The people's voice of reason
The people's voice of reason
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All signs point to a Titanic political year in 2022. In fact, as I look back over the last six decades of my observations of Alabama politics, next year may be the most momentous. Most states elect their governors and legislators in presidential years. However, in the Heart of Dixie, we have our big election year in non-presidential years. Not only will we elect our governor to a four-year term, we will elect all of our constitutional officers like Attorney General, Agriculture Commissioner,...
Would you take 3 simple steps to discover who God created you to be? Sounds too easy? Maybe. Maybe not. Try taking the steps and see for yourself! I learned these 3 steps and started trying to practice them years ago when I first read a little book by John Maxwell entitled, Think On These Things. I share them now with you. Step 1: Discover Your Potential I love the story of a young farm boy whose father raised chickens in the mountains of Colorado. One day the adventuresome boy climbed a high pl...
Over the years, I have discussed my observations and concepts of the two different roles or routes taken by a U.S. Senator or Congressman during their tenure in Washington. One clearly chooses one of two postures in their representation of you in Washington. Our delegates in D.C. are either benefactors or ideologues. The role of benefactor is much better for any state, especially Alabama. This public figure is not only a benefactor but also a facilitator and a statesman. In other words, this...
Ash Wednesday. Lent. Palm Sunday. Maundy Thursday. Good Friday. Easter. The Season of Lent and Easter are full of strange names and words that many people do not understand. I have found that a great many people do not know the meaning and significance of these “Churchy” words and Holidays in the Season of Lent and Easter. In fact, most people probably don’t know that the word “holiday” comes from the old English word “Haligdaeg” which literally means “Holy Day.” So, let’s see if we can help...
The 2021 legislative session has begun. It will be a monumental and difficult session. Due to COVID restrictions, the logistics of just meeting will be a task. House members will be spread out all over the Statehouse to adhere to distancing requirements. It is still uncertain as to how the Press and lobbyists accommodations will be handled. A new virtual voting console system has been installed to allow for House members to vote since all will not be on the House floor. There are a myriad of...
As the 2021 Regular Legislative Session looms, the 800-pound gorilla in the room is the prison issue. The situation has grown more dire and imminent because the U.S. Justice Department has now filed suit against the State of Alabama. When Kay Ivey took office in January of 2019, she and the new legislature knew that they were going to have to address the prison problem in the state. Fixing prisons is not a popular issue. It wins you no votes to fix a broken prison system. Prisoners do not vote....
I’m writing this article from a deer stand as I look out into the woods and onto a small green field on a beautiful and sunny winter day! I love deer hunting, and I just love being in the woods! There is something about men and women hunting and the connection many of us have with the wilderness. Now I know a lot of women who love the woods, too, and I know a few that love to hunt as well. My wife, Janeese Spencer, doesn’t like to hunt, but she has a very special appreciation for God’s creat...
As is my annual ritual, my year-end column pays tribute to Alabama political legends who have passed away during the year. Sonny Cauthen passed away in Montgomery at age 70. He was the ultimate inside man in Alabama politics. Sonny was a lobbyist before lobbying was a business. He kept his cards close to his vest and you never knew what he was doing. Sonny was the ultimate optimist who knew what needed to be achieved and found like-minded allies with whom to work. When he had something to get...
As we close the book on 2020, we will close the door on national politics and get back to the basics, good old Alabama politics. That's my game. It is what I know and like to write and talk about. Some say my prognostications and observations on Alabama politics are sometimes accurate. However, not so much so on the national level. About a decade ago there was an open presidential race and a spirited Republican battle for the nomination had begun. One of the entrants stood out to me. U.S. Senato...
MOST OF US ARE READY FOR AND EXCITED ABOUT THE ARRIVAL OF 2021, AND MOST OF US ARE GLAD TO BE PUTTING 2020 IN THE REARVIEW MIRROR, RIGHT? Everyone I know is anxious to return to some semblance of normalcy, and it is tempting to look toward 2021 as the cure for all our problems related to this past year. But as much as I and many others want to do just that … it might be a big mistake! Now, I view myself as a very positive leader. One of my favorite quotes is this: * A pessimist complains about t...
On the morning of the momentous November 3 Presidential Election Day, I began my day on my hometown radio station, WTBF in Troy, which has been my tradition for election days for over 30 years. As the polls began to open around 7 a.m., we began getting calls that the people were lined up for almost a mile outside of the two most populous voting locations in Pike County. Then, I started getting texts that a good many of the Republican boxes in major North Alabama cities had people waiting in...
Around Labor Day when this year’s presidential campaign was beginning to heat up, I wrote a column about the classic 1960 presidential contest between John Kennedy and Richard Nixon. This pivotal presidential race marked the beginning of television as the premier political medium. The first televised presidential debate that year was the turning point of that campaign. Kennedy won the Whitehouse with his performance or as some would say, Nixon lost by his appearance on TV that fateful night i...
