Deborah Simmons

SIMMONS: Change takes its measure of the queen of TV cooking

What's a body to do when you're standing on the other side of change? Take a deep breath, count to 10 — 20, if you're really fuming — and think. Published June 26, 2013

SIMMONS: Drawn-out justice in Sean Taylor’s death still stings

It's difficult this time of year to await the NBA draft and not think about University of Maryland star Len Bias, who was taken by the Boston Celtics with the No. 2 pick in the 1986 June draft and was dead two days later. Sadly, Bias played a role in his own death by ingesting drugs. Yet, there's another sports tragedy that stings even more, and that is the killing of Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor during a break-in at his Florida home in 2007 and the fact that justice is moving agonizingly slow. Published June 23, 2013

SIMMONS: DA won’t prosecute man who detained vandals

An upstate New York district attorney said Thursday that he won't prosecute a man who held four boys in a closet after he caught them vandalizing his family's property. Published June 20, 2013

SIMMONS: Lessons on doing the right thing when it’s the right thing to do

"Never," Big Mama said. "Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined a grown man do the right thing, discipline some little wannabe hoodlums by holdin' 'em for the authorities but be called a criminal hisself." Published June 19, 2013

SIMMONS: Money for D.C. statehood not the right road

In a couple of weeks, D.C. lawmakers are scheduled to hold a public airing of the D.C. Statehood Advocacy Act of 2013, an ill-advised piece of legislation that calls for spending more than $1 million in public money to lobby for and promote statehood, absolute budget autonomy and congressional voting rights for the District of Columbia. What the rest of America thinks of those ideas probably hasn’t crossed officials’ minds, since the doors of opportunity last swung wide open in 1993. Published June 16, 2013

SIMMONS: Cosby gets serious about fatherhood

My dad and I used to have stimulating conversations about faith, family, personal responsibility and the rewards of hard work, and I miss him. Published June 12, 2013

SIMMONS: Nation has come a long way on voting rights

All eyes and ears are on Washington, D.C., where this month, perhaps as soon as Monday, the Supreme Court is expected to take the blinders off and rule on challenges to the seminal Voting Rights Act of 1965, whose signing by then-President Johnson drew women attired in hats and gloves, and had whites and blacks sharing near picture-perfect space in the White House as witnesses to history. Published June 9, 2013

SIMMONS: Immigrant bill hinders Americans seeking jobs

If you are out of a job or keeping toes and fingers crossed that a dear one will soon be making enough money to bring home the bacon, this heads-up is for you. The immigration bill that could hit the floor of the Senate any day now could cost Americans jobs by nearly doubling the number of guest workers allowed into the country. Published June 5, 2013

SIMMONS: Yes to more charters, but let’s head off the unions

When you dance to the music, sooner or later you've got to pay the piper. Published June 2, 2013

SIMMONS: It’s time to choose helping disaster victims, not politicians

The convergence of two events this week — one by the hand of God, the other man-made — might leave us asking, "What can I do?" and "What should our government do?" Published May 22, 2013

SIMMONS: When teachers are cheating, everyone is cheated

Here's another feather for the cap of advocates who want to establish solid lines that link actual teaching to actual learning. Published May 19, 2013

SIMMONS: Showdown awaits — at high noon? — on Memorial Bridge

Second Amendment supporters beware: Cathy Lanier is talking tough — Annie Oakley tough. Published May 15, 2013

SIMMONS: ‘Back-alley’ abortions an issue of responsibility

All right, ladies. Do not get your thongs, boxers or briefs all twisted. Don't think "back-alley" abortions are no more because of Roe v. Wade. Published May 12, 2013

SIMMONS: Benghazi attack a teachable moment on many subjects

Benghazi, Libya is such a great teachable moment. It involves civics, geography, history, religion, politics, agriculture, economy, communications/media and, unfortunately, violence. Published May 8, 2013

SIMMONS: Students’ high hopes need to be supported

Three brothers living in the Woodridge area of Northeast are depending on the White House and Congress to do right by all young people. Published May 5, 2013

SIMMONS: Of Collins, ‘Redtails,’ Morehouse & tolerance

Let's get a couple of things straight about three culture-related stories that broke this week, datelined Washington, D.C. Published May 1, 2013

SIMMONS: Critics join common cause to block Common Core school standards

Education Secretary Arne Duncan would be a very wise man if he started paying close attention to the sticks being poked in the eyes of the Obama administration regarding those one-size-fits-all Common Core State Standards. Published April 28, 2013

SIMMONS: Illegal immigrant ID idea proves stupidity begins at home

Every now and again, stupidity begets stupidity. The elected leaders of the District are proving they aren't interested in statehood but some bizarre form of sovereignty. Published April 24, 2013

SIMMONS: Immigration law must delve into the shadows

Here's serious food for thought about the immigration reform debate. Published April 21, 2013

SIMMONS: A doctor with a perverted view of life and death

Since March 18, jurors in Philadelphia have been listening to gruesome testimony about what happened inside an abortion clinic. The detailed testimony is gut-wrenching, whether you are taking them in while digesting a morning bowl of grits cooked in chicken broth or savoring every bite of a comfort dish prepared the way grandma did. Published April 17, 2013