Arkansas
updated
11:13 a.m.
St. Vincent Health System announced today that it would be laying off 34 workers including some in high management, about 1 percent of total workforce, none in patient care positions. Full release on the jump....
Arkansas Daily Blog - 10:02 a.m.
Roland Smith , former superintendent in Rogers, has been named as interim chief of the Greenland School District , now under Arkansas Education Department control in an effort to right it financially....
Arkansas Daily Blog - 10:02 a.m.
A certifiable homophobe gave a congressional committee an earful yesterday about the dangers of allowing gay people to serve in the military. Dana Milbank's column does this wackjob's testimony -- perils of lesbian rape, explosive HIV rates -- full justice. But credit U.S. Rep. Vic Snyder : Rep. Vic Snyder (D-Ark.) labeled her statement "just bonkers" and "dumb," a...
Arkansas Daily Blog - 5:02 a.m. - 3 clicks 
The feds are pumping millions into local police in the name of anti-terrorism. Meanwhile, garden variety crime is surging in many cities. Some police departments are beginning to question the priorities in cutting aid for regular crime fighting....
Arkansas Daily Blog - 4:38 a.m.
Courtesy of Stephens Media, I have on the jump the full text of the letter UCA President Lu Hardin wrote to his Board of Trustees seeking a $150,000 pay bump in the form of deferred compensation over six years. I also have the unsigned memo, bearing the name of UCA administrators, supporting the legality of the arrangement and the legality of keeping it secret. Well. Some points. 1) Har...
Arkansas Daily Blog - Wed 10:34 p.m.
What is a credit card? A credit card is a card that allows you to borrow money to pay for things. There will be a limit to how much you can spend called your credit limit. At the end of each month you can either pay off the whole of the amount you owe or make a minimum repayment. Other kinds of cards include: 1) A cheque guarantee card, issued by your bank, that you can use to ensure that...
Pusillanimous Wankers - Wed 3:36 p.m.
Secretary of State Charlie Daniels has found, as expected, that the Family Council fell short of the number of registered voter signatures required to qualify its initiated act for the ballot. It would prohibit adoptions and foster parenting in homes with unmarried couples. It is designed to punish gay people primarily, but will have a broader impact. The drive fell about 4,000 signatures...
Arkansas Daily Blog - Wed 3:36 p.m. - 5 clicks
This breaking news from Stephens Media: LITTLE ROCK - University of Central Arkansas President Lu Hardin asked the UCA board for early payment of a $300,000 bonus that Attorney General Dustin McDaniel has since said likely violated state law, according to documents obtained by the Arkansas News Bureau. The documents show Hardin also asked, rather than increase in pay, for an additi...
Arkansas Daily Blog - Wed 2:37 p.m. - 6 clicks
A group pushing for a moratorium on the death penalty in Arkansas notes efforts to set aside the execution date recently set for Frank Williams by Gov. Mike Beebe. In his case, the group notes the disparity in death sentences in his part of the state based on race....
Arkansas Daily Blog - Wed 2:37 p.m. - 7 clicks
The proposal to amend House of Representatives rules to bar membership to someone who's struck a felony plea bargain has been filed . Do Like Dobbins, Don't Sit Down Rule. Under the Dome is on top of it, naturally. ...
Arkansas Daily Blog - Wed 1:05 p.m.
Shut up you whiners. The good times are rolling, just like Phil Gramm says, though you have to be in a fairly select group to notice it. Wall Street Journal reports that the top 1 percent of Americans in income are pulling down the biggest share of the GDP in decades, perhaps the most since 1929. And not to worry that the government won't let them enjoy it. Their average tax rate fell to the ...
Arkansas Daily Blog - Wed 11:12 a.m.
Just about every political candidate thinks the other guy is getting better treatment from the media than he/she is. That said, a Media Matters columnist savages (link fixed) Ron Fournier and the AP for its perceived favoritism toward Republicans generally and John McCain extra especially. ...
Arkansas Daily Blog - Wed 11:12 a.m.
Politicos will be interested in this one on Politico : Columnist Robert Novak -- insert favorite invective here -- has been issued a citation in Washington, D.C., for what sounds close to hit-and-run. He ran down a 66-year-old pedestrian in his Corvette. A bicyclist forced him to stop him a block away and told him he couldn't just drive off after hitting someone. Novak&n...
