Charleston Currents

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NEW BOOK: Ever wonder where the Atlantic Ocean started?

According to old-time wags and natives who see Charleston as the epicenter of the world, the Atlantic Ocean actually starts in Charleston harbor at the confluence of the Ashley and Cooper rivers. (See Robert Ariail’s cartoon at right that’s the cover of the book.) The late U.S. Sen. Fritz Hollings, born in the Holy City in 1922, often was heard saying, “Every great city has a great river. London has the Thames. New York has the Hudson. Washington has the Potomac. And Charleston, Andrew, Charleston has two great rivers — the Ashley and the Cooper — and that’s where the Atlantic Ocean starts.”

by Charleston Currents · 08/31/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Features, History

BRACK: Don’t get conned on postal service, election process

By Andy Brack, editor an publisher | Don’t let yourself be conned by the Con Man in Chief: Postal workers will deliver your mailed-in ballot just fine, thank you very much.

In fact, President Donald Trump, who unpatriotically has been denigrating the U.S. Postal Service, believes in mail-in voting so much that he’s going to vote (wait for it) by mail.

by Andy Brack · 08/24/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Andy Brack, Views

NEW BOOK: Learn about the palmetto flag, college’s impact and a big loss

Here are three more factual snippets from the new book, 350 Facts About Charleston.

by Charleston Currents · 08/24/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Features, History

Floyd Breeland. Photo by Leslie McKellar/College of Charleston. Used with permission.

BRACK: Remembering Floyd Breeland’s life of exemplary service

By Andy Brack, editor and publisher | They called him Big Thunder. His rich baritone soared when he talked and resonated even more when he sang.

Former state Rep. Floyd Breeland, who passed away Tuesday at 87, loved public service, first as a teacher, then as a high school administrator and finally in the Statehouse. After representing the Charleston peninsula from 1993 to 2007, he continued to serve by running a College of Charleston program to encourage young Black men to be teachers and role models for kids.

by Andy Brack · 08/17/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Andy Brack, Views

WEST: To be or not be in person in the classroom

By Gary West, special to Charleston Currents | On July 15, 2020, Gov. Henry McMaster lobbied for opening schools for all of South Carolina’s children – full classrooms, full-time, five days a week – while the pandemic continues to spread faster and farther.

West

Each school district in South Carolina has been required to submit a reopening plan to the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE). And all those plans were required to have an option for parents to send their students to school.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 08/17/2020 · Comments are Disabled · My Turn, Views

NEW BOOK: More Charleston firsts

Ever wonder why so much of old downtown Charleston is preserved? It’s because the Charleston City Council established the nation’s first historic zoning district on Oct. 13, 1931, when it created the “Old and Historic District” as well as a Board of Architectural Review, which continues to serve as an authority on new projects in an effort to preserve and protect historic neighborhoods. “Today, there are more than 2,000 restored old buildings, many having tiered porches called piazzas lining narrow brick alleys, cobblestone streets and walled courtyard gardens. These architectural treasures dating from the 1600s to the Civil War have been preserved and restored under the leadership of the Preservation Society of Charleston,” according to a 1989 story in The Los Angeles Times.

by Charleston Currents · 08/17/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Features, History

BRACK: Sales tax holiday was lipstick on policy pig

By Andy Brack, editor and publisher | Let’s see how excited we got about the sales tax holiday put on by the state over the past weekend: Whoop. Nope. Hooray. Nah. Yahoo. Not quite.

South Carolina’s annual sales tax holiday is not only very bad public policy, it isn’t pandemic-friendly. In normal circumstances, the tax-free weekend is a bad idea because of the multiple inequities it creates. But during the coronavirus pandemic, it is extra risky because it encourages people to get out to shop when they’d be smarter by staying at home.

by Andy Brack · 08/10/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Andy Brack, Views

GIBSON: It’s time to debunk the myth of school choice

By Jen Gibson, special to Charleston Currents | Normally this time of year, my son and I are on the hunt for new shoes and the perfect pencil pouch. This year, we are struggling with masks and stocking up on hand sanitizer.

Like most parents, our family is wrestling with decisions about our work schedules, our vulnerable parents, and our child’s academic and social needs. All of our energy is focused on supporting students, teachers and our community during this unprecedented crisis.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 08/10/2020 · 1 comment · My Turn, Views

NEW BOOK: Charleston firsts on golf, Black official, fire insurance

With this issue, we begin publishing excerpts from a soon-to-be-published book, 350 Facts About Charleston. As you may know, the Holy City is celebrating the 350th anniversary of its founding this year. The staff at our sister publication, the Charleston City Paper, compiled lots of interesting facts that we think you’ll find entertaining and compelling.

by Charleston Currents · 08/10/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Features, History

BRACK: Three months before national election, Trump is scared

By Andy Brack, editor and publisher | Blustery Donald Trump is scared he’ll lose the November presidential election. He’s mortified of being called the worst thing in the book: The biggest loser.

On Thursday as three presidents and the nation remembered the consequential life of U.S. Rep. John Lewis at an Atlanta funeral, the current president of the United States schemed to get into headlines by actually suggesting something expected in banana republics — not our democracy. He had the gall to float the idea that the November election should be postponed.

by Andy Brack · 08/03/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Andy Brack, Views