Birmingham Free Press Features

Jim Reed

2012-01-20T05:03:00.000-08:00

Artopia

2012-01-16T15:36:00.000-08:00

by Anne Conway

Each morning I pass a certain piece of street art that makes me smile. Among the boarded windows and brick-laden buildings, this art, unexpected and seemingly out-of-place, gives way to a smile on my face. Some months after I began noticing this piece, I met the artist, Rob Clifton. I won’t say any more about this particular piece because, as it’s street art, he could potentially get in trouble for it. Still, I thank Clifton for this moment of cheer in my morning, and now I know it’s not the only color he brings to our city’s canvas.

Clifton’s hope is that his art brings something positive to our city. Clifton inspires his audience to look outside of their normal domain. “If you begin to pay attention to the little details in life, such as fire escapes and waterfalls, the untouched areas of life begin to emerge,” says Clifton.

His work portrays a myriad of subjects inspired by all aspects of life. “I always try to see the beauty and fun in life, because if you reject the time to recognize these opportunities, then you end up clouding what is really important.” Clifton renders naturalistic images to create simplified shapes and iconographic designs that weave into his “fine, post-psychedelic, illustration.”

One could say surrealism transcends reality in Clifton’s art. If you ask him to paint a portrait, you might get a picture of “someone in cupcake purgatory.” His work is often inspired by his dreams, a “personal connection” to his soul. Clifton’s sensitivity to dreams allow for his subconscious to become reality with pictures of altered dimensions.

A love of music also inspires Clifton’s creative process. Playing the saxophone since grade school, Clifton has always been a performer. Fusing performance and painting, Clifton displays his talents on stage at Bluprint Birmingham. A collaborative performance merging DJs and artists, Bluprint provides Clifton an opportunity to paint live. The audience’s vibe helps shape the painting and the music determines his next stroke on canvas.

His innovation and careful attention to details helped form Artopia, an art show that features emerging artists from our Magic City. Created by Clifton, Andres Sanchez and several other UAB art students, Artopia is an art show that “challenges the conventionalism of the traditional art gallery by merging different styles with live music and performances.” The show’s September debut offered a collage of media and expression. These youthful artists bring their talents to the public with a mix of cultural, societal and religious ideas. The next show will do the same, giving Birmingham a reason to love the culture that art and music bring to our city.

Clifton uses his talents to help Birmingham’s youth as well. At Space One Eleven, a nonprofit visual arts gallery, Clifton teaches children who may not otherwise have access to art classes. With his own classwork sometimes growing stagnant, Rob is able to enjoy the fun and creative side of art. Clifton enjoys watching the children grow and is inspired by their capability.

Look in a different place on your way to work and you may spot Clifton’s art. An unexpected piece of street art, an innovative art show, a live painting-Clifton creates art for our city. Art that gives the ability to “take a break from the goings on in society.”

Cheers to you, Rob Clifton.

Shepherd Bending

2011-12-17T11:42:00.000-08:00

by M. David Hornbuckle

On November 30, Dr. Willy Rice, a prominent UA alumnus and big donor to the school, wrote a letter to the University of Alabama National Alumni Association saying he would donate only $40 this year because he is concerned about the fate of the Black Warrior River, especially with regard to coal mining in its watershed area. In the letter, Rice waxed poetic about his boyhood along the banks of the Black Warrior River, and he promised that, “under the right circumstances,” if the UA system showed it would “be a good steward” of the money, he was prepared to leave the bulk of his seven-figure estate to the University of Alabama.

“But what exactly does the University of Alabama have to do with the coal mining along the river?” you might ask. In October 2010, a permit was issued to allow a new coal mine, known as the Shepherd Bend mine, on the banks of the Black Warrior River. However, it won’t be practical to build the mine unless the Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama System decides to allow it. That’s because the UA System owns significant land and mineral rights in the area designated for the mine.

It’s been noted in this newspaper and elsewhere that the proposed mine will release waste a mere 800 feet from one of the major water intakes for the city of Birmingham. What has not been discussed as often is the fact that this proposed mine is also near popular recreational areas.

Charles Scribner from the conservational group Black Warrior Riverkeeper says, “The mine’s multiple discharge points would be a problem for the river itself and the many people who recreate there. The Black Warrior River’s Mulberry Fork is a hotspot for public recreation, particularly boating, fishing, and swimming. Countless citizens actually eat the fish they catch in that area. The public usage of this stretch of the river is enhanced by the fact that Reed’s Ferry is a popular boat launch location right by Shepherd Bend.”

Dr. Robert Angus, a professor in the Biology Department at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, testified, “ADEM’s exemption of iron, manganese, and TSS from almost all precipitation events, and failure to include limits on TDS, sulfate, chlorides, aluminum and other heavy metals at all, will cause a violation of Alabama’s water quality standards because of its harm to fish and wildlife in the Mulberry Fork and its tributaries.”

Environmental engineer Warner Golden reported that the sediment discharged from the site is “is the equivalent of 160 dump trucks of sediment resulting from one storm event.”

Scribner adds, “Dozens of private property owners in the immediate Shepherd Bend area have echoed these concerns. Many of them fish, boat, and swim in the area. They are also concerned about the reduction of their property values and quality of life as a result of a strip mine starting a Shepherd Bend.”

The Board of Trustees has been implored by student groups, environmental groups, concerned citizens, the media, and even the Birmingham City Commission to refrain from leasing this land for coal mining, but the Board has thus far been eerily silent about its intentions. Last month, 1000 students from UAB, Sanford, and UA signed a petition asking the Board to take a stand. Students from Montevallo sent another 300 signatures a few days ago. And, now there is Dr. Rice’s letter to the Alumni Association.

So far, there has been no response. Scribner says, “While we expect to hear the same boilerplate response from UA, we hope that each signature, letter, call, or news report further convinces UA that stopping the Shepherd Bend Mine is the right decision.”

Bring Us Your Healthy White Babies

2011-12-17T11:35:00.000-08:00

by Eden Anesidora

Domestic adoption is a multi-billion dollar industry where money talks and the laws benefit those with deep pockets. Adoption facilitators, including agencies and private attorneys, profit from arranging a successful adoption for paying clients. This has significant implications for women who find themselves faced with an unplanned pregnancy. The demand for white, healthy infants is high, and the adoption industry strives to supply white, adoptable babies for prospective couples. In this widely unregulated system, efforts are made to encourage women to relinquish their child to adoption. Furthermore, adoption laws don’t provide safeguards that allow a birth mother to make a fully-informed decision. If they did, there would simply be fewer infants available for adoption.

State laws that govern a mother’s consent to adoption provide for a hastily made decision and serve the best interest of the adoptive couple. These laws vary from state to state. Kansas allows consent 12 hours after birth, while the mother is still reeling from anesthesia. In California a mother’s consent is irrevocable. Alabama allows the birth mother five days after birth or after signing consent, whichever comes last, to make up her mind. After those five days, she has nine days to revoke her consent, but must prove she is in best interest of her child. Her “right to revoke” doesn’t include a “right to parent.” In 14 days, she’s stripped of her natural ability to parent and must fight in court, battling a system where the scales weigh in favor of the more affluent adoptive couple. She will also need to come up with over $100,000 to fund this expedition.

Possibly one of the most corrupt tactics in the Alabama Adoption Code is the pre-birth agreement. Yes, mothers may commit to an adoption before seeing her child; unaware of the legal red tape and resources it takes to withdraw her consent. This agreement assures the prospective adoptive couple of a successful adoption. It also makes it more difficult for the birth mother to change her mind and “disappoint” the couple who depended on her for nine months.

Stigma surrounding unwed mothers helps perpetuate a system that breeds infants for respectable white folks. The media usually presents adoption the way most perceive the process. A poor, unwed and unfit mother surrenders her child to an affluent and fit couple—everyone goes on their merry way. Sadly, the adoption process is not this simple. Unwed and pregnant does not make a woman unfit to parent. Furthermore, all adoptive couples are not fit to be parents just because they are in leadership positions at a big Presbyterian church or offer the right sum of money.

The truth is the birth mother is often desperate. She may seek help from an adoption agency or close friend. A permanent solution to a temporary problem is presented to her—adoption. This solution may be presented as the only or best one. She may hear, “Do you really want to farm your child out while you try to finish college?” or “God meant for a child to have two parents.” Gifts of little monetary value, “Dear Birth Mother” letters, religious guilt, and promises of future communication with her child are all tactics used to keep her on the right “path.” The couple may even offer to pay her medical and living expenses (this is legal in Alabama if approved by a judge). A lack of knowledge concerning legal matters in adoption, as well as a lack of resources, put the birth mother at a disadvantage. Because of their resources, the adoptive couple has an attorney to guide the process.

One successful attorney, Drew Whitmire, helped draft the Alabama Adoption Code under which he conducts adoptions for prospective adoptive couples. He is also president of Villa Hope Adoption Agency that offers domestic and international adoptions. Would a prominent adoption attorney draft a law that would make his job harder? Absolutely not. I’m sure Whitmire feels confident his adoptions will go smoothly, as the law includes safeguards for the prospective adoptive couple. According to Villa Hope’s website, 75% of Whitmire’s practice is in adoptions.

The Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute wrote that Whitmire had been “considered by many in Alabama as its premier adoption attorney.” Furthermore, his “dedication to adoptive parents and their children makes him an outstanding choice” for Alabama’s Angel of Adoption Awards, a signature public awareness program for the CCAI.

Unknown to the birth mother, the visits with her child that were promised in a letter will not occur, as these letters are not legally binding. The letters with updates on her child will not arrive. Those gifts (flowers at the hospital, candles and baked goods, etc.) do not have “monetary value;” therefore they are not considered coercive. How subtle. The language used by the adoption facilitators was not undue influence, just encouragement. In addition, the poignant interviews with the social worker, in which the birth mother discloses every detail of her life because “it’s important to be truthful,” will come back to haunt her if she contests the adoption in court. Medical records, dating back to the birth mother’s adolescence and teenage years, may be used to prove her “unfit.” Her decision, because it is based on emotional appeals and granfalloons, is one she regrets.

These stories fail to garner media attention, widening the gap between truth and fiction. The stigma surrounding birthparents will continue, as facts are not able to surface. Adoption practitioners and private attorneys will continue to depend on vulnerable, young women to supply healthy infants for those who can pay big bucks.

Until legislation enacts laws that ensure best practice and provide safeguards, birth mothers will continue to be exploited.

Pepper Spraying Our Teens

2011-12-17T11:14:00.000-08:00

By M. David Hornbuckle

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, there have been about a hundred cases, since 2006, of students in Birmingham city high schools being pepper sprayed and arrested by police officers stationed in the schools. These officers are titled “School Resource Officers (SROs),” but they are employed by the police department, not the school system. The SPLC has filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of six current or former students in these cases. Named in the lawsuit are four SROs, the Birmingham Board of Education, and the Chief of Police. The group claims it can find no other school district in the country where pepper spray has been used as frequently or in the same way it is used in Birmingham.

Now, that sounds bad, right? It gets worse. The Birmingham school system argues that it has no federal constitutional duty to protect students’ safety from the actions of third parties—in this case, the police. Because, you see: the police don’t work for the school system. So the police are there because these teens are out of control gangsters, right? They are breaking up knife fights and such, right?

No. Ebony Howard, the SPLC’s lead attorney on this case, says that many of these incidents involve nothing more than normal adolescent misbehavior, such as cursing or being too loud. In one instance last year, a pregnant teenager at Woodlawn High School was crying hysterically in the hallway because some boys had been calling her names. When the officer asked her to calm down, and she didn’t, he put her in handcuffs (I know that always calms ME down). When that didn’t work, out came the pepper spray.

So then what happens, you might ask. Well, the kid is arrested. But first, the officer is required to allow the student to seek medical attention, so they go to the hospital. At the hospital, the teenager is told there is nothing that can be done about pepper spray, and they’ll just have to wait it out (which isn’t actually true—they could remove the clothes that are still reeking of pepper fumes and help the kid wash off with soap and water, but they usually don’t do that). They tell the teenager to sign a piece of paper, and they usually do without knowing that it is a waiver saying they refused medical treatment. After that, the teen is taken to the juvenile detention center, where they call the parents and schedule a hearing. At the hearing, they usually decide not to prosecute the student any further. For crying. Because she was pregnant and boys were calling her a slut.

One problem here is that the officers are not given sufficient training to deal with youth, particularly special needs youth. And that can lead to them becoming a little too trigger happy when a situation becomes a little frustrating. There is also a huge problem with kids being exposed to pepper spray because they happen to be standing nearby when the incident happens.

These problems are concentrated in certain high schools; Jackson Olin, Woodlawn, Carver, and Winona. These schools all serve a mostly African-American community. So can you say these problems are racially motivated? Howard says, “It’s not so simple. The staff and SROs at these schools are also mostly black.”

But you can bet that if these problems were occurring in a different part of town, there would be a lot more outrage.

Heavy Machinery: The University of Alabama's Sinister Secret Society

2011-12-17T11:05:00.000-08:00

by Stephen Smith

The photo of the founding crew from the 1905 Theta Nu Epsilon fraternity at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa is creepy as hell. It looks like something from a horror movie. The skull really adds to it. These were the original Alabama “skulls.” The fraternity is associated with Yale’s Skull and Bones and has been controlling the politics at the university, and to a large degree the state, for the past century. The group has often been accused of rigging school elections through bribery and intimidation. It almost always wins.

Here is an excerpt from the campus newspaper, the Crimson White, from 1913 describing an early initiation into the group when it was mostly known for its colorful promenade:

Eight men were taken into ‘Skulls’ last Friday night. The initiation of the ‘Skulls’ is somewhat public in its nature, and the parade yesterday afternoon was one of the most original and [ludicrous] that the people of Tuscaloosa and the students at the University had ever witnessed. This “Pee-Rade” was led by Richard Foster, who, in the guise of a negro, wore a scarlet blazer over a dress shirt, pink pajamas for trousers, and carrying an old broom for a baton. He was followed by Pete Jarman, another blackface who was garbed in dress attire also…After Pete came “Judge” Glenn, wearing a lavender dress, pink stockings, a black, jaunty cap covered with a grey veil, and with his cheeks painted, and his eyes blacked until he looked like a militant suffragette or a chorus girl…Sidney Smith, another pajama man, followed Pratt, and after Smith came Lister Hill, who was jauntily attired in a part dress suit, part pajama effect that was most stunning.

That’s Lister Hill, as in Lister Hill Library at UAB, Lister Hill National Center for Biomedical Communications in Bethesda, Maryland, and Lister Hill six-term Democratic senator of the great state of Alabama. Lister Hill, freemason and “Skull” of the Theta Nu Epsilon fraternity. There are many prominent members of Theta Nu Epsilon: Don Siegelman, Richard Shelby (though he will deny it), Bill Blount, your boss, everyone who is anyone in the state, etc.

Dubbed the “Machine” in 1928 by the Crimson White, the fraternity (now a group of fraternities and sororities) has welded substantial influence over the university’s politics and various positions of power by managing to control student elections through various means, some legitimate, many questionable.

Here is what the Crimson White had to say about the organization in 1949:

Today, you hear very little about Theta Nu Epsilon on the campus. But the so-called ‘machine’ is still with us—operating in after-hours secret meetings, getting together its slate of sure-to-win candidates for the coming student elections.

Thus a potential 2500 votes are organized for every name on the ‘machine’ slate each year. A winning proposition? It can’t lose. It can’t as long as no party of equal strength exists on the campus—and we’ve yet to see one that proved effective.

1961:

Unknown to the vast majority of students at the University of Alabama but nonetheless true is the fact that political life, membership in many ‘honoraries,’ and, indeed, even to some extent social life on this campus is dominated and controlled by a well-organized political machine. Ask any of the bigwigs of the campus and of the machine about its existence, and they will respond with the innocent expression of a newborn babe, and ask, ‘What machine?’ They believe that the students of this campus are so naïve as to swallow so incredible a line.

1968:

The Machine is bad for this campus. Obviously, it steers control of student activities into the hands of its members, leaving those outside its ranks to do as best they can against serious handicaps. The Machine is a source of much-talked-about student apathy, as Joe College sees positions of leadership going to the same clique year after year. It is a clear breach of the democratic ethic, secreting much of the working of student government.

In the 1960s a group was formed in opposition to the Machine. The Mallet Assembly managed to get one of its members, Jim Zeigler, elected to student body president in 1970. Soon afterward, Zeigler’s room in old Mallet Hall was burned.

