"For now, most of the noise is coming from offended pundits who can’t stand the thought of the College Football Playoff setting up the exact scenario it was designed to prevent. And for those upset about an all-SEC title game, they are basically admitting they don’t really want the best teams. Instead, they want conference welfare, where lesser teams get picked because it’s 'fair.'"
https://news.tidefans.com/2018/01/02/clemson-wrap-up-tigers-were-less-dynamic-and-bama-made-them-pay-for-it/
Showing posts with label Alabama. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alabama. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 3, 2018
Thursday, June 23, 2016
AU writer at AL.com thinks legal system should punish Cam and Hootie
Imagine that—A dyed in the wool Auburn fan thinks that the pair of Alabama football players should suffer some kind of punishment for their arrest on stolen firearm and controlled substance possession.
Knowing the Aubarn Fambly as well as I do, I’m not the least bit surprised. Jody Fuller, an Opelika based writer and comic, penned the piece wherein he fails to acknowledge that anyone accused of a crime in the United States is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Auburn fans might not like that reality, but it is reality nonetheless.
So it is when rival fans hear news that a Bama player has been accused of a crime: Players arrested = players should suffer appropriate consequences via the legal system. End of discussion. Oh, and the rival fans get to determine what’s appropriate and what’s not—see his reference to Brock Turner, the guy out west who got six months for a rape conviction.
Mr. Fuller also doesn’t seem to grasp that the District Attorney in the case, Ouachita Parish District Attorney Jerry Jones is an integral part of the legal system that he thinks should have administered the sentence. If the DA decides not to prosecute—regardless of his reasoning for choosing that option—then in our system of justice the legal system has spoken.
Mr. Fuller makes no mention of any mitigating circumstances at work in this case. That’s because neither Mr. Fuller, nor me, nor anyone reading this have any clue as to what mitigating circumstances came into play or how they factored into Jones’ decision not to prosecute.
Mr. Fuller does note that there will likely be consequences imposed by Coach Nick Saban, but dismissively suggests that those consequences will also fail to rise to a boog’s standard for justice.
I suggested that Cam and Hootie should indeed be punished by the program. The difference between myself and Mr. Fuller is that I’m not only able to accept that the legal system has spoken clearly and with final authority, but that I also trust my team’s coach to administer the proper measure of discipline.
Make an example of them? Yes. Judge the appropriateness of the punishment—well, that’s not inside of my hula hoop. That ain’t on my side of the street.
That ain’t my cross to bear.
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Non-Sports: Tornado Alley
This image is from Reed Timmer’s Facebook page. Timmer is a meteorologist who stars in the reality show, Storm Chasers. When one thinks of the frequency of deadly tornadic activity, the conventional wisdom is that most of the deadliest storms are found in the midwest and plains area of the U.S. While that area is active, the deadliest storms actually occur in an area much farther east and south.
The April 2011 breakout of tornadoes in Alabama that killed hundreds and devastated towns across the north central regions of Alabama were historically bad, but they also occurred in a historically active area of the country.
The hotspot is an area spanning from southeastern Missouri and northeastern Arkansas through the delta area of western Tennessee, and into the northern parts of Mississippi and Alabama. But there’s real danger in the entire state of Oklahoma, and it ranges all the way north to the Great Lakes south to Louisiana and all the way east into the Georgia mountains.
nota bene: This is a measure of “killer” tornadoes, not necessarily intensity. You have to wonder if this is a phenomenon caused by having more people living in a dangerous area or if this is an area that just gets hit harder.
Helmet tap to Rufus at CCC.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Getting the math right with the 2012 signing class
NCAA rules limit Football Subdivision Schools to 85 players on scholarship, and a newly minted SEC rule limits the league’s programs to signing classes to no more than 25 “initial counters,” meaning that the program can only accept 25 new National Letters of Intent for the 2012 class.
But, there’s always a but. If the program didn’t sign and enroll a full complement of 25 the previous class, it is allowed under the new rule to back count new early enrollees who begin classes in January.
