By Radley West In the South, football season is practically a holiday. Every August, hope springs eternal. Every fan believes this is their year. Coaches are finalizing game plans, players are learning their assignments, and everyone knows one thing: No championship has ever been won by one player. Sure, theContinue Reading

By Mike DuBose   Criminals exploit speed, fear and trust. The telephone and internet have made life easier, but they have also opened our homes, cars, businesses and smartphones to criminals thousands of miles away. Robocalls, fraudulent texts and emails, and official-looking websites arrive daily. Artificial intelligence has made itContinue Reading

You don’t have to eat perfectly to improve your health. When it comes to gut health, one of the most useful goals may be to focus less on perfection and more on variety. One simple approach is to try eating 30 different plant foods each week. And before you think,Continue Reading

By Radley West Dear Younger Me, I’m 75 now, and I wanted to thank you. Thank you for taking those walks when you didn’t feel like it. I still enjoy evening strolls, and I don’t take a single one for granted. Thank you for lifting weights. You thought you wereContinue Reading

Photo: Army Chaplain (Capt.) Emil Kapaun (right) and Army Capt. Jerome A. Dolan, 1st Cavalry Division, carry an exhausted soldier off the battlefield in Korea, early in the war. Credit:Army VIRIN:500712-O-D0439-001   By Dennis H. Klein and Wade Thompson The Korean War lasted for 3 years (1950-1953) and was a warContinue Reading

Shannon Bobertz helping guide one of America’s most complex conservation agencies By Thomas S. Mullikin Every agency needs a rock who is not always the loudest voice in the room or the person chasing the spotlight or searching for the next headline. It needs someone who remains standing when theContinue Reading

By Radley West August is a fascinating month. Children are mourning the end of summer. Teachers are mentally preparing for a brand-new school year. Meanwhile, parents are standing in the school supply aisle trying very hard not to look too excited. It’s one of the greatest examples of mixed emotionsContinue Reading

Bottled in Meridian, Mississippi — A long-distance winner. By Tom Poland, A Southern WriterTomPoland.net I didn’t call them pop. I didn’t call them sodas. I called them Cokes. Cokes could be Pepsis, Fantas (remember those?), Orange Crush, or RC Colas. Tossed out windows, Coke bottles waited along dirt roads, gravelContinue Reading

By Sarah Ostergaard Another tax-free weekend has passed. Every August, families spend significant amounts preparing children for a new school year. And there is real value in that preparation. A new backpack, fresh notebooks, sharpened pencils, and other supplies create excitement or ease nervousness about a new school year. AcquiringContinue Reading

By Tom Poland, A Southern WriterTomPoland.net Each August I think of my father’s service in Japan, specifically Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Recently I came across one of his base passes that had been hiding from me all these years. Dad was stationed in Yokohama. The date on his pass is AugustContinue Reading

By Radley West Let’s be honest. Exercise is hard. Getting up early is hard. Choosing a salad when everyone else ordered fries is hard. Doing one more squat when your legs are already complaining is hard. But here’s something I’ve learned after years of coaching: Everything is hard. Life isContinue Reading