There's something happening here

...but what it is ain't exactly clear.

Yesterday's gathering in Zinn Park was much smaller than Anniston's first General Assembly, and people may get disheartened by that fact. However it is sort of exciting for me personally since the faces I saw yesterday were not at the first General Assembly. During the past two weeks, 20 people from a slew of different backgrounds cut the TV/internet lifeline and physically gathered in hopes of seeing something change in Anniston.

Over the past month or so, I've probably talked to around 50+ people in the greater Anniston/Oxford area that, when asked about their personal feelings of the rapid growth of the Occupy movements, say the same thing: "I want to see something happen in Anniston." The desire for drastic change thrives in the Model City and surrounding areas, but the road paved with good intentions won't get us anywhere different.

If you're reading this, it's safe to say you also want to see something happen in Anniston. What is that something everyone talks about?

• Full-time occupation?  

• General Assembly working with city leaders? 

• Support for regional occupations like Birmingham or Atlanta? 

• Support for veteran Anniston occupiers (the homeless that occupy against their will)? 

• Demonstrations against banks, Monsanto/Solutia, or other parasitic "for-profit" entities? 

• Employees in the countless low-wage service jobs staging a mass strike?

It's probably time the conversation replaces that something everybody wants with an actual goal.

-MDS

A Neighborly Call to Action

I did some outreach today and there is plenty of skepticism about the Occupy Calhoun County Facebook group. Instead of critiquing every little point, however, I'm simply going to ask which individuals are ready to take OccupyCalhoun from a mere Facebook group to an actual coordinated movement in Calhoun County?

Being in Anniston will make this movement unlike most throughout the country. Local political views are a stark contrast to those in NYC, Oakland, and elsewhere, but we all share the same outlook: nothing will get better based on our country's current course. Many of our neighbors are waiting for either a politician or a group to come onto the scene with all of the answers to the barrage of questions. During their wait, the fact that Anniston is OUR town and OUR movement has been lost in the mix. The city council will not help coordinate direct action in the area. The county commission will not help coordinate direct action in the area. Training kits don't exist. We have to figure this out on our own.

I've seen only 2 mentions about gatherings: A General Assembly at 10am on November 4 and a march on the following day. This information is difficult to locate and incomplete. I plan on spending this evening trying to find resources to help with coordinating, but there is one major problem for me on a personal level: I can't really verify any information posted anonymously on a FB group. I'm happy being obnoxiously loud about this movement, and we'll definitely need others to be just as loud. We can only hide behind a Guy Fawkes mask for so long.

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

That is the First amendment to the Constitution for a reason. So whaddaya say we "peaceably assemble" and "petition the Government for a redress of grievances?" Seems more proactive than watching cable news...

-MDS

The Bulldogs' star player unstoppable by Cleburne County

HEFLIN - Early in this 4A region game, the Anniston Bulldogs and Cleburne County Tigers were two strong and evenly matched teams. Despite an early touchdown by the Tigers’ Christopher Ervin, the Bulldogs took advantage of their strong running back Troymaine Pope to overwhelm the Tigers with a 49-35 final score.

“He’s just outrunning us” said Tiger head coach Michael Shortt. The 5’9” 137-pound Pope racked up 174 yards in the first half alone, including an 81-yard touchdown run and a subsequent 2-point conversion halfway through the second quarter to give Anniston an 8-point lead.

The Tigers quickly answered back with a 39-yard rush by Rocky Hayes to set up a drive that slowly wore down the Bulldog defense. With 13 seconds left in the second quarter, Hayes made a dramatic dive into the end-zone to put Cleburne County within 2 points of Anniston. After a successful 2-point conversion, the Tigers had tied the game 14-14 by the half.

The second half was a much different story as both offenses, defenses, and even special teams pulled out all the stops. Pope again stole the show for the Bulldogs in a mere 47 seconds with 65 yards in 2 plays to put Anniston up by 7.

The Tigers then took the ball at their own 20-yard line, but after an unsuccessful drive deep in their own territory were forced to punt. The 6’4” 261-pound Anniston senior Jeremy Thomas got his arms up and blocked the punt to put Anniston at the Tigers’ 1-yard line. The Bulldogs easily capitalized on this field position to gain a healthy 14-point lead. 14 seconds later, Cleburne County returned a long kickoff for a touchdown, reducing the Anniston lead by 7.

The Tigers continued to gain yards and points against the Bulldog defense both on the ground and in the air, including a 35-yard pass to Alexander Lee and rushes by Christopher Ervin, Antonine Phillips, and sophomore Christian Henson which set up a 2-yard touchdown rush by quarterback Matthew Norton. The Cleburne County offense managed 7 first-downs in the second half (compared to 2 by Anniston) but their defense was only able to shut down the Troymaine Pope running game on a single drive early in the 3rd quarter.

When asked how the Tiger defense could stop Pope, Coach Shortt simply replied by saying “we’ve got to tackle better. That’s what it comes down to; blocking and tackling.”

Progress instead of politics

As a Community Blogger for the local newspaper, I first try to decide which direction to go. As the Dr. once said: We can't stop here. This is bat country.

