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The fight between Louisiana and the federal government had been going on for 16 years when Congress passed “historic” legislation in May 1953 to “restore to the state land that was taken away from it by decisions of the Supreme Court.”
The land in question was beneath the Gulf of Mexico. Nobody much cared about it until the 1940s, when it began to dawn on folks that there was oil beneath that soggy bottom. In fact, the U.S. government had no objection in 1938 when the state claimed everything out to the edge of the Continental Shelf — the shallow seabed that in some parts reaches a hundred miles or more from shore.
But it didn’t take long for the federal government to realize there were millions and millions of barrels of oil beneath the Gulf, meaning millions and millions of dollars in potential taxes. That’s why the feds went to the Supreme Court to claim that coastal waters belonged to the national government, not the state.
Louisiana argued it had always exercised “continuous, undisturbed, and unchallenged sovereignty” over the seabed. But the court agreed with the feds, touching off a decades-long legal fight, known generally as the Tidelands Dispute.
The Submerged Lands Act that was passed in May 1953 was supposed to undo what the courts had done. It gave coastal states jurisdiction for three miles from their coastlines, but that raised as many issues as it solved. Nobody was sure about where to start measuring the three miles. The New York Times predicted, correctly, that “because of the state’s extremely irregular shoreline, it may take … years to determine just where the three mile … boundary of the state actually lies.”
That was just about the time that Jack P. F. Gremillion was hand-picked by Earl Long to become attorney general. He stayed in office for 16 years and is probably best remembered for opposing desegregation and for the fact that his tenure ended with an indictment for fraud and conspiracy. A jury found him not guilty of those charges, but he was then convicted on five counts of lying to the grand jury that indicted him.
Despite his other views and Long’s claim that “if you want to hide something from Jack Gremillion, put it in a law book,” Gremillion did serious battle over the tidelands. He put together an impressive team of legal scholars and they put together a series of lawsuits raising a list of constitutional issues — none of which were successful.
Gremillion tried another route. In 1956, he took his argument to the friendlier state, not federal, court, and got a restraining order to keep the federal government from leasing offshore land. Gremillion argued there was a conspiracy between the U.S. Department of Interior and oil companies “to usurp and illegally ‘grab’ lands and revenues belonging to the state.”
That finally led to an agreement between the state and federal governments to allow oil drilling, but to hold the lease money and taxes in escrow until a ruling by the Supreme Court on who owned the land. The court, once again, gave the federal government the land that it claimed, and, more importantly, gave it most of the money.
Louisiana finally won a small battle several years later over where the shoreline began, and with the declaration that coastal erosion did not also erode away state land. But there was still a money issue to solve, this one over how much of the interest from the money that had been put aside belonged to the state.
That legal battle dragged on for years more, often to the frustration of Billy Guste, the attorney general who picked up the battle. In 1980, the court made a tangled ruling that Louisiana did own the money that had been held for it, but somehow did not own the interest on it.
That’s how things stood until one day when Gary Keyser, the assistant who led the tidelands fight during the Guste administration, came across a federal rule actually meant to deal with drilling on federal land in the western U.S. It provided that states should get a “fair and equitable” part of the proceeds from mineral production on public land.
Louisiana pounced on that with a new suit that was settled out of court in 1986. It gave the state $540 million in reparation for past federal action, and provided that Louisiana would get 27% of the annual revenue from a part of the Gulf outside the three-mile limit designated the “8(g) area,” referring to the part of the rule that gives some money to the states.
Since then, the state has invested the so-called 8(g) money in a Louisiana Education Quality Trust Fund that has provided hundreds of millions in grants to Louisiana schools.
It only took 50 years to get things more or less right.
You can contact Jim Bradshaw at jimbradshaw4321@gmail.com or P.O. Box 1121, Washington LA 70589.

Power: ability to do or act; capability of doing or accomplishing something.

Force: strength or effort exerted upon an object; physical coercion.

Power emanates from within. It enables one to accomplish tasks through the positive exercise of the law of attraction. According to the law of attraction, you attract people and circumstances of the same nature as your actions and attitude.

