It wasn’t so long ago that the people of Louisiana slogged through the summer without air conditioning.
Social ills that ail us at the core of our state — the highest rate of incarceration in America; pockets of abject, endemic poverty; traces of systemic racism, reflected in housing and educational disparities — demand scholarly research that may l…
It’s good to see the pandemic era reconnecting Louisianians with the great outdoors, and one effect is that fishing license sales are up 50% this spring.
In an era when police and deputies are facing questions about how they use force, the need for body cameras has never been greater.
Not everything has gone right between the New Orleans Police Department and those who’ve taken to the streets to protest police brutality following George Floyd’s death at the hands of a Minneapolis cop. The low point was the night of June 3, when…
This editorial, with modifications, has appeared in previous Fourth of July editions:
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They weren’t hard to spot when Louisiana went into lockdown, the people deemed so essential that they went to work while others sheltered at home — even though doing so put them at greater risk of being infected with the coronavirus.
As public displays of old symbols get a fresh look during this time of racial reckoning, the thorniest question is where to draw the line.
The COVID-19 crisis has been so draining for so long, it seems like we’ve been living like this for years.
Apologies are an important part of healing. It’s uncomfortable when we inflict pain on those we care about. It’s one thing to offer an apology; it’s another for the hurt to accept it.
The unhappy and public end to Jamie Bergeron’s long career with Acadian Ambulance in Lafayette does not obviate good works he accomplished in 30 years of emergency response as a paramedic. Not entirely.
If you set out to write a motion picture script about a man who uplifted himself and his community over a lifetime of achievement and adventure, you couldn’t find a better subject than Blaine Kern Sr.
Want to buy some clothes or groceries? Mask up. Want to see a movie in a local theater? Mask up. Want to see the LSU football Tigers play this fall? You might have to mask up.
If Josh Guillory, Lafayette’s mayor-president, needed a ready reminder of how quickly progress against COVID-19 can reverse, it’s as close as the Texas line.
The Great American Outdoors Act sounds as patriotic as apple pie, and we agree with the overall goals of the bill, which would provide $900 million a year to improve national and local parks and wildlife refuges, plus $11.9 billion over five years…
In his periodic coronavirus updates, Gov. John Bel Edwards has lately assumed a tougher tone. As he has since Louisiana quickly mushroomed into one of the world’s most virulent hot spots in March, Edwards is reacting to the data — in this case, an…
Here’s what it may mean when Paul Hilliard, 95, completes his tenure as board chairman at the National WWII Museum on June 30: He’ll be the last World War II veteran to guide the trustees over the massive museum in New Orleans, one of the world’s …
John Bel Edwards has always publicly endorsed gun rights. But the Democratic governor has also shown a pragmatic streak and supported sensible limits.
Yes, Black Lives Matter.
Malcolm Jenkins, of the New Orleans Saints, has a new title: CNN contributor. That’s a big deal for Jenkins, for the Saints, for the NFL and for CNN viewers.
Much has been written about the important shifts in power relationships in the State Capitol, with a Democratic governor in his second term and newly assertive conservative Republicans in charge of the House and Senate. It’s truly a remarkable set…
In 1964, gay Americans were so little visible that the United States Congress, intent on passing the landmark Civil Rights Act, probably never considered that discrimination on the basis of sex would make illegal the actions that the Supreme Court…
What is to be done?
Haste makes waste, especially in legislating, so Gov. John Bel Edwards reasonably vetoed a major bill on car insurance that had been amended too quickly in its rush to approval in the regular session of the Legislature.
In today’s politicized environment, maybe it was inevitable that there would be much learned commentary on the spread of coronavirus — by political affiliation. Yes, “hot spots” early on like New Orleans, but most of all New York City, were from D…
By pushing out a long-serving legislative budget officer, the new Republican leadership of the House and Senate have set a challenge for themselves.
The Louisiana State University Tigers will face another Tiger team and some Jaguars soon, and that’s a big deal.
Given the sky-high expectations, Zion Williamson’s rookie year with the New Orleans Pelicans was always destined to be an adventure, for both him and the team’s fans. Still, nobody could have predicted the roller coaster ride that has been the 201…
What with the coronavirus pandemic and the ensuing economic shutdown, as well as the cancellation of the public, festive portion of New Orleans’ yearly celebration of charitable giving, it would have been perfectly understandable had this year’s G…
"Baton Rouge, I get what's going on," Police Chief Murphy Paul says. "I've had the experience as a black boy and as a black man."
The Legislature's proposal to raid federal aid for Louisiana cities and towns is the wrong way to address coronavirus shutdowns and its attendant crisis in business and government.
Who better? That answer is an almost automatic response to the idea of renaming Jeff Davis Parkway for a prominent New Orleanian who has meant so much to the Crescent City for decades.
With an ally like Karen Carter Peterson, a governor should be used to surprises. But the state senator’s latest power play, exploiting an abusive Senate rule to block two highly qualified appointees, appears to have come as a surprise to Gov. John…
The coronavirus-shortened legislative session that ended last week had a lot of low points: the partisan shenanigans; the decision by the Legislature’s new leaders to plow ahead with divisive, non-emergency legislation, even though participation f…
If there is a day of somber reflection on the American calendar, it ought to be June 6. On that date in 1944, an armada of ships bore thousands of brave young men who threw themselves against the shore of Nazi-occupied France.
When George Floyd gasped out his last agonizing breath, choked by officers who were supposed to preserve and protect his life and our society, America lost a bit of its soul.
What have we learned about this novel coronavirus? A lot, certainly, but probably for most people, the first lesson is that this has not been any fun. At home, kids home from school, jobs and lives disrupted, even if one’s family circle has not be…
After Hurricane Katrina assaulted New Orleans, the city went out of its way to encourage members of Congress to visit and see the damage for themselves.
There are reasons, both philosophical and political, for Gov. John Bel Edwards to have problems with a sweeping bill aimed at stemming a plague of lawsuits that are a factor in driving up Louisiana’s sky-high car and truck insurance rates.
Two months ago, we urged newly elected lawmakers to put aside their own agendas in the midst of a pandemic that forced a near shutdown of Louisiana’s economy, and focus on what they absolutely had to get done. Business as usual, we believed, could…
Hurricane forecasting has come a long way since the days of Nash Roberts or Mike Graham.
Long years later, Percy “Blackie” Trahan still flies the U.S. flag over his single-family home off Kaliste Saloom Road in Lafayette. It’s where he and his wife Shirley reared their lone son, Lex, a jewel of a young man who played football at Comea…
As our community deals with all of what’s horrible about the novel coronavirus, it’s good to know that there are people being helpful, people being kind and people stepping up to serve in some of the most critical jobs.
Communities expect their police to protect and serve. They expect fairness and honesty. They want justice to be pursued consistent with police department policies, and the law.
If government giveaways were the path to prosperity, Louisiana’s economy would have been booming for years.
The most practical advice that legislators can get was provided by Jan Moller, head of the Louisiana Budget Project: If you’re in a hole, stop digging.
Editor's note: This editorial, with variations, has been published on previous Memorial Days in this newspaper:
There’ve been times in recent years when following Jefferson Parish public school politics felt like attending a sporting event; the sides were clearly defined, the atmosphere was tense, and everyone was keeping score.
Luke Dupre’s heart was set on a moment that never happened.
There is no shortage of bad economic news, nor concern about local businesses surviving a coronavirus-induced recession. While masking up and taking other social distancing measures is necessary locally, a new report from the University of Louisia…
The shortcomings of Atlanta are too numerous to fully inventory here.