BayFest Blows Away Mobile's Hurricane Blues

Hurricane Blues Blown Away This Weekend at Mobile's Annual BayFest

For many people around the Gulf Coast, this year's Bayfest is providing a much needed release from the stress of a tough hurricane season.

This year's lineup includes B.B. King, Morris Day and the Time, Kool and the Gang, Maze featuring Frankie Beverly, Craig Morgan, Dwight Yoakam, Widespread Panic and Bo Bice.

Additional acts include Elvin Bishop, Grand Funk Railroad, and Loverboy.

Find out more about BayFest, October 7-9.

For a real taste of Mobile, Alabama, watch this BayFest news video.

Tension: Relax
Gravity: 0

Topics: Mobile Alabama, Gulf Coast, Music, Festivals, Concerts

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Clinton's Skeletons, Monica Lewinsky, Burst From Closets In New Book

Louis Freeh Speaks for the First Time About his Terrible Relationship with the President

From DRUDGE REPORT -- Former FBI Director Louis Freeh says publicly for the first time that his relationship with President Bill Clinton – the man who appointed him – was a terrible one because Clinton’s scandals made him a constant target of FBI investigations. Freeh discloses this and many other details of his dealings with the Clinton White House in his new book: 'My FBI : Bringing Down the Mafia, Investigating Bill Clinton, and Fighting the War on Terror' -- set for release next week.

In his upcoming book, My FBI, Freeh writes, “The problem was with Bill Clinton — the scandals and the rumored scandals, the incubating ones and the dying ones never ended. Whatever moral compass the president was consulting was leading him in the wrong direction. His closets were full of skeletons just waiting to burst out.” The scandals Freeh mentions include Whitewater, Monica Lewinsky, Paula Jones, and Gennifer Flowers.

Read AP story.

Political Tension: 60
Gravity: 30

Topics: News and Politics, Current Events, Democrats, Republicans, Politics, books

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Democrats Told To Cut Crap, Warned Of Leaning Too Far Left

"No Kumbayah crap."

At a speech sponsored by the Northwestern College Democrats Thursday evening, James Carville told the audience that Democratic candidates can't succeed by shouting out to every group in a crowd.

Carville also said, "Sometimes the problem with being a Democrat is being a Democrat," probably referring to the conflicts caused when the party tries to cover everyone's interests to the point of alienation.

Read story here.

Report Warns Democrats Not to Tilt Too Far Left

In a related story featured in the Washington Times, Democratic analysts warned that the only way Democrats can win back the Presidency is to steer toward the center and away from far ideologues, whose caustic litany could cripple the party's efforts to return to power.

Read story here.

Finally, you can hear some voices of reason rising above cacophony of protest. I have never quite figured out what is to be gained by complaining about issues without offering more than simply a point of view. Say what you will, but we have the conservative Republicans to thank (or blame) for providing the stable atmosphere of tolerance that allows the far left to be so obnoxious. Like the argument over the release of new Abu Grabe prisoner abuse photos, you can also debate at what point does the vitriol become counterproductive, and a dangerous liability. Updated 11:30 PM

Political Tension: 125
Gravity: 100

Topics: News and Politics, Current Events, Democrats, Republicans, Politics

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Technorati Founder: 70,000 New Blogs Launched Daily

Technorati founder sees blog explosion

A story on CBS MarketWatch published today reports that the founder of the blog-indexing service Technorati says he sees no let up in the growth of the medium.

Dave Sifry, appearing at this week's Web 2.0 conference in San Francisco, said the number of blogs is doubling every five months, with 70,000 new Web logs launched every day.

Read full story.

THE TENSION blog first started in 2003 and was relaunched recently, splitting off an affiliate, My Transverse Myelitis (TM), a personal health journal.

Internet Tension: 50
Gravity: 30

Topics: News, Computers and Internet, technology, Technorati, blogs, weblog, blogging

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AOL Buys 85 Blogs, Engadget, Autoblog, Weblogs Inc.

AOL pays $25 million for 85 blogging sites

AP reported today that America Online (my old employer) announced Thursday that it has made a deal to purchase Weblogs, Inc., home to Engadget, Autoblog, Hack A Day, and other popular blogs. You can already see and Add to AOL newsfeed link at the top right corner of Weblogs Inc., sites. AOL is reported to have paid $25 million in an all cash deal for the properties. Weblogs Inc., will become an independently editorial wholly owned subsidiary and part of the AOL.com portal.

