Archive for: October 17, 2006

The Crimson White, the University of Alabama’s student paper, recently conducted an unscientific survey of 250 UA students and discovered that they are pretty dumb.

49 percent of those surveyed could not name both the Republican and Democratic candidates for governor.

Only two students out of the 250 could name all three candidates in the election: Republican Gov. Bob Riley, Democratic Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley and Libertarian candidate Loretta Nall.

Only 8% could name both candidates for lieutenant governor. Unfortunately, 62% were registered to vote even though only 49% of them said they would. To be fair, a third of the students who said they would not vote said they were not residents of Alabama. This is above the national trend. In 2004, only 47% of 18-24 year olds voted in the 2004 election.

Rachel Adams, a senior majoring in business, said she will neither vote nor complain because she just doesn’t care.

“Why should I vote?” she said. “It doesn’t affect me. I don’t even know what Riley has done while he’s been governor, so why should I try to keep him in office or get him out of it?

“I’ll leave that to people who care.”

This might surprise you, but I don’t mind. Sure, I would prefer we had a more active electorate, but if they can’t even name the candidates for governor, why should they even show up? Besides, it’ll just make my vote that much more important.

• Alabama Moderate links to this post with Tidbits from Elsewhere

In 1998, Mobile District Attorney John Tyson partnered with a local television station, DHR, area hospitals and law enforcement to create A Secret Safe Place for Newborns. It was in repsonse to an alarming number of child abandonments in the Mobile area. The idea was actually a local television reporter’s — Jodi Brooks. Tyson’s office instituted the program and developed a replication manual to distribute to other DA offices.

You’re probably familar with the program because it was adapted to state law in 2000 — the Alabama Safe Haven Law. It provides protection against prosecution for mothers with unwanted children. Instead of secrety abandoning them in a dumpster or whatnot, the mothers can drop the child off at a hospital with the promise that they will not face criminal prosecution (certain conditions have to be met). Although the first state to implement the program was Texas, the National Crime Prevention Council (think Officer McGruff) credits Mobile County as the first government to implement the program.

Tyson has provided us with unique commercials before. But unlike his ad that ran in the primary, this is more traditional in its format. It’s a powerful message, however, that might just do the trick in the close election for attorney general. The Mobile program alone has saved nine babies since being instituted and it strongly appeals to the pro-life crowd without upsetting the pro-choice crowd. The only stretch in the video is that Tyson didn’t really change Alabama law — he spearheaded a county campaign that was the inspiration behind a bill proposed in 2000 by Rep. Laura Hall (D-Montgomery).

Phillip Rawls has an interesting article out of Montgomery:

Next month will mark the third anniversary of a Montgomery jury ruling against Exxon Mobil in the largest verdict in Alabama history. But more than a year after the last brief was filed, the state Supreme Court has yet to rule on the oil company’s appeal.

The original judgement was for $3.5 billion. On appeal, the Alabama Supreme Court ordered the case re-tried because the jury had improperly seen a piece of evidence. In 2003, another jury returned an $11.9 billion verdict that was later reduced to $3.5 billion by the judge to meet federal guidelines.

Three years isn’t a record or anything, but it’s a long time. The parties in the case filed their last brief 14 months ago. This is leading many to question if the delay is an election-year tactic. Five of the nine Supreme Court justices are up for re-election. This will certainly raise some eyebrows if the court rules in favor of Exxon after the election.

The lawsuit is over Exxon Mobil allegedly cheating the state out of royalties from natural gas wells the company drilled in state-owned waters on the coast.

• H/T to Doc’s Political Parlor
• Alabama Moderate links to this post with Tidbits from Elsewhere

I guess I should stop spending all my news-reading time looking up information about the elections. Apparently, 11,000 Goodyear employees around the country went on strike including 1,300 at the Gadsden, Alabama plant.

The company just borrowed $1 billion to help survive the strike. Employees say they are striking because their new contract cut pay and benefits and included plans to shut down plants in Alabama and Texas. I’m all about some labor unions, but it’s possible that these guys are asking their company to go under by spending too much on payroll or to go under because their employees are on strike. These “negotiations” are usually so unrealistic. One side wants more money than the company can sustainably provide. The other side can’t understand what’s wrong with cutting long-term employees’ pay by significant amounts.