In 1991, the Crimson White accused the Machine of stealing 4,000 of its papers the day before campus elections to prevent the students from reading an exposé on the fraternal order. But as powerful as the Machine is, it was incapable of preventing Esquire magazine from running a cover story introducing the “skulls” to the nation that same year. This was soon followed by a series of incidents that started the group spiraling out of control.

In 1992, a female non-Machine candidate for student body president was beaten, cut with a knife, and had a cross burned on her lawn. A note left on her door read, “Machine rules bitch.” Following this, the Student Government Association was shut down for three years. In 1999, a student from the Republic of Congo, Fabien Zing, was threatened and subjected to numerous racial slurs when he decided to run as a non-Machine candidate. It is impossible to say if the secretive group was behind these or the many similar incidents.

The Machine’s iron grip over UA politics influences the attitudes and power structure of the entire state. It is the old guard that is too entrenched to effectively oppose. These sorts of secret organizations are so much a part of American culture it is foolish to try to fight them. If you want to get ahead in Alabama you would be doing yourself a favor by trying to get into the Machine. If you are black, you are probably out of luck. Gay? Forget about it.

Lip Service

2011-10-17T05:42:00.000-07:00

by Leon Couch

What is it about those lips?

Are the eyes really the gateway to the soul? Or should you close your eyes and instead, kiss those lips? Chances are, if there’s someone whose eyes you feel you could stare into forever, someone you find that enchanting, you’ll wind up kissing them if you can. And I bet we can all agree that kissing tells you a lot more about someone than eyeballs.

Look at the different shapes and sizes, the slight color variations. They come in large, small, smooth, rough, light, dark, puffy, thin, sexy, scary—all kinds. Just look for a while at all those lips. Find a place where you can sit, maybe a diner, maybe a bar. But you should definitely be sitting alone, so you won’t be distracted. Don’t worry that you’re creeping people out. You are creeping them out. But worrying just doesn’t solve problems.

For the next week or so, just look at the different lips around you. Yes, that’s a crazy thing to do. Go ahead though, you should do it. I highly recommend it. Trust me. It’ll be fun. I prahhh-misss.

Now this part is crucial, when someone gets just too creeped out by you and calls the police, be ready. When you see the policeman coming toward you, led by a group of angry people, and they’re all shaking their fists and pointing at you, RUN! Go! Now! Run as fast as you can! And scream! (It’s always best to scream at the top of your lungs while running, either toward or away from trouble. It’s probably good for recreational runners too. But that’s another story.) Scream as high-pitched a scream as you can! And wave your arms in the air above your head! “AAAAAAHHHH!” (Unfortunately, and I should have told you this a minute ago, this actually hurts your chances of escape. But it really, really, really adds style.)

Once they catch you, which they will, and the policeman and the crowd are done beating you, you can throw a few facts at them just for spite. That’ll show ‘em. At least you know some things they don’t. Rest assured, they won’t listen to what you say. They’ll just see a crazy pervert who by that point is bleeding, drooling and crying some nonsense at them. And know this…it will lead to another round of beating. But once again—style man, style!

Here are a few things to yell out through your own swelling lips:

You feel 100 times more with your lips than with the tips of your fingers. (So when your blind friends start rubbing their lips all over your face, don’t be a jerk. They’re just getting to know you.)
A man who kisses his wife on the way out the door every morning will live an average of 5 years longer than other men. (He will live longer than everyone except the UPS driver that is, who rolls up 15 minutes later with, ahem…a package. According to logic UPS drivers will live an extra 10 to 15 years longer than the husband…more kisses from your wife. Women can’t help it. We’ve all seen those uniforms. It’s the shorts, right ladies?)
A small kiss burns around 3 calories. A passionate kiss burns up to 6.4 calories per minute and 600 calories per hour. (So pucker up. To hell with Zumba.)
The French call a French kiss baiser amoureux or “love kiss.” But they also call French fries “fried potatoes.” Go figure.
The Eskimo nose kiss is actually just a form of greeting. I’ve never been invited into an igloo, so it’s none of my business what goes on inside. (I’m sure they’re keeping warm somehow.)
Injecting fat into the lips is one form of augmentation plastic surgeons use. (That one is too easy. You fill in the joke for yourself.)
The brain has special neurons that help you find your lover’s lips in the dark. (There’s nothing funny there. That one is just really sexy.)
There is no evidence at all, in fact much to the contrary, that lip balm is addictive. Of course this means addiction in the literal sense. It coats the lips and prevents them from drying out. It keeps them soft and smooth. You surely derive some sort of pleasure from the application, since your lips are so sensitive. We all know someone who’s a balm junkie. They might keep it well hidden. But someone you know needs to kick.

When you’re done telling the angry mob of your lip knowledge, when you find yourself in lockup for lip staring, drop us a line. Better yet, write us a letter. You’ll have plenty of time to jot down your experiences. You’re getting a free meal and some drugs. It’ll make a great story for us. And I’ll be happy to give you some more advice. I can tell you how to handle your situation.

Good advice: It starts with kicking people in the knee. When the guys in the scrubs come around to give you your medicine, kick them in the knee. This move, by the way, will get you better drugs, making it easier to perform your next move. You guessed it . . . also kicking. When the psychiatrist comes to see you, kick him in the knee too. This will help continue your little vacation. Then when the men in scrubs return . . . and so on, you’ll get the hang of it. Also, cross your eyes and laugh a lot. Use certain words over and over, like “them, cats, Elvis, detectors, transmitters and kill.” Don’t forget either, all of this, the kicking, the gibberish, this is all best delivered with a high pitched scream.

P.S. You’re welcome.

Alabama Immigrants on Strike

2011-10-12T11:54:00.000-07:00

Opponents of Alabama's new anti-immigration law are encouraging Hispanic immigrants across the state to boycott work, school, and shopping. The strike may last between one and five days. Its purpose is to demonstrate the impact Hispanic immigrants have on the state's economy. Word about the strike has been spread on Spanish-language radio and television, through the internet, and by word of mouth.

Several area businesses that depend on immigrant labor are closed today in support of, or as a result of, the strike. Rojo management placed a sign in front of the restaurant saying that they were closed in opposition to the immigration law. Rojo's Facebook page indicated they would be closed today only and would re-open as usual on Thursday.

Alabama for Obama

2011-10-12T08:26:00.000-07:00

by M. David Hornbuckle

Politically speaking, Alabama is one of the reddest of the red states, but Jefferson County runs a little more to the blue side than the average. In 2008, President Obama won 52.2% of the vote in this county (against 47.1% for McCain)—not a huge margin, but enough to color us more purple than pink. Since then, a sluggish economy and continuing wars have contributed to a decline in the president's popularity across the board. From January 2009 to September 2011, his approval rating (according to Gallup) has shrunk from 67% to 43%. In the South, it has gone from 64% to 37%.

What do President Obama's supporters in our area think about his progress and policies since his election? And what do they think needs to happen in the next year if he's to be re-elected. We spoke to some leaders of local Democratic organizations about both of these topics.

Craig Niedenthal is chair of Over the Mountain Democrats, the largest Democratic grass roots organization in the state of Alabama. He says, "Obviously, we support the president. He came into office under terrible conditions, the worst I've ever seen. Some people had unreasonably high expectations. But there’s only so much he can do with a Republican congress who’s number one goal is to see him fail, even if it at the cost of destroying our country. . . As far as what needs to happen in the next year, I personally think he needs to take some tough stands, even if he ends up losing on those issues. It will expose his opponents in Congress as the obstructionists that they are."

Richard Mauk, the chair of the Jefferson County Democratic Executive Committee, seems to agree. "The loyal opposition is trying to paint him into a corner, and they're doing a damn good job of it," Mauk says. "They want to create an impression that this economy is an 'Obama economy' rather than a 'Republican economy.' [Obama] needs to roll his sleeves up and start getting specific. He's starting to do that. People don't like to rally around vanilla. They like to rally around salsa. Just ask anyone at your tailgate party."

Mauk, who has a degree in Economics and worked as a bankruptcy lawyer for many years, now runs a credit counseling firm. He explains that the Republican's metaphor about the national debt has been "a family of four that makes $30,000 a year can't spend more than $30,000 a year. If they do, they go into debt, and that's bad." But he says that Democrats should counter that with a metaphor of a small business. You can't start making money unless you have some money to start the business with. So you have to borrow it. That helps you build the infrastructure you need to start gradually paying the debt down. Mauk says that the only time you should cut spending is when you have full employment, because that situation can lead to inflation. Otherwise, spending cuts increase unemployment. "The Republicans didn't want to cut spending eight years ago," Mauk says. "They want to drive up unemployment so they can pin the blame on Obama."

The opinions of Niedenthal and Mauk jibe with what we take to be the general opinion of most progressives. The president's biggest weakness has been in giving up too much to compromise, starting with propositions that are perhaps too reasonable and leaving himself too little room to bargain with a decidedly conservative Congress. Of course, progressives are not jumping ship on the president. There's nobody else they can reasonably vote for next year anyway. Among registered Democrats, President Obama's approval rating has dropped only a few points.

Whatever Obama does in the next year to help his chances of re-election, Niedenthal says, there is something progressives groups at home can do to help. They can educate the public about how progressive policies will benefit people in their own communities. Therefore, the goal of local grassroots progressive organizations in the next year is going to be to convince moderate to conservative white working class people to stop voting against their own interests.

Occupy Birmingham Holds Meeting, Spontaneously Marches Afterward

2011-10-09T13:23:00.000-07:00

by M. David Hornbuckle

Occupy Birmimgham, the local group that has formed in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street movement, held a public meeting today in Brother Bryan Park. Approximately 100 people gathered at the park for a combined potluck picnic and split committee meeting.

During the meeting, individual committees planned strategies for the group moving forward, and then a general assembly discussed the march planned for October 15, which will coordinate with an international day of protest.

After the meeting ended, the group spontaneously marched from the park to the Five Points fountain and back, sporting signs and chanting.

The Cleaning Power of Storms

2011-10-07T11:59:00.000-07:00

by Lee Waites

Air pollution has become a major problem for the people of Birmingham. Weather events directly affect the atmosphere’s ability to process and clean the air we breathe. Knowing and understanding the effects of weather on manmade contaminants and pollution will help us better react to the needs of our environment. Knowing and understanding the needs of our environment can help us make better choices about what we do and do not allow to happen.

What is happening in the world around us is not always obvious, unless we know what to look for.
Inversion, one common weather event, which occurs often in the cooler months, is when the cold air in the upper atmosphere pushes down on the warmer air below. According to Matt Lacke, Meteorologist for the Jefferson County Department of Health, “Calm conditions overnight, not a lot of wind, cause an accumulation of particulates, especially the valley areas.” This is basically what it sounds like, a blanket of cooler air trapping in the warmer, stagnant air, which is full of pollution. “So topography plays a role as well in Birmingham, not just weather. Especially across Downtown and Northside which are kind of in the valley. The cooler air traps the particulate matter closer to the ground, mostly in the morning hours. So when the air begins to heat up a little later in the day, the particulate matter is allowed to disperse more into the atmosphere.”

These days we don’t think of calm weather as a possible emergency. We’ve had years of federally mandated environmental policies that have somewhat protected us from particulate pollution. But with the growing population beginning to overwhelm our outdated regulations, as evidenced by our constant poor ozone quality throughout the summer, we could easily see these inversion events leading to more severe situations for public health, especially if we allow the EPA to be hamstrung as many are attempting now. It’s too easy to forget why the EPA was created.

Kirsten Bryant, with the local environmental advocacy group GASP, recounts one historical weather event that heavily impacted Birmingham, “In fact it was 40 years ago in 1971. It was a weather inversion that Birmingham was experiencing that held particle pollution in place . . . And this was when Alabama was not enforcing the clean air act, and it actually created a public health emergency. Thankfully our air is a lot cleaner than it was back then. But we still have weather inversions. And we still have a pollution problem.” GASP is a rebirth of a group that started years ago, whose original members tell stories of smog so bad you could not see across the city. GASP focuses on educating the public and advocating for clean air. “One good thing is when we have a weather event it can cool down the air, which helps reduce the ozone problem. And the rain can help clear out our particle pollution problem,” says Bryant.

Rain events and thunderstorms have a very beneficial effect on the air we breathe. The falling rain actually pushes the particle pollution to the ground where it can be washed away, wind brings in fresher, cleaner air. Unfortunately there are other consequences for the environment. Heavy rains and storms, with rapid rainfall, do not give the ground time to absorb the falling water. It flows rapidly across the ground, catching debris, spilled oil, litter and other pollutants. In an urban setting this means the water is carried directly into the storm drains, bypassing the regular filtration channels where eventually it winds up depositing its contaminated load into creeks, rivers, lakes and streams.

Industry and mining are also issues in storm events. Nelson Brooke, of Black Warrior Riverkeeper points out many issues of concern. “Harder rain and more volume of rain is definitely going to cause runoff patterns to change significantly . . . since our landscape has changed significantly. These bigger storms are going to be able to push off lots more water than we’ve seen. Riverbank erosion is going to be a bigger issue. That’s going to pull sediment, rocks and shrubs and wash them downriver. “According to Brooke, there are many problems created by the increased volume of rain, and intensity of storms. River banks become overwhelmed, allowing flooding of surrounding areas. As the water washes back out, the pollutants picked up are carried into the rivers as the floodwaters recede.

Brooke is mainly concerned with the impacts of industrial waste, which he says gets carried into the watershed in different ways during severe weather. “Industries are permitted to discharge pollution in certain amounts. There are certain basic controls that are put into place through these permits …most of those designs are put into place for certain types of rain events. They’re not really set up to handle your 50, 75 or 100 year storms. I don’t even know how they calculated those things back in the day. But things are changing. Storms are happening more often, more violently. The landscape has changed alot. Clear cutting, strip mining, development, it’s all getting rid of the forest and land-cover that would slow down runoff during a big storm. There’s a definite connection there for a construction site or a coal mine that has a sediment pond that’s designed to handle your typical 24 hour rain event. When you get a much larger storm they’re not going to be able to handle that. These larger rain events are just going to overload their pollution control systems.”

Finding ways to convince or force industries to respect and further advances in clean environment technology is impossible at times. According to Nelson Brooke reducing profit margins is the argument he hears most for avoiding change. One has to wonder if that is even a successful business move given the example of the auto industry. Ford, the now dominant US auto maker owes its current success, in large part to its new, smaller, more fuel efficient cars. The Chinese are rapidly moving forward with government aided green industries, as their economy moves to overtake ours as the strongest in the world. Everywhere are examples of the profitability of going green with few exceptions. Even if it could be argued as slightly less profitable to do the right thing, isn’t doing the right thing just, well…the right thing to do?

Occupy Birmingham's First General Assembly

2011-10-07T04:47:00.000-07:00

by M. David Hornbuckle

A local group called Occupy Birmingham has come together to express solidarity with the recent Occupy Wall Street protests. The group held a General Assembly last night in Railroad Park to discuss issues, plan protest actions, and further organize. About 200 people attended the assembly. At times, the "human microphone" technique popularized at the New York General Assembly so that speakers could be heard without amplification. In this technique, speakers use short bursts of words, which are then repeated by the crowd.

Speakers discussed various issues related to corporate greed and financial inequities. One speaker read aloud the Declaration that was issued by the New York General Assembly last week. Several committees were formed, included an education committee that will train members of the group in nonviolent protest techniques. There was discussion of a planned protest to coincide with a national day of protest on October 15.

photo by April Scroggins

In addition, the group decided to hold a potluck this coming Sunday, one p.m., at Brother Bryan Park and Magnolia (alongside the FoodNotBombs potluck, which is held at the Five Points Fountain every Sunday to feed the homeless). At that event, the committees that were formed last night will break into groups to discuss their own agendas.

What Are You Kids On?

2011-10-04T08:00:00.000-07:00

by M. David Hornbuckle

Youth culture is the life force of the culture at large; it's what keeps us moving ever forward. And so those of us over thirty, who increasingly can't trust ourselves and who want to remain connected to that force, must occasionally take stock of "what the kids are into these days." We can look at what music they like or how they use their cell phones and computers, but another factor that can tell us a lot about today's generation is what drugs they use recreationally.

