame....Read More

Thursday, February 13th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  APPOINTING FEDERAL JUDGES BAD IDEA! Last week’s column discussed the election of judges and the undue influence of campaign funds.  A number of responses suggested doing away with judicial elections, and following the federal path of presidential appointment.  But is the appointive process really better than electing judges? ...Read More

Thursday, February 6th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  IS LOUISIANA A JUDICIAL HELLHOLE? According to several watchdog organizations, Louisiana has one of the worst judicial climates in the country.  The state has been given the dubious title of the nation’s judicial hellhole by several neutral watchdog groups.  Campaign funds given to a judicial candidate are often...Read More

Thursday, January 30th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana JINDAL AND INDIA A MISSED OPPORTUNITY FOR LOUISIANA! Louisiana’s two-term governor and aspiring presidential candidate, Bobby Jindal, just returned from a 10-day junket to the Far East. Stops were made in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan for the expressed purpose of seeking out foreign investment in the Bayou...Read More

Thursday, January 23rd, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana SHOULD THE FEDS MAKE LOUISIANA A PROTECTORATE? HECK YES! Roseanne Roseannadanna summed it up pretty well in trying to make sense out of the trials and tribulations of Louisiana.  “Well, it just goes to show you, it’s always something,” she said. We are hearing cries that Louisiana is...Read More

Thursday, January 16th, 2014 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  Should State Government Subsidize Pro Sports? Throughout the current NFL season, I have remained a die-hard New Orleans Saints fan.  But I have also admired the Green Bay Packers.The Packers are one of the best examples of how a sports franchise should operate. They don’t go to the...Read More

Thursday, December 2nd, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  DUCK DYNASTY CONTROVERSY- DID WE All GET SUCKERED IN? Did the Duck Dynasty and the A&E folks see us coming or what? For weeks, America has been consumed with the saga of head Duck Phil Robertson and the pros and cons of his right to rants and raves...Read More

December 27th, 2013 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 19th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  LOUISIANA TAXPAYERS- HAVE WE GOT A DEAL FOR YOU! You’re not really going to pay your Louisiana state taxes on time are you?  Why on earth would you do that?  Why not do what so many other Louisianans do.  Hang on to your money or invest it or...Read More

Thursday, December 12th, 2013 New Orleans, Louisiana WHY AREN’T WE THE GREATEST GENERATION? Ten years ago, NBC newscaster Tom Brokaw wrote a book about what he called “The Greatest Generation.” In contrast, there’s a new best seller out now calling America “the dumbest generation.” And since Louisiana is at the bottom of the barrel on...Read More

Thursday, December 5th, 2013 Baton rouge, Louisiana SO I GET THIS CALL FROM BOBBY JINDAL! The Governor of Louisiana called me last night. I was just about to doze off when the phone rang. And can you believe it? He wanted my advice on how to deal with his plummeting poll numbers and his growing...Read More

Wednesday, November 27th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana IS THE GOVERNMENT TRYING TO SAVE US FROM OURSELVES? George Orwell’s novel 1984 paints a disturbing scenario where one can be accused of a crime, arrested and prosecuted for his or her thoughts. “The thought police would get him just the same. He had committed”¦ the essential crime...Read More

Thursday, November 21st, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana JFK AND HIS SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP WITH LOUISIANA The 34th President of the United States was assassinated 50 years ago this week under controversial circumstances that leave a number of questions unanswered to this day.  Republicans look to Ronald Reagan as their ideal. But John Kennedy captured the hearts...Read More

Thursday, November 14th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana COMPARING CHRIS CHRISTIE AND BOBBY JINDAL! During the past month, a number of publications have profiled potential Republican candidates who could be major contenders for the 2016 presidential nomination.  After his lopsided re-election victory last week, New Jersey Republican Governor Chris Christie is leading all the major polls. ...Read More

Thursday, November 7dth, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  INSURANCE ISSUES CAUSE HAVOC IN LOUISIANA! Has the final shoe dropped on Louisiana insurance policyholders who are seeing their insurance costs skyrocket, and who continue to pay the highest insurance costs in America?  Can it get any worse?  Well, I hate to tell ya, but yes it can,...Read More

