The Second Amendment Foundation has been busy lately. Last month they persuaded the Supreme Court of the United States to strike down a gun ban in Chicago, and just last week, the foundation filed suit in Raleigh to challenge an outdated law that prohibits anyone from trans-porting a gun during a state of emergency.

My first experience with the Red Menace was in elementary school. The year was 1962, and America was seemingly on the brink of war with the Soviet Union, who had placed nuclear missiles in Cuba.

Our government loves to tax and spend. It also likes to tax and fine. Just try turning in your form 1040 a few days late, and watch the penalties mount.

In March of 2005, the nation was consumed with the life and death of Terri Schiavo. Fifteen years earlier, Schiavo had been diagnosed PVS (persistent vegetative state), and now her husband by Jim wanted to take her off of Longworth life support.

This time last year I was in Hollywood moderating a salute to nine iconic TV dads and interviewing them about the relationships they had with their own, real-life fathers. Participants included Dick Van Dyke, Bill Paxton ("Big Love"), Bryan Cranston ("Breaking Bad"), Jon Cryer ("Two and a Half Men"), Michael.

Last week CNN began its 30 th year much as it had its first: with little fanfare. Instead of birthday cakes and pats on the back, the network offered up comprehensive coverage of the BP oil spill, news of the Israeli flotilla attack and reports on the aftermath of the Sestack bribe.

Citizens of Metropolis didn't realize that Clark Kent and Superman were the same guy because the two never appeared together. And were it not for some photos taken at the last presidential inauguration, I'd swear that George Bush and Barack Obama were one in the same.

I once referred to Ken Lewis as a "man of great character." That observation was based on my personal conversations with him, as well as an extended interview I conducted for the "Triad Today" television program. I was also impressed by his statement back in March, in which he said, "We can't change a broken.

Once upon a time, immigration was the No. 1 hot-button issue in America. Then came 9-11, the recession, massive job layoffs, exorbitant health insurance premiums and the escalation of two wars. Now, despite the fact that none of those problems have been resolved or reformed, immigration is once again our No.

I know this is going to sound like some sort of contrived analogy, but while watching the gulf oil spill unfold, my thoughts turned to CEO pay. Hour by hour no one could seem to cap the well, just as no one has been able to cap the outrageous levels of compensation taken by America's executives.

Last week over 200 publicand private-sector officials gathered for the Piedmont Triad Livable Communities Summit.

On Tuesday, May 4, NC Democrats will select a candidate to oppose incumbent Sen. Richard Burr this fall. Had the election been held in 2008, just about any legitimate Democrat would have been favored to beat Burr. But that was then and this is now.

Earlier this month during his visit to Charlotte, President Obama announced, "We are beginning to turn the corner." His statement followed the release of a Labor Department report showing that 162,000 nonfarm jobs had been created in March. The president's optimism was understandable because this time last year, we were losing 750,000 jobs per month.

Last week, United Airlines Flight 633 from Washington DC to Denver was disrupted and terrorized, not by an al-Qaida operative, but by a snotty-nosed diplomat from the obscure country of Qatar. Mohammad Al Madadi decided to smoke a cigarette in the planes lavatory.

Last week, two different factions targeted their ire toward Gov. Beverly Perdue. One was the Guardians of the Free Republics, the other was the NC Republican Party. The former is a radical anti-government group that is demanding that all 50 governors vacate their offices or else be removed.

Last week, President Obama signed his muchanticipated healthcare reform bill into law, and Democrats on Capitol Hill gloated and rejoiced. Former presidential advisor David Gergen called it the "most important piece of social legislation to pass since Medicare."

In an episode of "The Andy Griffith Show", a Hollywood producer makes a movie about a sheriff from North Carolina who doesn't carry a sidearm. The title of the fictional film was Sheriff Without a Gun. Now, 40 years later, life could imitate art if former Davidson County sheriff Gerald Hege wins his old job back.

Last year Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm issued Executive Directive number 2009-1, which ordered a freeze on auto-insurance rate increases.

Compared to rising unemployment and a healthcare system gone wild, the business of television may seem insignificant to most Americans. But since we own the airwaves from which broadcasters profit, all of us should be concerned by the lack of service most TV stations provide to our communities.

Last week, the Forsyth County Commissioners turned back the clock, and turned the Constitution on its head by voting to appeal the courts ban on sectarian prayer.