Karen Pickett met me at Shari’s, and her soft-spoken voice belies a ton of passion for Ruston and its political scene. Pickett, a former councilwoman, recently launched the Ruston Home blog.

“It wasn’t anything too preplanned. I just wanted something where we could have some online dialogue – like a bulletin board or something,” she said. “It just popped in my head in November to start a blog.”

It’s not meant to go head-to-head with Ruston Connection.

“Some people said it’s like picking a fight – or continuing a fight – against the Ruston Connection,” she said. “I don’t see it that way. I just wanted to get people talking.”

She believes there is good reason for the anger in town.

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“Most of it is just pent-up frustration for three or four years,” she said. “There’s no response from many members of the council, and when you get a response, it’s pretty vicious. It makes life very difficult.

“Emotionally, it feels really good for me to have an outlet to express my opinions – even if it’s not going to change the minds of those guys sitting up there.”

She thinks the town can heal itself.

“We need to be talking a lot more in a nonconfrontational setting – and the council meetings tend to be confrontational,” she said. “I don’t think shutting down the council meetings is the answer. I have wanted us to work on a strategic plan for years now. If we can talk civilly, we can decide what we want to be in the future.”