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by Glynn Wilson
BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Oct. 30 - For the better part of the past month, it's been a blast on the road "cowboying" in the Chevy van enjoying the fall weather and taking a break from television and politics out in nature - twelve days on the Gulf Coast and then four days taking in the peak color in North Carolina.
The elections coming up next Tuesday, Nov. 7, however, are too important to ignore for any serious newsman.
Alas, I almost fell asleep trying to concentrate on the televised political debates tonight on Alabama Public Television.
Governor's Debate Episode 2006
Gubernatorial candidates Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley and Gov. Bob Riley exchanged viewpoints in this live one-hour event presented by Leadership Alabama, the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama, Alabama Public Television and the Alabama Press Association.
Unfortunately, according to APT's Website, the show is also sponsored by a few of the most corrupt corporate polluters in the state, including Alabama Power, Vulcan Materials and Entergen. It is also sponsored by one of the worst corporate spies in the country, BellSouth, which is about to merge with AT&T, now owned and operated out of George W. Bush's Texas by Southwest Bell.
Oh, you didn't even know about the debates? Why would you, since none of the corporate television news stations or newspapers in this state did much to promote public involvement in the show.
And let's face it, the race may already be a done deal anyway. The latest polls show Riley leading the governor's race by a margin of 57 percent to 32 percent.
According to an article out today in StateLine.Org:
Republican Bob Riley is vying to become the first Alabama governor to be re-elected and to serve two full terms since George Wallace in the 1970s. Incumbents have lost the last three gubernatorial elections in Alabama, and Gov. Guy Hunt (R) won re-election in 1990 only to be removed in 1993 for an ethics violation.
In a state where voters have demonstrated their willingness to split tickets, Riley appears headed for a second term with a strong lead in the polls over Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley, the Democratic nominee. In an Oct. 8 poll by the Press-Register/University of South Alabama, Riley led with 57 percent of voters, compared with 32 percent for Baxley.
Baxley, elected lieutenant governor four years ago after two terms as state treasurer, is trying to become the state’s first female governor in four decades. Wallace’s wife, Lurleen, was elected in 1966 when state law barred her husband from succeeding himself.
Riley, a former three-term congressman, has benefited from little scandal, a strong economy and the state’s efficient reaction to several hurricanes that hit Alabama and neighboring states in 2004 and 2005. Top issues in the race include property appraisals, minimum wage levels and tax cuts.
With the state now enjoying a budget surplus, Riley is pushing for more than $300 million in personal income and business tax cuts to be phased in over five years. Early in his administration, when state revenues were down, Riley had proposed a $1 billion tax plan that would have been the largest tax increase in state history. But voters defeated the proposed increase 2-1 in a special election.
Baxley said she opposes Riley’s proposed income tax cuts and prefers that extra state funds go towards education and other government services.
But both candidates favor abolishing annual property appraisals in favor of appraisals every four years. During his tenure, Riley instructed his revenue commissioner to order annual appraisals, a move he said state law required. Baxley has criticized the Riley administration for this, noting that her first business as governor would be to do away with annual appraisals, which she describes as a de facto tax increase on Alabamians.
Baxley is pushing for the state to set a minimum wage of at least a dollar more than the federally mandated rate, now $5.15 an hour. Riley is opposed to a state-mandated increase.
Historic Election Year For Governor's Races
According to an early AP story out on the main debate:
Baxley, Riley Debate Differances On Tax Cuts, Credibility
And of course the Alabama bureau of AP put out this story a couple of days ago, which just struck me as funny.
Washington Scandals Don't Touch Alabama's GOP Governor?
So why have the Washington scandals not touched Bob Riley? Because the pathetically weak Alabama press corps did nothing to investigate the stories. Riley's connections to Bush and his lobbyist cronies have been on public display for any reporter willing to look and connect the dots. Unfortunately, since Sen. John McCain is now courting the conservative base in his obvious run for president in 2008, his staff would not cooperate with our own attempt to investigate all the connections.
So the best we can hope for is a change in the power balance in the U.S. House and Senate.
Also according to the latest polls:
Democrats Hold Double-Digit Lead in Competitive Districts; GOP Troubles Extend into Home Territory
With less than two weeks to go before the midterm elections, the Democrats not only continue to maintain a double-digit advantage nationally, but also lead by the same margin in the competitive districts that will determine which party controls the House of Representatives, according to the latest national survey by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press.
Nationally, the Democrats hold a 49 percent-38 percent lead among registered voters, and a nearly identical 50 percent-39 percent lead among those voters most likely to cast ballots on Nov. 7.
An oversample of voters in 40 competitive districts - identified by a consensus of political analysts-shows that voting intentions in the battleground districts are about the same as they are in the "safe" House districts. Among registered voters, the Democrats lead by 11 points in competitive districts (50 percent-39 percent) and by the same margin in safe districts (49 percent-38 percent).
So even though none of the Alabama races will make a big difference in the Congressional elections, we can watch from here and have some hope that there is a good chance the power balance will change in D.C.
Sources in Washington indicate to us that the Senate could end up in a 50/50 split, putting the tying vote on many issues into the hands of Vice President Dick "Shooter" Cheney. What a wonderful prospect.
We will leave you with this final point. It is a point which we tried to get Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley to embrace in the last three weeks of the governor's race, but she was obviously too afraid of being labeled a liberal to reach out to the most intelligent and progressive voters in this state who see no candidates with any creativity at all in their political platforms.
To demonstrate this point, just turn to the group Birders United.
According to estimates from the National Geographic Society, there are 15 million or more voting age Americans who have a serious interest in the welfare of birds. Huge numbers of adults in our country watch birds, feed birds, keep lists of birds, and give large sums of money to organizations that protect bird habitats.
In the United Kingdom the formidable political force of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds is frequently compared to the powers of the Teamsters Union in the United States. But most of the millions of bird people in America do not realize that they have the potential voting power to control the outcome of many elections in our country.
This is not just a utopian dream. In recent presidential contests, a swing of just a few thousand votes would have changed the outcome in a number of key states.
For example, if only 270 Republican bird watchers in Florida had shifted their votes in the 2000 presidential election, President Bush would not have won the election. In many states the number of adult bird enthusiasts is so large that an organized bird watcher vote could control the outcome of almost any election.
It is a big mystery to me, and a number of my closest friends, why some people who support conservation efforts continue, for other reasons, to vote Republican.
Hey, if you really think it is more important for a president to bash gays openly than to support sensible public policies on environmental issues, by all means vote Republican. But now that you know there is a such thing as a gay Republican (thanks to the Foley page scandal), maybe it would be worth reconsidering which party you vote for - or if not, why not just consider staying home on election day?
Better yet, go bird watching. Let the rest of us decide...
