AL.com
- Alabaster police identify one of two charged in fake bomb... Two teenagers in custody Alabaster police this afternoon identified one of two people charged in connection with a fake bomb incident at an Alabaster shopping center last week. James Payton Hutchens, 18, of Alabaster was charged with making a terrorist threat and is in the Shelby County Jail on a $10,000 bond. A 17-year-old boy whose name was not released also was charged with making a terrorist threat and was being held in the Shelby County Juvenile Detention Center. Last Tuesday, bomb technicians were called to inspect a suspicious briefcase found in front of the Best Buy store at the Colonial Promenade Alabaster South shopping center. The briefcase contained a fake bomb, authorities said. Deputy Police Chief Curtis Rigney said the incident caused police to spend five hours at the scene and cost at least $1,500. Police plan to seek restitution from the two charged, Rigney said.
- Injured driver Hamlin released from hospital Associated PressDenny Hamlin is loaded from his crashed car at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday.Denny Hamlin was released from UAB Hospital today, a day after a tire failure led to a hard crash at Talladega Superspeedway. Hamlin was kept overnight for observation after his car slammed into a wall. He was alert and awake when he was taken to the hospital Sunday, but was complaining of a headache and possibly had a concussion. He was also favoring his right foot after a slow exit from his crumpled car.Hamlin, one of 12 drivers racing for the Sprint Cup title, was leading midway through the race when his right front tire failed and his Toyota shot into the outside wall. He said nothing over his in-car radio after the hit and took several moments to get out of the car. Hamlin was 39th in the race and fell to 12th in the Chase standings.
- Drugs, weapons taken in Jefferson County raids Assault rifles, two "sawed off" shotguns, cocaine, marijuana, marijuana plants, pills, scales and cash seized in raids conducted by the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office Narcotics Division. A series of drug raids at nine houses and apartments over the course of two weeks resulted in more than 20 weapons being confiscated and the arrests of 13 people, the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office announced today.Assault rifles, two "sawed off" shotguns were among the weapons seized in raids conducted by the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office Narcotics Division. A variety of illegal drugs and drug paraphernalia, including cocaine, marijuana, marijuana plants, pills, scales and cash, were taken as well, according to a press release. Those items were seized during raids at nine residences in the communities of Village Springs, Center Point, College Hills, Woodlawn, Ensley, East Lake and Smithfield. Those arrested were: Jimmy Bonner, 74, of Village Springs, of drug possession and paraphernalia charges. Carlos Lamont Tate, 42, of Gate City on outstanding drug and marijuana possession charges. Manza Walker, 42, of Woodlawn, on marijuana possession charges. Michele R. Meadows, 39, of College Hills, on theft and paraphernalia charges Tammy Blackwell, 36, of College Hills, on outstanding paraphernalia charges. Michael Baker, 28, of College Hills, on an outstanding marijuana charge. Regina L. Haynes, 31, of College Hills, on outstanding marijuana and chemical endangerment of a child charges. James Gregory Jr., 49, of Center Point, on drug and weapons charges. Adam Lee Jackson, 21, of Pratt City, on an outstanding marijuana charge. Terrence Wayne Ham Jr., 24, of Fairfield, on marijuana and paraphernalia charges. Alfonso Crim, 25, of East Lake, on drug and paraphernalia charges. Michelle Ann Mathews, 28, of Village Springs, on a paraphernalia charge. Alfred L. Perkins, 24, of Smithfield Community, on a failure to appear on a drug possession charge and another drug possession charge. "This is well over 300 of these drug houses we have shut down over the last three years and the common denominator in all of them is dangerous weapons," stated Sheriff Mike Hale. "These are not avid hunters or gun collectors we are dealing with, they are drug dealers wreaking havoc in our communities" Hale added.
- Birmingham police standoff ends without injury A man had taken his 3-month-old daughter from Tuscaloosa to his Birmingham apartment after a dispute with the child's mother. The tactical squad was called and the man surrended the child safely at 10:10 a.m.A police standoff near Avondale Park ended this morning after a man surrendered to police and handed over his 3-month-old daughter, police said.Around 5:15 a.m., officers from Birmingham's South Precinct responded to a possible hostage situation at an apartment at 4201 4th Ave. South, said Lt. Henry Irby, spokesman for the Birmingham Police Department. A man had taken his 3-month-old daughter there from Tuscaloosa after a dispute with the child's mother, Irby said. Police tried unsuccessfully to contact the man inside the apartment, and at 7:30 a.m., the tactical squad was brought in. At 10:10 a.m., the man surrendered and was taken into custody, while the child was released to police, Irby said. .
- Alabaster police arrest two people in fake bomb incident ... More details to come at 2 p.m. press conference Two people have been arrested in connection with a prank bomb left outside an Alabaster shopping center a week ago, the Alabaster Police Department said today. One adult and a juvenile have been arrested, Deputy Police Chief Curtis Rigney said. More details are to be released at a 2 p.m. news conference. Last Tuesday, bomb technicians were called to inspect a suspicious briefcase found in front of the Best Buy store at the Colonial Promenade Alabaster South shopping center. The briefcase contained a fake bomb, authorities said.
- Lane on U.S. 31 Warrior River bridge to be closed through... Repairs being done on southbound lane of bridge between Kimberly and Warrior. State transportation officials say a lane closure on U.S. 31 over the Warrior River between Kimberly and Warrior will extend through the end of the week. The southbound, right lane of the four-lane bridge was closed when a hole was found about a week ago in the deck. Alabama Department of Transportation officials say repairs to the bridge deck will be more extensive than was first believed.
- Commission committee approves bankruptcy resolution Jim Carns and Bobby Humphryes say resolution sends signal to county's Wall Street creditors.The Jefferson County Commission's Environmental Services Committee has approved a resolution asking the county's attorneys to begin filing for protection under Chapter 9 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. The committee includes Commissioners Jim Carns, Bobby Humphryes and Shelia Smoot. The full commission can now consider the resolution at its meeting next week. Carns and Humphryes, who supported the resolution, said the vote would send a signal to Wall Street creditors who are demanding a cut of the 1 cent sales tax for education and other revenues to help solve the $3.2 billion sewer debt crisis.
- Birmingham police release details in Sunday homicide One woman killed and another injured in what appears to be an act of domestic violence.Birmingham police this morning released information in a shooting that injured one woman and left another dead Sunday morning.At 1:22 a.m. a woman flagged down East Precinct officers who were on patrol in the area of 2905 Gallant Dr. The 28-year-old woman told the officers she and her cousin, Caneshua Henry, 21, of Birmingham, had both just been shot, according to a police press release. The officers arrested a 25-year-old male suspect who was armed with a handgun, but as of this morning had not been charged. The officers found Henry lying in the doorway of the residence, suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. Paramedics arrived at the scene and pronounced her dead. Paramedics took the injured cousin to UAB Hospital for treatment of non-life threatening injuries. Police said the incident appears to be an act of domestic violence.
