“… a distinction should be made that football is democratic, capitalism, whereas soccer is a European, socialist sport.” – former American Football League quarterback and U.S. Rep. Jack Kemp, R-New York My Sunday School teacher brought up this Jack Kemp quote as the World Cup got underway a few weeks ago. She noted the cost… Read more

“More than half of modern culture depends upon what one shouldn’t read.” – Algernon Moncrieff in the play “The Importance of Being Earnest” by Oscar Wilde They always dissolve the senate. Napoleon, Mussolini, Pinochet, even Darth Vader’s boss, Emperor Palpatine, dissolved the Galactic Senate to take full control of the evil empire in the “Star… Read more

“We must all hang together, or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.” – spoken by Benjamin Franklin before signing the Declaration of Independence, though likely not originated by him My family has had quite a month. On the first day of June, my wife, daughter and I departed on our biggest family journey so far… Read more

“Mrs. Hogwallop up an’ R-U-N-N-O-F-T.” – Wash Hogwallop, a character played by Frank Collison in the film “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” The field is finally set for this year’s general election in November. Well … it is set unless you are reading this from Alabama’s 1st, 2nd, 6th or 7th congressional districts, but that… Read more

“It’s a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.” – Winston Churchill Here’s an impossible question for you. What do the following numbers have in common? 13, 17 and 12. No, these are not the scores of my most recent IQ tests, smarty pants. And they obviously are not the results of my most… Read more

“This is the song that doesn’t end. Yes, it goes on and on, my friend” – Norman Martin and Shari Lewis By now you are probably sick of hearing about Alabama’s congressional districts. I can’t blame you. But before you head over to the classifieds, this article is not just another rehash on court rulings.… Read more

“If you ain’t cheatin’, you aint’ tryin’.” – sports adage If you follow college sports, particularly the cutthroat Southeastern Conference, you probably have heard the above phrase more than once. When winning is really important – and it often is in the SEC – you want your team to find every loophole, exploit every unconsidered… Read more

“Everybody’s got a little light under the sun.” – the band Parliament People tend to remember which horse wins the Kentucky Derby but not the winners of the dozen or so other races held the same day at Churchill Downs. The same is true for boxing or other combat sports. The hardcore followers might be… Read more

“Sometimes you’re the windshield. Sometimes you’re the bug. Sometimes it all comes together, baby. Sometimes you’re a fool in love.” – Mark Knopfler If you are ever feeling smug, try to predict the future. A couple of weeks ago I told you Republicans in the Alabama Legislature were likely to draw a new map of… Read more

“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.” – Matthew 25:13 Alabama’s primary election day is fast approaching. Maybe faster than you realize. Getting a handle on when Alabama holds its primary election is bit like skeet shooting. The target is always on the move. Traditionally, Alabama held its primary… Read more