CLASSIC CITY NEWS

By Dennis Rice It would disturb me greatly if there was a wedding between the religious fundamentalist and the political right. The hard right has no interest in religion except to manipulate it. That's what evangelist Billy Graham had to say in 1981. Today he would be appalled that so many so called mainline churches and so many mainline ministers, some highly trained at their seminaries, who know better, are afraid to speak out. They have allowed Christian Zionism to enter

By T.W. Burger Kay Scoggins was tall, blonde, blue-eyed, beautiful, kind, affable, tough as nails, really country, and sort of a force of nature. She served as a patrol officer and state trooper for decades and even ran for president at least once. She got 13 votes. In an interview a few years later she said she had not made a lot of promises during her campaign except to ensure freedom of speech and maybe put a doublewide mobile home on the front lawn of the White House. Eve

By Albert DeSimone The continuum from capitalism to communism describes economic systems, though these systems also heavily influence political and social structures. At their core, they represent fundamentally different answers to the basic economic question: Who should own and control the resources used to produce goods and services while distributing the fruits of economic progress? Capitalism: Capitalism is a basic economic system that, at its core, is driven by a combina

By Paige Brimer It was a warm autumn morning when two friends and I took a stroll along the Greenway off MLK, Jr Pkwy. We decided to stop and sit on some rocks by the riverside to enjoy a little company, coffee and creation. It wasn't long, however, until a pesky side of creation had us unnerved and searching our bags for bug spray. Mosquitoes were swarming, and that's no exaggeration. They were everywhere! After we got ourselves sprayed down, we began to speculate about why

By Paige Brimer My son Levi Brimer is gifted but learning disabled. He is bipolar and I swear something only half diagnosed: a narcoleptic (diagnosed) insomniac (medicated in youth). In his life he's been a poet, comedian, dad extraordinaire, a provider/Award Winning Executive Chef, a gamer, music junkie, occasional dance king, and an overall caring and loving heart and soul. When he was fifteen years old we moved away from an area where he had developed close friendships. I

By T. W. Burger I found it, naturally, while looking for something entirely different. In a box on a bottom shelf in my office, jammed in with some other mementos, was my old Mr. Trash hat. It was filthy. Of course, it was filthy when I put it away, sometime back in the early 1980s. The grime is easy to explain. Mr. Trash, while it existed, was a “refuse removal business,” which most of us would still call “garbage company.” I was the field manager, though I’m not sure I had

By Albert DeSimone Jimmi Hendrix used it. Jimmy Page, Pete Townshend, Dave Davies, and Tony Iommi used it, as did many others from the 1960s hard rock scene. We’re talking about the power chord and how it was incorporated into the distorted sound of rock music in the 1950s. The process of the heavy, distorted sound of hard rock goes back to Sister Rosetta Tharpe. The Godmother of Rock and Roll, as she is often referred to, is credited with creating the first rock and roll s

From ACC Leisure Services Athens Creative Theatre (ACT) presents "A Midsummers Night’s Dream" on Thursday, May 14 and Friday, May 15 at 5:30 p.m. and Saturday, May 16 and 11:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. in Dudley Park. These performances are free of charge and will take place in the amphitheater at Dudley Park near the pavilion. Parking information is available at www.accgov.com/dudley Attendees are encouraged to bring a lawn chair and enjoy the show! Join ACT for its inaugural

The best movies often use a simple plot as a transcendent metaphor for a greater truth. Field of Dreams is one of those movies. When Terrence Man (James Earl Jones) talks about baseball and America, we learn that the field of dreams (America) is “all that was once good and it could be again.” He describes the American dynamic as a blackboard that has been erased, rebuilt, and erased again. Such a perspective guides us toward retrospection, introspection, and evaluation. Let

By T. W. Burger Mulling over the second mug of coffee this morning, reluctant to begin another day in front of the keyboard, I considered the mass of flowers in the vase at the table's center. It was a typical spring mix, several varieties of daffodil, with a smattering of giant snowdrops. It has often been said that it is a shame that flowers last such a little time before they wither. Wouldn't it be great if they could bloom all the time, some say? Yes. And no. They would n

