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Review Just say I dont to Bride Wars
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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Meltdown 101 The importance of same-store sales
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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Broadcasts to mobile devices to start in 22 cities
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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New TV trends Internet movies, 3-D, power saving
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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UN halts Gaza aid, truce resolution deal approved
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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UN Security Council calls for Gaza cease-fire
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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UN Security Council calls for immediate Gaza truce
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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UN calls for immediate cease-fire in Gaza
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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Pope Benedict jokes about hoarse voice
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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TO HELP THE TROOPS, HELP THEIR FAMILIES.
May 8, 2005 -
May 13, 2005
I recently had the opportunity to be “embedded” with our armed forces (Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines) in Baghdad, Fallujah, and several locations in Kuwait. I was able to see, first-hand, the courage and commitment that these brave young men and women exhibit on a daily basis.
They are doing extraordinary things, under extraordinarily difficult circumstances. Photos of them doing their duty don’t reveal the 90 pounds of weight they are carrying with body armor, weapons and equipment; nor does a photo let you feel the heat of the 100 degree temperatures and the constant grit of the dust and sand that amplifies that heat. I was able to share that burden with them for a brief while. Photos of our soldiers armed for battle do not adequately show the honor, pride, grace, compassion, and good humor with which they conduct themselves. I was blessed to see all of that, and how they seamlessly transform back into the young men and women that they really are when they get back to camp and sit down in front of a Play Station, or joke and play cards with their friends, or read a Mad Magazine or the latest edition of Sports Illustrated.
For little over a week I shared their meals, talked with them, lived with them, patrolled with them, and laughed with them. They are remarkable; and we should all be proud of the way they are serving our nation with humility, courage, and class. Some in this country wonder if the “younger generation” has what it takes. They certainly do.
Since I returned home I have repeatedly been asked what our troops need. First of all they are living in pretty good conditions, in terms of having the material things. The chow lines are pretty good, about on par with the cafeterias at most major college campuses in terms of quality and selection. (Most everyone indicated that they have plenty of cookies and snack food, but could use some seasoning salts and barbeque sauce to give the food a bit more taste of “home.”)
Most of the troops we saw are housed in trailers rather than tents. (Perhaps only in the military would you have “trailer parks” inside a “gated community.) Technology keeps the troops linked to home better than at any time in history, with email and phone lines available at most locations. While they certainly miss their families, the morale was very high as they are doing what they are trained to do and with a commitment to seeing the job done right.
So what do they need? They need us to care for their families. In many cases the spouse left at home is carrying the huge burden of being a single-parent while worrying sick about a loved one in harm’s way. My own family got a taste of the fear these families live with on a daily basis when the news reported one night that a helicopter traveling in Fallujah had been shot down with six civilian passengers killed. That was the same night that our schedule had the six civilian talk show hosts on our trip traveling by helicopter in Fallujah. For over an hour, my wife experienced the horror of not knowing if it was our six or not, before it was finally reported that the six dead were civilian contractors. Each time the news reports that a soldier has been killed in Mosul, or Najaf, or Baghdad, thousands of families in our communities feel their hearts jump into their throats with fear that it is their own son, daughter, husband, brother or wife. Then they feel a mix of relief and guilt over the “joy” that is it someone else’s son, daughter, husband, brother or wife.
The main thing we can, and should, do is to carry our troops and their families in our hearts and lift them up in our prayers. We should seek these families out in our communities and not only offer to help – mowing the lawn, trimming the hedges, babysitting for a night so they can go out with their friends, inviting them to Sunday dinner – but DEMAND to help. Share their burden, hug them, love them, and care for them. They are sharing the most valuable thing they have – their loved one – to preserve the freedoms that are the most valuable thing we ALL have. We are in this together; and we should make sure they know we appreciate that.
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"COMMON SENSE" TAX REFORM IN TENNESSEE. -
April 4, 2005 -
April 11, 2005
In 1776 Thomas Paine distributed a pamphlet entitled “Common Sense” laying out the arguments in favor of American Independence in clear terms. It was a turning point in developing popular support for the Revolution. Today, another form of “common sense” is circulating in Tennessee that could be a turning point in the ongoing income tax debate.
A Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) is being proposed as a way to inject a strong dose of common sense into the spending and revenue collection pro... |
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DEMOCRAT FAIRNESS. -
January 17, 2005 -
January 24, 2005
After the elections many Tennesseans were surprised when a couple of Republican State Senators announced that they planned to vote to re-elect Sen. John Wilder, a Democrat from West Tennessee, as Lt. Governor despite the fact that Republicans had gained a slim majority in the Senate for the first time since Reconstruction. Two so-called Republicans, Tim Burchett of Knoxville and Curtis Person of Memphis, claimed they owed Wilder their loyalty due to his “fairness” to Republicans over the ye... |
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TOLD YOU SO -
January 3, 2005 -
January 10, 2005
Last August I had the opportunity to appear before the self-proclaimed “independent” Tennessee Tax Structure Study Commission. The Commission had been created after then-Governor Don Sundquist and his pro-income tax allies in the legislature failed to shove an unnecessary and unwanted income tax down the throats of Tennessee taxpayers. The Commission was purportedly intended to study the state’s tax structure and develop ideas for reforming the system. The real intent was to recommend an income... |
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THE TENNCAR DEBACLE -
November 20, 2004 -
December 26, 2004
No, the headline is not a typo. Just imagine if Tennessee had instituted a plan to provide car insurance to the poor, uninsured and uninsurable instead of health care insurance. And imagine that car insurance plan, let's call it TennCar, had been based on the same flawed premises and implemented in the same way as TennCare. And finally, imagine we allowed it to become the bloated, bureaucratic, fraud-ridden nightmare that we have today with TennCare. When you look at... |
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THE TENNESSEE INCOME TAX IS DEAD, RIGHT? -
November 8, 2004 -
November 15, 2004
A Tennessee income tax was not on the ballot this election year, but the issue was clearly not far from voters’ minds. Despite election year pronouncements that the issue is “dead” the contentious debate over a state income tax is still far from over. In fact, when the Tennessee Tax Study Commission issues an expected recommendation for an income tax in December, the issue will re-emerge just in time for a new legislative session. With Governor Phil Bredesen’s much touted TennCare reforms hittin... |
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