Bessemer Animal Cruelty and... Libscomb

Bessemer Mayor Ed May stopped me in the middle of addressing the Bessemer City Council last night. After calling the newspaper I write for a tabloid with made up news, he did not want to hear that Bessemer Animal Control is abusing animals and my use of the word "illegal" in describing procedures there that violate state law was too much for him.

But I was able to remind the council (and the mayor) that they had heard the accusations before in the form of a letter from Jacque Meyer of the Greater Birmingham Humane Society in November 2006. They were also reminded that the letter outlined a solution, that is the hiring of Kim Staton of Animal Welfare Consultations to assess and make recommendations.

After the mayor interrupted me the council referred the issue to committee (oh my god) to look into it. As if that will lead anywhere (without severe prodding from interested parties).

I don't take the oath I took as a veterinarian to promote the welfare of animals and relieve animal suffering for the benefit of society lightly. So my mission is not over.

I want to urge those of you who live in Bessemer to call your council person and let them know you support having an outside consultant assess the animal control program and how horrible it is that Bessemer is allowing this to continue.

District 1 Dorothy Davidson 424-4060
District 2 Louise Alexander 424-4060
District 3 Sarah Belcher 424-4060
District 4 Jimmy Stephans 424-4060
District 5 Albert Soles 424-4060
District 6 Jesse Matthews 424-4060
District 7 Earl Cochran 424-4060

Since our city officials do not make email addresses or personal phone numbers public, you will have to call the council office. If you catch them in the office, great, if not, leave a message with the secretary or on their voice mail. this will only take a few minutes.

If you live outside the city you can call the same number (205-424-4060) and ask for the mayor's office or just leave a message with the receptionist. The city just needs a lot of calls.

But there are others in different positions who will also be taking measures to stop the animal cruelty. Good for them.

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Here is the column in the Western Tribune regarding Lipscomb this week.


What can possibly happen to make the situation in Lipscomb worse? I mean, the mayor, Simon Speights, has resigned after the district attorney asked a judge to remove him from office because of a prior felony conviction. This follows the resignation of mayor Jimmie Johnson, who resigned after it was determined that he didn’t even live in the city.

The next mayor could be city council member Gaston Randle, but he has been charged with four felonies, so his future is questionable. Another council member, David Horn, has charges against him as well.

Former mayor Speights has been accused of driving a stolen vehicle, city officials are impersonating police officers, and Hispanics are being threatened and shaken down.

But things could get worse. The remaining officials could be allowed to continue to govern. The city could continue to exist.

I have nothing against the people of Lipscomb, but no one should have to live under the type of rule (and lack of rule) that they have suffered under for years. There is no doubt that there are qualified people living in Lipscomb who could manage the city, but apparently they do not want the responsibility because in recent years they have not made their presence known.

Lipscomb needs to become District 8 of Bessemer. The territory of Lipscomb has few businesses to generate sales tax and business license revenue. Property values are such that revenue from property taxes is low as well. Other than shaking down immigrants and setting up illegal roadblocks there is no steady source of income for the city.

Municipal services, like police and fire protection, while not perfect in Bessemer, would definitely improve if Lipscomb becomes part of this city.

Of course, the homes in Lipscomb are not like the newly built homes on the other side of Bessemer. Some of us love the older homes, though, and would be glad to add them to the array of historic residences in our city that our homeowners are so proud of.

In 1890 Bessemer was the fourth largest city in the state in terms of population, but 117 years later we are nowhere near that and in fact the city is still losing residents, according to U. S. Census estimates. Lipscomb has lost residents over the last few years as well and has about 2400 residents. However Lipscomb’s per capita annual income is about $1300 higher and household income about $7000 higher, and this could actually raise Bessemer’s income levels.

Bessemer officials should talk to the officials in Lipscomb about becoming part of our city. But wait, who would they talk to? Your guess is as good as mine.

Dems Take Control...and Candidate's Faith

There are polls and lists and surveys…everybody tries to find ways to compartmentalize people or rate people, and when it comes to politicians, there is no exception.

So last week’s list of the Most Beautiful People on Capitol Hill just adds more floof to the political arena. I mean, we all know that a good looking candidate has a better chance of being elected than an, er, ugly one (we won’t talk about my loss in the city council race here). But back to the list. I was a little disappointed that the list includes staffers as well as elected officials. Who cares? I was hoping that there were at least 50 elected officials considered attractive enough to make such a list, but no.