Alabama signed and enrolled 22 for the 2011 class, freeing three spaces for early enrollee back counting.
The Alabama Crimson Tide 2012 Senior Class includes 19 on scholarship and the 2011 roster ended with 81, following the death of Aaron Douglas and the transfer of Corey Grant. Also leaving spots open were transfers of Demetrius Goode and B.J. Scott. Others also left the team for various reasons, some of which may (or may not) result in additional spots coming open.
Three players with a year of eligibility have declared themselves available for the NFL Draft. Unless I’m missing someone, Alabama has room to sign at least 26 and still stay within both the NCAA roster limit of 85 and comply with the new SEC rules on class size.
In the national brouhaha over the Justin Taylor story, almost everyone seems to be getting it wrong. The new SEC limit of 25 per class is designed to prevent schools from signing prospects to a binding letter of intent and then grey shirting them—meaning that the player has to sit out a year and pay his own way.
He didn’t get screwed out of a scholarship ala Elliott Porter. If anything, the new SEC rule worked exactly as it was designed and allowed the kid to reopen his recruitment. Question the timing of the school breaking the news? Ok, go ahead. But recruiting atrocity it certainly is not.
Media reports have said that Alabama coach Nick Saban told Taylor that the program had no room for him and that if he wanted to attend Alabama, he would not be given a scholarship and counted until the 2013 signing class because the program couldn’t sign 26 players.
Either those reports are inaccurate, or Taylor and his family misunderstood what they were (likely) told. Alabama can only sign and enroll 25 who count against the 85 for the upcoming 2012-13 academic year. Since Taylor can’t enroll early, he would have to count against this class and couldn’t be back counted. This does NOT mean that Alabama won’t have more than 25 recruits in the class.
If I’m getting the math wrong here, please feel free to correct me in the comments, via email or Twitter.
Oh, and by the way… The evil of grey shirting sure manifested itself with John Parker Wilson and William Vlachos, didn’t it?
Thursday, January 12, 2012
HE MAD: Ohio State has-been calls for investigation of Alabama
Cooper has not coached a down of football since Bill Clinton was President, the Oklahoma Sooners won what was supposed to be the first of many BCS Championships and the Baja Men Let the Dogs Out. But he thinks Ohio State was robbed by the Committee on Infractions over the TattooGate scandal and thinks the real cheaters are in the SEC.
Speaking with Cleveland sports radio station 92.3 The Fan, Cooper, who was head coach for the Buckeyes from 1988 until 2000, was asked about recently fired coach Jim Tressel and his NCAA violations. Cooper explained that Ohio State's violations seemed minor in comparison to those committed recently by Southeastern Conference schools.
"I see some of these teams, the Auburns. I'm told, I don't know and I haven't coached in that league, but I'm told that down south the Alabamas and LSUs and some of these teams that have these great players, that maybe the NCAA needs to look into their situation," Cooper said. "Those teams have been on probation. As you know, Alabama's certainly one of the most penalized teams in college football, as is the Southeastern Conference. We say the SEC's the best and they are the best, but they've also had more NCAA violations than probably all the other leagues put together the last 10 years."
For the record:
Since the NCAA began enforcement actions in the 1950’s, Ohio State University football has been sanctioned three times for major infractions resulting in scholarship reductions. The University of Alabama football program has also been sanctioned three times resulting in scholarship reductions. For all sports and including those major infractions cases where no scholarship penalties were imposed, Ohio State has been hit by the Committee on Infractions five times. Alabama has been hit five times.
In fact, Alabama is not even on the Top 10 list of the “most corrupt” list of college athletics programs.
Thursday, December 29, 2011
The Annual IBCR SEC Bowl Slate Viewers Guide
MUSIC CITY – Friday, Dec 30, 6:40 ESPN, Mississippi State vs. Wake Forest. Dan Mullen’s Bulldogs were picked to make some noise in the SEC West this year, but slipped to a 6-6 overall record and a disappointing 2-6 in SEC play. Wake Forest is a middling ACC team that also comes in with a 6-6 record. State is favored by 7 but their more physical style of play could be a real problem for the Demon Deacons.
