My weekly column was published this week in the Wednesday and Saturday editions of the Prattville Progress:
I’ve written a great deal about the problems Alabama faces and the day-to-day political developments that often frustrate all of us. Yet, as I read the introduction to Dr. Wayne Flynt’s new book Alabama in the 20th Century, I was reminded that there is an undercurrent to my opinions that I may not have fully fleshed out for you.

Dr. Flynt brought to the front of my mind a conversation I recently had with a friend and colleague. We were discussing the upcoming gubernatorial election and the difficulties the different candidates might face in getting their message across to the voters. We were talking about the root issues that are continuing to hold Alabama back and we ended up discussing the fact that we both lived much of our lives outside the state. There is no doubt that those of us who have lived outside of Alabama are often more frustrated than those who have lived here their whole lives, because we know it can be different.

As we got to this point in the discussion I expressed a thought that I probably don’t express enough. Yes, many Alabamians choose to leave the state because of a perceived lack of adequate opportunity, but there are also a large number of us who have chosen to come here and adopt Alabama as our home. Dr. Flynt stated one reason well in his book and his statement resonated in the conversation I had with my colleague, “Some will say I spend too much time on the negative and not enough on the positive, that my historical glass seems perpetually half-empty rather than half-full. To me, the fullness or emptiness is of less interest than the halfness. Why does a state with so much human and natural potential settle so often for mediocrity? Why are Alabamians’ expectations so low when excellence is so often in their grasp?”

The key to achieving more and being more is reaching for excellence. I work with people in social services in this state and they are the most hardworking and dedicated individuals I have ever met. Yet, the more excellence I see exhibited every day all over this state the more I wonder why there seems to be a tacit acceptance of the way things are. Alabamians are not mediocre, so why do we settle for mediocrity when it comes to our educational system, our political system, our health care system, our social service delivery system and so many other public and private structures?

The answer lies in a belief that something different and better is possible. As I said, those who have lived in other parts of the country know its possible, but we often struggle with transferring that belief to our fellow Alabamians. The unknown seems to be scarier to people than the deficient known. Sure, we could make things better, but we could also make them worse, so why change? As long as this defeatist attitude reigns the massive potential Alabamians possess will never be fully realized.

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