As I begin my blogging project with The Anniston Star, I feel the need to first address the disconnect many in my generation feel with the general concept of news outlets. We've grown up for the past three decades having most everything prepackaged with bells, whistles, and eye-catching artwork—a technique that has proven successful for industries profiting from goods like cell phones, video games, music, and movies.



However, an industry that hasn't been able to catch our attention for more than a few days is one I personally refer to as the “news-media” industry: and international group of corporate-owned television and radio networks that commonly report news through an entertainment business model. While more often than not the companies within this industry seem to put quality journalism a close second to their bottom line, there are stand-out factions that continue to damage an otherwise respectable and necessary profession.



A recent example of the more extreme side of the news-media industry is the Fox News Sunday interview with Comedy Central's Jon Stewart. From the start of the interview, Stewart defended his description of Fox News as an “...agenda-driven, 24 hour news-opinion, propaganda delivery system.” Chris Wallace asked if Stewart thought “mainstream” news organizations like ABC, NBC, The New York Times, and others were “promoting a liberal agenda” and Stewart blamed their media bias on “sensationalism, conflict, and laziness” rather than political agendas.



In an attempt to prove a mainstream agenda, Chris Wallace showed a clip of ABC's Diane Sawyer exhibiting a “liberal bias” in her report of Arizona immigration laws. Stewart was quick to admit that her description of the new law could easily misinform viewers, but her description was not necessarily promoting the liberal slant that Wallace claimed Fox News tries to counteract. Stewart went on to give an example of the news-media's bias across an entire industry when he reminded Wallace of a news story from the previous day—when 24-hour news outlets abruptly ended live coverage of a press conference once a story was no longer a story:

“3 networks—Fox, CNN, msnbc—are going live to the Nancy Pelosi news conference because they are sure, coming on the heels of Anthony Weiner resigning, that she is going to make some sort of incredible statement about 'I am disappointed in Anthony Weiner.' So they are all locked on it, and the whole time there is hand-wringing: 'Aww, I can't believe we have got to go and do this. The American people don't care about this. They care about jobs. They care about the economy. That is what the American people care about. We are about to go live to Speaker Pelosi.' She is about to do that. She steps up to the podium and says what? 'I am not going to comment about Anthony Weiner. I am going to talk about jobs and I am going to talk about the economy,' and what did everybody do? So what is you're proof again about the partisan agenda and what I do? That is the embarrassment. The embarrassment is that I am given credibility in this world because of the disappointment that the public has for what the news-media does.” (Jon Stewart on Fox News Sunday - 19 June, 2011)

Pundits, talking heads, and average citizens dissected the interview for days. The left snapped at Fox for editing a short (yet poignant) portion of the interview during their replays—technically the unedited version is available on their website. The right paraded a remark made by Stewart that was blatantly false—his point was later reiterated and verified on The Daily Show.



Chris Wallace offered his own final opinion of the conversation when he told Don Imus "...if you were a liberal, you thought that [Stewart] just wiped the floor with me. And if you were a conservative, you thought I just wiped the floor with him." This statement perhaps speaks louder than the entire 24-minutes Stewart and Wallace shared; the very sensationalism, conflict, and laziness described by Stewart can be seen in both the producers and consumers of the news-media industry.



However, The Anniston Star's Community Blogging Project will hopefully prove to become and new way to finally blur the lines between news-media “producers” and “consumers.” A younger and more tech-savvy generation is becoming more involved in the economy and government—and in a time where television, radio, and newspapers are losing ground to the internet as the main news source for the public, the distribution of information concerning government and economic issues becomes that much more important. Instead of dwelling on the failure of mediums like cable news networks to inform 'We the People,' I'm excited to instead do my part in a network of citizens who want to see progress, not politics.

-MDS

Wildly misguided pursuits of a dream may have gotten easier

In the first months of 2011, the growing political unrest throughout the Middle East became the headlines here in the United States. The revolution in Egypt captivated many Americans while the atrocities in Libya horrified even more. As an aspiring journalist in the first few years of a college education, I tediously gathered resources from across the internet to better understand these events—among others—and to pass information along to my peers. Much of my newfound knowledge was posted to my personal blog, In the Field. For years I have always enjoyed informing portions of my highly sought-after demographic that almost completely ignores mainstream news outlets thanks to the old-journalism practices of political partisanship, capitalistic goals, and a long history of outright lies delivered to the consumers of media.


March 22 didn't change a thing. On that sleepless Tuesday night, I saw some of the first Twitter posts coming from the Syrian front of the Arab Spring:


“Urgent: Security forces are storming #Omari mosque now in #Daraa #Syria” (@Mohammad_Syria)


Research ensued for hours as I discovered that finding a number of legitimate sources to confirm these reports from protesters wasn't too difficult; finding legitimate sources defending Syrian government forces was futile; finding English news articles about the events at al-Omari was near impossible. Perhaps the most difficult aspect for me was to accept—as truth—the videos, pictures and stories that depicted heartless violence against unarmed men. Over the course of six hours I compiled all of the information I had into 400 of the most objective words I could muster. Shortly after I posted my rendition of Daraa, stories began to surface on the internet from the BBC, Associated Press, Al Jazeera, and the LA Times—all of which verified the 400 words posted to In the Field.


