Need A New Roof? You Might Not Want to Consider A & A

Jason Dale Riddle was one of the five Shoals residents arrested Sunday for participating in a cockfighting ring. Sources say those arrested will be assisted in their legal defense by the Sabong Cockfighting Alliance (Yes, there really is such an organization).

Besides Riddle's wife Alice Diane Riddle, also arrested, other members of Jason's family are reputed to raise and fight roosters...nothing like a family tradition. Riddle currently owns A & A Roofing on Woodmont Drive in Tuscumbia. If you abhor cruelty to animals, you might want to avoid A & A Roofing when you next remodel.

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Alabama House Minority Leader Craig Ford, D-Gadsden, will serve as guest speaker at a meeting of the Shoals Democratic Club on Monday, August 15, 6:30 p.m. at the Steelworkers' Union Hall located at the intersection of Wilson Dam Road and Avalon Avenue in Muscle Shoals. A light meal will be served at 6:00 p.m. and the public is invited to attend.

Representative Ford will report on the 2011 legislative session and current issues faced by our state and nation. Ford will also discuss ways to organize and energize for the 2012 elections.

Representative Ford was elected to the Alabama House of Representatives in 2000, succeeding his father, the late Rep. Joe Ford, who served in the House for 26 years. A captain in the U.S. Army Reserves, Craig Ford received a marketing degree from Auburn University in 1991. He is co-owner of Hodges-Ford Insurance, and he also co-owns The Messenger, a weekly newspaper.

As a state legislator, Ford has received high honors from various groups especially for his accomplishments for citizens with special needs, educators, firefighters, senior citizens, and Alabama workers. He has twice been named Most Outstanding Legislator by his peers.

Representative Ford and his wife, Gwen, have two children. Gwen is a teacher at Gadsden State Community College, and the Ford family attends First United Methodist Church of Gadsden.

Shoals Democratic Club meetings are held each month on the third Monday night at 6:30 with alternating locations between Florence and Muscle Shoals. The public is always invited to join us. For more information, call 256-412-9966, email shoaldem@hiwaay.net, or visit www.shoalsdemocraticclub.org.

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Any steamship enthusiasts in our midst? Link




Shoalanda

UNA's Ben Seabrook Injured/Five Locals Arrested for Cockfighting

Friends of University of North Alabama's Ben Seabrook have been understandably worried about him since yesterday. In Ben's own words:

For everyone who wanted to hear what happened yesterday, me and drew were cooking bacon when the pan flipped over, covering my face and part of my chest in burning grease...

Ben, a former Madison Academy standout, is currently being treated at UAB's burn center, but according to sources should be able to return for fall classes.

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Alice Diane Riddle of Muscle Shoals has an interesting hobby--cockfighting. The 39 year-old Colbert County woman was charged with cruelty to animals, gambling, and cockfighting in Lawrence County.

We have never understood how anyone can delight in the suffering of animals. Most who do so graduate to inflicting harm on children or the handicapped--anyone who cannot defend themselves.

Also charged in the Sunday raid were Riddle's husband Jason Dale Riddle of Tuscumbia, Tony Joseph Parker, Caleb Chester Chaney, and Samuel Jacob Parker, all of Russellville. Sources state that the five may also face possible drug charges. Let's hope it's enough to ensure they remain isolated from society until they can behave with a modicum of feeling and decency.



Shoalanda