I will not be happy voting in a church thanks to the Bush Justice Department's policy tearing down the wall between church and state. But I will be voting there anyway. And I will be voting for Ms. Baxley and any other Democrat worth checking on the electronic ballot.
Let's just hope Diebold doesn't steal the elections for all these so-called Christian Republicans. It's not really all that funny what corruption and hypocrisy is supported by some people in the name of Jesus Christ.
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | A wood thrush banded and released on the Ft. Morgan peninsula, with old Bob Sargent out of focus in the background... |
by Glynn Wilson
CLAY, Ala., Oct. 27 - Amateur bird expert Bob Sargent is now back at home in Clay, Alabama, east of Birmingham, after spending a couple of weeks on the Gulf Coast tracking the migration of birds south for the winter.
His team banded 2930 birds, 73 different species, and he says he is "thrilled" with the count this year, which came in a bit higher than expected.
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | Bob Sargent delivers an impromptu lecture on the wood thrush's declining habitat... |
In an average year, they would catch, band and release 1500 to 2500 birds and 70 to 75 species, although they have done as many as 4500 and as few as 600 during the spring migration count.
"We caught a lot of birds. Overall, it was really a good session," Sargent said in an interview. "The influx of birds was pretty much what we would have expected."
Although overall, the trend has been and probably will continue to be a general decline in many of the bird species, he says.
"The answer for that is fairly straightforward," he said. "It's either degradation of existing habitat they require to breed in, in the states and Canada, and to winter in in the tropics. Degradation or outright destruction of habitat."
It's a human population-based reason for most of the decline.
"It's the continued requirement humans place on the land. Birds are typically not a priority in that. They are low on the totem pole," he said. "Without pointing the finger at any country in particular, it's just that we have so many human beings on earth that these birds are just losing out in the long run."
The other side of that is, the public, due in part to the conservation movement, is becoming more involved in protecting habitat, he said.
"That's a wonderful occurrence. That's something we've been seeing for the past four or five years anyway. It even starts in the schools," he said. "I think there is a trend now for the public to be more aware that essentially, what we do to the birds we do to ourselves. I think we are realizing we've got to take better care of this earth."
This year's totals were higher than normal, but at the Gulf Coast location it is difficult to understand that increase, he said.
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | A wood thrush about to be released... |
"We can expect a lot more migrants to stop and rest at our site when the weather is stormy and wet. This apparently was the case at Fort Morgan," he said. "We suspect that there's been some sort of change in the migration pattern of birds."
They caught and banded 235 wood thrushes this year, for example, a high number, even though records for the decline of the species go back at least 40 years.
"On breeding grounds we see them less and less," Sargent said. "But on migration we continue to see them in record numbers each year."
That may seem like a conflicting statement. And it is, he admitted.
"But it appears that this species, for whatever reason, has changed its migratory pattern. It could just be a chance thing. The subtle change in migration routes could be a normal occurrence."
What they do is not an exact science, he concedes, and we have a lot still to learn about bird populations and their migratory patterns.
The wood thrush (catharus mustelinus) is one of the most melodious songbirds in the world. Its beautiful, fluted song echoes through eastern North America's woodlands, yet it is close to endangered status and conservation is critical to prevent its decline to extinction, according to experts.
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | A female magnolia warbler (dendroica magnolia) being measured, weighed and banded... |
In the words of Arthur Cleveland Bent, author of a series of authoritative life history studies of American birds, "The nature lover who has missed hearing the musical bell-like notes of the wood thrush, in the quiet woods of early morning or in the twilight, has missed a rare treat. The woods seem to have been transformed into a cathedral where peace and serenity abide. One's spirit seems truly to have been lifted by this experience."
The wood thrush is also useful to forest ecosystems, consuming vast amounts of insects. Unfortunately, its populations have declined in recent years from 40 to 80 percent, depending on the area, according to the Endangered Species Handbook.
Major causes include the destruction of both its nesting and wintering forests, combined with parasitism on its nests by the brown-headed cowbird, which lays its large eggs in the nests of other birds. While the wood thrush is related to the American robin, today it is rarely seen in suburban yards and breeds only in undisturbed forest tracts. The problem is its forest habitats have become fragmented into smaller and smaller blocks, causing the species to disappear from many areas.
Wood thrushes, like hundreds of other bird species that stop to rest and feed on the Ft. Morgan peninsula each year, migrate to Mexico and Central America each winter where they seek out old-growth rainforests from southern Mexico to Panama. During the past 40 years, their forests have been logged and converted into grazing land. Researchers tracking them to their wintering grounds have discovered they stay in the same area, even though it has been destroyed, and usually die within a short period from starvation or predation.
Sargent and his team are not professional ornithologists. They are referred to as "field ornithologists," and they are just one of many disciplines that study the decline of birds, from those who study insects to plants to the weather.
"But that's just fancy words," he said. "It doesn't matter whether you've got a degree or are non-professionals like we are. A great deal of what we do is speculation."
The question is, what to do about the overall, general declines in species on the planet?
"Human beings have the option of sitting on our duffs and letting nature take its course, or we can get involved in some kind of protocol that we think can be beneficial in monitoring these birds to determine what kind of plans to make," he said. "As bird banders that's what we've done."
They caught, banded and released 74 house wrens this year, a particularly large number.
"The huge numbers of birds we caught this year are a product of range expansion and perhaps some weather events as well," he said. "It's so difficult to draw firm conclusions from a season's total. You really have to look at a bigger picture over a long period of time."
As food resources dwindle, birds shrink into their historical ranges, he said. It's just a product of birds pushing to the edge of what they can do as a species.
"Mother nature takes care of that," he said. "If she doesn't kill them off with bad weather, she deprives them of the food it takes for that species to survive."
Sargent says he doesn't think there are long-term, lingering effects from all the hurricanes of recent years, from Ivan to Dennis to Katrina.
"These horrible storms that are so destructive to our human friends along the coast are a normal part of the lives of wild creatures such as our neo-tropical migrant birds," he said. "This scenario is much different for resident bird populations, since they are usually severely affected by hurricanes and their populations are greatly reduced. They too will recover as long as we can keep their habitat pretty much intact."
One resident bird of the Alabama coastal area is the brown pelican, pelecanus occidentalis, which is endangered in many areas except the Atlantic coast. It is on the way back in coastal Alabama due to government mandated conservation efforts, mainly the banning of the pesticide DDT by the Environmental Protection Agency in the early 1970s.
The brown pelican is being honored in the Eastern Shore township of Fairhope with art and during the Alabama Coastal Birdfest.
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | A brown pelican along Mobile Bay in Fairhope... |
Here are the totals for the bird banding session of October, 2006.
