BG Schneider- as for the lottery, the vast majority of lottery tickets in most cases are bought by the poor, I agree that government shouldn't tell people how to spend money, but It shouldn't encourage them to spend it on things that they don't need to be spending it on. But my biggest fear is that the lottery issue will be used by candidates on both sides of the issue in order to gain popular support when they really are not the kind of people that we need in government. We really should focus hard on ethics reform right now and then we can argue about the lottery and the tax code later. but you are right about the globalists and socialism in our country. It is scary, but I believe we can stop them, people are starting to wake up.

RickRileyhc50 - you and I are really not that far apart on the issues. I never said the lottery was the answer to Alabama's problems. I said that your justification for not having a lottery was a lame excuse. That said, let's take a look at views we share.

Government is corrupt to the core, from the city of Sylacauga all the way to U.S. Congress and the president. This not a republican or democratic problem, it's throughout government, at all branches, and has been in motion for decades. Today, we're just seeing the culmination of a lot of past efforts to position the U.S. to move from capitalism to socialism. It's unfortunate that very many people don't see this coming. When they wake up, it'll be too late.

You're also correct about the global direction since WWII. Here's a little more food for thought about this. At the end of WWII, there was a strong push for international free trade. The rationalization for this was twofold; 1) it was the quickest way to rebuild the economies and infrastructures of those countries torn apart by the war and 2) using the theory that countries that became dependent on free trade would become less interested in pounding on their neighbor countries because there was now a severe economic impact for picking a fight with somebody.

The evolution of technology and the market changes associated with free trade completely changed the dynamics of the world market. The EU serves as an example of the direction global powers desire. The proposed North American Union (Mexico, the U.S., and Canada) has not disappeared and we're still in danger of that coming to fruition. Unfortunately, I do not have confidence that people as far down in the food chain as you and I are can change this course. I was speaking with a municipal judge the other day, who also happens to be a retired marine, and he expressed very deep concern that we (the U.S.) are headed for a major internal confrontation and it will not be pretty.

My point is that you and I have very little influence at this level, and even at the state level. However, we do have quite a bit of influence at the local and county levels, and here's where I believe our efforts can be realized. Find the rotten apples and use technology to keep the heat on them until we can either gather enough evidence to put them behind bars or get them thrown out of office in the next election (make sure to read the on-line comments to the article about Sylacauga passing the budget with a $177,000 deficit). Do we ignore the federal situation? Never! We influence what we can and when the conditions are right, we strike at the heart of the matter.

As for Alabama being backwards, well it just is. I never thought I’d live to see the day when Mississippi and Georgia were ahead of Alabama. But that’s just the way it is. We can change that, though. We already have a lot of things in motion. Let’s just keep organizing and taking the crooks on one at a time.

Order Up!

BG Schnieder- All I know is a lottery is not the answer to AL's problems. All it will do is give our politicians more money to waste while. It may or may not cause further corruption or economic problems in this state. (Nevada, the Gambling capital of the U.S. has the second highest unemployment rate in the country)But the gambling/lottery issue is really not very important in the grand scheme of things. The bigger problem at the state level is how the politicians are spending the money, not how they are collecting it. (even though how they collect it is a slight problem, it is not the big problem) In our state, there is a giant load pork coming out of our legislature (who gets paid over $40,000 dollars a year to do 4 months of "work" as they call it) and we have a lot of waste in the education system and a lot of corruption in all levels of government (Jefferson County and others yet to be uncovered.) but, Even if we are able to bring better government to AL, It won't do us much good. In the last pay check I received, the Feds took out about 3 times as much in taxes as Alabama did. The thing is, it is not just Sylacauga or Alabama that are in reverse in passing gear, it is the United States of America and the entire western world that is going in reverse. The problem is with liberals like the writer of this article that say the solution to everything is to tax the rich. Throughout American and world history this has never worked and rarely does it ever hurt the rich as much as it hurts the middle class and the up and coming entrepreneurs that are essential to the prosperity of any economy. Since WWII, The entire western world has moved closer and closer to socialism or has adopted it and the Federal government in this country and the governments in the rest of the western world have taken over more and more of the economy and the result is the current economic crisis. If we want real change, we have got to get the feds off of our backs. It may be hard, but we gotta do something, or else, we will see the fall of the United States. As for Alabama's tax code, there have been several proposals to eliminate taxes on the poor like the one to eliminate the grocery tax last year. The problem is, these proposals have always had major tax increases on small businesses who provide jobs for the poor. But just to label AL as a "backward," which one of us is arrogant? AL isn't perfect, no place in this world is and will never be. We have our share of problems and bad characteristics just as any one else does and it doesn't make us lower than anybody.

