The Press-Dispatch
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C-12 Opinion Wednesday, Januar y 3, 2018 The Press-Dispatch to help Flannery under- stand what a birthday is and why she's having one. And we are truly lost on that front. We've gotten her to understand the concept of "Jesus" enough for her to exclaim "Oh, Jesus! " when it's time for communion (much to our dismay,) but we really have no clue how we did that. And she cer- tainly didn't learn to say those words in that order at home! So maybe we'll just get lucky and she'll know. She knows things, sometimes. At the very least she'll realize that something special is go- ing on and it involves new toys and clothes. And that's that! Flan- nery is turning two, and her little sister will be in attendance in utero, so it'll be a party of at least four, even if no one else shows up! But let's be real, her grandparents, aunts and uncles would never miss the chance to celebrate with their first granddaughter/niece. Our house will be filled to the brim, and while Jill is in a tizzy getting the house ready, we wouldn't have it any other way. Have a great week! Contact Alden at aheur- ing@ sgstartimes.com. share of total taxes. Liber- als should be celebrating; our tax code is now more progressive than it was un- der President Obama (not that that's a good thing.) Still, this is a win-win across the income spec- trum. When you increase the standard deduction and the child tax credit, to cite two of the tax bill's most notable features, you can't help but lower the fed- eral burden on many hard- working Americans — not just the wealthy. Mind you, there's still work to be done. There's much we can do to simpli- fy our Byzantine tax code, and make it flatter and fair- er to all Americans. But the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is an excellent place to start. Something to think about next year, when your gift budget is a bit bigger than it was this year. Ed Feulner is president of The Heritage Foundation (www.heritage.org). Court Report CRIMINAL Pike Circuit Court Amy L. Schutz charged with count I battery against a public safety official, a level 6 felony, and count II resisting law enforcement. Destiny G. Gibson charged with count I possession of methamphet- amine, a level 6 felony, count II pos- session of marijuana and count III pos- session of paraphernalia. Brandon W. Taylor charged with count I possession of methamphet- amine, a level 6 felony, count II pos- session of marijuana, count III posses- sion of paraphernalia and count IV op- erating a vehicle with an ACE of .08 or more. TRAFFIC AND MISDEMEANOR Pike Circuit Court Tyler D. Thomas charged with count I possession of marijuana and count II possession of paraphernalia. Kayla M. Jones charged with posses- sion of marijuana. Rodney J. Pratcher charged with possession of marijuana. Jayvon M. Fountain charged with possession of marijuana. Toby Nelson charged with operating a vehicle with an ACE of .08 or more. Thomas E. Booker charged with il- legal consumption of an alcoholic bev- erage. Logan M. Bickett charged with ille- gal consumption of an alcoholic bev- erage. Tyler B. Croft charged with illegal transportation of an alcoholic bever- age on a public highway. CIVIL Pike Circuit Court Wells Fargo Bank sues Kenneth R. Britton and Laura L. Britton on com- plaint. World Finance Corporation sues Chynna Beckley on complaint. Energy Plus C.U. sues Keith W. Benefiel on complaint. Jordan Lawson sues Advanced Dis- posal Services, Inc. on complaint. Susan Moss sues John Graves for dissolution of marriage. Somer Leigh Wallace sues Antho- ny Nicolas Wall for dissolution of mar- riage. Gary Steven Arnold sues Ashleigh Megan Arnold for dissolution of mar- riage. SMALL CLAIMS Pike Circuit Court Hoosier Accounts Service sues Car- ol A. Miley on complaint. Hoosier Accounts Service sues Jef- ferson T. Loveless on complaint. Hoosier Accounts Service suers Kirt S. Cates on complaint. Hoosier Accounts Service sues An- thony L. Eilert on complaint. Hoosier Accounts Service sues Jus- tin Lundy on complaint. Hoosier Accounts Service sues Katherine M. Hartley on complaint. Hoosier Accounts Service sues Du- wayne A. Yates on complaint. Hoosier Accounts Service sues Shei- la G. Boger on complaint. INFRACTIONS Pike Circuit Court Henry Melara charged with speed- ing, 87 mph in a 55 zone. Loma German charged with speed- ing, 73 mph in a 55 zone. James Young, Jr. charged with count I operating a motor vehicle without fi- nancial responsibility and count II op- erating a motor vehicle with a fictitious plate. James Young, Jr. charged with driv- ing while suspended. Brian Moore charged with no valid driver's license. Thomas Nowark charged with speed- ing, 51 mph in a 35 zone. Erin Lance charged with speeding, 72 mph in a 55 zone. Trevor Anders charged with driving too fast for conditions. Aaron Eich, Jr. charged with speed- ing, 82 mph in a 70 zone. and lasciviousness; no change expected except the names of nations, per- petrators and victims. All of us want to view the New Year as some- thing fresh; however, there are so many con- flicts and animosity be- tween people and nations that the Age of Aquarius is still a song, not an idea. No need to dust off the apostle James' observa- tion about the uncertain- ty of tomorrow; "Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.'" Before you declare me