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Intolerance Extends Beyond Physical Violence

He was in his thirties, wasn’t a public official, and never sought public office. His faith was solid, and he loved his country. He spoke passionately of his faith and of making his country a better place. Many supported his cause. Others didn’t, and he knew the danger that presented. Nevertheless, he was unflappable. He pressed on. Over time, he won more and more converts to the cause, and became more and more popular among his followers. We’ll never know what he would have accomplished in later years, because one detractor assassinated him with one ...

Cataract Surgery Prompts Medicare Question

Question: I need to have cataract surgery. Does Medicare help pay for this surgery? Answer: Original Medicare is a health insurance product. This means that all of your coverage must be based on a medical problem or diagnoses. Most of us develop age related vision problems. Medicare will cover the appointment to see an eye doctor, like it would for any specialists. Medicare Part B covers the exam. Medicare requires that you see a participating ophthalmologist. Sometimes an optometrist is also included in your coverage, depending on your state. In making your appointment, explain that ...

War Department Not A Good Idea

Our President announced recently that we should rename the Defense Department, the “War Department” because we have not been winning enough wars. That is a bad idea. Maybe it was an idea that came from some of the “issue for the day” people that he has surrounded himself with, i.e. it didn’t originate from him. But, still, war is not something that we should be embracing, promoting or touting in any manner. Congress and the courts should just let the Defense Department remain the “Defense” Department. Let the President sign all of the Executive Orders that he wants ...

Mental Health Is Also A Men’s Health Issue

When people talk about men’s health, the conversation usually centers on diet, exercise, or cholesterol numbers. What we don’t talk about nearly enough is mental health. For too long, men have been told to stay silent, to tough it out, to carry their struggles alone. That silence is killing us. I know because I lived it. Addiction shaped my life from childhood. My father’s drug use brought chaos and hardship into our home, and though my mother did everything she could to protect us, his addiction eventually claimed his life. Years later, I found myself in a marriage marked by ...

Defining 9/11 As Patriots Day

Twenty-four years have passed since the tragic events of 9/11. In that time, we have had the ability to mourn the deaths of thousands. We have heard the story of hero after hero from the days just after two planes crashed into the world trade center in New York City. We witnessed the bravery of those at the Pentagon as a third commercial jetliner slammed into the outside wall. A recount of the conversations had with passengers aboard a fourth plane as they planned to suppress their captors and in completing the task crashed outside all metropolitan areas in the rural lands of ...

In Civics, Clarify First And Then Reckon

“In a secular republic founded on freedom of conscience, religious doctrine should serve as a private compass, not a legislative cudgel,” wrote a local commentator (LC) in the PJ 8/9 entitled “A Civic Reckoning.” Before we reckon, we first need clarity. What does LC mean by “religious doctrine?” Such a broad term begs for clarification. Does LC think the doctrine of the sanctity of human life as in the commandment “You shall not murder” is just a “private compass” for religious people and irrelevant to the moral compass of the public? Probably ...