Opinion & Policy

  (To rekindle the spirit of the season, let’s share an adaptation of the “Night Before Christmas” classic from Merrill Matthews of the Institute for Policy Innovation, updated for 2021.)   ‘Twas the week before Christmas, when all through the House, All the liberals were stirring, while conservatives groused. The wish lists were hung on…

  When we look back at this past year, there will be a lot of headlines that we will remember about this year in Alabama. Obviously, the pandemic and its effect on the state’s citizens is what we will remember most about 2021. The virus took its toll on Alabama with more than 16,000 Alabamians who passed away…

  Well within one week, the race for Alabama governor got real interesting. First, there was the long anticipated announcement that Tim James, the son of former Governor Fob James, was running. Then Lindy Blanchard, ambassador for President Donald Trump who had been running for the United States Senate, switched campaigns to join the gubernatorial…

  Last month the Eleventh Circuit Court issued an opinion in “Libertarian Party of Alabama v. Merrill” (20-13356) and upheld Alabama’s discriminatory policy for access to the list of registered voters. For you the “everyday Joe” Alabama citizen, the current law, as upheld, prevents legitimate political parties equal opportunities that are provided to the dominant…

  Since this will be the last edition of “The Coosa County News” until New Year’s Eve, I want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas. This is supposed to be the most joyous season of the year, and I hope most of you are experiencing that. However, keep in mind that this season can…

This is the first Christmas since 1990, following the invasion of Kuwait by Saddam Hussein in August of that year, our military personnel have not been engaged in major conflicts abroad. Technically we are still at war with Iraq because the authorization for the use of military force passed by Congress in 2002 is still…

  Retailers across the nation have suffered through the effects of the pandemic for almost two years now. Losing both customers and employees have been a struggle for these companies to overcome and survive. Add inflation to the cost of doing business, and it has been almost overwhelming. Now the country is in the midst…

  This week I am going to leave local politics alone! OK – I hear those sighs of relief! Writing a column for a weekly newspaper is tough when trying to talk about “current events,” but those events changing drastically from the time the column is written until the paper is published. That is what…

“community” (noun) A group of people living in the same locality and under the same government. The district or locality in which such a group lives. A group of people having common interests.   Twenty-one of Alabama’s 67 counties have a population of less than 20,000 residents, and all but one of them have experienced…