I’m glad I don’t live in Birmingham

I’m convinced that Birmingham is run by a bunch of bozos.  The latest transgression involves Mayor Bernard Kincaid, but first a rundown of the cast.

There’s Police Chief Annetta Nunn who thinks that her faith has, well, emboldened the enemy.  The enemy in her opinion is satan and she is convinced that he is going to attack.  Meanwhile, Birmingham has the fourth highest murder rate in the country.  If Nunn’s diagnosis is accurate then she would do the city a favor by stepping down and letting someone with less faith take charge so that satan isn’t so tempted to cause all those citizens to die.

You also have Birmingham City Councilman Joel Montgomery.  Mr. Montgomery chairs the public safety committee.  Just what does he do to ensure public safety?  He gets wasted and belligerent – in public.

Who can forget Jefferson County Commissioner Larry Langford?  The crown jewel of Langford’s career is the Visionland Boondoggle Theme Park.  Langford was the lead cheerleader for the park that was built with bonds backed by local governments and then driven into bankruptcy.  He is currently looking for ways to waste public funds on a dome arena and running for mayor of Birmingham using the slogan “Let’s Do Something.”  Consultants suggested that his original slogan of “Let’s Do Something Foolish and Expensive” was a little too edgy.

Now for Kincaid.  Here is an excerpt of a letter to the editor from today’s Birmingham News:

In a recent neighborhood meeting, Birmingham Mayor Bernard Kincaid and one of the candidates for mayor, Patrick Cooper, spoke at the Springville Road Library. As Cooper spoke, an elderly black woman asked what color he was. Being one of two white people in the room, I was mortified by the woman’s words and even further appalled when the mayor prompted the audience to ask what color Cooper’s wife was.

Keep in mind that this is simply a letter from a private citizen, not a fact checked news report.  Supposedly Cooper, who is black, is married to a white woman.  Cooper’s campaign website doesn’t include any family photos, which is a bit odd since most politicians are eager to trot out their families to show what great family men (or women) they are.

How does Mrs. Cooper’s race affect Mr. Cooper’s ability to govern the city of Birmingham?  I haven’t the foggiest idea.  But Kincaid seems to think that it is pertinent information.  Maybe he thinks that there is a certain level of “blackness” required to be mayor of Birmingham.  Maybe he wants to play to the bigotry of some voters (black and white).  Regardless of his motivation, such comments are hardly fitting for the mayor of a major city – especially a city with the racial baggage that Birmingham carries.