Monday, February 28, 2011
The Monday line
It is open.
Note:
* LOCAL BOY MAKES GOOD: Mike Haridopolos, described as a Florida teacher with a master's from the University of Arkansas and also a Republican with a yen to run for U.S. Senate, cooked up a deal to make $152,000 from a book on Florida politics that had a press run of exactly one (1) book.
* JON FITCH FUNERAL ARRANGEMENTS: Visitation for the former senator will be at Brashear’s Funeral Home in Huntsville from 5:00-7:00 pm on Wed. March 2nd and Services will be held Thursday, March 3rd, in the Giffels Auditorium, in Old Main on the University of Arkansas campus at 1:00 pm. Interment will occur immediately following the service at Vaughan Cemetery, in Hindsville.
* REPUBLICAN JOB (DESTRUCTION) PLAN: Analysis says Republican budget plan could cost 700,000 jobs by 2012. Send thanks to the Arkansas congressional delegation, including nominal Democrat Mike Ross whose rhetoric has contributed to the madness that this is good for America.
* THAT EARTHQUAKE: Worst in 35 years. Some details here.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (41)
Police beat New indictment in polling place bomb case
The U.S. attorney's office announced today that a superseding indictment had been issued in the case of Mark Krause, the Carroll County artist charged with placing an improvised explosive in a soda can at a polling place at Osage. It didn't detonate.
The new indictment adds charges against Michael Pierce, 69, of Eureka Springs. He and Krause are accused of helping each other possess an unregistered firearm in the form of a destructive device. Pierce is charged with two more counts of possessing unregistered firearms (destructive devices) and two counts of making false statements to the FBI. The Lovely County Citizen reported a raid on Pierce's property in January.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (2)
Human rights Madison, Wis., aka Stalingrad
Will Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker ever go too far for even the most devoted union-haters?
This may provide an answer:
AFL-CIO blog says the governor is having windows of the Capitol welded shut so food cannot be passed to demonstrators inside.
UPDATE: Firedoglake says there are some conflicting reports on the window issue, though multiple complaints about limited access to public buildings. And one Twitterer has posted photos of windows where bolts have been installed making the window inoperable.
NEW POLL: Honeymoon over for Walker with voters.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (16)
Environment Mark Darr loves the Turk Plant
Lt. Gov. Bill Halter invented the Arkansas lottery. The new lieutenant governor, Mark Darr, didn't invent electricity, but he longs to see it generated by SWEPCO's coal-burning Turk power plant in Hempstead County.
Anyway, following is Darr's op-ed on the wonderfulness of the SWEPCO power plant, which may yet meet an unkind court fate.
(Louie and Mark Darr: A match made in, if not heaven, McNab.)
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (15)
Arkansas Politics Rep. Jon Hubbard has heart attack
The Arkansas Republican Party says freshman Rep. Jon Hubbard of Jonesboro was hospitalized over the weekend for a mild heart attack.
The family of State Representative Jon Hubbard, R-Jonesboro, released the following statement after Hubbard was admitted to a local hospital Saturday:"State Representative Jon Hubbard, R-Jonesboro, was taken to St. Bernards Hospital in Jonesboro Saturday afternoon after experiencing chest pains. Early tests did not indicate that Hubbard had a heart attack, but after he was admitted to the hospital overnight for observation, a series of blood enzyme tests confirmed he had suffered a mild heart attack with likely blockage of heart arteries.
“Today, a heart catheterization was performed to check for and correct any blockages. As a result, Representative Hubbard received one stent. After a short recovery period, Hubbard will rejoin fellow Legislators in the Arkansas House of Representatives.”
Hubbard had a difficult week last week. He appeared at length Wednesday before a House committee in behalf of his bill to prevent state benefits for people without legal residence in the state. The bill was defeated.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (10)
Police beat Randeep Mann gets life sentence for bombing
Randeep Mann, the Russellville doctor convicted of responsibility for a bomb that seriously injured Trent Pierce of West Memphis, the chairman of the state Medical Board, was given a life sentence today in federal court in Little Rock.
Prosecutors made the case that Mann was motivated by his disciplinary problems before the Medical Board for over-prescription of painkillers. His wife, Sangeeta, convicted of obstructing the investigation of the case, will be sentenced next week. this afternoon. She received a one-year sentence, David Goins of Fox 16 reports on Twitter.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (8)
Arkansas Politics Care about legislative redistricting?
