RedEye Around #SweetHomeAmeriBAMA

"Listen up! Jockey Boy Restaurant ONLY serves #Pepsi from now on! Got it?" pic.twitter.com/prlkyeX7PG

— Donald J. Trump (@BiglyPrez) April 5, 2017

EYE Never liked #Pepsi

Is downtown Huntsville, home of Mayor Tommy Battle for whites only? EYE report.  You decide.

Update on the "Luv Guv" scandal.  It's not looking too good for the Governor, but then again this is Alabama and he could come out of this smelling like a rose. 

#WarOnBlackWomenAtWork.......  Alabama Style

The buck stops with the State School Board.  Good luck with that.

Why bother having elections?  The white male dominated media has already decided who the next Governor of the great state of Alabama will be.  And they wonder why Alabama is stuck on stupid?

RedEye Out 

#hcsboe Using our tax dollars to baffle us with BullPoop with our tax dollars, one news story at a time

HsvCatfish: Al.Com just can't get enough coverage.  Will somebody help hold McCaulley up?  Looks like she is about to topple over.   Also looks like the David Driscoll Group Christmas Card Photo. Keep smiling, at least the special investigator will have a group photo to go by.  

EYE see our taxpayer funded Political Strategist is hard at work with a full, scale, media , offensive, trying to convince the public a pile of Poop is really a Rose. Sniff Sniff   EYE can't believe they have the nerve to use the Civil Rights struggle to justify this mess.  Strike that, yes EYE can.  The only thing missing is hearing from the "other side",  but EYE guess that would be too much like right.   Pun intended.

 So here's the deal, The Chamber's Board of Directors, Warynski, and the BOE wants Unitary Status in theory but not in practice.  They want to be able to say they don't have a dual school system while they maintain and operate a dual school system.  I wonder what part of Unitary don't they understand?

Hey!  Look at that bright and shiny object over there....
RedEye

RedEye's Alabama Congress Critter Alert!

What's that you say? Alabama Congress Critter Jo Bonner (r. bigot) has a tendency to exploit the ethics committee for partisan gain? I'm shocked! Shocked I tell you. NOT.

Ethics watchdogs are calling on Rep. Jo Bonner (R-AL) to step down as chairman of the House Ethics Committee -- at least temporarily -- for his role in the ongoing turmoil over Rep. Maxine Waters' (D-CA) case.

What was Bonner's role in the ongoing turmoil over Rep. Maxine Waters you ask?

Neither the House Ethics Committee nor Speaker John Boehner's (R-OH) office returned a request for comment about allegations that Bonner engaged in improper communication with attorneys on the panel last year while he was still its ranking member.

An unprecedented leak of internal ethics documents from last fall provide new details about Bonner's role in the alleged bungling of the ethics committee's case against Waters. The scores of Ethics Committee e-mails and memos, reported by Politico Monday with links to the documents, paint a picture of a committee consumed by partisan dysfunction and accusations of professional misconduct surrounding Waters' case

Let's get ready to rumble!

Unlike in a normal court of law, Waters may have no formal way to file a complaint against the Ethics Committee. But at the very least, Waters could take her fight to the floor of the House, calling on Bonner to step down from the position and repeatedly raise the allegations of mistreatment and unprofessional conduct. The spectacle undoubtedly would attract the attention of the media and many of her peers already wary of the ethics committee's policing power.

Bonner's role in the Rangel lynching

The attorneys also improperly communicated with Texas Rep. Mike McCaul, the top Republican on the special panel overseeing the trial of Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY), who later the House censured for a separate string of charges, according to Chisam's memo. There are strict Ethics Committee rules preventing contact between the staff attorneys assigned to prosecute a case and the lawmakers who serve as the jury weighing the evidence.

Let this be a lesson for republicans and conservadems, ethics are for everybody.

Thanks to the republicans and their "progressive" enablers, there is a narrative that that all Democrats, especially black elected democrats, are corrupt and unethical. The jails are full and getting fuller of Democratic elected officials convicted after widely publicized media investigations. It has the "appearance" of political prosecutions.
For the record I'm not defending people who misuse public funds or who are trying to enrich themselves or their families. I'm defending our justice system and the rule of law.

The justice system that says defendants are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, not the court of public opinion. The justice system that says justice is blind not partisan and political. The justice system that says we have the right to fair trial. The justice system that says the jury pool should not be tainted by pre trial publicity. The justice system on which this country was founded.

So much hypocrisy. So little time. But none dare call it racism.

RedEye Alabama Congress Critter Alert over and out. For now.

