The people's voice of reason

Articles from the February 1, 2017 edition


Sorted by date  Results 1 - 22 of 22

  • Alabama House Speaker Mac McCutcheon Ready for Business

    Staff Writer|Feb 1, 2017

    Vital issues for our 2017 Alabama Legislature House Convenes: 2/07/2017 ~ 12:00 noon Senate Convenes: 02/07/2017 Budget Crisis top priority! The budgets will be the biggest problem facing lawmakers this session. House members remain largely opposed to tax increases. It is expected that the ongoing struggle on gambling legislation will be prominent again this session. Gov. Bentley has indicated he will propose a plan similar to his plan last year to borrow $800 million to build four new prisons....

  • What gives the President the ability to pardon or commute sentences imposed on criminals?

    Ron Holtsford|Feb 1, 2017

    Article 2, Section 2 of the Unites States Constitution says, “... and he shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.” This has been in the news just prior to the inauguration of Donald Trump as President and it has become common for the outgoing President to issue pardons or commutation of sentences. With the exceptions of Presidents Harrison and Garfield all Presidents have issued pardons and/ or commutations. Har...

  • Can We Agree on Anything?

    Marcia Chambliss|Feb 1, 2017

    Americans now have a new administration, battle lines have been drawn between the left and the right, and it would appear there is little hope that our fiercely divided nation can agree about anything. Politics naturally divides as it is only in the civil debate of opposing ideas are we able to create solutions to problems. Unfortunately, the continual stream of media commentary encouraging rancor in addition to an escalation of protests from the left designed to further divide makes the prospec...

  • "IT IS A CRUEL WORLD, HERR HAUPTMAN. YOU SAID IT YOURSELF."

    Robert Tate|Feb 1, 2017
    1

    This is my favorite line from my all-time favorite movie, The Blue Max. In this 1966 movie that my dad took me to watch when I was all of five years-old, George Peppard plays a German World War I fighter pilot, Bruno Stachel. After being denied his first aerial victory and being dismissed by his snobby, upper-crust squadron mates, Bruno shoots down a British airplane over his own airfield. When confronted by his angry commanding officer, Stachel walks over to the downed airplane, cuts the regist...

  • Union At All Costs:

    John Sophocleus|Feb 1, 2017

    Alabama native son John M. Taylor (Alexander City) has penned a ‘must read’ for all who want to advance their understanding of our morphing from a voluntary collation of sovereign States to the forced consolidation imposed via war 1861-5 and tyrannical years of ‘reconstruction’ to follow. A well seasoned backlog of Taylor’s short articles dating back to the early 1990’s, were the starting point of the project. I was delighted Johnny asked my input over the years and truly honored when asked...

  • House Votes to Stop Tax Dollars from Funding Abortion

    Rep. Martha Roby|Feb 1, 2017

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Representative Martha Roby (R-Ala.) today praised House passage of H.R. 7, the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of 2017, saying the bill’s passage is a victory for American taxpayers and the pro-life community. “Since the infamous Roe v. Wade decision 44 years ago, nearly 60 million unborn children in this country have had their lives ended by abortion,” Roby said. “I believe in order to build a culture that truly values li...

  • Inside the Statehouse

    Steve Flowers|Feb 1, 2017

    During the past couple of months everywhere I go people continually ask me why in the world the legislature could not simply put the issue of whether they could vote for or against a lottery on the November ballot. The fact that this inquiry has lingered for this long tells me that folks are upset about this travesty. They are mad at the legislature. However, the blame lies with the governor. Indeed, the legislature met in a special session to address this issue of whether or not to put the...

  • Warmongering Madness

    John Martin|Feb 1, 2017

    In addition to repealing the catastrophic Obamacare health care plan, one of President Donald Trump’s absolute top priorities must be to resist the military industrial complex and put an immediate end to the carnage and destruction our nation has been spreading all over the Middle East under the guise of saving the local people from their leaders and civil unrest. For the past 50 years and more—from Vietnam to the Middle East—our involvement has produced no benefits whatsoever. The result has b...

  • Patience and Pressure are the Keys to Deer Hunting

    Steve Long|Feb 1, 2017

    Deer season is entering the final stretch, and it's finally getting to the real chase! The rut's kicking into full swing, so if you've been keeping the pressure off certain little spots, now's the time to lock 'em down and snag you that buck! I like to remind folks that patience is key to deer hunting. Outside of the obvious "wait and see" approach to deer hunting in general, what with waiting in a box, blind, or ladder stand, that patience extends to the deer we harvest as well. Entering the...

  • Ringtailed cat/Miner's cat

    Ron VanHerwyn|Feb 1, 2017

    Ringtail cats are not related to the cat family but are members of the raccoon family, Procyonidae which also includes Kinkajous, and Coatimundis. Ringtails are cat sized animals that resemble a mix between a fox and a raccoon. The face is fox-like, with a pointed snout, and the body is raccoon-like and elongated. The top side of the animal is yellow to dark brown or black, and the underside is a whitish buff. The ears and eyes are large and the eyes are ringed by white fur. The tail is very...

  • Troy, So. Alabama, UAB Always on D-I bubble

    Ed Jones Sports Editor|Feb 1, 2017

    It has been heartbreaking to me as a football fan to watch some of the teams in the south who have moved up to Division I football over the last decade. Teams like Troy, UAB, South Alabama and Georgia State were probably correct in the assessment of moving into the top class of college football with the plethora of bowl games available, the promise of more money in the coffers due to expanded crowds and fan bases. Also the alumni were stuck in what they considered the oblivion of Division 1-AA...

