Birthday reflections

As our birthdays accumulate, eventually we may reach one which causes us to stop, reflect, remember the past, and then to compare it to the present. On July 15, 2011, I had such a birthday, my 83rd.

As Spidey changes, so does America

OK, people: chill out. Breathe. Relax. Spider-Man is still white. He'll always be white. He's been white since that day in 1962 when Peter Parker, a high school science nerd, was bitten by that radioactive bug. In the five decades since, he's aged about 10 years, grown and lost four extra arms, been cloned, and made a deal with a devil that rewrote all of reality. It's a litany of impossibilities that ...

Is the Tea Party over?

Has the tea party peaked? Republican lawmakers affiliated with the upstart anti-tax movement scored big in the nerve-wracking debt-ceiling debacle, but the victory left enough hard feelings to feed the movement's ultimate downfall.

Let's just call it advice

Unless you've been burrowed in a hermit's hole somewhere for the last few years, you know that there has never been a more volatile time for businesses.

Perry's positives may play poorly past Palmetto State

Republicans in South Carolina may soon be in line for a love affair with Texas Gov. Rick Perry. That is, if he decides to run for president. So why would South Carolina voters like him? Well, for one, he's not Mitt Romney. Perry is a cotton farmer's son who speaks with a ton of Texas twang, while Romney is an Ivy League-educated "Yankee" from Massachusetts.

Population growth and shifts drive redistricting

This session the South Carolina General Assembly addressed redistricting, the process of reconfiguring election districts that is required every ten years in order to reflect population changes reported in the latest U.S. Census. It is a painstaking task to ensure that state legislative and congressional districts are equal in population, guaranteeing each person's vote is equally represented in the state legislature and in the U.S. House of Representatives.

A satanic deal for debt fighters

A "sugar-coated Satan sandwich." That's what Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, a Missouri Democrat and chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, called the bipartisan deal to raise the debt ceiling -- as he announced he was voting for it.

Thinking about my once-upon-a-times

Once upon a time I wrote fiction. No, C-I critics, I don't mean any of my articles. Those are about real life, real people, real events.

Black Obama voters' blues

It is only in comparison to today's Republican Party, divided between its old-school establishment and its Tea Party zealots, that today's Democrats look unified.

Leaders must set example for open government

I got a call from a school board member recently asking what to do when her board goes into executive session and then talks about things that cannot legally be discussed there.

Got game?

I am not ashamed to admit that, at the instant the ref blows his final whistle and the scoreboard flaunts her last digits, a palpable degree of sadness, of disappointment comes over me like a dark cloud stealing the sun's warmth on a winter day. Reality sets in. Football season is over. The rivalries and intensity, the festivities and friends, the tradition -- all will be missed until next season. And I'm not alone. ...

Teen mothers, show seem to have lost their way

Last year, I wrote a column defending MTV's popular reality show, "Teen Mom."

Throw the bums out

Back when I was in journalism school -- in the days when Gutenberg was still trying to figure out movable type and four guys named Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were just starting to jot down their thoughts -- we were always taught to be subtle when writing opinion pieces.

Tiger's return brings added questions

Last time golf fans saw Tiger Woods at a PGA event he couldn't make it to the final round at the Players Championship in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. Set to make his comeback this week at the Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio, Woods has had two months to recuperate from that forgettable performance at the Players and will now try to return to that championship-winning mindset that defined his game for so long.

The Tea Fragger Party

Fragging: "To intentionally kill or wound (one's superior officer, etc.), esp. with a hand grenade."

Spend the money and get what you want

Shopping for friends and family members can be fun, but it can also be very stressful. I can't tell you how many holidays have come and gone where I've waited until the last minute to buy Christmas presents for my nearest and dearest. It's not because I don't have the opportunity. Bien au contraire, mon ami, ce n'est pas vrai.

Food stamps and turkey tales

WASHINGTON -- If you peruse the news on any given day, the farm bill/food stamp debate produces two general impressions: Republicans are heartless turkey thieves; Democrats are spendthrift welfare caterers. If only neither were a little bit right.

Classically Carolina

"We are Camden, a place surrounded by history. Long a home of Native Americans, we were founded not long after Carolina was separated into North and South. Here, King Haigler, the Catawba chief, worked for peace among natives and colonists along the banks of the Wateree. Here, Patriots suffered one of the worst defeats in the Revolutionary War. Yet, from this place the tide of war would turn and ultimately lead to victory for ...

Remembering Christmas 1941

Oh, the stories of woe

Oh, the stories people tell. Not always good ones, mind you but the kind that will make you fall down on your knees and thank the good Lord up above that you don't have a story like that.

Deputies’ lives touched thousands

I did not know Kershaw County Sheriff's Office (KCSO) Deputy Rob Evans, who passed away last week. I knew him, but only in the sense that I spoke to him a few times when the two of us happened to be at KCSO headquarters at the same time. Evans certainly seemed like a nice guy; I remember him smiling a lot.

Talking turkey about Bleak Friday

WASHINGTON -- For children, Christmastime may be the favorite holiday, even if their families don't celebrate the birth of Christ. The twinkling lights and aura of magic that suddenly transfigure the most plebian edifices are nearly as seductive as a round-trip ticket to Never-Never Land.

Time for a Thanksgiving cleanse

Since my family is traveling for Thanksgiving, I've decided to do a cleanse to celebrate the holidays.

What I’m thankful for

During this holiday season, I'm thankful for: