Monday, October 31, 2016

It Was a Warm & Balmy Night...



It’s late on Halloween night, and we hope all our readers are safe and sound. It’s time for special Halloween wishes; happy Halloween to:

* Our friend in Texas who sends us such deliciously interesting stories. We could blackmail half the Shoals.

* Our friend J. Redmon who’s busy working at a new job and unable to write anything at the moment.

* Our friend Leslie M. Shoals who has the power to irritate 90% of Colbert County. Leslie has a new blockbuster blog coming. Stay tuned.


* Our friend the Midnight Rider for all his contributions. 

* Our friend Kanye Twitty--what a blast!

* Our friends at the Shoals Insider who have upped their game recently. If you miss checking in with them, you’re the loser.

* Our friends at Pen-N-Sword who’re usually the only ones to investigate a story until the end. Don’t miss that publication either.

* Our friend L. Stone who always has a charming and/or extremely informative back story for us.

* Our friends Will Motlow and Daniel Rosser who haven’t had the easiest time of it the past few years and are certainly not going to have an easy November. We appreciate you.

* Tony Logan and all the police officers out there who work tirelessly for the community with little or no thanks.

* Our newly elected municipal officials; we expect big things from you and offer our thanks in advance for the new era you’re ushering in.


* Our friend Carlton Utley who has the most thankless but necessary job we can imagine.

* All those who send us blogs. Keep them coming.

* Our friend and favorite adviser the tolerance guru. You inspire us to be a better person.

* And finally to all our readers who write words of praise…and those who keep us on our toes.

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A kiss is just a kiss...






Sunday, October 30, 2016

What Are We Going to Do with Uncle (Tommy) Arthur?


If you’re not familiar with the old music hall song What Are We Going to Do with Uncle Arthur?, here’s a great video:


What is the best thing to do with convicted killer Thomas Douglas Arthur? Here are our options:

1. Execute him. Remember he’s killed two people, shot a Colbert County deputy who survived, shot a sibling to one of his murder victims, kidnapped an innocent bystander during a robbery while escaped from Colbert County, reportedly brutally beat his two/three wives (the third perhaps being common law), and countless unknown other crimes?

2. Keep him in solitary confinement where he can’t hurt anyone else; this could easily be considered cruel and unusual punishment?

3. Place him in the general prison population where he can hurt or kill prisoners who may have redeeming qualities or may even be innocent of the crime of which they were convicted? Remember, Arthur is one who has used feces as “punishment” for his enemies in the past. Don’t even prisoners deserve more consideration than that? We hope you’re nodding in agreement with that.

So what is the best way to handle Arthur or those like him? Send us your comments and we’ll happily publish them.

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Arthur’s family is stating they think this is the end. It very well may be. His daughter says it’s cruel and unusual punishment for Arthur’s family. Let’s remember the state didn’t commit the crimes. The state didn’t demand a stay of execution all these times. Let’s place the blame where it lies - completely in the lap of convicted killer Thomas Douglas Arthur who may at this point have less than four days to live.

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Saturday, October 29, 2016

Tommy Arthur/Live Dangerously


It’s now five days until Thomas Douglas Arthur’s scheduled execution. Will it finally be a fait accompli? Don’t bet the farm. The current main objection to Arthur’s demise is the alleged pain caused by potassium used in the execution IV cocktail.

Does potassium burn the body from the inside out? Since no one comes back from that kind of death, no one can say. Our personal research indicates the drug Versed is a potent tranquilizer and many medical professionals use potassium to commit suicide. Does Arthur deserve more? We personally do not support capital punishment in 99% of the cases, but we also suggest everyone remember that Arthur has killed two individuals and attempted to kill more. His death will not be a loss to society as a whole.

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We unpublished our blog from yesterday for obvious reasons. We will probably re-publish it at a future date.

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Links: We publish many links; we are not responsible for the content of these links, but publish them because we believe our readers will be interested in them. As we’ve said many times, to no obvious avail, we have no control over these sites’ publications. You might not like AL.com or Yellowhammer News, but you can always learn something from them. Live dangerously…learn a little.

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Friday, October 28, 2016

Sheffield Coach/Trespassed?


In case you missed it, the Shoals Insider has identified the suspended Sheffield teacher as Jared Mothershed, a coach in the city on the bluff. Mothershed was suspended with pay for allegedly having an inappropriate relationship with a student. If true, this makes four such Shoals area coaches in the past five years. Not a good example.

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Each family, town, geographic area has their own patois/lingo/jargon. It’s to be expected. You know if a person has mental issues and someone comments that the ill person needs to be in the 400 Unit, the speaker is from the Shoals area. Yet we don’t expect the TimesDaily to uses this particular jargon in print/publication.

Yes, we have LEO friends who use the word “trespass” in place of banned. Cop shows are so prevalent, most of us have become familiar with the acronym BOLO and similar terms. A good rule of thumb is the Oxford dictionary listing for a word. Here it is for the word “trespass:”

1. Enter someone's land or property without permission.

‘there is no excuse for trespassing on railway property’

2. Make unfair claims on or take advantage of (something)

2.1 Commit an offence against (a person or a set of rules)

‘a man who had trespassed against Judaic law’

Please notice that it is not a synonym for “banned.”

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According to our fellow blogger L. Stone, someone who trespasses in the wrong place may later be funeralized if it’s reported on a certain Huntsville television station.
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We also see that the media recently reported someone was guilty of “forced sex.” There is a word for that, you know…

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Speaking of Huntsville television stations, you really shouldn’t miss the Youtube channel that brings all their wonderful old commercials back. For those of our extremely concrete thinking readers, the word "wonderful" just might have a sarcastic tinge.



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In the “We Get Strange Questions” department, we’ve recently gotten several that could be filed under advice to the lovelorn. We’re going to let Bailey tackle those in an upcoming blog.

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Thursday, October 27, 2016

Crime Dynasties/Fike Verdict/UNA Rape


Crime dynasties? We’ve had requests to add two families to our list of crime dynasties, the Dawsons and a second family headed by a woman; however, we’re researching the second offering. As for the Dawsons, some of them spoke openly of their past criminal endeavors; ergo, we have no problem listing them. We do wish to ensure we have the relationships correct in the second family that has been active in both Franklin and Lauderdale Counties during the past ten years.



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The Robin Fike manslaughter trial? Fike was found guilty earlier today. Surprising? Hardly!

Fike’s defense attorney John McKelvy of Tuscumbia admitted his client:

1. Was driving under the influence of alcohol,

2. Had a BAC three times the legal limit,


3. Was trying to outrun law enforcement when he crashed his PT Cruiser into the back of the Ford Taurus that (his victim was in).

Surprisingly to no one, that sounds exactly like manslaughter, no matter what Mr. McKelvy may say. In fact, we’re surprised that Fike wasn’t charged with some form of murder.



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The UNA rape arrest? It’s going to a grand jury even though the alleged perp was (again allegedly) identified at the scene. Also beaten at the scene, we understand.

Where do our sympathies lie? We assume if anyone did hit Tyre Pickett, and photographs don’t usually lie even in this age of Photoshop, they simply mistook him for a punching bag in the dark hall.

Yeah, that’s a good story. That’s third degree assault at most, and we understand he will have to go to Florence Municipal Court to officially press charges. We’re sure many would like to see him try.



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“Ad Women? Mad Ad Women?” Yes, we have them. Mea Culpa.

However, we do find it amusing that a woman would want to claim that offensive ad. Nevertheless, we’ll be sure to check future blogs to substitute the word “person” if we should inadvertently use the word “man” in that context.

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Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Hoo Boy! Listerhill! Not Too Smart, Are You?


It’s “all about we?” Really? At least place “we” in quotes. We will assume that Listerhill wants its customers to have jobs, and we can assure you they won’t have the best ones if they speak that way.

And your advertising man? Even if he should be a good friend of ours, and we have no idea who he is, that is a horrible slogan. So here’s the term for today:

Idiot Savant: a person who is considered to be mentally handicapped but displays brilliance in a specific area, especially one involving memory.