But of interest, Democrats far outnumber Republicans on the list. Part of that may be that there are many more Democrats in Washington now to choose from. Or, maybe the compilers of the list had a difficult time seeing underlying attractiveness through the ugly policy that Republicans cling to.


Anyway, the Most Beautiful person is Representative Brad Ellsworth of Indiana, and the next elected official on the list is number 4 Nancy Pelosi, both Democrats, of course. Many people had lots to say about a 67 year old grandmother being the best looking woman in congress, most of which I won’t repeat here. In fact all of which I won’t repeat here.


So Democrats control the House and the Senate, and now the Most Beautiful list (both male and female). What more can we ask for? How about the White House?






But when it comes to presidential candidates people aren’t comparing their looks much except to discuss Hillary’s cleavage or Romney’s hair (Boston Globe), neither of which impress me, but they are talking about faith. Seventeen presidential candidates’ (including Fred Thompson and excluding Mike Gravel) religious affiliations are listed in today’s Birmingham News . Catholics (7 total, 4 democrats, 3 republicans) far outnumber the rest, with Baptist coming in second (4 republicans). In addition, there are 2 Methodists (Dems), 1 each of Church of Christ (Dem), Episcopalian (Repub), Presbyterian (Repub), and Mormon (Repub).

I am not at all surprised that all the Baptist candidates are Republican. But I would have thought that Catholics would be more likely to fall on the Republican side with the Baptists. And I would have thought the Presbyterians and Episcopalians would land on the Democrat’s side. Not the candidates, of course, just the denominations, which are a little bit progressive.

This just goes to show that religious affiliation is no great predictor of party affiliation among candidates, and among voters the same is true. Even among Baptists, there are voters who are so disgusted with the republican leadership and who are realizing that things such as the environment are important so are more likely to vote democratic than they were in the past. Even in Alabama, where the democratic candidate could carry the state for the fist time in decades. It could happen! Just wait.

A Crumbling Building

I have an exam today and will be spending the morning reviewing material about such things as mosquitos, malaria, water sanitation, and HIV/AIDS. This is in preparation for my trip to Jamaica next month which is part of a course I am taking. We will be addressing these issues while there, all in a public health mindset.

Anyway, so not a lot of time for blogging. But the big news is...most of you have heard...the building that I wrote about here and here has been torn down.




Here are a few pics of the process. I am learning a new skill...making a video for Youtube, so hopefully in a day or two I will have a video of the demolition in action.







This should have happened years ago. More later this week.

A Simpson Short...and Western Trib Column

Today is too busy and I don't have much time, so it's Tribune column day. These columns as posted here are not always word for word as to what is in the paper, because of editing and such. Then there's a little Simpson's info following the column.



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To my knowledge there has been no response from the city regarding the animal abuse that has occurred in our animal control facility following the story and picture of the burned dog in this paper. The paper reported that the mayor claimed the city does not have an animal problem.

That is true. The animals are not the problem. The problem is with the people who own them and some of the people who are mandated to provide care and shelter for them when they are taken in by the city.

State law requires that the city provide animal control, and there are standards that must be followed. The City of Bessemer is not following these standards both in the care it provides for animals and in the dispensation of animals (whether it is euthanasia or adoption). This is not only a dog health issue; it is a human public health issue.

Last year this was brought to the attention of the Mayor and each city council member by way of a letter from the executive director of the Greater Birmingham Humane Society delivered to each in November. In addition, a plan of action was presented that would have gotten Bessemer on track to correct its problems. The letter was ignored. The director never got a response.

One recommended action was to utilize the services of Kim Staton, a consultant with “Animal Welfare Consultations.” She will visit, assess, and make very specific recommendations to correct the array of problems currently in place. The Humane Society noted in the letter that the fee charged by Ms. Staton was equal to the dollar amount discounted Bessemer by the society for services performed between June 2006 until September 2006, about $7,000. In essence, the Greater Birmingham Humane Society would have paid for the service, and Bessemer would reap the benefits for free.

The Bessemer Neighborhood Association and others are not going to be satisfied with a response of “We can take care of this” because the city has had plenty of opportunity and has not taken care of it. The only acceptable solution is to hire Ms. Staton or a similar outside consultant to evaluate our situation and provide a plan. Any other response reeks of attempting to hide the truth and we as citizens have grown tired of that.



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Bart Simpson will hit the Silver Screen all over the country this weekend, but what about Nancy Cartwright?