Then the news slowly returned to it's regularly scheduled instigation of civil war between the “left” and “right.”


Over the course of the past semester, this test of my skills as a writer seemed much more challenging and productive than college assignments of critiquing F. Scott Fitzgerald stories, producing a summary of Herbert Spencer's synthetic philosophy, or just struggling to stay awake during psychology lectures. The challenge of writing about Daraa, Syria was immediate due to language barriers, lack of confirmed reports from mainstream news outlets, and my sheer inexperience in the field. The productivity took some time to show results, but eventually did in the form of in-depth discussions with local people who were first informed of Syrian dissent from In the Field blogs—people with curiosity about the world but contempt for the media.


Further premature and mistake riddled attempts at becoming a working journalist have quickly taken a backseat to pesky things like yard work and a day job, but the fascination with mass media along with a naive curiosity of current events continues to drive the desire to get the hell out of school. After losing sight of the forest for the trees, I was beyond elated to see an article by Bob Davis in the June 19th edition of The Anniston Star. Davis, editor for The Star, announced “an effort we hope will harness this desire to share community news in the digital age. We are introducing a Community Bloggers project.”


I think this summer just got a little more interesting.


-MDS

Calming the Facebook/DIRECTV rumors

3 June 2011 - Rumors have started floating around social networking sites like Facebook claiming DIRECTV customers who suffered damage from the 2011 tornadoes are "...being told to send in a box or remote control or pay a fine of $500+ to cancel service." 

Jade L. Eksdedt, Senior Manager of Public Relations for DirecTV, expressed sympathy to those who suffered losses as a result of the storms and assured that DIRECTV is "...currently working with customers affected by the tragedy to determine a solution that best fits their needs."

In a statement sent to In The Field, Eksdedt said "if service cannot be restored at the customer’s home due to the damage from the storm, DIRECTV will cancel the account and waive any fees associated with the inability to return equipment, along with any remaining agreement on the account."

Eksdedt went on to say that customers without electricity for an extended period of time have the option to temporarily suspend accounts until proper services have been restored. DIRECTV is also offering "no-cost service calls" to properly fix any technical issues resulting from the storms.

For customers that suffered damage but did wish to retain their service, Eksdedt said DIRECTV will "...offer to waive equipment replacement costs if they continue services."

Eksdedt concluded the statement by saying "customers who have been affected by the tornado should call 1-800-531-5000 so we [DIRECTV] can remedy their situation immediately."

-MDS

Taxes, jobs, and the American Economy according to Speaker of the House John Boehner

While legislators on all sides of Congress scramble to solve the country's financial problems, John Boehner explains the GOP vision of a new economic path to prosperity.

The Economic Club of New York, a self-described “nonpolitical, nonpartisan and nonprofit” club of about 700 individuals from organizations like Koch Industries, JPMorgan Chase, Goldman­Sachs, and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, welcomed Speaker of the House John Boehner on Monday to the Hilton Hotel in New York City. Boehner delivered a speech about the condition of the American economy which revolved around “job creators,” “real economic solutions,” and America's inability to “tax, borrow, and spend our way to prosperity.”

Speaker Boehner's speech constantly reiterated his stance concerning taxes and the infamous GOP-backed Ryan Budget. He reminisced about his early days in Congress and the balanced budget during the late 1990s. He readily admitted the federal surplus from the Clinton era was a result of a 1990 bipartisan deal which included higher taxes. However, Boehner's stance was made clear: “I would note that my colleagues and I are not calling for tax cuts in this budget. Rather, we are calling for the end to the threat of tax hikes and a fundamental reform of our tax code so that we can provide more certainty for our job creators.”

The various stimulus packages enacted from DC were also described as obstacles for private sector growth. Boehner empathized with small­ business owners and understood why “instead of hiring new employees, they make the logical decision to sit on their hands.” He later went on to remind the guests “if we're serious about balancing the budget and getting our economy back to creating jobs, tax hikes should be off the table.”

Along the lines of energy concerns as Americans face near­ record-high gas prices, Speaker Boehner questioned why Washington DC has kept American energy reserves “under lock and key for decades over the clear objections of the American people.” He suggested by opening these untapped energy resources the economy stands to gain over 1 million jobs.

Towards the end of the event, some members of the Economic Club asked Speaker Boehner questions. Jane Hartley, who worked as an advisor under the Carter administration, asked about prospects of the House passing corporate tax reform. Boehner believed the issue would be addressed in both sides of Congress within the next 2 years. “We are not going to use tax reform, though, as a way of increasing taxes on the American people or American enterprises.”

Peter Peterson, the former president and CEO of Lehman Brothers during the 1970s, referenced Admiral Mike Mullen in describing “the biggest single threat to our national security is our debt.” Peterson then asked about a review of defense spending priorities “...based on today's—not yesterday's—threat, and today's—not yesterday's—budget outlook.” Boehner responded that “everything is on the table—except raising taxes.” “It has to be an important part of the debate, and I will guarantee you it will be.”

Here's looking at you, John..

-MDS

A Letter on Religious Clarification

To whom it may concern:

As a result of hundreds of debates on hundreds of topics, I've heard a very common theme during my adult life in the Deep South of the US: 

"Blah blah blah. Separation of Church and State is nowhere in the US Constitution. Blah blah blah."