We know some who qualify for this. They have a great aptitude for their jobs, but they don’t want to improve their lives in other says. Well, we have news: It doesn’t work that way. Strive to do better. You can be better, so why don’t you want to?



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A friend of ours sent us word about a man who once committed several serious crimes. We have no problem placing that in the man’s past. Yet our message to him, should he be reading and we doubt that he is, is that he can still be a better father. We’re not sure how many kids he does have, somewhere between three and five we understand. So one of your sons is a total jackass? Help him! Don’t be out gallivanting; isn’t that what caused many of your marriage/family problems to start with?

We’ll continue this in the next few days for the woman who’s been seen on FB saying it doesn’t matter what you’ve done in your past. We have news, it does…

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Hey, who can tell us Conan O’Brien’s early 90s quote about Scotty Pippin? It’s a hoot!



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Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Julian Assange/Naming the Blackmailer?


We had the following comment from a faithful reader and friend on our Facebook comment on Julian Assange:

If the charges are proven false why is he hiding in the Bolivian Embassy ? Interesting conspiracy article but it just don't add up on the face of the charges.

To which we replied:

The charges he's trying to avoid come from the alleged rape of an adult woman in Sweden. He says he's innocent, but if he returns to Sweden and is cleared, he will then be extradited to the U.S. where he is definitely guilty of hacking.

In short, our presidential election, no matter whom you support, is being highly manipulated, especially by the DNC. Do you then vote for the Republican candidate? We honestly don’t know how that would best work. Stay at home? No. Vote for an independent? You could, and we certainly may when the time comes; however, there is no way an independent can win our state. Voting for the independent candidate might do good in some states, but here? We sincerely doubt it.

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Horrible language and a horrible joke, but remember NO CHOCOLATE for your dogs and cats this Halloween:


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A reader has asked to follow through on the blog about the jailhouse blackmailer. Rest assured, as things stand now, we do plan to. We may blog on a slow news day since he’s hardly worth more press

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From another faithful reader: Shoalanda, if you forgive someone, even the one who stole that most precious to you, you don’t have to love them, just forgive them and not hate them.

Our answer: Your statement is very similar to a conclusion we came up with almost 20 years ago. Yet while we can forgive what someone does to us, do we have the power to forgive that which is done to those nearest and dearest to us? Or to those nearest and dearest our friends?

Our conclusion? If there is someone out there, maybe in jail, who has hurt the loved one of a friend of ours, and our friend wants us to help make this miscreant’s deeds known, you can bet we will, assuming they are public record and he’s currently in the system. What should he do? We suggest behaving in future or risk his evil deeds following him and his loved ones for the rest of his life, within the above parameters.

What’s funny about the above situation? We understand the feckless ne’er-do-well once said his victim’s friends had no power to hurt him. My, my. Things change, and we guess his opinion of his victim’s friends and family has now changed as well.

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Monday, October 24, 2016

Helen Keller Hospital? No, Try ECM!


Keller Hospital, The Deer & Trunk or Treat
By: The Midnight Rider

Keller Hospital
http://media.al.com/news_huntsville_impact/photo/helen-keller-hospital-93e07c4d30b31b01.jpg
As most of you know, there are plans to build a new hospital in this area. My thoughts is do we not have enough hospitals already. Then a friend of mine related this story to me. I have known this person for a long time and have no reason not to believe them. To my knowledge this person has always paid their bills on or before time. This is what they related to me:

I went to Keller Hospital to have some minor tests. I have Obama Care Insurance. There was $470 left after the insurance paid for me to cover. I wrote Keller a check for $25.00 at the first of the month and sent it to them. They cashed it. The following month on the first, I wrote and sent another $25 check to them.  About 2 days later while balancing my checkbook, I saw that the 2nd check had cleared.
Later that same day I got a call from a Collection Agency. I was told by the caller that I had been turned over to collections for my outstanding balance to Keller Hospital. I was floored. I asked how I could be turned over when I had made 2 payments, one that had cleared that day.  Their reply “they turn it over if it is not paid in full.”