For all of human history, people have found ways to alter their consciousness, to get high. In ancient times, various roots and herbs were found to have these mysterious medicinal qualities if they were chewed, brewed, or smoked. By the 19th century, morphine, laudanum, and cocaine were discovered—concentrated extracts that could be used in more measured doses. In the past hundred years, as with other technologies, drug innovations have been rapid and frequent. In the early 1900-1950s, barbiturates and amphetamines began finding their way from the laboratory to the recreational user. The 1960s saw hallucinogens, especially LSD, rise in popularity. Then there was heroin, PCP, Dexadrine, and Quaaludes in the 1970s, the crack epidemic of the 1980s, and the "club drugs" of the 1990s and 2000s. Of course, a few less intense drugs like alcohol, tobacco, caffeine, and marijuana have remained fashionable throughout the decades.

Young adults in particular have a deep hunger for experimentation in this area, the danger and adventure of feeling and experiencing something new. And the drugs of their parents' generation just won't cut it. Every generation has access to new ways of getting high, newly discovered pharmaceuticals with alluring side effects. Often one drug is made illegal and then is immediately replaced by something new and legal. Meanwhile, the illegal substances of course still find their way to the black market where determined users have little trouble obtaining them.

We did an informal survey and asked a few young folks around UAB about what they've experimented with and what they’ve observed among their peers.

These interviews yielded few surprises. The generation of humans that is now college age grew up during a time of unprecedented ADHD diagnoses. Many of them have been taking Ritalin since they were little kids. Some of them abused it, crushed it up and snorted it. When that stopped working for them, they started taking Adderall. If they don’t have a prescription, it’s easy enough to buy it on the street. Other prescription pills readily available for recreational use include Hydrocodone, Valium, and Xanax. One person told us about a friend abusing Lithium.

"Rolling" drugs are still popular in clubs. These include Ecstasy, Molly (pure MDMA), and GHB. Due to its price, pure cocaine remains a drug for rich kids, but cheaper (and more dangerous) derivatives are easier to get. People still like all the old hippie drugs: weed, LSD, and mushrooms. Some youngsters we talked to had experimented with pot laced with various things, including cocaine.

Something relatively new on the scene is the ubiquity of “synth” drugs. These are herbal products that are more or less legal and sold in head shops. Most of them are essentially fake pot—various plant products mixed together and sprayed with a chemical that’s similar to THC. The packaging claims that it’s incense and “not for human consumption,” but you are supposed to smoke it. It comes in little baggies so it even looks like marijuana. The effects are unpredictable and vary by brand. The problem is that you don’t really know what you are smoking or how your body is going to react to it. You can also buy herbal products that claim to be various types of uppers, downers, and aphrodisiacs.

What does this tell us about the young counterculture? This is a generation with a lot of varied interests, even contradictory interests. Expanding of consciousness doesn’t seem as important to them as expanding of experience. They are drug dilettantes, dabbling in things that make them move fast as much as things that make them mellow. Mystical visions are okay, but tracers and lasers are just as cool. They refuse to be pigeonholed, but in doing so, they have little identity. They exist in a hollow, digitally enhanced echo chamber made of fruit-flavored nihilism.

Rednecks & Aliens

2011-09-19T11:40:00.000-07:00

by Francis Brodeur

Once again Alabama has put herself into the limelight of the world's stage, and once again, it's not for anything good. All over the national and international news, you will find discussions about the Beason-Hammon Alabama Taxpayer and Citizen Protection Act aka HB 56 aka "That Immigration Law." If there's one thing people on both sides agree on, it's that this is the strictest such law of any state in the nation. Among people with a grasp of the subject, there is also little debate that the law is unconstitutional and will eventually be found to be so in federal court.

So why did the freshly elected, first time in a century Republican majority legislature, act so quickly to jump on the trendy states' rights racial-scapegoating bandwagon of shame? Because it's what the people want! Not so long ago, people of the same ilk wanted racial segregation to be the law of the land; not too much further back, they wanted the right to own certain shades of people as property. Thank God we have a national constitution to make sure that the people don't always get what they want.

Strangely, these same folks who fight tooth and nail against the Constitutional separation of (their) Church and State claim that immigration isn't a moral issue at all; it's purely a matter of economics. How convenient to have that to fall back on when your fear-driven desires are in direct opposition to your religious dogma. That whole bit about loving your neighbors and forgiving trespassers is so old fashioned anyway. So if they want to talk numbers, let's talk numbers.

They took our jerbs!

Although Alabama has experienced a dramatic increase in undocumented immigrants over the past decade, it still has one of the lowest populations of them in the South—about 120,000 according to the Pew Hispanic Center. Of those people, about 95,000 are working, making up approximately 4.2% of the state's workforce. So if we can kick them out, that's 95,000 jobs for Alabama's legal residents, right? Not exactly. The presence of these 120,000 people is directly responsible for the creation of 18,000 jobs in Alabama according to a study by the Perryman Group. Those jobs simply disappear when the immigrants go.

And there's no questioning that these immigrants are willing to do the jobs that we are unwilling to do. Our neighbor Georgia's government determined that 11,000 agricultural jobs went unfilled this year due to similar laws going into effect there. They couldn't even get more than a handful of the thousands of unemployed convicts who were required to work as a condition of parole to take the jobs. Crops rotted, and are still rotting in the fields. Similar labor shortages are already being reported in Alabama in agriculture and construction. In response, proponents of HB 56 assure us that things will eventually balance out and return to normal. Tell that to the small farmers to whom one or two lost harvests means the end of their business. They already can't compete with industrial agriculture from out of state and overseas, this blow could mean the end for many small farms. And all this is coming at a time when Alabama's farmers were enjoying a rebirth of interest and support by the local market with new farmer's markets springing up all over the state.

They're leeching our prosperity!

Not according to a 2009 trade policy analysis by Peter B. Dixon and Maureen T. Rimmer of the very libertarian CATO Institute. It's en vogue for conservatives today to style themselves free-market libertarians, bur that's only when it doesn't offend their xenophobic sensibilities. The study found that tightening up the borders to restrict the immigration of undocumented low-skilled laborers and increasing enforcement within the borders would lead to a loss of $80 billion in US household wealth. In contrast, allowing even more low-skilled workers and legalizing all of them would increase American household wealth by $180 billion. Both of these figures were arrived at after subtracting all of the public expenditures they incur.

If you want to talk about leeching off of the prosperity of others, let's talk about the citizens of Alabama, who receive far more Federal funds than they pay into the system. Alabama is undeniably a welfare state, taking wealth out of prosperous states and giving very little in return (we suppose American Idol finalists have to count for something). According to a study by the non-partisan Tax Foundation, Alabama received $1.66 for every dollar of Federal tax paid in 2005. In contrast, New York received 79 cents back.

Speaking of taxes—these illegals aren't paying any! Or are they? The Immigration Policy Center estimates that at least 50% of undocumented workers work on the books under false identities, paying into Social Security and other programs that they will never be able to collect on. In 2007 alone, undocumented workers contributed an estimated $12 billion to Social Security. At current levels, at least $407 billion will be contributed over the next 50 years according to the National Foundation for American Policy. Here in Alabama, undocumented workers contribute $130 million a year in income, property, and sales taxes. Remember, even those working under the table pay rent and buy almost all of their goods and services right here in this state. If they pack up and leave, the economy shrinks.

Jim Crow rears his ugly head?

If it's not about ethics, and it's not about the numbers, then what is really going on here? Mickey Hammon came right out and said that he intended for the bill to make unlawfully present aliens' lives so difficult that they will "deport themselves." What about the 65,000 Alabama Latinos that are citizens or otherwise legal residents, and the 5,000 a year who become eligible to apply for citizenship? Should they just put up with the authorized racial profiling, discrimination, and government sanctioned racism for the greater good? This is purely and simply pinning the blame for society's ills on a small (3%) and disempowered minority. It sure is easier than working on real solutions to problems caused by one of the most regressive tax structures in the nation, a rotten and racist state constitution, and a largely failed educational system.

Why not put some of those free market principles that conservatives are so enamored with to the test and open up Alabama's labor market to whomever is willing to work here? Welcoming new residents and filling up low-skill labor positions with low-skilled workers will only expand the economy, create more and better jobs, and allow skilled and educated Alabamians to fill positions at their level of qualification for a change.

Artist Creates Drawings with HIV Positive Blood

2011-09-19T11:38:00.000-07:00

by Stephen Smith

Alabama-born Robert Sherer is an internationally renowned artist who has represented the US in the Triennale de Paris, the Florence Biennale, and numerous other exhibitions throughout the country and the world. Sherer spent much of his career painting beautiful and haunting figures in a masterful style and later moved on to producing purposely-kitsch pyrography (wood burnings) and then began drawings with blood.

Some of the blood the artist uses is from himself and some comes from an HIV positive friend. Much of Sherer’s work focuses on the male figure. This, along with the blood drawings, has generated considerable controversy. His work has been censored on several occasions, including once in 1994 by a (now-defunct) commercial art gallery in Birmingham. In that case, the gallery had issues with Sherer’s nude male paintings, which any reasonable person would consider sober and conservative. The artist placed the male figures in traditional female poses, which makes the controversy even more absurd and highlights the message that Sherer was obviously trying to get across.

In an interview with Sherer, the artist shared his thoughts on art, philosophy, and the Birmingham art scene

BFP: Did you feel you needed to leave Alabama in order to pursue your artistic career?

RS: Yes, but not just for my art career. At the time I was a burgeoning leftist, homosexual, and punk rock atheist artist. From 1974-79, I spent a lot of time in Birmingham searching for my tribe before realizing that they were not to be found. The counter culture scene, the visual arts scene, and the academic art scene were all really complacent at that time. The gay scene was the worst; it was like some Joe McCarthy wet dream where paranoia reigned supreme. The brute force unleashed by the city upon the black community for their resistance was still very fresh in the minds of the gay community.

Somehow in the blur that was the late 1970s, I did find some of my tribe one evening at a Patti Smith concert at Brothers Music Hall in Homewood, but they turned out to be cool kids from Atlanta who made the drive to see Patti. Upon meeting them I began plotting my course toward the capitol of GA.

BFP: Why do you imagine there is still a stigma associated with the male nude?

RS: The stigma exists because most men can’t handle the fact that the sight of the male nude sexually excites them. The feelings they experience contradict their heterosexual programming and thus threaten their sense of well-being. There are several studies indicating that homophobic reactions and homosexual desires are inversely proportional.

"The lady doth protest too much, methinks."

BFP: Do you believe that your experience at Walker College in Jasper was substantially different from your later studies in more traditional art schools like Rhode Island School of Design?

RS: Comparatively, my experience at Walker College in Jasper proved itself to be superior to most of education at larger universities. I was very fortunate to be embraced by two remarkable mentors at that small school: Hank West and London Bridges (yes, that is her real name). These two took me under wing and provided me with many intellectual pursuits and cultural experiences. Hank taught me how to survive as a gay man in the South, and London taught me how to be an artist. She gave me my first ever art show in Birmingham, and it put stars in my eyes. These two gay mentors created a magical curriculum for me.

BFP: As craftsmanship plays such a vital role in your work, did you find that places like RISD aided this aspect of your development or did you basically have to teach yourself to draw and paint?

RS: My father instilled a sense of craft in me at any early age. Most of what I know about the technical aspects of art making I learned via observation and mimicry. The only thing of value that RISD gave me was social connections into the New York art scene.

BFP: How is the Birmingham art scene perceived from the Atlanta area, if at all?

RS: To be perfectly honest, during my thirty-two years in the Atlanta art scene, few people have ever mentioned Birmingham in any context other than the famous black church bombing and its revisitation by Eric Robert Rudolph. Last year, however, the RACE*SEX*POLITICS*RELIGION* (what not to talk about) exhibition at Space One Eleven caused some talk around Atlanta due to the fact that several well-known artists were in the show. Yes, I was among them but I had great reservations due to my history of having been censored in Birmingham.

BFP: Do you feel growing up in a small town in Alabama has influenced your art?

RS: Yes, my upbringing in the rural South gave me a deeply-felt appreciation for the land and for history. It also provided me with beautiful settings for my awakening as a gay man. I dare say that my American Pyrography series of art works wouldn’t even exist were it not for the memories of my youth in Jasper, Alabama.

Information about Robert Sherer can be found at www.robertsherer.com.

BLOOD WORKS: the Sanguine Art of Robert Sherer

Art Book Publication

In the fall of 2012, the Kennesaw State University Press will publish an art book on the subject of Sherer’s Blood Works series. The book, tentatively titled Blood Works: the Sanguine Art of Robert Sherer, will be approximately 150 pages in length with 50 color plates of artworks.

Several notables from the art world are contributing to the book: contemporary art historian Dr. Dinah McClintock has written the primary essay for the book, noted author and feminist historian Helena Reckitt has interviewed the artist, Sherer has written a chapter of Artist’s Commentary and artist Matt Haffner photographed the original artworks for the book plates.

There is a chapter of the book called Artist's Commentary. Here is the text about the piece shown to the right.

Trojan Bouquet, Blood Solution (Gay Male HIV- and HIV+) on Paper, 27" x 20"

A safe sex bouquet about personal protection for circuit party boys. Initially, I was playing with the simple association of the brand name of Trojan condoms with the ancient Trojans. I am intrigued by the idea that the Trojans were destroyed because they let down their guard and allowed themselves to be penetrated by a magnificent animal with hidden dangers. The scene of reclining party boys with their phallic-shaped pillows I copied verbatim from an actual Greek vase.

Birmingham Characters: Bob Tedrow of Homewood Musical Instruments

2011-09-16T08:54:00.000-07:00

by M. David Hornbuckle

Bob Tedrow feigns horror that a 2001 Birmingham News article once called him an "eccentric," but it's clear that he gets delight from the moniker. Every day, he drives a 1928 Model A Ford to work, and passersby are likely to notice the car before they notice the quaint music shop it adorns. "It's like a museum," Tedrow says of his car. "It has its own voice—the sound of the gears, the smell of the gas. I have to carry a tool kit of course. And you don't really drive it. You operate it. Everything has to be done manually. Nothing is automated."

Tedrow says he hopes to continue operating that Model A until it's at least a hundred years old. He says, "The car will make it. I don't know if I will." He jokes that the car and his trusty old workbench are like the Oscar Wilde's picture of Dorian Gray. "They grow old while I remain ever youthful."

He has an unabashed love for anything related to the 1920s and '30s because he associates the period with his grandparents, who were also musicians. Tedrow plays multiple instruments, including banjo, ukulele, guitar, clarinet, flute, saxophone, accordion, and concertina. He's particularly interested in depression era ukuleles and Victorian concertinas. In fact, he's one of only six people in the United States who build concertinas. Each concertina takes about 40-50 hours of labor, he says. His website includes a tutorial video for those brave and crafty enough to try and build one themselves.

As a teenager in Colorado, Tedrow built his first banjo. He immediately started playing with a bluegrass band. He met his wife, Klari, in college when she inquired about taking banjo lessons. The couple moved to Birmingham in 1986 when she enrolled in law school. He opened an instrument repair workshop behind Fretted Instruments in Homewood, and in 1989 he opened his own shop, at the Central Avenue location where it remains to this day.

Tedrow has taught himself to repair many different types of instruments over the years. He now shares his work bench with a promising young luthier named Jason Burns. "Fortunately, most people smart enough to do this kind of work are usually smart enough to go ahead and get a real job," he says about Burns. "That narrows the field down to a dedicated few who like to do this." (Note: in our research, we found that he said exactly same thing about himself in a 1988 interview. "Seriously," he adds, "Jason is a genius. His craftsmanship now surpasses my own."

Lately, Tedrow has become obsessed with mandolins and period guitar styles (from the 1920s and 1930s, naturally). He doesn't perform in public much anymore, but he does do occasional shows at elementary schools, usually at the request of his children or grandchildren. He says, "I'm good in the living room for about an hour. You can't tell me from a real great musician. But I'm not a great musician. I just have tenacity." He's made that comment to a few other interviewers too. Fittingly for Bob Tedrow, some nuggets are just so good, you always find yourself coming back to them.

The Queen of Birmingham Burlesque

2011-09-15T05:42:00.000-07:00

by M. David Hornbuckle

When Jezabelle von Jane moved to Birmingham five years ago, something was missing. In the Northeast, the burlesque revival had been growing for at least a decade, but nobody was doing it in Birmingham. So she took matters into her own hands and created the Magick City Sirens. Later, she also founded a male burlesque group, the Billy Club.

Burlesque shouldn't be confused with the type of exotic dancing or stripping you would see at the Furnace or Sammy's. Burlesque is, in fact, a very old tradition in the entertainment industry, having first become popular in the 1860s. Typically, it features broad comedy, music, and dancing, as well as artful striptease. In its modern interpretation, it may include performance art in many forms.

