An Endorsement/A Word, Please

We are proud to endorse Jeff Masterson for Russellville City Council District One. Jeff isn't afraid to question the status quo--something many politicians in Russellville cannot say. The Franklin County seat will have a new mayor next month, and we predict he and Jeff will make a great team. Help pull Russellville into the 20th Century (and as our friend Steve Wiggins says, no, that wasn't a typo.)

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Every controversial or popular topic brings new readers to us here at Shoalanda. Often these readers don't know what we stand for, and with almost 1500 posts to our credit, they don't have time to go back through every one.

We do not report on the personal problems of any private citizens, unless it includes an arrest that Shoals residents need to know about or that person has thrust himself/herself into the news in some manner. We have reported on elected or appointed officials who use our tax dollars to give their cronies or girl/boyfriends a job.

Private businesspeople may do as they wish, and it's no one's business. We do not condone such behavior, but neither do we think it's our job to comment on it publicly. Similarly, elected officials may divorce, but they have not asked our advice, and we are not the keepers of their morals. We do advise each voter to research both the public and private lives of candidates before they mark their ballots.

Neither do we publish information on the arrest history of local individuals unless they commit a new crime.We hope no one judges the local politician or store owner on the basis of a 30 year-old drug arrest or the local attorney, author, or businessman on 10 or 20 year-old charges of tax fraud. These are not crimes of moral turpitude and we certainly don't judge anyone on the basis of such long past personal history. This obviously would not include convicted sex offenders who lobby for fewer restrictions or who flout the restrictions placed on them.

That being said, please feel free to send us questions concerning any matter on which we've commented. We will attempt to answer as soon as possible.

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Shoalanda

The Final Word: Three Guest Commentaries

This will be our last political blog before Tuesday's primary. We bring you a guest commentary from each county.

From Lauderdale:

Chad Holden: Ready to Lead on Day One

My wife and I, along with our son Conner, have certainly enjoyed meeting so many people in Lauderdale County since joining the race for Board of Education the very first week in February. After four months of visiting just about every town in the county, shaking many hands, eating a lot of fried fish, and enjoying a fine breakfast every Saturday morning, we are now only days away from the June 1 primary.

As I said to a group of folks assembled in Waterloo last week, the candidates are all making "closing arguments" now as we near election day. I will take a moment to say that voters have a tremendous list of qualified men and women who care deeply about Lauderdale County on the ballot in 2010. I have come to know and call "friend" just about every local candidate on the ballot, and I can honestly say it will be a tough choice when casting my votes this year. All the candidates are winners in my mind.

The candidates running for Board of Education will be the last to appear on the Democratic ballot. However, I believe the two school board seats are among the most important decisions voters will make this year. What a great opportunity voters have to make a change on the board of education! Two open seats, no incumbents, and six good candidates. Now comes the hard part: choosing the "best" from among the "good."

In my final request for your vote, I ask everyone to take a serious look at all the candidates for the school board. As I have listened to the voters, the consensus is clear: people are ready for change. People do not want "more of the same." The citizens of Lauderdale County are hungry for school board members who have a passion for public education and understand what it takes to educate our children. People are tired of the "politics-as-usual" and want the school board to put education first. I genuinely believe that I am the only candidate running for Place 2 who represents "real change" and offers a perspective that no other candidate can offer a full-time classroom teacher on the front lines of education every day.

My opponent claims to be the only one with a "vested interest" in our schools since his children are enrolled in the Lauderdale system. My "vested interest" is a one-year-old son named Conner who will be in school soon enough. This race is not a competition about which candidate has the oldest children or the most children. The issues facing our schools are much bigger than that. This is not about me, my family, or my own community. It is about electing board members who are trained and ready to lead a school system with 1,000 employees and over 8,000 students. It is about electing board members who have the education and training necessary to make decisions about curricular and extracurricular matters, as well as the tremendous budgeting challenges our school board faces.

I am a Christian leader, husband, and father. I am a classroom teacher, certified administrator, and an officer in the Alabama Education Association. As an advocate for public education both at home and in Montgomery, I have a good working relationship with our state legislators and AEA officials which will benefit our schools if elected. I am ready to roll up my sleeves and be the voice speaking for you, fighting the good fight, and putting education first.

To do that, I need your vote on Tuesday, June 1. I humbly ask that you consider my qualifications, experience, and passion for education and cast your vote for CHAD HOLDEN for School Board Place 2.

Thank you for taking the time to educate yourself about the election this year, and by all means, pray for the candidates and their families.

Chad Holden
Candidate for School Board Place 2
Lauderdale County


From Franklin:

Chief Jeff Masterson


From Colbert:

He Knows Which Children Are Worth Saving

by Tuscumbia Tom

Yes, Tim Milam relinquished custody of an adopted son, but he kept the boy's sister. That tells me he knows which children are worth saving and which ones aren't.