- Montevallo man killed in four-wheeler accident A Moulton man was also killed in another four-wheeler accident on Saturday.A 21-year-old Montevallo man was killed Sunday when a four-wheeler he was driving flipped, according to the Bibb County Coroner.Thomas Shane Johnson was pronounced dead at the scene at 12:32 p.m., said Coroner Downey McGee. The accident happened at about 11:45 a.m. in the Brierfield community, McGee said. On Saturday, a father of two died when the four-wheeler he was driving ran off a road near Moulton and rolled over multiple times. Lawrence County Coroner Micah Coffey says 41-year-old Gregory Wilson of Moulton died at the accident scene at 8:10 p.m. on Saturday. State troopers say the crash happened about 10 miles north of Moulton on Lawrence County 152. Coffey says Wilson apparently didn't see a sharp curve and drove his all-terrain vehicle off a deep embankment. Wilson's sister, Charlotte Gillespie of Town Creek, says her brother was a free spirit who loved his family. His funeral is set for 2 p.m. today.
- Monday eye-openers: Highlights from today's Birmingham News Bands do battle in Birmingham. Insurance rating drop may mean higher water bills. Confusion over former felons' ability to cast votes. New approach to care at Birmingham nursing home. Gas availability cuts crowd at Talladega race. Complete coverage of the AMP Energy 500.HOT TOPICS Jeff Roberts/Birmingham News The Wenonah Dragons' drum majors take the field for Battle of the Bands competition on Sunday. MUSIC, CHOREOGRAPHY IMPRESS FANSThe Birmingham Water Works' insurance rating drop may mean higher bills. St. Martin's offers a less hospital-like approach to senior care. Confusion reigns over ex-felons' ability to vote. The new Hewitt-Trussville High held an open house. MORE NEWS SPORTS OPENERS Tony Stewart won at Talladega for the first time. Regan Smith believes yellow-line loss decision incorrect But, gas availability may have kept crowd smaller than usual. Gordon's Talladega chance ends in wreck Big wrecks forge new Talladega Speedway lore Rubber meets the road, and the road wins, reports Kevin Scarbinsky Talladega notebook Race photo galleries MORE SPORTS HEALTH OPENERS Jefferson County will throw rabies vaccines in areas where raccoons live. The ages of the most likely victims, the breakdown of towns where the bites occurred and the most likely month of the year to be bitten -- see the graphics OPINION OPENERS Gas prices have diminished love for our cars. Trinity's hospital purchase makes good business sense.
MyFoxAL
- Top Local Stories Here are the top stories at this hour: the bailout does not seem to have kicked in, Lehman Brothers may be in more hot water, and Jefferson County looks into bankruptcy...
- Palin Criticizes Obama's Ties To Wright, Ayers Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin expanded her attack on Democrat Barack Obama's character Monday to include his relationship with an incendiary former pastor as well as his ties to 1960s-era radical Bill Ayers.
- Alabaster police arrest suspect in shopping center bomb s... Alabaster police identified one of two suspects arrested for a bomb scare September 30 at a shopping center. Police say 18-year-old James Payton Hutchens is in the Shelby County jail on $10,000 bond on a charge of making a terrorist threat.
- Jeffco Commission Committee Approves Resolution A Jefferson County commission committee voted Monday morning to ask the county attorney to look into filing bankruptcy over the county's enormous sewer bond debt...
- Gravel Spill Causes Traffic Headaches on Highway 21 Emergency crews spent Monday morning cleaning up a gravel truck wreck and spill in East Alabama...
- Man Killed in Four Wheeler Accident A Montevallo man was killed Sunday in an accident involving an all-terrain vehicle...
- Monday Weather Update Fox 6 Weatherman Mickey Ferguson has your Monday weather update...
- Victim Identified in Recent Birmingham Homicide Lieutenant Henry Irby of the Birmingham Police Department tells FOX6 News that the victim has been identified in an early morning shooting on Sunday...
- OJ Simpson Jury Says Witness Testimony Not Trusted Jurors who found O.J. Simpson guilty in his armed robbery trial say secret audio tapes and surveillance video swayed them more than witness accounts.
- Colleges Lure Upperclassmen Back to Campus Housing Living on campus isn't just for freshmen anymore. Colleges and universities across the country say an increasing number of sophomores and upperclassmen are living in dormitories or university-operated apartment complexes
ABC 33/40
- Bright Suspends Campaign Because of Sister's Death Montgomery Mayor Bobby Bright has temporarily suspended his campaign for Congress in Alabama"s 2nd District because of the death of a sister.from ABC 33/40 News
- Drug Raid Leads to Seizure of Dangerous Weapons In a series of raids in less than 2 weeks on local Community Drug Houses... the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Division seized over 20 weapons... including 2 “Sawed Off” shotguns... Assault weapons... along with cocaine... marijuana... marijuana plants... pills... scales... currency and drug paraphernaliafrom ABC 33/40 News
- Police ID 2 People Shot Dead in Birmingham Birmingham police have identified two people who were shot to death in separate homicides over the weekend.from ABC 33/40 News
- Birmingham Preview of TV Hate Crime Program Set A preview screening of Discovery Channel"s one-hour Ted Koppel special "The Last Lynching" is being held at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute.from ABC 33/40 News
- Battle of the Bands Kept Teens Out Late, But Most Made Cu... Less than a week after the curfew law went into effect... Battle of the Bands drew thousands of teens and put the law to test.from ABC 33/40 News
- Plenty of Gas for Race Weekend Talladega stations have plenty of gas following fears the race weekend could cause another shortagefrom ABC 33/40 News
- Shirley Place to Expand to Include County History School children currently visit Shirley Place to learn about the history of Northport.from ABC 33/40 News
- Alabama Voters to Decide on Rainy Day Funds Former Gov. Fob James... who started Alabama"s $3.4 billion trust fund with revenue from offshore natural gas leases... plans to vote against Amendment One in the election Nov. 4 because he feels it breaks a commitment to protect the public"s savings.from ABC 33/40 News
- Alabama Delegation Favors Bailout Plan 6-1 Alabama"s congressional delegation has voted 6-1 in favor of the $700 billion government bailout of the financial industry that passed the House.from ABC 33/40 News
- 7 Killed in Fiery Prison Van Crash Officials have confirmed that a total of seven people were killed in a fiery wreck Friday between a tractor-trailer and a state van carrying applicants for prison jobs.from ABC 33/40 News
NBC 13
- Alabaster Police Make Arrest In Fake Bomb Situation The Alabaster Police Department announced they’ve made an arrest in a fake bomb found near a Best Buy store.
- Student Drug Testing To Resume at Clay-Chalkville High The Clay City Council has approved subsidizing the cost of random drug tests for students at Clay-Chalkville High School.
- Car Wreck Claims Lee Bus Crash Survivor A Huntsville teen has died from injuries suffered in a car wreck nearly two years after she survived the Lee High School bus crash which killed four students.
- Drug House Raids Net Lots Of Weapons The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office says recent raids on drug houses found weapons, drugs, and more.
- Avondale Standoff Ends Peacefully A three-hour standoff ended peacefully when S.W.A.T. team members arrested a man who walked out of an apartment carrying a baby.
- Birmingham Preview Of TV Hate Crime Program Set BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - A preview screening of Discovery Channel’s one-hour Ted Koppel special “The Last Lynching” is being held at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute.