melancholic, which I may be, and devoid of help, please reread that last verse; that is our hope in life: "If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that." Our future resides in Christ. Christians should not resign themselves to "Que Sera Sera," but to anticipate the future with peace in Christ. If you want to consider the future, listen to Louis Armstrong's 1970 version of "What a Wonderful World" with his talking introduction: "Love baby love; that's the secret. If lots more of us would love each other, we'd solve lots more problems. Man, this world would be better, that's why I keep saying …. I think to myself, what a wonderful world! " The Christian life is to be lived through deliber- ate choices and decisions that lay the foundation for an unshakable future. The exciting thing about God is that each day is like a New Year; with God all things can be an- ew daily. None of us individually can solve the issues be- fuddling humanity; but within ourselves, we can hold to the confidence that the apostle Paul wanted to instill in the Corinthian Church, "For we walk by faith, not by sight." My hope for the coming year is what I have writ- ten and voiced for years: "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou may prosper and be in health, even as your soul pros- pers." [3 John, vs. 2] As Louie said, "That's love baby, love-that's the secret! " Think about it and Hap- py New Year! Continued from page 11 QUE SERA regimes in that region get no attention. Why should the United States continue to be the largest contributor to the U.N. for what Haley called the "dubious distinction" of being disrespected and having its values flouted? A few days before the U.N. vote, Trump gave a speech at the Reagan Build- ing in Washington defining his National Security Strat- egy. He stated that "a na- tion that is not certain of its values cannot summon the will to defend them." As we enter the new year, Americans should feel pride and optimism that, at last, it appears we have an American administration that is certain of our values — human freedom and dig- nity as stated by Nikki Hal- ey — and is ready to bold- ly demonstrate the "will to defend" these values. It's about time the Unit- ed States is getting real about the United Nations. President Trump should get high-fives for his lead- ership. Star Parker is an author and president of CURE, Cen- ter for Urban Renewal and Education. Contact heratw- ww.urbancure.org. To find out more about Star Park- er and read features by oth- er Creators Syndicate writ- ers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com. Continued from page 11 REAL matter, and given that I have had seven decades of life already, I'd like to share some thoughts. Having worked in the health care field, I find that through the last four decades of observing and advising matters of human behavior, I think there is truth to these resolutions. Although easier planned than carried out, it is better to have these thoughts than to have none. And here they are: 1. Love people around you, even those who may irk you. The human body pro- duces unhealthy chemicals that break our health if we walk around in a spirit of anger or hatred. If we can't love or like, tolerate. But try not to hate. 2. Eat in moderation. It is certainly scary when four out of ten Americans are overweight–dangerously overweight, to a point illness. Associated with this phenomenon are diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, strokes, joint breakdowns, immobility, etc, Just go to one of these super buffets, you will see what I mean. We're a country blessed with so much food that is cheap and affordable. It is indeed a sad state if we cannot control these diseases. 3. Exercise regularly. Ten to fifteen minutes each day of calisthenics or walk- ing, light weightlifting, or anything to burn calories and tone up muscles can fight weight problems, prevent osteopo- rosis, prevent arthritis, and improve our cardiovascular system. 4. Quit smoking. No question, this ad- diction has destroyed the health of ma- ny. We spend billions of dollars trying to remedy problems such as cancer, em- physema, strokes, heart attacks, infec- tions, osteoporosis, premature aging. Wanna look 10 years older than your age? Smoke. 5. If you drink alcohol, do it in moder- ation. For once alcohol enters the brain, it will impair judgment because of it's ability to distort and cloud the thinking process. 6. Try to have a positive attitude. Re- member as you repeatedly recall bad things that we encounter in life, they leave their marks in our psyche. But life has to go on, and better times come in cycles. So never lose hope. 7. Get a regular check-up. This is not a sell, but we know that preventive medi- cine does pay off in the long run. Do you ever hear people who take pride in their vehicles that run their odometers twice or thrice? All of them do regular main- tenance and tune-up. It did not happen by chance. I believe it is the same thing with the human body. 8. Take vacations. Stop and smell the roses. Balance work and rest. 9. Take up a hobby. While we do need to work and be productive (even those retired find work to do), we need to en- gage in activities which we truly enjoy outside of work. 10. Statistics and research show that those who adhere to a spiritual belief (faith, religion, theology, philosophy) do better and