Rookie Alabama lawmakers aim to learn ropes during orientation
Birmingham News – Dec. 6
Rookie members of Alabama’s Legislature say they’re looking forward to meeting colleagues and learning some lawmaking do’s and don’ts at a legislative orientation that starts today at the University of Alabama School of Law. ”I’m expecting these people at the orientation session to tell me things I need to know to do the best job I can,” said freshman Rep. Allen Farley, R-McCalla.
Associated Press – Dec. 6
Gadsden Times – Dec. 6
ABC 33/40 (Birmingham) – Dec. 6
John Cochran will have many (stories)
Tuscaloosa News – Dec. 5
Montgomery native and television correspondent John Cochran, a fixture on NBC and ABC news for nearly 40 years, says he plans to tell some tales and maybe even spread some out-of-date gossip Tuesday when he addresses the 10th quadrennial legislative orientation session at the University of Alabama School of law. “I looked over the program and saw that it was pretty heavy on the nuts and bolts of government,” said Cochran, who began his journalism career at UA and is a proud Crimson Tide fan, from his home near Washington one day last week. “So I decided that I might try to lighten things up a little bit with some stories going back to the Eisenhower era.”
Legislators might toss a few other items into the ethics-session shopping cart
Anniston Star – Dec. 5
More than ethics might be discussed during Gov. Bob Riley’s upcoming special session on ethics reform. Local legislators could attempt to repeal the Anniston City Council’s inquiry power and the 2007 pay raises for state lawmakers during the special session of the Alabama Legislature, set to begin Wednesday. . . . To William Stewart, professor emeritus of political science with the University of Alabama, if Wood’s bill makes it to the floor, it could have a chance to pass. “Typically, legislators try to bring up local bills that are non-controversial,” Stewart said. “Those usually pass by unanimous consent.”
The truth about suicide bombers
Boston Globe – Dec. 4
The traditional view of suicide bombers is well established, and backed by the scholars who study them. The bombers are, in the post-9/11 age, often young, ideologically driven men and women who hate the laissez-faire norms of the West — or at least the occupations and wars of the United States — because they contradict the fundamentalist interpretations that animate the bombers’ worldview. . . . But Brian Williams, an associate professor of Islamic studies at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, is among a small cadre of scholars from across the world pushing the rather contentious idea that some suicide bombers may in fact be suicidal. At the forefront is the University of Alabama’s Adam Lankford, who recently published an analysis of suicide terrorism in the journal Aggression and Violent Behavior. Lankford cites Israeli scholars who interviewed would-be Palestinian suicide bombers. These scholars found that 40 percent of the terrorists showed suicidal tendencies; 13 percent had made previous suicide attempts, unrelated to terrorism. Lankford finds Palestinian and Chechen terrorists who are financially insolvent, recently divorced, or in debilitating health in the months prior to their attacks.
From flying snakes to jellyfish, biology is inspiring future technology
McClatchy-Tribune News Service – Dec. 5
The physicists, biologists and engineers were huddled around every available bar-height table in the Long Beach Convention Center, covering their tiny surfaces with laptops and notebooks. Posters in long, military rows showcased their efforts: An analysis of the movement of milk in English tea, a report on the stripes of gas across Jupiter. . . . Aerospace engineer Amy Lang of the University of Alabama showed how the scales of a speedy mako shark allow it to zip through the water so fast
Raleigh News and Observer – Dec. 6
Local holiday celebrations
Tuscaloosa News – Dec. 6
People from the Tuscaloosa area and members of the Original City Association gather at a home in Alaca Place in downtown Tuscaloosa for the annual holiday walkabout. . . . Julia Moore, a junior at the University of Alabama, walks on the Quad on Sunday night between rows of luminarias. The Circle K organization at the University of Alabama lined the walkways of the Quad in celebration of the holiday season.
Russ Lemmon: Mean-spirited comments could have waited for another day
Stuart (Fla.) News – Dec. 4
Before writing Thursday’s column about Sebastian River High School’s annual Prism concert, I called the school’s first band director, Carl Hancock, who is now a professor of music education at the University of Alabama. One of his job duties is training high school band directors. He tells them he considers certain areas of the country to be “band heaven.” Thanks to the community support of, and accomplishments by, the bands at Vero Beach and Sebastian high schools, this is one of the areas Hancock refers to as a “band heaven.”
Saban foundation helps needy kids
Tuscaloosa News – Dec. 4
The Nick’s Kids Fund, the foundation established by University of Alabama football coach Nick Saban and his wife, Terry, to help children in need, held a giveaway at Academy Sports & Outdoors on Skyland Boulevard on Friday to benefit Big Brothers and Big Sisters of West Alabama. “Nick’s Kids has teamed up with Academy (Sports and) Outdoors to give away up to 50 bicycles and jackets or coats to children of Big Brothers and Big Sisters,” Terry Saban said.
Human development students deliver Christmas cheer to patients at DCH
WVUA Tuscaloosa – Dec. 3
Being in the hospital around the holidays is not something most people want, especially children. That’s why some University of Alabama students visited DCH in Tuscaloosa to spread some Christmas cheer. The students are studying human development and all semester long. They’ve put together their own children’s books..
Stevenson, Ala., honors UA student who created University’s official tartan
ABC 33/40 (Birmingham) – Dec. 3
The city of Stevenson is honoring a University of Alabama student who created the university’s official tartan design. Linnzi Rich will be the grand marshal of the city’s Christmas parade tomorrow afternoon. Rich’s design is named “We are Crimson.”
Hill Climbers: From Intern to Walk-In Privilege in Two Months
Roll Call – Dec. 6
Kelly Drennon didn’t expect her first job — as a scheduler and assistant for Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart — to be so integral to the lawmaker’s daily routine, but she also didn’t expect to be so comfortable in the male-dominated office after only two months. . . . The University of Alabama alumna had intended to pursue a law degree after graduation and took a few online law courses over the summer. But even though criminal law piqued her interest during her undergraduate studies, she’s learning that her niche might actually be in the administrative side of politics.
Bill Pryor OP-ED: Alabama on verge of real ethics reform
Huntsville Times – Dec. 5
Governor Bob Riley’s call for a special session on ethics reform is a vital opportunity that should not be wasted. There is a clear need for stronger state laws against public corruption. When I was Attorney General, I appointed a division of experienced prosecutors and investigators to combat public corruption, and although that division convicted a host of public officials, lobbyists, and government contractors, our efforts too often were hampered by weak state laws. William H. “Bill” Pryor Jr. is a circuit judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit and a visiting professor of law at the University of Alabama Law School. He was Attorney General of Alabama from 1997-2004.