Free Republic

As most of the nation celebrates the volunteerism so evident in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, a sense of disquiet seems to be afoot among fans of Big Government. People who spontaneously organize impressive responses might make the public feel as though government doesn’t have all the answers, and that self-reliance beats waiting for the government to solve their problems. Why, that's troubling. Something like this mental process must have prompted New Yorker editor David Remnick to greenlight this article, titled, “Why does American need the Cajun Navy?” Benjamin Wallace-Wells (you already guessed the author would have a hyphenated last...

Swamp People on History ChannelSprawling over a million-acre swath of southern Louisiana, the Atchafalaya River Basin is the largest swamp in the United States and one of the country's most ecologically varied regions. Its wetlands, bayous and marshes are home to 300 species of birds, 90 species of fish and shellfish and 54 species of reptiles and amphibians, including the great American alligator. It owes much of its haunting and mysterious beauty to the towering, moss-draped bald cypress trees that thrive in its swamp waters. For hundreds of years, the Basin's human dwellers—from the Native Americans who harvested its timber...