Commentary

HOW DUMB THEY THINK WE ARE

Everybody recalls some of their favorite Christmas gifts “from Santa.”

I remember the trampoline that “Santa” hid in the woods before Christmas, and how my sister Ann and I inadvertently discovered it during a hike.

I recall the three Cabbage Patch Dolls that I got during Christmases in the 1980s. Their adoption papers had such hideous names that I renamed them “Haley, Matthew and Jonathan”.

There’s the red turtleneck with the little white specks that I got from The Gap as a teenager. That’s one of many that my sister Ashley told me about before Christmas.

Ashley loved telling people what their Christmas gifts were, but she wouldn’t directly tell you. For example, that Christmas, Ashley asked me, “Allison, did you see that red turtleneck with the white specks on it, near the front of The Gap yesterday at the mall?”

“Yes,” I replied.

“Well, I sure do hope you like it,” says Ashley.

The mayor and village council have once again asked for a special election to be held to change the chief of police position from elected to appointed. This is part of their plan to do away with the position of chief of police altogether. They tried this two years ago and their efforts failed. Now they are trying it again. In order for an elected position to be eliminated, one of two things must happen. A special election must be held for the people to vote for the position to be changed from elected to appointed, which would place the position under the control of the mayor. He can then do with the position as he desires. As an alternative, if the elected position has no one filing as a candidate for two elections in a row, then the position can be struck from the elected positions altogether. That is what I inadvertently monkey wrenched when I filed as a candidate for the elected position of chief of police.

COVID & CHURCH ATTENDANCE

Covid has changed church attendance as many aren’t going back. It is not uncommon to hear of the low attendance in our churches today. Many declined to go because of the pandemic at one time and now they haven’t gone back. Scores of people grew accustomed to watching services online or just not attending. Across the country church leaders are wrestling with how to keep their congregations coming with fewer people showing up. Over the last few years the number of churchgoers has steadily dropped in the U.S. But Covid-19 and its lock-down restrictions accelerated that fall. It is estimated that church attendance is roughly 30% ro 50% lower than it was before the pandemic hit, according to Barnia Group, a research firm that studies faith in the U.S. We need a rebound and we need to realize that it all starts with God and our Christian faith.

UNPOPULAR SPENDING

Ask Rusty – How Do I Apply for Social Security Benefits?

Dear Rusty: I would like some advice concerning Social Security. In January I will be 62.5 years old. I was laid off two years ago and have not had a steady income since (though I still have bills to pay). I also did not qualify for unemployment. Therefore, what little I had for “retirement” is now gone. For this reason, I have been seriously considering applying for Social Security as soon as I’m able. I remember reading something that said I should begin the “paperwork” three months ahead of time. I’d like to begin that process, but don’t know where to begin. Could you guide me to the right place? Signed: Ready to Claim Benefits

We the members of the San Antonio Avenue Church of Christ wish to openly thank Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #4848 for providing us a place to worship. During these past three years and three months you have been very nice to us, and we appreciate it from the bottom of our heart. To the ladies of the auxiliary, we really appreciated the support you gave us when we first started at the VFW. You always greeted us with a smile and thank you. We are few in number but when we give God the glory, he will give the increase, adn we will wait patiently on him and put our trust in him.

LSU FOOTBALL COACH

LSU made a big statement this week in hiring Brian Kelly as their new football coach. Voluntarily leaving Notre Dame is most unusual. A job there is supposed to be like the Supreme Court. You just stay there until you drop. It speaks well for LSU in that he is willing to walk off from being the coach at Notre Dame to become the Head Coach for the LSU Fighting Tigers. I would think the $100 million contract had something to do with it. It shows that football in Louisiana is legendary. If we could just get our players to stay home and play for LSU or one of our other universities or colleges, it would be even better. College football is a fully formed billion dollar enterprise. It looks like LSU has a great leader in store.

ABORTION - SUPREME COURT

“Good luck, Coach Kelly. The people of Louisiana are rooting for you.” That quote is the last line of the lead editorial in the December 1st Baton Rouge Advocate. The subject is the newest and highest-paid Louisiana State employee, football coach Brian Kelly, formerly of Notre Dame.

Congratulations to Coach Kelly and his family. I wish them success. But before we open the champagne, let’s examine what this hiring says about our priorities as a state.

Kelly will receive $9 million per year starting with his first year as Tiger head coach. That figure will rise with incentives in the deal, plus two cars, an interest-free home loan worth more than $1 million, and buyout of his contract with Notre Dame.

To put those numbers in perspective, the U.S. Census says Louisiana’s per capita annual income averages $27,923.

LSU can now claim the highest-paid coach at a public university in America. Is this a record our state should be proud of?

AMENDMENTS

Of the sixteen amendments proposed by the House and Senate over the last three years only eight has gained approval. Recently just one of four amendments put forth gained the favor of the voters.

At one time then Governor John McKeithen offered voters an opportunity for a constitutional rewrite with 53 amendments on a single ballot. Voters rejected each amendment and that’s the way it stood until Governor Edwin Edwards had a Constitution Convention and updated our constitution. Gov. John Bel Edwards doesn’t seem to be too interested in doing that. Generally when Legislators are campaigning they say they are for a rewrite, but later change their position.

Ask Rusty – Should I Take My Widower Benefit Now?

Dear Rusty: I lost my wife 7 years ago. I was told that I could possibly collect 30 to 35% of her benefit as a widower benefit when I turned 60. I will be 61 soon. Would it make sense to pursue this if it is true? I am still working full time. Would this affect my ability to collect Social Security on my own account once I retire? Signed: Working Survivor

Dear Working: Survivor benefits for a widower can be paid as early as age 60 if you have not remarried prior to that. But collecting a survivor benefit before you have reached your full retirement age (your “FRA”, which is age 67) creates some other considerations you should be aware of:

• Your survivor benefit will be based upon the SS benefit your wife was entitled to at her death. Taken at your FRA you’d get 100% of the SS amount your wife was entitled to at her death, but if taken any earlier than your FRA the survivor benefit will be reduced.