Come on BG - don't you know about Commandments 11 and 12?

Thou shalt not buy alcohol on Sunday.

Thou shalt not gamble.

RickRileyhc50 - It never ceases to amaze me how people like you who oppose the lottery justify their position by advocating that poor people will use all their money in hope of winning. Your arrogance is dispicable! Who the hell do you think you are telling them what they can and can't do with their money. Its their money not yours. What you're saying is that the less fortunate are too stupid to manage their money. Well guess what you ding-a-ling, if they want to buy lottery tickets, they'll caravan to Florida, Georgia, or Tennesseee. If they want to gamble in a casino, they'll go to Mississippi. Wow, what an innovative concept. We don't need a lottery in Alabama because the poor people would just spend everything they've got on it. We'd rather them drive out of state to spend their money rather than have them spend it in Alabama. Geezzzz! Where does this mindset come from. As for your comment about Michigan, you again are out of sync. I grew up in Sylacauga, moved away for a number of years, came back about 15 years ago and have been trying to escape ever since. Backwards? Hell, Alabama, and especially Sylacauga, are in reverse and running in passing gear!

Oh, ding-a-ling - one other thing. You have a better chance of success working within your sphere of influence. Having an impact on Alabama tax code holds a whole lot more promise that revamping the federal tax system.

Speakwithoutfear - you are dead on with your comment about the taxes on beer & cigarettes. At the end of the day, most of the hardworking common laborers I know want to relax with a pack of cigarettes and a six-pack of beer. And they're taxed out the ears for these two items. Rediculous!

I'd like to write more, but I suddenly feel compelled to go tell everybody at the Georgia line with an Alabama license plate that they don't know what they're doing. On the other hand, I think we should go get Skip Smithwick's RV and drive as many folks as we can to the line so they don't have to waste gas!

Order Up!

had a typo, it should say "small businesses and other Entrepreneurs. (these are the people who provide us with innovation and CREATE new jobs)"

The Alabama tax system is the least of our problems right now. The problem is with the federal tax system and fiscal policy. The federal income tax punishes productiveness and is hard on small business and other entrepreneurs.(these are people who provide us with innovation to solve our problems and new jobs) and all of the huge bailouts of the big auto corporations and financial companies has done nothing but prop up failed businesses that should be replaced by the free market and put down the innovators who could fix our economy. AS for the people that call Alabama backwards, most of them are living in Areas like Michigan where they are losing a load of jobs overseas because of heavy federal and State taxation. A lottery would do nothing to fix our problems. This also target the poor who would buy numerous lottery tickets in an effort to get rich while having a snow ball's chance in August of winning. The real problem with Alabama's Government is not lack of funding, but lack of fiscal responsibility of its leaders. There are numerous "Road to nowhere" projects in this state and our government employees are paid rather handsomely compared to the average Alabamian they don't do near as much work. We must make the Government more responsible for its spending before we start worrying about our tax code.

this is why the south is referred to as "backward thinking"why do we tax the poorest citizens the most and church people thump their bibles and condemn a lottery or bingo and say we are inmoral if we ok it!we tax the hell out of cigarettes and beer,well what is the demographic that buys that!that in it's self is a tax on the poor!i say get bingo bob out of office and lets rewrite the state constitution cause this is the 21st century and it's time we were in it.we tax the poor while certian people ride their cadillacs to church and tell people they are better than you!