The strip tease is certainly still a part of it though. Von Jane was actually introduced to burlesque when she was working as an exotic dancer in Boston as a college student. "Someone came up to me and said, 'You dance really well, and you're really funny. The [Local burlesque troupe] Boston Baby Dolls may be interested in you.' So I went and auditioned. They took me under their wing. And that's how it started. I got the bug, and once you get the burlesque bug, there's no getting rid of it. It's like herpes. It's there forever."

Von Jane's Magick City Sirens do a good bit of travelling to other cities in the Southeast, and they have performed alongside local troupes in Atlanta, Huntsville, and Nashville, among others. According to von Jane, each troupe approaches burlesque in a unique way. For example, she loves the Pink Box Burlesque troupe based in Tuscaloosa, but, she says, Pink Box does more 1940s style burlesque while her Sirens are more influenced by Vaudeville and do more gender-bending types of performances.

The Sirens also change their theme and focus frequently. This year, they have been focused on appealing to the gay community in Birmingham, performing with drag queens at Al's on Seventh in the Lakeview district. Their theme this year, von Jane says, is "Glamour and Broadway."

"I haven't quite decided what I want to do for next year," von Jane says, "but I want to shake things up. We don't replicate shows. Once we do a show, it goes into a vault."

At a recent performance, the mother of one of the Sirens was in the audience. Von Jane says this is not unusual. "I'm very close to the parents of my girls when the girls are very young," she says. "I encourage them to come down and see what we do because I'm very proud of what we do. They see it, and they love it." Two of the troupe members' mothers even help the group with costumes. Von Jane's father has even performed with her in one of her routines.

Von Jane herself has kids. She does say that it's important to keep work and family separate. "When your husband is the lead singer of [local hard rock band] Selling Mary, and you are the burlesque queen of Birmingham, it's very important to keep these things separated."

If women (or men) are interested in learning more about the art of burlesque, von Jane encourages them to contact her about classes. She says, "If someone wants lessons, all they have to do is contact me on Facebook and ask me. I do private lessons as well as formal lessons. I like to do private lessons for those who are a little shy because it doesn't make any sense for you to come in a pay me if you are going to be insecure about yourself. I've found it's easier for a lot of women if it's just me and them. I can learn about them and what they are looking to do for themselves."

To find out about upcoming shows, go to: http://www.facebook.com/magickcitysirens

Hail the Snail

2011-09-14T05:33:00.000-07:00

by Lee Waites

Recently the tulotoma snail, native to the Alabama and Coosa Rivers, was promoted from the "endangered" list all the way up to merely "threatened." The tulotoma snail was formerly known as the Alabama live-bearing snail because it bears live young as opposed to laying an egg sack. It is found only in Alabama.

Dredging of the Alabama River, beginning in the 1880s, started the change in the snails' habitat. Then the addition of locks and dams used for hydropower and navigation further impounded the snail population, cutting groups of snails off from one another and changing the structure of their environment. The dams and locks also reduced the flow of water affecting oxygenation, silt content, and other factors that are required by the snail to thrive.

Over-silting and increased water temperature, both affected by damming, are a problem for the snails, who like a fast moving, cool environment. That's why we at the Birmingham Free Press can identify with them . . . So do we.

On the historic day of January 8, 1991, at 8:45 AM, at once celebrated and mourned by all tulotoma snail lovers, and all tulotoma snails, the report was filed. Bruce Blanchard of the US Fish and Wildlife Service filed the report in the Federal Register, placing the snails into the endangered category.

Who cares, right? It's snails. We need our motor boats and hydro-electric power. Archeological finds suggest that Native Americans valued the ornate shells of the tulotoma for trade. Where’s the use in that? Of course we now understand that true value lies in shiny metals, green paper, and plastic cards.

So why value a snail? Many an educated, caring, and knowledgeable person might smirk at this question. I'm not talking to you!

If, in your mind, there is any question that the actions of humans affect wildlife then you need look no further than these tiny snails. "Why this tone?" one might ask. Well, people have been trying to explain to other people how the world works for as long as we have been talking, and probably before that. We have heretofore failed with many. So I'm keeping it simple. Everything on this planet has a purpose. Don't be stupid.

Snails eat little floating things in the water, by sifting. Then things eat snails. Then them things get et’ by other things, and so on and so forth. It's lots of things—snails, frogs, fish, bees. It's called nature. And it's called eatin'. That's a big part of livin'. We all need to eat. Each one of these things is getting killed by some different human activity. Humans are locked up in the chain too. If you require a selfish answer, it will eventually affect you . . . but for now, let’s keep it simple; it's snails.

To illustrate how sensitive the environment can be, the small thing that helped the tulotoma snail inch back into the "threatened" category was a slight adjustment to the flow rates at several Alabama Power dams. This returned the water to a more hospitable environment for the snails. Thus they began to repopulate the areas where these adjustments were made.

Effective July 5, 2011 the USFWS has determined that the tulotoma snail can once again be classified as merely "threatened."

Congratulations to Alabama Power, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the Alabama Clean Water Partnership, the Man who turns the Knob in the Dam, and most of all, the many tulotoma snails who snuggle on the bottom of their rocks in the fast moving water, smiling with hope for a better future. Everything is OK now.

Friday on My Mind

2011-09-13T06:13:00.001-07:00

by M. David Hornbuckle

Once a month, several local DJs get together at Woodrow Hall to spin their favorite old school R&B and Soul records. People of all ages come out to the party, many dressed in stylish retro garb, to dance the night away.

Friday on My Mind was started last year by former roommates Jason Grover and J. David Black. Grover says, "We were both into collecting old records, and we used to have dance parties at our place with our friends, and we loved it. We thought it would be a great idea if we could throw a dance party somewhere else and invite the whole city." And so they began the search for venue. Eventually, Grover moved into another apartment, which happened to be owned by Andrew Morrow. He went to Woodrow Hall to sign his lease. After taking a look around, he knew he'd found exactly the place he was looking for.

Typically, the party starts at 8pm and runs until about 1am. They usually feature 4-5 DJs who each do an hour-long set. The Magnolia Room of Woodrow Hall provides an elegant but unpretentious dancehall setting. The spacious dance floor allows ample boogying room. Tables draped in white line the perimeter, providing comfortable seating while you rest between dances or work up the courage to partner up with a stranger. The venue includes a cash bar, which also helps with that "work up the courage" thing.

The next Friday on My Mind will be on Friday, September 30. For more information go to http://www.facebook.com/pages/Friday-On-My-Mind/175485569132279.

Woodrow Hall Brings New Life to Woodlawn

2011-09-13T06:13:00.000-07:00

by M. David Hornbuckle

A few years ago, if you drove up First Avenue North from downtown up to 55th Street, you would have seen garbage on the street, depressed buildings, and few people. What was once a vibrant neighborhood in Birmingham had lost much of its luminescence. Once-beautiful historic buildings had fallen into disrepair.

The old Masonic Temple at 5504 First Avenue North was one of those buildings, at least until 2004 when the building was purchased by Community Property Development. During renovations, they began to uncover the layers that had hidden this great piece of Birmingham history for decades.

In 2008, business partners Tazmine Morton-Stephens and Andrew Morrow bought it and began additional renovations. Morton-Stephens and Morrow have transformed the building into Woodrow Hall, featuring two large multi-purpose reception halls on the second and third floors. The owners rent out additional space in the building to a doctor’s office, a lawyer’s office, and the Desert Island Supply Company—an organization that arranges writing workshops and tutoring for area youth.

The building was erected in 1914 and used by the Masons off and on until about 2005. “There were a lot of secrets here,” Morton-Stephens says, “and ghosts too. During a consultation with a bride, the client's florist said he could sense a spirit by the name of Joshua. He assured me that he was a friendly spirit who used to work on the floor below years ago. He mentioned that he was carrying a case with a cross on it. I was totally freaked, but, with a building this old, there must be dozens of stories . . . We’re thinking about doing an event here for Halloween.”

The partners bought the building because they are very interested in revitalization of the Woodlawn neighborhood. Morton-Stephens says, "It’s actually our main goal. We’re hoping that with us being here, the neighborhood will be more attractive to other business owners. And we’re hoping that people who left this area years ago will want to return." They named the building Woodrow Hall after a prominent philanthropic family that had lived in the Woodlawn neighborhood during its halcyon days. "The Woodrows live in Crestview now. They’ve been very supportive of what we’ve been doing," she says.

Although the bread-and-butter business of Woodrow Hall is weddings and receptions, Morton-Stephens says she is very interested in hosting all types of events. Already, a monthly retro dance party called "Friday on My Mind" has found its home at Woodrow Hall. Local band the Delicate Cutters held a CD-release party at the hall this past summer. “People really enjoy going to see live music at a venue that isn’t a loud, smoky bar,” Morton-Stephens says.

More music and alternative events are scheduled in the coming months.

See http://woodrowhall.com for more information about the venue.

Circumcision Debate Finally Comes to America

2011-09-12T05:39:00.000-07:00

by Stephen Smith

When the city of San Francisco tried to outlaw circumcision this summer, a Superior Court ruling struck it down, declaring that regulating medical procedures was a state and not a local matter. Much of Europe has moved towards outlawing or severely restricting circumcision. As California is often the first place progressive trends fester in the US, one can expect the controversy to escalate over the next few years. Neither the American Academy of Pediatrics nor the American Medical Association recommends routine circumcision, and there is a growing opposition to the procedure.

In the past few decades a slew of data has raised questions about the medical benefits of the practice. However, a large percentage of the population has a vested interest in justifying what is basically a religious ritual.

There is some evidence that circumcision can help prevent penile cancer, but according to the Harvard Medical School it is little more effective than soap and water. Furthermore, penile cancer is rare, occurring in fewer than .0001% of men, and hardly justifies a procedure that comes with a much higher complication rate. Around 117 infants die a year in the US from problems related to circumcision.

New reports have come out of South Africa from the Bophelo Pele Medical Male Circumcision Centre claiming that circumcision can reduce HIV transmission from female to male partners by 76%. The idea is that Langerhans cells concentrated in the foreskin help incubate the virus. This could also be used as an argument for female circumcision because Langerhans cells are also present in the clitoris and labia.

Circumcision in American is a twentieth century phenomenon and gained popularity as an anti-masturbation measure. At the end of the nineteenth century the majority of male babies weren’t circumcised, but by the 1970s the rate had risen to 94% in the US. By 2007, a relatively small backlash movement brought the rate down to 79%, which is still high and an anomaly in the industrialized world. Canada for instance has a circumcision rate of 9% according to a 2005 report from the Institute of Health Information. In Spain it is 2%, Denmark is 1.7%, and Mexico is 10%-30% varying by region.

Some Muslim countries like Pakistan and Iran come close to a 100% circumcision rate. It is considered a part of the Fitrah, which includes trimming the mustache, snuffing water up the nose, plucking the hair under the armpit and shaving the pubic hairs. In Judaism circumcision is YHWH’s covenant with Abraham and the number of procedures performed in Israel is over 90%. The Christian church doesn’t seem to care one way or the other. The practice predates any modern religions. It was certainly practiced in ancient Egypt and probably long before.

Other popular forms of male genital modification include infibulation, sewing or piercing the foreskin shut, and penile subincision, which is basically slicing the penis down the middle like a sausage on the grill. Infibulation was popular during Greco-Roman times and even in Western Europe until the 19th century and subincision is still common in many cultures, particularly in Australia. Be sure to do a Google image search on subincision—you will not be disappointed.

Female circumcision is universally deplored outside of the few areas, mostly in central Africa, that practice it. Few realize that what we now commonly refer to as female genital mutilation was routinely practiced in the US until the 1970s as a cure for lesbianism, hysteria, and erotomania. Congress only outlawed female circumcision in 1996 for girls under the age of 18.

It seems inevitable that rates of infant circumcision in the US will continue to decline. There is no scientific justification for it. Infants are not engaging in dangerous sexual behavior that would result in HIV. If an 18-year-old wants to get circumcised that is his choice. The operation is known to reduce sexual pleasure and the psychological effects of taking the knife to a newborn’s John Thomas are immeasurable. As always, the religious justifications for ancient traditions will have to be put aside in light of modern, secular ethics.

Just Google It

2011-08-22T13:17:00.000-07:00

by Ian Hoppe

“Just Google it.” This imperative has become the expected response when the common unknown query is posed. And not just when you want to find out Barrack Obama’s favorite brand of chewing gum or the best method of giving your pet gerbil a Mohawk. Closely tied to Google maps is a reviews service. In case you weren’t aware, when you search Google Maps for a company on your smart phone or home computer a page appears with their address, phone number, as well as an option to look at customer reviews.

Of course, this service is not specific to Google. There are several other sites that have business reviews available: Yelp, citysearch, and Epinions being among them. The problem I am about to describe is not specific to Google reviews, nor am I making the argument that Google reviews is superior, because it isn’t. However, a site of this kind where the amount of content is important to accuracy, it is best if everyone agree on an option. I am going to argue that we should use Google for three reasons: 1) We already use Google for everything else 2) They have a good history of keeping up with businesses, maps, and are constantly implementing new features in all of their platforms and 3) They are going to rule the world one day. Deal with it.

In its genesis, I used to frequent this option in helping me make decisions on where to eat, where to take my dog, etc. But in the last couple of years it has become less of a resource for honest evaluations from past patrons, and more of a battle field for public perception.

Like almost every other positive outlet on the internet, it has become a forum in which people attempt to out-crazy one another in the form of wildly exaggerated and abusive reviews. With the ALMIGHTY CAPS LOCK at their disposal, the customers from hell attempt to singlehandedly dismantle the reputation of a company by systematically posting one horror story after another.

We have all seen these folks before. They are the person who feigns an epileptic fit when a rogue hair finds its way onto their plate. You know the type. Previously, (i.e. the entire history of commerce up until the advent of the internet) these people were considered outliers and had little influence on our opinion of an establishment. But now, through this pseudo-anonymous forum, people like this have a significant impact, given the vacuum of other opinions.

Business owners, having their reputations slandered by this very loud minority of customers, developed a need for positive reviews. Enter online reputation managers. You may have heard about these groups on the television or radio, they are hired by a company to not only monitor public data on the internet, but also to go to war with the crazies I described above, with vague, innocuous positive reviews as their weapon of choice.

You see, since none of these review sites allow for the deletion of bad reviews by the company and most people only read the first few reviews, the company keeps the negative reviews ‘bumped’ back in the queue by posting formless and obviously fake reviews like, “This company is great!” This kind of review is even less helpful than the others. The combination of these renders review sites utterly unusable.

Here is my two part solution:

All of the crazies (you know who you are) should take a breather and a valium before they criticize a business for a single lapse in service or product.
Everyone who operates in the marketplace should write reviews. Especially in the event of a good experience. Maybe then we can get rid of these awful manufactured reviews made by the accounts of non-existent people.

In the Beginning was Beorma

2011-08-06T07:44:00.000-07:00

by Lee Waites

In the beginning there was Beorma. Beorma, who was surely a magnificent man, was a chieftain in sixth century England. He was the leader of a tribe, or as they were then known, the leader of an “Ing” This tribe of Beorma's lived in a settlement northwest of modern London in the area now known as the Midlands. This was their home, or as it was pronounced at the time, their “ham.”

Just try it once. Imagine you're wearing a funny hat, like those worn in, say, a play you've seen by William Shakespeare, or an old Robin Hood movie. Hold your finger up waving in a funny gesture, and say "home" in your "best" British accent. Tell me it isn't “ham.”

So there you have it, quick and simple, the home of the people of Beorma, or Birmingham.

Birmingham, England came to prominence as a center of trade, mostly dealing metal armaments. It was conveniently located near existing trade routes and surrounded by the minerals needed to make their wares: iron, coal, timber and an ample supply of water. Sound familiar?

Birmingham, England was also fairly liberal with their trade regulations, allowing for the rapid growth of business. Utilizing its centralized location, Birmingham became the dominant economic force in the Midlands, producing many smithies and metalworking shops which went on to trade throughout England. You can begin to understand what the founders of our city were thinking.

Birmingham, England is also home to the now defunct Birmingham Free Press, not to be confused with our beloved and thriving paper, but one which came long after we began, founded by a wealthy British news mogul who, by the way, contacted us only after he had begun production of his Birmingham Free Press to mention how funny it was that he was publishing under the same name we had long been using. We at the original, the real, and the still active Birmingham Free Press enjoy all sorts of humor. We especially enjoy jokes about the lack of staying power of wealthy, British news moguls. Ha!