In this season of Giving, may you discover that Generosity is Good for You! Generous people discover something about giving that selfish people will never understand. What is it you may ask? Generous people discover 7 reasons why generosity is good for you: 1) It guarantees that your priorities are served. Think about it – you can’t always spend your time on your priorities, but your gifts can see to it that the work you deeply believe in goes on. 2) It breaks the hold of selfishness. In every o...
Editor’s Note: Steve Flowers wrote this anticipating the 2020 election results. How did he do? Is Alabama still showing red? Our 2020 Election was November 3rd. The Presidential race was the center of all interest. You know the results, unfortunately, my column for today had to go to press before voting began. As you are absorbing the results, allow me to remind you that we do not elect our president by popular vote but by an Electoral College system whereby the electoral winner of each state ev...
Civility is formal politeness in behavior and speech! Civility comes from the Latin word “civis” which means “citizen”. So, civility is civilized conduct. The Bible actually has a lot to say about civility. “Treat others the way you want to be treated.” - Jesus, Luke 6:31 “Let your conversations be always full of grace and seasoned with salt.” - Paul, Colossians 4:6 “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” - James, James 1:19 Well, I think it is safe to...
With it being a presidential election year and an election for one of our United States Senate Seats and all of the interest that goes along with those high-profile contests, it has gone under the radar that most of our cities in the state had elections for mayor and city council last month. Mayors serve four-year terms and to most Alabamians they are the most important vote they will cast this year. The job of mayor of a city is a difficult and intricate fulltime, 24 hours a day dedication to...
Political discord. Civil unrest. Violence in the streets. Toxic division. Ugly accusations. Harmful words. In the minds of many, these words define the state of our wonderful country right now! The lack of respect and civility in our country in recent months and years is very alarming and downright scary to me! It is a red flag waving in the wind for us as Americans, and we should tread very carefully in determining how we as a people in these great United States Of America will personally...
Labor Day is upcoming on Monday. In bygone days it was the benchmark day for campaign season to start. Historically, Labor Day barbeques were events where political campaigns had their roots. Camp stew and barbequed pork were devoured while folks listened to politicians promise how they were going to bring home the pork. The most legendary political Labor Day Barbeques have been held in the Northwest corner of the state. There were two monumental, legendary, barbeque events in that neck of the w...
This COVID-19 crisis has revealed a great many things about us. You have probably learned a lot about yourself in the last six months, right? Crisis does that to you. Crisis isn’t just an accelerator, it’s a revealer showing you some surprising things about yourself - some good,some not so good. Since COVID struck in mid-March, many of us have seen more than a few habits, wants and preferences revealed. It may be wise to take stock in what we have learned so far. You never know how much you lov...
How Has Coronavirus Affected Alabama Politics? As we end the first half of 2020, there is no doubt that the Coronavirus is the story of the year. The Coronavirus saga of 2020 and its devastation of the nation’s and state’s economic well-being may be the story of the decade. How has the Coronavirus affected Alabama politics? The answer is negligibly, if at all. The Republican Primary runoff to hold the Junior U.S. Senate seat was postponed by the virus epidemic. It is set for July 14, which is ri...
Mastering our mouths, taming our tongues, watching our words is one of the toughest things to do! We use words all the time, not only in our conversations but also in our emails, texts, social media, blogs, posts and tweets. We are a nation of talkers! “Self-control means controlling the tongue!” – Proverbs 13:3 Another way to put it: He who guards his mouth controls himself. The Book of James has this to say about the tongue: “...but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, f...
As we end the first half of 2020, there is no doubt that the Coronavirus is the story of the year. The Coronavirus saga of 2020 and its devastation of the nation’s and state’s economic well-being may be the story of the decade. How has the Coronavirus affected Alabama politics? The answer is negligibly, if at all. The Republican Primary runoff to hold the Junior U.S. Senate seat was postponed by the virus epidemic. It is set for July 14, which is right around the corner. The race between Tommy T...
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. stated the following truth: “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about the things that matter most.” In the midst of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s, my family lived in Mobile, Ala. where my Dad was serving as the Senior Pastor at St. Marks United Methodist Church. The black leaders of the Civil Rights movement in Mobile requested to hold a peaceful rally and a march in support of voting rights and other issues of equality. The Mayor of Mobile, Geo...
Another legislation session has passed, and Alabama still has no lottery. Actually, the legislature does not in itself have the authority to pass a state lottery, they can only authorize a ballot initiative to let you vote on a lottery. It takes a constitutional amendment. The lottery would pass in a vote in Alabama simply because Alabamians are tired of their money going out of state to Georgia, Florida, Mississippi and Tennessee. All our surrounding Southern sister states have lotteries and...
The Secret 4 C’s of Success Three military recruiters accepted an invitation to speak to the Senior Class of a local high school. It was agreed that each recruiter would take fifteen minutes to make his pitch. The army recruiter went first, but he spoke for more than twenty minutes. The navy recruiter also spoke for twenty minutes. The Marine Corps recruiter, realizing that his fifteen-minute speech had now been cut to about two minutes, walked to the podium and spent the first sixty seconds in...