Thursday, October 31, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  DYSFUNCTIONAL LEADERSHIP IN WASHINGTON! When I was a kid growing up, I was a dreamer. I would share with my father some off-the-wall idea that I was absolutely sure would become life changing.  Dad would offer advice, something he said he had picked up from Nolan Bushnell, the...Read More

Thursday, October 24th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  THE HIGHS AND LOWS OF BILLY CANNON THE TOAST OF LSU There are certain things you don’t forget.  Where you were on 9/11, or when President John Kennedy was shot.  Down here in the Bayou State, add to those special dates Halloween night 54 years ago when Billy...Read More

Thursday, October17th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  THE KU KLUX KLAN IN LOUISIANA! Fifty years ago, the FBI opened widespread murder investigations into what was left of the Ku Klux Klan in Louisiana.  The Klan had once held a significant presence statewide throughout the first half of the 20th century. But following the enactment of 1964...Read More

Thursday, October 10th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  IN LOUISIANA, JUST TELL EM’ I LIED! The rancor and animosity of both political parties in Washington seem to be at an all-time high.  Both sides are calling their opponents “liars,” and there are reports of tension building to the point where fistfights have nearly broken out within...Read More

Thursday, October 3rd, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  IS ANYONE PAYING ATTENTION IN WASHINGTON? I picked up my daily newspaper on the first day of October, and three stories dominated the news.  “The Government Shuts Down,” blared one headline.  We have been hearing about this possibility for months as Republicans and Democrats, alike, have dug in...Read More

Friday, September 27th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana DUMB LAWS, CAESAR SALAD AND LA. LEGISLATURE! Football season gives pause in Louisiana for the rough and tumble politics ahead. 2014 brings another totally unpredictable Louisiana legislative session, and congressional elections highlighted by a highly contested U.S. Senator race.  Then the state jumps into what most political prognosticators...Read More

Thursday, September 19th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  TWO CHEERS FOR THE FRENCH- ESPECIALLY IN LOUISIANA!  As President Obama is bluntly finding out, it can be lonely out on a limb when the rest of the world fails to respond to a call for help.  Despite the yeoman efforts of his administration, only a few other...Read More

Thursday, September 5th, 2013 New Orleans, Louisiana  ARE WE ALL FEDERAL CRIMINALS LIVING IN LOUISIANA? Congress is going “new law” crazy. In the nation’s capitol, hundreds of proposed new laws are being introduced every month, creating numerous new regulations and crimes.  And Louisiana congressional members are joining right in this push for more federal intrusion into...Read More

Thursday, August 29th,  2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OVERKILL ON VOTING RIGHTS ACT? These guys at the Justice Department, led by top cop Eric Holder, just don’t know when to quit.  The U.S. Supreme Court knocks them down and they get right back up, snubbing their noses at a final court decision, and starting...Read More

August 23nd, 2013 New York, New York  HOW BAD CAN LOUISIANA INSURANCE CLIMATE GET? In the movie Guys and Dolls, gambler Nathan Detroit (played by Frank Sinatra) says:  “How can it get any worse.  What more can you do to me?”Â  That’s what thousands of Louisiana property owners are saying about the state’s insurance climate...Read More

Thursday, August 15th, l29013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  WHAT TO DO ABOUT RISING FLOOD INSURANCE RATES? Property owners along the Gulf and East coasts are in a panic over projections of outrageous property flood insurance rates that, in some cases, could lead to increases of greater than 1000 per cent. Louisiana newspapers have reported proposed massive...Read More

Thursday, August 8th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  DO WE NEED TO SPY ON DEMOCRACY? A few weeks ago, I began to think we had given up.  There were new revelations, almost daily, about how some government agency is scooping up and harvesting all available tidbits of our personal lives.  We’ve all heard about the usual...Read More

Thursday, August 1st, 2013 New Orleans, Louisiana  WILL BIG OIL FINALLY PAY THE PIPER IN LOUISIANA? A lawsuit against Big Oil for environmental damage by the Bayou State?  Are you kidding me?  Who could possibly have thunk it?  Why it’s almost blasphemous to challenge the oil industry in a state where oil revenue has been...Read More