Read full story.

Internet Tension: 80
Gravity: 50

Topics: News, Computers and Internet, technology, America Online, AOL, blogs, weblog

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Expensive Groceries Make Fat Kids In Mobile, Alabama?

Fatties in the land of Moon Pies and RC Cola

I came across a story reported by AP and on About.com that cites a study made by the RAND Corporation in California, which says kids become fatter in Mobile, Alabama, than elsewhere because the relative prices for fruits and vegetables are higher in the region. The report went on to say that kids gained less in Visilia, California, which had the lowest relative cost for produce.

Huh?

I tried to vet the economics of the study, but I only got as far as finding the report's abstract before somebody wanted $30 to read further. So much for hashing the actual data.

Well, here's my take. About a year ago, I moved from my normally mundane middle class lifestyle in Jacksonville, Florida, to my current living like one of the "Aztec Kings of Mexico" lifetyle in Mobile. The relative cost of living here seems low compared to Jacksonville. While there are perhaps fewer grocery stores here than in Jacksonville, prices seem to be competitive by necessity. Rural Mobile and neighboring Baldwin counties are mainly agricultural, with cotton and vegetables as the rotating crops.

Because I cannot get to the actual numbers in the report (without spending 30 bucks), I have to read the articles as if the the story is the result a study performed in a data-free-enironment.

All I can figure is the fat kids must be consuming loads of that particularly Southern delicacy, Moon Pies and RC Cola. Historically, Mobile is the home of the first and original Mardi Gras, and maybe all those King Cakes take their toll, too.

Read the About.com article.
Read the AP article at ABC.com.

General Tension: 30
Gravity: -10
Updated: 6:00 PM 10/6/05
Topics: Mobile Alabama, Gulf Coast, News, Current Events

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Locals Watching For Katrina Gang Crimes

Could Katrina create a local wave of gang activity?

MOBILE, Ala. -- While it has been shown that the reports of New Orleans gang crimes in the days following the disater may have been overstated, there are now some reports of "professional" criminals at work in the area.

Local police are closely watching for signs of outside gang activity in the Mobile metro area.

KPRC in Houston is reporting that the FBI has issued a warning about gangs transplanted from New Orleans. An FBI memo warned that gang member evacuees may bring an "us versus them" mentality that could lead to shootings and other violence all over Houston.

Read local WPMI story.
Watch video.

Also see blog entry, West Mobile more crowded since Katrina.

Social Tension: 30
Gravity: 60

Topics: Mobile Alabama, Gulf Coast, Hurricane, Katrina, News, Current Events

Countdown To Mobile's BayFest

Despite Hurricanes, the BayFest Music Festival Is A Show That Must Go On

MOBILE, Ala. Organizers of BayFest 2005 say the music festival is on despite the mess left in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. This will be the 11th anniversary of the annual music festival. The show will run from October 7th to the 9th in downtown Mobile.

This year's lineup includes B.B. King, Morris Day and the Time, Kool and the Gang, Maze featuring Frankie Beverly, Craig Morgan, Dwight Yoakam, Widespread Panic and Bo Bice.

Additional acts include Elvin Bishop, Grand Funk Railroad, and Loverboy.

Find out more about BayFest.

Read a recent article in the USA Vanguard.

Tension: Relax
Gravity: 0

Topics: Mobile Alabama, Gulf Coast, Music, Festivals, Concerts

Condi vs. Hillary? For The Black Vote, All Bets Are Off

Who will be President in 2008?

Some say Senator Hillary Clinton is positioning herself for the race and the campaign is hers to lose. But what if an unexpected challenge were to come from former National Security Advisor and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice? How would the minority vote swing?

Coming out of the divisive and polarized political landscape of the present, some say the 2008 Presidential election offers the right conditions to make the perfect storm. All bets are off when there is a possibility of electing not just the first woman, but also the first African American woman to lead America, and the free world, into the future.

Condi vs. Hillary: The Next Great Presidential Race by Dick Morris and Eileen McGann.

