PoorRichardsExcuse“It’s a hell of a thing to kill a man. You take all he’s got; and all he’ll ever have.” From the movie, Unforgiven. “She’d tell a lie when the truth would work better.” Droll back-country aside. How did our country reach such a crisis during relative prosperity? Affordability issues exist, but […]
December ushers in the Winter Season with its short days, long nights, north wind, and hard frosts. The naysayers view Winter as a half empty glass of solid ice. Some seek refuge to southern climes leaving behind cold-hating kindreds hunkering down like groundhogs waiting to see their shadows. Contrarians view Winter as a […]
Satirical poet Juvenal mocked the classical Roman populace for surrendering societal ideals to the ruling class in exchange for “bread and circuses” — panem et circenses. Karl Marx revised Juvenal’s mockery with his view that “religion is the opium of the masses.” Today, sports serves as the opium of the masses, providing transitory highs for […]
The Post-Dispatch’s headline story Nov. 19, 2025 (Senior’s) Tax Freeze Will Cost School’s Millions story bemoans County school districts ‘loss’ of an estimated $ 19.6 Million in tax revenues while grappling with increased costs. To blame purported school budget woes on the Senior’s tax freeze misses the mark. Indeed, St. Louis area schools have […]
In an event that will live in infamy in St. Louis, umpire Don Denkinger called Jorge Orta safe at first base that jump-started a Kansas City rally to win Game 6 of the 1985 World Series. The following day, the Royals defeated the Cardinals and claimed the championship, an event that symbolically signaled Kansas […]
“It’s a shock to grow old, Mr. Russell.” Frederic March as Dr. Alex Fāber in Hombre. Indeed so, Dr. Fāber. Our graying and thinning hair, muscle loss and weight gain, drawn countenance and balking backs shock us all. We have now reached the final frontier once occupied by our last memory of dearly […]
Panem et circenses. The satirical poet Juvenal mocked the Roman populace for surrendering their societal ideals to the ruling class in exchange for ‘bread and circus’. Karl Marx updated Juvena’s mockery with his view that “religion is the opium of the masses” Modern day sports have supplanted circus and religion as the ‘opium of the […]
Arbitrary & Capricious. Webster’s Dictionary defines the word pairing as “unrestrained and unpredictable.” See also, Tornado. Normally, a cold front’s collision with warm humid air results in beneficial rain. When meteorologists predict too much of both coupled with dramatic drops in temperature they warn of ‘severe weather’ and possible tornados. But weather experts […]
GUEST COMMENTARY Reining in billboards across Missouri would preserve state’s beauty Paul Lore Published The Missourian (Columbia) Apr 16, 2025 We suffer the blight of the ubiquitous billboards that line our highways as a cost of living in a competitive world. But we now suffer “a death by a thousand cuts” from their proliferation. Indeed, […]
Nothing like Springtime in the Ozarks when blooming redbuds and flowering dogwoods spring to life in the shadow of a rugged forest of cedar, hickory and oak. The ornamentals’ larger hardwood kin follow thereafter, their leafy sprouts sporting varying hues of virgin green. April rains quench Spring’s voracious thirst required to sustain renewed […]