The people's voice of reason
The people's voice of reason
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Happy New Year! As one year draws to a close and a new year begins, Numbers 6:24-26 is on my mind and heart. It says, “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.” Considered to be one of the most beautiful blessings in the Bible, and perhaps the most widely used benediction, this verse is found tucked away in a book of the Bible that many believers may not actually be too familiar with. The...
Governor Kay Ivey’s 2022 reelection victory run has been very impressive. Some of you may be wondering how quickly I have been able to resolve that she has indeed culminated her victorious run when the General Election was held Tuesday and my column’s published date is Wednesday. It is simply as I have told you numerous times over the past two decades, winning the Republican Primary for governor in the Heart of Dixie is tantamount to election. The General Election is Alabama is an afterthought....
Yes, the United States Supreme Court heard the below case in December 2021 and issued the opinion in June 2022. The majority opinion was written by Chief Justice John Roberts. The other five mostly conservative justices concurred in the opinion and the more liberal leaning three justices during that Court’s term dissented. The Establishment Clause of the United States Constitution is found in the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights and states in part, “Congress shall make no law res...
After the most recent election, Mrs. Grant gave me a call and told me she was pretty much sick of politics and asked if I would like to write something about Maxwell AFB. Definitely nothing about Gislene Maxwell. That is for another day. Since Maxwell AFB is, and has been such an integral part of the city of Montgomery, I said I would love to. Personally, I would love to see even more interactions between the city, definitely this newspaper and the Maxwell/Gunter AFB family. My first exposure...
Canada’s Fraser Institute just released the 2022 Economic Freedom of North America (EFNA) index. The good news: Alabama’s economic freedom increased slightly. The bad news: we still trail three neighboring states. Economic freedom refers to freedoms to buy, sell, work, and start businesses. A free economy relies on “personal choice and markets to answer basic economic questions such as what is to be produced, how it is to be produced, how much is produced, and for whom is production inten...
The Pilgrims’ first Christmas in the new world was remarkable, but not for the reasons you’d think. On December 25, 1621, William Bradford, the governor of the Plymouth Colony, prohibited the celebration of Christmas. But he wasn’t a Scrooge or a Grinch; he was simply following his religious conviction. He believed that Sunday was the only day for celebration and time off from work. While the Pilgrims’ first Thanksgiving was like our celebration, their first Christmas bore no resembl...
Straight-ticket voting AND the most restrictive ballot access laws in the nation; which will once again block political competition in Alabama. Most notable, even with mass straight-ticket and ‘write-in’ gubernatorial race votes (trumping up signature requirements to impede competition) was Dr. James ‘Jimmy’ Blake’s 3% result. This would suffice for ballot retention in most States. Some voters, who actually take voting seriously (didn’t mindlessly bubble-mark the Blue or Red socialist p...
For the past several decades, the news media and others have reported dire warnings about what we must do to protect the world we live in. Today, the big claimed bugaboo is “climate change.” Politicians worldwide claim that our consumption of fossil fuels (petroleum and coal) is destroying our planet with “greenhouse gases.” Their proposed “solution” is to force all of us to switch to “sustainable” sources of energy and implement a “carbon tax” to enforce it. Climate change is real. That’s natur...
Every year I claim to myself that I am going to write an official Christmas column. A column good enough to run every Christmas when the days just prior become so rushed and busy. Something classic and timeless and wonderful. Something that everyone can enjoy year after year. Words that fill hearts with the spirit and cheer of Christmas. A thought provoking piece that reminds all minds the real reason. I still haven’t written it. At least not yet. When I do though, it would have to include s...
Merry Christmas, my friends! In our Christmas card this year, my husband, Brian, and I chose the verse Romans 15:13. “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13 Paul's prayer for the Christians in Rome found in this verse is often used in churches today as a closing benediction. It is a powerful statement about what God can do in the heart and mind of every Christian. Paul makes this r...
This 2022 Election Year in Alabama has been monumental and memorable. Any gubernatorial year is big in the state. It is the brass ring of Alabama politics to be governor. However, the race to succeed our Senior Senator Richard Shelby has been the marquee contest. This year will be the last hurrah for our two leading political figures in the state. Senator Richard Shelby is retiring after 36 years in the U.S. Senate at age 88. Governor Kay Ivey will be elected to her final term as Governor at...
One hundred two souls left England in 1620 to land in Virginia where they were to receive land through contract by the Virginia Company. The Virginia Company was chartered by King James I to set up English colonies in Virginia. Yes, it’s the same King James that commissioned that version of the Bible. We often think of the Mayflower as a ship of Pilgrims but only forty-one were on that voyage to separate themselves from the Church of England. The others, whom the Pilgrims referred to as s...
FECKLESS: lacking initiative or strength of character; irresponsible, useless, worthless, incompetent, inefficient, inept, good-for-nothing, idle, slothful, indolent, shiftless, spiritless, apathetic, aimless, unambitious. At 2128 local time, on the night of 16/17 May 1943, the first of 19 British Royal Air Force (RAF) Lancaster bombers took off on OPERATION CHASTISE: The raid to attack German dams in the Ruhr. In arguably the most perfect example of a center of gravity analysis turned...