LIBERTY – Saturday, Dec 31, 3:30 ESPN, Vanderbilt vs. Cincinnati. Like Mississippi State, Vanderbilt went 2-6 in SEC play. Cincinnati comes in as a 9-3 Big East co-champion. Commodores’ coach James Franklin has his team playing at a high level of confidence and had both Arkansas and SEC East champ Georgia on the ropes late in the fourth quarter. This should be another physical matchup and expect the Commodores to play well enough to win.
CHICK FIL-A – Saturday, Dec 31, 7:30 ESPN, Auburn vs. Virginia. Auburn played poorly against the five best teams they played and were blown out each time. Defensive coordinator Ted Roof and offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn are off to new gigs at UCF and Arkansas State. Virginia’s Mike London has resuscitated a Cavalier football team. This should be a fun game to watch—Virginia will try to exploit a leaky Auburn run defense while Chizik’s Tigers will try to get a young quarterback hitting on all cylinders. Take the over.
CAPITAL ONE – Monday, Jan 2, 1:00 ESPN, Nebraska vs. South Carolina. The Gamecocks are seeking their first 11-win season in program history. Under Steve Spurrier, the program has made a number of strides and has steadily improved its stature in the SEC. Even after a 9-3 season, the Cornhuskers come in as something of a “mystery guest.” Will it be the team that smacked Ohio State and Michigan State, or the team that got blown out by Michigan? Another interesting tidbit—Steve Spurrier is 7-10 all time in bowl games and several of his Florida and South Carolina teams simply don’t show up in the postseason.
GATOR – Monday, Jan 2, 1:00, EPSN2, Ohio State vs. Florida. Two of college football’s recent heavyweights go at it in a rematch of the 2007 BCS Championship Game. How the mighty have fallen—both teams come in at 6-6 and played poorly during the season. Of course, the real buzz in this game will be the Urban Meyer story, who left Florida after last season, took a year off from coaching and was hired by Ohio State to replace the fired Jim Tressel.
OUTBACK – Monday, Jan 2, 1:00, ABC, Michigan State vs. Georgia. In the third of three bowl games set to kick off at the same time, the Spartans take on SEC East Champ Bulldogs. Both teams come in at 10-3. Michigan State was thoroughly embarrassed by Alabama in last year’s Capital One Bowl, so expect them to play with more intensity and purpose this time around. Georgia has struggled against the best teams they played this year, losing to Boise State and South Carolina to start 0-2, then dropping a blowout in the SEC Championship Game to LSU. Is Michigan State up to the same task? This should be another close one, unless Michigan State learned nothing last year.
COTTON – Friday, Jan 6, 8:00, Fox, Arkansas vs. Kansas State. If Arkansas can’t be in a BCS bowl, then the Cotton is where hog fans want to be. The Wildcats enjoyed one of their best seasons in forever and are excited about the future. The two teams come into Jerry World with identical 10-2 records and the ability to light up the scoreboard with potent offenses. This should be one of the most interesting and high-scoring bowl games on the season, and the fact that it’s the only game on TV that night should draw in the viewers.
BCS CHAMPIONSHIP – Monday, Jan 9, ESPN, Alabama vs. LSU. There’s been enough ink spilled and bandwidth burned on the legitimacy of the “Rematch of the Century.” Like it or not though, fans tuning in will be treated to a contest between the two best teams in the country. When watching the first 12-round heavyweight bout, you got the sense that these two teams were playing not to lose. There were a lot of points left on the field because the coaching staffs played close to the vest. Do you think that’ll happen again? Me either. I expect the gloves to come off and I expect to see both teams taking chances that were unconscionable two months ago.
Friday, December 16, 2011
Wave clouds over Birmingham
We interrupt the football, politics and snarky chatter to bring you a totally awesome off-topic Friday post.
