In Anderson County 123,032 of roughly 195,000 eligible citizens are registered to vote, which means nearly one-third of those citizens who could vote are not even registered.

Like proclamations of “Peace on Earth, Good Will Towards Men” tossed about for a couple of weeks during the Christmas season with little thought to the idea, Mother’s Day is relegated to a far more restricted single day of well wishes.

One month ago marked the 163 anniversary of South Carolina’s shelling for Fort Sumter, which launched the Civil War and eventually cost the lives of more than 600,000 citizens, and a day that was marked four years later to the day by the return of the United States flag over what was left of the fort, where it belonged.

First, find a path, and a little light to see by. Every single spiritual tradition says the same three things: 1) Live in the now, as often as you can, a breath here, a moment there. 2) You reap exactly what you sow. 3) You must take care of the poor, or you are so doomed that we can't help you.

Anderson was selected as the first city in the United States to host the event, which is held every two years.

But the hiccups of the first two years of the festival’s return were gone this year. The Soirée committee, city council and others involved took the complaints and suggestions seriously, and the results were spectacular. The city and Soirée committee listened and made changes this year, something that is deserving of a round of applause.

In 2021 Anderson County Cricket Club (ACCC) was formed and cricketers used a makeshift area in one of the baseball grounds at Civic center to play cricket. In November of 2021 Dr. Sanjeev Kumar reached out to the City Councilman Don Chapman and County Councilwoman Cindy Wilson along with County Administrator Rusty Burns, and thus the first Cricket ground at the balloon lane came into existence.

Buried in that massive bill was the explanation as to why no consumer-oriented groups had been asked to weigh in on the drafting of H.5118.

As Chair of Carolinas Natural Gas Coalition, a group of over 100 stakeholders in the natural gas sector and allies, I commend the South Carolina House for passing the "South Carolina Ten-Year Energy Transformation Act" (H.5118) with strong bipartisan support this week. This legislation is crucial for our state’s energy future, and I applaud the dedication and hard work of our lawmakers in crafting it.

April is National Safe Digging Month, recognizing the importance of calling 811 before digging to have utility lines marked. Underground electric and natural gas lines were hit over 10,300 times in 2023.

Easter is about resurrection.

Over the last two years we have witnessed the rise of a Christian Nationalist movement that has been attacking our school librarians and also politicizing our public library system in Anderson.

One of the most visible signs of this renewal is the physical transformation of the church building itself, including a wheelchair-accessible ramp and two new sets of steps allowing accessibility for members with physical challenges.

It is also worth noting that the majority of current council members, who would identify themselves as conservatives, appointed members to the current library board. Four new members of that board were appointed since August of 2023. No council members have publicly suggested they made a mistake in their appointments of any of the seven board members (one chosen by each district).

South Carolina was one of only 15 states that chose not to participate.

Corporations are not voters but the Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens United makes large groups have huge influence on policy.

But out of that tainted soil grew heroes. Few of us locally knew Dr. King, but we saw other great men and women in our area answer his call.

Today, we gather in a new year, some 246 years later, just one day before January 6th, a day forever shared in our memory because it was on that day that we nearly lost America — lost it all.

Filing for all offices begins March 16 and ends April 1. All 124 of the South Carolina House seats and 46 South Carolina Senate seats are on the ballot this year, which is the subject of speculation in regard to a couple of local races.

Frustrated by record-breaking teacher shortages in South Carolina, Rep. Jermaine Johnson, D-Hopkins said he’s going to file a bill that will require state lawmakers to substitute teach or volunteer at K-12 schools five times a year.