Glad to homeschool my kids

When people find out that my wife and I homeschool our kids, I usually explain it by telling them that I didn’t want my kids to get smarter than me.

Consider both sides of abortion

Margaret Atwood wrote a very popular book about reproductive rights and a totalitarian future. In “The Handmaid’s Tale,” Aunt Lydia says, “There is more than one kind of freedom. In the days of anarchy, it was freedom too. Now you are being given freedom from.

United we stand, divided we fall

It was during a great meeting (3-day revival) that a Mennonite minister – Martin Boehm – preached about how the Lord saved him. It came about one day, as he was plowing his field. He realized he was lost and prayed for salvation.

Lumber companies and dams

* Part 8 in a series With the coming of the railroad to western North Carolina came  lumber companies, seeking the excellent timber from the forest. In 1910, the Whiting Manufacturing Company came to Graham County and bought thousands of acres of timber land.

Debate, disinformation, and Dobbs v. Jackson

It’s good to find common ground with folks who differ from us when possible in our polarized day. Let me attempt to do that with Mr. Carlton’s column from last week (“The Debate over Debates.”) I have known Roger for years and consider him a friend.

Follow the Good Shepherd

There are a number of special Sundays Christian Churches observe. I’m not just talking about the holy days of Easter and Christmas. We have Sundays to celebrate anniversaries, homecomings and honor people and events which add to the life of a faith community.

The debate over debates

A few days ago, The Graham Star sponsored a candidate forum for the local school board, sheriff and county commission. All the candidates were Republicans, because there are no Democratic or Unaffiliated candidates in the primary. The forum was elucidating.

Driving wedges … or providing protection?

It’s becoming commonplace to disparage conservatives as dividers trying to drive wedges throughout our nation. This is claimed because of the cultural issues that many conservatives are finally waking up to fight.

Railroad expansion in Graham County

The Murphy Branch Railroad – which connected the southwestern counties of North Carolina to the rest of the state – was completed to Canton on Jan. 1, 1882, and reached Waynesville later that same year. The original railroad was built across the mountains, on a difficult and dangerous grade.

Causes and cures for inflation

Democrats, Republicans and Unaffiliated can all agree that we are suffering from inflation. The March inflation measure was an increase of 8.5 percent, driven mostly by food, energy and rent costs.