Topics: News and Politics, Books, Current Events, News, Politics

Political Tension: 50
Gravity: 50

More Miers Muckraking

More Miers Muckraking on the net and in the press

While President Bush felt obliged to hold a press conference to voice support for Harriet Miers, the press continues to froth in a frenzy. Drudge headlines loudly proclaim: "HARRIET MIERS SUPPORTED FULL CIVIL RIGHTS FOR GAYS AND LESBIANS; BACKED AIDS EDUCATION PROGRAMS FOR CITY OF DALLAS," linking to a Time.com story with the details they dug up about some pre-election questionnaire Miers answered in 1989 .

Eh, what's that all about? So what? There's nothing wrong with supporting civil rights and supporting AIDS education helps us all. I don't see a Constitutional conflict there. Conservatives support lawful civil rights.

Political Tension: 120
Gravity: 30

Topics: News and Politics, Current Events

Flustering Just About Everybody, Bush Nominates Miers For Supreme Court

Bush's nomination of Miers for Associate Justice distresses more than a few.

The mainstream press reports that she's never been a judge. Many articles fail to report how many other Supreme Court Justices (list) haven't been judges before their appointments. Some Democrats and liberals are calling it cronyism. Some Republicans and conservatives are calling it weak and disappointing. Most everyone is saying Miers has no judicial record... and maybe that's not a bad thing after all. However, in the end the only opinions that matter are the ones of those who are going to approve or deny the nomination.

Read AP Story.

Read AP Analysis.

Read Reuters Article.

Political Tension: 80
Gravity: 100

Topics: News and Politics, Current Events

New Format Coming: The News Tensiometer

All the news that causes a fit in print

Stories rated by severity. Comments welcome.

Send submissions to: thetension@aim.com




Topics: News and Politics, Computers and Internet, blogging, blogs, Weblog

West Mobile More Crowded Since Hurricane Katrina

Disaster workers flood restaurants and hotels

MOBILE, Ala. -- It was 7 p.m. on Thursday, and the LongHorn Steakhouse on west Mobile's Airport Boulevard was packed. The wait staff was racing from table to table, the rib-eyes and T-bones were flying out of the kitchen, and the line of customers waiting to be seated stretched into the parking lot.

"Who are all these people?" asked bartender Laura Collier, slinging margaritas and 20-ounce mugs of draft beer to the boisterous crowd. It was a question she had no time to ponder but one that was being asked frequently around west Mobile nearly five weeks after Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast.

Local hotel rooms are filled. Nearly all available rental properties have been leased. And restaurants, particularly those west of Interstate 65, have never been busier.

Read full story (registration required).

Topics: Mobile Alabama, Hurricane Katrina, Gulf Coast

I-10 Reopens in Pascagoula, Mississippi

Steady flow returns to I-10 bridge

PASCAGOULA, Ms October 1 - Moving cones, moving signs and some say moving mountains to get traffic moving on I-10. Mississippi governor Haley Barbour is one of the first to cross the newly repaired bridge over the Pascagoula River.

Hurricane Katrina pushed a barge into the bridge, knocking out beams and making a 300 foot section unusable and unsafe. 6.5 million dollars was spent to get the bridge up and running in just 20 days. That amount includes a 1 million dollar incentive for getting the job done 10 days ahead of schedule.

Read story from SunHerald.

Watch video from WPMI.

Topics: Current Events, Gulf Coast, Mobile Alabama, Hurricane Katrina, Mississippi

Hurricane Sparks Gulf Coast Real Estate Frenzy

Katrina Boom or Bust

BILOXI, Miss. (AP) - Rubble piles bear "For Sale" signs. Homes without roofs are being sold as-is. Placards announcing "We Buy Houses, Cash!," are posted on corners throughout middle-class neighborhoods.

The Mississippi coast, wracked by Hurricane Katrina, is caught up in a real estate rush, as speculators and those looking to replace their own wrecked homes pinpoint broken and battered waterfront neighborhoods. In the weeks since the hurricane, prices of many homes - even damaged properties - have jumped 10 to 20 percent.

Read full story.

Topics: news and politics, current events, Gulf Coast, Hurricane Katrina, Biloxi Mississippi