The people's voice of reason
The people's voice of reason
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The primary runoff is in the record books with over 87% percent of registered voters not participating in party elections they funded, some saying in fear of making an error for actual or accused ‘crossover voting.’ This may be the duopoly’s desired result fueling the irony of claiming to want increased voter participation at the same enacting more impediments toward this end. The obvious answer is to prohibit taxpayers from paying for these party politics. If a party wants to use our publi...
We are now well into the 2018 hurricane season, and a major storm may or may not hit us this year. But when one does, the news media will always mention a little consequence called “price gouging.” Reporters usually hype it up as something terrible, selfish, and even criminal. But when disasters strike, entrepreneurs are quick to respond by trucking in critical supplies and selling them for prices far above the norm. And people in need will be willing to pay for them. Are these suppliers rip...
On July 6, 1776, General George Washington called for America’s independence from Great Britain, and declared the “The United colonies of North America” were to now be a free and independent nation, no longer under the iron rule of Great Britain. His words were followed by Thomas Jefferson’s declaration that “all men were created equal and endowed by their creator with the inalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” Then in 1892, Francis Bellamy put forth his “Pledge of...
Bill Britt (4/18/18 Alabama Political Reporter) stated current and former BCA members thought the board’s vote to demand Canary’s resignation was good news for the State’s future and those close to the process were angry Chairman Hand wanted to keep Canary until the fall. APR’s sources said this was an attempt for the BCA to further influence election outcomes. The plan was to control campaign donations and win enough races to stage a comeback. Hand seemed willing to risk everything protect...
The purpose of a law, any law, is a singular objective—protecting people from the wrongdoings of other people. To be moral, just, legitimate, and Constitutional, it must meet that criterion. Otherwise, it is usurpation and oppression. Laws that are obviously just are those against murder, bodily harm, theft, destruction, and any other actions that hurt or violate other people and/or their property. These can be readily understood by any civilized person. Common sense dictates that only a few l...
Don’t laugh. Little Zimbabwe could be a model for providing prosperity for the entire world. Most people remember this African nation for creating the most rampant hyperinflation in recorded history—a rate of 231 million percent annually. In the end, people were carrying boxes of $100 trillion dollar bills. Some also recall the ancient granite structures of Great Zimbabwe, from which the country derived its present name. Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) has some of the most fertile farm land in Afr...
Recent political Kabuki theatre has some contemplating Gov. Ivey’s dating preferences and Judge Sue Bell Cobb’s campaign hiring practices. How candidates deal with these may be revealing. I also wonder why Cobb did not quickly and simply apologize, then remove the convicted sex offender from her campaign team. I’m similarly at a loss on the dearth of political discussion on Ivey’s inaction w.r.t. the Alabama PACT program during our last economic meltdown and forecasts of her abilities to addr...
Much ink has been spilled these past months to highlight outrageous observed results from our Alabama law enabling sheriffs to transfer ‘inmate food provision’ monies in their favour. These monies are deposited into county Sheriff ‘personal’ accounts, not into any specific government account(s). Most noteworthy is Etowah County Sheriff Todd Entrekin’s four-bedroom house with an in-ground pool and canal access in Orange Beach for $740,000; one of several properties (total assessed value of...
Today, we are nearing the midpoint of Donald Trump’s second year. So far, he has done some very good things: 1. Ended our subjugation to the Paris Climate Agreement. 2. Put the brakes on mass m igration ofpotentially dangerous people. 3. Reduced illegal immigration by 67%. 4. Re-opened the coal mines and re-established jobs for the miners. 5. Withdrew from the job-threatening Trans-Pacific Partnership. 6. Revived essential pipelines that will ensure a dependable supply of petroleum. 7. S...
New Orleans Mayor (wannabe actor) Mitch Landrieu has made many appearances recently from 60 Minutes to the usual 'talking head' TV morning circuit displaying removed statues stashed in secret locations and extoling his recent book entitled: In the Shadow of Statues: A White Southerner Confronts History. The removals were prompted by efforts to rebuild the city after devastating hurricanes. I'm not foolish enough to think champions of leviathan like Messrs. Christie, Landrieu, et al will ever...
As we forge ahead into the Donald’s second year of office, we are witnessing some serious improvements in America’s economy—taxes are being cut, production is up, wages are up, and unemployment is down. The future hasn’t looked this bright since the best days of Dwight D. Eisenhower. But then, suddenly, Trump dropped his hammer—punitive tariffs on three very essential imported items—steel, aluminum, and photovoltaic cells. The rates are steep—10% for aluminum, 25% for steel, and 30% for solar...
Some of the biggest public menaces that have developed over the years have been the overbearing numbers and intensity of safety regulations. They have gone far beyond anything we need for reasonable public safety and protection. America was founded as a free country, where individual liberty is paramount. People would be free to act on their own behalves and look after themselves. On the other hand, the duty of government is to protect our shores from foreign invaders and protect people from...
