The World Around You

While my own website was blocking my access, Susan handled the Hank Erwin issue very well. The man is an idiot and needs to go to Sunday School more often. As the Methodist preacher says in the story, Christians don’t believe that God is vindictive. If we were punished like that for sin, Hank would have been taken a long time ago, along with the rest of us.

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Governor Riley will announce his intentions for the 2006 campaign on October 8th at a party celebrating his 61st birthday. This will be five days after Roy Moore announces his intentions. Most people seem to think they both will run and make for one of the bloodiest primary battles in some time. The money could be flying with Roy getting the dollars from the religious conservatives and the business community lining up firmly behind Riley. We will know the shape of the race in 11 days.

**Crossposted at Polstate.com

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Either Senator Shelby has gone off his rocker or this report is misunderstanding what he’s proposing. A freeze in discretionary spending may or may not mean that projects already in the budget would go forward. Freezing spending could just mean it won’t increase for a year or two. The reporting needs to be more accurate here.

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Congratulations to PoliBlog’s Dr. Steven Taylor for his appointment to the Board of Directors of Alabama Citizens for Constitutional Reform.

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How can anyone say Judge Myron Thompson is an unreasonable or unfair man?

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We have D-Day for the Alabama gubernatorial election, October 3, 2005, Roy Moore will announce what he intends to do, thus setting the stage for the other candidates.

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Senator Sessions’ is really pathetic. First he used the “they did it first!” defense, which most of us stopped using at the age of 8. Now, he’s saying it’s no big deal, that in the days after a major disaster that killed hundreds of people he was busy looking for a poster child to help an extremely elite group of folks who don’t need his help.

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If this isn’t fishing, it certainly has the appearance of it. I’m not someone who believes Siegelman is an innocent by any stretch of the imagination, but I also have little faith that the prosecutors will be able to make anything stick.

Don Siegelman’s administration was corrupt, but is that really news? That also doesn’t necessarily mean he personally belongs in jail. They really are separate issues.

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#12 Purdue handled a tough road test in Tucson and the defense came to play. This season is shaping up to be a special one in West Lafayette. It’s hard to hold back the enthusiasm this team is generating, but it’s still a long road ahead.

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We have a race on the Democratic ticket for Governor of the State of Alabama. Former Governor Don Siegelman has joined current Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley in officially entering the race. The elephant in the room is still Roy Moore. We should be closely watching where the money goes in this race. It will not be the only factor, but it will determine how competitive the candidates can be.

**Crossposted at Polstate.com

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John Leland has a wonderful piece on abortion in Sunday’s New York Times.

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For all his speechifying, Bush still doesn’t get it. Even after Katrina, even after saying he is willing to spend what it takes to rebuild New Orleans, he still does not call for any sacrifice.

So, what’s the plan Mr. President? I find it hard to believe you have one. What’s left to cut? No less an authority than Tom Delay has expressed his belief that there is no fat left to cut. So, what is going to be cut Mr. President? Medicare? Housing assistance? Education programs? Homeland security grants? Defense?

Too bad there isn’t an alternative…like say asking those who are most able to sacrifice and who will benefit the most from a rebuilt New Orleans to contribute. It’s just too bad.

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Young state workers leave for a multitude of reasons. I doubt a survey is going to tell you anything surprising. There are so many different jobs in state government that it will be hard to pin down one or two overriding causes. Some people get overworked, some get frustrated with the bureaucracy, some get frustrated with the deference to seniority over qualifications, some stay long enough to make connections in the private sector and then leave to exploit those networks. It’s not an easy question to answer.

Talking with people in state government and the private sector, the problems are the same. Many in leadership positions have not put the effort into grooming their successors in the way their predecessors did. So now they’re ready to retire and there is no one they feel comfortable with taking their place. Whose fault is that?

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Either something’s going right, or people have given hope of finding a job.

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Media Matters Continues its outstanding coverage of El Rushbo and his non-stop lie machine.

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There is no doubt that Senator Figures is in need of support right now,

A state senator’s son is in jail on drug charges after fleeing a traffic stop in Mobile.

Akil Figures, 23, is the oldest son of state Sen. Vivian Figures, D-Mobile, and the late Michael Figures, former president pro tem of the Alabama Senate. Akil Figures is being held at Mobile County Metro Jail on $7,500 bond, according to the jail log. He has been charged with possession of marijuana and possession of a controlled substance, plus two counts of violating his probation.

“I am a mother in pain with a son in trouble like so many others. At this time, I just ask for everyone’s prayers,” Sen. Figures said Wednesday evening.

Akil Figures was already on probation stemming from May 2002 drug charges.

**UPDATE: Senator Figures may want to consider taking action against NBC 13 in Birmingham. The above story ran under the following headline on their website: Sen. Figures Arrested on Drug Charges

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