Scott Sternlieb’s remarks on Nov. 7 were uninformed and unfair. He inferred that instances of slave murder, torture and rape were common. They were not. Slavery, then as now, was an uncivilized and inhuman institution, but the slaveholders were not the Simon Legrees depicted in Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Assuming them to be so is an affront to any intelligent discussion of the subject.

"Reading the vent after the election I’m amazed so many can’t fathom the idea of majority rule, they cling to the ideals of old white men from the 20th century who see nothing wrong with playing musical chairs with lives and jobs, and brand anyone a ‘taker’ who has lost control of their own destiny. I love nostalgia as much as anyone, but there’s a fine line between nostalgia and nausea."

In Hollywood, history is written in dry-erase marker. Consider “The Legend of Zorro,” a fun if lavishly misinformed swashbuckler that reflects both the movie industry's growing awareness of its Spanish-speaking audience, and the attitude that silly trifles such as dates and facts don't amount to a hill of frijoles.

Gary Bevirt’s great-greatgrandfather left a priceless gem for his family — a soldier’s diary from the Civil War.

“Thanks to the Affordable Healthcare Act (a.k.a. Obamacare), I used the refund for the overpayment of my health-care insurance to buy a new deep freeze, to replace the one that was 30 years old and on its last legs! Thank you, President Obama!”

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Army Sgt. 1st Class Charles Harley looked a little stunned when he was asked what he was going to do this holiday weekend.

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Army Sgt. 1st Class Charles Harley looked a little stunned when he was asked what he was going to do this holiday weekend.

I pulled into the parking lot Friday at Schnepf Farms in Queen Creek just as the Civil War was breaking out in an adjacent field.

LOCUST GROVE, Va.  -  Wal-Mart wants to build a Supercenter within a cannon shot of where Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant first fought, a proposal that has preservationists rallying to protect the key Civil War site.

KABUL, Afghanistan - Afghan and coalition forces captured an insurgent leader in eastern Afghanistan, and in a separate operation 10 militants were killed in a firefight, the U.S. military said Saturday.

Is the grass any bluer on the other side?

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For decades, the porcelain figurines of two people sat inside the home of Lyn Reed's mother.

America is finally getting out of the business of questioning terrorists by any means necessary. However, the repercussions of what we have been doing for almost eight years is probably going to ring in our ears for years to come.

Holiday traditions are supposed to last more than three measly years, but in the case of Peter Jackson’s phenomenally popular "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, a longer engagement just wasn’t under the tree.

Though black-eyed peas have been around forever, they generally don't get a lot of attention. But I think you really ought to give them a second look.

CHESTER, Va. - Like many boys in the South, Sam White got hooked on the Civil War early, digging up rusting bullets and military buttons in the battle-scarred earth of his hometown.

The mustached gent stares out from his portrait in sepia-toned astonishment. I’m at Aunt Pittypat’s Kitchen, where morning light filters through lace curtains, corn bread is plentiful and someone will announce Lee’s surrender at any moment.

The mustached gent stares out from his portrait in sepia-toned astonishment. I’m at Aunt Pittypat’s Kitchen, where morning light filters through lace curtains, corn bread is plentiful and someone will announce Lee’s surrender at any moment.

Today, buttons are glorified doorstops. Like bureaucrats or congressmen, they act as dull place-keepers on the fabric of society — until their thread snaps and they vanish into the carpet. But members of the Arizona State Button Society will tell you this wasn’t always so.