Arkansas Daily Blog - Wed 10:06 a.m.
It's an unfortunate fact that most students never get formal lessons in managing their credit and debt. For many immature people, their first brushwood with being responsible credit card users won't come up till they are in college - away from home and the counsel of ma and dad. The minute they step on campus, new college students will be wooed by major credit card companies, all of them eage...
Pusillanimous Wankers - Mon 3:37 p.m.
There are a batch of credit card companies competing for your business who offer a full range of charge cards in order to be able to lawsuit your needs. Seeking the right information is made easy with help. We have got tons of inside information regarding all about credit cards. All about credit cards allows you to understand the terms and statuses that come up with them. You will read term...
Pusillanimous Wankers - Fri 3:34 p.m. - 3 clicks
Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee is expected to call a special session of the state legislature to begin on Monday, April 3. The major purpose of the session is to respond to a December ruling by the state Supreme Court that Arkansas’ school funding system is unconstitutionally inadequate. But the session is also likely to address Huckabee’s [...]...
State Action: Arkansas - Jul 10 - 13 clicks
The Arkansas legislature is quickly moving SB 11, by Sen. Jack Critcher, to raise the state’s minimum wage from $5.15 to $6.25 an hour. A majority of both the Senate and House have cosponsored the bill, and the governor has called for its passage. The legislation is supported by conservatives to keep a [...]...
State Action: Arkansas - Jul 10 - 11 clicks
Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee signed into law identical bills, SB 11 by Sen. Jack Critcher and HB 1033 by Rep. Benny Petrus, which raise the state’s minimum wage from $5.15 to $6.25 an hour. The increase will take effect on October 1 and Arkansas will become the 20th state to have a minimum wage above the federal minimum of [...]...
State Action: Arkansas - Jul 10 - 12 clicks
The Arkansas House passed HB 1007 by Rep. Joyce Elliott, while the Senate approved SB 5, by Sen. Jim Argue, identical bills that increase school funding by $132.5 million. The measures are a response to a state Supreme Court order to adequately finance public education. The legislation would also increase minimum teacher pay and improve the state’s contribution to [...]...
State Action: Arkansas - Jul 10 - 13 clicks
The Arkansas House Insurance and Commerce Committee approved SB 923, sponsored by Sen. Terry Smith, which attempts to set new restrictions on payday lending. The bill would prohibit the use “rollover” loans—long-term loans with a short-term interest rate used to cover payments from previous loans—and require lenders to offer an extended payment plan to [...]...
State Action: Arkansas - Jul 10 - 13 clicks
Arkansas legislators and interest groups, including the Chamber of Commerce and Give Arkansas A Raise Now (a coalition of faith, labor, and community groups) have come to an agreement to raise the minimum wage from $5.15 to $6.25 per hour. In exchange for this legislation, Give Arkansas A Raise Now would stop its effort for [...]...
State Action: Arkansas - Jul 10 - 12 clicks
The Arkansas Senate approved SB 19, sponsored by Sen. Tracy Steele, to ban smoking indoors in most public places except for bars that prohibit customers under age 21, and small businesses with fewer than three employees. For more information, read CPA’s Smoke-Free Workplaces policy brief and model legislation. ...
State Action: Arkansas - Jul 10 - 13 clicks
Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee signed SB 19, sponsored by Sen. Tracy Steele, to ban indoor smoking in most public places and workplaces with three or more employees, making an exception for bars that prohibit customers under age 21, and motels with fewer than 25 rooms. For more information, read CPA’s Smoke-Free Workplaces policy brief and [...]...
State Action: Arkansas - Jul 10 - 12 clicks
The Arkansas House passed SB 19, sponsored by Sen. Tracy Steele, to ban smoking indoors in most public places except for bars that prohibit customers under age 21, and small businesses with fewer than three employees. The House added an amendment to exempt motels with fewer than 25 rooms. The House and Senate also passed HB 1046, [...]...
State Action: Arkansas - Jul 10 - 13 clicks
A committee of the Arkansas House defeated HB 1024, sponsored by Rep. Rick Green, which would have prohibited state agencies from contracting with businesses that employ, or use subcontractors that employ, undocumented immigrants. ...
