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Opinion
Cleaning up a mess
As you read this column, you are probably going to think, “Mac, I thought you were smarter than that.” Well, I thought I was, too. I had heard, and I’m not going to say where, that if you sprayed Roundup on your grass in the dead of winter, you can kill the weeds in your yard and not the grass. (Some of you are already thinking, “Oh no, you didn’t.” Oh yes, I did.) Most of you probably know about Roundup. The technical term for the product ...
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Busy week with crossover deadline
This week has been extremely busy with the crossover deadline Thursday, May 16. This deadline is self-imposed on the General Assembly with the goal of ensuring that their legislative sessions end as quickly as possible. Also, I would like to remind everyone that the Legislative budget is expected to be released soon. This week in Raleigh: - Bills in this section are not necessarily endorsed by Sen. Jackson. HB 428 - North Carolina Schoo...
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Sampsonians respond in a big way
It has been said that the things we have in common are far greater than the differences that often separate us. That is never truer than when one looks at the way this community gives back to those who are less fortunate. No matter the cause, Sampsonians respond, and they respond in a big way. Last weekend’s U.S. Postal Service-led Stamp Out Hunger campaign is the latest in a string of examples we could use of that giving. On Saturday, ...
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Take advantage of the opportunity
I know you’re supposed to emphasize the point you want to make at the conclusion of a column. But I’m going to do it now because I want to make sure you get it. Today is Mother’s Day. Hopefully, you will, or have already, visited and spent time with your mother. If not, at least phone her. You need to take advantage of the opportunity. I’m sure there are a lot of people reading this who wish they still had that opportunity. And I am one of th...
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Duplin parent upset over prom denial
To the Editor, Recently, my son was invited to escort a young lady, who is a student at East Duplin High School, to her senior prom. He was looking forward to going to the prom of the school that he had graduated from the year prior. I was mortified when I received a call from the young lady’s mother telling me that my son had not been “approved” to attend. I had never heard of such. When I told my son, he was both shocked and upset. The mo...
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This week in Raleigh
I want to let you all know that the Senate version of the budget will be coming out soon. I will dedicate an entire (column) to the budget once that happens. This week in Raleigh: * Bills in this section are not necessarily endorsed by Senator Jackson. • HB 149 - Caylee’s Law/Report Missing Children An act to make it a criminal offense to fail to report the disappearance of a child to law enforcement. Caylee’s Law was sent to Gove...
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Don’t wait … Register those cuties!
There are some 60,000 people living in Sampson County. Many of them are children, a large percentage of whom are between the ages of birth to 9 years old. All of them are cute. Don’t believe it? Just visit our website at www.clintonnc.com and click on the link to our Cutest Kids Contest and you’ll see what we mean. In just a week, there are 20 of the most precious faces, mischievous smiles and bright eyes staring back at you from those who’...
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Kandid Katie
My mother is probably one of the hardest working people you are ever going to meet. She just doesn’t know what sitting still is for. Even if she attempts to rest at the end of the day, she is already contemplating what she can get up and do rather than sit down. I, for one, do not have this problem. That gene just never developed fully in my DNA. I guess it is not a bad thing that she likes to get up and go. To be honest, without her endles...
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The only Mother’s Day is now
A sassy southern sun brushes the morning air clear of leftover foggy memories; slowly it polishes the sky to a sparkle, nature and time gently merge for another great overture of life. Perhaps the week of Mother’s Day has always been this unique. I know it is forever linked with the memories of the past. Warm, fuzzy pictures wrap like ribbons round and round in my mind. “Be still and cool in thy own mind and spirit; and from thy own thoug...
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Recycling success
Recycling fever has caught on in the city of Clinton, and the growing participation rate can mean nothing but good things for the environment. The city’s recycling program has gone through its share of growing pains over the past few years, but this latest effort has the mark of success written all over it, and that’s thanks to the hard work of city staff, including public works director Jeff Vreugdenhil, and the hundreds of residents who a...