Common Name | Banding Count |
| Acadian Flycatcher | 5 |
| American Redstart | 104 |
| Bay-breasted Warbler | 1 |
| Baltimore Oriole | 1 |
| Blackburnian Warbler | 1 |
| Black-throated Blue Warbler | 6 |
| Black-throated Green Warbler | 21 |
| Blue-headed Vireo | 3 |
| Black-and-white Warbler | 25 |
| Blue-gray Gnatcatcher | 20 |
| Blue Grosbeak | 8 |
| Blue Jay | 6 |
| Brewster's Warbler | 1 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 2 |
| Brown Creeper | 5 |
| Brown Thrasher | 11 |
| Canada Warbler | 1 |
| Carolina Chickadee | 1 |
| Carolina Wren | 3 |
| Chestnut-sided Warbler | 3 |
| Chuck-will's-widow | 1 |
| Common Yellowthroat | 159 |
| Eastern Phoebe | 12 |
| Eastern Wood-pewee | 27 |
| Gray Catbird | 852 |
| Gray-cheeked Thrush | 14 |
| Great-crested Flycatcher | 1 |
| House Wren | 74 |
| Indigo Bunting | 139 |
| Least Flycatcher | 4 |
| Lincoln's Sparrow | 2 |
| Magnolia Warbler | 316 |
| Marsh Wren | 3 |
| Myrtle Warbler | 5 |
| Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow | 1 |
| Northern Cardinal | 9 |
| Northern Mockingbird | 20 |
| Northern Parula | 6 |
| Nashville Warbler | 4 |
| Northern Waterthrush | 7 |
| Orange-crowned Warbler | 2 |
| Ovenbird | 18 |
| Philadelphia Vireo | 14 |
| Pine Warbler | 5 |
| Prairie Warbler | 1 |
| Kentucky Warbler | 1 |
| Hooded Warbler | 27 |
| Red-bellied Woodpecker | 2 |
| Rose-breasted Grosbeak | 23 |
| Ruby-crowned Kinglet | 127 |
| Red-eyed Vireo | 69 |
| Ruby-throated Hummingbird | 39 |
| Scarlet Tanager | 19 |
| Sedge wren | 1 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 1 |
| Summer Tanager | 3 |
| Swainson's Thrush | 67 |
| Swamp Sparrow | 18 |
| Tennessee Warbler | 59 |
| White-eyed Vireo | 217 |
| Worm-eating Warbler | 1 |
| Western Palm Warbler | 64 |
| Whip-poor-will | 4 |
| Wilson's Warbler | 5 |
| Wood Thrush | 235 |
| Yellow-bellied Flycatcher | 2 |
| Yellow-bellied Sapsucker | 2 |
| Yellow-billed Cuckoo | 4 |
| Yellow-breasted Chat | 9 |
| Yellow palm Warbler | 1 |
| Yellow-shafted Flicker | 4 |
| Yellow-throated Vireo | 1 |
| Yellow Warbler | 1 |
On a somewhat soft SEC grid schedule this weekend, there are two top games, while the rest of the lineup falls into the interesting-only-if-you-are-a-fan-of-the-school category. The two big games are No. 9 Florida (6-1 overall, 4-1 in league play) at Georgia (6-2, 3-2) and No. 8 Tennessee (6-1, 2-1) at South Carolina (5-2, 3-2).
Most of the pre-game talk in Jacksonville, Fla., where the Florida-Georgia game has been played every season since 1926, has been about the nickname of the game rather than the game itself. In an attempt to spin the reputations of their schools and fans, the University of Georgia and the University of Florida requested the networks broadcasting Saturday’s battle for the Eastern Division lead not to use the games famous moniker – the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party. Amazingly, CBS and ESPN caved, promising their announcers would refrain from using the nickname and, apparently, to ignore or not mention the copious drinking going on at the famous and prolific tailgate parties prior, during and after the game.
The question at the Tennessee at South Carolina game is: Can Steve Spurrier make it two in a row? Before Spurrier arrived and the Vols lost to the Gamecocks last year, Tennessee owned South Carolina, having won all 12 of their meetings since S.C. joined the SEC. The matchup between the Vols’ pass-happy offense and the Cocks’ tough defense will be interesting to watch. Tennessee, behind AB Erik Ainge, ranks eighth nationally in passing offense, while S.C.’s secondary ranks eighth nationally in passing defense.
Other league games on tap this week include No. 7 Auburn (7-1, 4-1) at Ole Miss (2-6, 1-4), Florida International (0-7) at Alabama (5-3, 2-3), Vanderbilt (3-5) at Duke (0-7), Kentucky (3-4, 1-3) at Mississippi State (2-6, 0-4) and La.-Monroe (1-6) at Arkansas (6-1).
This week’s college football TV schedule kicks off tonight with Texas El-Paso at Tulsa at 7 p.m. on ESPN. Saturday’s weekend TV lineup, other than pay-for-view is as follows:
Oklahoma at Missouri, 11 a.m. (ABC)
Notre Dame at Navy, 11 a.m. (CBS)
N.C. State at Virginia, 11 a.m. (WB)
Michigan St. at Indiana, 11 a.m. (CSS)
Northwestern at Michigan, 11 a.m. (ESPN)
Illinois at Wisconsin, 11 a.m. (ESPN2)
Northern Ill. at Iowa , 11 a.m. (ESPNU)
Auburn at Ole Miss,11:30 a.m. (JEFFERSON PILOT)
BYU at Air Force, 1 p.m. (VS)
Miami at Georgia Tech, 2:30 p.m. (ABC)
Georgia at Florida, 2:30 p.m. (CBS)
North Texas at Troy, 2:30 p.m. (CSS)
Southern Cal at Oregon, 2:30 p.m. (FSNS)
Wake Forest at N.C., 2:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Texas at Texas Tech, 6 p.m. (TBS)
Florida St. at Maryland, 6 p.m. (ESPN2)
La.-Monroe at Arkansas, 6 p.m. (ESPNU)
Tennessee at South Carolina, 6:45 p.m. (ESPN)
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | If we are not mistaken, this is a view of Grandfather Mountain from one of the Blue Ridge Parkway overlooks. Now we know why they call them the Blue Ridge mountains... |
by Glynn Wilson
BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY, N.C., Oct. 21 - We caught a perfect day on Saturday to tour the Blue Ridge Parkway. It is sometimes hard when on the road to find the space and time to write, especially when the pictures are almost too good to be true.
To highlight a couple of stops and point out a few facts about the place, in case you want to visit yourself, try stopping by the Museum of North Carolina Minerals at Milepost 331. The visitor center and educational museum highlights the geology of the region and the rich mining heritage of the area.