Every year another batch of young souls descend upon Auburn University embarking upon a four year (oft a five or six year) mission to better themselves in hopes of one day being heralded as “an Auburn man.” Better still, they might someday achieve the status recently bestowed upon Jay Jacobs as being “an Auburn man through and through.” They’re told to believe being an Auburn man is encapsulated by the Auburn Creed, penned nearly seventy-five years ago by *George Petrie. Some may recall the Alab...
Many, many years ago children of the ruling classes and of the landed gentry were tutored in the home - or palace - by scholars of great repute. The rest of society, for the most part, was illiterate, since philosophers such as Aristotle, Socrates and Plato plied their craft only to the royal or the rich. The rest of society learned its letters and ciphers as best it could. Today there exist derivations of this method of teaching in what has come to be called Home Schooling. A typical home...
The immigration debate is heated up once again. In true “reality showmanship” Pres. Trump has made for some great sound bites and TV coverage but little of substance. When asked as a candidate how he would accomplish his ends of securing the border and getting Mexico to pay for it Mr. Trump simply asserted “MANAGEMENT.” Well management is NOT an answer, but nonetheless revealing. One who uses eminent domain takings, federal bankruptcy laws, etc. to redistribute wealth in their favor certain...
Not since the “War of Northern Aggression” has the United States of America been less united than it is today. Watching the Democrats vigorous pouting during President Donald Trump's State of the Union message last month, the situation would have been funny had it not been more serious. It was almost as if Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton had returned to life to sit in the Capitol, frowning and posturing as President Trump gave his “State of the Union” speech. As the public viewed...
Just about everybody now understands the law of natural selection. It is very simple and obvious—the strong survive and reproduce; the weak perish and die out—what we call “Survival of the fittest.” But in the beginning, when Charles Darwin first introduced it, many people became very angry and claimed that it was blasphemy and against the Word of God. In the early 20th century, people in America were taking interest in eugenics—selectively breeding people to promote the propagation of the st...
Much ink has been spilled since Doug Jones’ (49.9%) close victory over Roy Moore (48.4%) in the US Senate special election. It is my hope Democrats devastated by Trump’s win and Republicans recent despair on Moore’s defeat evokes empathy of how many eligible voters (esp. those who refuse to waste their vote on duopoly candidates) feel after most elections. Even with 2% of voters who participated not voting D or R, 60% of eligible voters stayed home for another low turnout result. Reince Prieb...
There is no doubt that nearly everybody is frustrated with the increasing dishonesty and declining value of most of our public servants—from Senators and Congressmen down to city councilmen and county commissioners. Over the years, they have acted less like servants and more like rulers. We also know that they are seriously overpaid for their mostly part time jobs. For many years, members of both parties of our Congress and Senate routinely and conveniently voted for pay and expense raises with...
My first Gazette Christmas column contemplated how many were still haunted by Miss Greer Garson’s voice in the opening narration of the 1958 animated version of “The Little Drummer Boy,” one of the few indelible remaining memories of my youth from Christmases long past. The King James Version of Luke 2:1 reads: “And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.” Her narration continued with, “To disobey the Roman Emperor mea...
Catastrophic destruction wrought by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma this year, we have witnessed a great deal of wailing and gnashing of teeth in response to the failure of our National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) to provide enough funding to repair the damage. Why can’t our government settle the claims? For anybody with even a mediocre understanding of how insurance works, the answer is simple: The cost of covering the damage far exceeds the premiums that have been collected. The money is just no...
It's that time of the year when the thoughts of most of us turn to the celebration of Christmas. It's also the time of the year when the squirrels come out of the woodwork and we're inundated with more nonsense than we want to endure as it relates to the holiday: it's principal characters, and its celebration. From this person's viewpoint there are two tales that best represent Christmas and all it stands for; these being: O. Henry's The gift of the Magi, and Charles dickens' A Christmas Carol....
There's a different scent in the wind on Goat Hill with Felon Hubbard in the rear view mirror. House Speaker Mac McCutcheon has shown himself a different Spirit than his predecessor he once shilled for, recently highlighted by efforts focused on reducing waste and revising our State budgeting process. More hidden from public view, some political junkies were pleased how quickly McCutcheon rebuked shady, vulgar 'political business as usual' Riley, Inc. type fundraising tactics to further signal...
After witnessing the inefficiencies and abuses of government-run programs, it is no surprise that government is grossly inept at providing adequate help to the victims of natural disasters—i.e. earthquakes, tornadoes, floods, and of course the three devastating hurricanes we have suffered this year. Disaster relief, like practically every government program, is not only inept, but is much more expensive than relief provided by the private sector via charities and volunteers. And to make m...
While most of the months of the year derive their names from some sort of significant or romantic root, three months of the year have no special meaning other than numerical. September gets its name from the Latin word septem, seven, October for the Latin octo, eight, and novem in Latin means nine. That's how the months of the year lined up numerically in times gone by. Unlike July, which was named for Julius Caesar, or August, which got its name from Augustus, the word November just means that...
