Opinion

Critics swear that the French successfully smeared “lipstick on a pig” for a big chunk of the 2024 Olympic Games. The French, though, are used to sloughing off jokes and insults.

I am so thankful there will be no drywall in the New Jerusalem (the celestial city that awaits the saints in Heaven)! I have spent the last week hanging, taping, sanding, and cleaning up sheetrock. If you have never done drywall, you are really missing out. It seems odd that they call it “drywall” since a person has to sweat profusely to install it. The process is akin to using a shovel. My friend jokes that shovels are the number one contributor to global warming because every time he touches one, he overheats.

A federal investigation into five state facilities concluded children in custody face excessive force, sexual abuse and a lack of vital services, The Dallas Morning News reported. At a news conference last week, Kristen Clarke, assistant attorney general in the Justice Department’s civil rights division, said children held in those facilities are not receiving the treatment and rehabilitation they are supposed to get.

Uncle Mort’s contraptions and inventions usually are “far-fetched.” Finally, he’s come up with one that is “near-fetched.” And, it may be of considerable help to those among us who daily dread what used to be a thoughtless and effortless routine: putting on socks.

I love that our national bird is the bald eagle. It remains a remarkable symbol of freedom and perspective. Legend has it that Ben Franklin wanted that bird to be a turkey. Whether or not the great inventor and founding father wanted cold cuts appears irrelevant today. Our symbol of national independence has soared over our great nation for almost 250 years. But these marvelous creatures are not born flying.

A huge pot of federal rail funding and chronic highway congestion are prompting some Texas officials to again consider expanding passenger rail in Texas, according to The Texas Standard. Congress set aside $66 billion three years ago in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act for rail projects across the country, sparking some interest in increasing passenger rail service between the state’s major cities.

I’m not sure who the TV weather guy was, which city he served or exactly what he said, but if his observation passed down through the ages is even close to accurate, it still has wide application today.

Taking the path less traveled is a philosophy on life that is also less traveled. There is a reason most people will go through the wide gate. As a species, we trend. Whatever the trends are,people will follow. Thus, the problem with democracy. True democracy is not what most people think. True democracy, historically, always becomes “mob rule.” Therefore, whatever the political, social, or community persuasion may be, the mob will make it rule.

A popcorn tradition was born 50 years ago this summer in the garage of our home in southwest Fort Worth. That was some 26 tons of popcorn and four machines ago.

As the dog days of August approach and electric bills soar, the Public Utility Commission is reminding consumers of rules in place to protect them from having their power disconnected due to financial difficulties, especially during extreme heat. “Ensuring the power stays on for all Texans, regardless of their financial situation, is a top priority for all of us at the PUCT,” Executive Director Connie Corona said.