Subscriber Exclusive
OPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Two strangers
John Brantley posted this story on social media the other day; I consider it dual GodNods well worth sharing.
Stories by Mike Masterson
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Cancer and tattoos
Just over one in five avoidable chances of contracting cancer--that's a number that should draw serious concern among adults who act out of reason rather than …
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Texts in secret
Here we go again. Now the Mountain Home School District board has joined the dubious list of public school districts, boards and councils guilty of violating t…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: The $20 bribe
It was time to give valued readers a breather from the stream of opinions about irresponsible large-dog owners whose animals attack and kill people and lawbrea…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: GodNods explained
A couple of emails and letters arrived last week from readers commenting on my column about our former president's GodNod when a bullet missed killing him by a…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Ghost in the attic
The column Sunday about our dog Benji's nightly stakeout beneath the deck brought back memories of our home in Newport in 1972 where we became fairly certain e…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Benji’s mission
We recently found ourselves in a bit of a quandary. Our 12-pound taco terrier Benji had discovered the scent of a possum that hangs out beneath our deck after …
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Mysterious flag ‘angel’
A final thought regarding the failed assassination attempt last week on the life of former President Donald Trump.
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Trump’s GodNod
You'll never convince me the apparent bullet intended for former President Donald Trump in Pennsylvania the other day wasn't deterred by a mere half-inch by a …
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: If I were the devil
Every other year or so I use my space to repeat the famous and prescient message "If I Were the Devil," from late radio legend Paul Harvey, first because there…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Pit bull kills owner
The super-heavyweight version of a pit bull that a 41-year-old man and his wife chose as their "house pet" viciously took his life earlier this month, another …
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Bite out of wallet
The Mississippi owner of a pit bull has been fined $400,000 for enabling his animal to twice attack and badly injure an innocent 12-year-old boy in a peaceful …
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OPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: On the beat
Editor's note: The original version of this column was published June 12, 2001.
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Commerce in flux
I admit being guilty of an addiction I never wanted. As a result, a once-organized, almost-vacant garage is overflowing with a virtual mountain of abandoned ca…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Loss of trust
Responsibilities of public service were on full display in Mountain Home last week, sending the message that part of the duty to avoid legal problems is a thor…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Exonerated at last
Here we are again peering through the looking glass into a dangerous and dubious world where innocent people spend decades in prison for a crimes they didn't c…
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OPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Commandments mandated
So let the predictable controversy and condemnation begin from certain among us while others cheer across the un-United States of 2024 America.
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OPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Character crucial
Editor's note: The original version of this column was published Dec. 30, 2006.
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Timely GodNods
Everyone who's kind enough to invest valuable time to digest these words knows my fascination with synchronistic events I call GodNods.
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Innocent woman to be freed
"Only those who've walked the agonizing path of an unjust imprisonment can truly fathom the profound despair and hopelessness attached to a wrongful conviction…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Still scamming
If you're like me, you're still receiving official-sounding texts on your cellphone saying a delivery service has a package for you but they need to confirm yo…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: What gorilla?
I've never witnessed a better display of just how easily humans can have their attention intentionally diverted from what's happening right in their faces.
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Fleeing into prison
Everyone involved lost something when 23-year-old Logan Charles Dorman of Fayetteville decided last year to slam the accelerator down in his red Mazda pickup a…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Mauled in crib
My concern over unattended large dogs was amplified recently when 6-week-old Ezra Mansoor died after family members said their pet husky of eight years suddenl…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: After treatment
Not understanding cancer treatment after-effects brings regrets for many.
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Mountain Home board in court
I declare, valued readers, FOIA violation cases are becoming as frequent as unrestrained pit bull attacks on innocent humans. And so many involve school boards…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Back to coaching
To the good people and their Cardinals of Farmington. I write from my hometown of Harrison to let you know what a good, caring, witty and likable head football…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Vanishing garage
Last week I republished a column from 2015 to update those who may have overlooked it nine years ago, or forgotten about Fayetteville's McAllister family GodNo…
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MASTERSON ONLINE: Historic prizes bestowed
The nation's most lucrative award in journalism--bestowed for impartial excellence in news reporting--held its inaugural banquet at the Library of Congress in …
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OPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Middle of nowhere
Whenever I write about events that can't be rationally explained, it's inevitable some readers will respond with compelling stories of their own.
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Another attack
Here we go yet again, valued readers, this time here at home rather than communities in other states. The fear of mauling and death by unrestrained large dogs …
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Being Benji for a day
I was imagining how our spirited 12-pound taco terrier Benji, rescued from the pound several years back, sees his daily life today. I came up with this.
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Endless deaths
Well, valued readers, wouldn't ya know.
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Apologist argues
Most everyone has their view of good and evil, of a universe born of happenstance or the ultimate creative force we choose to call God.
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Sick of biased surveys
I have never been, nor will I become at 77 years of age, a bigot of any kind. That includes publicly deriding another's race, culture, religion or sexual prefe…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: ‘Procurer’ arrested
When I reported for the Chicago Sun-Times years ago, it was commonplace for the paper to publish stories of frauds, including those committed against Medicare,…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Memories in haze
The year was 1991. It might have been 1992. The years rush together. What matters, though, is what happened during the predawn hours in the four-story hotel wh…
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Subscriber ExclusiveMASTERSON ONLINE: Keeping our canines here
The hundreds of thousands of Arkansas families (and readers) with dogs as pets know how their adoring furry canines have become beloved members of their family.
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OPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Beauty versus ugly
Editor's note: The original version of this column was published July 29, 2012.
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Others first
Many among us helped enrich our lives through their assistance, humor, joy, strength, affection and fulfillment. Yet we seldom take the opportunity to make our…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Fading memory
Perhaps you can relate. In our mid-70s, Jeanetta and I each tend to be increasingly forgetful of things we once easily recalled, like long-familiar names we sh…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Get involved
This is likely the most significant column I'll ever offer in the public interest.
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Attacks continue
Valued readers are well aware of my disdain for pit bull and large dog owners whose animals frequently and suddenly attack, badly injure and even kill innocent…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Relief and dignity in leaving?
Given the choice of suffering in bed with an incurable fatal ailment and enduring more weeks, months or years without hope for improvement, what would you choo…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Disturbing reality
To escape the frustration of TV's talking heads constantly droning on about unresolved problems largely arising from our nation's mismanagement, I decided to c…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Need or want?
The auditors have spoken and the governor's office has refuted, leaving the political fire continuing to smolder over that custom-built $19,000 lectern.
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: History may soon vanish
Every Arkansan and out-of-state visitor who has visited downtown Hot Springs National Park has stared up at the imposing 210,000-square-foot sandy-colored buil…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Attacks continue
A man and his mother in Azusa, Calif., are recovering after being mauled by the four pit bulls they were dog-sitting in late February.
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Trust evaporated
The former executive editor of The Washington Post told an audience and former Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Publisher and current WEHCO Media Chairman Walter E. H…
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Subscriber ExclusiveOPINION | MIKE MASTERSON: Overview of our invasion
You may be as concerned as I am about the many millions of unknown citizens of other nations illegally entering ours, apparently without as much as a health ch…