State Action: Arkansas - Jul 10 - 12 clicks
Billions of dollars are spent on gift cards every year and consumers lose up to 10 percent of the value of the cards as a result of expiration dates or service fees. With the rapid growth in gift card sales in recent years, state legislators have begun to tackle expiration dates and service fees on [...]...
State Action: Arkansas - Jul 10 - 2 clicks
As recently as early 2007, DICK cheney has asserted that he does not have to turn over "working papers" under any circumstances because he and his office claim they have executive privilege and therefore cannot be forced to turn over these working papers even for a felony investigation (See Scooter Libby). Let's just give old Darth the benefit of the doubt, just for the sake of argument. ...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10 - 2 clicks
With Allen reeling from the macaca incident where he called out a citizen of Virginia by welcoming him to America and to Virginia with an ethnic slur, he is now having to explain a photograph taken in 1996 of him with the leadership of the Council of Conservative Citizens (CCC). The CCC is a white supremacist hate group, as if the picture didn't give it away. The CCC is known in all white powe...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10 - 2 clicks
I have the transcript of the mock debate that was put on earlier this evening in beautiful East Jonesboro: Asa: Beebe sucks! Beebe: Asa sucks worse! Asa: I'll cut all taxes to 0% Beebe: I have a vision for Arkansas Asa: Your record in the Senate tells us you suck. Beebe: Your record at Homeland Security tells us you suck even more. Asa: God, Guns, Gays Beebe: Pass Asa: You're a douche Be...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10 - 13 clicks
In a race that probably foreshadows events to come, Joe Lieberman, 18 year incumbent senator from CT, was defeated in his primary by Ned Lamont, a man who was virtually unknown just a few short months ago. Does this defeat have any ramifications for Arkansas' two ultra conservative Democratic Senators? I am sure Pryor and Lincoln will have to at least take stock of some of the waffling they ha...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10 - 12 clicks
I have been silent of late for many reasons too plentiful to list but including laziness and complacency(we did win, or did we?). Not to break the silence on a sour note but I noticed over the last couple of days that a growing contingency of anti-war protestors are actually protesting against the troops. What the fuck are these people thinking? It is one thing to burn an effigy of George W...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10
President Bush and his right wing spin machine at Faux News do a wonderful job of distorting the facts to meld with whatever opinion they have for the day but I found a wonderful website that straightens out much of the Bush lies, half truths, distortions, and weasels. This site has the top 22 Bush lies and their corresponding truths. Check it out for yourself! http://bushlies.net ...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10
By the grace of God, Boeing, and all that is holy, we got a visit from the sitting President of the United States today. Why, you ask, is he in beautiful West Little Rock today? Is he here to tell someone what to do with all those fucking trailers? Is he here to tell us that he is going to reinstate the funding he took from higher education? I know you'll be baffled to find out that neither is...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10 - 11 clicks
I believe the answer is yes. It is obvious that the war in Iraq could easily drag on for another 10 years and with Senator Pryor's next election coming up in 2 years and a strong majority of the public already doubting our occupation of Iraq, the anti-war sentiment will be even stronger in '08 than it is now. The enablers of the failed Bush policy will start falling like a house of cards this ...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10 - 8 clicks
"Let's talk about sex" should be the theme for the christian right ( I used lower case to emphasize that these people are neither Christian nor correct) because they are obsessed with it. With all the problems in the state of Arkansas, all the so called conservatives want to talk about is gay sex and the harm it does to them and to children. We have not one but two wars that we are in the proc...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10 - 12 clicks
With the plight of the free world on the line, supposedly, G.W. takes a play out of Houston Nutt's playbook. We're looking at 4th down and 20 to go, so we obviously call for a tunnel screen, don't we? G.W. has decided, as the decider generally does, and the rest of us are supposed to just follow along as if he has never done us wrong before. 20,000 new troops, spread out over the course of six...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10
Anyone with any common sense and even a rudimentary understanding of economics knows that the economy needs to be tweaked occasionally by raising or lowering taxes. The Republican Party has been hijacked by extremists in the social arena but more importantly by economists of the crazy variety. It doesn't matter to these people what the question is, the answer is always the same: Lower taxes, lower...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10