How can a bleeding.heart.commie.bastard like myself ever argue that point to the holy.rolling.bible.thumpers around me since that above statement is, in fact, true? Budget battles over the funding of Planned Parenthood or court battles over the Ten Commandments displayed in public offices always seem to take the route of the "Christian Principles" that our country's founders had in mind for the new nation. The argument of separating the 'will of God' from 'American Liberties' is simply lost in the mix. After all, the Constitution never expressly says "separation of church and state." This always seemed like a real paradox since, in my opinion, the Constitution is one of the most profoundly ingenious documents ever written.

Then I realized something funny. While nowhere in the Constitution, that phrase actually was first coined by none other than Thomas Jefferson--the walking contradiction that directed the writing of the Constitution. He used that phrase to refer back to what is now known as an "establishment clause" in the First Amendment. 

Meaning? 

The government will not pick one religion over another. 

Ever. 

So stop it.

-MDS

A crudely fictionalized rendition of: The Press Conference

I decided to attend my first “press conference” this past Monday. I wasn't quite sure what I was getting myself into, but I can't become a journalist if I don't do journalist things—and at the time it seemed more proactive than watching TV in my bedroom. I found myself driving through the other side of this strikingly segregated southern town towards the sheriff's office to meet with Leigh, the coincidental associate with me on this expedition.


We met in the parking lot and wandered into the belly of the beast together. I was going based on nothing more than a feed from the newspaper which said the sheriff was to hold a press conference at 2pm as I walked to the counter with my pathetically small camcorder bag in tow. The rather husky woman with a fantastic perm behind the glass wasn't aware of any press conference in 15 minutes, but she diligently trudged into the deep recesses to formulate a reply for me. After the delivery of convoluted directions that sent us across the building (and from my personal experiences within the sheriff's complex, closer to prisoner intake and the womans' wing), Leigh and I soon found ourselves in a foul-smelling conference room with two middle-aged men in polo shirts as they stood behind a pair of broadcast cameras and gave us a quick look.


We blatantly looked like college kids—Leigh bearing a striking resemblance to that cute chick in that one movie, myself sporting a tacky “Mexico: I'm just here for the beer” t-shirt—as we walked to the back of the silent and uncomfortably large room to put our bags down. During the next 20 minutes or so, cameramen from every TV station from the area filed in, set up their respective cameras, and idly shared war stories from the field amongst themselves. Once I realized the camera's were blocking my every view of the podium in the corner, we went to the 4th and final row of fold-out chairs to take a seat as I hit record on my camcorder and discreetly placed it on my knee.


The sheriff arrived fashionably late, greeted the lawyers with a warm handshake; the media with a cold handshake; and a random guy with a politician's handshake before he took the stage. He apologized for his tardiness and made sure the dozen or so in the room were cozy before letting everyone know he wasn't actually holding a press conference. The speech he read hit all the talking points one would expect to hear from this model city: family, friends, and Jesus Christ. The coup de gras came in the form of some crazy conspiracy against the masses involving the media.


The sheriff ended his speech by reading from the Good Book before he floated away into a dark abyss in the far corner of the room. This left me standing confused while the shuffle of cameramen picked up momentum and shook me out of my stupor. I was disappointed into shock by the lack of acquired knowledge during the half-hour spent in that room. Leigh shared this sentiment. We shuffled out with the mix of journalists into the hallway which led to the exit when Leigh caught the ear of a photographer from the newspaper. Stories that concerned a fraud scheme disguised as official state business were shared between the two of them. Only halfway listening, I eventually reeled from the sheriff's barbaric waste of time before the photographer parted ways.


Leigh and I walked to the car where the camera was ditched and a cigarette lit in defeat. I had learned nothing about the story and nothing about journalism—then I saw the same random guy from earlier, another random old guy, and a familiar TV face setting up a camera. I threw my cigarette down in a panic and headed across the parking lot in hopes of watching a spur-of-the-moment interview but arrived to find nothing more than confused looks from all 3 men. We all shared a few awkward words and the TV reporter got some great footage of a brick wall. The lesson was complete and I decided to end this learning experience and head home. Leigh gave me a transcript of the speech and a hug. The press conference was over.


I replayed the video as soon as I got in the car, looped it as I sped home, and analyzed every word for some time afterward—the story never made sense. The sheriff had damning video evidence stacked up against his department and himself and only replied with a nonsensical response that pins any wrongdoing of his own actions haphazardly upon the lack of ethics practiced by a newspaper. Furthermore, the sheriff refused to speak to anyone before slinking back into his fortified compound to hide from the haze of reality. From a plethora of failed experiences, I can assure anyone that his method of defense isn't the most effective.


The only other defense for the sheriff and his posse comes from the typical woodwork in the area. Those who live in a world where the incriminating video doesn't exist are accompanied by crudely assembled responses from newspaper readers that insist the sheriff was simply teaching the boy an old-fashioned lesson in a room that smells like the YMCA locker-rooms. Along in the mix of madness are those angered at the sheriff who want him to reimburse the family of a single victim. Spare the shackles, launch the lawsuit: no better device to teach the sheriff a not-so-old-fashioned lesson in a courtroom that smells much nicer. In the end, his paycheck as been paid by the voters of the county. That story makes sense, but one crucial annoyance continued to linger.


