legal and illegal - it is an article of faith that vast numbers of new arrivals are fracturing American traditions, recalibrating our values and undermining our language. Spanish spoken on the streets of L.A. is, to those inclined to see it that way, evidence of something essential slipping out of our culture, or of a scary kind of reverse assimilation. Instead of becoming more like Americans, the fear is that immigrants are trying to absorb parts of this country into Latin America. ...more

September 26, 2008

For the last fortnight, the political conventions have been providing their usual fare: lots of stagecraft, non-stop schmooze-control, celebrity scrutiny, "defining-moment" speeches and over-analysis fodder for pundits and partisans. The ambience is equal parts pep rally, infomercial and Rotarian reunion. Time was when these conventions actually chose a presidential candidate. Back when smoke-filled back rooms were no mere metaphors. Now these gatherings rubber-stamp and coronate candidates. Which explains, in part, why some of Hillary's Harridans won't concede. The other part is that for those women who have outsourced their identities to Hillary Clinton, this election is no longer about the party and the country – it's about them. But enough, at least in this space, on that. ...more

September 3, 2008

The response to Sen. Barack Obama's choice of a vice presidential running mate left a lot of political junkies scratching their heads. It's not that most people who follow politics do not like Sen. Joe Biden, but he just doesn't quite seem like the candidate Obama supporters wanted the most. However Biden is a strong running mate and is well respected by Democrats and Republicans. ...more

August 24, 2008

"In life there is good and bad" was the headline of your Monday editorial. Yes there is; one thing that is very bad is a small conservative town misrepresented by the embarrassingly prejudiced scribbling of a very liberal local editor. In an editorial printed by another paper and printed in Highlands Today, saying it's hard for see how the new workplace law allowing firearms in locked vehicles owned by concealed firearm permit holders could pass, clearly shows alliance with anti-second amendment partisans whose claims and views have been consistently disproved by statistics and recently debunked by the Supreme Court. ...more

July 10, 2008

I loved reading biographies and autobiographies when I was younger, but maybe I'm a little jaded now. Everyone seems to have an ax to grind, an angle to play, a story to spin and a point to make. ...more

June 22, 2008

Ballots can be cast in the Jan. 29 presidential primary and tax cut election between Jan. 14 and Jan. 27 at the Avon Park and Lake Placid libraries, or the Highlands County Government Center. Non-partisans and members of minor parties can vote on the constitutional amendment. More info: (863) 402-6655. ...more

January 14, 2008

We have proof once again of Americans' weird love-hate relationship with politicians. Hillary Clinton and George W. Bush, arguably the most disliked woman and man in America, are also the most admired. ...more

December 30, 2007