The secretary of state invites comments on the redistricting process.
This website is the place to go for information and to comment.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (3)
Health Care UAMS gets money for primary care
UAMS will announce tomorrow a "seven-figure" grant to increase the number of primary care physicians in the state.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (4)
Business / Higher education Arkansas Baptist begins business program
Arkansas Baptist College is rolling out a new effort today to encourage minority entrepreneurs.
The Scott Ford Center for Entrepreneurship and Community Development will be housed in a new building at 16th and M.L. King. The effort will include a microlending program for businesses that might otherwise have a hard time obtaining credit.
Full release here. Ford, the former Alltel CEO, has made significant contributions to Arkansas Baptist in its recent revival under the leadership of Fitz Hill.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (4)
Environment Earthquake in Faulkner County
That quake late last night in Faulkner county, said to be a 4.7, was felt all over the place.
The Log Cabin Democrat has already rounded up a lot of reaction.
UPDATE: Blog reader Smokehouse reports from Grant County:
I had just gone upstairs to bed last night at around 11:15 when the bedroom door started a rhythmic shaking, a framed picture fell off the wall, and books started cascading off the end of a shelf. I called downstairs to Martha and asked if she'd think I was crazy if I thought we'd just had a small earthquake. She said there'd been several seconds of the downstairs walls creaking and groaning. Very weird and disquieting. This was in Sheridan, more than 60 miles south of Conway, in an area notoriously geologically stable.
And this, from downtown Little Rock:
I've been sort of dismissive of this quake stuff until last night. I felt it in my apartment on the 12th floor. A loud pop, like when a house creaks, and the building swayed slightly, followed by several seconds of vibrations.
UPDATE: Channel 4 provides tape of 911 earthquake calls in Conway.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (29)
Arkansas Politics Drawing congressional lines
The big fight is probably still several days or weeks ahead, but Roby Brock, who delves into the issue at some length today, is certainly correct that the debate over congressional redistricting will be a partisan tussle. Republicans will try to protect and enhance their three seats. Nominal Democratic Rep. Mike Ross will try to keep his 4th District as friendly as possible as it picks up territory to offset population losses.
But can we get one thing out of the way right now? There is NO legitimate way — NONE — to draw a "majority minority" legislative district — that is, one that is majority black. The state's overall black population isn't big enough and there's sufficient dispersal that the pockets in Pulaski County, Jefferson County and other Delta areas are sufficiently distant — and sometimes with white pockets in between — that it would require an incredible gerrymander and multiple county carve-ups to even come close. Still couldn't happen.
Republicans are pushing this idea. They know a majority black district can't be created. But they like to pack minorities into as few a number of districts as possible, to lessen the influence of their traditional Democratic voting inclinations in multiple districts. They like the idea of a Democratic district with, say, a 40 percent population because they think a black candidate could win the Democratic nomination and be another Joyce Elliott, clobbered by the anti-Obama wave that swamped so many Democrats in 2010.
So Republicans are cozying up to black Democrats, who'd of course like to have a decent shot, helped by polarized voting, to finally win a congressional seat in Arkansas. I'm not unsympathetic to black Democrats. I'm not sure I'd object to districting that moved in that direction. But a Democrat, black or white, who thinks a Republican represents his best interests in this debate needs to have another think. And, while dividing some counties to balance population seems inevitable this year, the number should be held down to the greatest extent possible. Wild gerrymanders should be discarded. And dividing up the state's most populous and most concentrated county, Pulaski, should be a non-starter. Dividing the most populous county would be the most disruptive county division.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (16)
Politics Who'll pay for government spending cuts?
Paul Krugman raises the question in the headline and answers it: Children.
Sure. Education. Higher education. Health care. In Arkansas, they eat up an enormous percentage of the budget. When spending is constrained, the beneficiaries feel it. (There are some older folks in that health care category, naturally.) He uses the "Texas miracle" by way of illustration:
But here’s the thing: While low spending may sound good in the abstract, what it amounts to in practice is low spending on children, who account directly or indirectly for a large part of government outlays at the state and local level.And in low-tax, low-spending Texas, the kids are not all right. The high school graduation rate, at just 61.3 percent, puts Texas 43rd out of 50 in state rankings. Nationally, the state ranks fifth in child poverty; it leads in the percentage of children without health insurance. And only 78 percent of Texas children are in excellent or very good health, significantly below the national average.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (22)
Arkansas Media / Business Mosler buys lodge for retreat
Slow morning, so why not pass along the handsome shot of a former hunting lodge near Stuttgart that has been purchased by Matt Mosler as a retreat center for the former Channel 4 morning show host's Sherwood-based Christian ministry. Paul Uher, who once operated Chef Paul's restaurant in Hot Springs, willl be overseeing food service at the lodge, whose offerings will include some cooking programs.