James Spann has several very cool images of an unusual weather phenomenon called “Kelvin-Helmholtz clouds,” which appear to look like waves lining up to crash on the beach. Spann explains that the processes involved in creating these scary looking cloud formations are exactly the same for water waves.
Here are a couple of the pics from Spann’s site. Click here for more and a video, too!
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Credibility Kicked Out
In his zeal to get the story first, he failed to get the story right. In doing so, he kicked his credibility right out of the park.
We now know that the “reporting” consisted of the site’s owner regurgitating a series of photographs sent from members of a popular Auburn University fansite and lifted from the store’s Facebook page by the Auburn board’s membership. While the photographs appeared to raise improper benefit questions of the tenor seen in the recent Ohio State tattoo scandal, all were older photos stemming from the 2009 and 2010 football seasons.
Accompanying the statement released late yesterday, the University of Alabama also released a letter delivered to the store owner on March 31, 2011, disassociating him from the University’s athletics program for a period of three years. The University had previously released a statement and had also said that it had issued a cease and desist order to the store in December 2010. Both statements and both letters indicate that the University independently became aware of potential NCAA compliance issues related to the store’s display of sports memorabilia many months before Travis and his Auburn “sources” did. They investigated the matter and took appropriate corrective action. The University has said that it found no violations, that none of the student-athletes depicted in the photographs had affected their eligibility and had not determined that Al-Betar was a “representative of the athletics program’s interests,” i.e., a “booster.” Yet, out of an abundance of caution, the University disassociated the store owner anyway and said that it was continuing to monitor the situation. Since there were no violations found, no report was transmitted to the Southeastern Conference or the NCAA, but the University has said that it did coordinate with the SEC during its probe.
Barring the most improbable turn of events that would lead to additional information, the professional news organizations are closing the book and moving on.
Travis has said that following an earlier posting that reported on NCAA investigators visiting Montgomery in connection with ongoing probes of Auburn recruiting, Auburn fans had inundated him with emails and twitter messages containing the photographs. The messages included bare allegations that Alabama football players had gotten into trouble through their association with the clothing store’s owner, Tom Al-Betar. According to Travis, he had read the emails in the wee hours of Friday morning following a Thursday night party celebrating the launch of his website.
Instead of taking the time to investigate the facts and instead of contacting the University of Alabama, the former football players and the store owner and interviewing them for a potentially huge story, Travis ran with the unsubstantiated allegations and published the photographs. Developments yesterday now show that to be a monumental failure of judgment.
OKTC is in full meltdown, today. Travis has uploaded shrill ramblings and is accusing the Athletic Department of participating in a massive coverup scheme. When you get to the bottom of a deep hole, it’s usually not a good idea to keep digging. His latest post purports to depict jerseys for sale outside T-Town Menswear at University Mall in Tuscaloosa. The only problem is, that kiosk appears to be just outside of the Bama Fever store at Riverchase Galleria Mall in Birmingham. Unless Travis has the goods on that store too, it looks like judgment has failed him again.
Last month, this blog featured a column on the demise of the local investigative sports journalist. Here’s a snippet from that piece:
Earlier this week, I had a brief conversation with a senior staff member at one of the state’s major daily newspapers. I won’t say which one because frankly, the man is a complete professional and 100% newshound. I don’t want to risk outing or embarrassing him for speaking frankly with a blogger.
One thing was very clear—He’s not any happier than you are about his desk being unable to get the story first, but his professionalism demands that he get the story right. He’d prefer to get it right and get it first but if he is forced to choose between the two, he’s going with getting it right. I admire that because as a blogger, credibility is lifeblood. I’d love for you to read it here first, but I’m really concerned over your ability to take what you read here to the bank. That’s why you will never see this blog float anything like that Brent Calloway story that AuburnSports.com’s Jeffery Lee ran with several weeks ago.
You can add the T-Town Menswear story as another example of what you won’t see here. The T-Town Menswear story doesn’t get broken by professional news organizations. Their standards—including double or corroborated sourcing, editorial and policy review and legal review—would simply never permit such bare allegations as those raised Friday to be published. The problem here is that professional news organizations are competing for circulation with people possessing neither the ability nor the willingness to determine fact from fantasy.