The sheriff mentioned that the newspaper had put the boy “in danger” when the identity of said boy was released. I began a quest to find the truth behind this claim. My frustration with this led to a #WINNING moment when my total time spent behind enemy lines culminated into an epic blunder of menial proportions—I was a guy without a chance in the fight against this beast as the shank instinctively lunged forward. I used the sheriff's method of defense and went slinking back to hide from the haze of reality. The real story was so close, but all of the wounds sustained were enough to cause a failure of the task at hand.


It always comes so close to making sense, but then I find out I have 3 tests in a few hours. Back to the haze of reality.


-MDS

Madness in Calhoun County

In response to: Anniston Star - Video shows sheriff using manual force but sheriff says it s not the whole story


Laws are not only in place to prevent parents from exercising this type of discipline on children, but to also prevent grown men from using unwarranted physical force on anyone. Whether or not the kid deserved that type of treatment, Sheriff Amerson had no right, reason, nor excuse to ever display that kind of force in that kind of situation.


In the strictly controlled environment that is the Calhoun County Jail, ask yourself if you would ever feel intimidated enough to lunge at a handcuffed teenager. Why would a sheriff with almost four decades in law enforcement feel intimidated or threatened?


For such a blatant disregard of rules at any workplace, immediate termination of the violator is typically the standard operating procedure. But this is a different story: we're talking public officials. It sounds like the time to “lawyer up” is upon us.


Lawsuits scare the pants off of anyone, but what will that solve in the end? No matter which side of the aisle you're on, Amerson or the anonymous whistle-blower would pay a lewd amount of money to someone else and the whole thing magically goes away—or would it?


Rational people usually use physical force against things they fear. Perhaps Amerson proves that; perhaps the growing number of “hoodlums” prove that. The only thing this video proves to me is that there doesn't seem to be too much rationality within the Calhoun County Sheriff's Office.


While this fierce online debate has raged, not one single comment has actually praised the fantastic work of our local law enforcement. Coming from my half-dozen experiences on both sides of the law, some members of the CCSD seem to be at least semi-rational and professional. I hope the intentions of the anonymous person that submitted this tape to the Anniston Star are of the rationality we should expect.


From the aspect of a taxpayer, I simply ask for a rational and professional sheriff to protect and serve my community. Irresponsibility is to be expected from a teenager—not from an elected official.


-MDS

REPORT

Unrest in Arab nations continues to grow. During the confusing stream of information from Syria, relief was never found on US news networks.


The following is my personal interpretation of the most credible accounts of the past week's events...


...during which, the host of MSNBC's “The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell,” presented to his viewers some interesting information about the title of Operation: Odyssey Dawn. The US Armed Force assistance offered to the Libyan freedom fighters was named based on rules set forth by the Pentagon. O'Donnell reported “the first word...must begin with 'O'. The second word must start the with [a] letter 'A' through 'F'.” O'Donnell asked for viewers' ideas for alternative titles—Obama Cares, Opportunity Freedom, and Overwhelming Courage were some viewer responses.


This fierce Libyan debate (one among many) has raged within American circles while madness from southern Syria filled the internet. The main source has been from apparent victims at the al-Omari mosque in Daraa, a town just outside the Syrian capital of Damascus. For weeks, the number of people on the streets grew from hundreds to thousands and protested the imprisonment of fifteen children jailed for writing anti-government slogans on school walls. The intentions of the jailed teenagers is obviously perceived by some as an alleged terrorist threat, but more people have seemed to find the graffiti was something more.


They had gathered on the "Friday of dignity" to display their disgust of school-age political prisoners and as a result their groups grew to form a protest officially described as a “sit-in” by the government. Police, national security forces, and even Syrian military forces were dispatched the following Tuesday to control the exploding sea of peaceful protesters. Violence was soon injected into Daraa as the government presence grew, and by 8:00 PM the city was surrounded by armed gunmen. Protesters had settled around a mosque that was established as a hospital for victims recovering from teargas and gunshot wounds. Some injuries were severe enough to warrant additional doctors to travel into the city.


As the following day rolled into it's second hour, electricity and cell phone service had already been lost around the al-Omari mosque. Dr. Ali Ghassab al-Mahamid rode in an ambulance as it traveled through Daraa when an attack launched upon the vehicle killed everyone aboard. Bullets soon cracked through the streets around al-Omari and struck unarmed men in search of adequate cover. These attacks continued throughout the day as tales began to escape the confines of a newly-isolated city.


Bus loads of armed men rolled into the city during the day and searched for anyone documenting the events. Hundreds of students and journalists were arrested by the government in hopes of silencing the crowds. Despite bullets that sliced through the air, some protesters were seen as they tried to recover the dead bodies that littered the streets. What started as a peaceful sit-in which called for the release of teenagers from prison soon turned into something widely considered a massacre; one delivered by snipers hidden on rooftops and controlled by military checkpoints in and out of the chaos.