What I'm reading today

Are Black Public Officials More Likely Than Whites to be Prosecuted in the Deep South? Uh, is an elephant heavy?

Are white liberal Democrats more likely than white conservative republicans to be Prosecuted by the Obama/Holder DOJ? Uh, let me think about that for a minute. Snark

The Ghost of Elbridge Gerry Haunts Montgomery The gop has no morals and the democrats have no guts. Lord help us.

What's next for the gop?

What is the next Republican super-idea?
A tax on sunshine?
An oxygen meter for all breathers?
A ban on sex (except for elected officials)?
Privatized Armed Forces (oh wait we already have
Blackwater)
A repeal of the Civil Rights Act?

If I were allowed to post on Left in Alabama I would vote for all of the above.

Superintendents Search Huntsville City Schools. H/T Reactionary

There can be only one, and I recommend Dr. Casey Wardynski for our next Superintendent.

If I were allowed to post on Flashpoint I would ask Reactionary why? If it's good news for Reactionary and David Blair it's bad news for North Huntsville.
Psst! Reactionary! Thanks for the insight I still choose none of the above. :)

What you're reading on RedEyes Front Page today;

The Storm is Passing Over. Evidently some are *ahem* upset with Representative John Rodgers (D) for daring complain about President Obama ignoring Birmingham in favor of T Town and people like me stirring the proverbial shit pot of politics, have tarnished what this (use to be great)Nation stands for.

PS It was only a matter of time...

Why the Richard Showers Incident is about White Privilege

"Well, there's a certain mean spiritness that's out there, not only in Alabama but it's in America. And that makes this election extremely important."~ Alabama State Senator Hank Sanders (D)

These prophetic words by Senator Sanders haunt me because they exemplify what happens to African Americans and liberal Democrats, not only in the case of Huntsville City Council member Dr. Richard Showers, Jr., but in Alabama, and our country.

Senator Sanders words caused an uproar, or as my Daddy says, a whole lot of pigs started squealing, because he spoke the truth. Instead of Anderson Cooper and others focusing on WHAT was said, they chose to focus on WHO said it, because that was  easier for the panel of pundits to discuss.

Cooper asked Sanders what evidence he had that the Republican opponents would take Alabama back to Jim Crow days. Sanders said, "Well, there's a certain mean spiritness that's out there, not only in Alabama but it's in America. And that makes this election extremely important." Which is true, but not at all what the robocall said. Following the interview with Sanders, Cooper continued to discuss "race in the race" with a panel of pundits.

There is a certain mean spiritness that's out there, not only in Alabama but it's in America, and it's being enabled by the predominately white male dominated mainstream media. Which is why I find the lack of diversity in the mainstream media appalling because they promote racist stereotypes like this;

It not a way to feel it's to show you and others what is really going on!!!! You like to write these stories of how blacks are done wrong etc. it's not as bad as it was. There have been improvements and yes we could do a bit better but with that said look at situations were whites are treated unfair in order to get the so called ratio up etc.The more important story is black on black crime, absent fathers, the uneducated blacks, when there is free money and programs everywhere for the black man or woman but most do not take advantage because we as a society have gotten them use to a handout (whites too) like welfare etc. Why work when the government will pay the bills? It's an entitlement society!!! If all you know is to apply for free money health care etc when will anyone better themselves? It's called FREE WILL but most do not have it.

And this;

Gerrymandering. It's ugly and it's unhealthy, no matter which party does it.

Gerrymandering is a practice of political corruption that attempts to establish a political advantage for a particular party or group by manipulating geographic boundaries to create partisan, incumbent-protected, and neutral districts. To equate the creation of minority voting districts in accordance with the Voting Rights Act with corruption is not only racist it's wrong.

Following the 1964 election, a variety of civil rights organizations banded together to push for the passage of legislation that would ensure black voting rights once and for all. The campaign to bring about federal intervention to prevent discrimination in voting culminated in the voting rights protests in Selma, Alabama, and the famous Selma to Montgomery marches. Demonstrations also brought out white violence, and Jimmie Lee Jackson, James Reeb, and Viola Liuzzo were murdered. President Lyndon B. Johnson, in a dramatic joint-session address, called upon Congress to enact a strong voting rights bill. Johnson's administration drafted a bill intended to enforce the 14th and 15th Amendments, aiming to eliminate various previously legal strategies to prevent blacks and other minorities from voting.

There are some who want to believe the Richard Showers incident is not about racism, but about an ethics violations. It's just a coincidence the violations were filed the day after Showers protested a wrecker service contract award accusing the company owner of unethical conduct. They want us to believe Richard Showers is unethical in an attempt to destroy his credibility.