I don’t have the resources of a professional news organization. But out of the same abundance of caution exercised by the University of Alabama, I’m going to go as far as I can to find the truth and bring it here.
This blog receives tips on a daily basis. Some of the juicier tidbits turn out to be dead ends. Sometimes, seemingly trivial tips lead to other information being developed and truthfully reported. As a blogger, it’s always satisfying when your shocker ends up being verified by professional news organizations. But that only happens when you are certain of the facts and Travis was certain of nothing.
Some bloggers understand their responsibility to their readers. Some don’t. But sooner or later, both flavors will be judged by the answer to this Exit Question: “Can I really trust this guy?”
Friday, May 13, 2011
Alabama Democrats’ Five Point Plan for Failure
Let’s run these down to show why, if Alabama Democrats really do follow this plan, they will be wandering the wilderness for decades to come. Which, of course, is fine by me. I hope they go with it.
1. Blame the messenger. “The worst thing going for Democrats in America is Fox News,” Mark Kennedy said. “How many times have you gone in the drug store or the dentist, and they have it on? They’ve got their talking points down pat, and they are being broadcast all over the country every day.”
Really, Mark? The reason why Democrats got their butts kicked in November is because Fox News? I think the real reason is that for the first time since 1992, Democrats had full control of the levers of power in government and once the American people saw what they were doing with that control, we recoiled in disgust. The tea party movement wasn’t started by Fox. It was started by ordinary people who make up the center-right majority of this country’s electorate and who got your message loud and clear and wanted none of it.
2. Disintegrate. Kennedy calls for a “grassroots organization” in Alabama, and shift authority down to county level volunteers and activists. Conservatives think this is a GREAT idea, because it will permanently isolate the power brokers in Alabama Education Association and Alabama Democratic Conference. But I hold little hope that Paul Hubbert and Joe Reed will ever relinquish control until they either die of old age or land in federal prison. Such a move would also likely empower conservative Democrats who are more likely to work with Republicans in the state to achieve real, bipartisan reform. Unfortunately for the left wing of the party, it would also mean the end of liberalism in the state.
3. Embrace Obama. Y’all go right ahead and tie that millstone around your neck again. How’d it turn out for you in 2010? The only reason why Obama’s public image isn’t underwater right now is because the Nobel Peace Prize winner ordered the assassination of Osama bin Laden. Ask George Bush 41 how long that bump will last.
4. Alienate and destroy centrist/conservative Democrats. Kennedy wants to make sure that everyone who abandoned the party and switched to Republican are defeated in 2012. You may want to have a brief chat with Richard Shelby, who switched to the GOP after the 1994 Glorious Revolution and has served honorably ever since, never facing a serious threat. This is Alabama. Conservative Democrats in this state have voting records that would make establishment Republicans from the Northeast blush in embarrassment over their lack of conservative cajones. You shouldn’t be alienating those conservative Democrats. You should be embracing and listening to them. They didn’t abondon you. You abandoned them.
5. Get mean and fight. Oh, yeah. That’s exactly what ordinary Alabamians want to see—a bunch of grown men and women acting like SEIU and ACORN thugs who have threatened, intimidated and beaten ordinary Americans for disagreeing with their agenda. Alabamians—like the rest of the center-right majority that is disgusted with thug tactics and strong-arm politics—want their leaders to work together and serve the people, not themselves. We don’t want massive intrusions of government into our daily lives and we don’t want thugs screaming in our faces when we organize and speak out about a government that is spending this country into oblivion.
But if it’s a fight you want, it’s a fight you’ll get, and I’m betting on the little guy who sees too much of his paycheck supporting your bloated idea of utopia and spoiling any chance of his children or grandchildren being able to support themselves and their own families.