The story of Daraa has been difficult to grasp for anybody even remotely linked to it. As a result, the struggling freedom fighters in Syria have become nothing more than a 20-second blurb on the evening news for many Americans—everything caught between a convoluted political truth and a quick message from the sponsors.


This submission to “The Last Word” adheres to the Pentagon's rules of naming the military actions in Libya yet is inspired by words from the the forgotten stories from Syria. Not to necessarily condone violence through military action or otherwise, I instead want to compliment a growing general attitude—one shared not only in northern African and the Middle East but around the world—in terms that can easily be understood by most Americans that has transcended political, racial, religious, and generational gaps...


OPERATION: Overcome Fear


-MDS

Syrian protests seem to continue as information struggles to leave the area

Twitter is still ablaze concerning the details in Daraa while major US news outlets wait to confirm reports.


23 March 2011 - 1355 CDT: After almost a week of otherwise peaceful protests in Daraa, Syria, clashes between civilians and government forces are becoming more violent after an alleged attack on a mosque by the Syrian military. Protesters were using the Omari mosque as a makeshift hospital Tuesday night when gunfire sent the crowds running for shelter. Phone service in the area has remained down and Syrian officials have already reported to Al Arabiya their disconnection of electricity in and around Daraa just before the raid early Wednesday morning.


The protesters have been calling for president Bashar al-Assad to push for more meaningful political reform despite the Emergency Law that has been in effect since 1963. The almost 40 year old law makes participation in such protests a crime, and government officials are claiming the violence is in response to “the armed gangs that terrorize civilians.” Videos reportedly from the area showed a number of vans, trucks, and cars entering a neighborhood as they deployed dozens of armed men—mostly in black but some in plain clothes. These men then flooded into the streets to detain a number of unarmed protesters and quickly put them into vehicles.


Many larger news outlets are not giving the detailed reports from Daraa. Unlike the reports from other Middle Eastern protests, confirmation from Syria is severly limited. Most networks do have confirmed reports of at least 15 deaths since yesterday, but some accounts on social networking describe “hundreds of dead bodies” in and around the city. Allegations of Syrian forces targeting doctors, nurses, and ambulances have grown in numbers as night falls on the city, but none of which can be validated by pictures or first-hand accounts.


The crackdown on information out of the area is also becoming more apparent. Mohammad al-Abdullah, a former Syrian political prisoner in exile in the US, is urging citizen journalists and bloggers in Daraa to be careful as the number of their arrests grows. The Syrian Human Rights Committee has also condemned the execution of Khaled el-Masri, a soldier in the Syrian army sent to Daraa. After he refused to participate in the early morning raid of the Omari mosque, el-Masri was subsequently shot three times by Syrian authorities.


-MDS

Crackdowns in Syria Make Daraa Details Fuzzy

Many major news outlets can't independently verify many of the details coming out of Syria. Good thing I'm not one of them


23 March 2011 - 0415 CDT: The Omari mosque in downtown Daraa, Syria has been used since Friday by protesters who have been calling for the release of 15 children arrested on March 6^th. The children—all under 17—were arrested for writing anti-government slogans on school walls. As the number of supporters grew into the thousands by Tuesday, military forces began firing tear gas and live ammunition to disperse the crowds.

By 8pm local time the city was surrounded by Syrian military forces after government officials had "given the protesters until three in the morning to end the sit-in." Just after 3am early Wednesday morning, Syrian military entered the area near the makeshift hospital to confront the crowds. Video reportedly from the area just outside of the mosque shows unarmed civilians fleeing from the sounds of nearby gunfire and explosions. Along with reports of phone service being unavailable in the area around the Omari mosque, government officials have admitted to cutting power to the city. Other reports also claim the Syrian military prevented ambulance access to the mosque where there are reports of injuries and up to 6 deaths of protesters and doctors.

The newspaper al-Quds al-Arabi reports Syrian officials sent security forces to encounter an “armed gang” at the Omari mosque. According to the officials, the gang had attacked an ambulance and killed at least two before security forces near the scene intervened and made arrests—bringing the death toll to 11 since Friday. Syrian officials went on by saying “the security forces will continue to pursue armed gangs that terrorize civilians.”

Protests have been occurring in the country west of Iraq since late January after the self-immolation of Hasan Ali Akleh. By February 5^th, hundreds of protesters gathered in Hasan's hometown in northeast Syria and called for the departure of president Bashar al-Assad. Protests soon spread to the city of Damascus as they gained thousands of supporters and resulted in dozens of arrests. Due to an emergency law enacted in 1963, any anti-government organization is illegal in Syria as result of ongoing war with Israel.

This is the third major uprising in the past 35 years. Many protesters in Daraa fear a repeat of the Hama Massacre of February 1982, when tens of thousands of Syrian civilians and soldiers were killed in a failed uprising against president Hafiz al-Assad. There was also Damascus Spring, a pro-democracy group which began summer 2000 after the death of al-Assad. Damascus Spring looked to discuss matters between different smaller groups which included democratic, communist, and Ba'athist views in hopes of political reform. However, Hafiz al-Assad's son and successor Bashar al-Assad quickly suppressed Damascus Spring months later with the arrests of several key figures.  


