By Jim Carnes Special to the Opelika Observer Overcrowding and understaffing are such glaring contributors to Alabama’s prison crisis that it might be tempting for state leaders to make them scapegoats for the whole problem. That would be a mistake. A challenge of...

Special to the Opelika Observer On April 26, I will be hosting the 14th Annual Mayors Ball along with my friend and Auburn Mayor Ron Anders at The Auburn University Regional Airport’s new Delta Hangar. The Annual Mayors Ball is a wonderful event raising much needed...

Dear Editor, There is at least one factor common to the exodus of people of Central America to the U.S., the civil war in Syria and the fleeing of residents of the Sahel in Africa to Europe. That factor is drought, which scientists report has been worsened by human...

Special to the Opelika Observer It’s that time of year again. The Alabama Legislature is only days from its opening session, and lawmakers across the state are drafting bills they say will make Alabama better. As in years past, some special interest groups – big-box...