The World Around You

Check out Kevin’s latest caption contest.

OTB still has one running as well.

Well, the final bell has tolled on the special session. The legislators have gone home and now we will get to see what is left in the wake of the budgets that the people of Alabama asked for. This is what “living within our means” looks like folks,

The Legislature ended its special session Friday after approving minor changes suggested by Gov. Bob Riley to austere education and general fund budgets passed by the Legislature Thursday. The budget cuts were necessary after Riley’s plan to raise taxes was defeated in a Sept. 9 referendum.

The budgets will mean as many as 1,000 or more state employees will lose their jobs, said Mac McArthur, executive director of the Alabama State Employees Association.

“It’s better than what we had feared, but it’s still horrible,” McArthur said. “Other than the death of an immediate family member, the worst thing that can happen to a person is to lose his job.”

Riley said the budgets passed by the Legislature were the best that could be expected under current revenue shortfalls.

“Ultimately my goal was to make sure that the pain was lessened as much as possible,” Riley said. Concerning layoffs of state employees, he said, “we have no options.”

The governor’s press secretary, David Azbell, said Riley is expected to sign both budgets next week.

The $4.2 billion education budget did not eliminate any teachers, but cut out most money for new textbooks, for teacher training, for new classroom computers and for library books.

The education budget also cut out more than $11 million that had been spent on special projects in legislators’ districts. There were several efforts in the House to restore the money, but Speaker Seth Hammett, D-Andalusia, said there was no way to justify the special projects and still find enough money for classrooms.

“You have to always be able to pay for the basics, before you can for the extras,” Hammett said.

Watch the unemployment rate in Alabama spike next month.

I have nothing against Paul Bremer, I think he’s been asked to do an impossible job and is handling it well, but this story was just too good not to mention,

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Berated for months by Iraqis over power cuts, the top U.S. administrator in Baghdad returned to Washington this week to find that Hurricane Isabel had knocked out electricity to his own family’s home.

Paul Bremer told a Senate committee meeting on Wednesday, “As millions of American households, including the Bremer household, have learned in recent days, it is almost impossible to live in the modern world without dependable electricity,”

Asked by Delaware Sen. Joseph Biden whether he was looking forward to going back to Iraq, Bremer quipped he had a better power supply in Baghdad than Washington, where power companies are still struggling to restore power to thousands of homes cut when Isabel roared through last Thursday.

At least he can have sympathy for the Iraqis when he returns to Baghdad.

The Indianapolis Star reports this morning,

The Indianapolis Colts’ starting running back was held out of Thursday afternoon’s practice, the third time this week he’s been unable to participate in preparations for the Saints.

James has been downgraded from probable to questionable on the injury report, meaning there’s a 50-50 chance of him playing. Coach Tony Dungy described the back injury as “trauma from a blow” sustained last Sunday against Jacksonville.

Dungy hopes James is able to practice today and Saturday, but noted James’ availability for the Saints will be a game-time decision.

“I want him to be healthy and feel good,” said Dungy, adding team doctors told him James cannot do further damage by playing. “We’ve got enough backs that, if he’s not 100 percent, we don’t need to play him and we will wait until he’s 100 percent.”

This is a real loss with the way Edgerrin has looked so far this season, but there are capable back-ups ready to pick up the slack for the undefeated Colts.

Cross-posted on Sportsblog.