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A Weatherford man says we need to channel our penchant for lying into something productive—or at least entertaining.Q: Why did Texans quit coming up with tall tales? I imagine that there are a lot of lying, stinking polecats out there who need a higher art form to aspire toward.Scott McNutt, Weatherford A: Texans have been telling untruths for the sport of it for a long time. The tradition, in fact, dates all the way back to Native American folklore and the earliest days of the frontier. As the legend goes, our pioneer forebears arrived in Texas steeped in the literary...

This is intelligence and most of it comes from our Government Communications Headquarters, or GCHQ. Based in a huge doughnut-shaped complex outside Cheltenham, GCHQ, among other things, is the great watcher and listener of our espionage array. High in Inner Space, out of reach of telescopes and missiles, cameras and recorders roll through the ether at exactly the same speed as earth, thus remaining stationary over any spot they are wanted. Gazing down, they record everything beneath them and it is beamed straight back to GCHQ. Thus we know what the Russian elite is doing and saying. And it is...

Funny stories, riddles, excellent banjo, guitar, harmonica accompaniment for blue grass music; some originals, some their rendition of other artists' songs.

Secretary of State John Kerry spoke to his Iranian counterpart, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, at least five times Tuesday while U.S. Navy sailors were in Iranian custody, a senior State Department official told reporters Wednesday. In the course of his conversations, the official said Kerry told Zarif: "If we are able to do this the right way, we can make this into what will be a good story for both of us" and would be a way for Iran to prove it can act in a responsible manner in this type of situation. The calls, which took place over...

As the details about the Sept. 11, 2012, attacks on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, continue to emerge, a new ebook claims to unveil what it says are the “both uncomfortable and unsatisfying” facts surrounding the events leading up to, during and after the attack. Some have already said the details included in ”Benghazi: The Definitive Report,” which was released Tuesday by authors Jack Murphy, a former Army Ranger and member of the 5th Special Forces Group, and Brandon Webb, a former Navy SEAL, are “shocking but hard to prove.” Webb is the editor-in-chief of SOFREP.com (the Special Operations...

This morning as the Middle East burned while Obama fundraised in Vegas and our genius president told the world he had lost Egypt as an ally (whoops!), BenSmithing BenSmither John Stanton over at BuzzFeed Politics wrote an hysterically desperate hit-job against Paul Ryan and House Republicans. The BenSmithing troll-tastic goal here is obviously to manufacture the idea that there's some kind animosity brewing between Ryan and his House colleagues. Not because Ben Smith or BuzzFeed or Stanton actually believe there's bad blood. What this is is just another shiny distraction fabricated to keep everyone's eyes off the fact that there...

Editor’s Note: This is the first in a three-part series focusing on misstatements, prevarications and falsehoods proclaimed by the three major presidential candidates. Sen. Hillary Clinton presents the image of a seasoned, ever-disciplined politician whose experience as first lady and a New York senator makes her ready to be commander-in-chief. But a series of misstatements — exaggerations, half-truths and lies — made by Clinton over the last 15 years have at times undermined her image and called her credibility into question -snip- 1. Travelgate, June 23, 2000 2. Iraq War Vote, Jan. 13, 2008 3. Sniper Fire, March 17, 2008...

Sen. John McCain has long presented himself as that rare bird in politics: an inveterate straight-shooter. But does campaign strain have McCain’s Straight Talk Express veering off course? A string of incidents stemming from the senator’s two presidential runs suggests he’s no less fallible than any other candidate — and just as capable of adjusting facts to suit his purpose. 1. Confederate Flag Over South Carolina Capitol, April 19, 2000 During the run-up to the South Carolina Republican primary in February 2000, McCain was asked whether he felt the Confederate flag should be removed from atop the statehouse. Non-truth: McCain...

We went over the mountains last weekend to attend the Smoky Mountain Storytelling Festival. Before I describe that, what do you think it was? Do you imagine a bunch of good ol’ boys in bib overalls, swapping outrageous fish tales? No such thing. It was far more interesting than that. When we drive to D.C., we go through Tennessee. Every trip, we’d pass a sign for the National Storytelling Center in Jonesboro. Finally, we took that exit, and spent an hour talking with the lady in charge of the center, in the beautifully-restored downtown of Tennessee’s oldest city. We decided...

Bill Clinton and His Tall Tales John LeBoutillier Monday, Sept. 25, 2006 Bill Clinton and Richard Armitage are two inveterate story tellers who have never made a mistake in their lives - and who love to blame any and everybody but themselves. Bill Clinton's performance on Sunday morning's Fox newscast was a rare look into the mean, defensive, and small man who was a total disaster as president. Dick Morris — a long-time pal of Bill Clinton — says in private that Bill Clinton knows he is a phony — and lives in mortal fear of "being found out." Everything...

Kryptic Tales of Middle-earthWe don't often hear about the ghost stories people must have told each other in Middle-earth. Tolkien's work is permeated with well-crafted legends that are usually founded in fact (within the scope of his pseudohistory), but when you stop to consider the immense expanses of time the pseudohistory of Middle-earth covers, you have to wonder just how far-fetched some of those legends must have become.Everyone has heard the story about the lunatic who escapes from an insane asylum and nearly kills a young couple on a dark road, leaving his claw hanging on the car door (this...

RAMALLAH, West Bank -- Israel's most recent excuse for why it cannot negotiate peace with the Palestinians is that the Palestinians have been unable to develop a fully democratic society while living under Israeli occupation. This excuse is better known as "reform." And yet, when Palestinians are invited to go to London to further the reform process, the government of Israel prevents us from doing so.