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | The Eastern Continental Divide bridge with the fall colors in the background. |
According to the National Park Service Web page highlighting the parkway, the Grandfather Mountain corridor serves as a refuge for relic populations of plants, and the remote natural areas and dramatic views are less affected there by a human presence south and east of Asheville.
"Biological diversity is best understood here as a product of varied geology and topography and cultural history stories also come into play with isolated cabins and magnificent country estates in close proximity," the site claims.
We can attest to that.
I met a woman park ranger who would serve perfectly as the female lead character in an unfinished novel I started about 14 years ago. A classic brunette.
I had some fun with her and tried to buy her official National Park Service uniform cap. She refused, of course, since it would constitute a federal crime. She did smile, laugh and say I could probably find one on ebay, the property of a disgruntled former ranger, maybe, or a lost or stolen one.
I needed a new hat on the trip anyway, so I picked up a blue Blue Ridge Mountain cap at the visitor center and supported the National Park Service at the same time. It's part of the Interior Department and worth supporting.
Interestingly and dangerously, the parkway is lined with poisonous sumac, a relative of poison oak. It turns a stunning red in the fall, though. Just don't touch it.
The museum is right on the Eastern Continental Divide.
Just up the parkway, there are a number of overlooks where you can stop and take in the breathtaking views. These are only a few samples. Now we know why they call them the Blue Ridge mountains.
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | If we are not mistaken, this is a sample of the red sumac that lines the Blue Ridge Parkway, right across the way from the Museum of North Carolina Minerals at Milepost 331. |
Editor's Note: Robert Penn Warren's All The King's Men is routinely listed in the top five novels in American literature, although it appears to have dropped off the radar screen of the masses in today's so-called "conservative" TV-driven American culture. It is still available in book stores and worth the read, especially for the middle class and working poor who are often misled by politicians who really do not have their economic interests in mind. It may be "the culture stupid," but the remake of this movie should be at the top of their list to see before the Nov. 7 election.
Movie Website and Trailer
Key Quote: "If you don't vote, you don't matter."
by Henry B. Rosenbush
Charismatic, controversial and mendacious best describes the life of Huey P. Long, whose political career included tenures as railroad commissioner, state senator and finally governor of Louisiana (1928-35). His assassination in the State Capitol building on the evening of September 8, 1935 has historically been attributed to Dr. Carl Weiss, although evidence culled in the 1990s suggests that Dr. Weiss was framed. Trained in law, Long's journey to the gubernatorial mansion was filled with personal corruption, but on the other side, Long brought numerous benefits to his dirt-poor state.
Robert Penn Warren's Pulitzer winning novel, All the King's Men, was a scathing examination of Populist Southern Governor Willie Stark's rise and fall. The novel inspired four films, the 1949 Academy Award winner for Best Picture, Actor (Broderick Crawford) and Mercedes McCambridge (Supporting Actress), a 1953 version produced by James Cagney, the 1989 Paul Newman version "Blaze," a comedic retelling from the point of view of stripper Blaze Starr, the recent 2006 film with Sean Penn, two made for television adaptations, a TV special, an opera, and an excellent Ken Burns documentary in 1987.
While the 1949 film remains the best of the lot the most recent version at least was released during the upcoming election season. It's a shame that this one has slipped quietly away, dropping off the top 50 list last week. Roundly panned by critics (of 134 national reviews it only received 14 positive nods) for myriad reasons; casting numerous Brits in the roles of Southerners, murky subplots, a shaky narrative, well, you get the idea.
I recently viewed the new version with a skeptical eye being a devout fan of the original. Before I continue, however, a brief plot synopsis of the 1949 version.
Willie Stark (Crawford) is first seen as a nave, albeit, persistent irritant to local politicos when arrested for trying to give out hand bills. As narrated by journalist Jack Burden, efficiently portrayed by John Ireland, we see Stark as a poor schmuck in over his head.
Noble in the beginning, he is energized by the realization his warnings of shoddy construction at a local school by a politicians' relative was prescient; a collapsed stairway kills and maims children. He is later tabbed to run for office but unbeknownst to him is really a pawn to split the "hick votes. Once he is made aware of the deception by Ireland and campaign manager Sadie Burke (McCambridge) he gives an impassioned speech to the gathered hicks telling them only a hick will help a hick. After losing, he runs again and finally is elected.
Through a series of machinations of the true Draconian variety, Stark surrounds himself with former enemies and hires Burden, partly because he likes him and appreciated the fair reportage given him by the journo, but mostly due to his abundant background on people that will later lead to betrayal, infidelity suicide, murder and finally assassination.
Stark eventually seduces Burden's erstwhile fiance Anne Stanton (Joanna Dru), her brother, Adam (Sheppard Strudwick) and even her uncle, a powerful judge. Although both the 1949 and 2006 versions include some subplots that detract slightly, the impetus is the same; Stark keeps his promises to build new roads, schools, hospitals and the financing of numerous building projects. All this is done at a high price. Although enigmatic at times, Stark's demise is predictable, and his assassination at the film's conclusion leaves the survivors with enough intense distress that even Dr. Phil wouldn't be able to solve their dilemmas.
The 2006 version updates the action from the 1940s to the 1950s, jettisons subplots from the earlier film concerning his cuckolding, an alcoholic son, a murder and the comeuppance of some former enemies. It does have its own subplots, one concerning the judge's own corrupt background, which was an important link in the novel.
Credit is due to director Steven Zaillian for an earnest attempt at a political statement that unfortunately wasn't seen by the mass audience he intended to view his film.
Tech credits were fine down the line, but I was amused at the choice of actors Jude Law, Kate Winslet, both Brits, and Anthony Hopkins (Welsh) portraying southerners; their accents often slipping through.
A major subplot added is that of Sugar Boy, the stuttering driver of Stark who is seen target practicing, perhaps as dj vu for the ending when he kills the assassin. The poorest perf comes from Mark Ruffalo as Adam, the idealistic doctor and brother of Anne, who kills Stark as revenge for orchestrating the judge's suicide. In top form, however, is Sean Penn, a talented left-coast actor, whose political views are certainly a nuance to his presentation of Stark. His impassioned speeches before enthralled voters strike a chord with today's voters who have to make serious changes in our government this November.
A key scenario in ATKM that should not be lost today is "If you don't vote, you don't matter." As with the fictionalized Stark, who knew to remain in power meant controlling the hearts, minds and anger of his constituency, we, too, must vote, but in today's world, with intelligence and apprehension.
Do we want a government that continues to ignore the ills facing us in this country or remain ignorant to the impact on the world stage? Apathy will not solve the issues we face. Not voting is madness, not unlike that of the Mad Hatter in "Alice in Wonderland." We have the power to influence next month's elections before we're so far down the rabbit hole that we are buried for another four years.