- Montevallo man dies in ATV accident CENTREVILLE, Ala. (AP) - A Montevallo man was killed Sunday in an accident involving an all-terrain vehicle.
- Lane Closure Extended For Highway 31 The Alabama Department of Transportation announced that work will continue this week on a Highway 31 bridge in Jefferson County.
- Alabama Adds New Biofuels Pumps Officials plan to open more biofuels pumps for use by motorists on Interstate 65 in a distance from Mobile to Gary, Ind.
- Commissioner Takes First Step Toward Jeffco Bankruptcy The first step is taken in possible bankruptcy proceedings in Jefferson County.
CBS 42
- Standoff Involving Infant Ends Peacefully Birmingham police spent hours Monday morning engaging in yet another standoff. It happened near 4th Avenue South and 42nd Street where a man apparently held his three-month-old daughter hostage.
- 13 People Jailed in Drug Raids across Jefferson County A series of raids targeting drug houses across Jefferson County resulted in the seizure of weapons and illegal drugs.
- Montevallo Man Dies in ATV Accident A Montevallo man was killed Sunday in an accident involving an all-terrain vehicle.
- Police Identify Two People Shot Dead over the Weekend Birmingham and Midfield police have identified two people who were shot to death in separate homicides over the weekend.
- Wachovia Says it will Press Ahead with Wells Fargo Deal A federal judge has vacated a New York state judge's ruling temporarily blocking the sale of Wachovia to Wells Fargo. But the judge has scheduled another hearing for Tuesday so that Citigroup can respond.
- No Beer for this Oktoberfest Large crowds gather throwing back steins of frothy brew - but that's not the case for one area Oktoberfest celebration.
- Playstation Portable Slaying Arrest The suspect in a mid-September shooting over a popular video console has finally been located.
- Girls Can Play Drums Too! When you think of female drummers, Sheila E comes to mind, but after that it gets kind of fuzzy. A local organization is out to change that!
- Tailgaters Take Over Tuscaloosa It's another home game weekend in Tuscaloosa, and the fans are ready to go!
- ATROX Starts Season With Elvira The haunted power-house of the South opens its doors to the public this weekend, and they're starting the season off with the famous, Elvira.
The Terminal
- EcoFest is this week We’ve noticed that a lot of folks are looking for information about this year’s EcoFest, scheduled for Thursday evening at WorkPlay. We’ve got some more information about this year’s event over on destinations, our new online calendar (be gentle, it’s still in beta). We’d also like to direct you to their online auction, already open [...]
- Avoiding foreclosure workshops scheduled As the stock market continues to take us on a roller coaster ride, many in Birmingham, particularly on our city’s east side, are having a big issue with foreclosures. The Citizens Advisory Board and some Birmingham neighborhood presidents were impressed with a recent presentation on foreclosure by the Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce. So impressed [...]
- There’s scholarship money to be had! Has college tuition got you down? Are you wanting to show off your wordsmithing skills to the some of the folks at one of the best magazines out there? Are you a full-time undergraduate student at a two or four-year college? Well, we might have a solution for you… mental_floss has teamed up with Borders and [...]
- Check to see if your flight’s on-time Screenshot of new Birmingham International Airport homepage. A pending name change and a planned expansion also means an updated website for Birmingham International Airport. The change in design comes with one new feature that will make those that use the airport regularly a little happier - real-time flight tracking on the homepage allowing people to see [...]
- Vote The Terminal one of Birmingham’s Best! We wanted to thank those of you who nominated The Terminal for best website in this year’s Birmingham’s Best poll. We are now one of five sites in the running - and we hope that you can help us enjoy a good showing this year. Just head on over to AL.com and cast your vote [...]
- Drink beer, help environment… sweet! Next time you’re out and about, look for the fish. SweetWater Brewing Company has teamed up with local bars here and in Tuscaloosa to declare October Save the Black Warrior month. Participating businesses will be selling paper fish for $1 and $5 as well as special edition T-shirts. Funds raised will support Black Warrior Riverkeeper’s [...]
- What else is there besides ‘Dega this weekend? Don’t know about y’all, but I’m going racin’ this weekend. As in racin’ with them boys out at Dega. But don’t worry, before I head out to the track I’ve got plenty for you non-racing fans to do this weekend. Just head over to Timetable for more while I get all pretty for Kasey Kahne.
Wade on Birmingham
- Wade on Birmingham: Three is a magic number After 1,752 posts, Wade on Birmingham reaches its third anniversary today. I'm grateful for the opportunity to share my insights and spotlights on the city as well as Alabama. On any given day, we've seen this city triumph and stumble.
- faint sliver haiku for 10/5/08
- hunch in the numbers haiku for 10/4/08
- the big bailout haiku for 10/3/08
- this thing called reading haiku for 10/2/08
- pale to the victors haiku for 10/1/08
- waiting for the bus haiku for 9/30/08
- fanciful fall haiku for 9/29/08
- catalog of malnutrition haiku for 9/28/08
- friendly coaching advice haiku for 9/27/08
Mixed Media
- MENU of MENUS: Undercover – and on stands now! Local omnivores whiled away their Sunday afternoon at the Pepper Place on Oct. 5, savoring the myriad flavors on offer at Break ‘N Bread, the annual food and wine festival sponsored by Birmingham Originals. Festival-goers were also the first to get their hands on the 2008-2009 Menu of Menus published by Birmingham Weekly. In addition to [...]
- Bama Mix 10-6-2008: Some felons can vote, right? The big question in Alabama today is one that probably should have been answered a little sooner: Who is eligible to vote in Alabama? The state can block people from voting if they’ve committed crimes of “moral turpitude,” but the problem is that moral turpitude isn’t defined very well. According to this in-depth Birmingham News [...]
- 29 Days Out: Slinging mud, Wright or wrong. We’re 29 days from the election (register to vote!) and the story for McCain is all negative. Or rather, it’s all about his campaign launching personal attacks on Obama and Obama’s reaction to it. (Chez Pazienza notes that McCain told us he was going to go negative, a move that he compares it to a [...]
- Of homegirls, handgrenades & social responsibility I spent most of my childhood and not an insignificant amount of my adulthood thinking that I would be a poet when I grew up. This ambition made it very important to me early on to know the names and work of other poets from Birmingham, so I started reading Sonia Sanchez when my age [...]
- WEEKLY PICK: BAO Bingo B-I-N-G-O FOR BAO What’s better than bingo? Nothing really, but bingo for charity makes you feel good about gambling, so maybe that’s better! If you enjoy a fine game of random number selection, come support Birmingham AIDS Outreach and play a game of bingo! This almost 500-year-old game can get you a whole lot of [...]
- Horror Movie a Day: Oct. 5 - Phantom of the Paradise Oct. 5: Phantom of the Paradise (1974) This underrated early gem from director Brian De Palma update the classic tales Phantom of the Opera and Faust and turns them into a very bizarre and fresh satire of the record industry, a sort of Phantom of the Rock Opera. This movie isn’t that well known, but [...]
- Bama Mix 10-5-2008: Mergers, murders, and marine life Today's round-up of Alabama news.
- 30 Days Out: Things get dirty (again) and Geraldo’s mus... The first installment of our daily national news round-up.
