By CHARLES W. JOHNSON Talented singer/musician/songwriter Travis Young won second-place honors with an original song. The 10th anniversary of the Warren County High School talent show, sponsored by the Black History Club, was another rousing success, with 15 groups and individual competitors playing to a packed house in the school auditorium Friday night. Taking first…

By DUANE SHERRILL A man who torched his neighbor?s property following a disagreement will serve 10 years in prison for the crime. The defendant, Robert A. Womack entered guilty pleas to charges of arson and two counts of setting fire to personal property. The charges were amended down from aggravated arson in light of his…

By LISA HOBBS During a special session yesterday afternoon, McMinnville?s Board of Mayor and Aldermen unanimously agreed to hire David Rutherford as the city?s next administrator. According to the contract, which McMinnville officials hope to sign today, Rutherford starts immediately as city administrator with a one-year contract that sets his salary at $71,739. The decision…

By DUANE SHERRILL At least 15 convicted killers from Warren and Van Buren counties are currently serving hard time for their crimes, with most of them likely to be very old before they get to plead their case for early release before the parole board. A study conducted by the Southern Standard has researched the…

NASHVILLE (AP) ? State Revenue Commissioner Reagan Farr called a proposal to hike the tax on adult materials to pay for a reduction in the sales tax on food ?incredibly fiscally irresponsible.? Farr told the tax subcommittee of the Senate Finance Committee yesterday that it would be difficult for the state to tax pornography, escort…

NASHVILLE (AP) ? Deaths from prescription drugs now roughly equal the number of murders in Tennessee, according to a report by The Tennessean. There were 31 fewer prescription-drug deaths than murders in 2005, the most recent year for which statistics are available, based on the newspaper?s review of state medical examiner records. Prescription drugs were…

Funeral services for Rev. Buford Owen Nivens, 80, of Allons will be conducted at 2 p.m. Friday from First United Methodist Church in Livingston where the body will lie in state from 1 until 2 p.m. time for service. Burial will be in Bethel Cemetery in Allons where there will be a military service performed…

By William Rusher I have tended to resist the arguments of friends of mine who insist that American politics have recently become uglier than they have ever been before. But an incident in Portland, Ore., on Sunday, March 25, does suggest that we may have passed a fateful turning point in our national dialogue. On…

By Jim Mullen “Have you heard about “hypermiling?” “No, I haven’t,” said Nick. “But anything with the word hyper in it must be good — hyperactive, hyperlink, hyperbaric, hyperbolic, hyperventilate, hyperdrive, hyperspace, hyperbola, hypergamy, hypertension.” “I don’t know what hypergamy is, but I know that hypertension is not good for you.” Nick held up a…

Letter to the Editor To the Editor: I have belonged to the Manchester Recreation Center for two years. I am an arthritis patient and their therapeutic pool and arthritis classes are a Godsend. They are very helpful besides the heated therapeutic pool they also have an infant heated pool. I believe it would be possible…