Editor's Note: While we went into this movie skeptical of the casting of Sean Penn as Willie Stark (Huey Long), he is one of the finest actors working today and pulled off the role in a convincing way. It is too bad that this movie seems to be almost totally off the radar screen of the direct descendants of the populists who would find this movie appealing - if the mainstream corporate media were in a position to point it out to them.
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | Carole and Don Markum of Marion, North Carolina, pick york apples at the Historic Orchard at Altapass along the Blue Ridge Parkway. Some of the apples made for one of the most scrumptious pies I've ever tasted. I had it for breakfast and lunch for two days. If you are looking to tour the area or buy some real estate, Don Markum is the go to guy. |
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | Doug McCormick, left, is the owner of the Lucky Strike Gold and Gem Mine in Marion, North Carolina. His good buddy Herman Stamper, right, is an assayist. Three major gold veins run through the creek bed behind them in one of the richest gold mining locations in the country back in the 1830s and '40s, before the California Gold Rush drove many minors west looking to strike it rich. These days, the real gold is in the tourism dollar, and millions of people are turning to gold mining as a recreational activity. Some of them are coming to a three county area east of Ashville to do it. "When they get through with fishing and golfing, they come down here and mine for gold for awhile," Stamper said. |
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | Peak autumn color photos from the Catawba River in Marion, North Carolina. |
by Glynn Wilson
MARION, N.C., Oct. 22 - It was about 3 p.m. Eastern Time when I finally got the boat in the water after a buffet lunch downtown in what used to be an old hotel back in prohibition days. With the gear all loaded up for what was supposed to be a two or three hour meandering float, I got about 10 yards down the Catawba River and hit the first shallow shoals and the strongest current from Highway 70 to Lake James.
Before I could get my dumbass fully oriented to the strange stream that should have been a cake walk in a canoe, I got tangled in the current next to several downed trees in the water. In other words, I busted my ass and got wet.
But did I pull out and give up? Not a chance.
I grabbed the dry bag with the digital camera and other crucial supplies inside, including a dry lighter and the inspiration, along with one of the two paddles. And with only one boat shoe left, I turned the canoe over on a log and got all the water out then shoved off into mid-stream and took off.
For the first mile and a half it was nip and tuck and stay on your toes and paddle and steer over the shoals in the fast current and around the snake-like bends in the river.
Twice I had to lift my weight off the seat and scoot over the rocks, keeping the canoe straight all along to avoid getting turned sidways in the current. Once I had to put my right foot out of the boat (the one with the rubber water shoe) and push off to get going again.
The first wildlife I encountered was what I call an ugly duck. It was black with a white face and this gnarly red thing on its head, sort of like a chicken. If it wasn't so late, I would Google the species and provide a link. Ugly sucker. He floated along with us for awhile.
When the river finally slowed down enough to relax and break out the camera, two pairs of mallards took off in front of us on every turn, along with a couple of great blue herons. It was as if we were chasing the fish down stream into their path.
At one point we (the boat and me) scared off a cooper's hawk and a great blue fishing the same hole.
Two river otters showed up on the trip. The second one came running down a beach and dove into the water in front of the boat, then aimed his head in the water right at me and started complaining like a damn squirrel. Not knowing if he might try to jump in the boat and get personal, I stopped taking pictures and started paddling. He went down and swam under the boat, then came out behind me with a splash. But when I tried to make a stream u-eee, he disappeared.
At the downstream end of one of the campgrounds along the river, a German shepherd dove in and chased me down stream for a ways. He couldn't keep up.
As the river got wider and deeper and slowed down and got closer to the lake, the bends became covered in autumn color, yellow, gold and red, with some left-over green mixed in. It was hard to keep paddling, even knowing the sun was going down by 7 p.m. and even soaking wet from the cold Blue Ridge mountain water.
These are only a couple of the more than 200 photos. Now if only I could get this slide show function in Adobe Photoshop to work, I could show you them all
The trains are still running through the pass, but the wind has picked up and it's growing almost too cold for the smoking porch. Guess I'll knock back one more Yuengling (yes, they even sell it in Marion, but not in the grocery store since it's a semi-dry county) and kick back with Cody the dog for the night.
On Monday, the plan is to mine for gold and shoot aerial photos of the peak color from a small airplane. If it looks from the air anything like what it looked like in a van on the Blue Ridge Parkway or a canoe on the Catawba River, it's about the most beautiful thing I've ever seen in nature.
And that includes the beach in October...
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | The Catawba River is the place to be this time of year, if you chase art on water... |
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | What can I say? Forgive me for painting. Autumn color moving along the Blue Ridge Parkway... |
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | Peak autumn color in the Blue Ridge Mountains along the Blue Ridge Parkway just north of Marion, North Carolina. This is the view from the Switzerland Inn where we had a wonderful buffet breakfast of scrambled eggs, crisp mountain bacon, grits, fruit and bisquits with gravy. Notice the fog in the distance rising from the valley. Also, notice the green Carolina hemlock tree on the left, endangered by the woolly adelgid, an invasive insect from Asia. We are filing in the afternoon from the Blue Moon Bookstore on Upper Street in Spruce Pine, North Carolina. Watch for more photos and words on Sunday. It's another cool, quiet night in the valley and words can't yet describe it. You just have to be in the middle of nature's show and taste the apples, smell the wood smoke and see the train coming through the pass in the dark above the lake from the porch... |
MARION, N.C., Oct. 20 - We bypassed the Big Orange scene in Knoxville on the way here, so our spotlight for the next few days will be focused on the autumn color in the mountains. We also heard tell of some gold in these hills, left when the Gold Rush swept all the serious minors west to California in the 1800s.
In addition to its unique location in the Catawba River Basin at the eastern foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Marion is near the first gold mining site in the original colonies, and the home territory of a large band of Cherokee Indians before the Trail of Tears. It is 35 miles east of Asheville and serves as a gateway between the mountains and the piedmont sections of North Carolina.
The color on the way across U.S. Highway 40 looked near peak, so it appears we picked the right time to make this run. And we have an excellent guide lined up, a local adventurer, entrepreneur and real estate man we will introduce later.
It's a quiet night in the valley here - except for a couple of yap dogs. Made friends with one dog and one cat already. And we hear there are bears not far from here. Maybe elk too?
The plan is breakfast on the Blue Ridge Parkway in the a.m., photos ops in the fog on the way and a host of sites, which will include a float down the Catawba River before the weekend's done…
Say no more. It's off to the smoking porch and then the guest bedroom before midnight.
The SEC spotlight will shine on Rocky Top this weekend as 5-2 (2-2 in league games) Alabama invades No. 7 (or 8 depending on which poll you like) Tennessee (5-1, 1-1).
