Jim TurnerNews Service of Florida Opponents of Florida’s first black bear hunt in a decade rallied Monday at the Capitol amid efforts to prevent bears from being killed next month in four areas of the state.In addition to the rally, opponents say they have obtained about 40 of the 172 permits that wildlife officials decided…
Slim Randles As I lay there in my super-duper borrowed-from-the-Army mummy bag, I had time to think about things. Mostly, I pondered how stupid I’d been to take a dog team out across the North Slope of Alaska in November. As I can now contemplate, 50 years later, it was a dumb thing to do,…
America’s peril: The rot of anti-intellectualism and demagoguery is costing us our future Jared O. Bell As a kid, my favorite part of grocery shopping wasn’t the snacks or the cereal aisle, it was the tabloids at the checkout. I’d devour headlines about Batboy sightings, Bigfoot vacations, royal scandals, and the occasional presidential summit with…
Let’s pretend it’s meJudy Conlin I told you about my photo shoot and how disappointed I was when the photographer showed me a few of the shots. She had called them beautiful so much while taking them I thought she had transformed me, but there I was, plain old Judy dressed up in Nurse Judy’s…
Living as ‘beloved rescued ones’ Nancy Kennedy Last week I met with a local Catholic priest, Fr. Ken Malley, who showed me a map of our county. He pointed out the six parishes and the geographic areas they serve. His parish, St. Scholastica, sits in the middle.He began talking about beauty and rescue, quoting the…
Slim Randles Have you been counting the minutes until election day when your neighbors can remove all those campaign signs from their lawns for another two years? Yes, these are mid-term elections, just as serious as the presidential election yet to come two years from now, but not as interesting. Why not? Because the great…
Stop talking about “protests”Peter Bergel I am tired of hearing about “protests” and “protesters.” Those terms sound whiney and powerless to me. “Protest” means to object, which is, of course, what we are doing when we hit the streets, but we’re doing something equally – or I would say more – important. We are demonstrating….
Ho! Ho! I won one!Judy Conlin I went on a photo shoot this week. I knew that would get your attention. You know me as the slovenly old woman in the dirty bathrobe, who would never get dressed if she did not have to. Who would want a picture of that hot mess? I had …
Pray for our wounded veterans and their familiesSheryl Boldt Four-year-old Susie jumps out of her hiding spot. “Peek-a-Boo!” Expecting a fun reaction, the tiny girl doesn’t understand why her daddy’s face shows fear instead of delight. Instead of playfully scooping her into his arms, he steps back, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. Susie’s…
Grace worth talking aboutNancy Kennedy Editor’s note: This is adapted from a 2013 Grace Notes column.Lately I’ve noticed people — not just Christians — talking about grace. We all agree we need more of it. As in, “Be gracious! Be kind! Give people some grace!”But is that really grace?Years ago, a company called philosophy sold…
