When the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines first proved their efficacy, preventing nearly 95 percent of coronavirus infections in those who got the shots in test trials, a vexing issue immediately arose. Read more

Thirteen years ago this past Thursday I sat in a hospital room in Florence, Ala., and held a tiny baby boy in each hand. Read more

Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson of Arkansas raised ire from conservatives for vetoing legislation passed by the Arkansas state legislature that would have banned “gender-affirming” medical treatment for transgender minors. Read more

Former Gov. Ronnie Musgrove used to say the most important item addressed each legislative session is the budget because it establishes the priorities of the state. Read more

STARKVILLE — Organized labor’s organizing efforts in the South in recent years have focused on equating union membership with social justice. Over the last decade, that narrative has been soundly rejected in union votes and in most cases by workers with significant percentages of Black workers. Read more

Like most everyone else, I’m tired of wearing a mask. Read more

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg stepped strongly toward, then beat a rather hasty retreat from the concept of including a vehicle mile traveled or VMT tax component as a means to pay for President Biden’s massive national infrastructure proposal. Read more

‘For I am the least of the apostles, not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God, I am what I am.” – 1Corinthians 15: 9-10. Read more

The just-completed 2021 legislative session might be remembered more for bills that were not passed than for those that were. Read more

In a single six-hour period, NATO launched 10 air intercepts to shadow six separate groups of Russian bombers and fighters over the Arctic, North Atlantic, North Sea, Black Sea and Baltic Sea. Read more

Why do the Russians need to bother spreading disinformation when our own domestic sources do a much better job at it? Read more

Back in the day when “Saturday Night Live” was funny, Chevy Chase would open the “Weekend Update” segment by saying, “I’m Chevy Chase ... and you’re not.” Read more

If you think education is expensive, try ignorance. The right knowledge is power. A common misconception is that education ends with graduation. Just the opposite is true; graduation is when education begins, that’s why it’s called commencement. Read more

Although fall is my favorite time of year, I like this time of year as well. I’m not so fond of the more fickle weather pattern, which, of late, includes wind, tornadoes, and flooding, followed by freeze warnings. However, when the days get longer, with sunlight lingering later, and flowers … Read more

‘This is not politics,” President Joe Biden said last week. “Reinstate the mandate if you let it down.” Give him credit for consistency: When Gov. Greg Abbott ended Texas’ mask mandate last month, Biden called it “Neanderthal thinking.” Read more

STARKVILLE — The passing of iconic Texas novelist, screenwriter and antiquarian bookseller Larry McMurtry at age 84 on March 25 will mean different things to different fans of his prolific writing life. Read more

President Biden said in his first press conference: “I’ve known Xi Jinping for a long time. ... He doesn’t have a democratic – with a small ‘d’ – bone in his body.” Read more

Dr. Anthony Fauci wants former President Donald Trump to tell his supporters to take the COVID-19 vaccine. It is true that a March 2021 NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll found that 47 percent of Trump 2020 supporters said they would not get vaccinated. It is also true that Trump has urged America… Read more

At least it’s permissible to question the conclusions of federal law enforcement again. Read more

When I heard Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas say last Sunday on “Meet the Press” that the southern border “is closed,” it immediately brought to mind claims by Iraq’s former information minister – dubbed “Baghdad Bob” and “Comical Ali” (aka Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf) – about Sad… Read more

Fear has an evolutionary foundation. The emotion of fear was intended to keep you safe. Fear triggered the fight or flight reflex. When you felt threatened, you would either run from the danger, or fight it head on. Read more

This year, at my request, the Legislature passed and the Governor signed a new law that toughens the penalties on people who steal taxpayer dollars. I want to thank them for their wisdom in passing that law. Read more

STARKVILLE — Despite the fact that Mississippi has not been particularly fertile ground for labor unions seeking new members from new employment sectors, the attention of American farmers, growers, and other food producers will watch an upcoming case before the U.S. Supreme Court with rapt a… Read more

Gov. Tate Reeves and other Republicans have argued that states do not need the $195 billion in federal funds from the American Rescue Plan to offset revenue losses caused by the coronavirus-induced economic slowdown. Read more

