In my property tax bills mailed to be by the sheriff, there is a detail list identifying how much of our taxes are for the parish-wide school system: over 55.2 percent.

Tammy T. Phelps is the Caddo Parish School Board member from District 6. The public schools in this district include Eden Garden, Caddo Middle Magnet, the Caddo Career Center and Fairfield Magnet Elementary.

I’ve been amused at the recent commercials from Burger King, promoting people in the far corners of the world who have never eaten a Burger King Whopper (hamburger). They’re called “Whopper Virgins,” and the contest, of course, is between the Whopper and the Big Mac.

This is to Heartbroken Mama in Bossier, the lady who lost her dog during the Christmas season: I am sorry that someone ran over your dog. But why is that someone else’s fault instead of your own? Responsible dog ownership requires that you provide a safe and loving home for your pet. If you refuse to follow your city’s leash law and you allow your dog to roam free, then the only one responsible for your dog’s death is you. If he had been on a leash or behind a fence, your dog would be alive today. If that is karma, then it bit you right in the butt. For some reason, everyone wants to blame their problems on someone else. Of course, you would think the driver was at fault; that is the problem with the world today. It’s always someone else’s fault, isn’t it? Yes, it’s sad that you allowed this to happen, but if your dog had bitten someone while loose, you would have been held accountable for that, not the person that was bitten.

A benefit auction will be held on Saturday, Jan. 31, at 1 p.m. at the National Guard Armory in Vivian City Park to help two children with medical afflictions.

On the local political level, the year 2008 provided a very, very active 12 months, to say the least. Northwest Louisiana voted for a U.S. senator, a U.S. representative, numerous judges (district, city and juvenile), district attorneys, a city marshal and a multitude of other offices.

Ive checked a couple of sources, and the Top Ten seem to be pretty similar in each of the examples. The Top Ten what? The Top Ten New Years Resolutions, of course. Have you made one? Have you made more than one? Do you make them at all? Let me take a step back.