-MDS

Sketchy reports from Daraa, Syria

A growing number of tweets show signs of a possible massacre at a mosque by Syrian forces

23 March 2011 – 00:05 CDT: The Omari mosque in downtown Daraa, Syria has been used since Friday by protesters who have been calling for the release of 15 children arrested on March 6^th. The children—all under 15—were arrested for writing anti-government slogans on school walls. As the number of supporters grew into the thousands by Tuesday, security forces began firing tear gas and live ammunition to disperse the crowds.

By 8pm the city was surrounded by Syrian security forces. Just after 2am early Wednesday morning, they stormed the mosque and opened fire while close to 2,000 protesters slept. These forces have since been preventing ambulances to the mosque where there are reports of injuries and anywhere from 4 to 6 deaths.

Protests have been occurring in the country west of Iraq since late January after the self-immolation of Hasan Ali Akleh. By February 5^th, hundreds of protesters gathered in Hasan's hometown in northeast Syria and called for the departure of President Bashar al-Assad. Protests soon spread to the city of Damascus, gaining thousands of supporters and resulting in dozens of arrests.

While there have been reports of violence and arrests, news from Daraa is the first to include fatalities since Hasan Ali Akleh. In an interview with ABC's Jess Hill, former Syrian political prisoner Mohammed al-Abdullah says “[t]omorrow you are going to witness thousands—hundreds of thousands—protesting,” and that the government will soon “lose any control.” The stability of the protests, however, is still uncertain since no major international networks are reporting on these events and all of my sources are only a growing number of third/fourth-hand accounts...

...but regardless, I'll try my darnedest to follow it.


23 March 2011 - 0200 CDT: More news is coming from Al Jazeera, BBC, NYT, CNN, et. al. concerning the clash between military forces and protesters in Daraa, Syria. 


Arabic-language videos are surfacing online which show what appear to be groups of 5 to 7 armed men standing a few blocks away from protesters. Panic spreads as shouting begins, followed bright flashes and sounds of gunfire as the protesters run for cover. No return fire is heard. I'm not quite sure how to get that translated beyond waiting on the major news networks. (http://youtu.be/B91tAQaH7zk)

Power has been cut to the city and phone service in the area around the Omari mosque, which was being used as a makeshift hospital. At least one doctor has been killed in an attack by the Syrian army. The time of the attack is now estimated to have been closer to 0330 Syrian local (2030 CDT) and involved live rounds as well as explosives.

Still nothing live from CNN, msnbc, FoxNews, or AJE. However, I'm still digging...

-MDS

The Fight for Facebook Freedoms

Some Anniston, Alabama leaders are pushing for restrictions on city employees' negative opinions about their employers and government. There is opposition, but from intentions that are quite disheartening.


In February 2011, Anniston City Manager Don Hoyt proposed a policy that restricts city employees from saying anything negative about their employer on personal Facebook accounts. In interviews with The Anniston Star, Councilman Ben Little claimed city employees “are obligated to present the city of Anniston, its officials, employees, and citizens in a positive light” and suggested disciplinary actions for those who post anything “inappropriate or embarrassing to the city or its citizens.” If something smells like horse-squeeze but is described “in a positive light” as a bed of roses, that strikes me as a false truth. If it walks like a politician...

Not all city leaders feel the same way, however. Councilman John Spain said Hoyt's proposal is too vague. Mayor Gene Robinson added the proposal might infringe on First Amendment rights and “open up the city for more lawsuits, and lawsuits are expensive.” The Anniston city council knows 'expensive' all too well—a city inquisition that has wasted months of time and a boat-load of cash is a great basis of their knowledge. Robinson's remark is indeed a fact, but should something like money even have to be a factor in deciding an outcome for such a blatantly oppressive city policy? If it talks like a politician...

Criticizing public figures is a civil liberty virtually all people exercise on a regular basis. Whether someone is #WINNING on Twitter or casting their vote for “moron of the year” on Facebook, the remarks will forever swarm the internet. It seems the City Council's real problem is not with individual Facebook posts, but rather the growing number of critical remarks. The fear of an employee losing a job these days is already a powerful thing, but employees regardlessly post their personal opinions. For me, a red flag goes up when the employer wants to make the fight against this fear a crime. If it walks and talks as such, it probably is.

Hopefully the council members will realize the most effective way to solve this problem doesn't lie with a single talking point on some random Tuesday. A restriction may stop critical remarks, but the critical sentiment will still linger. Egos might be saved, but not without losing respect from those who are targeted by a growing number of policies. The more numerous restrictions will only lead to a deeper feeling of contempt for city leaders, and isn't that feeling the real problem in this situation? “A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong, gives it a superficial appearance of being right, and raises at first a formidable outcry in defence of custom.” It's Common Sense.

-MDS

Keep Calm and Carry On

As the unrest in Egypt, Libya, and other Middle Eastern countries settles into the minds of Americans, some wonder if the images on TV could come to neighborhoods near you.