How to explain Joe Biden’s ideological transformation over the years? Perhaps it’s the same as the explanation of why the chameleon’s complexion changes when he moves from desert to forest: adaptation to local terrain. Read more

Asked bluntly by ABC’s George Stephanopoulos if he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin is “a killer,” Joe Biden answered, “Uh, I do.” Read more

It is time for Mississippi to eliminate the income tax, but we do not need to increase other taxes to get it done. Read more

Poor Joe Biden. It was his misfortune to inherit one of the technological marvels of our time. Read more

The front-page headline in Monday’s Wall Street Journal said: “Biden weighs how to pay for Agenda.” Who purchases something they know they can’t afford, and then worries about paying for it later? Only government. Read more

Life is filled with challenges. There are many external circumstances outside of your control. The weather, actions of others, the economy, and politics are just a few examples. However, your response to these circumstances is completely within your control. You chose your thoughts, emotions… Read more

‘It’s a troublesome world. All the people who are in it are troubled with troubles almost every minute. You ought to be thankful, a whole heaping lot, for the places and people you are lucky you are not.”—Dr. Seuss Read more

Yesterday is over. Tomorrow is in the future. Today is the day that matters. You want to maximize your accomplishments, while maintaining a positive attitude. Being happy each day makes everything more enjoyable. Read more

Revenue to fund the Mississippi Department of Transportation from the 18.4-cent per gallon motor fuel tax grew nearly 40 percent between 1989 and 2019. Read more

It has been almost a year since our lives shifted in various ways, more for some than for others. It was one year ago this past weekend that I had just finished moving from an apartment in downtown Corinth to an over-100-year-old house I had purchased nearby and was then about to board a pla… Read more

STARKVILLE — On March 1, the national debt of the United States exceeded $28 trillion dollars. What is the national debt? Read more

If your flower or vegetable garden becomes overrun with weeds, the plants you are trying to grow wither and die. This happens because the weeds take up space while competing for nutrients in the soil, water, and light. Desirable plants rarely grow in a weed choked garden. Read more

When then-Gov. William Winter wanted to make substantial changes to Mississippi’s education system in the early 1980s, he and his staff spent months building support for their proposals. Read more

In its first military action, the Biden Pentagon sent two U.S. F-15Es to strike targets of Kataib Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed Iraqi militia just inside the eastern border of Syria. Read more

Every sport has its boundaries. Rules for playing the game may occasionally change, but the boundaries remain. In baseball, a ball hit outside the foul line is out of play. In football, a catch made outside the sidelines is ruled incomplete. All games must be played within boundaries. No one… Read more

Mississippi’s voter identification requirement could be at risk if the state Supreme Court strikes down the medical marijuana initiative approved by voters in November. Read more

STARKVILLE — For Mississippi farmers, the transition between the administrations of former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden could not be more impactful on any topic more so than in agricultural trade with China. Read more

When former Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice Bill Waller Jr. was weighing a run for governor in 2019, research was done on whether he could conduct a viable campaign as an independent. Read more

No matter where you drive in most of Mississippi in the next few weeks, you will encounter new and challenging potholes thanks to the Great Ice Storm of 2021. Read more

While the inclement weather certainly halted many of us in our tracks, members of the House were busy continuing to move meaningful bills forward. I applaud the team at ACE Power, many city workers, law enforcement officers, emergency personnel and frontline healthcare workers who worked dil… Read more

The man who picked me up at an airport too many years ago to recall the date asked if I had ever heard of a guy named Rush Limbaugh. When I said I had not, he turned on the car radio and said, “listen.” After 15 minutes I was hooked. Read more

Former President Donald Trump captured the core of the problem in his official statement following his acquittal in the Senate impeachment trial: “It is a sad commentary on our times that one political party in America is given a free pass to denigrate the rule of law, defame law enforcement… Read more

Washington, D.C. is not, counter to what you might think, a war zone. Read more

STARKVILLE — In the 2020 election cycle, Mississippi voters overwhelmingly voted in favor of authorizing a medical marijuana voter initiative as outlined in Initiative 65 over the express objections of the majority of legislative leaders. Read more

It has been a dreadful three months for the Grand Old Party. Read more

It was only a matter of time before Cicero got canceled. Read more