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Showing posts from June, 2022

Sifting Through the Gun Divide

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Growing up on the outskirts of Colonel Glenn Road near the Pulaski County line, I heard the booming sounds of the hand cannon in my backyard. Attending classes in Arkadelphia, Arkansas, a community that steeps itself in the middle of southern gun culture, I heard the cracks and pops of modern muskets as I set my course for the library on the occasional weeknight study session.  Did I hit the ground? Did I shudder in fear? Did I stop my journey or game of catch? Not at all. Why? The sound of a gun going off was expected for better or worse. I did not question how it was used or how it was purchased. If I did, the same old adage would roll off my dad's tongue, "They're probably hunting, shooting skeet or something." I grew numb to the sound like a knee slap after any good joke. Lines and Divides The same cannot be said for every American. As thick as the partisan line is the divide surrounding guns. As many people who are opposed to housing shotgun shells and pistol cap

Love Ain't Always How It's Cracked Up to Be

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So, we're in the early stages of Summer 2022. It's early June, and it's wedding season if you don't know what that means in the South. Attending a school like mine means that every late May to early August provides plenty of opportunities to put on nice clothes, see some friends, and bust a move. But it also allows you to glimpse an all-too-common depiction of love through a flower girl, rings, and a white dress.  I'm actually going to another wedding this week (shoutout to my buddy Sean), and it got me thinking again about the subject of love. Why does love matter? How does someone get or give love? Shoot, do we even need love at all? But before all that... what the heck is it? We hear love songs all the time, but two favorites are  I Wanna Know What Love Is  by Foreigner and  What is Love  by Haddaway. In the latter tune, the German singer asked his presumptive audience of one the following question: "What is love? Baby, don't hurt me. Don't hurt me,