Archive By Section - Columns
That 'exceptional' thing
NEW YORK -- He didn't say it. That word: "exceptional." Barack Obama described an exceptional nation in his State of the Union address, but he studiously avoided using the word conservatives long to hear.
Magazines and the 'power of print'
Anyone who knows me knows I have a mild addiction to Gentleman's Quarterly, more commonly known as GQ.
Still not making the grade
"I've seen the people at 4 o'clock in the morning, waiting, hoping that they would win a seat for their child in a better school. This is not fair. Parents deserve more choices."
A Massachusetts schoolmaster in Camden in 1793
This columnist recently acquired a letter from Elijah Dix Green (1769-95) in Camden dated March 28, 1793, to his brother, Dr. John Green of Worcester, Massachusetts. The letter contains much new information previously unavailable to local historians or others. For that reason, excerpts from it are carried below.
Seeing the changes at the KCSO
Whether you voted for him or not, you can't deny that Jim Matthews, his command staff, investigators and deputies have hit the ground running during his first month in office.
'Tiger Mom' offers clues to race gaps
Amy Chua's not so tough. The Yale law professor's new memoir, "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother," has touched a raw national nerve with its descriptions of her tough "Chinese way" of parenting, a way that shows all of the warmth and charm of a Marine Corps drill instructor.
The benchmark of '64
The two ladies were dressed in a manner which would allow them to attend either a football game or a funeral.
The other lunch bunch
I ended up at lunch recently with Wife Nancy and a few of her friends. I'm still trying to figure out how they found time to take a bite between the non-stop chatter. Words were flying faster than shotgun pellets at a turkey shoot.
Discretion advised
WASHINGTON -- Discretionary spending, the part of the federal budget that is not on autopilot and is subject to annual appropriations, generally constitutes less than 40 percent of federal spending. Take out defense spending and that share drops to well under 20 percent. So if your goal is to slash government spending and your approach is to go after discretionary spending without touching the military, it will require punishing, drastic cuts to make any ...
There's work still to be done
In my column last week, I said that it's not enough to simply honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on his birthday. We should make a conscious effort to also recognize the nameless, faceless and countless numbers of Americans who fought beside King for racial equality.
Obama bounces back
At this midpoint of his first term, it is too early to say what President Barack Obama's legacy will be. We don't even know whether he will get a second term. But we're beginning to see more clearly the outlines of what that legacy might be: In a contentious age of left-versus-right, he's a center-left pragmatist -- and he's beginning to make it pay off.
Parenting: to push or not to push
WASHINGTON -- I come from a family where the "joke," if you came home with a 97 on a math test, was to ask what happened to the other three points. The punch line, if you scored 100, was to ask whether there was any extra credit.
The outrage industry
NEW YORK -- As a longtime champion of greater civility in public discourse and one who has led the charge for dialed-back rhetoric, may I respectfully take most of it back?
Speaking of inspiration
What inspires you? It's an important question -- one that can tell you a lot about yourself.
Reliving old college jazz radio days
I recently posted a blog entry in the C-I website's Community section about the music I was listening to during the winter season. I followed that up with a "Note" connected to my personal Facebook page about music from the 1980s I've downloaded to or copied from my collection in recent years.
Articles by Section - Columns
A trifecta with little payout
WASHINGTON -- Folks, deep breath time. This is not the end of the Obama presidency. It's a bad stretch with an unfortunate confluence of unfortunate events. None of which will make the first paragraph -- not even the first page -- of the account of the Obama administration in the history books. Let's tick through the trifecta of scandals and what they tell ...
A short vocabulary lesson
This past weekend, I had the rare, but always enjoyable, visit from my grandparents. I don't know about you, but anytime I have the opportunity to spend time with them I learn something new; sometimes about myself, sometimes about life, but always it's something.
Landscape, architectural history professor visits Camden
Camden welcomed an extraordinary visitor and new friend last week: Nina Antonetti, an "urbanist." She's been teaching about cities at Smith College in Northampton, Mass., for the last 15 years.
Not such strange bedfellows
WASHINGTON -- Breaking news: Conservative organizations suddenly have found common cause with one of their favorite objects of contempt -- the benighted Mainstream Media.
Seniors reflect
I meet with a lot of groups and committees over the course of the year, and I think it's important for me to do so. One of my favorite groups is Student Cabinet, which is comprised of student government leaders from each of our high schools. We meet four times a year over lunch. What I love and value about students is that they don't hesitate to tell you what's ...
A matter of conscience:
In 1929, my family moved from Chesterfield County to a farm adjoining the farm of Donald Holland's parents in the Cassatt community. I was a year old at the time but before many years passed, Donald and I established a friendship lasting until Donald's passing in 2003.
When DOJ targets press, we all lose
To say I was stunned was putting it mildly. I was shocked to learn about the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) decision to seize phone records belonging to the Associated Press (AP). The C-I does not belong to the AP; I have never written for the service. That doesn't negate my outrage at DOJ's actions.
Fredericksburg Township explored
Our grand city of Camden is a beautifully preserved town laid out in an 18th century plan devised by Joseph Kershaw. We are proud of our historic homes and buildings, carefully placed public parks, wide streets, and beautiful trees. So it is easy to forget that this was not the original plan for the "town" that was to develop in this area of South Carolina. The original plan was a part of the "Township ...
What was the IRS thinking?
Well, this is a fine mess.
Page 1 of 1
Contents of this site are © Copyright 2013 Chronicle Independent All rights reserved. Privacy policy and Terms of service