You’ve already seen the term twice in this blog post but it’s worth repeating again, just in case you’re particularly leftist and angry: This country is governed by a center-right majority. You lost the 2010 election because you went off into left field and if you stick to the same old same old, we’re gonna kick your asses again in 2012. We’ll run Donald Duck in 2012 and beat you.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Heroes of the Storms: Robert Brown, City of Tuscaloosa
From the 05/04/11 Unified Press briefing held by Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox. He tells Brown’s story beginning at about the 1:30 mark.
These are the kinds of people who are part of the herculean response of local and state officials to the devastating storms of last week.
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Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Alabama Emergency Management no longer reporting casualty figures
Under Incident Management System (IMS) protocol, a single Public Information Office (PIO) is responsible for communicating with the public and insuring that the information provided is clear, accurate and represents the best data available at the time.
The State of Alabama has one of the best disaster response organizations in the country. They have polished their procedures to the extent that very little in the way of assistance is required from FEMA. Even with the breathtaking scope of the April 27 disaster in Alabama, FEMA is providing only token assistance and coordination. That will change somewhat as the efforts morph from response to recovery, but by and large the state and local authorities are showing the nation how a disaster response effort should be managed.
How information regarding casualties and missing persons has been communicated is the only blemish on an otherwise exceptionally well managed response. Today, there are a pair of stories in the state’s print media on this subject. The first, published by the Birmingham News, notes that the discrepancy is not limited to Tuscaloosa County, but appears to be an issue in other areas of the state as well:
Counties in the greater Birmingham metro area hit hard by the storms reported no one missing as of Monday according to the state EMA data.
"I think at most we had maybe eight persons reported as missing in the first few days and they have been accounted for now," said Regina Myers, assistant EMA director in Walker County.
Jefferson County has had a high of about 50 people who were "unaccounted for," but none had been classified as "missing," said Mark Kelly, public information officer for Jefferson County EMA. He was unsure how many of those people still had not been accounted for late Monday.
The second of the two articles covering the story was published by the Tuscaloosa News, and that story explains part of the reason why such discrepancies exist—the lists of missing persons being maintained by the local authorities are in a near constant state of fluctuation. As a result, Alabama EMA’s Situation Reports are no longer including casualty and missing persons information.
I think that’s a mistake.
It’s important information that prevents wild rumors from being propagated—like the one over the weekend that Forrest Lake had been drained and that authorities were keeping horrible secrets about numbers of lost lives. Rumors like that divert important resources and strain the already stretched thin law enforcement. Clear, concise information from emergency management officials—even if the information is stale the moment the ink is dry—helps prevent the spread of misinformation.
I am glad that AEMA and local authorities are aware of the discrepancies noted here last Sunday. I am disappointed that EMA has elected to cease communicating the information altogether. It makes it difficult for news organizations to get a clear picture of the situation. The public is incompletely informed and that lets people make up and spread crazy stories.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
How many people are really missing in Alabama?
This post is not meant to begrudge or question the judgment of Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox, who has been an outstanding voice of reason and calm in the face of incredible human suffering and loss. Nor is it meant to question the capabilities of the Alabama Emergency Management Agency, which has one of the best command and response structures in the country.
But there is an apparent disconnect between what the City of Tuscaloosa and Alabama EMA are telling the public about the number of people missing or unaccounted for following the devastating tornadoes of April 27.
The city has confirmed 39 deaths, 455 missing people and more than 1,000 injuries, said Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox in a press conference Sunday afternoon.
The names of the 39 confirmed deaths in the city and county were released during the press conference.
The city has removed 123 names from the list of missing people because they have been located or identified as a duplicate of a person already listed.
But from the Alabama EMA’s latest Situation Report (SitRep #10):
I am not accusing either the City of Tuscaloosa or the State of Alabama of lying or intentionally suppressing information. My guess is that there is simply a disconnect in either how the two entities define “missing persons” or in how they communicate important information to the public.
This kind of disconnect is not supposed to happen under a well operated Incident Command System (ICS). Under ICS protocol, consistent information based on the best available information should be provided.
Having one entity report only eight missing—not even including Tuscaloosa County among those reporting missing persons—and having the other state in numerous public statements that the number of missing is in the hundreds is something that needs to be addressed.