- Horror Movie a Day: Oct. 4 - The Descent Oct. 4: The Descent (2005) Perhaps the best horror film of the last 10 years, Neil Marshall’s The Descent will terrify you with its story of a group of women on a cave-exploring vacation gone horribly wrong. Marshall’s previous film was the rollicking horror-comedy Dog Soldiers, which was quite entertaining but didn’t really suggest [...]
- Horror Movie a Day: Oct. 1-3 - The Haunting, The Thing, S... Halloween is coming soon, and in honor of the holiday I’ll be suggesting a horror movie to make you wet yourself in terror for each day of October. Enjoy these first few suggestions, and keep visiting the blog for more. Oct. 1: The Haunting (1963) Director Robert Wise’s film The Haunting is perhaps the best haunted [...]
Left in Alabama
- A Campaign on Life Support. McCain's Lawyer Calls Howell... AmericaBlog's John Aravosis is reporting on a McCain campaign conference call about the Keating 5 scandal and McCain's role in it.I'm listening to the McCain campaign conference call about John McCain's involvement in the Keating Five scandal. McCain's lawyer just said that the Keating Five investigation was "political" as it concerned John McCain. He shouldn't even have been admonished by the Senate, his lawyer says.Then McCain's lawyer dropped the real bomb.The Keating Five Investigation was "a political smear job on John [McCain]." WTF? He called Howell Heflin, who led the hearings, a "stooge" of the Democratic machine out to get poor, innocent John McCain.Ok, so could anyone who knows anything about Senator Heflin reasonably call him a "stooge?" I can't wait to see a transcript of this whole call.I didn't agree with Heflin on a lot of things, but he was an incredibly smart and respected member of the Senate. Before that, he had a distinguished record as Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court.Think I'm just a blind partisan?From the Redstone Army Web site:First elected to public office in 1970 as Chief Justice of the Alabama State Supreme Court, Judge Heflin crafted the Judicial Article, which has become a model for court reform in other states. He furthered those efforts in the Senate by bringing about significant reform to the federal judiciary, especially through his legislation that revamped an antiquated Bankruptcy Code.We've all been toying with the dream of turning Alabama blue, but here I thought it was entirely up to Democratic Party staff and volunteers. What luck! We now have John McCain's staff helping us out by smearing an honest and respected Alabama senator. The Washington Post puts it like this:Bennett said former Sen. Howell Hefflin (sic) (D-Ala.) insisted that the two be included in the formal public inquiry because otherwise there would have been a month of public hearings "with no Republicans in the dock." The other members of the Keating Five were Democrats. For those of you who don't remember that debacle, it was yet another "shining moment in deregulation" that cost taxpayers $1.3 billion (in the 80's) to bail out the Savings and Loan industry. Familiar players in the scandal included the first President Bush's son, Neil Bush of Silverado Savings and Loan, and well, John McCain.Senator Heflin wasn't my favorite senator. We often disagreed on issues, but I never heard even a whisper that he wasn't an honest, intelligent, stand-up guy who respected his Senate colleagues and the Senate itself.To allege that he would investigate a fellow senator just becuase they needed some "Republicans in the dock" is just slimy.Bennett should be ashamed and so should John McCain.
- John McCain's Monday, Monday Monday Monday, can't trust that day, Monday Monday, sometimes it just turns out that way Oh Monday morning, you gave me no warning of what was to be ...This is not a good Monday for John McCain. His campaign is showing no sign of recovery in the polls, although I don't see how he can fall much further. The Virginia Republican Party is warning that he's in trouble in that state, which hasn't gone blue in a presidential election since 1964.McCain's involvement in the Keating Five Savings and Loan scandal in the 1980's is coming to the fore, just when he needs to convince people his hands are clean on the current economic mess. No, they are not. He was in bed with financial interests in those days and he's been a deregulator ever since.During his first Senate term, Arizona senator McCain and four Democrats faced accusations of improperly intervening with federal regulators on behalf of former savings-and-loan executive Charles Keating in the 1980s savings-and-loan industry collapse. The five senators took contributions from the Arizona businessman and while the Senate Ethics Committee reprimanded McCain, it cleared him of wrongdoing. The Senate Ethics Committee, chaired by the late Alabama Democrat Howell Heflin, ultimately found that McCain had ``exercised poor judgment.'' The Los Angeles Times has posted a story on McCain's record as a Navy pilot. Up until now, most stories of John McCain's service career started at the moment he was captured by the Vietnamese. If that part of his career is relevant, why not examine the rest of his record, too? Well, mostly because only 19 pages of it has been made available, but the LAT has pieced some of it together. John McCain was training in his AD-6 Skyraider on an overcast Texas morning in 1960 when he slammed into Corpus Christi Bay and sheared the skin off his plane's wings. McCain recounted the accident decades later in his autobiography. "The engine quit while I was practicing landings," he wrote. But an investigation board at the Naval Aviation Safety Center found no evidence of engine failure.The 23-year-old junior lieutenant wasn't paying attention and erred in using "a power setting too low to maintain level flight in a turn," investigators concluded. The crash was one of three early in McCain's aviation career in which his flying skills and judgment were faulted or questioned by Navy officials. In his most serious lapse, McCain was "clowning" around in a Skyraider over southern Spain about December 1961 and flew into electrical wires, causing a blackout, according to McCain's own account as well as those of naval officers and enlistees aboard the carrier Intrepid. In another incident, in 1965, McCain crashed a T-2 trainer jet in Virginia. John McCain's campaign is unleashing a barrage of negative ads, attempting to turn the focus away from the real economic problems facing Americans today. As this ad illustrates, these are just the negative tactics John McCain has denounced in the past. Transcript below the fold. CHYRON: "John McCain… readying a newly aggressive assault on Sen. Barack Obama's character." [Washington Post, 10/04/08]VIDEO: Montage of McCain attack adsCHYRON: John McCain is "looking forward to turning a page on this financial crisis." [Washington Post, 10/04/08]VIDEO: Montage of McCain attack adsCHYRON: McCain Campaign's Ad Spending Now Nearly 100 Percent Devoted to Attack Ads [Talking Points Memo, 10/3/08]MCAIN: "I'm John McCain and I approved this message."MCCAIN: "Uh, I, I just have to rely on the good judgment of the voters not to buy into these negative attack ads. Sooner or later, people are going to figure out if all you run is negative attack ads you don't have much of a vision for the future or you're not ready to articulate it." [The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, 2/21/2000] CHYRON: John McCain: We Can't Afford More of the Same
- AL-05: Sessions Trying to Boost Wayne Parker Jeff Sessions will be doing a meet and greet event today at Parker HQ in Huntsville.Republican congressional candidate Wayne Parker will host U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions at a meet and greet today at the Parker campaign headquarters, 4851 Whitesburg Drive, Suite A2.They mention a luncheon at 12:15, but it isn't clear if the event is open to the public or not. If any of y'all in southeast Huntsville (it's next to Publix) drop by, let us know if there's a crowd to see Jefferson Beauregard Sessions, III. Last month it was Dick Cheney, this month Sessions. Apparently Peanut Parker didn't get the memo advising Republican candidates to focus on local issues and distance themselves from the national party.