With the following in mind, how is Keller going to compete with the new hospital if this is how they are treating their patients. It seems a little extreme to me. This makes me think that if I am ever sick enough to go to the hospital, I’ll go somewhere else instead of Keller.

P.S. Before I sent this article to be published, my friend showed me the paperwork that confirmed the above story. This is really sad.


The Deer
Deer in Sheffield bar

It appears that a deer recently broke into one of the old bar locations on Montgomery Avenue in Sheffield. The building is currently being renovated for a new business to open. I guess the deer wanted to see if any alcohol was left in the building. Sheffield Police were able to get the deer out without harming it. Geez, can’t have a drink in the peace and quiet.


Trunk or Treat
http://cdn.history.com/sites/2/2015/03/hungry-history-the-halloween-pumpkin-an-american-history-E.jpeg
Several of the local Cities are having Trunk or Treat events this weekend. If you have youngsters, take them to these events for some safe fun.

Until next time...
I am and always will be, the Midnight Rider.

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Sunday, October 23, 2016

Change the Tourism Board? Yes, We Can!


The following op-ed piece if from a reader with vast experience in tourism. We encourage every one in Florence and Lauderdale County to read it. As for those who reside elsewhere, you'll still find the content eye-opening. This is a situation we can rectify. We can ask our new council members to judge for themselves and, when the time is appropriate, take action. 

Presenting a huge chunk of truth:


Why is it that there seems to always be SO much controversy with the Florence Lauderdale Tourism Board? How many stories have we read over the past 20+ years about some controversy within that board?

It seems that we never hear about much controversy at other tourism agencies both larger or smaller than Florence-Lauderdale. Could it possibly be that the current and many former tourism board members are hand picked by
Florence City Council members with an obvious agenda? The agenda has been more "control of power" motivated than "growing tourism" motivated.

Very, very few of all tourism board members, both past and present, have had ANY tourism or tourism related experience. Why would grown men want to act as puppets for anyone?? Well, grown men is a stretch when you look at some of the members, both past and present. How many times has David Abramson’s name been mentioned in a a questionable situation. Why is he even on the board.? I think he was in the road construction business before he retired.

Often, board members of an organization are viewed as experts in the field. Would you really want a construction worker on the board of directors for an opera? In most board settings, the members are made up of experts in the field. Doctors and hospital administrators are members of hospital boards. Homebuilders and suppliers are on the board for the Homebuilders Association.

Why do we always seem to get duds for our tourism board? Could it possibly be that Dick Jordan seems to always be at the helm trying to control the board to do what HE wants? It's going to be interesting to see how the tide turns with the NEW Mayor of Florence, who knows ALL about tourism and has no agenda, hidden or apparent.

Now let's dig into the new tennis courts. Why in the world would we build a bunch of tennis courts at Veterans park instead of something that would bring in tourists ALL YEAR LONG and have so much more appeal to everyone and not just the tennis people?

If the rich, tennis loving citizens of Florence want a tennis complex, let them use their own money to build it. Give them some land right off the beaten path and say “here you go…this is our part and now you build the courts.” If they have some skin in the game, they might look at it differently. Veterans park needs to be the home of a true tourist attraction like an INDOOR WATER PARK that can be utilized year round for EVERYONE, not just the rich tennis people. Look at the popularity of the pool, the central focus of the Marriott Shoals. Imagine the weekend business the Marriott and ALL the other hotels around would get with an indoor resort style pool, and other indoor activities.

The number one thing visitors ask when considering visiting a city is “what is there to do there?’ Lets build something that people would be interested in visiting.

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Leadership is Limited

Yes, all leadership is limited. Many remember when Florence mayor Eddie Frost passed away; at that time Dick Jordan became acting mayor. Mr. Jordan didn't want the position since he made more money in his insurance business. Think about that: The most qualified for any elected job may not choose to run since he or she will lose money. Others have family commitments which make holding office impossible. Many factors limit the pool of those who will lead the Shoals, the state, and the country.