Birmingham, England has a long, vibrant and proud history which you should check out at the same place where I got most of this information, http://www.birmingham.gov.uk/.And I can’t fail to mention that Birmingham, England also produced music legends Black Sabbath and Judas Priest! In fact, it's often called the birthplace of heavy metal music. Rock on! Oh yeah…and also Duran Duran.

Here are some other interesting facts about our fair city's name:

Birmingham, England has the nickname "Brum." People from Birmingham, England are hence known as "Brummies."
There are actually 22 other cities named Birmingham in the United States.
There are even more Birminghams in Ireland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
There is also a crater on the moon named Birmingham Crater #357. It is named after a famous astronomer, John Birmingham, who discovered a star, which he also named after himself. Birmingham crater, incidentally, lies in a larger crater, named Hell.
There are 154 legal Scrabble words that can be spelled using the letters in Birmingham.
I just always thought it was a mispronunciation of “burning ham.”

Birmingham Characters: Bhamwiki Founder, John Morse

2011-08-05T08:05:00.000-07:00

by M. David Hornbuckle

The bio page for John Morse, aka Dystopos on Bhamwiki.com, links to an article in The Onion titled, "Area Man Way Too into Local County History." Indeed it is uncanny how much the subject of this satirical article actual resembles Morse, who founded the local wiki website in 2006.

After five years, Bhamwiki currently contains more than 8,300 articles, and though there are 332 registered users, Morse writes and updates many of the articles himself. "There is one other guy who writes almost as much as me, and another guy who mostly fixes my typos," Morse says. A handful of other contributors have come and gone over time, but Morse is by far the primary contributor. According to Wikipedia, Bhamwiki is the seventh largest local wiki in the world and is only behind Davis,California in U.S. local wikis. The other big ones are in Germany, Austria, and Spain.

"I have to credit my mom," Morse says about how he first became interested in local history. During Spring break when he was growing up in Vestavia, instead of going to the beach, Morse's mother took him to local sites such as Ave Maria Grotto, the Southern Museum of Flight, and Rickwood Caverns. He also got some of his documentarian tendencies from her. Whenever she heard that a building was being torn down, she would take the camera out of the closet and go photograph it.

Later, while studying architecture at Tulane, Morse came across a history of Birmingham, written in 1887 when the city was only seventeen years old. "All the principles were interviewed," he said. And though the book mostly consisted of boosterism and racist propaganda, he was fascinated. "I think I kept checking it out for six months or so." He then wrote a thesis entitled "Recasting the Model Village" and was situated in the former mining town of Docena, which furthered his interest in all local history.

Along the line, Morse became interested in Wikipedia and contributed to a few articles about the subjects that were of interest to him. He liked the wiki concept because it is a living document. "I'm not good at finishing things," he says. "And a wiki is never really finished. It's always growing." He soon discovered, however, that he couldn't reasonably go into the level of detail he wanted to on Wikipedia, so he had the idea to start a local version. At this point, the two sites have a symbiotic relationship. A lot of Bhamwiki articles started as Wikipedia articles, he says, and vice versa.

It keeps him busy. He notes that the more things he documents, the more things he starts to notice that also should be documented. He would like at some point for a person to be able to walk down Highland Avenue and be able to read about everything he sees on Bhamwiki. "That would make a good iPhone app," he says.

Some of the articles require frequent attention to stay up to date. One article that Morse keeps up on a weekly basis is on Birmingham homicide statistics. He tracks of all the cases that are documented in the newspaper, and he lists pertinent facts for each incident on the wiki. He also does his best to keep a running tab of which ones have had arrests, which have had convictions, and which remain unsolved. "I met a retired homicide detective, and he told me this was better than anything they had at the department," he says.

Bhamwiki.com is a remarkable resource for anyone interested in local history.

Church Leaders Call Alabama's Tough Anti-Immigration Law Anti-Christian

2011-08-04T12:15:00.000-07:00

Alabama's Draconian anti-immigration law, considered by experts to be the toughest in the country, goes into effect September 1. It already faces numerous court challenges from the U.S. Justice Department, the Southern Poverty Law Center, and the ACLU. A few days ago, Birmingham's police chief criticized the law, saying it put an unfair burden on the police force. And now several religious leaders in the state have come together with yet another lawsuit. Archbishop Thomas J. Rodi, of Mobile, Alabama, in a letter to area Catholics, said that the new law would make “the exercise of our Christian religion” illegal.

Many religious leaders feel that stringent requirements of the new law will put serious limits on their charitable activities toward area undocumented workers, which they see as an essential aspect of practicing Christianity.

Jumping at the Carver: A Local Landmark Lives On

2011-08-02T08:44:00.000-07:00

By Burgin Mathews

Everybody who lives in Birmingham should try to spend some time at the Carver Theater. Though it is one of our city’s greatest gems, it’s a space regrettably unknown to many locals. Situated on the corner of Fourth Avenue North and Seventeenth Street, the Carver represents the best of Birmingham, expressed through a rich mix of music, theater, history, and heritage. It's not only a link to our past; it is a living testament to who we are and to who we can be.

In the early decades of the twentieth century, Fourth Avenue was the heart of Birmingham’s flourishing black business district. Responding to the era’s Jim Crow restrictions, black Birminghamians created a thriving stretch of independent businesses: hotels, fraternal organizations, barber and beauty shops, retail stores, and—most memorably—a jumping, vibrant nightlife. The Masonic Temple leant its stage to Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and others; across the street, Bob’s Savoy offered drinks, dining, and music to a wide mix of steelworkers, coalminers, civic leaders, and Black Baron baseball players. Then, too, there were the theaters—the 1920s saw the birth of the Frolic, the Famous, and the Champion—where patrons could watch the latest movies or take in the region’s most popular vaudeville acts.

Opening its own doors in 1935, the Carver became the preeminent venue for black audiences in Birmingham to catch first-run movies. The space underwent major renovations in 1945, and, while other theaters in the district began shutting their doors, the Carver stayed strong. But in the years after integration—as the black business community dispersed, as hard times hit Fourth Avenue, and as small downtown theaters suffered all over the country—the theater faltered. After long years of struggle and decline, the Carver finally called it quits in the 1980s.

In the fall of 1993 the Carver was reinvented in its current form: as the Carver Performing Arts Center, home to the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame. The city’s rich jazz heritage, beautifully documented in the two-story museum, runs deep: for decades, Birmingham produced an army of musicians who fed the ranks of the nation’s biggest bands. Musician and educator J.L. Lowe, teaming with city leaders Richard Vann and Richard Arrington, re-imagined the abandoned Carver as a means of honoring the legacy of those musicians; as the city pursued plans for its Civil Rights Institute, the idea of the Hall of Fame developed as a kind of “little brother” to that museum, its counterpart and musical complement. Registered today as a non-profit institution, the center continues and builds upon its original vision.

The Carver offers a range of programs and events, including live concerts, plays, and poetry slams, film screenings, and workshops. The annual Student Jazz Band Festival brings to the Carver stage elementary, high school, and college students from across the state and beyond. Most significantly, perhaps, the Carver pursues its mission of education and community services through its free Saturday jazz lessons, while its instrument recycling program puts instruments in the hands of young players.

For most visitors, the first, best way to get to know the Carver is to take a tour, guided by local legend “Doc” Frank Adams. A consummate performer more than active in his eighties, Adams has shared the stage with Sun Ra, Duke Ellington, and many others; a tireless and passionate educator, he has left a profound impact on decades’ worth of Birmingham musicians. His tour—for five dollars, one of the absolute best deals this city has to offer—is peppered with his own lively anecdotes of music in the Magic City.

Though the Hall of Fame remains open and active with its tours and lessons, the theater space is currently undergoing another round of extensive renovations as it gears up for its upcoming season, to be kicked off with a grand reopening in October. To learn more, to schedule a tour, or to rent the facility for your own event, visit www.jazzhall.com, or contact Executive Director Leah Tucker: (205) 254-2731; ltucker@jazzhall.com.

Sipsey Tavern Closes

2011-08-01T11:54:00.001-07:00

Last Friday night, a local watering hole opened its doors for the last time. Sipsey Tavern, in the old Bailey's Pub space behind Dave's, on the corner of Highland Avenue and 12th Avenue South, had become a haven for local musicians and service industry professionals. Many patrons considered it to be the only authentic Irish pub in Birmingham, as well as one of the best places to see up-and-coming bands who were not yet popular enough to play larger venues such as the Nick and the Bottletree.

Earlier this year, Red Mountain Development informed Matt Mauldlin, the owner of Sipsey Tavern, that his lease in the historic Terrace Court building would not be renewed. The lease is now expired as of July 31. Red Mountain Development did not return our messages about their plans for the space.

Despite rumors to the contrary, Mauldin has not yet settled on a location or a time frame for re-opening the bar.

Southside Rapist Still on the Loose

2011-08-01T11:52:00.001-07:00

A man who is suspected of breaking into several Southside apartment buildings before sexually assaulting a woman in her apartment on 13th Avenue South has still not been captured by police. However, police have released a sketch of the suspect. He is described as a black male in his twenties, five foot nine, and about 180 pounds.

Anyone with information about the identity of this suspect is asked to call the Birmingham police at 205-328-9311 or Crimestoppers at 205-254-7777.

Conservative Hate Group Finds a Home in Alabama

2011-07-20T09:04:00.000-07:00

By Stephen Smith

The Southern Poverty Law Center classifies the Council of Conservative Citizens (CofCC) as a white nationalist hate group and a “reincarnation of the old White Citizens Councils, which were formed in the 1950s and 1960s to battle school desegregation in the South. The group has chapters in Montgomery, Anniston, Jasper, Cullman, Huntsville, Florence, and one right here in Birmingham. According to the CofCC’s mission statement, "God is the author of racism. God is the One who divided mankind into different types. ... Mixing the races is rebelliousness against God."

The CofCC boycotted the movie Thor because the African-American actor Idris Elba was picked to play the Norse god Heimdall. Yet they didn’t seem to have a problem with Samuel L. Jackson making a brief appearance as Nick Fury, agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.

The positions of the CofCC don’t stray far from those of the GOP, the Tea Party and other supposedly conservative groups. They claim the U.S. is a Christian country. They also believe it is European. They fear that “‘affirmative action’ and similar measures [are designed to] destroy or denigrate the European-American heritage, including the heritage of the Southern [sic] people, and to force the integration of the races.”

The group’s attitude towards race is a nostalgic look back to the Norman Rockwell era of separate restrooms and Negro League baseball. In an article on the CofCC’s website bemoaning Birmingham’s decline, the shocking statistic is revealed that 55% of the rapes in the state are committed by African-Americans. This is interesting because the actual percentage is 37%. They also note that 91.5 percent of interracial rape in Alabama is committed by African-Americans even though a White woman is more than twice as likely to be raped by White male.

Digging through the data with the obvious goal of demonizing people of color they state that 62% of Alabama homicides are committed by African-Americans, yet the percentage is actually 37%. The CofCC's data supposedly comes from the 2010 report by the Alabama Criminal Justice Information Center, but our research revealed that the true source is a website called Occidental Decent, whose stated mission is a “permanent guerrilla campaign to harass and undermine the Obamanation.” What the CofCC and Occidental Decent don’t mention is arrest rates. While 1,415 White males were arrested for marijuana possession in 2010, 4,013 African-American males were, yet the rate of usage is basically the same in both groups. African-Americans accounted for 43% of total arrests even though they are only 26% of the population. According to the Center’s report, larceny, a predominately white crime, is by far the most committed felony in the state with numbers exceeding 100,000. Overall crime is down in Alabama with the odd exception of arson, which the CofCC seems unable to pin on African-Americans.

But facts are not a concern of the CofCC. Their main gripe is that Birmingham is on the decline because “business owners…thought they could strike a deal with the civil rights agitators of the 1960s and … made the biggest mistake in the history of civilization in Alabama.”

The group stands against “sexual licentiousness, homosexuality and other perversions, mixture of the races, [and] pornography in all forms.” They want the U.S. to get out of NATO and want schools to teach “Christian” values and outlaw sex education, multicultural and African studies. The CofCC believes “illegal aliens must be returned to their own countries; and that legal immigration must be severely restricted or halted.” They are strongly pro-gun and strongly against Black history month. They are outraged that George Washington Carver is given credit for inventing peanut butter and the potato chip.

It’s hard to imagine that these sentiments are still pervasive half a century after the Civil Rights movement began in earnest. If you want more information, or possibly just want to get in touch with the Council of Conservative Citizens for, I don’t know, a friendly little chat, here is their contact information:

PO Box 947
Jasper, AL 35502
alcofcc@gmail.com
205-863-9673

Sweating About Sweat

2011-07-15T11:37:00.000-07:00

By Lee Waites

Let’s say you pick up a newspaper and begin to read (we realize that, these days, picturing people reading a newspaper requires a leap of imagination, but work with us on this). You happen to read several articles about war, the faltering economy, stupid things said by your favorite political candidate, horrible child murders, etc. During all this you begin to think about your own situation, your own bank account slipping down to nothing, bills that you can’t pay, or horrible child murders. And your palms begin to sweat. You read on--anxiety rising and collar tightening. The next thing you know, you’re wiping your brow. Then you can’t take it anymore. You scream, tear off your shirt, climb onto a nearby table, and begin to scream bible verses.

The last part may indicate a mental illness, and you should seek help. But the part just before that, where you were sweating, is a natural, normal, and healthy reaction to stress.

We all know that perspiration helps cool us off and can also be a response to stress. With global climate change, and with the need to explain how mankind is affecting it to, let’s say, your brother-in-law, sweating is bound to occur more and more frequently. That’s a good enough reason to get curious about it, so here’s a little lesson.

Apocrine sweat glands are responsible for the sweat produced as a reaction to stress. They are not producing sweat to cool you down, but to deliver messages from your body in the form of scent. These sweat glands produce a thicker sweat that helps spread pheromones, the sexy scents our bodies put off. Apocrine glands are not as numerous as your other sweat glands, but they are found in key areas of the body associated with . . . y’know . . . sex. Don’t get confused though. That man stink you smell as your brother-in-law puts you in a headlock after dinner while accusing you of spreading socialist propaganda is actually the smell of bacteria nibbling on his sebaceous secretions, the oily mix of dead fat cells secreted to keep skin and hair lubricated. That isn’t sexy pheromones . . . not that he isn’t a little excited to be beating up on you. His man stink is mostly just stink.

The normal, everyday, cooling sweat glands are called eccrine sweat glands, the ones that produce the clear, salty, watery sweat that evaporates quickly to cool the body. Humans have the most sweat glands of any animal. We evolved that way because our upright posture, along with a nomadic lifestyle prevalent throughout most of human history, produced lots of body heat. Although now, in the developed world at least, most of us only move from one air conditioned box to another air conditioned box.

There are a number of sources on the Internet that claim sweating, by removing fluid from your body, frees up toxins in fatty tissues, and then the loosened up toxins can be more easily removed by the liver and kidneys. However, we could find no credible, empirical evidence that this is true. According to Dr. Justin Osborne, a UAB Emergency room physician, the most important thing to remember about sweating is it keeps you cool. “Sweating does a number of things . . . Think of your body as a house. The hypothalamus is the thermostat. It sends signals to sweat when your body is under stress. This stress can actually increase endogenous toxins such as lactic acid. It also moves blood which is normally available to the kidneys outward toward the extremities. This can decrease the (filtration) of the kidneys.”

Dr. Osborne believes the most important thing for people to remember when you are sweating a lot, whatever the reason, is to drink plenty of fluids and to replace spent electrolytes.

SPLC Sues the State of Alabama

2011-07-09T12:51:00.000-07:00

Press Release from the Southern Poverty Law Center

The Southern Poverty Law Center has filed a lawsuit against Alabama's new, draconian anti-immigrant law. The New York Times calls it "the most extreme" in the nation. It makes Arizona's anti-immigrant legislation look like child's play.

The Alabama law makes it a crime for anyone—citizen and non-citizen alike—to drive someone who is undocumented to church or a hospital. It requires school children to report on the immigration status of their parents. It even prevents refugees who have been granted asylum in our country from going to a state university. And, without question, it will lead to massive racial profiling and discourage victims of crime from cooperating with the police.

At the press conference held today, one of the SPLC's clients—a minister—said that the law "violates core values of various faiths because it criminalizes acts of love and hospitality."

The law reminds one of the Jim Crow era. It will create an underclass of people who are denied equal protection under the law, just like the racist laws that stained Alabama and the Deep South for many decades.