It's takes power to exercise white privilege. Showers encountered white privilege from the time he protested the award of the contract, to trying to help his daughter in emergency in the aftermath of the deadly tornadoes. All the press about Huntsville/Madison County residents pulling together and helping each other after the devastating tornadoes was nothing but spin.

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- Huntsville City Councilman Richard Showers may have violated state ethics law by allowing his daughter to get gas at a government fuel terminal on the day after the tornado.
City Attorney Peter Joffrion reported the April 28 incident to the Alabama Ethics Commission on Friday. The Times obtained a copy of the two-page letter through an open records request.
According to the letter, Showers and his daughter drove in separate vehicles to a generator-powered city fueling station on Governors Drive -- one of the few places in town that had gas in the immediate aftermath of the storm. Two Huntsville police officers were posted there to ensure that only city employees providing "essential public services" got fuel.
The letter says Showers called City Administrator Rex Reynolds after being told he could not refuel both vehicles. Reynolds told Showers he could pump 10 gallons into his daughter's vehicle if he planned to use that car for city business.

Well, well, well

Want some irony? In Thursday night’s city council meeting, the city was poised to award a contract for wrecker services to a local company. Showers objected, accused the company owner of unethical conduct, and tried to get the council to award the contract to a company in his district that had submitted a higher bid.

So given Showers’ infamous sensitivity to all matters racial, I just have to ask: Would it be racist here to invoke the old saying about the pot and the kettle?

See what I mean? We know more about Shower's ethics than we know about the wrecker contract and the owners ethics. Instead of the policeman and the City Administrator showing some compassion they decided to exercise their authority.

So here was their chance to treat Richard Showers like a boy instead of a man. From the white male officer who told him NO, to the City Administrator who told him NO, to the City Attorney and the Mayor who filed the ethics violations, white power and privilege was on display.

Voter suppression with the Alabama State Seal of approval is OK.

Moving outside of the District you are elected to represent and lying about it is OK.

Violating the open meetings laws over and over again is OK.

Relocating a Homeless Shelter into a neighborhood without notifying residents is OK.

A City Council member trying to help his daughter in an emergency is an ethics violation.

Privilege of the powerful.

Power of the privileged.

It's not about that thing you SAID, it's about that thing you DID.

But I'm NOT A RACIST / HOW DARE YOU."

Thing is they're ALWAYS going to come at it from that point of view, because being called a racist has become more taboo than actually being one. People get more upset about the possibility they might have been called racist than the fact that their actions are racist as hell. They'll harp and linger on all their deeds in the past and what clubs they belong to and who their friends are. They'll START any rebuttal to your first words with that. And in the end you end up talking to yourself or talking to the wind, because they've drawn a crowd to chant the "I AM NOT A RACIST" mantra to the point where any on lookers without reading/listening to the whole thing, think that's what it's all about. Then people start picking sides and - boom- it's all over.

God Bless America?

The unethical lynching of an uppity black father

It's too bad Huntsville City Councilman Richard Showers wasn't immediately available for comment before the Huntsville Times started lighting torches and getting the ropes, I mean, before they ran with their Huntsville City Councilman Richard Showers allowed daughter to gas up at city fuel terminal after tornado, story.

But nooo, they had to join the lynch mob and try and discredit the good Councilman whose only crime is being a devoted and involved father instead of the stereotypical lazy, baby making, absentee father. Black fathers taking up for their daughters is  *cough cough* frowned upon in Huntsville.

According to Councilman Showers, the alleged facts are inundated with misrepresentations and false statements. As to the allegations in question, his daughter had an emergency and did what any daughter would do and called her Dad for help. Councilman Showers did what any good father would do and helped his daughter. You can read the full account in the May 18, 2011, issue of Speaking Out News. I discovered today you can't purchase Speaking Out News at Newsstands, nor is there an updated online version. The office is located at 115 Wholesale Ave NE, Huntsville, AL 35811.

Councilman Showers denies he apologized profusely as stated in City Attorney Peter Joffrion's letter to the Ethics Committee.

City Attorney Peter Joffrion reported the April 28 incident to the Alabama Ethics Commission on Friday. The Times obtained a copy of the two-page letter through an open records request.

Want some irony? In Thursday night’s city council meeting, the city was poised to award a contract for wrecker services to a local company. Showers objected, accused the company owner of unethical conduct, and tried to get the council to award the contract to a company in his district that had submitted a higher bid.

