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Thankful for ‘sweet music’ makers

The word dulcimer can be defined as a sounding board that makes sweet melodies. The instrument name was first used in written English in the 15th century, but the word comes from Latin “dulce melos” and Old French “doulcemer,” meaning “sweet music.” Many types of sounding boards were developed all over the ancient world, and they strike a sweet chord in the human heart. Two types of dulcimers became popular in the United States for spreading gospel music in 19th century rural America during the “Great Religious Awakening.” A long, thin lap dulcimer had only three ...

Younger electorate

American democracy is in a perilous condition. Both parties wrestle with the problems of affordability, and we are faced with a younger electorate that needs to be heard. The off-year elections demonstrated how these voters gain sway. An overwhelming group of 18 to 30-year-old voters, many of whom supported Donald Trump in 2024, swung to the Democrats in 2025 Of course, Republicans tried to downplay the results, but quickly backed away. They were given a breather when eight Democrats bolted and voted to reopen the government. But then the Epstein affair took center stage, and the ...

Drawing fire

Admittedly, Democrats have problems, but take a gander at MAGA. With the Epstein affair heating up, President Donald Trump has become increasingly testy. So irritated, he has become nasty to some of his earliest and best supporters. One backer that has drawn his fire is Marjorie Taylor Greene. Her crime in Trump‘s eyes was that she signed the discharge petition, which forced a vote on the release of the Epstein files. Now, despite her old status as a heroine of the MAGA movement, Greene is now denounced by Trump as “wacky” and, to put a finer point on his view, “a traitor”. ...

No sense of excitement

I’ve said it before, but energy is going to be a huge issue heading into the 2026 legislative session in January. But walking around the Governor’s Energy Summit last Thursday, I didn’t get a sense of excitement. That was very clear during Gov. Patrick Morrisey’s remarks last Thursday morning. It had already started off on a somber note with the announcement of the death of miner Steve Lipscomb after rescuers found him in a Nicholas County mine. Morrisey pivoted to his energy economic development announcements that have come to fruition since October, but many of the applause ...

Writers hit Trump for ‘sportswashing’ at game

Even the sports pages can be a platform for anti-Trump editorializing. After the Washington Commanders were drubbed by the Detroit Lions, the front page of The Washington Post sports section carried a piece by columnist Barry Svrluga trashing Trump’s appearance at the game, and in the Fox broadcast booth. He called it “sportswashing.” “What played out Sunday was a microcosm of Trump’s presidency and his relationship with American sport. It’s sportswashing, using these games to distract from the important matters of our times,” he wrote. There was “something rich about ...

Taking a good thing too far

Success breeds failure. Policies and practices well suited to society at one juncture in history are often poorly suited to the world they have beneficially transformed. If you carry a good thing too far, it can turn out not to be a good thing anymore. Case in point, one of the most successful public policies in U.S. history, the World War II G.I. Bill, which financed college educations for military veterans. Signed by former President Franklin Roosevelt, it embodied New Deal generosity even as its chief backers included the racist Democratic Mississippi Rep. John Rankin and the ...