- A Town Hall Meeting Just saw this on the news tonight:A "Town Hall Meeting" to be aired live Tuesday Morning: To hear more from the candidates (state) join WSFA 12 News on October 7th at 10:00am for a special edition of Alabama Live. WSFA 12 News along with WVAS Radio, The Montgomery Advertiser, Leadership Montgomery and the Montgomery Election Center will bring you "Election 2008: A Town Hall Meeting." It will be a live newscast from from the Alabama Shakespeare Festival. The event will feature 9 races, including congressional districts two and three. The 2-hour forum will focus on the keys issues surrounding this year's election. Anyone have any idea if they are allowing people to be in the audience or whether it's just a small forum with TV Cameras and reporters?
- On McCain's Negative Campaign, Or, Oh No You Didn't Apparently feeling there’s no other way to win, the McCain campaign is now trying to “go negative” in an effort to make Obama unelectable.Obama has tried to stay above that sort of thing...and while Obama may be a better human being than that...I’m not.We will divert away from the usual high minded conversation about issues today—and we will instead lay out a few unpleasant facts John McCain would rather you forget about. Some of today’s discussion reveals McCain’s financial corruption...then there’s McCain giving “aid and comfort to the enemy” back in his Vietnam days...and for those who may have forgotten, a few words about ugly divorces and near-bigamy and the ending of McCain’s friendship with Ronald Reagan. “I was a U.S. airman engaged in the crimes against the Vietnamese country and people. I had bombed their cities, towns, and villages and caused more injury even death for the people of Vietnam. After I was captured I was taken from a hospital in (?Da Nang) where I received very good medical treatment. I was given an operation on my leg, which allowed me to walk again, and a cast for my right arm which was badly broken in three rpt three places. The doctors were very good and they knew a great deal about the practice of medicine. I remained in the hospital for some time, I regained much of my health and strength.”--John McCain broadcasting from North Vietnam, June 2, 1969John McCain wants you to know that his steely resolve and unwillingness to bend or break is why he would be a good President, and he points to his POW record as an example of that steely resolve.Steely resolve?Maybe not so much.There are people who claim he was known as “Songbird” McCain by the North Vietnamese...and those who report he was never tortured, including a number of prominent Republicans, Congressman Bob Dornan among them...some of whom also report he received preferential treatment in exchange for his “confessions” while he was a prisoner.Even McCain admits to his own bad behavior as a POW in an October 12, 1997 “60 Minutes” interview:Sen. McCAIN: I m--made serious, serious mistakes and did things wrong when I was in prison, OK? WALLACE: What did you do wrong in prison? Sen. McCAIN: I wrote a confession. I was guilty of war crimes against the Vietnamese people. I intentionally bombed women and children...Now to be fair, McCain was not admitting he was guilty of war crimes in that “60 Minutes” interview—what he was admitting was that he was remorseful because he made a confession in the first place...a confession that many other POWs never made, even if it cost them their lives.But let’s move on...So your personal political “Godfather” runs a savings and loan that is being investigated for violating rules relating to risky investments—and your wife has lots of money invested with that Godfather in a shopping center deal.The right thing to do...the brave thing to do...the maverick thing to do...would be to let the regulators do their job—but just like in Vietnam, McCain did not have the courage to do the right thing when it really counted.Instead, in the 1980s, he and four other Senators intervened to try to stop the investigation by holding meetings with Federal regulators. They had enough success in stopping the investigations that Lincoln Savings & Loan was eventually closed by those same regulators—roughly two years later than it should have been--costing the taxpayer over $3 billion...and lots of elderly investors their life savings. "You're a liar," McCain said when a Republic reporter asked him about the business relationship between his wife and Keating."That's the spouse's involvement, you idiot," McCain said later in the same conversation. "You do understand English, don't you?"He also belittled reporters when they asked about his wife's ties to Keating."It's up to you to find that out, kids."--"The Arizona Republic", reporting on McCain’s initial reaction to the Keating Five scandalThe events of that time were responsible for creating a memorable set of “Savings and Loan Scandal” trading cards (one of which featured McCain’s image)—and for making Charles Keating (the big contributor) and the Five Senators forever famous in the lexicon of political dirt and sleaze.“Now I am going to speak about my wife,” he says spontaneously, “she is not in the armed forces,” he added with a certain humor. “I saw her the last time in August of 1967. At that time I was on the aircraft carrier Forrestal when I fire broke out wich [sic] damaged it heavily and it had to be sent for repairs to the United States. At that time I miraculously escaped with my life because I was in my airplane and the two pilots on my left and the two on my right were killed.”(How did that happen?)“A plane caught fire and one of its rockets went off. This in turn caused other explosions. There were 135 deaths, almost all the airplanes were destroyed and the ship was seriously damaged. As a result of the fire I became famous on TV.”(As one who miraculously escaped death, no?)“Yes, but in addition I was able to see my family and stay there nearly a month. I then returned this time to the aircraft carrier Oriskany and 1 month later I was shot down.”(You said that you were going to talk to me about your wife bout [sic] you continue on the subject of the war....)... “She is very pretty. Before marrying me she was a model for magazines and on TV. We have a 3-year-old girl. When I saw her she was still a baby. She also has two children from a former marriage. She now returned to work as a model on TV.”--John McCain, being interviewed in North Vietnam for the Cuban media, January 24, 1970It’s not Cindy McCain he’s talking about in that Cuban interview...it’s Carol McCain, the wife who stood by him through the entire war. In McCain’s book “Faith of My Fathers” he said this about her:I had known and admired Carol since Academy days, when she was engaged to one of my classmates. ... She was attractive, clever, and kind, and I was instantly attracted to her, and delighted to discover that she was attracted to me.The "London Daily Mail" describes the same events in this manner:He first met Carol in the Fifties while he was at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis. He was a privileged, but rebellious scion of one of America’s most distinguished military dynasties – his father and grandfather were both admirals. But setting out to have a good time, the young McCain hung out with a group of young officers who called themselves the ‘Bad Bunch’. His primary interest was women and his conquests ranged from a knife-wielding floozy nicknamed ‘Marie, the Flame of Florida’ to a tobacco heiress.Unfortunately for Carol, she had a car accident during the time of his captivity. Luckily for McCain, he had no problem finding other women to sleep with—and again, I’ll let the "London Daily Mail" take up the story:But already the McCains’ marriage had begun to fray. ‘John started carousing and running around with women,’ said Robert Timberg. McCain has acknowledged that he had girlfriends during this time, without going into details. Some friends blame his dissatisfaction with Carol, but others give some credence to her theory of a mid-life crisis.He was also fiercely ambitious, but it was clear he would never become an admiral like his illustrious father and grandfather and his thoughts were turning to politics. In 1979 – while still married to Carol – he met Cindy at a cocktail party in Hawaii. Over the next six months he pursued her, flying around the country to see her. Then he began to push to end his marriage. Carol and her children were devastated. ‘It was a complete surprise,’ says Nancy Reynolds, a former Reagan aide. ‘They never displayed any difficulties between themselves. I know the Reagans were quite shocked because they loved and respected both Carol and John.’ Another friend added: ‘Carol didn’t fight him. She felt her infirmity made her an impediment to him. She justified his actions because of all he had gone through. She used to say, “He just wants to make up for lost time.”’The Reagans?Yes, the Reagans. By this time Ronald and Nancy Reagan were friends of the McCains' (along with Ross Perot)—and Nancy Reagan has never forgiven McCain, the “Los Angeles Times” reports, for the way he treated Carol. For that matter, neither has Perot.The "Times" also reports that McCain was not yet divorced from Carol when he obtained his license to marry Cindy—in fact, despite what he said later, he wasn’t even legally separated at the time the license was granted, and had been dating Cindy for nine months before he and Carol separated.So McCain marries Cindy...and except for that Keating Five thing, they apparently live as happily ever after as a couple could when the husband violently insults the wife in front of others (warning: link contains highly offensive language). “I want the best kind of campaign and most positive kind of campaign”--John McCain, on a campaign conference call in April, 2008...One thing she said she will not give back, though, is negative campaigning. During McCain’s first run for president in the 2000 Republican primaries, he was hit by smear tactics, some of which were aimed at his adopted daughter, Bridget.Mrs. McCain said that the upcoming campaign against either Sen. Barack Obama or Sen. Hillary Clinton would not engage in negative tactics.“We'd rather not win than to have to do that,” Mrs. McCain said. “That's not worth winning for. This is about being a leader and a person that can be a good example for our children, and a good role model. There's many, many, many more things to this job than just being the president. You are an example. You have to — you have to be better than that. You have to be.”--From an MSNBC report on Cindy McCain’s “Today Show” interview by Ann Curry, May 8, 2008So the guy who said he wanted to run the best kind of positive campaign apparently now thinks his best shot is to positively run the most negative campaign he can dredge up—even stooping to hire for the 2008 McCain Presidential campaign the very people George Bush hired to defame the 2000 McCain Presidential campaign. To put it another way, the candidate who lives in somewhere between 7 and 11 glass houses now wants to throw stones at the candidate he couldn’t beat by claiming the economy is “fundamentally sound”.Or to put it still another way: one candidate would rather not win than go negative...until that candidate is actually losing. At that point it’s time to go with the Karl Rove plan: damn the stones, and full glass houses ahead!Which brings us to the lesson for today: if 2000 you would campaign against 2008 you...and a lot of that is because of your negative campaigning...and you face a choice between your self-respect and trying to outrank your father at any cost...the smart move is to go for the self-respect.Go positive, and risk losing with honor. Go negative, and risk being crushed by your own ugly past—and your ugly future.It’s a tough choice...but if you truly want to win: you’ll lose with honor.
- Walking the mile before I slept "The woods are lovely, dark and deep, But I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep." It has been 41 years since I "took a walk" that mattered to anyone or anything, except me. Nonetheless, 41 years ago, I found myself on a two-lane highway between Montgomery and Selma, Alabama by a sheer accident of fate, and my own subborness. I'm not going to pretend to be something that I am not. I arrived on that stretch of asphalt not because I was that involved, nor concerned about "voting rights" for ALL Americans. I arrived there because I wanted to hear Peter, Paul and Mary sing. The caring came later. My father had threatened me about going to the Third Selma March... the "march" that actually saw the people protesting for the right of American citizens to be allowed to vote actually got across the Edmund Pettis Bridge outside of Selma. My father told me, up front, "It you get involved in that stuff, I'm cutting off your tuition." There is somthing in me that just doesn't respond to ultimatiums, so I borrowed a wig, bought myself a pair of big sunglasses, and like the true REBEL I am, I hitched a ride over to Selma. At that point, my aim was, I confess, to actually hear Peter, Paul and Mary sing. That aim changed and matured after I got actually involved as just another body in "the March." Did I ever achieve my goal of hearing Peter, Paul and Mary sing? No, I didn't. There's no sound equiptment, nor electricity, to enhance sound, in cow fields between Selma and Montgomery, and no, I wasn't close enough to the area, illuminated by car headlights, to hear them nor see them. I know they sang though. I heard the echoes of those close enough to them, who joined in their efforts by singing "If I had a Hammer" and "The Cruel War" and "There's a Man Going 'Round Taking Names." Most of us were "hummers" back then in the sixties, so those closest to the "stage" passed it on for those of us way back in the "cheap seats." I never heard that "concert" Peter, Paul and Mary did that night. I never heard Dick Gregory's wit that same night, and I totally missed Harry Belefonte's performance. What I did do, however, was hang out with a group of nuns way out at the edge of that cow pasture. They bandaged my bleeding knee, and told me to "pray for" the woman who called me "White trash," spit on me, and shoved me down to the asphalt earlier in the day. No, I didn't accomplish my goal of hearing Peter, Paul and Mary sing...but I did get the wisdom of the Universe from some good Sisters of Charity that night...From them I learned to "Walk On" and I'm still walking on at age 69. I will walk to a voting place and vote for the only person I know can lead the march to Constitutional Rights for all Americans...Barak Obama. VOTE your beliefs. I surely will!
- Jay Love and Mike Rogers: Iraq Invasion was a Good Decision Knowing what we know now, was the decision to invade Iraq good judgement or a mistake? Josh Segall mentioned this Montgomery Advertiser story on the Progressive Electorate blogtalkradio show this morning. At the time I had not read it, but after the show I looked it up and my jaw hit the floor. The MA asked all 4 Congressional candidates in the AL-02 and AL-03 races this question:In retrospect, should we ever have invaded Iraq? Do you believe there has been a connection drawn between Iraq and terrorist organizations including al-Qaida?AL-02 Republican candidate Jay Love's response was bad enough, including just about every George W. Bush tough guy platitude (my bold) in the book:Absolutely. When Saddam Hussein was in power, he was very much a destabilizing force in that part of the world. He has invaded other countries. He was supplying arms and allowing terrorists to operate out of his country. And I think on Sept. 11, 2001, everything changed for this country.We can't sit back within our borders and think that the rest of the world is going to play nice and that we can sit back and monitor from this country. We have got to take the fight to them. I would much rather be fighting the terrorists in Iraq or Iran or wherever it might be than over here in this country.I think that Saddam Hussein killed hundreds of thousands of his own people. What we are providing the Iraqi people, though, is an opportunity, and I think having a democracy in that portion of the Middle East where you have these fundamentalists, terrorists and Islamic extremists that it provides a good opportunity for Democracy to take hold in that part of the world.But the real jaw dropper is incumbent Republican Mike Rogers' response:Rogers: First question is yes absolutely, and the second question is certainly. Al-Qaida is in Iraq and has been.In case you lost track of the question, let's do it this way:Montgomery Advertiser: In retrospect, should we ever have invaded Iraq?Mike Rogers (R, Another Planet): Yes, absolutely.Montgomery Advertiser: Do you believe there has been a connection drawn between Iraq and terrorist organizations including al-Qaida?Mike Rogers (R, Cheney's World): Certainly. Al-Qaida is in Iraq and has been.Jay Love didn't address the Al Qaeda in Iraq issue -- maybe he thought he was on shaky ground -- but Mike Rogers waded right in and said "Certainly. Al-Quaida is in Iraq and has been." That contradicts a Pentagon report which found there was no link between Iraq and Al Qaeda before the U.S. invasion. The U.S. military's first and only study looking into ties between Saddam Hussein's Iraq and al Qaeda showed no connection between the two, according to a military report released by the Pentagon. The report released by the Joint Forces Command five years after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq said it found no "smoking gun" after reviewing about 600,000 Iraqi documents captured in the invasion and looking at interviews of key Iraqi leadership held by the United States, Pentagon officials said. The assessment of the al Qaeda connection and the insistence that Hussein had weapons of mass destruction were two primary elements in the Bush administration's arguments in favor of going to war with Iraq.The Canadian Prime Minister just admitted that the Iraq invasion was a mistake, earlier this year Gallup found 63% of Americans believe it was a mistake, but these two Republicans think Iraq has worked out just fine and, given the opportunity, they would do it again. We can't afford to send men with such poor judgement, even in hindsight, to Congress, or in Rogers' case, back to Congress. You can read the thoughtful responses of Democrats Bobby Bright and Josh Segall at the Montgomery Advertiser link above.