tend to live longer. There are a lot of good principles about life that we can adhere to. You can find them in good books and maga- zines. Be alert for those things. Our lo- cal library is a very rich source of mate- rials on these matters. On the lighter side of life: Two elder- ly women were headed to a restaurant to celebrate the New Year. They were quite excited to meet with friends. As they were cruising along in their vehicle, they came to an intersection. The stoplight was red, but they just went through. The woman on the passenger side thought to herself, " I must be losing it. I could have sworn we just went through a red light." A fter a few minutes, they came to an- other intersection and the light was red again. Again they went right through. The woman in the passenger side started to get real nervous. At the next intersec- tion, sure enough the light was red and they went through it again. So she turned to the other woman and said," Mildred, did you know that we just went through three red lights in a row and you did not stop? You could have killed us both! " Mil- dred then turned to her and said, "Am I the one driving? " Moral of the story: Be careful celebrat- ing the New Year – no drinking and driv- ing please. Have a blessed 2018! . Continued from page 11 ENDINGS Continued from page 11 TAX CUT Continued from page 11 TURNING bachelor's degree in the discipline. Pedagogical techniques can be learned through short formal train- ing, coaching and experi- ence. Walter E. Williams is a professor of economics at George Mason University. Continued from page 11 ROT Tech predictions for the new year By Scott A. Hartley Technology Columnist "Technology is anything that wasn't around when you were born," comput- er scientist Alan Kay aptly states. I remember the days of listening to cassette tapes on a Sony Walkman, lis- tening to the radio for hours just wait- ing to record my favorite song, and even having to access the Internet us- ing a dial-up connection. With every passing year, new inno- vations bring massive changes to the technology that surrounds us. What's common today will soon be replaced with something else tomorrow. For your enjoyment, I present to you four technology predictions for 2018. WIDESPREAD ADOPTION OF NEW DIGITAL INTERFACES Android smartphone users love to brag how their devices are the pio- neers for many features in mobile tech- nologies. They enjoy taunting Apple iPhone users, like myself, with phras- es like, "We had that in our phones two years ago." ( Yes, Cai and Scott R, two of my techs, I'm talking about you!) When Apple introduced the iPhone X in October, it adopted facial recogni- tion as the way to unlock your phone. Some Android devices also use facial recognition and iris scanning to ac- cess them. But digital interfaces will begin ap- pearing elsewhere too. Vehicles will start to incorporate facial recognition to save unique settings for each driver. Fingerprint scanners will be used to allow access to various facilities, like your neighborhood gym. SUBSCRIPTION MODELS BECOME THE NORM Netflix, Hulu, Spotify, Pandora, and a host of oth- er companies have already acclimated consumers to paying for movies and music on a month-to-month basis. Adobe switched to subscription-on- ly plans for its entire suite of creative products in 2013. Microsoft is now en- couraging consumers and businesses to purchase the Microsoft Office soft- ware through its recurring Office 365 subscription plans. You'll see many other software and service companies switch to offering their products and services by sub- scription instead of one-time purchas- es. CRYPTOCURRENCIES AND THE BLOCKCHAIN CONTINUE TO RISE If you're not familiar with the terms "cryptocurrency" and "blockchain," you may want to start doing some re- search. The blockchain is simply an online ledger, originally designed to track cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin in a se- cure and efficient way. But the technol- ogy has been quickly adopted by other industries because it reduces cost and improves efficiencies. Despite advice by un- informed financial talk- ing heads on T V, early investors in cryptocur- rencies and other block- chain technologies have pocketed major gains. While it is still a vola- tile investment, in-the- know investment advisors predict continued growth throughout 2018. SECURITY BREACHES CONTINUE AND CYBERSECURITY REMAINS A BIG FOCUS From the WannaCry ransomware at- tack that crippled over 300,000 com- puters worldwide to the Equifax secu- rity breach that compromised financial records of as many as 143 million peo- ple, such incidents will continue to reg- ularly occur throughout 2018. As a result, small businesses will see the need (and even be mandated) to adopt better cybersecurity protec- tions to safeguard information stored on their computers. It's impossible to predict the future – especially in the tech world. But in December, it'll be fun to look back and see what changes actually occurred. Scott A. Hartley is the President/CEO of Calibre Computer Solutions in Prince- ton. For computer tips, information, and free software tools, check out our web- site at http://www.calibreforhome.com. techSOLUTIONS net edition yeah, it's that fast! Z M www.PressDispatch.net/Subscribe It's The Press-Dispatch. No matter where you live. 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