Category Archives: Opinions
Don’t get caught up in survey scams
The latest craze in senior scams is surveys. Thieves want to know our opinions about products and services, and we’re happy to oblige — especially when there’s a lovely prize for us if we participate.
Who wouldn’t want an expensive TV or a vacation just for answering a few survey questions?
We wouldn’t, that’s who. Because it’s likely part of a scam.
Survey scams can show up in any number for formats, either a direct call to you or in
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Councilman weighs in on Trump rally costs
I read last week’s article about the Trump rally and the costs of the rally. Let me add some clarity.
Lindsay Graham asked the city of Pickens if President Trump could speak at the Independence Day Celebration. The city agreed. People like the city administrator Charlene Carter, Chief Randal Beach, Davey Hiott and Barry Crawford (Market at the Mill) worked with Team Trump
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Calibrating my new AI partner
Most of America’s problems could be solved by the use of an Electromagnetic Alternative Reality Rerouter.
That’s a device that would beam out waves that would align a new set of synaptic connections in everyone’s brains that would instantly enable them to understand why the people they disagree with think the way they do. And vice-versa.
Perhaps then we would discover that there’s really no one to “save America” from but our own
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Honest with God and ourselves
In the field of psychology, cognitive dissonance is the perception of contradictory information and the mental toll of it. Relevant items of 
information include a person’s actions, feelings, ideas, beliefs, values, convictions and things that are going on all around us.
Cognitive dissonance is typically experienced as mental and emotional stress when an individual
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Where is Capt. Molly?
Margaret Cochran was a little rough around the edges, but then, she led a pretty rough life. Born in November 1751, she was only 5 years old 
when the Delaware and Shawnee tribes raided her family’s farm. Her father was killed and her mother was kidnapped, and with no one to ransom her, she was never heard from again.
Newly orphaned, “Molly” and her brother, John, went to live with their uncle. When Molly was
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Courier Letters to the Editor 8-2-23
Keep on dreaming
Dear Editor,
I was listening to a song the other day by the late Scott McKenzi called “San Francisco.” The song paints a beautiful picture about a dream of that generation of so long ago, a lifetime now gone.
Just a dream, most of which never became a reality, and that is true of all generations. If you think about it, one generation arrives on the
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Oconee Nuclear Station hits half a century
One Sunday afternoon in late 1967 or early ’68, my family went on an eventful outing to a spot just across the Keowee River from Pickens County.
“Someday,” my dad said, gazing prophetically across a graded red clay landscape, “they’ll be splitting atoms down there to make electricity.”
Duke Power had just broken ground on its first nuclear station. To my 14-year-old mind it seemed like an incredibly futuristic, fantastical undertaking.
Little did I know that I would someday go down inside one of the nuclear reactor buildings
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Courier Letters to the Editor 7-26-23
Why should we have to pay for it?
Dear Editor,
Should Pickens County be responsible for funding a political rally? Especially as the money is to be taken from the accommodations tax fund?
If the recent Trump rally is to be subsidized from the fund designated for the promotion and support of tourism to cultural, recreational and historic sites within Pickens County, it sets a dangerous precedent.
This decision puts the county into the position of assuming financial responsibility for the costs of any political rally that comes our way. It
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It’s hotter than blue blazes
My grandmother would sit on the porch, fanning herself, and say “It’s so hot you can fry an egg on the sidewalk.” Today, I think you could not only fry the egg, but the bacon, too, and boil up some water for the grits while you’re at it. I think by now, we all know exactly how hot it is.
Heat can be dangerous and lead to heat exhaustion or heatstroke. Drink plenty of fluids (beer is
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Darkness can never overcome God’s light
There is a lot of talk today about the reality of a global system of organized evil that controls the governments and social politics of the world.
There are many different attitudes, from thinking this is silly to being consumed with anxiety and stress. Those who pay little attention to the news have learned that ignoring negativity makes them more calm. However, just because someone puts their head in the sand does not mean the problems are not real. For those who carry the heavy burden of worrying about the future and their own safety, fear can take a devastating physical, emotional and spiritual toll on our personal well-being.
In psychology, we know there are subconscious reflexes that cause us to reject information that challenges our worldviews. When certain information is just too overwhelming, we can build barriers to prevent knowledge from intruding into our thought processes and also develop a familiar internal security system that allows us to feel contentment by concluding it’s not true. In other words, hiding our heads in the sands of denial is the easy way to avoid dealing with uncomfortable knowledge.
On the other hand, truth seekers embrace all opinions because they want to research as much as they can to discover what is right and wrong. Even if it’s painful.
As Christians, the empowerment of being indwelt with the presence of God and having the opportunity to renew our minds can completely transform our attitude. Instead of thinking about how weak we are and submitting to the imagination that we are going to be devoured, Christians must realize they are in covenant with the God of all creation, and as a part of His family, nothing is more devastating to the forces of evil than His authority. In our daily lives, darkness is never confronted or cast out by those who are shaking in their boots. Faith is having confidence in who God is and who we are in Him.
When the Bible says the enemy roars like a lion, it means he likes to make a lot of noise, but if we study this closely, this is a scare tactic he uses to make people believe he is stronger and more fierce than he actually is. This is a common strategy used in the animal kingdom, where certain species will puff themselves up, spread their feathers or do a lot of screaming to make their opponent afraid. The old saying that a dog’s bark is worse than his bite applies here.
As we pray for spiritual wisdom and discernment, we understand the devil is not a carnivorous beast looking to literally eat humans. He is trying to persuade and deceive someone who does not comprehend spiritual truth, and because of a lack of understanding, he will harass and bully them until they learn how to stop him in the Name of Jesus.
When we realize that Satan is a faker and underneath the mask is a sniveling coward, we can walk in the revelation of spiritual victory. God says, “My people perish from the lack of knowledge,” and this explains the foundation of spiritual warfare. The devil is sneaky and can throw obstacles in our path and he can make things difficult by launching ambush attacks, but the dark side cannot separate us from the love of God or stop us from accomplishing God’s will. What the enemy is trying to do is convince us that we are a failure, our mission is impossible, no one cares about us and we might as well give up.
Of course, this is a lie and has no effect on anyone “until” someone believes it. It’s true that mountains are moved by positive faith, but negative faith can also steal our joy and crush us under the weight of pessimism and doubt. Believing is the fervent acceptance of something we accept as true and releases power into whatever we agree with. Why is this important? The attitude of our conscience is forming the basis of who we are and who we will become. I encourage you today to guard your thoughts and your words and remember that God never fails.
When a room is dark and you turn on the light, what happens? Darkness runs and hides. God is Omnipotent, and evil will always bow down to Him.
William F. Holland Jr. is a minister, chaplain, psalmist and author. As a freelance faith writer, his books and newspaper and magazine articles are enjoyed around the world. Dr. Holland’s weekly column, “Living On Purpose” is focused on bringing spiritual hope and encouragement through God’s Word. Read more about the Christian life at billyhollandministries.com.
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