- Pearl Jam - Yellow Ledbetter A little early morning blues from Eddie Vetter and the boys....
- Mooncat on Blog Talk Radio this Weekend Update: Josh Segall will be joining us as well. Listen to Mooncat on the Progressive Electorate Blog Talk Radio show this Sunday from 11:00 to 1:00 Central Time. Don't worry Mooncat, you don't have to stay on the entire time. We are waiting on one more Congressional Candidate to confirm and we will let you know your exact slot. We will be spending a good portion of the show on the Alabama Congressional Races and the Judicial Races. For all listeners, please call in, the Call in Number is (718) 305-7327 This Sunday we have another great lineup including Glenn Melancon (TX-04) and Mooncat from Left in Alabama to talk Alabama politics. Loren Collingwood will also be joining us to talk about some polling in the Presidential Race and the Georgia and Kentucky Senate races. Glenn Melancon of Sherman is the Democratic candidate in Texas' 4th Congressional District. The district includes Bowie, Camp, Cass, Collin, Delta, Fannin, Franklin, Grayson, Hopkins, Hunt, Lamar, Morris, Rains, Red River, Rockwall and Titus counties. He is running against Republican Ralph Hall who is the oldest member of the House of Representatives and just changed parties in 2004 at the age of 81. Click here on Sunday to Listen
- And miles to go before I sleep; Boyd's-eye View The woods are lovely, dark and deep, But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep. Robert FrostSuddenly, the woods are lovely, aren't they? The polls resound with the promise of victiory in less than a month. As we expected, the debating season is just made for the candidates of our choice, as their native intelligence, thoughtfulness, and gravitas is on display for all serious voters to see. And the temptation is there to start the victory party. And yet the election season has this grave message for us :But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep. I went to Mobile last week and visited the Obama office there. This is a volunteer site extraordinaire, started by a group of partisans who felt that not enough was being done to drive the most important presidential candidacy in our time. So they did something. I walked in wearing my Obama hat, festooned with ten Obama lapel pins, one plea for America's children, five flag pins, and one incongruous pin promoting condom use- all acquired in Denver. (You remember Denver, right?) I was treated as royalty. I think they wanted my hat.I brought back with me from Mobile two Obama/Biden yard signs and the contact information of a group of great Liberal/Progressives willing to work anytime and anywhere to promote the Obama candidacy. Those yard signs proved to be the electoral equivalence of "baiting the dove field". More beautiful, dedicated folks stop at my house every day or so, attracted by the signs, to ask me where they can score a sign or two, and what activities are going on that need their help. The point I keep hearing is "We actually can carry Alabama, if we just don't give up." Are they right? Is Artur Davis right in his calculations when he says that registering all eligible African-Americans and getting them to the polls could turn 'Bama blue? Well, I don't know, but I know the spirit is here. The determination is here. And the votes? Maybe not, but we won't know unless we do everything in our power to get them out.John McCain has turned the GOP into a party of zombies. Yes, they are still inexplicably close in some polls, but have you seen the so-called enthusiasm of their supporters? Even his Republican defenders are starting to admit he cannot win this thing. But, that doesn't give us a free pass to relax and coast. Two major reasons for that.First: October surprise : In recent elections, the Republicans have shown themselves capable of any self-serving, slimy, smear attack, to try to win. Their claims have been devoid of truth (attacks on Kerry and Max Cleland come to mind), or absurd twistings of tiny issues until they become game-changers (the campaign against Gore),At this point, several of you will be tempted to remind me that Gore actually won. Please remember I am a Floridian and know better than most the evil machinations that the GOP used to steal that election, but calling Gore a liar helped make the race close enough to enable the Grandest Larceny in history.A few months ago, we were looking forward to a race in which the candidates would compete on their records and their qualifications, because we had bought into the fiction that McCain is a different kind of Republican, not a great candidate, but at least an honest, likeable fellow who would win or lose on his abilities and his skill as a campaigner. But to paraphrase a famous line from the JFK years, "Johnnie, we hardly knew ye". The John Mccain we thought we knew was either a fiction or an extinct creature, destroyed by an unlimited craving to achieve the highest office in the land. The real John McCain is a driven man, a person whose ideals and morals, if they existed, have been trampled into the dust of raw ambition. So watch out for an OCTOBER SURPRISE of the worst possible kind, for this man's nastiness, ambition and lack of human decency know no limit.And Second: Downticket Races. Yes, I admit I think Barack Obama will be our next president, because he is smarter, and more important, tougher, than Al Gore and John Kerry, and will not be bullied by the Greedy Oil Party and their allies, the Groping Order of Pundits.. So, I believe Obama is going to be my next president. BUT, I also want Vivian Figures to be my next U.S. Senator. I want Bobby Bright and Josh Segall, and Dr. Parker Griffith to be the heart of the Democratic majority in the Alabama Congressional delegation. I also want Democratic judges, Sheriffs, Mayors, Governors and U.S. Senators all over America. To accomplish that, we cannot let down our guard, we cannot relax and assume (insert old joke here), that the fight is won. Robert Frost's lines must be our watchword."Miles to go before I sleep"
AlabamaWx
- Rain On The Way An all new edition of the ABC 33/40 Weather Xtreme video is available in the player below. You can subscribe to the Weather Xtreme video on iTunes by clicking here. TURNING WET: The GFS is now coming around to the NAM solution, and it looks like we will have a nice two day opportunity [...]
- New Tropical Depression —————————————————————————————— BULLETIN TROPICAL DEPRESSION THIRTEEN ADVISORY NUMBER 1 NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL132008 1000 AM CDT MON OCT 06 2008 …NEW TROPICAL DEPRESSION FORMS IN THE BAY OF CAMPECHE… AT 10 AM CDT…1500 UTC…THE GOVERNMENT OF MEXICO HAS ISSUED A TROPICAL STORM WARNING FOR THE GULF COAST OF MEXICO FROM TUXPAN SOUTHWARD TO PUNTA EL LAGARTO. [...]
