Commentary

BASF provides science experience for BISD students

BASF sponsored an interactive science experience for local students through the Trailblazer II traveling science program, offering hands-on learning activities for students to promote science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers.

Carl Parker: 'What would you have done?'

I have seldom gone to an athletic contest where the home team was losing when I did not hear comments all around me from those who believe they could have done better than the coach—They should have called a pass instead of a run; they should have punted instead of trying on fourth down, etc. etc. Criticism such as this always carries the implication the critic could have done better had he or she been in the shoes of the person being criticized. Being a Monday-morning quarterback is not only large in athletic endeavors, it is also extremely large in politics and government.

Local youth speak out against tobacco use

Jefferson County Commissioners issued a proclamation naming Monday, March 17, Kicks Butts Day in Jefferson County to raise awareness and acknowledge activism by local youth to stand up and speak out against tobacco use.

Organized by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, Kick Butts Day is an annual, nationwide celebration of youth leadership and activism in the fight against tobacco. During the week, youth will encourage their peers to stay tobacco-free and educate their communities about the tobacco industry’s harmful marketing practices.

Nissan's Hybrid SUV

The evolution of the Nissan Pathfinder continues for the 2014 model year with the introduction of a new hybrid powertrain system designed to enhance fuel economy and reduce CO2 emissions.

'Upskirting' is illegal in Texas

Q. I heard that the Massachusetts’s Supreme Court said taking a video under the skirt of a woman is not illegal. I don’t understand how a court can say this is legal. Is it legal in Texas?

Waze travel and routing info on your smart device

Over the past several weeks, I have taken several out-of-town road trips. On these trips I used a novel free smart phone app for routing and traffic information called Waze (waze.com). There are an abundance of apps that function with the integral GPS built into almost all smart devices, including smart phones and tablets.

God is the smallest details of our lives

When I lose a lot of sleep and have many things on mind that seemingly I cannot do anything about, I find myself drifting toward the ground of worry. The mantra I claimed for myself at the beginning of 2014 proves once again to me that God knows every single thing about His children and that He has ordained whatever will be to be. I claimed the little two-word phrase “fret not” at the beginning of the year, and we are just into the third month and I think I have about worn it out already.

Big trout are good on Sabine Lake

The water temperature is right around the mid-50s on Sabine Lake, but that has not affected the catches of trout and reds so far this winter. In fact, regardless of how many late-winter fronts Old Man Winter sends our way, fishing in East and Southeast Texas has been pretty darned good. For example, there was a 10-pound trout caught on Sabine Lake last week.

The personality of Fiat's 500L

With its simplistic and distinct Italian design, the all-new 2014 Fiat 500L embodies the brand’s “Simply More” philosophy by reformulating its his- torical small-car ingenuity through modern Cinquecento (500) style.

Fiat brand history

Awards season heats up Jan. 12 with Golden Globes

Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild nominations are out, and the Academy Award nominations will be announced Jan. 16, so now is the time to catch all the nominated films still in theaters or coming soon.