There's a camera that not only takes photos, but writes poetry about the scenes it records!
Here is the story.
Hey! I can do that too!
Here is a recent photo I made.
VOTERS
They snake
a
r
o
u
n
d
the place to vote,
wanting to say their say,
to pick their personal winners,
even those
who lose.
from a CNN story:
"The first test of the UAW’s momentum comes next month, when a union vote at a Mercedes plant in Vance, Alabama, is set to be completed. The plant has about 6,000 hourly workers.
But the South’s history of difficult structural dynamics for unions is entrenched. And union wins in the auto industry are likely to generate significant political backlash.
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said earlier this year he would “fight” unions “to the gates of hell,” and Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey said “the Alabama model for economic success is under attack” by unions."
"The two-day trials generated an estimated economic impact of about $1.5 million while bringing in about 4,500 people to watch 60 athletes test the course, a Montgomery Whitewater spokesperson said."
Montgomery Advertiser report
Source please? Who did their "estimated" research?
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| Confederate Memorial At Capitol. |
Today: Confederate Memorial Day
(the other yet to come this year is Monday, June 3, Jefferson Davis’ Birthday)
Two "holidays" have been added in recent years:
Martin Luther King, Jr. (scheduled on the same day as the existing state holiday for Robert E. Lee!) January 15th.
Rosa Parks (a day of commemoration ONLY...NOT a state holiday). December 1st.
Here is the full list of State Holidays in Alabama.
(NOTE: A lawmaker in Mississippi is trying to undo his state's King/Lee double-holiday.)
Since Monday is a State holiday, residents will be able to watch cable coverage of the 1st D.T. trials
An NPR story this morning is criticizing the accuracy of some historic markers...for example;
"Three separate states, for example, have markers that claim to be the place where anesthesia was discovered. Two states, Kentucky and Missouri, both claim to be the home of Daniel Boone's bones. Michigan and Alabama both claim to be the home of the first railroad west of the Allegheny Mountains, while Maryland and New Jersey both claim to have sent the first telegram."HERE is an interactive map of historic markers in Alabama!
Most of the children of Rev. Robert and Jeannie Graetz gathered at Oak Park today, planting an oak tree and marker in their memory. The organization One Montgomery sponsored the event.
Mayor Reed met with the family at the memorial dedication.
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| The oak tree planted in honor of Rev & Mrs. Graetz is reflected in the memorial stone. |
LOCATION : United Evangelical Lutheran Church
Graetz Neighborhood
1104 Rosa L Parks Ave, Montgomery, Alabama 36108
1:00pm - 5:00pm
Employees at Volkswagen’s SUV assembly plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, have voted to join the United Auto Workers in a historic labor victory, the union and Volkswagen announced late Friday.
A preliminary tally released by the company showed workers favored union representation by a count of 2,628 to 985, a nearly 3-1 margin. The landslide win gives the union a crucial toehold in the anti-union South.
The UAW called it a “historic breakthrough” in a statement.
FULL Story is HERE from Huffington Post
The Mercedes/Alabama vote? 5,000 Mercedes workers will have an opportunity to vote to form their union in less than a month. The election will be held in-person at the Mercedes plant May 13 – 17 in Vance, Alabama.
FBI Files on shooting HERE
I'll be there!
Come say hello!
Coming up this Saturday----April 20th...A Loving Literacy Community Fair!
Focus on literacy within the community–helping children see themselves as change agents of the future, igniting a love of reading and for creating social change.
Showcase the Graetz Neighborhood and its rich Civil Rights history–ensuring that history has a life that moves backward and forward.
Honor the work of Rev. Robert and Jeannie Graetz and pick up the mantle–continuing their legacy.
From a N.Y. Times Column by Jamelle Bouie
"The mere potential for union success was so threatening that the day before the vote began, several of the Southern Republican governors announced their opposition to the U.A.W. campaign. “We the governors of Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas are highly concerned about the unionization campaign driven by misinformation and scare tactics that the U.A.W. has brought into our states,” their joint statement reads. “As governors, we have a responsibility to our constituents to speak up when we see special interests looking to come into our state and threaten our jobs and the values we live by.”
(SOURCE: Governor's Office)
MONTGOMERY – Governor Kay Ivey, along with the governors of Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas, issued the following joint statement:
“We the governors of Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas are highly concerned about the unionization campaign driven by misinformation and scare tactics that the UAW has brought into our states. As governors, we have a responsibility to our constituents to speak up when we see special interests looking to come into our state and threaten our jobs and the values we live by.