One hundred years ago this month, Italy succumbed to a new political order that would ignite a worldwide struggle for freedom. Completely abandoning its rightful claim as the birthplace of republican self-government, Italy embraced the fanatical politics of Benito Mussolini and embarked on a sad journey of prioritizing rhetoric over reason and ideology over experience. The permanent scaring and disability of the veterans who suffered the horrors of trench warfare were a constant reminder of the...
To those who don’t want to be a part of the Bloods or Crips political gang…. https://www.alabamagazette.com/story/2018/12/01/opinion/the-scourge-of-straight-ticketers/1518.html Straight-ticket voting enables a voter to cast all their votes for one party with a single mark at the top of the ballot. This duopoly party enhancing practice finally died in most States. Little surprise it remains in uncompetitive/ballot access blocked Alabama which is among the last with six other States still sufferin...
On the 8th of this month, we will be going to the polls to vote for and against various candidates in this year's mid-term general election. For some offices, we won't have much of a choice-the lesser of two evils-typically a lack luster Republican against an even more lackluster, if not tyrannical, Democrat. That is the routine of many elections, and this year is no exception. Nearly all of our really fine candidates met defeat in the Republican primary. These include our brightest star, Mo...
I bought a purse last week I will probably never use. It is small. A simple zippered change pouch. I don’t need it, and it doesn’t particularly suit my taste. It is not my shade of pink. Typically, I think it might would appeal to someone much younger, but I touched it. I felt the texture of the beadwork…and it reminded me of a similar beaded change purse I had when I was a kid. The church my family attended would have an annual Family Day. Or at least that is what we called it. It was meant...
Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and so I’ve been thinking about gratitude a lot lately. What is it? When should we show it? What does God say about it? 1 Thessalonians 5:18 tell us, “Give thanks in all circumstances”. This verse doesn’t command us to feel thankful in all circumstances. Instead, it says we should “give thanks in all circumstances.” When I begin to praise God in a difficult situation, even if I don’t feel like it, many times the scales fall from my eyes and I begin to se...
A driving under the influence (DUI) offense carries serious fines and jail time especially if the same individual is arrested multiple times for a DUI. In 2017, Alabama was 5th in drunk driving related deaths.There are some special rules that apply. Interestingly the special rules apply to whether (1) the individual is driving a school bus/ day care vehicle, or (2) it is a commercial vehicle, or (3) the individual is under the age of 21, or (4) the individual does not fall into any of the above...
School board members are some of the most selfless public servants in Alabama. This accolade goes to the Alabama State Board of Education, and more specifically local school board members. These members are tasked with a very important mission but receive very little compensation for their time and efforts. They are indeed public servants. The Alabama State Board of Education is a nine member body that sets public education policy for K-12 schools. The governor is an ex-officio member of the...
NIHILISM: The rejection of all religious and moral principles, in the belief that life is meaningless. A viewpoint that traditional values and beliefs are unfounded and that existence is senseless and useless. Extreme skepticism maintaining that nothing in the world has a real existence. A doctrine or belief that conditions in the social organization are so bad as to make destruction desirable for its own sake independent of any constructive program or possibility. It is also a political belief...
With supersonic air travel, it takes less than three days to travel around the world. Five hundred years ago, it took three years. When Ferdinand Magellan left Spain in 1519, he embarked on an adventure that was rife with danger and uncertainty. His flagship, if you can call it that, was a mere 75 feet long and had room for just over 60 people. He had no map and would be guided primarily by a crude form of celestial navigation. In reality, his destination was undetermined. But, his ultimate...
Bill Britt (4/18/18 Alabama Political Reporter) stated current and former BCA [Business Council of Alabama] members thought the board’s vote demanding Bill Canary’s resignation was good news for our State’s future. Some were angry BCA Chairman Perry Hand wanted to keep Canary until fall. APR’s sources said Hand’s timing was designed for BCA to further influence election outcomes; control campaign donations and win enough races to rally a comeback. Hand seemed willing to risk everythin...
From 2017 through 2021, under the Donald Trump administration, America’s inflation rate remained steady at about two percent annually, a rate that will underwrite a strong, robust economy. But after the beginning of Joe Biden’s regime, reckless government spending and meddling cranked it up to 7% in 2021 and 8.5% so far into 2022. Why did it happen? The handwriting is right there on the wall. Joe Biden’s ruthless and abusive tampering with our petroleum industries produced the expected short...
Just mentioning the name Nathan Bedford Forrest stirs many emotions. As Abe Lincoln has been falsely deified, Forrest has been falsely demonized. Remember, the winner writes the history and they have done a massive disservice to the legacy of Forrest. Nathan Bedford Forrest was born in Chapel Hill, Tennessee, and moved with his family to Salem, Mississippi, in 1834. Often characterized as “Scots-Irish”, Forrest had a Norman French surname and considerable English lineage (his Mother was a Bec...
