Page 7 - Slim Smith News Today

The small coastal town of Pass Christian lost a beloved resident on Christmas Day, but his passing resonates anywhere there is love for the natural world, its remarkable creatures and concerns over modern society’s relationship with the wild.

The last time I stepped outside Thursday, around 5:30 p.m., there wasn’t much of anything remarkable about the weather. The temperature was in the mid-50s, about what we’ve come to expect this time of the year.

The citizens of Wetumpka, Alabama, rest a little easier today. The Thelma and Louise of Cat Crime have been brought to justice.

Shortly after 6 p.m. Wednesday, the state of Mississippi executed Thomas Loden Jr., 58, for the 2000 kidnapping, rape and murder of 16-year-old Leesa Gray in Itawamba County.

On Tuesday night, Raphael Warnock emerged a winner and, perhaps, so did Scott Colom.

I am happy to report that, unless someone who wasn’t on my list suddenly wins the lottery or comes into a large inheritance, my Christmas shopping is completed.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, the day set aside each year to gather with friends and loved ones, give thanks for our good fortunes, enjoy a lovely feast, find comfort in our shared memories and, of course, confront Uncle Bob with the question: “What is the matter with you? Seriously?”

The way the search for a new Columbus police chief has gone over the past couple of days brings to mind the title of an old country song: “Everybody Wants To Go To Heaven, But Nobody Wants To Die.”

In the next stop in his journey through reggae music’s extraordinary versions, Chris Lane checks in with Curtis Mayfield’s game-changing vocal group The Impressions

I was a Republican from the time I reached voting age in 1977 (my first presidential vote went to Ronald Reagan in 1980) until the early 2000s, when I came to understand that I just wasn’t cruel enough to be a Republican.