Like the racists laws we've fought in the past, we cannot let this one stand.

Thank you for your support and dedication to justice. I'll keep you updated as this important legal battle progresses.

Loudest Animal in the World Recorded

2011-07-03T14:59:00.000-07:00

By Brent "Scoop" Stauffer

Scientists now know that the loudest animal on earth, relative to its body size, is not Henry Rollins, but a tiny aquatic bug called the "water boatman." At 99.2 decibels, it's like sitting in the front row while the Berlin Philharmonic furiously blasts Richard Wagner at his most apocalyptic. And this is from an animal around 3/8 of an inch long.

The frequency of the boatman's shanty is within human hearing range but that's not the remarkable part. Almost all of the insect's come-hither melodies are absorbed when that sound is transferred from water to air. "Remarkably," Dr. James Windmill of the University of Strathclyde explains, "even though 99% of sound is lost [in the water] the song is so loud that a person walking along the bank can actually hear these tiny creatures singing from the bottom of the river."

The song, used by males to attract mates, is produced by rubbing two body parts together, in a process called stridulation. The area used for this most unusual "fiddling" is only about 50 micrometers across. All that noise is produced from a natural studio not even the width of a human hair. "We really don't know how they make such a loud sound using such a small area," says Dr. Windmill.

Dr. Windmill's confusion might be explained by the following hypothesis of desperation. Imagine; you're the male of a species. You are very, very tiny and stuck at the bottom of a river teeming with animals and bubbling and frogs grunting. The females of your species literally don't even know you exist. The water of the river surrounding you is going to absorb so much of your mating song that only one percent will get through to the air. One percent!

So you reach deep, deep inside. You find that inner bug, the one with a Telecaster and a Marshall amp that goes all the way to eleven. And then, well, then, with an extraordinary amount of effort you pull off a massive, record-breaking feat, a biological victory over the physics of acoustics, a barbaric yawp proclaiming across aquatic rooftops, "Over here, ladies!"

Sounds like "stridulation," if that's what the kids are calling it these days, might be a cross-species phenomena resembling sophomore year at college.

Sulligent Representative Joins Democratic Caucus

2011-05-26T18:23:00.000-07:00

MONTGOMERY - State Representative Daniel Boman of Sulligent announced today that he is switching to the Democratic Party and will caucus with the House Democrats for the remainder of this year's legislative session. Boman represents House District 16, encompassing Fayette, Lamar and Tuscaloosa counties.

At a press conference at the State House earlier this afternoon, Representative Boman said that he felt it necessary to pursue a different avenue in the legislature to protect the needs of his constituents. "During this current session I have seen this legislative body pass bills that I feel adversely affect what my people back home want, need, and deserve ... I will never choose the Party over the people again."

Alabama Democratic Party Chairman Mark Kennedy welcomed Representative Boman to the ranks of the Democratic Party, saying, "The tide is changing in Alabama and across the nation as more and more people get sick and tired of the reckless cuts Republicans are making to our budgets, our education system and valuable social services like Medicaid and Medicare. This has been a great week for Democrats and we look forward to carrying this momentum into next year's elections."

Boman's switch comes on the heels of an incredible local Democratic victory in DeKalb County, where Jerome Tinker became the first Democrat elected to County Commission District 1 since the districts were established in 1994.

Democrats nationally also made gains in New York this week with the election of Democrat Kathy Hochul in a special election in Congressional District 26, a district that went Republican with 74% of the vote in 2010.

Birmingham’s Burlesque

2011-05-23T15:11:00.000-07:00

By Harry Gilbert

Birmingham has, if anything, a somewhat confusing history at times, from our southern hospitality to our brutal crackdown on civil rights protesters. Right in the Heart of Dixie, we have been, at times, both the center of rigid adherence to tradition and at the forefront of change. This conflict still goes on today. It’s reflected in our government, our media, our culture.

One interesting example is the Lyric Theatre. Built in 1914, it was designed specifically to accommodate vaudeville shows. Blacks and Whites could watch the same shows, (as long as they sat in the “correct” section). Performers such as the Marx Brothers, Mae West, Sophie Tucker, Will Rogers, and Milton Berle all played the Lyric. Birmingham has also produced many talented performers of her own, containing a rich and vibrant collection of local venues and committed patrons. One could imagine Birmingham’s own Magick City Sirens, a local burlesque troop, on stage at the Lyric for a raucous, summer evening show. Couldn’t you just? Or could you?

Apparently, some people are confused about what the Magick City Sirens actually do. As avid lovers of all types of live entertainment, we at the BFP sat down to shed a little light on the Magick City Sirens in order to help people have a better understanding of exactly what they do.

Imagine for a moment: A group of beautiful and talented women wronged, railroaded - left in the lurch by, what we’ll call, a short-sighted and ill-informed venue which never took the time to understand the nature of Burlesque. Who’re they gonna call? The BFP Action News-team, of course. When innocents suffer, the BFP springs to their defense like an enraged news-panther, fangs dripping with justice.

After Jezabelle Von Jane, founder and head-honchess of the Magick City Sirens, found out that her beloved Burlesque/Vaudeville troupe had been preemptively canceled from a local venue for a custom-crafted show that had been booked 2 months in advance, you might think that she would have been puzzled, that she would wonder, “Why?” She didn’t have to wonder, because the reason was clearly stated - “Vulgarity,” with a capital “Vulga.” Below you will find our interview with Jezabelle in its entirety.

Interview:

BFP: “So, what exactly happened that caused your troupe to have their performance cancelled?”

Jezabelle: “About two months ago…one of our newest girls…said ‘Hey, the owner [of the unnamed venue] would like to talk to you, he’s interested in booking us at the club. So, I went down, talked to him, spent the whole night there - brought down a couple friends to the venue, a great venue, and we agreed to perform there. They asked to send over the contract, so we sent it over, and for a bit of background, we don’t replicate shows, so we create a new show for every venue.”

“Then, today, two weeks from the date, he sent me an e-mail that said, ‘We were not aware of the risqué material that a burlesque troupe has and we can‘t have you in this venue.’ He said that they don‘t have nudity in their venue, so we sent him a message back that said that we were sorry that he thought we had nudity, because we actually don’t have any, whatsoever.”

BFP: “So what bits do you show, in your shows?”

Jezabelle: “Well, we have a lot of cleavage. We do wear pasties, and we bear down in some shows to the bikini bottoms, but we don’t show full bottoms, we don’t show full breasts. A lot of our girls wear a (full body stocking), and believe it or not, burlesque girls have on more clothes than almost any other (similar) performer I know of, with the corsets that we wear, we’re mostly bound up. So, for them to break contract two weeks ahead of time, saying that they couldn‘t have nudity in their bar…it was ill informed…I’ve been doing this for twelve years, and I’ve never had this happen, ever.”

BFP: “So what happened, what was the follow up?”

Jezabelle: “So, we signed the contract, and instead of him emailing it to me, he said, ‘come down here.’ I needed an itemized list of what they had, in house, for sound equipment, because all of our girls sing. We do, also, perform to recorded music, but our troupe sings the majority of our music, which is why we’re called the Magick City Sirens. So, we were gonna go check for vocal and PA equipment, and grab a couple of drinks. (This venue)…they serve absinthe, which is very tantalizing to my ladies, they enjoy the absinthe, of course I’m a nursing mother, so I can’t drink, but it was a trip to go down there. So, the night we were scheduled to go down, I get his e-mail. Most of the performers here…they never get contracts, we started getting contracts about two years ago, that’s just the way it works…and in Birmingham especially, they want to give you the contract ‘the day of.’

“So this was nothing out of the ordinary for us. And, it was such a shock that it happened, (he) is a wonderful guy, I have nothing bad to say about him or his venue, other than the shock - I‘d just never seen anything like this before.”

BFP: “The problem seemed to be a misunderstanding as to what a burlesque+vaudeville troupe does, verses what a stripper does. Do you want to explain the differences?”

Jezabelle: “The biggest difference is the money…we don’t strip for money. When we ‘peel,’ it’s in the course of telling a story, to give a provocative edge to what would otherwise be a theatre act. We enjoy our bodies. I enjoy the fact that my girls are all different sizes. My smallest girl wears a size twelve, in little girls’-that‘s Ruby Lou, and our largest girl is in a size 22, she is also our manager and housemother - that’s Tatiana. You won’t find that at (a strip-club). You also won’t find girls who can act, who can juggle, who can spit fire, can tell a story, can make you laugh. They don’t tell you a story in the manner that we do. You can‘t put a girl onstage at (a strip-club), and not take her clothes off, but you also couldn‘t put one of my sirens onstage at (a strip-club), have her singing and dancing and putting on a show, because that‘s not what that audience came for. There‘s also a lot of ‘skin shows’ featured on Broadway right now…and they are nothing like a burlesque troupe and nothing like a stripper.”

BFP: “So, can you tell me more about what a burlesque troupe does?”

Jezabelle: “We do pay homage to the 1940’s way, I do have a few numbers where my girls, especially my new girls, do come in and do a peel, but the peel is the essence of showing a little bit of skin, to give a little more to the audience, as opposed to giving it all, for the bucks. But saying that, I have a lot of respect for any woman who can get onstage and shake her groove thing and though the two are very different, I have respect for both of them…I was a stripper for a long time, and I know the difference between taking your clothes off, and performing.”

BFP: “Is there anything else that you want to tell us about, that we haven’t covered so far?”

Jezabelle: “I‘ve seen women who have been cosmetically fixed to be absolutely gorgeous and not have a shred of talent, and I‘ve seen women whose bodies I‘m not attracted to that have blown me away, by their presence onstage. But, I‘m not one of those people who would say that all women are beautiful, because some of them, outright aren‘t. It has nothing to do with their body types, it has to do with who they are, and what they‘re capable of, it‘s about women of all shapes and sizes, and about men of all shapes and sizes. I‘m not a feminist in any way, and I‘d like to say that it made that woman who did the thesis on us from the University of Southern Alabama very unhappy. It‘s not about women’s rights, and getting up onstage, because I put men up there too - I‘m ready to put you all up there. It‘s about this type of entertainment. This type of entertainment allows for talent, and talent comes in all shapes and sizes.”

BFP: “How did the Magick City Sirens get started, what are the origins?”

Jezabelle: “Well, burlesque started a lot longer ago, than it was given credit for…the dance halls in England, the Moulin Rouge, and of course the Bettie Page era, but burlesque as a form of dancing to entertain with the body, it’s been around forever - you can talk about belly dancing or about the gypsy girls who danced at weddings to entertain single men. I’ve been doing this twelve years, I’ve danced all over the country…and burlesque is the newest underground platform that I’ve seen for women, and men, who enjoy themselves like they did back then.

“And so I moved down here from Boston, about six years ago now, and I said, ‘you know what Birmingham needs, a burlesque troupe. I was in a couple of troupes up there, I performed on my own as a feature entertainer, and so when I got down here, the scene was so black that I decided - we’re gonna spice this up. I started with a group of eight, girls have come, and they’ve gone just like any other theater troupe, and these girls that I have this year are probably my strongest troupe that I’ve ever had.”

BFP: “After having this venue cancel on you so close to the date, what do you do now?”

Jezabelle: “We used to perform with a venue here exclusively, and then I decided that I wanted to travel out with the troupe. We go to Mobile, Selma, Huntsville, New Orleans, South Carolina…we’ve performed in Boston, I’ve performed in Pittsburg, so…it’s so hard to get gigs here, for a burlesque troupe. My husband is the lead singer for Selling Mary, and they have no problem getting gigs, everybody loves the live music, but in order for us to do what we do because of the cost that goes into these shows,

(it’s very hard to find a venue that will cover the cost). Unless I go back to the same venues, it‘s easier for me to perform out of town, than it is to perform in Birmingham.”

BFP: “Since you missed this performance, what is your next scheduled show in Birmingham?”

Jezabelle: “We have September 10 at the Barking Kudu, Beers, Bullies, and Bands, and that’s being thrown by one of the pitbull rescue groups here.
https://www.facebook.com/magickcitysirens

NBA PLAYERS ASSOCIATION AND FEED THE CHILDREN DELIVER DISASTER RELIEF SUPPLIES ACROSS THE SOUTH

2011-05-18T05:59:00.000-07:00

23 TRUCKS OF FOOD AND RECOVERY SUPPLIES TO BENEFIT LOCAL FAMILIES

On Tuesday, May 18th, the NBA Players Association (NBPA) and Feed The Children delivered two trucks of food and recovery supplies to families at the More Than Conquerors Faith Church (MTCFC) in Birmingham. These trucks were two of 23 that the NBPA and Feed The Children are sending to storm-swept communities across Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee and Georgia this week.

Led by LA Lakers center, NBPA Vice President and Alabama native Theo Ratliff, and NBA Legend Purvis Short, the NBPA, Feed the Children, and volunteers from the Birmingham Chapter of the American Red Cross and MTCFC distributed supplies to over 200 families at the church this afternoon.

“The NBPA is committed to delivering aid to our brothers and sisters who need it most,” said Billy Hunter, Executive Director of the NBPA. “Through our Operation Rebound program we will continue to support relief efforts across the country and work with our incredible community partners to help in any way we can.”

“It means the world for me to be able to come back home to Alabama and give back to those who have been affected by this disaster,” said Theo Ratliff, LA Lakers center and NBPA Vice President. “Now more than ever, we need to stand together and lend a hand to those who desperately need it. The devastation here is heart-breaking, but I know first-hand how resilient our communities can be. I have no doubt we will rebuild and recover.”

“Just as we did after Hurricane Katrina, we are honored to help with recovery efforts in the South, and humbled by the amazing show of strength we’ve seen in these communities,” said Purvis Short, NBA Legend and current NBPA Director of Player Programs. “We’re grateful to our partners in the local community for making this possible, and look forward to working with them in the future.”

“This overwhelming effort by the NBPA and its members has allowed Feed The Children to expand the disaster relief effort to additional cities that have been affected by nature's fury," said Tony Sellars, spokesperson for Feed The Children. "We will continue to provide help and hope to those trying to rebound from tragedy, and it is gratifying to know that great partners like the NBPA will be with us every step of the way."

“As a Pastor for nearly thirty years in the Birmingham area, I have had numerous opportunities to spearhead and partner with efforts to bring about change in people’s lives. However, the opportunity I have been afforded to work with Operation Rebound and the NBA Players Association is by far one of the most sentimental and personally rewarding for me,” said Pastor Steve Green of MTCFC. “Having grown up in Pratt City, about one week before the devastating tornado, I found myself praying in my old neighborhood for help and revitalization. Now, as I see that help pouring in from across the globe and through the NBA Players Association, it is certainly an answer to prayer.”

“The City of Birmingham is in recover and rebuild mode after the storm’s devastation and the NBPA’s ‘Operation Rebound’ will be a part of that effort as we strive to build a better Birmingham,” said Mayor William A. Bell, Sr. “We thank them for their time and support and for just simply giving of themselves to show that they care about the people of Birmingham.”

This aid is part of the NBPA’s “Operation Rebound,” which was launched in 2005, in response to the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina. Operation Rebound is a long-term commitment and partnership between the Players Association, Feed The Children and other humanitarian groups to provide disaster relief and ultimately to provide assistance in the rebuilding efforts of local communities. Sending aid and writing checks are only the beginning of the NBPA's efforts. The players’ insistence on a hands-on approach has taken them to numerous, hard-hit areas. Hundreds of union members have volunteered to travel and deliver supplies to those who need them most.

In addition to the NBPA and Theo Ratliff, Chris Bosh, Ben Wallace, D.J. White, Antonio McDyess, Josh Childress, and the WNBPA Foundation are sponsoring some of the of the 23 trucks being donated. A full schedule of the NBPA’s trucks is included below:

Location	Date	Drop location
Tuscaloosa, AL	18-May	The Salvation Army
Tuscaloosa, AL	18-May	The Salvation Army
Anniston, AL	18-May	The Salvation Army
Tuscumbia, AL	18-May	The Salvation Army
Pisgah, AL	18-May	The Salvation Army
Gunterville, AL	19-May	The Salvation Army
Decatur, AL	19-May	The Salvation Army
Birmingham, AL	17-May	More Than Conquerors Church
Birmingham, AL	17-May	More Than Conquerors Church
Demopolis, AL	17-May	Theo Ratliff Activity Center
Choctaw / Clark Counties, AL	20-May	Location TBD
Sumpter / Pickens Counties, AL	20-May	Location TBD
Green / Hale Counties, AL	20-May	Location TBD
Tuscaloosa, AL	18-May	The Salvation Army
Memphis, TN	16-May	The Salvation Army
Memphis, TN	16-May	The Salvation Army
Memphis, TN	16-May	The Salvation Army
Memphis, TN	16-May	The Salvation Army
Memphis, TN	16-May	The Salvation Army
Memphis, TN	16-May	The Salvation Army
Jackson, MS	20-May	The Salvation Army
Chattanooga, TN	16-May	The Salvation Army
McDonough, GA	20-May	The Salvation Army

ABOUT THE NBPA

The National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) is the union for current professional basketball players in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Established in 1954, the NBPA mission is to ensure that the rights of NBA players are protected and that every conceivable measure is taken to assist players in maximizing their opportunities and achieving their goals, both on and off the court. For more information, please visit www.nbpa.org.