Overall, it’s a ho-hum lineup for SEC teams, with no other league team facing a ranked opponent. But there’s enough intensity, rivalry and drama in the game in Knoxville for an entertaining Saturday.
The Tide and Vols first locked horns on Nov. 18, 1901, and after four quarters of play, nothing had been decided with that first meeting ending in a 0-0 tie and 2,000 fans on the field at Tuscaloosa fighting. The two teams have met on the third Saturday in October every year since 1928 except 1943 during World War II.
The game has always served as a measuring stick for the two teams. Legendary Tennessee coach Gen. Bob Neyland, for whom the stadium in which the game will be played Saturday is named, always said the stiffest test for his team was when it played Alabama. Bama’s Coach Bear Bryant said, “We never know what kind of team we have until we play Tennessee.”
That is the case this year with both teams coming into the game with winning records but many question marks. The rap on Alabama is that it wins against creampuff opponents but can’t beat quality foes. Tennessee has been erratic, looking good for parts of games and bad in others.
Tennessee comes into the game ranked eighth nationally in passing offense and Vol QB Erik Ainge’s passer efficiency rating leads the SEC and ranks seventh in the nation.
One interesting statistical anomaly that will be interesting to see how it plays out will come when Alabama gets a first down inside the Vol 20. Alabama has been miserable in red zone situations this year, having to settle for a field goal most of the time and often not making them. But Tennessee is just as futile in defending the red zone. Vol opponents have scored all 13 times they’ve reached the red zone – nine TDs, four field goals.
While everyone expects Tennessee to mount an aerial attack, the question is will Alabama go to its running game to try and melt the clock, shorten the game and keep the potent Tennessee offense off the field? Or will the Tide lean on its passing game to move the ball. Bama QB John Parker Wilson has racked up seven-straight 200-yard-plus passing games.
Other league games on tap this week include Tulane (2-4) at No. 8 Auburn, Ole Miss (2-5) at No. 15 Arkansas (5-1), Mississippi State (2-5) at Georgia (5-2), South Carolina (4-2) at Vanderbilt (3-4) and Fresno State (1-5) at No. 14 LSU (5-2).
This week’s college football TV schedule kicks off tonight, Friday, with
West Virginia at Connecticut at 7 p.m. on ESPN. Saturday’s weekend TV lineup, other than pay-for-view is as follows:
Texas at Nebraska, 11 a.m. (ABC)
North Carolina St. at Maryland, 11 a.m. (WB)
Michigan State at Northwestern, 11 a.m. (CSS)
Wisconsin at Purdue, 11 a.m. (ESPN)
Illinois at Penn State, 11 a.m. (ESPN2)
Indiana at Ohio State, 11 a.m. (ESPNU)
UCLA at Notre Dame, 1:30 p.m. (NBC)
Boston College at FSU, 2:30 p.m. (ABC)
Alabama at Tennessee, 2:30 p.m. (CBS)
Tennessee State at Jacksonville State, 2:30 p.m. (CSS)
Washington at California, 2:30 p.m. (FSN)
TCU at Army, 2:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
North Texas at Arkansas St., 6 p.m. (CSS)
Colorado at Oklahoma, 6 p.m. (FSN)
Rutgers at Pitt, 6 p.m. (ESPN2)
Southern Miss at Virginia Tech, 6 p.m. (ESPNU)
Georgia Tech at Clemson, 6:45 p.m. (ESPN)
Fresno State at LSU, 8 p.m. (ESPN2)
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | This is a common yellowthroat warbler (geothlypis trichas) captured, banded and released by Bob Sargent's bird banding brigade on the Ft. Morgan peninsula. And that's Bob Sargent's gnarly fingers. Friday will be the last day of the research effort for this year, and we'll have a full report once the numbers are crunched. |
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | A common buckeye butterfly (junonia coenia) shares the floral wealth on the Ft. Morgan peninsula with the migrating monarchs and the Gulf fritillaries. Something's taken a bite of his right wing, but he's still flying and feeding... |
The next general meeting of the Birmingham Audubon Society will be held on Thursday, October 19, 2006 at 7 p.m., at the Birmingham Zoo Auditorium. The speaker will be Nelson Brooke, Black Warrior Riverkeeper, who will speak on what a watershed is and how his work revolves around protecting a watershed, not just a river.
Nelson Brooke was born and raised in Birmingham, Alabama. He attended the Altamont School in Birmingham and graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder with an anthropology degree. He is also an Eagle Scout and an outdoor enthusiast who has enjoyed fishing and hunting along the banks of the Black Warrior River since he was 7-years-old. He has been the Black Warrior Riverkeeper since January of 2004.
As Riverkeeper, Nelson patrols and photographs the Black Warrior River and its tributaries, researches and analyzes polluters' permits, responds to citizen complaints, educates the public about the beauty of the river and threats to it, and acts as a spokesman for the Black Warrior River watershed.
Audubon Society general meetings are open to non-members. Show up early for refreshments...
October 17, 2006, should go down in history as the antithesis of July 4, 1776. On that glorious day, the American Founders proclaimed that all people possessed "unalienable rights," including the crucial legal right of habeas corpus.
Some 230 years later on a dreary fall day in Washington, George W. Bush signed a law repealing America's founding principles and establishing a parallel system for prosecuting enemies of the state, including U.S. citizens.
For the full story on how today's Americans have betrayed the Founders, go to the independent ConsortiumNews.Com.
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | A brown pelican fishing on a grey October day on Mobile Bay's Eastern Shore. The lone gas station on Mobile Street by the public parking areas in Fairhope carries Yuengling Black and Tan, and the Cafe' Amare' on Bancroft Street (no Web site to link to) has fine coffee and a free wireless Internet network. It's back to the Tensaw Delta tonight, then north to Birmingham most likely Tuesday afternoon. |
by Glynn Wilson
GATOR LAKE, GULF STATE PARK, Ala., Oct. 15 - It is not always easy to find the right first word to begin any composition. When you are hammering out words like nails as a daily newspaper reporter, it sometimes hardly matters. You can start with "The…" and go from there.
The mayor was convicted of taking bribes to allow a developer to flip land and build over some wetlands, you might say, and then go on to give out his name and party affiliation, maybe take the trouble to list his campaign contributions. There's one in Orange Beach worth checking right now, even since the mayor and the city attorney there went down. Too bad it wouldn't matter that much to the faithful in the Bible Belt, or the one's sporting W's on the rear window of their SUVs along the Redneck Riviera.
That's actually pretty easy to do, starting with "the" and just going with it - when you can find a publisher willing to print it who is not in on the deal himself.
