Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Alabama has a government too . . .

I find it hard to write about national politics and the federal government these days. I think it is because everybody is already talking about it. I think that's great even if it seems a bit messy and unseemly. But I am sure something will provoke me soon.

But tonight I want to talk about some things going on at the State level in Alabama. Legislation has been reintroduced abolishing the sales tax on groceries. Only one other state in the union taxes groceries. There is a reason for its rarity. It is horribly, morally wrong. Everybody has to buy groceries. Therefore the poorest among us pay the same tax rate as the richest among us . In other words, some of the poorest among us cannot afford the food they need for their families in order for the rest of us to enjoy state services. For more information, visit the Alabama Arise website.http://www.alarise.org/index.htm

Another piece of legislation did not make it out of committee. It was defeated in committee by Republican legislators. The legislation, which was supported by Alabama's Supreme Court Chief Justice, would have made the election of Alabama appellate judges non-partisan. That is to say, candidates for those offices would have no party affilation for purposes of the election. The second part of the legislation would restrict the amount of contributions to appellate judge candidates. Apparently the legislation will not see the light of day. That is a shame, because Alabama's Judicial elections are a laughing stock to the rest of the country. It is embarassing. We all hated those elections. If I saw one more judicial candidate talk over the strains of Amazing Grace on slickly produced tv ads I thought I would scream. But our legislature refuses to do anything about it. If you want something done about, let your legislator know.

And finally, there is a proposal that there be a three year moratorium on executions in Alabama while the process is reviewed for fairness. The statistics are almost irrefutable that race and income level play an important part in whether you will be put to death in Alabama as a criminal defendant. That is not right.

The good news is that our state government is actually looking at these issues. The bad news is that most of us don't even know they are in session.

Give them some encouragement, whatever side of these issues you favor. Give them a call. The number is 334 242 7600 for the House of Representatives and 334 242 7800 for the Senate. Leave a message.

4 comments :

  1. Doc's political parlor (which you probably know about, actually, but in case you don't...) is the best source I know for Alabama Legislature coverage (oftentimes more dependable than Mont. Advertiser or Bham News). Besides the morning paper round-ups (which are about the only things posted when the legislature isn't in session), there is coverage of issues being debated on the floor, postings by actual legislators, daily agendas, analysis, etc. There's a republican bent to the site, but less of a bent than this state in general. Doc's sent correspondents to both the RNC and DNC last year, which is cool.

    www.politicalparlor.net

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  2. I heard a presentation by Danny Jones from Alabama Arise recently. He said that if a state senator or representative gets more than 10 messages about an issue, it's called a deluge of calls.

    Some people feel like they have no power to change anything, or there's nothing they can do that will make a difference. Well...if you have 10 friends and you all call and leave a message about one or more of these issues, you'll be part of a deluge.

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  3. I don't disagree with the abolishment of political parties, but at the same time they are helpful. The vast majority of Alabamians have no clue about judicial candidates or the races that they are running. The ads all point to the fact that they love America, Alabama, and hate trial lawyers. Thats about all you ever know. For me the political parties at least give me a starting spot for some of their core beliefs (I do acknowledge this isn't remotely a good way of doing this).

    I don't think its a bad idea for a lot of us to just skip over some of the judicial races that we don't have a clue about. I really hesitate to vote in races that have no effect on me and I don't understand.

    Maybe if they were to abolish the political parties it would force candidates to talk about issues that are important rather than depending on people voting for them because they have a D or and R next to their name.

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  4. Bob, I'm so glad I have your blog to read, otherwise I would never hear anything about Alabama politics! I will be calling congress about these issues. Thanks!

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