The source of power is a deep-seated belief in your goals combined with a genuine desire to help others. Authentic power arises effortlessly from who you are; it is not contrived. Power doesn’t have to be advertised or shown off.
People with power do not have a need to prove anything to anyone. Power is a by-product of developing self-confidence. Self-confidence grows in response to your belief in yourself. Power grows from a respect for others.
Power is not used for control or domination. It’s not used to belittle others. Power is a benevolent energy that makes you and those you come into contact with feel positive. It is a comfortable feeling to be with someone with internal power.
Force is the external application of energy in an attempt to control people and events. People apply force to compensate for a poor self-image. Force is used for intimidation. The employment of force creates a feeling of resentment from those upon whom it is applied.
Ego is linked to force, not power. People with power treat everyone with kindness and respect. They don’t act in a condescending manner toward anyone. People with power aren’t threatened by the success of others nor are they in competition with anyone.
Examples of power vs. force
Ellen has developed her inner power. At the accounting firm where she works, Ellen supervises 20 people. Although she has the authority to hire and fire, Ellen’s management style doesn’t incorporate threats or intimidation. Everyone in her department knows what’s expected of them. They feel Ellen treats them fairly and with respect.
Ellen doesn’t order people around. She asks her staff for what she needs. Because people enjoy working with Ellen, her department has very little employee turnover. Over the years, Ellen has had to let a few people go due to poor performance. In each instance, the other employees’ moral did not decline. They appreciated that Ellen was fair and expected everyone to abide by the same standards.
Mike regularly applies force in his interpersonal interaction. He has just been promoted to store manager. Mike erroneously believes people are impressed with his authority. He frequently orders his employees to jump from one task to another. Mike is quick to reprimand employees in front of coworkers and customers. Praise from Mike is rare at best.
Mike uses force with customers as well. He is clearly annoyed when a patron is sent to him with a problem. Mile is more concerned with demonstrating his authority rather than solving problems and satisfying customers. Mike’s attitude is perceived as rude.
There is a high level of employee turnover in Mike’s store. He constantly has to find and train new workers. As a result, his store is disorganized and messy. Sales are down since he has taken over as manager. Mike blames the economy and a poor work force.
The above examples illustrate the radically different results from power and force. The application of force creates problems. Then when more force is used in an attempt to solve a problem, the problem often worsens. Subsequent application of even greater force then produces a downward spiral.
Problems are solved, or avoided, with the utilization of power, not force. Power attracts solutions. Examine your own behavior for instances where you used force instead of power. Next time you are faced with a challenge, choose power.

Monday morning was signing day for four North Vermilion High athletes.
All four seniors signed to play sports for Baton Rouge Community College (BRCC), located 90 minutes from North Vermilion.
Two signed to play baseball, and the other two signed to play softball.
The two softball players had a pleasant surprise during the signing.
Lady Patriot pitcher Ashton Duhon and infielder Kennedy Kelly had planned to be preferred walk-ons to BRCC. However, that meant they would have to pay their tuition, and there was no guarantee they would make the team.
They accepted the challenge, because they just wanted to play softball.
But right before they signed, BRCC softball coach Mark Suire, an Abbeville High graduate, took photos with the two girls and then announced the great news.
Suire told the girls and their parents that they were no longer walk-ons because the school had two scholarships to award them.
Both were happy.
“I did not expect that,” said Kennedy. “I thought I would have to work extra hard to earn a spot. Instead, I am going to work for a spot on the team.”
Kelly can play shortstop, third base or second base next year.
This year, Kelly hit .495 at the plate and knocked in 33 runs with nine doubles, two triples, and 10 home runs. She had an on-base percentage of .540.
Ashton Duhon was NV’s ace pitcher this year. However, when the season began, she was not 100 percent sure she wanted to continue to play at the next level.
“That was exciting to hear what Coach Mark said. It (scholarship) will help a lot,” said Duhon.
Duhon posted an 8-7 record on the hill with a 3.74 ERA. She had 89 strikeouts in 93 innings.
Duhon was a .347 hitter at the plate, knocking in 41 RBIs and hitting 10 home runs.

August 25, 1962 ~ May 1, 2023

A celebration of life will be held at a later date honoring the life of David Keith Landry, 60, who passed away Monday, May 1, 2023.  
David was born on August 25,1962. He was a 1980 graduate of Abbeville High School.  After graduation, he attended USL and later joined the National Guard, where he proudly served our country. Thereafter he started a career with Acadian Ambulance where he achieved certification as a Paramedic. 
David was a caring and inquisitive man, who always enjoyed learning new things. He had a passion for all kinds of music, particularly Jazz and Rock & Roll. Over the years he acquired a unique collection of jewelry amongst other hobbies. He always enjoyed cooking up a big pot of something for his loved ones and spending time outdoors with his children and grandsons, whom were the light of his life.  He cherished the precious moments they shared together.
David is survived by his daughters, Holly Marie Landry Bostick and her husband Kyle, and Nina Landry; sons, Stephen Landry and his wife Kyah, and Matthew Landry; grandchildren, Cooper Bostick, Carter Bostick, Charlie Bostick, and Elijah Iles; parents, Jimmie and Bernice Broussard Landry; siblings, Carolyn Landry (Jimmie Leger), Alisa Manceaux (Dwayne), Bill Landry (Tabatha); and numerous nieces and nephews.
He is preceded in death by his maternal grandparents, Dolze and Clarice (Ledet) Broussard; paternal grandfather, Bernard Landry; grandmother, Eva Hebert Haden; and several aunts and uncles.
Condolences may be sent to the family at www.vincentfuneralhome.net.
All funeral arrangements are being conducted by Vincent Funeral Home of Abbeville, (337) 893-4661.