Health care ruling draws ire of Alabama Republicans
Tuscaloosa News – June 29
Reaction in Alabama to Thursday’s Supreme Court ruling on national health insurance fell predictably along political lines. Supporters of President Barack Obama’s health care law celebrate outside the Supreme Court in Washington, Thursday, after the court’s ruling was announced. Gov. Robert Bentley, a Republican, said he was “deeply disappointed” in the 5-4 ruling that upheld the health care law. He called on Congress to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. “The ACA is the single worst piece of legislation to come out of Congress,” he said. Other Republican officials echoed his sentiment. “We must begin the process to repeal and replace Obamacare,” Lt. Gov. Kay Ivey said … Richard Fording, chairman of the University of Alabama political science department, said the decision puts health care on the political agenda during a presidential election year. “I think this is going to make it a more important issue going forth in the presidential campaign,” he said. Joe Smith, a professor of American politics and constitutional law at the University of Alabama, said that from a practical standpoint, Congress will have to make decisions on raising Medicaid funding. Politically, he said, the ruling probably didn’t change anyone’s mind about Obama. “The people who don’t think national government should impose health insurance reform will continue to feel that way and will continue to support candidates who feel that way and people who don’t will continue to support them,” he said.
University of Alabama play heads off-Broadway
Tuscaloosa News – June 29
Down in Hell, Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley fight in a disco duel, while Vlad the Impaler enjoys a drink nearby. Sophia Rosen shows up, too — except wait, it’s just 18th-century ruler Maria Theresa fashioning a chic, new look for herself. This colorful cast of characters populates the play “Hell: Paradise Found,” the brainchild of University of Alabama theater professor Seth Panitch. After previewing at the Allen Bales Theatre on campus July 2-4, “Hell” zips off for two weeks of Off-Broadway performances at 59E59 Theatre in New York. Panitch juggles directing, writing and acting duties in the production, alongside a cast and crew of UA grads, regional and professional actors. In the comedy, recently deceased lawyer Simon Ackerman meets his untimely end through a bad plate of sushi and finds himself torn between heaven and hell. But despite his initial misgivings about being a candidate for hell, he discovers that it might actually be the better place to spend eternity. Panitch said he is not making any religious statement about heaven or hell, but the play does ask questions about people’s difficulty in accepting differences in each other. “That is what a democracy does,” Panitch said. “We profess to accept differences, but we find it difficult because it’s messy. “Why do we alienate, and why are we so uncomfortable with people who are different than us?”
VH1 targets black viewers
Newsday.com – June 29
On VH1’s “Basketball Wives” — which recently wrapped its fourth season — the wives, girlfriends and exes of NBA players regularly engage in fierce battles: Wine bottles are hurled, hair is pulled, faces get slapped, there’s even an attempt to use a planter as a weapon. “Basketball Wives” is just one of several increasingly controversial reality shows that has transformed the once-demure sister channel of MTV — known for “Pop Up Video” and “Behind the Music” — into an unlikely venue for provocative programs slanted toward a demographic it previously ignored: African-Americans. The Viacom-owned cable channel has found ratings gold with shows such as “Basketball Wives,” “Love & Hip Hop” and the tamer “La La’s Full Court” and “T.I. & Tiny” and hopes to keep building on the foundation that started with “Flavor of Love.” That 2006 dating show featured female contestants fighting, spitting and worse as they vied for the affections of gold-toothed hip-hop lothario Flavor Flav. And VH1 has more reality fare on the way: Its newest contender, “Hollywood Exes,” featuring the ex-wives of Eddie Murphy, Prince, R. Kelly, Will Smith and Jose Canseco, premiered June 27 at 10 p.m. “They tapped into an audience that is very faithful,” said Robin Boylorn, a professor at the University of Alabama who focuses on race studies. “It’s smart in terms of marketing and money because in this moment they have the ear of a particular public. I think that they took advantage of that — we see it with all the spinoff shows for ‘Basketball Wives’ and ‘Love & Hip Hop.’ ”
Archeologists spend time at Tuscumbia site
WAAY-ABC (Huntsville) – June 28
For the last 34 years, the University of Alabama Museum of Natural History has had teams doing archeological digs at locations across the state. For the past three weeks, people of all ages from across the country have been digging around Tuscumbia’s Cane Creek Canyon. The groups, including middle school and high school students have spent a week at a time in the area doing field science, lab activities and camping. “We feel like students today are getting a lot of the book knowledge in the classroom, but what they’re not getting is the hands on field science,” said Randy Mecredy, director of the University of Alabama Museum of Natural History. “This gives students an opportunity to come and actually participate in a real scientific process, doing a real science project and getting the real hands on science.” Perry Daley, a chemical engineer from Huntsville, has been participating in the expeditions for 12 years and has brought his daughters for 10 of those. “They learn about the state. They learn about history. They get to interact with people and get outside the classroom and actually dig and learn things,” said Daley. “It’s a good experience for them.”
Gas prices below $3 in Alabama, Birmingham area
Birmingham News – June 29
Pump prices are below $3 in some parts of the Birmingham area and across the state, good news for travelers hitting the road for Fourth of July vacations next week. The price of regular gasoline has been falling steadily since peaking in early April, following a dramatic drop in crude oil from more than $100 a barrel to below $80. The decline comes as gasoline demand remains tepid amidst sluggish U.S. and global economies, said Peter Clark, a chemical engineering professor at the University of Alabama who follows petroleum markets. The summer decline was something few thought possible this spring when many energy experts predicted gasoline prices would break state, local and national records, as crude prices soared. Alabama and metro Birmingham’s record high for regular gasoline is $4.05 a gallon, set in September 2008. On Thursday, regular averaged $3.07 a gallon in metro Birmingham, down from $3.16 a week ago and $3.33 a month ago, according to a survey by the AAA motoring club. A year earlier, regular averaged $3.43 in the Birmingham area, AAA records indicated .. Falling gas prices are a reason AAA estimates Fourth of July holiday travel will climb nationally by 4.9 percent this year to 42.47 million from last year’s 40.29 million. Clark, who is leaving UA after 25 years to join the faculty at Oklahoma State University this fall, said concern about the global economy, especially the debt crisis in Europe and slowdown in major markets such as China, India and Brazil is dragging down future oil demand and putting downward pressure on crude prices, which fell below $80 on Thursday. “Clearly, demand is down as the economy is not coming back anytime soon,” Clark said. “It doesn’t surprise me that gasoline never hit $4, as many predicted, nor that it is now below $3 in some places.”