Want some more irony? We know more about Richard Showers daughter getting less than 10 dollars worth of gas the day after the Tornadoes than we know about the wrecker contract and the accusations of unethical conduct by the owner. Why is that? Never mind. We know why.

It's easier to accuse Councilman Showers of unethical conduct than investigate the real unethical conduct.

If it can happen to a sitting member of the City Council it can and will happen to you too.

So, Councilman Showers, when are you going to file an ethics violation complaint?

Breaking News

I just got off the phone with Councilman Richard Showers who informed me his public comments regarding the alleged ethics violations will appear in tomorrows edition of Speaking out News.

Paraquoting Dr. Showers, the alleged ethics violations are a weapon of mass distraction. They took nothing and made it something.

It's easier to investigate and convict the politicians who are not afraid to take a stand and speak out than it is to cure the reasons they stand up and speak out.

More tomorrow.

The "Ethical" Lynching of an Uppity Black Man

I guess the good white folks in Huntsville, Alabama are tired of District One City Councilman Richard Showers "uppity" ways, so they decided to put him in his place by filing a complaint with the Alabama Ethics (RedEye roll) Commission, because he robbed, raped and murdered the voters in his district, I mean, he put $40.00 of gasoline into his daughters automobile in the aftermath of the deadly tornadoes.

City Attorney Peter Joffrion reported the April 28 incident to the Alabama Ethics Commission on Friday. The Times obtained a copy of the two-page letter through an open records request.
According to the letter, Showers and his daughter drove in separate vehicles to a generator-powered city fueling station on Governors Drive -- one of the few places in town that had gas in the immediate aftermath of the storm. Two Huntsville police officers were posted there to ensure that only city employees providing "essential public services" got fuel.
The letter says Showers called City Administrator Rex Reynolds after being told he could not refuel both vehicles. Reynolds told Showers he could pump 10 gallons into his daughter's vehicle if he planned to use that car for city business.
"Showers replied that his daughter had followed him to the station and that he was not using her car for work," the letter states. "Again, Rex Reynolds informed Showers that he could not receive gas for his daughter's car."
Huntsville police Sgt. Mark Shahan, who was in line behind Showers, told the councilman he could pump 10 gallons into his personal vehicle.
After Shahan drove off, the letter says, Showers directed the 10 gallons to be pumped into his daughter's car.
Showers later repaid the city for the cost of the fuel -- about $40 -- and has "apologized profusely for compromising the affected city employees and his position," according to the letter.

Seriously? Forty dollars of gasoline in a council members daughters car in the aftermath of deadly tornado warrants the filing of an ethics report? Let's go "inside the story" and find out.

Let’s be clear here: What Councilman Showers did is far worse than merely taking advantage of his position for selfish gain. He took advantage of his position during a declared state of emergency. His conduct was arrogant, selfish, and criminal. Furthermore, his daughter is a public school teacher and should have known better than to go along with this. But one has to wonder if she is not accustomed to getting special treatment due to her father’s position.
Want some irony? In Thursday night’s city council meeting, the city was poised to award a contract for wrecker services to a local company. Showers objected, accused the company owner of unethical conduct, and tried to get the council to award the contract to a company in his district that had submitted a higher bid.

Isn't it "ironic" that after Showers objected to the awarding of a contract at and accused the company owner of unethical conduct on Thursday, an ethics violation report is filed against him on Friday? Mind you we don't know the specifics of the accusations or unethical conduct, but the mere fact a black man had the audacity to accuse someone of unethical conduct is grounds for them being taken down a peg. Who owns the Wrecker Service? Who will benefit economically from the contract? Is it a local company? So many questions, so few answers.

Since reconstruction, there has always an issue of minorities getting their fair share of state, federal and local contract dollars. The federal government has attempted to rectify this by establishing minority small business development programs, in addition to legislation, to mitigate this reality. The fact is, those who make spending decisions most often are not minorities, and consequently their choice of who gets a piece of the pie consistently excludes minority businesses.

Is this a high-tech lynching of an uppity black man? I say yes because we only have one side of the story since ironically Showers was not immediately available for comment. Where is all that post-storm coming goodwill? Of all the things to file an ethics complaint about, this ain't it.

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- Huntsville city officials self-reported an incident involving fraudulent dispensing of gasoline to the state ethics board Wednesday, officials said.In a statement released by city officials, an internal review was done following the power outage from the tornadoes two weeks ago. The review found that during the outage, less than 10 gallons of city gasoline was dispensed improperly.The release said the value of the gasoline has since been repaid to the city, but officials reported it to the Alabama Ethics Commission. Because it's an on-going investigation, city officials declined to release additional details.

I report. You decide.