Someone needs to ask the EMA Public Information Officer and the Mayor’s office why these two numbers are so vastly different, and what will be done to reconcile the information they provide to the public.
This is not a small matter, either.
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Chilling Before and After Imagery in Tuscaloosa and Jefferson Counties
All imagery is courtesy of Google Earth. You can obtain high resolution versions of these images here and here.
Alberta City Before:
Alberta City After:
Forest Lake Before:
Forest Lake After:
Concord Before:
Concord After:
Pleasant Grove Before:
Pleasant Grove After:
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Friday, April 29, 2011
Incredible Aerial Footage of Alabama Tornado Damage
ABC 33/40’s Bill Castle spent most of yesterday flying around the Alabama damage centers of Wednesday’s deadly tornado outbreak, and returned with some truly incredible footage. In some of these videos, you will see a swath of destruction as much as three-quarters of a mile wide, and stretching for miles on end.
The paths of destruction are mind-boggling. I haven’t seen any of this firsthand, but watching some of this footage brings back memories of Hurricanes Andrew, Ivan, Katrina and Rita. Entire towns are obliterated. Even well built structures are damaged or destroyed.
My day job company is one of many FEMA and US Army Corps of Engineers advance contractors for various Emergency Support Functions (ESF’s). We are typically one of the first private sector contractors on the scene, handling everything from temporary housing to debris removal to infrastructure damage assessments. However, we aren’t mobilized until the search and rescue missions have been completed. Those are obviously still ongoing, and they might be for some time to come.
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Thursday, April 28, 2011
NASA GOES Animation of the 4/27/11 Storm System
Watch how this thing explodes as sunlight hits the atmosphere, heating the moisture and adding energy to it as it sweeps east and north. Use the fullscreen mode for best results.
UPDATE: Grunged video fixed (I hope).
The devastation across the southeast is EPIC. There are hundreds dead and the death toll is expected to rise sharply. There are hundreds more injured, many still missing, and thousands likely homeless.
There are many ways you can help.
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Video: Stormchasers catch deadly tornado near Tuscaloosa
In what will surely be one of the deadliest days in modern Alabama history, storms tore through the state yesterday, reducing homes and businesses to rubble and killing at least 128 people in 16 counties in Alabama and at least 173 across the southeast.
This video was captured in Tuscaloosa County as the storm ripped through.
Please pray for the lost and their loved ones.
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Thursday, November 25, 2010
How’s this for a BCS cluster fark?
Right now, everyone wonders which of the four remaining undefeated teams eligible for the BCS National Championship Game gets left at the altar. I decided I’d see how things could get so screwed up that everyone—from the talking heads at ESPN to Joe Sixpack the Fan—are left scratching their heads and wondering “WTF just happened?”
Here’s my doomsday scenario (all rankings are BCS):
November 26:
#11 Alabama defeats #2 Auburn in Iron Bowl LXXV
Nevada pistols #4 Boise State
November 27:
Penn State knocks off #10 Michigan State
#13 Oklahoma knocks off #9 Oklahoma State
Michigan upsets #8 Ohio State
Northwestern stuns #7 Wisconsin
Oregon State shocks #6 Stanford
Arkansas blows out #5 LSU
#3 TCU survives scare from New Mexico
Arizona stops #1 Oregon
When the BCS standings are released on Sunday November 28, here’s the Top 5:
- TCU
- Alabama
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Auburn
Then, in the SEC Championship Game, South Carolina fixes the problems it had against Auburn earlier in the season and wins the rematch at the Georgia Dome. None of the other games that weekend would matter, since Alabama and TCU will have finished their regular seasons and face no more chances to be dislodged.
The BCS Championship Game would then feature:
And of course, Mark Ingram, Trent Richardson, Julio Jones, Marcel Dareus and Greg McElroy would successfully defend their title and win the Crimson Tide’s 14th National Championship.