- A Mid-Week Rain Event Ahead An all new edition of the ABC 33/40 Weather Xtreme video is available in the player below. You can subscribe to the Weather Xtreme video on iTunes by clicking here. RAIN BY WEDNESDAY: While our weather will stay dry today with a warm afternoon, we are watching a strong upper trough to the west that [...]
- October Almanac I am sorry that I didn’t take the time at the start of the month to share a little summary of what one can usually expect in the weather department in October. So, better late than never. October is arguably the nicest month for weather in Central Alabama. Of course, our perception of [...]
- Sunset From Up High Thanks to James Cain for these images… he writes: “I brought a better camera with me this time. Here are some pictures of Sunday’s sunset over the Tennessee river in Decatur. The first few pictures show the sun setting into the haze layer. Then as I descended below the haze layer you can see [...]
- From West Alabama Every year on the first Saturday in October I drive down to Demopolis to emcee the annual “Miss Christmas On The River” pageant. I have been doing this for about 20 years, and it is a marker in the year for me (I have several of those). On the way down I drove through Brent, [...]
- A Quick Review of the 2008 Atlantic Hurricane Season… Let’s take a quick look back at the 2008 North Atlantic Hurricane Season so far. Tropical Storm Arthur is the storm that nearly wasn’t. It formed at the last minute before landfall in Belize on May 31st. Top winds were 40 mph. Arthur caused devastating flooding in Belize. Major [...]
- Dry and Warm but Rain Coming The latest edition of the ABC 33/40 Weather Xtreme video is available in the player below. You can subscribe to the Weather Xtreme video on iTunes by clicking here. October is one of the best months on the calendar with many cool mornings but warm, sunny days. And there is beginning to be a [...]
- Quick Check on Alabama’s Weather…1:45 p.m. Good afternoon! Here is a look at Alabama’s weather this afternoon. The radar is clear across the state. The nearest rain to Alabama is over southwestern Arkansas. Plenty of fair weather cumulus clouds generally south of I-59, with near total sunshine across the northwestern third of the state. Temperatures across Central Alabama [...]
- October Sunset Thanks to James Cain for these images… he writes: “The ole iPhone camera couldn’t do Friday’s sunset justice. But here are a few pics of Friday’s sunset on the way home from Decatur…”
Active Culture
- Prince and Princess Stories! Event Date: 10/14/2010 - 10/14/2009Storytelling program
- Celebrate Chardonnays - Wine Class at Silvertron Cafe Event Date: 10/28/2008 - 10/8/2008learn the differences between European and American Chardonnays in a fun, affordable class at Silvertron.
- Poet, Activist Sonia Sanchez to Speak at UAB Oct. 6 Event Date: 10/6/2008 - 10/6/2008UAB will present a lecture by the renowned poet and activist Sonia Sanchez
- The Songs You've Never Heard: The Music of Kevin Francis ... Event Date: 10/6/2008 - 10/6/2008Come see Red Mountain Theatre Company's Musical Director Kevin Francis Finn perform with Birmingham favorites at the RMTC Cabaret Theatre!
- Hanson w/ The Veronicas Event Date: 10/7/2008 - 10/7/2008tickets are on sale NOW at www.workplay.com
- Samford University School of the Arts faculty recital. Event Date: 10/7/2008 - 10/7/2008The recital will feature baritone Joseph Hopkins, dean of the Samford School of the Arts. Dr. Hopkins will perform Schumann's "Dichterliebe" and other works. Faculty pianist Dr. Ron Shinn will accompany.
- Glass Flame Working Classes Event Date: 10/7/2008 - 10/7/2008Glass Beads with Sam Cornman
- Tech Tuesdays Event Date: 10/7/2008 - 10/7/2008What are YOU reading?
- DIAVOLO Event Date: 10/7/2008 - 10/7/2008Don't miss this wildly talented and interesting dance company.
- UAB BookTalk Event Date: 10/7/2008 - 10/7/2008UAB BookTalk book club members to discuss Colson Whitehead's novel "The Intuitionist"
r3vrb.com
- Pick of the Day (10/6/08): Tweak Bird Tick, tick, the Monday's keep coming. Let's stop time with rock:Valient Thorr / Black Tusk / TweakBird @ The NickAdmission: 10$Time: 10PMI'm a little wary of this show, because the headliner and middle band are not really my cup of tea. It's actually fairly well executed, but a little monotonous. Tweak Bird, on the other hand, is a revelatory experience. These tripped out metal drones make those tired old riffs seem fresh faced and dewy.
- Video of the Day (10/6/08): Tweak Bird See what I mean:Tweak Bird - Spaceships LIVE
- Concert Poster of the Day (10/6/08): The Avett Brothers And no, for no reason:The Avett Brothers (Georgie Theatre '08) * by Andrew Findley
- Pick of the Day (10/5/08): John Ellis & Double Wide Bottletree thought they'd change up the scenery and have a jazz night. More power to 'em.John Ellis & Doublewide ft. Jason Marsalis / Snarky Puppy ft. Sput Searight / Chad Fisher Group / Oso Closo @ BottletreeAdmission: 10$Go: 7PMBat zabba doo dah, da wid wid dah.
- Video of the Day (10/5/08): An Eye For Annai Cute as can be:An Eye For Annai by Jon Klassen + Dan Rodrigues
- Concert Poster of the Day (10/5/08): Cake And our weekend draws to a close with this wonderful poster:Cake (Main Street Armory) * by Rob Servo
- Pick of the Day (10/4/08): Jesse Payne Saturday! Let's all stay up late and make fools of ourselves!Jesse Payne / Sunny So Brite / Henry Dunkle @ BottletreeAdmission: 7$It Starts: 8PMJesse Payne's been a busy bee lately, but he's headlining The Bottletree this time instead of opening. Good deal!
- Video of the Day (10/4/08): Henry Dunkle This isn't the greatest video in the world, but it's got a certain enticing attitude:Henry Dunkle - Selma
- Concert Poster of the Day (10/4/08): Wilco I want one of those doo-hickeys:Wilco (Tanglewood '08) * by ?
- Pick of the Day (10/3/08): The Great Book of John CD Release And the good times just keep on rollin':The Great Book of John / Red Harp @ BottletreeAdmission: 8$Doors Open: 8PMThe Great Book of John is project #2 for Taylor Shaw, also of Wild Sweet Orange, and I daresay I like it a bit better. Also, Red Harp has horns! Horns!! This is a CD Release, so bring your bucks.
Birmingham on Twitter
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- spann: Just got back from from Woodstock Elementary Schoo... Just got back from from Woodstock Elementary School... those kids will be on the KIDCAM today at 5:00 on ABC 33/40.
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- atcrawford: @michaelgass I got an alert that says IE cann... @michaelgass I got an alert that says IE cannot open the Internet site http://fuelingnewbusiness.com/. Operation aborted.
- sschablow: @alisamleo Please do. I'd love to see it.Twitt... @alisamleo Please do. I'd love to see it.
- Nymphamoi: @zakmo mom advice here - - no don't eat it. G... @zakmo mom advice here - - no don't eat it. Gross
- sschablow: @alisamleo You're right about that. I rarely s... @alisamleo You're right about that. I rarely see SM case study with any type of quantifiable results.
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