Sitting here on the other side of Gator Lake by the public picnic area across from the state-owned hotel and convention center due soon to be torn down - two years after Ivan crashed through most of it, making it uninhabitable - perhaps the first word should take the name of a house on a suspect sliver of terrain known as West Beach in Gulf Shores. To wit: "Wits End."
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | My old house at 1109 Lagoon Avenue is now painted pink and is called "Dog Heaven." Many wonderful trips had there, in the hammock listening to the waves crash relentlessly on the sand... |
Revisiting the beach I used to call home 15 years ago, the precariousness of the place is so obvious it is still a mystery to me why every time I've ever ridden down this seven-mile long spit of land there is at least one pair of snow birds stopping in the bike lane to write down the phone number of another beach house for sale or rent. That is, the few houses with the guts still in them and the decks and stairs obviously rebuilt just recently.
They come with names like "Wits End" or "Satisfaction," "Labor of Love" or "Sand Trap" or "Come Lucky." But the beach sand pumped artificially on the beach side travels steadily, surely north across the road like snow blowing over a mountain trail. You can build all the dune fences and save all the beach mice from extinction, maybe, but the sand will still travel north, like the never ending march of time itself, even faster in between houses close together and faster still in between condo high rises stacked side by side.
The planet is warming and the sea levels are rising and all the millions wasted on "beach replenishment" will only stem the tide for a little while, long enough for the developers to cash in until the next big hurricane hits dead on. Then they will go in and build it again, and again, and someone will get rich every time, especially the friends of the governor and the titans of big oil and construction and automobile sales.
That is the American way, after all, since Manifest Destiney drove these crazy escapees from Europe across the plains and the mountains to California and Oregon. They will plow any forest and build anywhere the pathetically weak governments will let them . . .
Excuse me for a minute. I need to shift gears. A great blue heron just flew across the lake in front of me. Not close enough for a photograph. As I was driving over here a few minutes ago, I stopped the van on the side of the road myself. Not to look at a beach house.
Two hawks, followed by two great egrets, flew right in front of me. I got a few shots as they flew away.
Anyway, back to what I was saying. Even the Bible says only a fool builds his house on shifting sand. Find rock, like the houses of Roebuck east of Birmingham where they build their houses not only on rock, but out of rocks.
No, counting on a house staying in the family for generations on this beach is not sensible gambling, unless you just love to lose.
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | No, that's not a garage under an apartment. There were rooms on the bottom floor, beach level at the Gulf State Park Hotel and Convention Center. First Ivan's wind swept them clean, then the water surge finished them off... |
Hang on. Time for a shot of inspiration . . . I'm going to walk over here among the live oaks and see if I can find some birds to shoot. Back in a few . . .
Now, no, not now. Not with this wind whipping in here like it starts to do this time of year, when the skies go grey and the bars get lonely and the only thing there is to do is read, write or drink.
Today is the turning of the tide from the immaculate fall to the not too dreaded winter, where you don't have to worry about the Gulf freezing over - except maybe every 100 years or so. I saw ice in the Gulf in 1990, when that 100-year storm came down from Canada into Dallas and then turned left and froze the Gulf Coast all the way to Panama City for seven solid days.
Three years later, back in Birmingham hanging out on the Southside, I went through the 100-year snow in those hills. Those were the last of the cool years, my friends. They are gone now, unless the Yellow Stone volcano comes to life and spews a dark cloud around the planet and cools things down a bit.
The mercury is rising, they used to say. Now they mean it when they say it, even on the rocking chairs in front of the Cracker Barrel.
It is about time to head north again, since the skies are turning grey and the money's running low. Time to get ready for another winter in Birmingham. There will still be a few late migrant birds coming through there. Maybe the dry summer didn't kill all the fall color and it will be something of a show in Blount and St. Clair counties.
Hang on. It's that great blue again, coming back to the edge of the point. . .
Got a few shots of him flying off, nothing worth printing.
Wits end. That's what I was saying. Homo sapiens are capable of finding that outer limit, that "Island Escape" house or the one called "SOS."
It is a cry for help. A cry for someone to cancel the insurance and raise the interest rates and make it unaffordable, like gasoline will be soon. Then Bush and Riley's economy will be revealed as the frauds they are, fudged numbers as cooked as Health South's books under the now Reverand Scrushy.
But no sir, I am not at wit's end. Not altogether at satisfaction either, if you know what I mean. You know what Mick said about that. You get what you need.
Some people just don't believe that. They like to step over the rest of us and get more than their fair share. Not sure why they think they deserve it, but like the commissioner said in All The King's Men, they get in the courthouse and "gets biggity."
Anyone who thinks they can live on this land forever is "getting' biggity" on the planet. What they may not realize is, the planet will get them, sooner or later, and there ain't no angel from heaven going to come down to earth to save them.
We are all doomed anyway, ultimately, no doubt about it. Dust to dust and all that. So why not live a little? Get out in nature and do something, anything, while there is some nature to get out into. The planet is not at wits end just yet...
End Note: There is high speed wireless on West Beach, at the Gulf Shores Surf and Racket Club. But the yankee bitch there said it was for registered guests only. The old codgers I saw sitting in the lobby would not know how to turn on a computer, and would benefit from the conversation like the Morgan City crowd did in All The King's Men. But no! I missed the closing time at the Dizzy Bean by 11 minutes, so I'm filing from the Gulf Shores McDonald's. Talk about rednecks. The manager did manage to get the connection working, after moving it out from under the food wrappers on his desk : )
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | We are not sure if this is an egret and a heron or what fishing along the road in Gulf State Park between the main office and the picnic area on the beachside of the lake. All we know is they were both very large and white and hanging out with what appeared to be two Cooper's hawks. I couldn't get close enough for a picture. Could it be great white herons? Bob Sargent thinks it might be a cattle egret and a great blue heron, but you can't really tell from the photograph. |
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | Don't try this at home. While walking the twilight yesterday, I discovered that the staff at the Gulf State Park public golf course call this young gator "Notch," due to the notch in his tail. If he wasn't missing a foot or two of his tail, he would be about six feet long. He must like tourists, because he smiles and poses for the camera without so much as a grunt. Oh, and just around the corner from the state park on Highway 180, you can log on at the Dizzy Bean coffee shop. It's a happenin' little place on Sunday morning. They just played the Beatles Birthday song on the radio here. Say happy birthday. I turn 49 today... |
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | A black and white warbler, Mniotilta varia, captured, banded and released on the Ft. Morgan peninsula, Saturday, Oct. 14, 2006. Waking up on Gator Lake again, we decided to head down to visit Bob Sargent's bird banding brigade again this morning. We'll write about the final report on the 2006 fall bird count when the numbers are crunched - and post more photos galore as the muse strikes. Now blogging from the Holiday Inn Express in Orange Beach. Got followed out of the Perdido Beach Hilton last night by a security dick playing detective. If Jim Pope was still alive and manager, we'd have a press suite on the house... |
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | Could this be Susan Vickers of the Isis band playing National Shrimp Fest in Gulf Shores, Alabama? Got back there from Florida just in time for sunset on Alabama's public beach... |
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | A couple of migrating monarch butterflies, danaus plexippus, feeding on the wide variety of plants in the Ft. Walton Beach Ramada Inn gardens. Read our previous story about the migration in The Southerner magazine. |
by Paul Rockne
For the second weekend in a row, the SEC spotlight will be shining on the undefeated Florida Gators (6-0, 4-0 in SEC), ranked No. 2 in the land after their win over LSU last Saturday. The “gator bait” this Saturday (6:45 p.m. on ESPN) will be provided courtesy of the Auburn Tigers (5-1, 3-1).