Happy Thanksgiving! Please be safe. Keep your enemies close and your friends closer…
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
A Crimson Red Tide sweeps Alabama
Via the Mobile Press-Register:
An apparently energized electorate painted Alabama a deeper red Tuesday as Republicans hammered Democrats, winning the governor's office easily and a majority of seats in the Legislature for the first time since Reconstruction.
Dr. Robert Julian Bentley, who until June was a little-known Republican legislator and retired Tuscaloosa dermatologist, was elected Alabama's 53rd governor.
…
Republican Kay Ivey rode the anti-incumbent tide to upset Jim Folsom Jr., who was seeking a third term as lieutenant governor.
With 95 percent of the vote counted, Ivey, who is completing a second term as state treasurer, had 740,522, votes or 51.3 percent to Folsom's 702,239, votes or 48.7 percent.
…
Republican Luther Strange defeated Democrat James Anderson in the race for Alabama attorney general tonight.
"I'm honored, I'm happy with the results and I'm ready to go to work for the people of Alabama," Strange said from his campaign celebration in Homewood.
Strange, 57, of Birmingham, campaigned on a pledge to fight public corruption and restore integrity to an office held since 2004 by Republican Troy King.
Alabama Republican Senator Richard Shelby also cruised to reelection, as did AL-01 Representative Jo Bonner. But in yet another example of the wave that swept the state last night, Montgomery’s Martha Roby swept political rival Bobby Bright out of the AL-02 race, leaving Alabama with one gerrymandered blue District, the AL-07. But with GOP control of the House, the Senate, the Governor’s Mansion, the AG’s office and the whole state Supreme Court, you can expect that District to get retooled in years to come.
Late last month, I implored you to vote a straight ticket. It looks like many of you heeded that call and I’d love to take credit for starting the ripple that became the wave. But I can’t pat myself on the back. In truth, the credit goes to the candidates and the Alabama Republican Party, all of whom worked tirelessly to make last night such a historic event. But I don’t doubt that the bloggers, facebookers and twitterers in this state had an impact. You made history last night.
From the Shoals to the Wiregrass. From Little River Canyon to the Fish River Bridge, Alabama is now painted in a cheery new shade of Crimson Red.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Bama Fan: “I HATE TENNESSEE!”
It’s an old rivalry, with heated emotions on both sides. But this dude takes the visceral nature of the Third Fourth Saturday in October to a whole new level.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Employment Report: Alabama is getting back to work
The Bureau of Labor Statistics is out with a year-over-year report, showing changes in unemployment rates for the nation’s 372 metropolitan statistical areas (MSA’s). The report covers the period from August 2009 (or about the time that NBER says the recession ended) through August 2010. Some areas fared pretty well. Others, not so much.
Alabama comes out looking very good:
The Florence-Muscle Shoals area in Northern Alabama saw a drop of 2.3 percent making it the second largest drop in the nation. Decatur was fifth. Anniston and Gadsden shared the eighth spot and Tuscaloosa was number ten.
Mobile and Montgomery are among the top 50, with a 1.2 percent drop in unemployment over the last 12 months. Overall, Alabama’s unemployment rate declined by 1.4 percent.
“Alabama right now is leading the nation when it comes to reducing unemployment,” said Governor Riley.
“No other state has seen a bigger drop in its jobless rate over the past year, and of the 10 American cities that have seen the largest declines in unemployment, five of the top 10 are in our state. It’s certainly a positive sign that Alabama is headed in the right direction.”
Alabama has a very pro business environment, and it’s just easier to do business in this state versus those it’s competed against for recent large capital investment projects, including the multi-billion Thyssen Krupp steel plant, the Raytheon Missile Plant and the Hyundai expansion. All of the state’s MSA’s posted year-over-year gains.
Other areas of the country continue to suffer, though. Of the 372 MSA’s, 182 posted gains, so about half broke even or worse. Those that posted unemployment rate increases totaled 169. Of the ten MSA’s with the worst year-to-year figures, eight of them are out west. The worst? Yuma, AZ with a net increase in unemployment from 25.9% to 30.2%. Ouch.
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