A Boy and His Dog

This sad tale has more pathetic plot twists that an O. Henry short story

Starbucks now wants to sell you the experience of making their instant coffee at home

In the beginning . . . there was coffee. You bought it at the store in a can or a bag. Maybe you ground it, maybe you let Maxwell House take care of that step for you and you just scooped it into a pot and added water. You could perk it, drip it or press it. It was easy. It was good. You could put milk in it, put sugar in it, or not. It was coffee. It woke you up, warmed you up and told you in the morning, like nothing else can, that everything was going to be all right.

Using common sense is a good way to avoid the swine flu, but don’t discount inoculation

Maffei pleads for Congress to put this latest South Carolina-based skirmish behind us and focus on the real issue

First Joe Wilson called Barack Obama a liar. Then Jimmy Carter called Joe Wilson a racist. Next Rush Limbaugh followed up by calling Jimmy Carter a hemorrhoid. Keith Olbermann referred to Rush as an expert in the anatomical region inhabited by hemorrhoids, and those of us paying attention had that sick feeling of wondering just how crude things would get. At least Rush brought it back to the topic of the day: health care.

In their debut runs for mayor, Alfonso Davis and Steve Kimatian shed light on marginalized issues

A new school year holds infinite promise for students of all ages

In a week of second chances, the release of the Pan Am 103 bomber doesn’t fly

As Abdelbeset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi hobbled off the plane in Tripoli, Libya, I kept thinking about Michael Vick and the dogs. I wouldn’t have given Michael Vick a second thought if it were not for Donovan McNabb. Donovan is such a solid citizen. Such a decent man. In all of football you couldn’t find a more decent human being.

While many politicians carry big sticks these days, Tom Young’s endorsement of Stephanie Miner for mayor was refreshingly low-key

Score one for our town. There was a former mayor, standing on the steps of City Hall, speaking so softly that he could barely be heard over the din of a truck idling at a nearby red light. He stood politely by the side of the candidate he was endorsing, and spoke serenely of the qualities he saw as necessary in a mayor of a mid-sized city.