Several years ago, while I was attending a conference in Palm Desert, CA, I had the afternoon off and decided to visit nearby Joshua Tree National Park. When I arrived at the gate I asked the park ranger what the admission charge was. “Twenty-five dollars for an individual for the day. Thirty-five dollars for an automobile for the day. Or...

As some alert readers (ARs) undoubtedly know, Missouri entered the Union 200 years ago, on August 10, 1821. For the next five years the State Capitol was on Main Street in St. Charles, a few blocks north of where Schlafly Bankside is today.

On June 17th my cousin David Schlafly and I were pleased to attend a gathering of the Highland, Illinois Chamber of Commerce at McGinley Jeep Chrysler Dodge on Shamrock Boulevard in Highland. It gave us an opportunity to talk about our plans to open our fourth Schlafly brewpub at 907 Main Street, on the Town Square, in the building that...

My last year of law school (1976-1977) marked the beginning of a great divide in presidential politics. This was the last time a Republican President was a lawyer; and also the last time the nation elected a Democratic President who was not a lawyer. The term of Gerald Ford, a lawyer who was never elected as either President or Vice...

In 1969 an article in Life magazine reported, “The counter culture has its sacraments in sex, drugs and rock.” In 1971 the British magazine The Spectator wrote, “Not for nothing is the youth culture characterized by sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll.” In this context, as most alert readers (ARs) of a certain age will recall, the most famous celebration...

One of the inspiring stories to come out of the pandemic involves a French nun who recently celebrated her 117th birthday. Sister Andre, who was born Lucile Randon in 1904, is the oldest known person in Europe and, most amazingly, survived the coronavirus with no complications. What some alert readers (ARs) might find particularly interesting is the menu Sister Andre...

The Chinese Year of the Rat, which began over a year ago on January 25, 2020, is finally coming to an end after 384 days. Considering the year we’ve just endured, some alert readers (ARs) have likened these 18 or 19 extra days to bonus tracks on a Yoko Ono album. In any case, on February 12th it will be...

Early in the evening on the Winter Solstice my wife and I went to Central Fields in Forest Park and directed our attention to the southwest sky. It was a clear night and we were not disappointed. As we had hoped, we were able to see the great conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn with our naked eyes. This celestial phenomenon,...

Some alert readers (ARs) who are now collecting Social Security may remember a time long ago when they were old enough to drink beer legally in some states but were not old enough to vote. Such was the status quo ante in much of the United States prior to the ratification of the 26th Amendment to the Constitution in 1971....

The recent death of former Missouri State Senator Wayne Goode was a reminder of something we’ve lost as a society: a spirit of bipartisanship in public life. While Wayne is perhaps best remembered for having sponsored the legislation that led to the establishment of the University of Missouri-St. Louis, it’s important for all alert readers (ARs) of this column to...