ABOUT FEED THE CHILDREN

Founded in 1979, Feed The Children is consistently ranked as one of the 10 largest international charities in the U.S., based on private, non-government support. Feed The Children is a Christian, international, nonprofit relief organization with headquarters in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, that delivers food, medicine, clothing and other necessities to individuals, children and families who lack these essentials due to famine, war, poverty or natural disasters. In FY 2010, Feed The Children distributed more than 133 million pounds of food and other essentials to children and their families in all 50 states and internationally. For more information, please visit www.feedthechildren.org.

ABOUT MTCFC

For nearly thirty years More Than Conquerors Faith Church has held a forceful presence in the Birmingham area, impacting thousands of lives with a message of hope, healing, and love through the power of God. It is the firm belief of More Than Conquerors’ pastoral leadership and congregation that the local church holds a vital role in the welfare and support of the community. It is to that end, More Than Conquerors initiates and pursues opportunities to collaborate with other community partners in innovative outreaches to assist in the maintenance and edification of our society and local community. For more information visit www.mtcfc.org.

Black Warrior River Chosen Among America’s Most Endangered Rivers

2011-05-18T05:47:00.000-07:00

Dangerous mining loophole threatens drinking water with pollution

Pollution caused by coal mining near the Black Warrior River has landed the river on the annual list of America’s Most Endangered Rivers^TM– a report issued by the conservation group American Rivers.

The Black Warrior River and its tributaries are a major drinking water source for Birmingham, Jasper, Cullman and Tuscaloosa. The headwaters of the Black Warrior River include the federally designated Wild and Scenic Sipsey Fork, which, along with the river’s Mulberry and Locust Forks, is rated among the top 2% of United States streams by the National Park Service. The river, known for fishing, boating, commercial navigation, recreation, and wildlife, also runs through the Warrior Coal Field where most of Alabama’s coal reserves are found.

For many years, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) has allowed the majority of the Black Warrior River watershed’s approximately 95 active coal mines to operate under a general permit known as Nationwide Permit (NWP) 21. NWP 21 does not take local wetland and stream conditions into account, study the possible impacts of the mines or provide for public input. This situation contrasts with the process in other Appalachian states, where the Corps last year suspended the use of NWP 21 to require more careful consideration of a mine’s impacts on water resources and the environment.

“The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has wisely closed this dangerous mining loophole across the Appalachian coal mining region – except for Alabama,” said Gerrit Jobsis, American Rivers’ Southeast Regional Director. “It’s time to give Alabama’s people, clean water, and wildlife the protection they deserve.”

Eva Dillard, staff attorney for Black Warrior Riverkeeper, agrees: “Under NWP 21, the Corps has allowed numerous mines to operate in our watershed with no consideration of their cumulative impacts on water quality or the environment. With NWP 21 up for possible renewal in 2012, now is the time to tell the Corps to end the use of this rubber stamp in Alabama.”

Black Warrior Riverkeeper Nelson Brooke states, “Our wetlands and headwater tributary streams are critical conveyors of clean water, controllers of runoff and flooding, and providers of fish and wildlife habitat. Their loss under NWP 21 hurts the river, local communities, fishermen and sportsmen, and ultimately the state.

American Rivers is calling on the Corps to discontinue the use of NWP 21 and include Alabama in all protective guidance and regulations that apply to Appalachian region mining. Ending the use of NWP 21 in Alabama would force the Corps to consider the cumulative impact of mines on the Black Warrior River and allow local people to voice their concerns.

American Rivers also called on the Alabama Department of Environmental Management and Alabama Surface Mining Commission to strengthen coal mining permits and enforcement efforts. Additionally, these agencies should collaborate with the Corps to address the cumulative effects of mining on the river.

About America’s Most Endangered Rivers

For 26 years, American Rivers has sounded the alarm on 360 rivers through our America’s Most Endangered Rivers report. The report is not a list of the “worst” or most polluted rivers, but is a call to action for rivers at a crossroads, whose fates will be determined in the coming year. By shining the spotlight and mobilizing grassroots action, we help save rivers from sewage pollution, new dams, mining, and other threats.

Our staff and scientific advisors review nominations for the following criteria:

A major decision that the public can help influence in the coming year
The significance of the river to people and wildlife
The magnitude of the threat, especially in light of climate change

America's Most Endangered Rivers™ is sponsored by Orvis, the oldest mail order company in the US, which has been outfitting customers for the sporting traditions since 1856. Orvis is a long-time supporter of American Rivers. This is the third consecutive year that they have sponsored America’s Most Endangered Rivers and have also provided American Rivers with a 2010 Conservation Grant. Orvis donates 5% of their pre-tax profits annually to protect nature.

American Rivers is the nation’s leading voice fighting for clean water and healthy rivers. For almost 40 years we have protected and restored rivers, scoring victories for communities, fish and wildlife, and future generations. American Rivers has offices in Washington, DC and nationwide, and more than 100,000 supporters and volunteers. Visit www.americanrivers.org, www.facebook.com/americanrivers and www.twitter.com/americanrivers.

Black Warrior Riverkeeper (www.blackwarriorriver.org) is a citizen-based nonprofit advocacy organization whose mission is to protect and restore the Black Warrior River and its tributaries. A member of Waterkeeper Alliance, Black Warrior Riverkeeper won Alabama Environmental Council’s 2007 Conservation Organization of the Year and American Canoe Association’s 2008 Green Paddle Award. Nelson Brooke, Riverkeeper, won Alabama Rivers Alliance’s 2010 River Hero Award.

You Can Sue a Ham Sandwich in Alabama

2011-05-17T16:07:00.001-07:00

photo by April "Snappy" Scroggins

Graffiti in the Southside of Birmingham. "You Can Sue A Ham Sandwich In Alabama" comment made by former Mayor Larry Langford on SEC lawsuit.

U.S. Department of State and Carnegie Hall Fuse Technology and Music to Connect Students in New York City and Mexico City

2011-05-16T07:28:00.000-07:00

Using 21^st Century statecraft to fuse technology and music to bring youth in New York and Mexico City together, the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, in partnership with Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute, will conduct its final virtual concert of this year’s Cultural Exchange initiative on Friday, May 20 at 11:00 a.m. EST.

During this engaging, interactive simulcast, students from five Mexico City high schools and seven New York City high schools will come together virtually with performances by the Celso Duarte Sextet at New York’s Zankel Hall and the Maurice Brown Effect in Mexico City’s Teatro Julio Castillo. In addition, students will perform with the artists on stage.

Through this initiative, students explore music from other cultures through lessons and resources that are incorporated into each participating school’s classroom curriculum. Cultural Exchange’s focus this season is on the music of Mexico. Students in both New York City and Mexico City attend and participate in two interactive, video-conference concerts featuring renowned jazz and Latin music artists.

Participating New York and International Schools for Cultural Exchange: Music of Mexico In New York:

Baccalaureate School for Global Education – Astoria, NY
City College Academy of the Arts – New York, NY
Frank Sinatra School of the Arts – Astoria, NY
Martin Van Buren High School – Queens Village, NY
Millennium High School – New York, NY
Queens Collegiate High School – Jamaica, NY
Scarsdale High School – Scarsdale, NY

In Mexico City:

Centro Universitario México – Mexico City, Mexico
Preparatoria Cuajimalpa - Instituto de Educación Media Superior del Gobierno del Distrito Federal – Mexico City, Mexico
Preparatoria Iztapalapa – Instituto de Educación Superior del Gobierno del Distrito Federal – Mexico City, MexicoCentro de Educación Artística Diego Rivera (CEDART) – Diego Rivera – Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes - Mexico City, Mexico
Escuela Nacional de Danza Clásica y Contemporánea – Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes - Mexico City, Mexico

Press contacts:
Talley Sergent, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, (202) 632-6043
Ryan Matheny, U.S. Embassy Mexico City, +52 55 5080 2000 x2387

A "Not A Music Review" of The Matt Woods Manifesto

2011-05-13T14:56:00.000-07:00

By Lee Waites

So I walked in the door...Oh Boy! A package... I still get excited about new music. Matt told me he was going to send me his new CD, says it has some of our local musicians on it. I told him how much I detest most music reviews, how they're usually some kind of pissing, some clever attempt to put a writer's mark on the music. Or they're fluffed up fodder for the press release. I'm just irritated by them, most of the time, and a little evil voice reads them in my head, mockingly. So, I recommend you click on your evil voice, even though this is "Not A Music Review!"

The Matt Woods Manifesto is pumping into my ears as I write...kind of country, kind of fast, clean. I'm eating a freshly cut slice of vodka soaked watermelon and many very attractive, modernly sexy, still so Southern women are dancing. Sometimes we're in a field, then we stroll into the shade of the woods. The air smells like cut grass.

In our Facebook message conversation, yes, we met on Facebook, and it was lovely, Matt told me who was on the album. He knows my passion is for local music. And he gave me my reason. Some of our local talent has gone and dun did get on here, Sue Nuckols, doing some fiddling, Jay Taylor banjo-ing, and Sarah Green on the washboard.

I'm there! Barns, ladies, beer & whiskey, foothills, old cars, open fire energy.

Now the ladies are handing me beers in thick brown bottles, everyone is laughing and having fun. The air is sepia-tone. I feel like doing a little dance by the freshly made fire. In truth, I feel like drinking whiskey and dancing with one of these imaginary ladies in my head. Let's face it Matt, you make me want to get drunk!

The album is The Matt Woods Manifesto.
Thanks for sending me your CD Mr. Matt. It makes a verb of the word "party."

Matt will be playing at Sipsey Tavern on May 28th.

Click here: Check him out and make up your own freakin' mind. BFP Music illuminates, we trust in you.

Stefano Mancuso: The Roots of Plant Intelligence

2011-05-12T05:22:00.000-07:00

BAAM at Rogue Benefits Victims

2011-05-07T00:50:00.000-07:00

Flash Workout with The First Lady

2011-05-05T10:02:00.000-07:00

First Lady Dance.

NASA's Wondrous Views of Earth

2011-04-25T06:42:00.000-07:00

click here to see more

Happy Punk Rock Easter

2011-04-24T04:51:00.000-07:00

Bert

2011-04-22T13:31:00.002-07:00

Charlie Brown

2011-04-22T13:31:00.001-07:00

Alabama Prepares for Next Black Eye

2011-04-19T09:30:00.000-07:00

Judge Roy Moore announces Presidency aspirations

Baby Monkey (Going Backwards On A Pig) - Parry Gripp

2011-04-12T13:56:00.000-07:00

In our ongoing effort to keep you informed....This is old, but you might not have seen it.

April Smith and the Great Picture Show: Terrible Things (Official Video)

2011-04-07T05:39:00.000-07:00

Link: April Smith

When: April 15,
7PM

Where: Barnes & Noble (Patton Creek Store) (map)

171 Main St.
Hoover, Alabama 35244

April Smith will be playing at the Barnes and Noble bookstore (Patton Creek) on April 15th. This is an acoustic show that starts at 7 o'clock. The music is reminiscent of chocolate truffles and waterfalls. But don't take my word for it. Watch the video for yourself.

2011-04-05T13:39:00.000-07:00

This is a Song for our New Robot

2011-04-01T13:43:00.000-07:00

You must listen to me with the "listen" feature!
I am Singee the robot voice!
now you can listen, you have a choice!
the idiot behind the keyboard never grew up!
So this is a song he just threw up!
ding dong sing song Cheech and Chong!
I am a talking robot.
Bing bong, sing song ding dong.
I said Bing bong! Dingy dong dong!
I will read you the news.
I will tell you super things!
and bad things. ding dong bing bong donkey kong. fiddle faddle doodle do!

Found Footage Festival comes to BottleTree

2011-03-18T12:22:00.000-07:00

The Found Footage Festival, the acclaimed touring showcase of odd and hilarious found videos, will debut its brand-new show in Birmingham this month. Hosts Nick Prueher and Joe Pickett, whose credits include The Onion and the Late Show with David Letterman, are excited to present their new lineup of found video clips and live comedy on Saturday, March 26th (8 p.m.) at the BottleTree (3719 3rd Ave. South). They are also proud to announce that the show will be preceded by a 25th anniversary screening of the legendary short documentary, "Heavy Metal Parking Lot." Tickets are $10 and are available at www.foundfootagefest.com.

The Found Footage Festival is a one-of-a-kind event showcasing videos found at garage sales and thrift stores and in warehouses and dumpsters throughout North America. Curators Pickett and Prueher host each screening in-person and provide their unique observations and commentary on these found video obscurities. From the curiously-produced industrial training video to the forsaken home movie donated to Goodwill, the Found Footage Festival resurrects these forgotten treasures and serves them up in a lively celebration of all things found.

Among the new clips to be featured in the Volume 5 program:

-Self-hypnosis videos about how to be a better lover, businessman, and bowler
-A 1986 home movie taken during a debaucherous weekend in Florida
-A collection of ventriloquism how-to videos that will forever haunt you
-A brand-new compilation of exercise videos featuring Cher, Lyle Alzado and the American Gladiators

The Found Footage Festival was founded in New York in 2004 and has gone on to sell out hundreds of shows across the U.S. and Canada, including the HBO Comedy Festival at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas and the Just For Laughs Festival in Montreal. The festival has been featured on National Public Radio, Jimmy Kimmel Live, and G4 TV's Attack of the Show, and has been named a critic's pick in dozens of publications, including The Village Voice, Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle and The Chicago Tribune. The FFF can also be seen twice a week in a popular web series on The Onion's A.V. Club, in the hit documentary "Winnebago Man" and in a forthcoming book by Running Press.

ABOUT THE CURATORS

Nick Prueher and Joe Pickett began collecting found videotapes in 1991 after stumbling across a training video entitled, "Inside and Outside Custodial Duties," at a McDonald's in their home state of Wisconsin. Since then, they have compiled an impressive collection of strange, outrageous and profoundly stupid videos. Pickett, a writer/director, and Prueher, a former researcher at the Late Show with David Letterman, have written for The Onion and Entertainment Weekly and directed the award-winning documentary, "Dirty Country" (www.dirtycountrymovie.com), now available on DVD. They are also the masterminds behind the Kenny "K-Strass" Strasser yo-yo pranks that hit local morning TV news shows across the Midwest and have since racked up millions of hits on YouTube.

ABOUT "HEAVY METAL PARKING LOT"

Called one of the "greatest rock movies of ever" by Cameron Crowe, "Heavy Metal Parking Lot" will receive a rare theatrical screening at the Found Footage Festival in honor of its 25th anniversary. Videotaped in a concert arena parking lot before a Judas Priest show in Maryland in 1986, the short documentary began as bootlegged videotape but has since been hailed as an anthropological masterpiece by USA Today, SPIN, VH1, GQ, and Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters. For more information about the film and directors John Heyn and Jeff Krulik, visit
www.heavymetalparkinglot.com.

ABOUT THE VENUE

The BottleTree is a live music venue with an emphasis on national touring acts, and also a wonderful restaurant that serves an eclectic mix of food that caters heavily to vegetarians and features locally grown, seasonal vegetables. The venue is located at 3719 3rd Ave. South in Birmingham. Tickets to the Found Footage Festival are $10 and are available at
www.foundfootagefest.com or at the door.

TEDx is Coming to Birmingham

2011-03-09T20:34:00.000-08:00

TEDx is coming to Birmingham!

Birmingham – TEDxRedMountain will make its official debut in Birmingham on May 19, 2011 from 6:00 until 9:00 p.m. TEDxRedMountain offers an opportunity to connect with proven and successful visionaries who have propelled ideas into action and will feature presentations by local thought leaders focusing on the theme “Forge On: Galvanizing Ideas for the Future.”

