Monthly Archives: March 2009

Watson Campaign Event Thursday

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Media Advisory from the Glenn Watson Campaign for AL House District 6:

(HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA)—Former Huntsville City Councilman Glenn Watson will announce his candidacy for the Alabama Legislature Thursday, April 2nd, at 10:30 a.m. at Stanlieo’s Sub Villa at 605 Jordan Lane in Huntsville. Mr. Watson is a Republican candidate in the May 26th special election to replace Sue Schmitz in House District 6.

“I am seeking this seat to take my experience of sound fiscal management, delivering promises and integrity to the Alabama Legislature,” Watson stated.

“With the growth our area is currently experiencing, especially in this type of economy, it is imperative Huntsville and Madison county receive their fair share of what they send to Montgomery in tax revenue,” Mr. Watson said, adding, “Right now for every dollar we send to Montgomery we only receive back $0.53 while some areas of the State receive upwards of $1.77.”

Glenn Watson served as a Huntsville City Councilman from 1996 to 2008. He founded Stanlieo’s Sub Villa on Jordan Lane in 1971 and later sold the business to family members. He currently serves as a substitute teacher in the Huntsville school system.

Following his prepared remarks on Thursday, Mr. Watson will be available for questions.

Detainee Kittens can has Cheezburger

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The Terrorists formerly known as “enemy combatants” might not only be released in the US, they’re going to get paid:

“If we are to release them in the United States, we need some sort of assistance for them to start a new life,” said National Intelligence Director Dennis Blair at his first press conference.

“You can’t just put them on the street,” he added. “All that is work in progress.”

Detainee Kittens can has Cheezburger?

Wind Creek Casino Fact Finding

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I made a fact-finding tour of the new Wind Creek Casino at Atmore Alabama off Interstate 65 this morning.  Bottom line – it is NICE.

Let’s clear something up real fast:  they have electronic slot machines.  I’ve been to other casinos.  Anyone claiming that this is “Bingo” is saying a thing which is not.  If these machines are similar to the ones springing up illegally in the State don’t be fooled by the word “Bingo” – they are slots (and video poker BTW).

The machines look and play like regular electronic slot machines with the addition of a “Bingo” game running in the background.  That and the “Play” button also had the word “Daub” printed underneath the word “Play” (i.e., ‘daubing’ is using a marker to mark your bingo card, so this is a virtual ‘daub’ I guess – except that it’s a slot machine).  If there was a way to interface with the Bingo game I couldn’t figure it out – and I know a little bit about video games.

Since I’ve been to a few Casinos I feel qualified to make statements about gambling venues.  The Wind Creek Casino reminded me of Harrah’s in New Orleans, without the gaming tables.  Wind Creek has a hotel with meeting rooms and several restaurants.  The entire facility is new, clean, friendly, convenient, not-too-loud, and BUSY (at 11AM on a Sunday)!  If you live in Huntsville, getting to the Wind Creek Casino is easier and faster than going to Tunica MS.

I plan to return to Wind Creek for more in-depth fact-finding: investigating the hotel rooms, pool, and restaurants.

On a personal note, I feel a bond with the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, partly because their ancestors (“friendly Creeks”) and mine fought side-by-side with Andrew Jackson during the Battle of Horseshoe Bend (War of 1812 / Creek War).  The Poarch Band of Creek Indians are the only federally-recognized tribe in the State of Alabama.

BTW,  MaryClaire Foster of the Atmore Advance wrote “PCI host first ever disaster response exercise on tribal lands”:

The Poarch Band of Creek Indians, in conjunction with the Alabama National Guard and Alabama Department of Homeland Security, led a homeland security exercise on the Poarch Creek Reservation on March 26. The exercise, known as “Dragon Slayer,” is a disaster response exercise meant to evaluate first responder efforts.

