The St. Patrick’s Day spirit has arrived, and we sure are in need of Irish levity. more

I spent last week trying to be useful. more

Tennessee has 95 counties, and there used to be a 96th. Known as James County, it was a tiny sliver of a county east of Hamilton and west of Bradley. Formed after the Civil War, it was done away with shortly after World War I. more

Editor’s Note: The following is a rebuttal to the commentary, "It’s time for all states to abolish the death penalty," by syndicated columnist John L. Micek, which appeared in the … more

I am definitely a product of the great American melting pot, but on both sides of the family, a Scots-Irish ancestry is prominent. more

In the last few years, it has become common to see people put their pronouns in their email sign-offs, and to hear the phrase “gender fluid.” more

You won’t find anyone prouder of their Southern heritage than me. Heck, I even wrote a book called “Volunteer Bama Dawg,” celebrating my connections to Tennessee, Alabama and … more

Take a walk down a tree-lined path in just about any park, and within minutes you can feel your blood pressure dropping. Whether it's a fragrant pine, a majestic oak or the beauty of a magnolia in full bloom, there's just something about trees that connects you with nature, inspires wonder and brings about a sense of peace with the world. more

A strong storm system moved through the Southern United States on Friday morning, March 3. Although rain didn’t fall in East Tennessee until mid-day, it was accompanied by strong, straight-line winds throughout most of the morning and afternoon. These winds averaged between 40 and 50 mph, with gusts reaching as high as 70 mph. As a result of the sustained winds, over 300,000 electric consumers in Tennessee found themselves without power. Within the VEC 17-county service area, more than 25,000 of our members lost power. more

I’m heartbroken that cartoonist Scott Adams recently self-destructed — but hold the presses! This big, beautiful world still has plenty of comic strips to tickle our funny bones. more

My husband, Peter, is learning Spanish his own way. more

I was out in my front yard earlier this week, staring up at the night sky, and feeling impossibly humbled by the scale and the grandeur of the universe. more

The poor Democrats trapped in the bloody and broken city of Chicago finally came to their senses. more

It’s at once amazing and troublesome. I speak of ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence application that was launched last November by OpenAI. In a matter of seconds, it can write apparently … more

To The Editor: I understand that the U.S. has always subsidized fuel prices. In Europe they are not subsidized; however, they have adequate public transportation. My question is: Why have the diesel prices remained as high as they have? Is this to "cause" a food shortage and a goods shortage? more