Columns

State Capitol Week in Review,September 29, 2023

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HISTORY

* On Oct. 2, 1614, Louis XIII of France was declared an adult. His mother, Marie de’ Medici, continued to act as his Regent, however, as she had begun upon the assassination of his father, King Henry IV of France, in 1610, until Louis turned 16.

Illicit fentanyl poisoning is now the leading cause of death for adults aged 18-49 – more than cancer, car accidents, and heart disease. Only a few milligrams of the drug, about the size of the tip of a pencil, can be lethal. With thousands and thousands of pounds of deadly drugs pouring across our border and infiltrating our communities, this epidemic has grown and evolved into a full-blown health and national security crisis.The drug is easier to produce than cocaine or heroin and can be sold for 100 times more than it costs to produce. Since small doses are incredibly potent (50-200 times more than morphine), it makes it easier for criminals, drug cartels, and foreign adversaries to smuggle the deadly drug into our communities.

“Tell it to the Marines” was a popular recruiting slogan during World War I. Throughout the long, distinguished history of the US Marine Corps, courage, determination, and love of country have always been at the heart of their training. One Arkansas native, John H. Pruitt, one of the most decorated Marines of World War I, showed this to the world when he became one of the few men to ever earn two Congressional Medals of Honor.

Since the creation of the state, Pulaski County has been the focus of politics and business for the state of Arkansas as the home of the state capital. Few people may know who the county was named for. Count Casimir Pulaski, a Polish general, arrived in the United States during the American Revolution, trained American troops, and gave his life for the freedom of the new land. Pulaski became a hero for the generation of men who fought for American independence.

Summer in Arkansas means long, hot days and starry nights. It is a time for kids staying up late chasing fireflies in their back yards and jumping into whatever puddle of water they can find to beat the heat. It also means ice cream. And in Arkansas, the Yarnell’s Ice Cream Company has been feeding that tradition for eight decades.

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Bill Carr was once the fastest man in the world. And it all started in Pine Bluff, Arkansas.

The most ambitious undertaking in the medical history of Calhoun County came when a “Tonsil Clinic” was held at Hampton School. This was a weeklong affair, for the purpose of removing the tonsils and adenoids of the children in the county. In the 1920s the Public Health Officials decided that removing the tonsils and adenoids was a good way to improve the welfare of the American children. The reasoning was that the tonsils were an entry point for infection and removing them was a good preventive treatment. Tonsillectomies were believed to prevent future infection and improve the overall health of the child and very few children made it through childhood with tonsils intact. A campaign to educate the public started with articles in newspapers explaining the benefits of having children’s tonsils and adenoids removed.