Columns

By: Stephen Waguespack

The school year has ended and children across Louisiana are beginning to enjoy their summer break. My three boys each have their different opinions on the best way to do so.

My oldest is soon heading off to camp and my middle one has several different lessons lined up to keep him busy with fun activities. My youngest doesn’t yet have many plans and seems to like it that way. I asked him the other day what he wanted to do this summer and after rattling off a few options, he finally said, “Dad, I think I just want to chill-ax this summer.”

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By: Raymond Powell

Those of you who follow this weekly article might recall last week’s article pertaining to the origin of the U.S. Flag with a promise for this week to be about Flag Day. June 14 is Flag Day, the day we celebrate the birthday of the Stars and Stripes. On June 14, 1777, during the Revolutionary War, the Continental Congress in Philadelphia adopted the Stars and Strips as the official national flag. The resolution read “Resolved, that the flag of the thirteen colonies be thirteen stripes, alternate red and whites, that the union be thirteen stars, white on blue field, representing a new constellation.”

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By Stephen Waguespack

Having spent over 20 years in public policy, I understand that compromise is often necessary to achieving reform. This is proving to be true with the criminal justice reform package working its way through the Louisiana State Legislature. 

While the original recommendations of the Justice Reinvestment Task Force would have taken more drastic steps, the latest compromise would be a sensible step for Louisiana. Over the next decade, the package in its current form would save the state $262 million and reinvest 70 percent of the savings — more than $183 million — into programs that would rehabilitate inmates with drug treatment and job training, as well as aid the victims of crime.

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By: Raymond Powell

In preparation for Flag Day, which is June 14, it appears logical to research information about the Flag of the United States (aka: Stars and Stripes, Old Glory and possibly other names). The early history of our flag is so shrouded by time and legend that facts are difficult, if not impossible, to actually pin down. No one knows exactly what the first official Stars and Stripes looked like, who designed it, where it was first flown or even whether it was flown during the Revolutionary War.

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By Stephen Waguespack

Perhaps it is the baseball fan in me, but I am a traditionalist in many ways.

I believe in taking it one game at a time, never messing with a hot streak and playing your hardest until the final out. I don’t walk on the white lines and I don’t talk about a no-hitter until it is done. I love the feel of an old ballpark with the game on the line and I detest the very thought of the designated hitter, artificial turf and the day piped-in music replaced the ballpark organ.

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By: RaymondPowell

Should the question be asked, “What was the worst maritime disaster in American History” almost everyone without hesitation would say the 1915 sinking of the Titanic with its 1617 lives.Actually, this was not as great as the 1800 lives lost in the April 27,1865 sinking of the Sultana.

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By StephenWaguespack

As the pressure mounts on the media for social media clicks and reader attention in a highly competitive marketplace,anonymous sources have become more frequently used by some writers to get stories out quickly and sell certain controversial narratives.The excessive use of these types of sources, once considered taboo by most journalists and journalism schools, has unfortunately become much more commonplace. Whether productive or not, this atypical approach to traditional journalism appears to be a growing trend.

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By: Raymond Powell

Spring is here and summer is very close!! Isn’t it good to be a true Southerner and enjoy tomatoes, watermelons and cantaloupes? Allow this writer to divert from history this one time to write about the above “vegetables” – especially watermelons and cantaloupes. Cucumbers are great but watermelons are more to my liking. This tasty “gourd” – yes it is in the gourd family – is good for much more than a summer picnic. Watermelon is 90 percent water and a great way to stay hydrated. It is an excellent healthy alternative to sugary drinks and is a good choice for people watching their weight. It’s full of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients.

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ByStephen Waguespack

Sunday, April 30th kicked off National Small Business Week. This is a week for us to celebrate our job creators and innovators. This is a week when we honor the nation’s and our state’s entrepreneurs and small business owners. While this week is all about providing small businesses with the recognition they have rightfully earned for all of their hard work to make Louisiana’s economy stronger, the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry (LABI) would like to honor these businesses in an unconventional way, by bringing to light the hardships these small business owners face in order to make Louisiana better.

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By: Raymond Powell

DeSoto Parish is rich in history – bank robbers, hangings and even visits by Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker – but none more daring than the T&P Railroad holdup just two miles south of Mansfield. On August 15, 1893 as the T&P train pulled out of the South Mansfield Station there were two slouchy dressed men, appearing to be tramps, climbed aboard one of the forward cars. The colored porter of the train was the person that saw the men jump on the train. He rushed forward and shouted to them, “Get off, we don’t carry tramps.” He was quickly silenced as one of the men pointed a revolver at his head and told him to Shut Up!

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