It should be interesting with both team ranked in the Top 25 – Florida taking over the No. 2 spot vacated by Auburn when it was upset by Arkansas last week. The Tigers fell to No. 11. The Gators will be wanting to prove they deserve their new lofty ranking and to stay in the hunt for the national championship. Auburn will be desperate to keep from dropping even lower on the college football ladder and knowing an upset win would increase its stock several fold.
Auburn’s run defense was decimated by Arkansas last week and the Gators had to have been paying attention. This could mean those watching will see more of freshman quarterback Tim Tebow. Senior QB Chris Leak is the starter and acknowledged leader on the Florida squad, but Tebow has proven to be a potent weapon running the ball. When it is a third – or fourth – and short situation, the Gators bring in Tebow to run for the first down. And he always comes through. For the season, Tebow is just 10-for-14 passing for a meger 152 yards – Leak is 101-for-156 for 1,395 yards and 14 touchdowns. On the ground however, Tebow has run 41 times for 228 yards and three touchdowns.
Auburn’s home record against the Gators is 24-8-1 and the Tigers have won eight of the past nine meetings. But Florida will be out for revenge for the last defeat on the Plains. In 2001, homestanding Auburn upset then ranked No. 1 Florida 23-20.
Another trend seemingly in Auburn’s favor – the last time Florida was No. 2, also in 2001, in the AP poll, it lost its next game to Tennessee.
The Alabama-Ole Miss matchup in Tuscaloosa is another game that will be watched closely. The Tide will be wanting to up its overall mark to 5-2 and improve its league record to 2-2.
With Ken Darby having his first 100-yard game of the season last week in the win over Duke, Bama is hoping the running game will get back on track. If not, things are not lost however. The Tide receiving duo of DJ Hall and Keith Brown are ringing up big number and the passing attack has been what has moved the ball for the Tide so far this year. Bama averages 231 yards per game through the air and just 136 on the ground so far this year.
Ole Miss (4-2, 1-2) Coach Ed Orgeron, whose background is on the defensive side, believes his defense has the measure of the Tide offense and expects to stop the Bama running game cold. He has predicted a game like last year’s 13-10 defensive battle. If so, look for Bama QB John Parker Wilson to make the difference.
Other league games on tap this week include Vanderbilt (2-4, 0-3) at No. 16 Georgia, Arkansas (4-1) hosting SE Missouri State, Mississippi State (1-5) hosting Jacksonville (Alabama) State, and Kentucky (3-3, 1-2) at LSU (4-2, 1-2).
This week’s college football TV schedule kicks off tonight, Friday, with Pittsburga at Central Florida at 7 p.m. on ESPN2). Saturday’s weekend TV lineup, other than pay-for-view is as follows:
Purdue at Northwestern, 11 a.m. (CSS)
Minnesota at Wisconsen, 11 a.m. (ESPN)
Iowa at Indiana, 11 a.m. (ESPN2)
South Florida at North Carolina, 11:00 a.m. (ESPNU)
Vanderbilt at Georgia, 11:30 a.m. (UPN)
Iowa State at Oklahoma, 11:30 p.m. (FSS)
Missouri at Texas A&M, 2:30 p.m. (ABC)
Ole Miss at Alabama, 2:30 p.m. (CBS)
Cincinnati at Louisville, 2:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Baylor at Auburn, 6 p.m. (ESPN)
Ohio State at Penn State, 7p.m. (ABC)
BRUCE, Fla., Oct 12 - Willie Hill of Ebro, Florida, gives up on the fishing as the sun's about to set on the Choctawhatchee River north of Panama City.
He's been fishing around these parts all his life, "a very long time," he says with a contemplative smile.
Has he heard about or seen a large black, white and red woodpecker, maybe 21-inches tall and with a wing span of three feet?
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | Willie Hill, 81, has fished in these waters all his years, but he's never seen an ivory-bill... |
"I heard all about it, but I don't recollect seeing nothing like that, nothing that big, uh, uhh," he said.
But just up river near the Nokuse Plantation preserve, some Auburn researchers say they saw it 14 times and recorded its unique "kent, kent" call.
"That plantation, it's up river, that-a-way," said Johnnie Hill, 71. Has she ever seen the elusive ivory-billed woodpecker everyone's now searching for in the waters and forests of her youth?
"Not me," she said, putting away her fishing rod for the night.
I headed over from Navarre Beach down coastal Highway 98 over West Bay, and turned left on state Highway 79, then turned left on 20 and eased into Bruce in time for a beautiful lunch at the Bruce Café. Barbecued chicken cooked on the bone, rice and gravy, butter peas, tossed salad, a large glass of water and sweet iced-tea to go, but not before the banana pudding, thank you very much, maybe the best I've ever tasted, all for $6 plus tip.
A quick check at the Bruce Bait and Tackle shop across the street brought conformation that the main channel of the Choctawhatchee River was just five miles down the road, with a free state boat ramp.
Easing into the water, I could feel the primitive nature of the land as soon as the sounds from the bridge disappeared behind me. Again, there were families of flickers every 50 yards or so, cluk, cluking from behind the tall cypress trees along the water, behind nature's mask. It makes one wonder if some birds warn others when a man comes floating up the river.
What appears to be a kingfisher guards one section of the river as I go about as far north as I dare before turning around and heading back before dark. It makes a hell of a racket and flies ahead of me, then circles back and lands on a tree at my back. Then it does it again...
There are other kinds of woodpeckers in the woods making noises. Then the shrill call of a blue jay far off makes me sit up and take notice. What does an ivory-bill really sound like?
If there are ivory-billed woodpeckers here, they ain't showing themselves today to this traveler. So we'll have to come back again early in the morning and paddle further north.
 | Photo by Glynn Wilson | | A remote cypress swamp in the panhandle of Florida may be home to the elusive ivory-billed woodpeckers, but they did not show themselves to this traveler on this day... |
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