  • Whatever happened to good manners?

    Dr. John Bitter|Feb 1, 2017

    “We just ain't got no couth no more.” Those of us who are stumbling into our Golden Years, and are watching national events on television are frequently reminded of two behaviors we learned in our youth; two behaviors that we seldom witness any more. These are manners and decorum. We grew up being constantly reminded of our manners, and frequently punished should we stray from either. We were constantly being reminded of our manners by our elders, and straying from the principle of manners wou...

  • A More Excellent Way

    Michael J. Brooks|Feb 1, 2017

    He was deacon chairman in the church when I became the pastor. I was young and impressionable, and he made an impression on me. I still quote Horace, though he's been in heaven for many years, when I jokingly refer to the Sunday worship guide as the "bullington" as he did. Horace had a sense of humor, but everyone knew he loved the Lord and his church. One day his wife Ruth told me the season of the year we were in at the time--summer--was particularly hard for Horace. I asked her what she...

  • "Dealing With Our Anger"

    Dr. Rick Marshall|Feb 1, 2017

    February is known as the month of love with the annual mid-month celebration of Valentine’s Day. Love is certainly one of the most powerful emotions God gave us. Most of us enjoy the love of others and find happiness in returning love. But there is another powerful emotion we are less capable of managing well within the framework of our Christian faith. That is anger. Let’s start here with a question. What is your pet peeve? Everyone has one. One of the most frustrating to me is telemarketers. Y...

  • Set a goal, make a plan, and save automatically: america saves week

    Kylle McKinney|Feb 1, 2017

    Saving for the future is a vital part of ensuring a secure retirement. American Savings Education Council and America Saves coordinate the annual America Saves Week. Started in 2007, the week is an annual opportunity for organizations to promote good savings behavior and a chance for individuals to assess their own saving status. For years, Social Security has collaborated with America Saves Week to promote our shared mission of helping millions of people save for their future. This year,...

  • The Origin of Old Glory

    Bobbie Ames|Feb 1, 2017

    The story of the Stars and Stripes is the story of our nation. It is the story of freedom, liberty, and equal justice under the law. Our flag has gone through the evolution of our ideas and of our free institutions. The flag is our symbol, our emblem for our ideas, our faith, and our laws. In our early days when we were thirteen British colonies, the banners borne by the Revolutionary forces varied widely. The local flags and colonial devices, displayed on land and sea during the first months of...

  • News from the Montgomery County Sheriffs Office

    Sheriff Derrick Cunningham|Feb 1, 2017

    Neighborhood Watch/Crime Prevention If you are planning to develop a Neighborhood Watch or Crime Prevention Program, please do not hesitate to contact the Sheriff's Office at 832.7106 to set up a time for us to come out and speak to your group! ~~~~~~ MCSO Firing Range Building Dedication On December 1, 2016, the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office Training Facility and Firing Range was officially dedicated to retired Sheriff D.T. Marshall, who passed away earlier this year. The Firing Range was...

  • Goodbye and Good Riddance Obama Godspeed President Trump

    Chris Beeker Jr|Feb 1, 2017

    In the words of the old spiritual, "Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty we're free at last." Barack Obama is no longer president and Donald Trump is. As further proof that a leopard doesn't change his spots, Obama spent his final weeks in office doing the same things he did throughout his presidency – displaying his utter contempt for America and trashing our Constitution. In a series of despicable displays of arrogance over his last few weeks in office, the lame duck circumvented Con...

  • Martin Luther King Jr. Parade

    Feb 1, 2017

    Sheriff Joe Sedinger, Captain Larry Nixon and Deputy Josh Averette participated in the Martin Luther King Jr. Parade that was held on Monday January 16, 2017 in downtown Prattville. A great time was had by all that participated. Pictured are snapshots from the starting lineup of the parade....

  • Southern Cuisine

    David Spooner|Feb 1, 2017

    I was doing my usual “surfing the net”, thumbing through old recipes, thinking of a restaurant I want visit, and watching cooking shows, trying to think of a topic for this month’s article. It came to me when one of our granddaughters opened the refrigerator, and commented about the amount of butter, cream cheese, and eggs on the shelves. She wondered why we had 2 pounds of butter, four packages of cream cheese, and two dozen eggs. Moreover, she wondered why we had six mason jars of soup. Good...

  • SOUTHERN GARDENING!

    Judge Peggy Givhan|Feb 1, 2017

    February, in the gardening world, is a transition month from winter to spring. February is also a month of great expectation for things to come in the next garden cycle. But most of us associate this month as the month of love with cupid's arrows finding their mark on Valentine's day. It is this month that many have high expectations that this is the years they will create the best garden ever. Of course, garden beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I think we can all agree with Fielding...

  • "Love, Sweet Love"

    Trisston Wright Burrows|Feb 1, 2017

    Remember the line in that old pop song, "What the world needs now is love, sweet love". How true that is! God's love that will make all the difference. Don't you just get excited to see God's love manifested in someone's life? Watching new Christians learn and grow close to God to me is just amazing. You begin to see them attending church, reading their Bibles, their family lives begin falling into place, and they begin to be active for Christ and all because of God's love. Of course, we as...

Rendered 04/20/2024 05:46