The state of Louisiana has a lot of money in its coffers, and that money needs to be spent on making the state the best it can be, and that starts with effectively educating our children.
A few years ago, I picked up a day job working in East Texas for a medical company that was promoting a new treatment for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). I was in the office of a pulmonologist recording a script for a video explainer for new COPD patients. During a break to work on the script, I asked the doctor, “What about marijuana smokers?” My kids were in Caddo Magnet, which has a strong reputation for drug abuse. I was hoping for some good anti-drug evidence on the evils of smoking marijuana.
The state of Louisiana offers quite a well-managed group health insurance program to its employees, retirees, school boards and retired teachers, and other former school employees.
The resignation of James Flurry from the Shreveport City Council has now thrust council member Tabatha Taylor into the council chair’s seat. Taylor was selected as vice chair in January of this year.
Shreveport has a myriad of issues, or what some would call problems, that need to be addressed over the next several years, and leadership matters. Job number one in Shreveport is to get a grip on crime in urban neighborhoods, specifically black-on-black homicides that are out of control. People are cowered down in their homes for fear of a stray bullet hitting them or their children. It is absolute madness, and whatever the outcome of the bond proposals, it will be the lack of focus on crime that will determine who sits in the mayor’s seat at Government Plaza.
It’s probably a good thing that Bossier Councilman David Montgomery, aka King David, missed the council meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 16.
How often have we heard this statement from various officials: “These monies cannot be used for (whatever) because they are in a different pot!” Or, these monies can only be used for this or that because of the pot they are in.
Policing is hard, and being the leader of a police department is even harder than that. Shreveport is a moderate-sized city with a fairly diverse population that has its own set of problems. One of the main problems today is the crime in some neighborhoods, especially predominantly black neighborhoods. The recent change in leadership of the Shreveport Police Department is being watched very closely. Citizens want to have confidence that something is being done to bring down the crime in their neighborhoods.
It started last week, and it has intensified this week.
After recently attending the celebration for Centenary Professor Dr. Andia Augustin-Billy, it became apparent what a milestone this really was just a little over three years before the college will celebrate its 200-year anniversary.
1915 Citizens Bank Drive
Bossier City, LA. 71111
(318) 929-5152