Opinion | Sparta Live

(Jan. 2, 2024) - What we are already seeing from the next Trump administration, before it has even started, is reminiscent of an earlier time (way before the first Trump administration). Let’s … more

Troy Smith | 1/2/25

The hand you hold is the hand that holds you down

By now, everyone knows about Luigi Mangione and Brian Thompson. Thompson was the CEO of a major insurance company who was assassinated by Mangione while in New York attending a conference. The … more

Troy Smith | 12/23/24

What Democrats need to learn how to do

Last week, I said I would talk about what the Democrats could have done differently and why things may have turned out the way they did. The short answer, of course, is that a majority of … more

Troy Smith | 11/25/24

Congress must block Hamas terrorists from entering our country

After four years of Biden-Harris failures, our country is set to make an incredible comeback with Republican control of the Senate, the House of Representatives, and the White House starting in the … more

Marsha Blackburn, U.S. Senator (R) | 11/25/24

What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly

I am writing this column more than two days before the election, yet you will be reading it two days after. I don’t know what will happen - at this point it looks like it could go either way - … more

Troy Smith | 11/7/24

After Hurricane Helene, Tennesseans are meeting their neighbors where they are

(Oct. 28, 2024) - On the north bank of the Nolichucky River in Telford, Tennessee, sits Plum Grove. Between 1796 and 1801, the property served as the home of Tennessee’s first governor and … more

Marsha Blackburn, U.S. Senator (R) | 11/7/24

Remembering American Girls in Sports Day

(Sept. 16, 2024) - Across our country, more than 3 million female high school and college athletes compete, practice, and train every day to achieve athletic success. For many of these … more

Marsha Blackburn, U.S. Senator (R) | 9/19/24

My experience with Haitian immigrants

Between the ages of 19 and 21, I served in two French-speaking congregations - the first in West Palm Beach and the second in Brooklyn. This was 1987 to 1989, when a wave of Haitian immigrants came … more

Troy Smith | 9/19/24

The tide is turning for unions

I hope you all enjoyed the recent Labor Day weekend. And I hope you saw the meme that goes around this time of year: “If you enjoyed having Labor Day off, thank a union.” In fact, … more

Troy Smith | 9/5/24

Weird how the tide is turning

I am going to say something that might shock you. I don’t care much for Donald Trump. I think he is a self-centered authoritarian who cares nothing for the country, the Constitution, … more

Troy Smith | 8/15/24

For many years, big tech put profit over children’s safety

Since 1998—the last year Congress passed a major law to reform the tech industry and protect children in the virtual space—a lot has changed. In the last 26 years, more than 100 … more

Marsha Blackburn, U.S. Senator (R) | 8/8/24

Why I could never stand J.D. Vance

Like the rest of the world, I had never heard of J.D. Vance until his book came out, in 2016. Everyone was talking about it and saying it “explained Appalachia,” so, as both a native and … more

Troy Smith | 8/1/24

What a couple of weeks it has been

At this rate, it is going to take me longer to talk about the Palestinian conflict than it’s taken them to have it. But it can’t be helped - there are too many significant events going on … more

Troy Smith | 7/26/24

With human trafficking on the rise, Congress must act to end this modern-day slave trade

(July 22, 2024) - For years, we have heard troubling reports about migrant children in our country who are trafficked into sexual exploitation, forced labor, and criminal gangs. This ongoing … more

Marsha Blackburn, U.S. Senator (R) | 7/26/24 | 1 comment

A brief history of Israel and Palestine-Part 6

So much is going on, I debated with myself whether to return to my ongoing series about the history of Palestine this week. I decided to do so, for two reasons. One, whether we’re looking at … more

Troy Smith | 7/18/24

Supreme Court declares Trump king

At this rate, I may never get that historical overview of Palestine finished. Three or four weeks ago, I interrupted it to comment on Trump’s 34 guilty verdicts (and how richly deserved … more

Troy Smith | 7/11/24

What it means to be an American

For 248 years, our experiment in constitutional democracy has persevered with two simple yet powerful ideas: that government exists to secure our God-given freedoms, and that We the People—not … more

Marsha Blackburn, United States Senator (R) | 7/11/24

With his amnesty order, President Biden is making illegal immigration legal

550,000 - That is the estimated number of illegal aliens who will receive amnesty under President Biden’s latest executive action, which will make many of the migrants eligible for green cards, … more

Marsha Blackburn, U.S. Senator (R) | 6/27/24 | 1 comment

A history of Israel and Palestine, Part 4

After taking a week off from this space to finish producing my lecture videos for my summer class on the American West, I am now back in the saddle (see what I did there?) to resume our … more

Troy Smith | 6/27/24

A history of Israel and Palestine, Part 3

Two weeks ago, we had reached the 10th century BCE and established the kingdoms of Israel and Judah and the cities of Philistia. That was the southern Levant. After the Bronze Age Collapse of around … more

Troy Smith | 6/14/24