“The reality is companies have choices when it comes to where to invest and bring jobs and opportunity. We have worked tirelessly on behalf of our constituents to bring good-paying jobs to our states. These jobs have become part of the fabric of the automotive manufacturing industry. Unionization would certainly put our states’ jobs in jeopardy – in fact, in this year already, all of the UAW automakers have announced layoffs. In America, we respect our workforce and we do not need to pay a third party to tell us who can pick up a box or flip a switch. No one wants to hear this, but it’s the ugly reality. We’ve seen it play out this way every single time a foreign automaker plant has been unionized; not one of those plants remains in operation. And we are seeing it in the fallout of the Detroit Three strike with those automakers rethinking investments and cutting jobs. Putting businesses in our states in that position is the last thing we want to do.
“The experience in our states is when employees have a direct relationship with their employers, that makes for a more positive working environment. They can advocate for themselves and what is important to them without outside influence. The UAW has come in making big promises to our constituents that they can’t deliver on. And we have serious reservations that the UAW leadership can represent our values. They proudly call themselves democratic socialists and seem more focused on helping President Biden get reelected than on the autoworker jobs being cut at plants they already represent.
“We want to keep good paying jobs and continue to grow the American auto manufacturing sector here. A successful unionization drive will stop this growth in its tracks, to the detriment of American workers.”
All signatories include: Governor Kay Ivey (AL), Governor Brian Kemp (GA), Governor Tate Reeves (MS), Governor Henry McMaster (SC), Governor Bill Lee (TN), and Governor Greg Abbott (TX)
Anti-Wind Power
"Former president Donald Trump repeatedly ranted about wind power during a fundraising dinner with oil and gas industry executives last week, falsely claiming that the renewable-energy source is unreliable, unattractive and bad for the environment."
FULL story is HERE
The winner of today's runoff between Democrats Shomari Figures and Anthony Daniels will face the winner of the Republican runoff between Dick Brewbaker and Caroleene Dobson.
UPDATE: The winners were Democrat Figures & Republican Dobson. They'll next go up against each other. (I managed to vote for another loser. 😞)
Celebrate Indie Bookstore Day with the NewSouth bookstore and enjoy these special offers
Did you know
that Saturday, April 27 is Independent Bookstore Day? As a participating
member of The American Booksellers Association (ABA), your favorite
Montgomery independent is celebrating with three special offers for our
newsletter friends and customers! Mention this item at The NewSouth
Bookstore and receive ten percent off — that’s 10% off! — your entire
purchase. That’s right! Plus: Buy any two used books and you get a third
one free. And there’s more! The first twenty people to shop the store
on that day will receive a door prize! That’s several good reasons to
head on down to The NewSouth Bookstore on Saturday, April 27. Mark the
date. And thank you for your support of indie bookstores like ours!
Wallethub has crunched the numbers and ranked Alabama as one of the LEAST green states in America.
Alabama is ranked 48th...ahead only of West Virgina and Louisiana.
And the website says states that voted Democratic in 2020 are GREENER than those where people voted Republican that year.
The full report:
HERE.
Coming up this Saturday----April 20th...A Loving Literacy Community Fair!
Focus on literacy within the community–helping children see themselves as change agents of the future, igniting a love of reading and for creating social change.
Showcase the Graetz Neighborhood and its rich Civil Rights history–ensuring that history has a life that moves backward and forward.
Honor the work of Rev. Robert and Jeannie Graetz and pick up the mantle–continuing their legacy.
LOCATION : United Evangelical Lutheran Church
Graetz Neighborhood
1104 Rosa L Parks Ave, Montgomery, Alabama 36108
Here's how The Associated Press reported the decision...
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Air National Guard units based in Wisconsin and Alabama have been awarded squadrons of F-35 fighter jets, the U.S. Air Force announced Wednesday, overcoming vocal opposition from people who live near the base in Wisconsin's capital city.
The jets will be placed with the Wisconsin Air National Guard's 115th Fighter Wing at Truax Field in Madison* and with the 187th Fighter Wing at Dannelly Field in Montgomery, Alabama. The first jets are expected to arrive in late 2023.
The jets will replace older F-16 aircraft and will allow the Air Force to meet other requirements for readiness and training, the Air Force said in a statement.
