Bobby Denton & the Alabama Music Hall of Fame

The Alabama Music Hall of Fame, officially opened on July 26, 1990, was visualized as one of the stars in the crown of Shoals tourism. Instead, it became an underfunded and under attended drain on state tax dollars. Even the welcoming signage is forced to display advertising as a means of financing its illumination.

State Senator Bobby Denton intends to change that--a fact that highly irks current board members. If Denton's bill passes the House and is signed into law by Gov. Bob Riley, the Hall of Fame will have a new board of directors composed of appointees by the governor, the Alabama Tourist Association, and the Alabama Mountain Lakes Tourist Association (more on this great organization later). Detractors of the bill stress that such appointees would not have the background in music that is the hallmark of the current board.

That may be true, but a career in music or music education does not a marketer make. At this point the Alabama Music Hall of Fame needs some strong state, regional, and national marketing in order to survive. Who realized that the "Singing Senator" had such vision?

*****

Are you offended?: We at Shoalanda feel that we can easily put a point across, as well as put a ne'er-do-well in his place, without taking the name of God, Jesus Christ, Paul Bryant, or Atticus Finch in vain. With the exception of our satirical "guest commentary" by Bubba Leroy Smuckpucker II, we don't recall a single instance in which even mildly offensive language has been included in our blog. We also realize that other bloggers do use such language in an attempt at humor, satire, or to express great perturbation.

Even though we are of a conservative/moderate political bent, we have great admiration for fellow Shoals blogger Matt Osborne, author of Osborne Ink and frequently featured columnist in the Huffington Post. Last week we added a link to King Cockfight's eponymous blog. King is a brilliant satirist from that alien region slightly to the south of the Shoals, otherwise known as the home turf of Roger Bedford.

We have received complaints about Matt's blog in the past, choosing simply not to address them publicly. Now, we have received some similar complaints concerning the content of King Cockfight. Censorship is a slippery slope--first words, then ideas. Therefore, in an attempt to strike a happy medium, we are placing an "Adult Content" label by the link to each.

*****

Need a good read?: Visit the Spring Sale at K's Cove in Elgin. Hundreds of paperbacks have been reduced to only twenty-five cents. K has also marked downs dozens of NOW vitamins to $1.00 a bottle. Tanning beds available Tuesday-Saturday, 10:00-6:00. See you at the Cross Roads!


Shoalanda

Two Blogs and a Bard

We've heard it said, to really gauge the pulse of a community, don't just rely on the local newspaper, check out the area forums and blogs. In the past we've highly recommended Osborne Ink by Matt Osborne and hope that you've added his column to your favorites list. Now, we would like to suggest two other Shoals area efforts for your consideration.

The Robnett Reveiw is a conservative political blog written by Jason W. Robnett (pictured). We find it both witty and informative. Like Osborne Ink, many of the issues tackled are of national import, and we hope Mr. Robnett will turn some of his wit toward state and local issues in the future.

The second site is more than just a blog--it's an extremely well-done website by a Brooks High graduate who refers to himself as Coach T. With football season fast approaching, we're sure CoachT.com will be a must-read for many.

That brings us to the bard, a local poet who is going places, brought to us via YouTube and a tremendous local talent currently residing in Hollywoodland. Both poet and presenter prefer to remain anonymous at this time, but we hope to be able to bring you an interview with both in the near future. For your enjoyment, we present Pyro.


What's up with this: We're glad Florence Councilman Barry Morris is concerned about protecting citizens from local hucksters; we wish he would demonstrate the same concern for our well-being in smoke-filled eateries.

Shoalanda

Osborne Ink on Roger Lovelace

Shoals political pundit Matt Osborne wears many hats. One of them is blogger.

I have not before added Mr. Osborne's blog Osborne Ink to my list of "must reads" mainly due to his blog's evolution toward national and world politics. Yet when Mr. Osborne returns to local politics, he does so with pithy eloquence.

His column on former FloGas manager Roger Lovelace is so informative as to be breathtaking. It demonstrates how little most of us know of the inner workings of the Florence political machine. I will not reveal here any of its explosive revelations; you should read them in Mr. Osborne's own words.

If the Lauderdale County judicial system drops the ball on Lovelace this time, each registered voter needs not to ask, but demand an explanation.

http://www.osborneink.com/


What's up with this: Speaking of making your opinions known, if you're tired of that money pit commonly referred to as a Sportsplex, be sure to ask your elected officials if they know the meaning of the words "financial accountability."