Interested speakers and attendees must apply to participate in the limited-space event. Applications will be available at www.TEDxRedMountain.com starting March 11. Speaker applications must be received by March 31 and attendee applications must be received by April 15 to be considered for admission.

About TEDx (x = independently organized event)

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.

About TED

TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. Started as a four-day conference in California 25 years ago, TED has grown to support those world-changing ideas with multiple initiatives. The annual TED Conference invites the world’s leading thinkers and doers to speak for 18 minutes. Their talks are then made available, free, at TED.com. TED speakers have included Bill Gates, Al Gore, Jane Goodall, Elizabeth Gilbert, Sir Richard Branson, Nandan Nilekani, Philippe Starck, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Isabel Allende and UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown. The annual TED Conference takes place in Long Beach, California, with simulcast in Palm Springs; TEDGlobal is held each year in Oxford, UK. TED’s media initiatives include TED.com, where new TEDTalks are posted daily, and the Open Translation Project, which provides subtitles and interactive transcripts as well as the ability for any TEDTalk to be translated by volunteers worldwide. TED has established the annual TED Prize, where exceptional individuals with a wish to change the world are given the opportunity to put their wishes into action; TEDx, which offers individuals or groups a way to organize local, independent TED-like events around the world; and the TEDFellows program, helping world-changing innovators from around the globe to become part of the TED community and, with its help, amplify the impact of their remarkable projects and activities.

Follow TED on Twitter at twitter.com/TEDTalks, or on Facebook at facebook.com/TED.

TED2011, “The Rediscovery of Wonder,” was held February 28-March 4, 2011, in Long Beach, California, with the TEDActive simulcast in Palm Springs, California.

Contact:

Tracy Smith
205-999-1845
tracybennettsmith@yahoo.com

Gail Cosby
205-910-7686
cosby1@bellsouth.net

New: BFP Music is Now Online

2011-03-06T07:35:00.000-08:00

What is BFP Music? It's your music. We don't need to write some drivel about how your favorite band reminds us of King Crimson, or how we choose to categorize their sound, it's all like apricot wine, or chocolate truffles.

Our terms...local, local, local. If it has a local connection, you'll see it here. Old, new, future, we don't care. Primarily we'll focus on music from Birmingham. But we're game for Alabama stuff too. Country, pop, rock, alternative, we don't give a crap. If your pet rats make music on their exercise wheel...we want to see it.

You can view our posts at http://bfpmusic.blogspot.com/, stop by our Facebook page, Birmingham Freepress-music, or follow the link from our website.

The philosophy behind Free Press music is that art speaks for itself. We might fill in some details: show dates, history of the band, members, what the band members wore to bed last night, that sort of thing. But we intend to keep it simple. We might throw a comment onto the Facebook page. You might find a review, if it's really good, in the features section of the paper. But we intend to keep the boring stuff that nobody reads out of BFP Music.

Please email questions, comments or anything you want to see us post to: music@birminghamfreepress.com

OK then. That's that.

Cool Tree Stump Art

2011-01-24T05:36:00.000-08:00

By Lee Waites

The neighborhood is unassuming, Roebuck Springs, a little historic neighborhood in East Birmingham. Its claim to fame is being the first suburb of Birmingham, established in 1910. Roebuck Springs is full of excellent historic houses, some very large, some very small, some fancy, some simple. It has managed to maintain its character for all these years, the houses displaying historic plaques including the names of the founders of each house and the date of its creation.

One of the best features of the neighborhood is the abundance of trees. The trees are an excellent habitat for wildlife. They have allowed the neighborhood to become an established bird sanctuary. They shade the houses and provide a buffer between the neighborhood and the hubbub of surrounding city life. Of course, where you have trees, you also have falling trees, which down power lines and knock out the cable. Since I used to live there I can assure you this happens frequently. They occasionally fall across yards and, unfortunately houses. After a storm you can drive through the neighborhood and see trees down on almost every street.

This is where I found Andy Cummings.

I was helping a friend move a friend when I drove up the street on a rainy day. I had to do a double take because there, on the side of the road, where there had been a tree, was now a sculpture, an image of three cranes with their beaks pointing skywards. I pulled over and snapped a few pictures with my phone and drove off very impressed, surprised and amazed. I assumed it was just an anomaly. Then a few days later I was driving again and I passed another one. On the side of the road I saw a man wielding a chainsaw, grinding away at a tree stump. I pulled over, hopped out and asked him if the sculptures were his doing. He told me they were. I felt guilty for taking him away from his work. But he was such an interesting guy, we talked for a good while, about life, about the Universe, politics, the economy. I told him about the BFP, asked if I could write up a little something, and he said that would be fine with him. I really had to, because this was such a great thing to find, serendipitous, freakin' cool, not in a fancy garden, not at a craft show, just there in these yards, in this normal neighborhood.

Mr. Cummings, who gets his jobs from word of mouth, has sculptures all over the state. When I met him he was working on an oak tree post, turning it into three bears, stacked one on top of the other. He says the customer just tells him what they want, then "It's like whittling, you just take out what isn't supposed to be there." When neighbors see what he’s up to many ask him about their own trees. In this way he just goes from project to project.

One of the most fascinating things to me was actually, to be crass, the price. I won’t go into detail, but the cost of having an extremely cool sculpture in your yard is so reasonable that I was shocked. It's close to the cost of simply having the tree removed and the stump ground by a tree service. Mr. Cummings also builds “rustic” play sets and many other custom wood structures. He likes to salvage wood, especially cedar. And he certainly puts it to better use than the city filling up a landfill with it. I highly recommend checking out his website and giving him a call if you need some custom woodwork, or if you need to feel better after the tree in your front yard takes out your porch.

www.andycummingsart.com

Face Book Satire Spins out of Control

2011-01-11T17:12:00.001-08:00

by John Leander
BFP staff writer

There's been outrage today over a hideous comment that festered for hours on Sarah Palin's Facebook page. The comment was allowed to remain on the page while anything that might damage the conservative star's political standing was vigorously deleted.

Several watchdogs of the blog-o-sphere noticed and discussed the radically self-serving practice.

Here is the comment in its entirety, "It's ok. Christina Taylor Green [the nine year old girl killed in the Arizona shooting] was probably going to end up a left wing bleeding heart liberal anyway. Hey, as 'they' say, what would you do if you had the chance to kill Hitler as a kid? Exactly."

Here is how awful, heated, and hysterical the public discourse in this country has become. This opinion was meant to be satire and no one noticed. Granted, its not on the level of Swift's "A Modest Proposal," but if you take just a moment to really read it, (and read the discussion leading up to it) its an obvious parody.

Unfortunately for Tina King, her post fit in all too seamlessly with the hateful bile being spewed onto Sarah Palin's Facebook page. It's very sad to know that King's satire was immediately believable as the opinion of one of Palin's followers.

"I want to apologize for what was apparently an ill fated attempt at satire," Ms. King said. "I posted a comment that was meant to been seen as a brutal commentary on the violent rhetoric that has become a staple of the political discourse is this country."

Unfortunately, the "political discourse in this country," among Palin supporters is irrevocably saturated with "violent rhetoric." So much so, that an insane statement of rage passed as just another mainstream opinion of a popular and influential organization.

New Musician's Cooperative to Open in Norwood

2011-01-01T06:41:00.000-08:00

The Musician's Cooperative of Birmingham will open its doors for the first time on February 1st, 2011. The 16 bedroom mansion is located in Birmingham's historic Norwood neighborhood. It will provide nearly 20 local musicians with affordable housing, practice space, and recording facilities.

The cooperative is part of an initiative to assist passionate musicians in networking with like-minded individuals. Members of the cooperative will work together to share resources, knowledge, and inspiration. “Its like a brotherhood,” says co-founder Tyler Trierweiler, “we feed off each other's creativity”.

In the past, the building housing the cooperative has been home to a bank, a reception hall, and an insurance company. The updated space will feature an in-house recording studio, rehearsal lounge, video editing suite, communal kitchen, meditation room, 5 bathrooms, and 16 bedrooms. Members pay $300 a month, including the cost of utilities. The building is zoned commercially, and founders of the cooperative are planning to create a coffee and variety shop inside the mansion which will be open to the public and run by members living there.

The Musician's Cooperative of Birmingham is a spinoff of another location which has seen great success in South Bend, Indiana. Like the South Bend Cooperative, the Musician's Cooperative of Birmingham will be democratically run by the residents living there. Regular events are to be hosted by the co-op including Sunday night dinners, weekday jam sessions, group meditations, and monthly house shows. Members work together to facilitate new projects that benefit both the cooperative and the community.

An innovative household video project serves as a way for members of the cooperative to reach out to new fans and followers. Members of the cooperative act as cast members of a documentary series posted as weekly webisodes. The series will follow the housemates as they move in, adapt to life in the cooperative, and pursue their musical dreams.

The Musician's Cooperative of Birmingham continues to seek new members before its opening on February 1st. Membership at the cooperative is open to all musicians and artists. If interested in moving into the house visit
www.themusicianscoop.com for more information.

'Anonymous' Issues Open Letter to Glenn Beck

2010-12-16T09:03:00.000-08:00

Operation Payback AKA 'Anonymous' has issued and open letter to Glenn Beck. It's actually rather tame. Here it is in it's entirety:

Mr. Beck,

We have no problem with those who criticize us. We understand that freedom of speech includes the right to speak out in criticism of those whom you may not agree with. We have many critics, and we respect their first amendment rights.

However, in your recent comments, it seems that you and/or your editing team have mixed up a few details during your research on us. We at Anonymous wish to set the record straight, so that you and your audience will be better informed about us and our objectives. Hopefully, this will reduce some of the anxiety you may feel towards us in the process.

You see, Mr. Beck, we are not an organization. We have no leaders. We have no official spokesperson. We have no age, race, ethnicity, color, nationality, or gender. Anyone who claims to speak for all of us is, quite frankly, a liar. To be clear, the gentleman known as Coldblood was not sanctioned by anyone but himself to speak on our behalf.

Your attempts to formally link Anonymous to Wikileaks were misguided. We are not formally linked to Mr. Assange, to Wikileaks, or the break-off operation, Openleaks. To reiterate, we are not an organization of any kind.

You spoke of revolution as though it is necessarily a bad thing. Let us remind you that America was founded upon revolution. Furthermore, the world we live in today is the result of numerous revolutions that have occurred throughout human history – many of them being positive, and resulting in advancements for all of humanity.

You seem to imply that we are revolutionaries. We do not object to this - in fact, it pleases us.

Neither Wikieaks nor its founder have been charged with any crime in connection to any of the published leaks. Thus, we at Anonymous see any actions directed at silencing Wikileaks as an assault on our freedom of information and the freedom of those at Wikileaks to publish as they see fit.

Whether young or old, political or apolitical, moderate or hard-liner, the issue of freedom of speech and information affects us all. Please do not aspire to make the Wikileaks issue more divisive than it already is, Mr. Beck.

We embrace everyone from all walks of life, from all corners of the earth, to join us in our quest to protect and further enhance not only our rights to freedom of information and freedom of speech, but all of our human freedoms.

You are welcome to talk to us at anytime. We will answer any further questions you may have. After further dialogue, perhaps then you will see that you and we are not so different. Anonymous can be anyone, anywhere, at anytime, and that includes you and your audience as well, Mr. Beck. We simply wish to see the freedoms of all Americans and all citizens of Earth to be at the very least maintained, and wherever possible, strengthened and enhanced to their fullest extent.

Signed,

Anonymous

Royal Wedding More Zoo than Circus

2010-11-20T07:58:00.001-08:00

Gorilla keeper Dan Simmonds helps the vets as they fight to save a desperately ill gorilla while the head of reptiles and amphibians, Dr Ian Stephen, anxiously monitors the brutal mating of a pair of Komodo dragons. Officials at the ZSL London zoo reported that First-time mother Mjukuu gave birth to a healthy baby on the afternoon of 26 October 2010, following a straightforward labour, which was closely monitored by the Zoo’s vets and keepers. -(ZSL London Zoo website)

Oh, I’m sorry, I get confused sometimes…

I meant to say, Prince William, affectionately known as, His Royal Highness Prince William of Wales, officially of the House of Windsor and Kate Middleton, of the Party Pieces Mail Order Firm family, are officially engaged to be married (actually though, I should note that The Windsor family changed its name in the early part of the 20^th century from Saxe-Coburg Gotha because it was too German sounding… Whew… it makes me lose my breath…in more ways than one). The couple became engaged in October while on holiday in Kenya. The wedding is set for 2011, which happens to be the 30^th anniversary of Charles and Diana’s wedding. Keep watching. It should be fascinating.

Of course the question then becomes whether or not Charles will pass up the throne after the death of the Queen and allow this handsome young couple to thrive in their new habitat, and then, what of children? It’s often difficult for couples to produce offspring in such an unnatural environment. But it can be done.

Ligers are the offspring of a male lion and female tiger. The offspring of a male tiger and female lion is called a tigon. Ligers tend towards gigantism and are generally larger than either of their parents, whilst tigons are generally smaller or at least no larger than their parents. Like most hybrids, both are usually sterile, but occasionally a female will be fertile and can be bred back to a male lion or tiger… Did I get lost again?

Under 12 = Above the Law

2010-11-18T06:22:00.000-08:00

The Birmingham City Council recently passed ordinance #04-98, which states: “No person shall make, continue or cause to be made or continue any noise which, because of its volume level, duration and character, either annoys, disturbs, or injures or endangers the comfort, health peace or safety of reasonable persons of ordinary sensibilities. It shall be unlawful and a nuisance for any person to permit any such noise to be made in or upon any residence, business or other structure or upon any premises or in any vehicle owned or possessed by him or under his management or control.”

Among the offences are the usual such as loud music, barking dogs, squawking birds, hawking newspaper boys, and pretty much any noise between 10 at night and 7 in the morning. The language is vague enough to allow for sneezing , if one sneezes loudly enough to be heard 50 feet away, (which some people do.) basically any noise that is offensive and can be heard more than 50feet away. There are few exceptions to this ordinance.

The exceptions include city employees, activities which have obtained a permit, and children under 12. That’s correct, children under 12 years of age. It does specify that the noises coming out of these children must be human. “Human sounds emanating from children (12) years of age or under, including but not limited to speech and utterances of laughter, cries and sounds associated with play…”

Asked to comment, my children who are both under the age of twelve began laughing and taunting me and calling me fat. I was powerless to stop them.

See: http://www.birminghamal.gov/pdf/law/cityclerk@birminghamal.gov_20080514_191437.pdf for full details of the ordinance, which were definitely not covered here, because apparently, according to my children, I’m stupid.

The Birmingham Free Press Officially Endorses Tiffany Dy AND Lee Hopf to Fill the Vacant Presidency at Birmingham Southern

2010-11-09T20:27:00.000-08:00

At first we at the Birmingham Free Press had intended to recommend skipping the 13^th President of Birmingham Southern, well, in the same way elevators skip the 13^th floor. The last thing Southern needs right now is more bad luck, given the financial problems it is currently trying to bail itself out of. We were going to suggest that sometimes it’s best, overall, to just hit the pass button and move on.

Upon further consideration and much debate, however, the editorial staff decided that giving up wasn’t the American way. What, we asked, truly embodies the American way more than anything else. Then it hit us…why…royalty of course. We at The Birmingham Free Press are just as enamored with royalty as the rest of reality TV watching, flash/trash magazine reading Free World.

So who better than someone who has already been chosen by the students of Birmingham Southern in a fair and free election? Tiffany Dy and Lee Hopf not only have a clear mandate, having been overwhelmingly elected King and Queen of Birmingham Southern. But as official royalty they will be able to single-handedly, well double-handedly…I guess quadruple handedly is most correct…yes…quadruple-handedly solve the financial problems of the school while avoiding the need to consult any pesky Board of Trustees. royalty can just get it done.

As far as experience, a list of all the qualifications the Search Committee is looking for in a successful candidate is available online. We at the Birmingham Free Press would not attempt to mislead anyone into thinking these two students have all the years of experience, the requisite degrees, or even the slightest sense of how to run a school that the Search Committee is looking for. But just listen to how that sounds…the Search Committee. The Search Committee! Show me your papers! Ve vill zelect ze best prezident from zese "qualifications!" What is this Nazi Germany. No!

Committee indeed.

And besides the photograph of these two is great! They’re freakin’ amazing looking. And you know they are used to begging mom and dad for money to do this and money to do that. And isn’t that kind of what the President of Birmingham Southern does anyway? Dude. I mean…C’mon.

~Lee Waites