It's no big trick, writing your own news--and opinion to boot--for Arkansas' Newspaper. Your crystal ball may be in the shop for repairs at the moment, but if the past is prologue, it really doesn't matter. History doesn't repeat itself, as Mark Twain was reputed have said, but it does rhyme. Gentle Reader need only follow this guide, and he will produce his own column of news and opinion that'll fill the bill to the column inch. Like so:
Clyde Gregg, 85, a former combat engineer, was reported to have cast the first vote of his life in a primary for the U.S. Senate down in Florida, explaining that "I never liked politics to begin with but I love my country and I don't like what it's becoming." On the whole, some of us prefer the reason a little old lady gave when she was asked why she'd refrained from doing her civic duty decade after decade by casting a ballot. "It only encourages 'em," she said. For whatever reason, it's good to have Mr. Gregg join We the People at last in determining our political fate.
Jorie Graham, a poet who won a Pulitzer Prize for his The Dream of the Unified Field, added this year's Wallace Stevens Award to his growing collection of honors for his "proven mastery" of poetry. The award carries with it $100,000 in cash money. So much for the time-encrusted image of the starving poet slaving away in his garret. This poet doesn't seem the kind who writes only for other poets but for all of us. If he keeps it up, he can forget about his day job and devote himself exclusively to his art.
Angela Merkel, the 63-year-old chancellor of Germany, has a namesake, Angela Merkel Muhammed, born in Muenster to a migrant couple from Syria who said they wanted to honor her for letting them start a new life in a new country. There is a bridge between memory and hope, and it is crossed by gratitude.
Jake Files is still a member of the state Senate from Fort Smith despite all the evidence for impeachment against him, which continues to mount. He should have been given his walking papers years ago. The man is a disgrace to his state, his constituency, and not least to himself, yet he blithely continues to ignore his duty and dismiss every break in the case against him.
A search warrant affidavit requested by the U.S. Attorney's office said it was being sought in connection with violation(s) of federal wire-fraud and money-laundering laws. No, he hasn't been officially charged with any specific crime, but FBI Special Agent Timmy Akins says the state senator submitted three fictitious bids so the city of Fort Smith could get $46,500 in General Improvement Funds for work at the city-owned River Valley Sports Complex; suspicious readers who follow the senator's twisted trail will know that three bids were required before the Western Arkansas Planning and Development District would give the money to the low bidder for the project, one Dianna Gonzalez, who turns out to be an employee of Senator Files' FFH Construction LLC.
The city's administrator, Carl Geff-ken, says he didn't realize at the time that Ms. Gonzalez worked for the state senator. The affidavit says she told the FBI that Senator Files had told her his bank accounts were overdrawn (which doesn't exactly come as a surprise) and she was to open a bank account in her name so the city could send the money to her, and faithful employee that she was, she did. So it went, and will probably continue to go--with further complications galore.
Paul Greenberg is the Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial writer and columnist for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
Editorial on 09/03/2017