“(I)n this world nothing is certain but death and taxes.” – Benjamin Franklin If you ever needed confirmation about the importance of college sports in our state, simply look at the men’s basketball game that took place in Tuscaloosa last Saturday. Both teams could claim a number one ranking, depending on which national poll you… Read more

“I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should ‘make no law respecting the establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;’ thus building a wall of separation between church and state.” – Thomas Jefferson Do you remember the political brouhaha from this time last… Read more

“I don’t need your rockin’ chair, your Geritol or your Medicare.” – song by Frank Dycus, Billy Yates, Kerry Kurt Phillips and recorded by George Jones Alabama’s state legislators head back into the salt mines this week to start the third regular session of their four-year terms. I mentioned several topics to keep an eye… Read more

“God created the world. The rest is made in China.” – origin unknown Maybe the most unusual school assembly I can remember took place when I was 8 or 9 years old. It was meant to be some type of performance to entertain elementary school kids. I do not remember the entertainment, but I do… Read more

“You said I deserve just what I got. Well, if that’s how you feel, honey, thanks a lot.” – written by Eddie Miller and Don Sessions and performed by Ernest Tubb This week marks my one-year anniversary writing a weekly column for the Leader. For me the time has flown by. If you subjected yourself… Read more

“Now I got mortgages on homes. I got stiffness in my bones. Ain’t no beauty queens in this locality.” – Brian May Brian May is the lead guitarist for legendary rock band Queen, and he grew up in Hampton, England, a London suburb. If you did not know the first thing about May, one thing… Read more

“We’ve only just begun …” – Paul Williams, Roger Nichols, and Karen and Richard Carpenter There are 435 members in the U.S. House of Representatives. If you happen to be a math whiz or have your cell phone calculator within reach, you can quickly determine you need 218 people out of the 435 to reach… Read more

“But, Mousie, thou art no thy-lane (not alone) in proving foresight may be vain.” – Robert Burns from his poem “To a Mouse” What a wild year 2024 was when it came to government and politics. The presidential election itself was one that will be remembered for several generations to come. While we expected the… Read more

“But the prettiest sight to see is the holly that will be on your own front door.” – Meredith Willson My mother loved to see lights pop up all around the county before Christmas every year. Like most everyone else, she enjoyed the pleasant contrast of the bright Christmas lights against the dark of the… Read more

“You know the old saying: you win some, you lose some, and then there’s that little-known third category.” – Al Gore at the 2004 Democratic National Convention We had an election on Tuesday, a rather consequential one in my estimation. I think I am on solid ground saying that since the person who leads the… Read more