Category Archives: Opinions
A pair of Pauls, short and tall
If my deteriorating memory serves me correctly, I think it was in 1974 that first I met Paul Kitchen. At the time, I had little reason to suspect that our lives would intertwine so closely and that we would remain 
friends over the next 36 years of our lives.
Paul was a fireman. A fireman’s fireman, no less. He wore his uniform with pride, dignity and with sincere adoration for the fireman’s code of honor that he spoke about with such humility. His face was always adorned with a great solemn smile, as if he was glad to just be there and offer what help he could render. Although short in stature, he was one of the largest men in heart and soul that I have known.
I met Paul when he stopped by to chat with his brother, who was a draftsman with the Gwinnett County Engineering Department. I had recently begun work there after my first
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SC WINS makes technical colleges more affordable
I have never noticed billboards along our highways advertising open positions at local manufacturing plants. Until now. Their presence speaks volumes about what is happening in our local economy.
Unemployment is low. Competition for good workers is high. Local companies are expanding and creating new jobs throughout Anderson, Oconee and Pickens counties. New industries are moving into the area and creating even more highly skilled, well-paying positions.
The majority of these new jobs require education and training beyond a high school diploma, but less than a four-year degree — the type of education available at Tri-County Technical College. Our challenge is to recruit people to enroll
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Courier Letters to the Editor 7-31-19
Collins’ talk on STIB funding
Dear Editor,
When S.C. House Rep. Neal Collins began his town hall meeting on July 25, he talked about state-level issues, then transitioned to roads in Pickens County. He talked about a local sales tax as a way to pay for road maintenance, using Horry County as an example.
Horry County has more than double the population of Pickens County, and they have tourism at Myrtle Beach. Of course their local tax brings in impressive amounts of revenue, especially from tourists visiting that county. One might ask why we should want to pay an extra tax locally when we are now experiencing automatic biannual gas tax increases that are supposed to be fixing our roads.
Collins emphasized that never in the history of the State Transportation Infrastructure Bank (STIB) had
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Social isolation linked to bone loss
If you ever wanted a compelling reason to join a group or get out more, here it is: A new study shows that poor social relationships contribute to bone loss in senior women.
This wasn’t a small, brief study. In this Women’s Health Initiative, researchers studied the bone health of 11,000 women over six years and included information about social support and social functioning.
The bottom line: Over those six years, high social stress equated to lowered bone mineral density in the femoral neck (where most hip fractures occur), the lumbar spine and the whole hip. They assigned a rating to levels of “social strain,” and found that each additional point added to the lowered bone density.
There’s more to this than how many groups we meet with each week. It turns out it’s the quality of our
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The last time I plowed a mule
One Saturday, just as I was turning over to continue my morning slumber, I realized that Daddy was pounding on the wall downstairs.
Something about busting middles in the corn field. Also something about two minutes and mule was dressed and waiting at the barn. … Just as I zoomed by him, he hollered to be sure to attach the muzzle on the mule.
Now, busting middles is not the hardest thing in the world for a 15-year-old boy to do. But it is trying, especially if the mule is doing his/her best to eat the top off of every new corn plant in the field. Move forward 20
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All we need is love
I found a copy of the resolution passed by the House of Representatives last week and read it. It includes inspiring quotes from presidents and statesmen who helped make America great.
It states, “the Founders conceived America as a haven of refuge for people fleeing from religious and political persecution, and Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison all emphasized that the Nation gained as it attracted new people in search of freedom and livelihood for their families;
“The Declaration of Independence defined America as a covenant based on equality, the unalienable Rights of life,
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Courier Letters to the Editor 7-24-19
Employees need fairness
Dear Editor,
I am happy the Hagood Mill situation worked out, but it uncovered a few disturbing things that need to be addressed.
For those who didn’t catch the entire story, the county administration fired the director of the mill. The mill volunteers thought that was unjustified and urged the council to intervene. When the council finally got involved, it sided with the administration’s firing. The citizens stood up, and with the help of Rep. Davey Hiott, the administration/council
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What would Betsy Ross think?
This may come as a surprise, but a tennis shoe company just stopped production of a tennis shoe that had a miniature emblem of a Betsy Ross or colonial flag on it.
The reason for the withdrawal of the shoe from the market is that a protest was made saying the emblem should be removed because it was a symbol of racism.
She was an upholsterer in Philadelphia who happened to be related to someone associated with George Washington and part of the rebellion. I don’t believe Betsy Ross made the flag with racism in mind.
Maybe I am not connecting the dots, but I really can’t understand the protest.
First, although slavery is a blot on our history, it was common in the 13 original
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Uncle Dewey’s dog
Uncle Dewey was my uncle and one of Daddy’s brothers. He lived on a farm in Dacusville with my Aunt Margaret. Everybody called her “Marget.” Also living with them were their daughter, Fay, and her husband, Charles Holder. Another son, D.B., was around somewhere creating trouble for untold numbers of folks, I am told.
We visited Uncle Dewey’s home regularly, as we did Daddy’s other brothers and sister. It was almost a Sunday afternoon ritual. No matter in which direction we left home, we almost always ended up at one of his siblings’ homes. He must have loved them very much.
On occasion, I would help Uncle Dewey harvest okra, squash, corn and tomatoes from his garden. I remember Uncle Dewey would give me socks to wear on my hands and arms while picking okra. It was quite prickly and could cause a rash. We would carry them to Washington Street in Greenville and sell them. We would sell everything that we carried in short order.
Uncle Dewey had a small, feisty dog named Hornet. Hornet was a character and went practically everywhere with Dewey. They frequented Daddy’s fishing lake and caught
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Courier Letters to the Editor 7-17-19
Lions year in review
Dear Editor,
The Pickens Lions Club just wrapped up its 2018-2019 fiscal year, which ended June 30, and my first year as a Lion and as the club’s president. It has been an interesting, daunting, fun and rewarding journey.
My wife, Gennie, and I joined the Lions Club to meet people and to serve those in need. We looked at other clubs in the area and decided we wanted to help this club because of their small size and we wanted to serve in the community in which we lived. When we joined, there were only four members, whom I refer to as the “Core Four,” and these guys were working to keep the club from folding. The “Core Four” are Gabby, George, John and Doug. The first immediate need was to increase membership, and that has been our No. 1 goal from the start. I set three goals — to increase membership to 20, to have three service projects a year and to have three fundraisers a year. Other goals were added as we moved forward and discovered different needs for us and the community.
To meet our goal of adding new members, I started a letter campaign, mailing letters to various folks letting them know that there is still a Lions Club in town and we are looking for movers and shakers to join us. In addition to the Azalea Fest, we did some new
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