cold heart, warm heart
Friday, July 31st, 2009Such a cold heart bears
no ill will, hides from contact
within its armor.
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Such a cold heart bears
no ill will, hides from contact
within its armor.
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A good teacher knows
the limits of her knowledge
from which springs wisdom.
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Between acts, patrons
gulp blended reds and sneak in
a smoke on the lawn.
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Here lies Jefferson County, the biggest county in Alabama, once home to the once biggest city in the state.
What killed Jefferson County? Poor leadership? Not enough civic engagement? Bad financial management? The recession?
Let us start with the budget, a gaping black hole of billions of dollars of debt from the sewer crisis debacle. [More stories on the Jefferson County sewer system problem.] Add to that the demise of the county’s bizarre occupational tax and its $75 million in annual revenue. Rainy day fund? Emergency action plan? What’s Jefferson County’s Plan B? Heck, it doesn’t seem like it has a Plan A …
Kyle Whitmire of Birmingham Weekly does an exceptional job in “Politician-Assisted Suicide” of breaking down the tangled politics and morass of mistakes that have led us to today, the end of the budget.
With no money left, the county has yet to declare bankruptcy. It has however …
So what’s left? The Legislature could reinstate a revised occupational tax or force the commission to hire a county manager. Jefferson County’s legislators will meet again Tuesday to look for a solution via Montgomery.
Update: The commission must also fend off a lawsuit from within. County tax assessor Dan Weinrib filed suit today to prevent any budget cuts to his department. (Hat tip Kerry Sanders.)
Meanwhile, the debt grows, the commission is out, and workers and citizens are left to wonder how much worse can it get.
An unfeeling man
walked to the end of the world
and turned back around.
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A sudden parting
of the ways leaves splintered hearts
and unfinished dreams.
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When the lights go on,
the camera zooms in and it’s
all business on air.
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President Obama selected Bayou La Batre’s Dr. Regina Benjamin as his surgeon general on Monday. Born in Mobile, she earned her medical degree at the University of Alabama in Birmingham.
She is perhaps best known for building a clinic in rural Bayou La Batre and then rebuilding it after Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005. Benjamin served as the first black female trustee (and first doctor under age 40) for the American Medical Association.
What else should you know about this Alabamian? Funny you should ask …
We present 10 Things You Didn’t Know About Surgeon General Nominee Dr. Regina Benjamin.
1. Pope Benedict XVI awarded her the papal cross Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice. It’s the highest award conferred by the Pope to the laity. [Associated Press]
2. She spent $800 to open her clinic in 1990. It was destroyed by Hurricane Georges in 1998, so she built further inland (yet still owed $170,000 on the previous building). The second clinic was wiped out by Katrina in 2005. [Reader’s Digest]
3. The third clinic? Extensively damaged by fire. On New Year’s Day 2006, one day before it was scheduled to open. The clinic “operates out of a tiny rented house, while Benjamin raises cash to build anew.” [U.S. News and World Report]
4. She’s a “Genius.” The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation selected her for a $500,000 MacArthur Fellowship (“genius award”) in 2008. [MacArthur Foundation]
5. Her speaker’s fee? $5,000 to $10,000. Although that will likely end as a government official under ethics guidelines. [Speakers on Healthcare]
6. She’s a hugger. “The doctor and her staff reciprocate, dispensing hugs as an essential ingredient of high-quality health care.” [U.S. News and World Report]
7. She’s Catholic and supports abortion rights. But her Bayou La Batre Rural Health Clinic doesn’t perform abortions. [Miami Herald]
8. Besides her medical degree, she also has an MBA from Tulane University. She graduated from UAB in 1984 and earned her Master of Business Administration in 1991 from the Freeman School of Business. [Tulane University]
9. Her father had diabetes and high blood pressure. Her brother died from HIV, her mother from lung cancer. She wants to combat what she calls “preventable diseases.” [Associated Press]
10. She was Obama’s second choice for the position. First choice? CNN correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta. [CNN]
Who knows what lies in
the fog of the near future?
Who dares part the mists?
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After decades of discussion and debate, the City of Birmingham took a big step forward today in building a domed stadium. The city council approved $8 million annually in funding for a dome to be built adjacent to the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex.
With that, Mayor Larry Langford announced on Paul Finebaum’s radio show this afternoon that the groundbreaking would take place on July 21, and that a Major League Soccer team has already shown interest in establishing a franchise at the facility, along with purchasing naming rights.
The dome, with a $630 million price tag, would be completed in 2014. The next step would be the BJCC paying architects $666,000 a month and acquiring land.
Meanwhile, the city has yet to pass a budget for fiscal year 2010, 14 days after the start of the new budget year. In dispute is the city’s financial health: either $26.4 million in the black or $17 million in the red.
Let’s hear what you think: Will the dome bring new jobs, new events to Birmingham? Will it be completed on time and on budget? Is this the right move for Birmingham given the current economy? Sound off in the comments …
Update: Feedback via Twitter so far …
Feedback via Facebook …
What’s your take?
Bucket of suds gets
stained with dirty Datsun’s grit
melting in lather.
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