Democracy is on display (if not for sale) and soon every American will have the right to exercise his/her/gender neutral person’s right to vote. Election time in Clark County can only mean one thing — it’s time for Dodd’s Odds!

Everyone has experienced boredom— during lectures, on the job, while quarantining at home, in line at the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, or simply when they had nothing better to do.

“After two years in Washington, I often long for the realism and sincerity of Hollywood.”

During three out of four years, we are admonished to preserve the separation of church and state. We are challenged to keep faith out of the public arena. But during a presidential election year, the trains of the church and state are traveling at breakneck speed on an inevitable collision c…

I listened to 60 Minutes on Sunday. It was interesting. Dr. Anthony Fauci, under national security due to death threats, was reasonably speaking of the impact of COVID on our country and our world. He has always been forthright and firm in his delivery, in my opinion. You don’t have to like …

Many of us are ready to get the election over with as we’re holding out hope that once the votes are counted, we can get back to some semblance of decency.

”I hate first dates. I made the mistake of telling my date a lie about myself, and she caught me — I didn’t think she’d actually demand to see the bat cave.”

The debates of 1858 caught the nation's interest largely because of their theme. They hinged on a single sentence in the Declaration of Independence: ""We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

I keep pretty good track of changes in the Indiana Code, but I came across one recently that I had missed. As of last year, city police and firefighters no longer have to live inside their county or a bordering county. Now, they can live in a non-bordering county up to 50 miles from city limits.

“If a vaccine is developed that is 50% effective in preventing Covid, it would still be licensed. Of course, we would like a higher degree of effectiveness, but as with the flu vaccine, 50% percent is better than zero. A Covid vaccine probably won’t be anywhere near as effective as the child…

Grandma gave sage advice. Sometimes she gave it curmudgeonly. Often the advice came across bossy.

This past weekend, after being away for seven months, I went back to in-person church.

Starting last April, for some mysterious reason, I began receiving emails from President Trump’s re-election campaign. I’ve gotten a barrage of more than 1,100 of them so far in less than six months. All of these involve some kind of request for money and many offer up spiffy Trump merchandi…

“Procrastination always gives you something to look forward to.”

Some years ago, I went to see my late mother at her house on the south side of Chicago. When I went in, although I knew she was glad to see me, I could tell something was wrong. I gave her a hug and then asked “What’s the matter, Mom?

It may be a childhood ritual to read Arnold Lobel’s illustrated series about “Frog and Toad,” but my grandsons have had the opportunity to see so many real amphibians up-close this year that those animated characters must seem awfully tame by comparison.

Articles of interest and breaking news events can be text messaged to cell phones. Several services of television shows, radio programs or other media outlets — including newspapers — provide such conveniences for their customers. One breaking news article this week was startling.

“My time on camera was just a fly by moment in life!”

INDIANAPOLIS — We all knew this election was going to be about HIM. So what happens to Indiana’s down ballot candidates if and when President Trump’s re-election bid collapses?

The past few weeks have been full of confusion, angst, anger, and frustration. The country seems at odds with itself. Families fighting over political loyalties, racism, how to deal with COVID, and each other. Not a pretty sight in America. Can you imagine the fear this creates in the world?…

For the past week the news cycle has been dominated by reports of President Trump’s hospitalization for COVID-19. According to the Centers for Disease Control, the COVID-19 hospitalization rate is currently 178.2 per 100,000 people, with the highest rates for people 65 years and older.

INDIANAPOLIS — It stands to be a future framed picture in Vice President Mike Pence’s office: Last Monday, he was climbing the U.S. Capitol steps with 7th Circuit Judge Amy Coney Barrett of South Bend. The tall, slender judge is adjusting her necklace; the vice president is reaching into his…

So, it turns out that COVID-19 isn’t a hoax.

“People often ask me what I would most appreciate getting for my eighty-seventh birthday? I tell them — a paternity suit!”

What were you doing a year ago? At the end of September 2019, my wife and I were embarked upon a two-week vacation of a lifetime, sailing through parts of the Mediterranean Sea. The overnight flight to Rome took 10 hours in the air plus there was an additional six hours’ time difference.

When it comes to presidential elections, women often exercise their prerogative to change their minds.

As old folks will do, my wife Diane and I were recently considering telling our granddaughter how her father got in trouble back in middle school. At the end of each school day he would smack a girl from church with his book bag. The girl decided to do him one better and reported him to the …

My family has come to accept that I am a dogged gatherer of feathers and shells and leaves and stones, and our window sills and bookcases carry the burdens of what I have collected.

The lifeblood of a strong and enduring democratic society is a citizenry of good character.

“Dentists are medical professionals who help you put your money where your mouth is.”

Gathering for dinner in 2015 at the governor’s retreat, Brown County State Park’s Aynes House, Gov. Mike Pence and U.S. Sen. Dan Coats came to some career conclusions. Pence decided he would not seek the presidency in 2016 and Coats opted against reelection.

The Covid 19 virus has brought about many changes in our lives. One of these major changes is the increased interest in home learning.

The language of the Bible is rich with metaphors and symbolism. The biblical authors told stories of historical fact, but they also used symbolism to teach spiritual truth. Symbols are quite common in the poetic and prophetic passages of Scripture.

Other than their appearance, the way people speak is one of the first things we notice about them. The average person speaks around 120 words a minute and people make their first impression rather quickly. Consciously and unconsciously people are often judged by the way they talk — their gra…

In Washington, flip-flopping never gets in the way of political want. Nor does holding to principle or telling the truth.

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death has been a constant source of news reporting, so those who have been paying attention have, no doubt, learned a great deal about this remarkable woman.

Men and women all across the country are collectively mourning the loss of a woman larger in death than she appeared in life. Small in stature and working hard to fit in with her male peers, she relentlessly pursued a legal career adjusting her life with every twist and turn with only one th…

Both of Indiana’s U.S. senators, Vance Hartke and Birch Bayh, attended a 1963 event in Stilesville, Indiana, a town of approximately 300 residents located on Highway 40.

Only in America would a story such as Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s be possible.

An edgy America has been warned by its president that the coming election will be “rigged” and “fraudulent.” U.S. intelligence and congressional sources say that nefarious foreign sources are seeking a redux of the 2016 interference, with FBI Director Christopher Wray specifically naming Rus…

“Martha, Jeremy, and myself spent the afternoon laughing with Owen.”

We started talking about the need for integrity and consistency as we demonstrate our faith in the way we live. There are three critical areas that develop faith’s foundation: a commitment to prayer, to reading of Scripture and moving in a spiritual direction. Today, let’s consider the role …

“My fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.” I was 8 years old and in the third grade when my family sat in front of our RCA black-and-white console television set and listened to President John F. Kennedy speak these words during hi…

Despite the occasional flash of color provided by butterflies and birds, or a tree deceived by a cool night or two, late August and early September are mostly a time of drying weeds and dying flowers. The fireworks of October are yet to come, but the final month of summer is one that foretel…

A lot of people will vote to give Donald J. Trump another term as president.

In June my wife Diane’s cousin passed away in Wisconsin. At the funeral one of the cousin’s daughters gave Diane a packet containing some of the letters and photos that Diane had sent to her cousin over the years. It was especially surprising and touching to see these things again after all …

If we could take just one action that would have the most profound effect on the polarization of our country, what would it be?