Thursday, July 25th, 2013 Perdido Key, Florida  TELEVISE CRIMINAL TRIALS?  OF COURSE! Following the Zimmerman verdict, a number of legal and media voices, hollered, “enough is enough.”Â  Angered by the verdict, no more criminal trials on television, they said.  But the Constitution guarantees that trials are public and open to everyone.  And what could be...Read More

Thursday, 18th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  PROSECUTORS NEED TO GET OVER ZIMMERMAN VERDICT! George Zimmerman was found not guilty this past weekend in his trial for shooting Travon Martin. But his problems are far from over.  You have to wonder whether there isn’t a perverted, almost paranoid sense of trying to “get” Zimmerman at any...Read More

Thursday, July 11th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  TO OUR YANKEE FRIENDS, WE SAY  — GET A LIFE! Our friends up north need to let it go.  According to a cross section of northern commentators, the Second Reconstruction may be over, but they think a third one may be necessary.  The first came with the demise...Read More

Thursday, July 3rd, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana A NEW PRESIDENT’S CHALLENGE: DEALING WITH THE RISE AND FALL OF LSU Louisiana State University, located in my hometown of Baton Rouge, takes on a new president this week. And to say that he has a big job ahead of him is an understatement. Educationally, the state’s largest...Read More

Thursday, June 27th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LOUISIANA A SECOND RATE STATE UNDER VOTING RIGHTS ACT! On Tuesday, the United States Supreme Court effectively struck down the Voting Rights Act passed in 1965.  This 48-year-old law required nine states, including my home state of Louisiana, to submit to complete federal oversight for all election procedures. ...Read More

Thursday, June 20th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana CONGRESS — THE REAL CULPRIT IN SECURITY LEAK PROBE! In the 2014 congressional elections, one major issue should be front and center: Incumbents are failing to do their job. We send them to Washington to oversee this massive federal bureaucracy, and to ensure that it is being run...Read More

Friday, June 14th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  IN OBAMA’S WORLD, WHO ARE THE BAD GUYS?  My regular morning coffee group gets to the nuts and bolts of what’s wrong with America each morning as we hash it all out over strong chicory and beignets.  Quite frankly, the nation would be better served if members of...Read More

Wednesday, June 5th, 2013 Las Vegas, Nevada  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 in 2008 has been severely diminished by the gridlock in Washington.  Voters under thirty (and the rest of...Read More

Thursday, May 30th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  TORNADO ALLEY-ADVICE FROM WIZARD OF OZ! In spite of all the turmoil and tragedy visited on the little town of Moore, Oklahoma last week, one fact stands out:  Every family with a storm cellar survived.  No one who went to underground protection was killed or even injured. For...Read More

Thursday, May 23rd, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  WILL JINDAL AND LANDRIEU FACE-OFF IN SENATE RACE? Two seasoned political pros, who have lost a bit of their luster, may make the same big grab for political limelight in Washington. And what would be a surprise to many, they just might be racing against each other.  Incumbent...Read More

Thursday, May 16th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  LATEST EROSION OF FREEDOMS NOTHING NEW! In the past week, the Washington establishment is in crisis mode over a series of revelations of government intrusions that would seem to go way over the line of what is constitutionally legal.  First, the Internal Revenue Service admitted it had targeted...Read More

Thursday, May 8th, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana  THE CHALLENGES AND CHARMS OF GETTING OLDER! I woke up earlier this week, followed my normal routine of walking the dogs, picking up the morning papers, pouring my large glass of orange juice half filled with water to dilute the sugar, checked my emails, walked out on the...Read More

Thursday, May 2nd, 2013 Baton Rouge, Louisiana BIG BANKS WANT TO STAY TOO BIG TO FAIL! In the movie Wall Street, Michael Douglas’s character Gordon Gecko summed up the attitude of major U.S. banks quite well: “Greed is good.” And this certainly appears to be true, at least for the banks, because after all, the...Read More