Essays and observations
Commentary from the pages of The Odon Journal.
November 6, 2026 · Opinion
On election nights, I always enjoy local radio and news with Dewayne Shake, Dave Crooks, and Mike DeCoursey. As the data rolled in Tuesday night, a familiar political pattern emerged - not just in Indiana, but across the...
November 4, 2026 · Opinion
They say everything is bigger in Texas. The Lone Star state has long been the Republican Party’s fortress, a state whose size, economic strength and conservative identity made Democratic hopes seem far fetched. Then 2026, and waves are...
November 4, 2026 · Opinion
On election nights, I always enjoy local radio and news with Dewayne Shake, Dave Crooks, and Mike DeCoursey. As the data rolled in Tuesday night, a familiar political pattern emerged - not just in Indiana, but across the rest of the...
October 30, 2026 · Opinion
I love the confluence of sports and holidays, particularly the sacred meaning of many of our holidays. But first off, I am excited for the North Daviess Cougars game on Friday against West Washington at West Washington....
October 22, 2026 · Opinion
Ninety years ago, Rainey Bethea stood on an elevated hangman's scaffold in the other Daviess County (Owensboro, Kentucky), one of the last public executions in the United States. Following that August 1936 hanging, governments ended the...
October 21, 2026 · Opinion
Daviess County has a growing population and many still value the family structure, thank goodness. But this week, I noticed a serious shift: the Christian West is headed South.
October 9, 2026 · Opinion
That day, two great Mediterranean military powers sent hundreds of warships into the Gulf of Patras, a 2-hour drive west of modern-day Athens, Greece; the Battle of Lepanto. The Holy League had organized at Messina,…
October 7, 2026 · Opinion
Our culture tends toward measuring a person's worth by professional output and economic status. Men in particular, when you first meet them, will ask, "So, what do you do?" A reminder: all humans are human beings, not "human doings."...
October 7, 2026 · Opinion
Before I make a salient political point, a brief interlude. Over the weekend, two things happened. My daughter took her driving test (and passed) and I hauled my own personal pillow with me on a Labor Day weekend trip to visit my wife's...
October 2, 2026 · Opinion
It has been said that “Every Country Gets the Government it Deserves.” Now that is "Country" with an R, not "County." Midterm elections are normally a referendum on the party in power, and the upcoming national contest…
September 28, 2026 · Opinion
My daughter recently told me that her teacher lamented how poorly many students understand history. And not just the events themselves, but when they happened.I believe it. I am occasionally guilty. That same teacher told his class that...
September 7, 2026 · Opinion
I can hear 11-year-old Camille and 9-year-old Henry practicing their Latin and talking about ora et labora in the other room. “Pray and work.” That inspired me.
August 27, 2026 · Opinion
Socialism is the hottest fad in this country since Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and friends' Woke 1.0, a few years back. Weekly, I hear a new "socialist" candidate in a new place pumping out new ideas. Angie Nixon, Abdul El-Sayed, Melat...
August 24, 2026 · Opinion
This morning, my son turned five. Maximilian David - happy birthday, buddy. His birthday request was simple: heart-shaped pancakes from his mother, like last year. His memory is sharp. Emily and I marveled at how unusually good his...
August 13, 2026 · Opinion
Six years ago this month, Americans embarked on the strangest school year in history. I was reminded of that era recently while text-venting to a friend about how quickly government governance lost its mind during the Covid-19 pandemic....
April 8, 2026 · Opinion
The tension inside Lucas Oil Stadium was electric Monday night, particularly after the "less than 4 minute" TV timeout. Only a close National Championship produces that level of intensity. The clannishness created by college sports is...
March 31, 2026 · Opinion
Before I get into the core message this week, I want to offer a blessing for Joseph L. Graber and his new wife, Mabel (Troyer) Graber. The Grabers were married at the Shiloh building a week ago, just south of Odon. May God richly bless...
January 13, 2026 · Opinion
Ronald Reagan famously warned that "freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction." In our present world of instability and ideological clashes, recent global news suggests that Western Civilization, though constantly...