Tunisia. Egypt. Algeria. Yemen. Close to a dozen countries during a dozen weeks. Peoples' revolutions are starting. Fortunately they have been (for the most part) peaceful protests in Oman, Syria, and other countries in the area. The news coming out of Libya is a totally different story. Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi threatens protesters with death to thousands, rivers of blood, and vows to silence the voice of the workers, parents, students, and siblings who want a country with economic, social, and political freedom. The sentiment among us in the States learning about these unbelievable events will always vary, but one topic that steadfastly arises in conversation asks if the events “over there” could ever happen “over here.”

Technology has dumped the Middle Eastern revolutions in front of everyone in the United States of America. Pictures of firestorms flood the internet, videos of injured protesters flash on cable news, and voices of drowning dictators gurgle on talk radio—but everything going on is “over there” to “those people.” The unrest is in countries we mispronounce, overthrowing people with names we misspell, and all on the other side of the world. The demonstrators go to church differently than us, treat their women differently than us, and always seem to be years behind with anything cool. The government regimes promise things like “rivers of blood” and write the laws backwards. We Westerners might have a difficult time comprehending a drastically surreal lifestyle and culture. More often than not, however, truth tends to be stranger than fiction.

 

Abigail Hauslohner reported a story to TIME about a nondescript 20-year old college student, his self-proclaimed “sarcastic blog,” a mother who thought he was “wasting his time,” and the events which led to the Egyptian Revolution. Khaled Kamel only used his blog to vent anxiety over work, relationships, and things he saw and thought were wrong. “It was never about politics” he said in the article, until images that show a fellow countryman's fatal injuries left by police on June 9^th, 2010 drove Khaled to push for real change. After months of growing concern over a violent death justified by the government, the revolution in nearby Tunisia confirmed the notion shared by Khaled and now thousands of other Egyptians; they had the ability to reclaim every aspect of their country from the political elite. The rest is known as 25 January.

Police brutality is only a single straw for the true revolutionaries. Poverty, inflation, political corruption, and God-given/government-withheld rights are only links in the enormous chain of events playing out on the evening news. Many people empathize with these people and their plight—only until our thoughts are suddenly overwhelmed with the assignment due in 24 hours, the idiot that cut you off in traffic, or the text message that just came in. As a result of the relatively fast-paced American lifestyle, most basic similarities between “us” and “them” have been buried under seventy years of convoluted global economics, political truths, and a quick message from the sponsors. For more insight on the entire messy process, a recommended read is the world-renowned book by Japanese author Teno Gomi entitled Minna Unchi.

The desire for a good and just quality of life—and the heart to fight for it—is not some new revolution or modern idea. It's a burning desire within most rational people that seems like it is burning bright in the Middle East. Towards the end of 2010, horror stories of corruption, genocide, greed, and other tales of woe crept into the everyday life of a critical number of people. After decades of tyrannical rule, dictators are now left to run for cover in the dark, hidden crevices where they relinquish power to this showing of 'We the People' and their first fighting chance for their desires.

That same desire once lit the way for a handful of true revolutionaries over 200 years ago—and because of it, We the People still control it here in the United States. The revolutionaries that have proven to prosper use this light to establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty; the frightening regimes that crumble across the water have proven to be nothing more than little men in high office simply casting big shadows.

-MDS

We Can't Blame It All On The Economy

Utility service thefts are on the rise in parts of Calhoun County, Alabama. Is it a sign of the economy, or something deeper?

Anniston Star writer Patrick McCreless recently wrote an article about the increasing number of Calhoun County utility thefts. Based on interviews with local water and electricity providers, the notion of the article ties the nationwide economic downturn as the culprit of these thefts. Further into the article, however, these thefts do not appear to be some widespread pandemic as Weaver Public Works Director Rickey Steele was quoted saying “it's not anything out of the ordinary.” Oxford also seems to have been spared in part because of its heavy retail population. The thefts are reportedly occurring in Anniston and Hobson City, instead. McCreless also points out the county unemployment rate sat around 8.7% in December—0.4% lower than the state average and 0.3% lower than the national average. With the information broken down in this sense, one would have to ask if and why the recession has only now prompted these types of thefts.

According to U.S. Census Bureau estimates for 2005-2009, Oxford and Weaver both have around 10% of their residents under the poverty line; 24% of Anniston residents live in poverty; a staggering 38% of Hobson City residents do the same, and these numbers don't seem to be falling as the days of America's manufacturing dominance become hazier with time. Calhoun County unemployment may be slightly lower than the national average, but underemployment seems to run rampant in our area. Average pay in the area doesn't reflect the cost of living, by any means. Alabama's tax rules don't make bills any easier for the working-poor to pay, either. Aside from the unfriendly tax burdens on the working poor, the state's 4% sales tax might seem relatively low. However, adding local taxes to every item bought, including groceries and medication, leaves upwards of a 10% sales tax on almost any purchase—no matter how frugal or how necessary.

The topic of conversation can (and should) take any number of roads from this point. The future of Calhoun County's economy, the continually growing gap between “wealthy” and “poor,” or Alabama tax reform would be some great avenues of exploration. The topic should not end with a simple “blame it on the economy.” Living in a nation of consumers, we are the economy.

Median Household Income	Natl. Average: $51,425
Oxford	$46,977
Weaver	$41,596
Anniston	$32,208
Hobson City	$23,152

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

2005-2009 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

-MDS