What a country, right? As we celebrate America’s 246th birthday on the 4th of July, let’s pause and list a few reasons to love America.

As we gather to celebrate Independence Day, it’s a good time to reflect on how our most fundamental freedoms have served this nation well.

This weekend, we have a guest column from Mackenzie Davis, APRN, at Vanderbilt Integrated Pediatrics in Tullahoma. Read her full column here. 

Oh, how our nation has changed in recent years. We have lost more than a million people to a disease that some said would go away in a matter of weeks. We started wearing masks and stopped eating out, shaking hands, and hugging. We no longer consider good character or intellect to be importa…

This week in "TN History for Kids," Bill Carey talks about the ghost town of Wilder and the murder of Barney Graham. Read his full column here. 

Between deer, drunks and the hand of the Almighty himself, I just can’t have nice things. It’s like fate goes out of its way to put me back in my place when I get a little uppity.

Gas prices are skyrocketing, and until supply exceeds demand, there’s nothing we can do about it.

Buffalo, Uvalde, Laguna Woods, Tulsa. Recent mass shootings at grocery stores, schools, churches, and hospitals in the United States have rekindled a variety of complex debates. What no one disagrees about is that our population experiences real stress and trauma bearing witness to these tra…

This week in "TN History for Kids," Bill Carey talks about the history of the Conasauga River and how it nearly became important in Tennessee history. Read the full column here. 

According to the polls, most Americans blame our nation’s ills on President Biden. His popularity is somewhere between prison food and monkeypox. In all honesty, he doesn’t actually control everything in the world, but when you’re angry, you have to take it out on someone.

Almost 80 years ago, the Allied assault on Nazi territory landed on the beaches of Normandy. The sacrifice of over 2,500 American troops that day and countless others throughout the rest of the Second World War made the defeat of the Nazis a reality. Today, our service members have not waver…

There are a lot of examples out there of places being renamed. A dorm at my alma mater used to be called Confederate Hall; now it’s Memorial Hall. I once skied at Squaw Valley Resort in California, now known as Palisades Tahoe. The highest mountain in the United States, once officially known…

A few days ago, I tried to watch one of the nightly network newscasts. After the first two minutes (the “tease” period, where they try to get your attention), I was worn out.

Alvin York is one of the most famous war heroes in American history.

At a recent book signing, a friend asked, “Who’s the most famous person you have met?”

This week in "TN History for Kids," Bill Carey talks about the other meaning behind "Perfect 36." Read his full column here. 

When it comes to making important health decisions for yourself, knowing fact from fiction can be critical to your long term health—and even lifesaving. This Women’s Health Month, we want to empower women in Coffee County to make educated health decisions by addressing some of the most commo…

High school graduations have gotten a lot of attention lately, because for the first time since 2019, most seniors will finally get to “walk,” and accept their diploma, while their families cheer.

There’s a story behind every boundary – why it’s here and not over there, why it shifts this way and then that way.

As a TV news anchor, I try to avoid cliché’s, because they turn up on the news too often.

Summer break used to give kids time to explore – camping trips, games of hide and seek, and picnics in the park. But as of late, students with free time on their hands have traded adventure for more screen time. School is almost out, and before the last bell rings, parents and caretakers nee…

Everyone has heard of “Davy” Crockett, but not everyone has a clear idea of what he did. Here are some of the high points:

This week we bid farewell my managing editor, Erin McCullough, who has taken a job in the big city with Channel 2 News. Her last day was Wednesday and while we hate see her go, we wish her well in her future endeavors.

Everyone experiences joint pain at some point. Sometimes joint pain is simply from trying a new activity that pushes your body in new ways, but other times it arises from a more damaging process: the inflammatory condition known as arthritis.

Every election cycle, we see an onslaught of poll results. If we don’t agree with the polls, we are quick to say, “Who did they poll? Nobody polled me!”

I don’t believe in ghosts, never have. But there was a time when Old Stone Fort, in Coffee County, was said to be haunted.

I recently had a conflict with a developer who is building a multimillion dollar subdivision near my home.

I’ve been thinking a lot about Character Education. A few decades back, I began seeing colorful Character Education posters in schools. It was part of a curriculum that promoted the basic character traits: responsibility, cooperation, perseverance, kindness, honesty, and respect.

Among Central Americans, he may be the most famous Tennessee native. But I strongly suspect you’ve never heard of him.

Election season is upon us, seemingly minutes after the last one ended. Early voting has begun in my neck of the woods. You can’t miss the landscape-littering signs and TV ads featuring gun-totin’ millionaires wearing plaid shirts because they’re just regular folks like us.

This week, Duane talks about how his father backslide every Easter Sunday. Read his full column here. 

Tax Day is right around the corner, and some taxpayers who haven’t filed their returns might be getting anxious about getting them done in time.

Here’s a blast from the past: a telephone attached to a wall. Nowadays, if we were suddenly confined to a phone cord that only allowed about ten feet of space, we’d go crazy. What? We can’t talk on the phone while on the porch, in the back yard, or most importantly, in the waiting room at th…

I once visited Marion County’s Nickajack Cave and was sad about how little the history of the place is told there. The woods near the cave have a trail and boardwalk, and the area is maintained as a wildlife refuge by TVA and the Tennessee Wildlife Refuge Agency. But, in my opinion, the cave…

A stealth caption bill that seeks to lock down citizen access to police body cam and dashcam footage has emerged late in session and will be heard in two key committees on Wednesday. The bill allows a law enforcement agency to delete most body cam and dashcam footage after 30 days and preven…

On a recent Sunday night, my wife Cindy and I were among the thirteen Americans actually watching the Academy Awards. Of course, a few hundred million have now seen Will Smith spring from his front row seat, charging toward Chris Rock to avenge a tacky joke about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith.

December 4, 2021 will always hold a significant spot in the timeline of historically significant athletic events at the high school and collegiate levels.  From a collegiate perspective, Alabama defeated Georgia to be crowned the SEC champs in football once again.  However, the Crimson Tide …

There was a brief period in my teen years where I thought I would one day become a music educator, specifically some kind of professional clarinetist. I’d been playing the clarinet since the sixth grade, when my middle school band director Marion Coleman and her colleague Atticus Hensley had…

At this stage of my life, I need a challenge. It’s time to take on something most people will never conquer. Sure, I could go the easy route and become a rocket scientist. Nah, let’s go with brain surgery, that might test my limits. Or if I wanted to excel physically, I could climb Mount Eve…

It’s been nearly a quarter century since I was in the Legislative Plaza office of state senator Tommy Burks. We talked about his proposal for Tennessee to go back to elected, rather than appointed, school districts. I’d gotten the quote I needed, then stood up to walk out of the office. Want…

We are living in a time where it seems even more that the pretty things or the shiny things are what catches the attention of people.  Pictures of people on social media are enhanced to make them look more appealing.  More value is placed on things that have all the so-called bells and whist…

Thirteen years ago I gave in, and joined Facebook. It was at the urging of an old radio pal, who assured me my fears about Facebook were unfounded. Although I had often lectured my teenage sons about Facebook being a waste of time, my buddy told me that it was a great way to reconnect with f…