1819 News Opinion
Read the latest opinion piece from our opinion columnists at 1819 News.

“…I see it now,” Laura said to herself, “though I didn’t then—we never could have gotten through it all without Pa’s fiddle.”

This election year, there has been no end to the kvetching and demands that we get rid of career politicians and fix our government. Yet, when citizens have the opportunity to do so, they don’t bother to show up.

Education is NOT the mere learning of facts, the test-crazed obsession of “educrats” who fixate over certifications and test scores while overlooking or promoting morally bankrupt textbooks and atheism. Instead, education passes down a way of life.

We are nurtured by our pasts in a way that gives us peace about where we’re going in our future.

I don’t know whether there is life on other planets or not, but if there is, it won’t affect my faith in God, the Bible, or the plan of salvation through Christ. The Bible doesn’t talk about life on other planets because God gave the Bible to men on earth. Perhaps, in all this vast universe, God sovereignly chose to enact His plan for redemption on one small planet.

There are certain things only we human beings can do that we should never allow the machines to pretend to do – else we create something ugly, wicked and untrue.

Folks, the Alabama Legislature is fumbling the ball on the one-yard line in the final minute of this political football game. It’s an absolute disaster that should have every conservative in this state fired up and prepared to break out the pitchfork and torches. 

The 2026 midterms and the 2028 presidential campaign will not be, on one level, about budgets or trade policy alone. They will be about the relationship between the citizen’s conscience and the coercive apparatus of the state.

For too long, the men and women who wear the badge have been treated as political punching bags instead of the heroes they are.

Conservation that a landowner chooses is one thing. Conservation forced by political pressure is a different animal entirely, and pretending otherwise is how we lose the plot.

I think what touches me most about this old homeplace is how similar the inhabitants were to my own people. My own relatives who grappled against the elements, against fate, against better advice, to build a life of independence and prerogative. To be fully American. Or die trying.

Man’s inability to save himself becomes more obvious by the day. A casual glance at the news reminds us that humanity left to itself rebels against God in mind, heart and body. Whether it’s the drama of Goat Hill or the wickedness paraded around by the World Economic Forum, something is clearly broken. Politics, intellect, money and technology cannot fix what is fundamentally a spiritual problem. Only Christ can.

Alabama’s schools should teach Alabama’s values, promote true educational excellence, and spend Alabama’s education dollars for the true good of Alabama’s teachers and students.

Every political system, like every person, has a theology. Set on a system of beliefs, every political system must answer the question, “Who is the Deity?” Regardless of whether the answer is God, Self, Allah, or other gods, the question must be asked, for the answer will shape a society's government.

The exploitation of our children – including sexually explicit library books, drag queen shows, depraved television programs, and perverted social media grooming – will not stop because evil does not sleep. But evil only triumphs when good men and women choose to do nothing.

If "credit card processing fees" were an employee at Prevail, they would be the highest paid employee on our payroll.

But in high-level government actions, we must look to the long-term consequences, remembering that constitutional decisions are two-edged swords that can cut both directions.

Too many Democrats truly believe the politics of racial identity are the gods that brought them up out of Egypt instead of the Word of God. They build statues to it. They hold festivals. They eat and drink, dance and sing in revelry to commemorate past sacrifices and political victories. And they are uncharitably swift to say all who disagree with their politics are on the wrong side of history.

Critics of school choice are always quick to point out the “dismantling” of public education that comes with newer educational models. Often lost in this outcry is the fact that thousands of Alabama students feel trapped in a system that may not serve them best. 

Hot water is one of those gifts so constant and quiet that gratitude never quite finds its footing – until an ice-cold shower reminds you that someone, somewhere, made a decision that made your morning possible.

Religious liberty is not a selective principle. It does not apply only to those who believe exactly as we do. It is a foundational American value that protects all of us or protects none of us.

When our plane finally lands, all passengers stand to deboard. But we are told we must wait. The first to leave our plane will be the boy.

The concept of majority-minority, racially-drawn districts has always been a house of cards, and like the flick of a finger, Callais has knocked it down. It’s time we move beyond this unconstitutional model to representation that embraces all voters in every district.

District Court may not attract the same attention as higher courts, but its impact is immediate and deeply personal. Choosing a judge with the right experience helps ensure that impact is fair and just.

Repetitive, politically-motivated funding to horribly ineffective programs and agencies is not the answer to taking care of our veterans, nor for any taxpayer spending. 

Few events have shaped Hoover’s identity like the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Baseball Tournament. What began in 1998 as a new opportunity for our city has become a staple event throughout the South.

Sometimes, when you really want fish from this old world, try as you might, toil as you must, in the end all it’s going to give you is a crawdad … and you’d better be ready for it.