Locating the jets in Madison has divided the state and community over the past three years, with many people who live near the airport saying noise and pollution from the jets will lessen their quality of life and value of their homes. The Air Force said in a preliminary report that noise from the F-35s could make more than 1,000 homes “incompatible for residential use.”
But there was a broad base of support that included businesses, communities, economic developers, office holders, veterans and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Supporters argued that concerns over the noise are overblown and there won't be much difference from the current F-16s. Advocates said having the next generation of jets will be an economic development boost, ensuring the future of the base in Madison, which employs about 1,200 people.
Madison’s City Council passed a resolution opposing the jets, but the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce has been a vocal supporter. The chamber, which represents businesses in Madison, said the Air National Guard wing has a $100 million annual economic impact on the community. There was also bipartisan support from Wisconsin politicians, including both its Democratic and Republican U.S. senators.
U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan, a Democrat who represents Madison, said Wednesday that the Air Force never sufficiently addressed his request that the Air Force pay for soundproofing or any financial losses those who live near the base may suffer due to reduced property values.
And Democratic state Rep. Chris Taylor, one of the most vocal critics of the jets, called placing them in a Madison an “unfortunate and harmful decision" that will hurt people's health, quality of life and lower property values.
“Instead of listening to our community, the Air Force is intent on foisting these jets on a place they are not wanted," she said.
Maj. Gen Paul Knapp, leader of the Wisconsin National Guard, praised the awarding of the jets to the base in Madison and said he looked forward to working in partnership with the city and surrounding communities.
"Through collaboration, I’m confident we will continue to be good stewards of the communities in which we work and live," he said.
Three other bases considered for the jets were in Boise, Idaho; Harrison Township, Michigan; and Jacksonville, Florida.
(UPDATE: if you live in or near Montgomery you no doubt heard some of then on the weekend of April 6th during a spectacular air show)
*That's the air base where my Father was stationed for training in WWII! He was a radio operator with the U.S. Army....prior to the founding of the Air Force!
Alabama's three largest newspapers appear online at www.al.com. And they continue to include horoscopes!
A 2016 article in Smithsonian tackled the issue, including this paragraph:
"Richard Dawkins, the outspoken humanist and militant atheist, came out strongly against astrology and horoscopes in a 1995 Independent article published on New Years’ Eve, declaring, “Astrology not only demeans astronomy, shrivelling and cheapening the universe with its pre-Copernican dabblings. It is also an insult to the science of psychology and the richness of human personality.” Dawkins also took newspapers to task for even entertaining such “dabblings”. More recently, in 2011, British rockstar physicist Brian Cox came under fire from astrologers for calling astrology a “load of rubbish” on his Wonders of the Solar System program on BBC. After the BBC fielded a bunch of complaints, Cox offered a statement, which the broadcaster probably wisely chose not to release: “I apologize to the astrology community for not making myself clear. I should have said that this new age drivel is undermining the very fabric of our civilization.”
My advice to the "news" papers: BE BOLD! It's 2024! Cleanse your journalism of mysticism!
From the "report" on the "www.solitaired.com/most-boring-tourist-attractions" website:
And as for Alabama? The Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville is ranked as Alabama's most boring attraction (based on 11,500 reviews)...though I can easily think of others elsewhere in the state that should rank higher. The Huntsville attraction is also the only one in the state on the website. Alabama ranks 34th on the site's ranking of states with the most boring sites. Alabama has six, apparently.
SOURCE: HERE
TOP AL HOUSE DEM GETS BIG MONEY FROM CONSERVATIVE DONORS
"A frontrunner for the Democratic nomination to represent a redrawn Alabama opportunity district has received donations from supporters of far-right conservative politicians, according to documents I obtained and a Once Upon a Hill analysis of campaign finances records.
As recently as last month, Alabama House Minority Leader Anthony Daniels has bankrolled his congressional campaign with major contributions from fundraisers hosted by Republican operatives, including a former GOP Senate staffer. In addition to supporting Daniels’s candidacy, these donors have contributed to the campaigns of US Arizona Senate candidate and election denier Kari Lake, Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), and Republican Gov. Kay Ivey of Alabama.
The donations raise questions about why a Democrat in Alabama has received support from Republican power brokers for a seat created in response to decades of disenfranchisement from state and local GOP officials."
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NOTE: I've asked Daniels' campaign to explain the GOP money...if there really is any. I'm awaiting a reply. Tim