If nothing else, Trump has brought out the true “American” in many Americans. Americans standing up for what they believe—to protest with the largest numbers possible—is what made us who we are. Support for the cause is irrelevant. Support for the right is everything. Thomas Jefferson put it perfectly: “The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions, that I wish it to be always kept alive.” When Trump and FCC Chairman Brendan Carr tried to shut do

By T.W. Burger The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. would be 97 this year if some pinhead hadn’t shot him. He would perhaps be gone frail and a little dotty. Thinking back on his arc as firebrand and martyr, which is frankly hard to imagine. Those of us who were around in his day remember him differently than younger folks do. While he was alive he was, depending on where you stood, a visionary, a man of God who held his country’s collective feet to the fire of its own founding do

By Eddie Whitlock Hobby ​Remember Jon Lovitz as “the Master Thespian” on Saturday Night Live? He was a fellow who was all ham. His catchphrase was to stop whatever nonsense he had devolved into doing and shout, “Acting!” ​I am no actor. I respect actors. When I was a kid, I thought the people on television were just making things up as they went along. Memorize a script? Are you kidding me? ​In fifth grade, we did a class play. I was cast as the King’s advisor. I had a few li

People discussing the SAVE Act are missing a very frightening possibility. Eliminating the filibuster—an action President Trump appears to support if necessary to pass the controversial SAVE Act. Criticism of the act centers on stricter requirements for voter registration and photo ID for voting. The filibuster is a stopgap measure in the Senate to prevent a political party majority from forcing its agenda on Americans. It requires 60 votes and not a simple majority to pas

People discussing the SAVE Act are missing a very frightening possibility. Eliminating the filibuster—an action President Trump appears to support if necessary to pass the controversial SAVE Act. Criticism of the act centers on stricter requirements for voter registration and photo ID for voting. The filibuster is a stopgap measure in the Senate to prevent a political party majority from forcing its agenda on Americans. It requires 60 votes and not a simple majority to pas

By Erik Hogan Trout lilies are blooming. A delicate yellow bloom rising from between mottled leathery green leaves catches my attention. The few I saw earlier on the shaded banks of the creek were downcast, petals demurely folded. Sunlight has become harsh now in the late morning, but this flower stands radiant. Scanning the surrounding forest, I am suddenly aware that the hillside is covered in them. Perhaps I can capture a stunning photo of the lily. If I take time here, I

If you asked most anyone if the right to vote is in the Constitution, they would most likely say “yes.” That would be half correct. The Constitution does not explicitly grant the right to vote. The Supreme Court unambiguously confirmed this in Bush v. Gore (2000). In that decision, the Court stated: The individual citizen has no federal constitutional right to vote for electors for the President of the United States unless and until the state legislature chooses a statewide e

By Erik Hogan Landscape and nature photography revolve around the skills of observation and noticing. At first glance, these may seem synonymous. However, there is a subtle distinction between the two. This may not adhere to strict dictionary definitions of the these terms, but perhaps suggests a useful way of conceptualizing the skills. Observation is looking in its broadest sense. It involves being fully present in the moment, completely aware of one’s surroundings. This in

AP photo By T.W. Burger In Texas, late in December of 1989, Thomas Everett Blasingame pulled his horse up short, dismounted, lay down in a field, crossed his hands over his chest and died. His coworkers at JA Cattle Co. of Goodnight, Texas found him that way. His horse stood nearby. Blasingame was 91. The Associated' Press story said he was the oldest working cowboy in Texas. He told the Wichita Falls Times the previous summer that he wanted to die just the way he did. Ever w

Concerning the "Interfaith vigil held in Athens for ICE mass detainees" - You have the freedom in our country to peacefully support or oppose any cause you like, but have you considered the fact that your vigil in support of those who are in our country illegally was held on the second anniversary of Lakin Riley's murder? I think an apology to her family is in order. Pastor Glenn Guest Danielsville