Details follow. (A fuller news release here.)
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (17)
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Mike Huckabee / Taxes You're up
Sunday line is open. Storm watch in effect.
It roared through here earlier this afternoon with a stormy note from preacher, financial adviser, Rotarian, NRA stalwart, loan shark defender Sen. Jason Rapert, who's about to make his predecessor from Bigelow, Bob Johnson, look mighty good.
Rapert's proud leadership of Rotary reminds me of the club's famous four-way test:
Is it the Truth?Is it Fair to all concerned?
Will it build Goodwill and Better Friendships?
Will it be Beneficial to all concerned?
I ask you: Is a $3 charge monthly per $100 borrowed (plus origination fees, carrying charges, renewal fees, etc.) a true accounting of the interest rates on the usurious loans that would be allowed in Arkansas if Rapert passes his legislation? Is it fair to a borrower? Will it build goodwill and better friendships? Will it be beneficial to all?
Rotarians, I ask you: Do you save a slot in your lineup of represented businesses for loan sharks?
Also:
* There he goes again. Mike Huckabee is lying about his tax-and-spend record. He presided over some huge tax increases — income tax, sales tax and more. (And I supported them all, don't get me wrong. But I'm willling to admit it.) Media Matters calls his hand.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (29)
Turning the car into a smart phone
Ray LaHood, the secretary of transportation, is livid about the dashboard bells and whistles. When he saw a Ford ad with a bubbly young woman named Kelly using the new souped-up system to gab on the phone hands-free and not paying attention to the road, he called Alan Mulally, the president and C.E.O of Ford.“I said to him, ‘That girl looks so distracted, it belies belief that this is what you want in terms of safety,’ ” LaHood told me. “Putting entertainment centers in automobiles does not contribute to safe driving. When you’re trying to update your Facebook or put out a tweet, it’s a distraction.”
He said he would compile his own statistics, meet with car executives and use the bully pulpit. “We’ll see what the auto companies can do voluntarily and what we need to do otherwise,” he said. “I don’t think drivers should be doing any of that.”
Will the world really end if you don't check your phone for an hour or two between highway stops? Your world might end prematurely if you do.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (23)
Event Calendar
-
Re: Riverfest eve open line UPDATE
“Since the merger . . . subscribers have received The Morning News and the Northwest…
- on May 24, 2012
-
Re: Surgeon general strikes deal on disturbance charges
RYD - I don't think that is the guy that Joe is. I've refrained from…
- on May 24, 2012
-
Re: Hurst fined again by bar committee for late filing
santhony
The partisan view expressed in all your comments invalidates any opinion you may…- on May 24, 2012
Top Commenters
Site Index
News
Cover Story / Arkansas Reporter / The Week That Was / Smart Talk / The Insider / The Observer / Editorial / Max Brantley / Ernest Dumas / Gene Lyons / Bob Lancaster / Words / Guest Writer / Letters
Entertainment
A&E Feature / To-Do List / In Brief / Movie Reviews / Music Reviews / Theater Reviews / A&E News / Art Notes / Graham Gordy / Books / Media / Dining Reviews / Dining Guide / What's Cookin' / Calendar / The Televisionist / Movie Listings / Gallery Listings
Slideshows
-
Police close the Occupy Little Rock camp, perhaps the last Occupy encampment on public land.
Fox16 Local News and Weather
-
200-300 votes not counted in Lonoke County
May 24, 2012Winners of more than half a dozen races could change when missing votes are added. fox16.com /more/ -
Two LR police officers arrested on federal drug charges.
May 24, 2012Two Little Rock police officers were arrested Thursday on federal drug charges, accusing them of helping possess and distribute 1,400 pounds of marijuana. fox16.com /more/
This Week's Cover
Quick Links
Special Publications
RSS
Facebook
Twitter
