Polly & Nemo Aren't Animals/Insubordination?

Hide yo' kids...
Hide yo' husbands...
Hide yo' wives...
Hide yo' chickens...
Mark Dutton be abusin' erbody up in Moulton.

After all, humans don't have four legs or fur, so they, like Polly, Nemo, and the chickens out back must not be animals and are not entitled to protection from abuse. On a more serious note, could the Cumberland School of Law take back Mark Anthony Dutton's juris doctorate; or perhaps the Lawrence County Bar Association could eject him for giving attorneys a bad name? Yes, we know, the latter would be hard to do in some cases.

Or perhaps we should think more kindly of Dutton, aka Larson E. Pettifogger. After all, he probably realizes it won't be long until the five defendants in the infamous cockfighting trial will be in the dock for more serious charges. as well as their wives, girlfriends, boyfriends, or almost anyone who chooses to associate themselves with such white trash.

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A historian speaks on cockfighting: Does cockfighting go back thousands of years? Yes, indeed it does. So does slavery, execution for petty theft, lack of suffrage for women and the poor, and of course throwing Christians to the lions. Do we practice any of those deviant or socially suspect behaviors today? No; however, I'm with Shoalanda on this one. Perhaps we could take those who abuse animals and throw them to the lions. Few thinking people would object. Leo and Una might need some Pepto Bismol and rabies vaccinations.

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Florence Middle School teacher Beth Weir has been "found guilty" of dereliction of duty and insubordination, but she and the current incarnation of the school board would like us to know it's not anything to do with her teaching. Hmmm...dereliction of duty doesn't affect teaching? How interesting.

Just what did Ms. Weir not do? She's a math teacher, so we assume lesson plans don't change with current events. Did she forget to celebrate Blaise Pascal's birthday? Did she not show proper respect for the assistant principal, principal, school board, or superintendent? That could cover both charges and seems more than likely. Perhaps the next in service training day should include a mini course on how to genuflect.

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Shoalanda

Mark Dutton: Mentally Ill or Just Plain Cruel?

Mark Anthony Dutton is a 51 year-old attorney from Moulton. This small town is obviously not a gold mine for practicing lawyers, but Dutton seems to have hit a new low. According to Marky Mark, animal cruelty is legal as long as it's done on private property. Hmmm...the things we learn from those willing to make a buck anyway they can.

We haven't heard of any cock fighting matches at the Florence-Lauderdale Coliseum or Tom Braly Municipal Stadium, so we're guessing it's usually done on private property. Dutton may be feeling lucky since he just recently represented the family of an accident victim who sued local weatherman Gary Dobbs. It seems Dutton and his team repeatedly referred to Dobbs as a local celebrity. We think they meant Dobbs has celebrity; does that mean Mark A. Dutton now has notoriety?

No, Mr. Dutton, it's animal cruelty anywhere it takes place. Now if you really want to do the right thing, you'll donate your fee to the local animal shelter. So, how about it, Marky Mark? It's either that or a new fur coat for Melissa. The public is watching...

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We've had several readers inquire why the Colbert County shooting of Jesse Rainey is going to be presented to a grand jury. We can assume the district attorney wants to dot every i before pressing any charges. Should he press charges? Since we don't know the basis of his decision to present the case to the grand jury, we can only defer to his legal expertise. It's an extremely sad situation for all families involved.

That being said, parents, do you know where your children are and what they're up to on weekends? It just might be a good idea if you did.

We recall a recent blog by our friend OB in which he stated that at 3:00 a.m. on a Saturday morning he, as a teenager, would have been in bed asleep--no choice involved whatsoever. It seems he had a very intelligent and loving mother, as did I. It's sad that not everyone did and does.

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Saluting a great mother: Get well soon, Annie Walker Neidert!

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Shoalanda