I recently discovered a must read. My book club read the book, “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” by science writer Rebecca Skloot. Published in 2010, the book tells the story of Henrietta Lacks, a poor African-American tobacco farmer whose cells were taken without her knowledge in 1951. Those cells became one of the most important tools in medicine. The
State Fair outing brings back memories, new experiences
Nothing says fair season like a deep-fried delicacy served on a stick. At least that’s what I had heard, being from Ohio, when people told me about the Minnesota State Fair. Well, I feel like a true Minnesotan; I finally experienced the tradition recently. I heard about all the things you could try deep-fried at the fair. Many of my peers
Is Romney America’s last chance or last dance?
A comedian took a trip to one of our Southern states once; I can’t remember if it was Iowa or Kansas. The comedian told the audience, “If you ever get a chance to go there, pass on it. Because when you get there, there’s no there there.” I’ve thought those exact thoughts every time I’ve heard Mitt Romney and Paul
Romney a good man with bad ideas
Presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s speech at the Republican Convention was everything his supporters hoped for – and then some. He was very convincing as a nice guy who was formed by a loving family, a good work ethic and a deep faith in his religion. That speech was – for the most part – by far the best one I
My first cultural wedding provides unique experience
I recently attended the wedding of my fiancé’s cousin. I was so excited to see what differences there might be between an African and an American wedding. My fiancé, Richmond, is from Liberia, a country in West Africa. His sister often tells me, “Get ready. We have a really big family.” I believed her when she told me that. However,
Please stick to word limit for letters to editor
Among newspaper people, it has long been recognized letters to editor are the “lifeblood” of the Opinion Page and the “heart” of newspapers. It is so exciting to see so many competing views from letter writers, especially as election season heats up. This column is a brief review of the Newsleaders’ policy on political letters to editor. We hope our
Let’s condemn Russian trio’s conviction
The ghost of Josef Stalin still stalks Russia. Last week, a female punk-rock trio named “Pussy Riot” was convicted of “hooliganism” and sentenced to two years in prison. In the West, hooliganism has come to mean rowdy, disruptive or vandalistic behavior, usually by groups of youth. In the Soviet Union, hooliganism has long meant any kind of behavior or speech
Music makes Sparkle remake memorable
It can be hard for writers and directors to remake films. They have to worry about staying true to the original work while giving it a new spin at the same time. Characters have to be researched and plots thoroughly developed. While it can be challenging to pull this off, the remake of the 1976 film, “Sparkle” did just that