This simulated exercise was the first ever conducted on a federally recognized American Indian Reservation. No other tribe has tested their disaster efforts with this type scenario. Exercise officials will use this event as a model for other reservations in the nation.

Senate 7 – Rhodes Endorses Sanford

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Press Release from the Paul Sanford campaign:

Former Candidate Allan Rhodes Endorses Paul Sanford

(HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA)—Allan Rhodes, a former Republican candidate for the Alabama Senate in District 7, has endorsed Paul Sanford in the April 21st Republican runoff.

In a letter to Mr. Sanford dated March 25th, Mr. Rhodes wrote, “It is with great pleasure that I offer my endorsement to you (Paul Sanford) for the office of Alabama State Senator District 7.” Mr. Rhodes further wrote, “It is time that we take a business approach to the people’s business and get the sound financial leadership into the legislature that I know you bring to the table.”

“I am honored to have Allan’s endorsement, and I welcome his supporters to our camp. He is, without question, an honest and committed person whose reputation in our community is stellar,” Mr. Sanford said.

Paul Sanford faces attorney Sam Givhan in the Republican runoff election slated for April 21st. The winner of that contest will face Democrat Laura Hall in the special general election on June 9th.

Paul Sanford and his wife Danielle own and operate “little Paul’s Barbecue” in Huntsville. They have two children, Chase and Ryan.

Free the Hops presents Rocket City Brewfest

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Tickets are now available online for the Rocket City Brewfest sponsored by Free the Hops.   Or you can save a few bucks and volunteer!

Tier I Festival Ticket $22 online. $30 at the gate. Includes souvenir tasting glass and unlimited beer samples.
Tier II Festival Ticket $32 online. $40 at the gate. Includes souvenir tasting glass, unlimited beer samples, and unlimited access to food pairings from local restaurants.
General Admission $10 at the gate. Includes no beer samples.
Designated Drivers Free. Must accompany a Tier I or Tier II ticket holder.

The Brewfest will be Friday May 8 from 7PM-11PM and Saturday May 9 from 3PM-7PM at the Depot Roundhouse.

Weihenstephaner Beer Tasting

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The Nook is hosting a tasting of Weihenstephaner Hefe Weizen on tap, Monday, 30 March 2009.  This is the highest rated beer available in Alabama.  It is crisp and very drinkable, with a yeasty slight banana or clove flavor and a spicy kick.

You don’t have to take my word for it, here’s what Weihenstephaner says about it:

Nichts erfrischt Sie mehr als dieses naturtrübe Weißbier mit seinem wunderbar hefeblumigen Geschmack.

The Nook is located at 3305 Bob Wallace Ave SW in Huntsville (West of Bob Wallace and Triana across from Sonic).

Local Fromagerie Belle Chevre recommends this beer pairing: “…we’ve found that goat cheese plays best with wheat beer. No kidding. Weihenstephan Hefe-Weizen, Schneider Hefe-Weizen and UFO Hefeweizen are all suitable complements to our chevres.”

 Weihenstephaner is the oldest brewery in the world, and is also the State Brewery of Bavaria:

…more than 1000 years of history of the world’s oldest brewery: from the foundation of the monastery by Saint Korbinian in the year 725, the recovery of the brewing and tavern license by Abbot Arnold in the year 1040 (from this period on, the monastery was considered officially as the monastery brewery Weihenstephan) to the transition to the State Brewery in 1803 – the most important stations of the Bavarian State Brewery Weihenstephan…

A Kenyan View of Darfur

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I met a gentleman from Kenya earlier this evening, and of course I talked politics with him.  He was from a town about 40 miles away from the Obama family homeland.  Kenya borders Sudan, so I asked him: what to do about Darfur?

His answer was simple – “kill him” – meaning kill Omar al-Bashir, the murderous socialist dictator of Sudan.  al-Bashir is #2 on Parade’s list of  The World’s 10 Worst Dictators:

This month, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for al-Bashir on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity for his contributions to the tragedy in Darfur. The ICC charged him with “ murdering, exterminating, raping, torturing, and forcibly transferring large numbers of civilians, and pillaging their property.”