Tim Milam will use this same judgment in family court. We need a District Judge that will be able to decide which children are worth saving. It's a hard choice, but Milam has demonstrated he's able to weed out the chaff in his own family and can do the same in court. We don't need bleeding hearts that think every child is basically good. They aren't.


Tomorrow is the official observance of Memorial Day...then the election. We hope that each voter will pray to ask God's guidance as they make their decisions and mark their ballots.

Shoalanda

Masterson v. Morrow: Where Does the Truth Lie?

Photo courtesy of Alfa

Rep. Johnny Mack Morrow has deep roots in Red Bay. Pictured above at his 300 acre Cypress Cove Farm, the former economics instructor at Northwest-Shoals Community College has come under fire this week for misappropriating over 77K of taxpayer dollars for his Franklin County farm. One of four children, Morrow is the only one to remain in Red Bay, where he resides on property that has been in his family for generations. Sources say with the property inherited from his parents and uncle, along came the financial means to keep up the land. So, why would Morrow risk everything for what might be a rather trivial amount to him?

Perhaps he hasn't. Sources say Morrow has taken out an ad in the Red Bay newspaper claiming that accusations by his opponent Jeff Masterson are motivated by more than Masterson's desire for the HD 18 seat; Morrow blames Indian casinos in Mississippi for much of the hubbub over state money spent on his land--land at least partially leased by the Bear Creek Development Authority to use for educational purposes. Besides the annual "Farm Week," local school children are welcome one day each month at Cypress Cove.

Seventy-seven thousand dollars for 16 days a year of education/entertainment at a venue where exhibits from the private sector also regularly set up? There must be something in the water in Montgomery...

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Jeff Masterson's response to Morrow and the Bear Creek Development Authority:

Today the board members of the Bear Creek Development Authority attacked the Masterson Campaign for telling the truth. The board members claim that the Masterson ads “harm the good name not only of BCDA, but also of the teachers...” The Masterson radio ad...does not mention the Bear Creek Development Authority or any teachers. There are absolutely no claims of any wrongdoing on the part of anyone except Rep. Johnny Mack Morrow.

“Iʼm disappointed that the fine members of the authority would try and distort what my campaign has been saying,” said Masterson. “All we have said is the truth, which is that Johnny Mack Morrow has used Community Service grants to build buildings, install an irrigation system and hire a worker for his farm. These expenditures are documented in his own handwriting and none of them are through Bear Creek.

"I once again call on Johnny Mack Morrow to return to the state the over $75,000 of taxpayer money he has misspent,” said Masterson.

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There are new additions at Judge Sandlin's Locker.

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The Shoals Republican Club will host a luncheon featuring Angela Laughlin and Dr. Gerald Freeman, candidates for Alabama Senate District 1. The luncheon will be at Ryan's in Florence at Noon today.

At this time, we are happy to endorse Dr. Gerald Freeman for the Republican nomination. Dr. Freeman has been a local physician for many years and will make a great and much-needed addition to the State Legislature.


Shoalanda

Special Report: Morrow's Documented Expenses

We have just received the following report from Jeff Masterson, Democratic candidate for HD 18, the seat currently held by Johnny Mack Morrow:

Discretionary Fund Expenses Benefiting Johnny Mack Morrow's Cypress Cove Farms

We invite our readers to peruse the records and offer comments.

Shoalanda

Cypress Cove Farms: Morrow's Waterloo?

Johnny Mack Morrow seemed like the proverbial shoo-in for retaining his House seat. There is no Republican opposition in that bastion of Democratic rustics, and Jeff Masterson (pictured) has, until now, been an extremely dark horse. The question is, "Did Morrow actually use (read: steal) over 77K in taxpayer funds to complete various projects on his Cypress Cove Farms?"

A working farm, Cypress Cove is open annually to students in Morrow's district. Each year grade school youngsters come from Haleyville, Hamilton, and all over Franklin County to visit the legislator's Red Bay farm during what the legislator calls "Farm Week." Perhaps a better term would be "Your Tax Dollars at Work Week."

Jeff Masterson is currently a Russellville City Councilman and a relative unknown outside Franklin County--until now. We have to ask just how long Masterson has been sitting on this information and, more importantly, can these accusations be proved? If Morrow has used tax payer dollars for personal gain, there would be more than an ethics violation in Johnny Mack's future. Morrow could possibly be adding the title "convicted felon" to his political resume'.

What if Jeff Masterson can't prove his accusations? In that case, we hope Mr. Morrow, a 20 year veteran of the House, winds up making even more improvements to his farm with money won in a libel suit against his opponent.

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We had planned to endorse Johnny Mack Morrow in the House District 18 race; however, we obviously now feel that until these charges are investigated (and that may not happen until after the primary), HD 18 voters will do well to monitor developments day by day and vote accordingly.

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Don't tell Tim James, but Jeff Masterson's Facebook page has parallel postings in Spanish. Well...he is a Democrat.


Shoalanda