That brings us to an article about a man who is, or at least was, planning to run for the Lauderdale County Commission in two years. The Lauderdale body has only four members; would you want this person as one-fourth of the commission?


While we doubt Mr. Cheek would have won a place on the commission, what if he had? How many who seek office are ticking time bombs? Worse yet, how many who now hold elected office are ticking time bombs? As we have often said, elections are a crap shoot. Let's do our homework and choose as wisely as we can.

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Worth watching for Kenneth Cranham, star of Danger UXB and Shine on Harvey Moon:





Saturday, October 22, 2016

Jail Mail & Who's Yo Shugah Daddy?


Does mail go undelivered at the Lauderdale County Detention Center? A detention center employee has informed us it usually does if there is no return address on the envelope. Cards or letters without a return address are deemed suspicious and may be tossed into file 13.

A friend has reported that mail sent to Edward Ray “Chip” Dillard has been subject to extra scrutiny—apparently due to the seriousness of his alleged crimes. So if you don’t want your name connected to anyone in jail, don’t send any mail.

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Speaking of Chip Dillard, who’s paying his attorney Robert Tutin? Tutin regularly represents high dollar clients, while Dillard is reportedly broke.

We also have to ask just how Tutin was selected to replace Dillard’s original counsel Dan Totten of Athens? Could it be that Tutin has connections to the attorney general’s office…connections that would make a deal that more likely?

If Dillard should make a sweetheart deal with the state prosecutors, he still may face local charges of smuggling drugs into the detention center, something he was reportedly blackmailed for by at least one enterprising young client. Deal or no deal, the trial date for Dillard and co-defendants Tim Staggs and Brett Mitchell is in December.

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Friday, October 21, 2016

Our Eighth Anniversary!




It's our eighth anniversary. That's right, we've been here eight years; during that time we've made many friends and a few enemies for standing up for better government, law enforcement, and personal responsibility. Here are a few statistics concerning our blog:

1. We've published 2,960 blogs.

2. We've had 3,041,200 page views.

3. Our most viewed blog was a Sexual Predator at Florence Plaza with over 24,000 hits.

4. Our second most viewed blog (since the first was under especially heinous and unwanted circumstances) was How Do You Spell Whites Only with over 10,000 hits.

5. Our Facebook page currently has 5,460 likes.

So a tremendous thank you to all our readers. To a few of our special helpers and advisers, we couldn't have done it without you and you don't know how much you mean to us!


All of us at Shoalanda Speaks

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Thursday, October 20, 2016

Vote to Help All Alabamians


From a reader:

I don't know if this is exactly your wheelhouse or not, but if there's any way we can help our fellow Alabamians I'm all for it!



These folks have been dealing with this for 8 years, I consider myself pretty well informed but this is the first time I've heard about the health issues resulting from the leak.

Voter registration deadline is Oct 24. Maybe we can vote in some folks who are interested in helping our state residents!

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Our state attorney general has proclaimed there is no evidence of any wrongdoing by former ALEA leader Spencer Collier. While we abhor lawsuits against the state in general, we hope Mr. Collier will sue. We hope he sues our foolish governor personally for all he's worth. If brazen Becky wants to see any of her sugar daddy's money, she'll have to visit either Spencer or Dianne. 

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Wednesday, October 19, 2016

Did the DA Lie?/Still Missing


Yes, this is a strange case, and we would love to have our readers' input:

First, we usually read the Athens News Courier; you might be surprised at how many from Rogersville are regularly arrested in the fair city of Athens. Recently we read an interesting article about a volunteer firefighter who was on the sex offender registry. It seems he participated in fighting two fires which were close to schools and thus committed a crime. Regular readers know how we feel about those who abuse women and children, especially sexually, but in the case of a fire, wouldn’t we all be happy with any assistance we could get?

Now it gets interesting. We read an article about the firefighter in PNS, and it seems his crime was Second Degree Rape committed with a 15 year old girl when he was 23. The moral here is not to have sex with someone you don’t know well. Yet this man, now 54, stupid as he may have been at the age of 23, is not an ogre. Hadn’t the article in the News Courier depicted him otherwise?

