What follows is an abridged and heavily amended version of a Riff Raff essay first published in June 2009. Although more than two years old, many points in the essay, unfortunately, remain relevant.
Many of us can recall what they wore during a signature event in their lives – but ask a person to identify the nation a favorite dress or pair of jeans was stitched in and we’re stumped. I had no idea the grayish T-shirt I’m wearing right now was made in Bolivia until five seconds ago.
Since June 28, the date the Supreme Court ruled on the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the mandate requiring individuals to purchase health insurance or pay a penalty, I have noticed the phrase “twenty-one new taxes” used over and over again by journalists
Billy, a college friend from thousands of years ago, called again this week. Hadn’t heard from him in several months. He took a part time job on evenings and some weekends to help get caught up on child support payments.
On Tuesday, July 10, the citizens of Van Buren will have a chance to vote on a plan that will do much to vastly improve quality-of-life fundamentals for this second-largest city in the Fort Smith metro.
As Americans pause this Fourth of July to reflect on their independence, it’s worth casting a thought across the Atlantic. One story from America’s founding era, in particular, keeps reminding us of modern-day Europe.
In 2005, just two years after Whirlpool gave us a clear hint about the future of its Fort Smith manufacturing operations, business and community leaders in the Fort Smith region had a chance to undertake an aggressive, progressive and risky — in terms of being a new approach — plan to change regi
A decided minority of Arkansas Third District voters do not much care for U.S. Rep. Steve Womack’s Republican politics. Opponents see little besides a hyper-partisan who will someday look to parlay his conservative-to-the-core voting record into either a long career in the U.S.
Mitt Romney’s running mate is going to rank very low on the list of what’s on voters’ minds in November. Political journalists are obsessing about whom he’ll pick anyway, because it is one of the biggest remaining unknowns about the race. Even better, it creates opportunities for speculation.
Conventional wisdom has it that Congressional hearings rarely shed new light and devolve quickly into a stream of sound bites that members can use in their re- election campaigns.
“Tell me something cheerful” is how Grover Norquist, the president of Americans for Tax Reform, has started most of the conversations I’ve had with him over the past 20 years. Not last week.
In explaining why individualized trash collection preference is a right of citizenship beyond the whims of collective governance, Fort Smith Director Philip Merry Jr. says the city is not necessarily a city in the unified and conventionally understood manner.