Here is my previous post on Darfur, where I noted that Saddam Hussein (the late murderous socialist dictator of Iraq) killed more people in one year than have died in the Darfur genocide.  Saddam can’t kill any more people, so al-Bashir has a chance to catch up.  As was the case with Hussein, “just words” aren’t going to remove al-Bashir from power…

Omar al-Bashir, Sudan’s president, has addressed a rally in Darfur, the region in which the International Criminal Court (ICC) has accused him of carrying out war crimes.

Thousands of people gave al-Bashir a rapturous welcome on his arrival in the city of Al Fasher, the state capital of north Darfur, on Sunday.

Al-Bashir sent “a message” to foreign diplomats, aid workers and peacekeepers working in the country.

“They have to respect the rule of the country. If anyone goes further than the rule of the country, we will kick them out directly,” he said.

The appearance is in line with al-Bashir’s defiant stance against the ICC arrest warrant issued last week.

“They speak as if they are the masters of the world, as if they determine the fate of all the peoples of the world” al-Bashir said at the rally, in reference to the ICC.

“We reject and refuse, and we will continue to reject and refuse,’ he said.

“We will never hand over any Sudanese citizen. We will not kneel to them.”

IMO there is not a diplomatic solution to Darfur that doesn’t include forcibly removing al-Bashir from power.  I support military action against Sudan for many reasons: ending the Darfur genocide, fighting slavery and human trafficking, and ending a terrorist-supporting regime.  Killing a murderous socialist dictator in the process?  That’s a bonus.

Since the Obama administration is planning to cut defense spending, I doubt that al-Bashir has much to worry about for the next four years.  I would also be very concerned about the Obama Administration’s capacity to prosecute an ‘Overseas Contigency Operation’.  Maybe Secretary of State Clinton can give al-Bashir a Reset button…

Smart Girl Politics

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Smart Girl Politics is a social networking site, recently formed to engage conservative women in on-line and real life activism.

I was introduced to the site by one of the organizers of Huntsville’s Tax Day Tea Party (April 15, across from the Clinton Ave. Post Office).  SGP has an Alabama Group composed of some very motivated, and of course Smart, conservative women. 

SGP is also one of the organizing groups behind RootsHQ 2009, to be held September 18 – 19 at Nashville TN.  RootsHQ 2009 is “the first of its kind, center-right new media summit”, which will focus on topics including “Social media, new media technology, internet marketing, search engine optimization, collaborative information movements and NOW media”.

Young Turks

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Thicket Magazine – Alabama Redefined has an article in their current issue that mentions Huntsville’s own Roger Richardson – “Young Turks”:

Richardson calls his campaign staff the most diverse in the state. White and black, from Madison County’s most affluent areas and its public housing communities. So how is he able to draw folks from the projects to the GOP? “We all want good housing. We all want good schools. We all want job opportunities. Most people don’t want a hand out.” He’s banking on his contention there is no strong left or right in America, only a center-right the GOP can re-energize.”

About Thicket:

Thicket magazine functions in equal measures as an educational and entertainment piece, a journalistic road map of the state. It covers business, travel, design, environment, home décor, gardening, sports, shopping, politics, education, faith, food, music, the arts, and anything else relevant to life in Alabama today…

The magazine is sold at fine newsstands, gift shops, supermarkets, bookstores and retail outlets across the state including Books-A-Million (Alabaster, Birmingham, Cullman, Daphne, Dothan, Florence, Homewood, Hoover, Huntsville, Madison, Mobile, Montgomery, Opelika, Oxford, Trussville, & Tuscaloosa), Bookland (Florence, Gadsden, & Prattville), Barnes & Noble, Joe Muggs (Birmingham & Mountain Brook), and a variety of other shops and stores.