We checked back and found that the Limestone District Attorney’s office had informed the reporter that the man had committed First Degree Rape, attacking a 17 year old girl. Which tale was correct?

We then checked the ALEA records and found that the man was indeed charged with and convicted of only Second Degree Rape. So why did the Limestone district attorney present the story as something more sinister? Somehow the sad case of Joel Moyers comes to mind…

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There are still three people from Lauderdale County unaccounted for in the past month, two of them teenagers. The third is 51 year-old Robert DeShawn Childers. After four weeks, we may assume it reasonable to discard “just wanting to spend some time alone” as one possible reason for his leaving his home in northern Lauderdale County.

Unfortunately, foul play now seems the most likely reason for his going missing. If you know anything at all, no matter how small, please call the Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Department. Shawn may never return to his family, but we can still make sure he receives justice.


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Tuesday, October 18, 2016

Halloween, Clowns, & Christmas Parades


Halloween, Clowns & Christmas Parades
By: The Midnight Rider

Halloween
Halloween is fast approaching. Here are some aspects to remember on the upcoming date. Halloween can be fun for kids and adults alike. Don’t do anything stupid. If you do something stupid and go to jail, is that how you want to remembered when someone posts it on Facebook? You know they will. Be safe

http://cdn.history.com/sites/2/2013/11/Halloween-Hero-1-A.jpeg
Clowns
The Rider has already told you in a previous article that this Clown stuff is getting out of hand. The latest thing going around on Facebook is that the “Clowns are going to do a Purge on Halloween.” Yeah, ok. You going to be purging in some good ole boy’s yard and he is going to purge your ass with a shotgun.

Please, enough with the clown stuff.

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/hHjGtBnSv50/maxresdefault.jpg
Christmas Parades
Now, we are getting to the part of the Holidays that the Rider likes. Christmas. I just read that the City of Sheffield is holding their Christmas Parade December 1, 2016. What? That’s not a Christmas Parade. That is a Thanksgiving Parade. The Christmas Parade should be closer to, well, Christmas. I don’t understand this decision.

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I am and always will be, the Midnight Rider.

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Monday, October 17, 2016

An Interesting Lawsuit/Gale Satchell


From Austin Burdick:

Bessemer, Alabama- October 18, 2016- A hearing has been set for October 26, 2016 at 3:00 PM in the Birmingham Federal District Court in the case of Burdick vs. Kennedy et al.

Bessemer attorney, Austin Burdick, filed a lawsuit against five US Supreme Court Justices after their ruling in OBERGEFELL v. Hodges, which legalized same sex marriage. The lawsuit does not the issue of gay marriage; rather, it asserts that the defendants, JUSTICE ANTHONY M. KENNEDY, JUSTICE STEPHEN G. BREYER, JUSTICE RUTH BADER GINSBURG, JUSTICE SONIA SOTOMAYOR, and JUSTICE ELENA KAGAN abandoned the Constitution and violated their oath of office.

Burdick states in his lawsuit that the US Supreme Court’s opinion includes language that departs from all prior precedent and rewrites the 14th Amendment of the US Constitution while redefing the terms “freedom” and “liberty”. An amendment that has always acted as a limitation on government action is now said to be the basis for granting the government power to interfere in fundamental rights at a most intimate and personal level. This ruling sets aside nearly 150 years of protection and opens a Pandora’s box for court’s to expand government infringement into the lives and liberties of individuals in a multitude of other cases..Burdick hopes, that through his lawsuit, he can convince the Federal Court to issue a ruling that will uphold the US Constitution and limit government overreach.

The Federal Court in Birmingham, Alabama will hear oral arguments at the October 26, 2016 at 3:00 to determine whether or not to dismiss the case.

Austin Burdick is a private attorney whose office is located in Bessemer Alabama. The practice specializes in general law with a primary focus on the protection of basic constitutional rights of United States citizens previously protected by the 14thAmendment.