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Area churches celebrating Mother’s Day Sunday
Mother’s Day will be held at the Greater Six Runs Missionary Baptist Church in Turkey Sunday, May 12 at 11 a.m. The speaker will be the Rev. Joyce Murphy, associate minister, and the Rev. Aggie Morrisey will preside. The women’s choir will provide the music. Everyone is cordially invited to attend this Mother’s Day service. The host pastor is the Rev. Leslie Morrisey. Mother’s Day will be held at the Mount Pleasant Missionary Baptist Church...
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Where is this county’s heart for animals?
Dear Editor, Albert Schweitzer wrote and recited this prayer as a child: “O, heavenly Father, protect and bless all things that have breath; guard them from all evil, and let them sleep in peace.” The dogs and cats in the Sampson County Animal Shelter have no voice. Only a very, very few citizens of the county have tried to be their advocates. And, now some of those few have been “banned” from the shelter without an investigation of the f...
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Restoring our families
“As our families crumble, so does our nation.” Those words were spoken Thursday night by Sampson County Board of Education member Faye Gay during a National Day of Prayer ceremony at Union Elementary School, which also coincided with a prayer vigil for 7-year-old Alyiah Morgan, tragically killed nearly two weeks ago. Gay’s words, used during her prayer for families and parents, are a truth we must all take to heart and do something about,...
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We need those small victories
It didn’t make much sense to me. You should always pay off the debt with the highest interest rate first. I was listening to Dave Ramsey giving financial advice on the radio. He was talking to a listener who had gotten over their head in debt. Of course, the culprit was credit card debt. It usually is, but these days it looks like student loans are catching up as a main cause of personal debt. Dave Ramsey is a syndicated national radio talk...
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The power of prayer
It was a wonderful sight to behold Thursday as people from every walk of life came together, held hands, bowed their heads and lifted their hearts in prayer, a community pouring out its hopes for healing to a power far greater than themselves. They came from every denomination and many races — men and women, young and young at heart — forgetting differences to celebrate the now annual National Day of Prayer service held in downtown Clinton,...
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Poor decisions change lives, and often take them
In less than a week, two Sampson County residents have had their lives snatched from them at the hands of alleged impaired drivers. One was a mere 7-year-old; the other 49. Both had much life left to live and, we feel certain, much left to give to family, friends, strangers that perhaps that not yet come in contact with in their short time here on this earth. Both are tragedies, made sadder because of the possibility that their lives were...
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Kandid Katie
Next Monday, I will get to add another candle to my cake. It will now have 33 candles, and I have to tell you, with everything I have been through, May 6 is an even more special day for me this year. Now with my new kidney, I feel an even greater desire to go out and really celebrate. If I were to be truthful, I have felt this way about my birthday since I was diagnosed with kidney disease. There is added value in my days, since I have a mo...
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Visit Farmers’ Market often
New life is being breathed into the Farmers’ Market, and hopes are high that the venue — and the vendors who will be offering up their products — will find much success at Wednesday’s grand opening, the mark, we hope of great things to come. But the market’s success can’t happen without residents willing to give it a try, not just this Wednesday, but as often as one is willing to venture to the Lisbon Street site to browse, buy and enjoy — ...
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Perplexed by gas chamber article
Editor: I am a bit perplexed by several points in the gas chamber article (which ran in Friday’s Sampson Independent). County manager Ed Causey states that the gas chamber would have been gone months ago if there had not been a change in directors. He says this as if he is laying the blame on someone else. Ed Causey is the one who chose not to hire Lori Baxter for the permanent position. While all of us want the gas chamber gone, we def...
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Was it really a victory?
The politicians say we won. The talking heads in the media say we won. But did we? I know that sounds great and it makes us feel good, but I’m not too sure. Yes, I know that one of the alleged (remember, always say alleged) criminals in the Boston Marathon bombing is dead and the other has been caught. I know the police and law enforcement did a great job in apprehending them. Of course, the Tsarnaev brothers didn’t appear to be the sharpes...
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