She is forty nine years old and has been the voice of Bart Simpson since his small screen debut 20 years ago ( in a tv short, the series is just 18 years old).



For the short she was called in to read for Lisa, but like Bart's "devious, school hating, irreverent" characteristics and chose that part instead.

She gets a six figure paycheck for each episode (which takes about 6 hours of work for her each week). It's good work if you can get it.


She's a student of scientology...didn't Bart take on that cult once? I wonder what she thought of that.

Anyway...go see the movie.

Cats Make the most Interesting Stories

I woke up this morning thinking it would be a great day, and so far it is, but not what I was expecting. Remember the building on 19th St. S. in Bessemer that I have featured on here from time to time that really needs to come down. Last night I got a phone call that a bulldozer had been unloaded next to the building and that it would come down first thing this morning.

Well it's noon and the bulldozer has not moved, and of course the building has not either.




So I called the number on the side of the machine and spoke with a lady who told me yes it is coming down, but she is not sure if it will be today or tomorrow or when. But it looks like the first objective and the number one priority of the Bessemer Neighborhood Association will be achieved soon.




Next up: animal abuse.

And interestingly enough, the local dog fighting issue has moved from the Western Tribune which first reported it to The Birmingham News where this article describes fighting in Bessemer. Soon the issues of dog fighting and animal abuse will be before the Bessemer City Council and the mayor. The Bessemer Neighborhood Association will not let these issues be ignored any longer.

Two cat stories, sort of. This one, about a cat who curls up beside nursing home residents just hours before they die is wonderful. With great accuracy tthe cat predicts when death will occur, giving a heads up to staff members and families of residents, and even doing better than a doctor at predicting death in at least one instance. story Wonderful because it gives families a chance to know they need to get down there quick.

Now this cat is different. This is an educational cat, of sorts, named Pinkie. Since I was writing about the death penalty yesterday, this is very appropriate, because it shows us who the Father of Modern Capital Punishment is. Thomas Edison Hates Cats There is no cat abuse shown in this video. An elephant maybe, but...just watch.

BHHA Pool Party

Rarely do I post more than once in a day, but I really need to share this video that Richard created of The Bessemer Historical Homeowner's Association Pool Party.

BHHA Pool Party
See we aren't a bunch of old fuddy duddies. Thanks Richard.

Now scroll down and read today's post.

Death Penalty Revisited

Is it not just a little odd that the dean of Cumberland School of Law at Samford Univerity is named John Carroll, and that John Carroll High School is just a couple of miles away n the same road!

Anyway, John Carroll, the dean, says that Alabama’s death penalty law needs to be studied, and that it has flaws in it that should be addressed. The Story
He was a member of the American Bar Association’s death penalty assessment team for Alabama that in 2006 suggested several reforms. Among them:
Revamping indigent defense services
Providing defense counsel in state post-conviction proceedings (Alabama being the only state that does not do this)
Providing standards for judges in overriding jury recommendations.
Enacting a post-conviction DNA law

Sounds like the time for study is over. The ACLU released a report titled Broken Justice: The Death Penalty in Alabama in 2005. This 27 page report outlines clearly the problems Alabama has with its death penalty laws.

But as Carroll says, attempts to talk with state officials have not been successful.

This is a related story about post conviction DNA testing for Darrell Grayson, scheduled for execution on Thursday. that story

Did you know that in 2005 Alabama sentenced more people to death than Georgia…Mississippi…Louisiana…and Tennessee…combined! Do you think the criminals of our state are really that more heinous than our surrounding states? That doesn’t make sense, when you realize that we are arguably the most “Christian” of all the states. One would think that those values would filter down to would be criminals enough to produce lower crime rates and more civility. I mean, if we have more “Christians” spreading the word of God, with any success one would expect to see lower crime rates and such.

Oh yeah, they believe same sex marriage is the greatest threat. So they ignore their failure to address social issues that really matter. Issues like poverty and hunger, health disparities, after school programs for inner city kids…things that might make a difference in so many lives. Instead they focus on demonizing gays and lesbians and rallying people around hatred rather than love. How refreshing to see an African American pastor from the south questioning the use of scripture to target GLBT people during the Democratic Youtube debate the other night View the question on Youtube . And to hear candidates talking frankly about equal rights. read the transcript on CNN Sorry, but you will have to scroll down to find this question and the candidate's answers.

One can only dream….