TJ Ray, Author at The Oxford Eagle

Columns

A snollygoster? No, just an independent thinker

The voice in my phone said, “We’re not selling anything.” Doubting that, I waited for the revelation, which soon followed. The call was a political ... Read more

by TJ Ray, Friday, September 10, 2021 2:20 pm

Columns

History helps us understand the body politic

Editor’s note. This is the first in a two-part series. The second can be found here.. In the beginning they were immigrants or pilgrims, fleeing ... Read more

by TJ Ray, Friday, June 11, 2021 4:01 pm

Columns

Reflecting on the Body Politic, part 2

Editor’s note: This is the conclusion of a two-part column on this topic. The first installment can be found here. Since the middle of the ... Read more

by TJ Ray, Friday, June 11, 2021 3:56 pm

Columns

Aging is our greatest equalizer

How is your aging going? Are there more surprises like wrinkles or more gray hairs than a while back? Do you need more sleep? Has ... Read more

by TJ Ray, Monday, October 29, 2018 9:52 am

Columns

The brain’s dwindiling attention span

The average human’s attention span is…oh look, a bird! Has that happened to you? As your brain began the activity of saying something to someone, ... Read more

by TJ Ray, Sunday, September 23, 2018 5:40 pm

Columns

The joke continues for public education in Mississippi

Newspapers work to include a myriad of subject pieces to attract readers. For some, there is news, while for others the attraction might be a ... Read more

by TJ Ray, Sunday, August 26, 2018 6:25 pm

Columns

An ode to the welfare state

Not being a subscriber to the New York Daily News, I cannot attest to the quality of that publication. But as a retired English professor, ... Read more

by TJ Ray, Sunday, August 12, 2018 11:47 am

Columns

Does the name of something change its meaning?

Have you ever heard the question “What’s in a name?” When people ask that, it is often meant as a rhetorical inquiry, not with an ... Read more

by TJ Ray, Saturday, June 30, 2018 3:28 pm

Columns

Repurposing and recycling things left behind

In the door pocket of my car is a much folded and unfolded map of Lafayette County. With it is a red magic marker, which ... Read more

by TJ Ray, Saturday, June 23, 2018 2:39 pm

Columns

On things remembered and forgotten

Some gossamer memory recently unleashed a veritable flood of questions. For some reason, the question of the cars I have owned came up. Mostly — ... Read more

by TJ Ray, Saturday, June 2, 2018 10:52 pm

Columns

Brave new worlds without gender definitions

If my memory serves — and it often doesn’t — the first time I heard “post” used other than in “posthole digger” was in graduate ... Read more

by TJ Ray, Friday, May 11, 2018 11:53 am

Columns

Scum, scam and the appropriate places to use them

Times, they are a’changing! What with all the talk these days about words that are not to be used in public, one almost needs a ... Read more

by TJ Ray, Friday, May 4, 2018 10:30 am

Columns

An item saved is an item you might one day need

Finding television programs that are worth watching gets more difficult as time passes. A remote control device almost becomes an extension of the right hand. ... Read more