C’EST BON
Geaux Tigres! The storied LSU baseball program has its claws back. A Tiger squad led by third-year skipper Paul Mainieri were rough on the diamond against the top-ranked Texas Longhorns in the College World Series last week, winning the first and third games in the best-of-three series in Omaha, Neb., for the program’s first CWS title since 2000 and its sixth overall. Best of all from our perspective were the clutch performances of Acadiana’s contribution to the roster: center fielder Mikie Mahtook (St. Thomas More) and right fielder Jared Mitchell (Westgate High in New Iberia). Mitchell was also named CWS Most Valuable Player.

PAS BON
So exactly why does Lafayette have a Planning and Zoning Commission? In a 6-3 vote last week, the Consolidated Council ignored not only a January recommendation by PZC, but also a 1994 covenant between the city and Elmhurst Park subdivision — along with the wishes of many vocal residents and the district’s council rep, Brandon Shelvin — and granted Olde Tyme Grocery owner Glenn Murphree’s request to rezone a lot he owns on Brook Street from single-family residential to transitional commercial, allowing the poor boy to use the space as a pay parking lot for UL students. “Foul!” cried the residents. “Fair!” cried the council. And unless Elmhurst residents can successfully petition the city’s traffic department and have Brook reverted back to a two-way street, their traffic problems will be forever compounded. When traffic-control barriers were put in the neighborhood about a decade ago, Brook was made into a one-way street leading into Elmhurst from St. Mary Boulevard, so every vehicle exiting Murphree’s now-legal parking lot is forced into the neighborhood. Democracy inaction.

COUILLON
Leaders in the state House of Representatives really put the “rap” on the legislative session last Thursday, once again making Louisiana “da butt” of jokes, this time in the form of a dog and pony show by Rep. Barbara Norton, D-Shreveport, who invited her godson, up and coming rap artist Hurricane Chris, to perform a “cleaned up” version of his explicit, misogynistic single “Halle Berry (She’s Fine).” The festivities began with a legislative proclamation commending “Mr. Hurricane,” as Rep. Major Thibaut later called him, for his music success. Then, with such uplifting lyrics as “Girl I guarantee I could make you go num num num num num,” Mr. Hurricane blew through about two minutes of the song for the largely middle-aged, mostly cracker House of Representatives. Stunned silence and a smattering of applause bookended the bizarre episode