Opinion

Regan's Rant

I need a hero.

I can’t believe the Winter Olympics are over. They’re my favorite by far – what with the snow, ice and speed, the blades, boards and bobsleds. I don’t consider myself a true fan of the Olympics and yet I’m always surprised to find myself glued to the tube every time they roll around.

Love, sweet love

Relishing the little things

“… In the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed.”
– writer Kahlil Gibran

Ranting it up, the birthday edition

This issue date falls on my birthday, Feb. 5 – the best day of the year. Although I’ll be turning 29, my birthday still feels as it did when I celebrated with She-Ra Princess of Power. (She once came to my house despite the fact that I was sick with a barfing illness. She’s invincible.)

I had a brief birthday conversation with the owner of Rigas Diner on Monroe Road a week or two ago.

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Southern Fried Preacher

He sees the craziest things at church

Some of the funniest things happen at church.

Last week, I was with a bunch of my relatives, and we began to tell tales about funny things that have happened at church. My favorite Baptist preacher, who happens to be my Uncle R.C. Harless, and I were swapping yarns. He lives near Knoxville over in Tennessee. He’s 80 years old and mostly retired.

The last laugh

Through the years, lots of my best friends have been funeral directors. This is understandable since I’ve been the minister of some very large congregations and have conducted hundreds and hundreds of funerals. I’ve spent a great deal of time with funeral directors. This has enabled me to discover something generally unknown to the ordinary citizen. Funeral directors tend to have fine senses of humor. Now, they all maintain a proper sense of dignity and decorum out of a respect for their vocation. But get them off the job and they can be a lot of fun.

New year’s prayer: Live our larger selves

I love this world! It is mostly filled with lovely, warm, generous and friendly people who care deeply and reach out with compassion to those who hurt. Oh, I know there are lots of twisted, warped, wounded people who seek to harm others. They mostly live in the shadows, sneaking out to strike innocent folk. And there are lots of folk who think nothing of harming our planet when such harm benefits them in some way.

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Letters to the Editor

Missed opportunity for community building

Regrettably the public dialogue concerning the rezoning for affordable housing in Ballantyne was cut short when the request was withdrawn. What never made it into the public discourse were the benefits that people who work and provide valuable services bring to a community and why it is important that they have an opportunity to work near where they live.

Practice what you preach

God never promised us a favorable playing field but he did ASK (demand) that we love our neighbors as ourselves (among other things).

Thanks to Crimestoppers

On behalf of the Union County Crimestoppers, I would like to thank all of you who came to our annual BBQ in January or had your turkey or barbecue delivered. This was greatly appreciated and you made this our most successful fundraiser ever.

Roger Lane, president, Union County Crime Stoppers

Another ‘ObamaCare’ proposal

President Obama has presented another proposal following another ­likewise rejected American national health care plan. He and all liberal Democrats should review the State of New York’s comparative plan to ObamaCare. It, too, is an appalling, luxuriously priced, failed health care system.

Matthews, Mint Hill Lions Clubs welcome you

North Carolina Lions Clubs, which include the Matthews and Mint Hill Lions Clubs, have launched a statewide media campaign to promote the impact of its members’ community service in communities, towns and cities throughout the state.

If affordable housing comes into Ballantyne, count me out

I cannot even begin to describe how upset I am about this issue. I moved from the center of the city with the specific purpose of getting away from crime and raising my family in a safe environment. I paid more for housing in Ballantyne for the quality of life and I work hard for that money. I like that Ballantyne has no fast-food restaurants and is upscale.

Approach affordable housing with an open mind

I have a magnet on my refrigerator that reads, “None of us are home until all of us are home.” I received it at a meeting last year when Sister Mary Scullion of the Sisters of Mercy spoke in south Charlotte about tackling homelessness in our city. Sister Mary co-founded Project H.O.M.E.

Thank you for mentoring

I wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed reading your article (“Mentoring Matters”) about you and the young man you are mentoring. Thank you, first of all, for doing this and second, for sharing your experience.

Don’t let subsidized housing happen to Ballantyne

Thank you so much for the story in South Charlotte Weekly titled “Public housing for Ballantyne?” I must say that as someone who lives in the Ballantyne area, I would be very upset if an apartment complex went up that would qualify for affordable housing subsidies. Is there not somewhere else in the city where this is more suitable?

Shame on CMS for high per-student costs

Your column reports that (Charlotte-­Mecklenburg Schools’) per-student cost for middle schoolers is $23,000 and for high schoolers is $27,000. It’s no wonder that CMS is broke and keeps adjusting its budget.

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