For further information or to arrange an interview:

Contact: Austin Burdick, Burdick Law Firm

Phone: 205.565.8909

Email: austin.burdick@gmail.com

Website: www.austinburdick.com

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We see that Gale Satchell has been cleared in the ethics charges brought against her before the primary. Now Ms. Satchell should be unencumbered in her leadership of Colbert County schools. We wish her the best!


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Sunday, October 16, 2016

Say Yes to Amendment Four!


In three weeks we’ll be voting for more than our next (gasp) president. We’ll be voting on 14 new amendments to our ridiculously long state constitution. We won’t try to make a recommendation on all of them, but Number 4 is a winner.

Proposed amendment four allows for more home rule for our counties. In other words, our county commissioners will be allowed more freedom on making laws that apply to our individual counties. They will also have less ability to blame others when things go wrong. This is a good thing. It’s always more efficient to curse someone in our own county than having to e-mail Montgomery.

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Kindness or tolerance? We were speaking with our favorite advisor earlier today; he claims he’s not that kind, but merely tolerant. Both are good qualities that so many of us lack. Yes, you may inject our name here.

We do have to ask where tolerance should end? Is our judicial system too lenient? Perhaps it’s too hard? We think the answer depends mainly on the perp’s attorney…a good one could get Jack the Ripper off, while an ineffective one couldn’t save Mother Teresa.

Soon Lauderdale County will undergo judicial changes. It should be interesting…

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Saturday, October 15, 2016

Who Bails These People Out?/New DV Law?


Jails are crowded; we understand that. What we can’t understand is how some criminals make bail over and over. No, we’re not even talking about the small time burglar who regularly gets arrested once a month until a judge grows weary of him and sends him South. We’re speaking of those who can easily be classified as dangerous.

We see that Skyler Burgess has been arrested in Colbert County for failing to appear at a court date. If you’re not familiar with Burgess, she makes Lindsey Lohan look like Pollyanna.


Does this woman, with four children the state supports, have the money for bail? We understand she’s entitled to an attorney even if her guilt is a given, but bail? Why call her “Armed and Dangerous,” then allow her out in the general public?

Is there a flip side? She’s probably so psycho that no jail wants the responsibility. We can understand that also. If she harms another inmate, who will be sued? The answer is the state, aka the taxpayers.

Obviously there are no easy answers. Yet we’re betting the public feels safer with her locked away.

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We’ve always taken the position that the state too easily enacts new laws for every occasion. We still feel that way, but have a suggestion for a law we feel is needed in this state.

For many years, a certain number of misdemeanor DUIs qualify one for a felony. How about a similar law for Domestic Violence arrests? Sure, first degree Domestic Violence is now a felony in Alabama, but we see those like Ryan Kent Pollard who go to jail over and over for days at a time, but like Skyler Burgess, seem to return to freedom to offend again—read: beat up some other innocent female.

We welcome input and ideas on how best to have this law enacted.

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Friday, October 14, 2016

What to do if Trump Attacks?


You’re a female sitting next to a famous man on a first class air flight when he begins to kiss and fondle you. Do you:

A. Sit there and do nothing…for over 35 years?

B. Simultaneously hit him with whatever you have at your disposal and call a flight attendant?

C. Sell the story to a tabloid?

D. Both B & C?

If there is any doubt, the answer is “D.”

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While we can’t speak for all who blog here, we don’t support Trump…or Hillary. Let’s face it, our country is in dire straits, and Canada, snow and all, is looking good to us.

However, Trump for all his faults is not the Anti-Christ. Nor is Hillary. They both have enough faults to debate without making any up.

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Repeal the 19th Amendment? It’s become something of a satirical hash tag on Twitter, but still only satire for most. We’ve read of a few who said they would give up their vote forever if they could be sure Trump would win.

We also read of those who say they can turn lead into gold and water into gasoline. These people are not exactly hitting on all cylinders.

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The TD has just published several articles on the high number of children killed by firearms, especially in the South. If local district attorneys want to charge anyone in these deaths, shouldn’t it be the parents/guardians who leave these weapons unattended—or more importantly, their children unattended?

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