I have been shunned by the Jim Holt for Lt Gov campaign once again. I have received the run around from the Holt camp over repeated requests for a phone or e-mail interview and I think I know why. I may or may not have referred to Senator Holt as "Jesus Jim" on a hastily written and venomous, to be sure, blog comment on some other site. I am pretty sure, that is the reason for the repeated non...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10 - 2 clicks
George w. Bush and the rest of the neocons are at it again, trying to sell a war that is already more than 3 years old. The hard sell from Bush and the echo-chamber of neoconservative think tanks has begun in earnest this week with the short term goal of keeping Republicans off the endangered species list. The latest, in a seemingly endless stream of reasons to continue the occupation of ...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10
"WAR IS PEACE, FREEDOM IS SLAVERY, IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH" And now the Roberts court adds "Integration is Discrimination." Rolling back the famous Brown v. Board of Education ruling while purporting to uphold and quote it is, well, Orwellian. Justice Alito as well as Justice Roberts were both confirmed by the Senate, in no small measure, due to their testimony that they were firm believer...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10 - 2 clicks
Our country has a rich history of whimsical politicians who will do and say whatever they think will get them elected and in that fine tradition, I give you Asa? Hutchinson. Illegal immigration : Just two years ago Asa's stance on illegal immigration was from what I can tell, so what. For months, Hutchinson worked feverishly to get illegals to buy into the Bush plan of amnesty for upwards...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10
I thought you might enjoy this site which lists the twenty most corrupt legislators and five dishonorable mentions. http://www.beyonddelay.org/ ...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10 - 2 clicks
For those of you who don't already know, ArkFam is the Christofascist website hosted by non-Arkansans about Arkansas politics. Let me begin by saying that I am all for free speech and I want these folks to be able to spew all the propaganda they can muster. I must, however, call them on the hypocrisy of railing against the Arktimes site for censorship when ArkFam has the same vile practice ...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10 - 11 clicks
I am looking to add new contributors to this site with diverse opinions and excellent writing skills. Contact me through: robsarkanstar@hotmail.com thanks, rob_star...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10
Posted on Oct 19, 2006 Courtesy of the Tillman Family By Kevin Tillman Editor’s note: Kevin Tillman joined the Army with his brother Pat in 2002, and they served together in Iraq and Afghanistan. Pat was killed in Afghanistan on April 22, 2004. Kevin, who was discharged in 2005, has written a powerful, must-read document. It is Pat’s birthday on November 6, and elections are the day after. It...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10
Once again, Mark Pryor is doing the bidding of the Republican Party. This time around he is selling out the Democratic Party by supporting the loser of the Democratic primary in Connecticut instead of the rightful winner. I know that he and Joe Lieberman have been beltway buds for a few years but instead of doing the right thing, he is toeing the Republican party line with his unwavering supp...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10 - 14 clicks
Here is a great piece on Colbert, thought you might like it! http://hinessight.blogs.com/hinessight/2006/08/stephen_colbe ...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10
The latest poll from Constituent Dynamics shows Dems set for landslide victories in all but one race. The Lt Gov race was the lone exception with Halter leading Holt 44% to 40%, respectively. The other results are as follows: Governor Mike Beebe-48% Asa Hutchinson-34% Jim Lendall-1% Attorney General Dustin McDaniel-51% Gunner Delay-37% The methodology of this poll should not be questioned...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10 - 14 clicks
Asa changes his mind about black people, since it is politically expedient at present: On the Asa for Governor site, I found something that made me almost fall out of my chair with laughter. This picture was next to the link for joining one of Asa's "coalitions." This particular one was called "African-Americans for Asa." What really surprised me was that they were actually able to ...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10
With new scandals popping up each day, it's hard to keep track of them but let's try anyway. The wheels are coming off the bus over at the GOP headquarters and with the midterm election only 22 days away, it is hard to tell whether the Republicans will even have any Senators or Congressmen (no offense to the ladies) left to run. With Bob Ney's recent guilty plea, the total number of Republican "le...
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10
The first of the Arkansas goobernatorial "debates" is tonight at 7:00. I use the term loosely since General Beebe and lobbyist Hutchinson have paid off the network to not include the other two candidates (Jim Lendall and Rod Bryan). This is a travesty for real democracy. Both candidates for the two major parties should be drawn and quartered in a public setting for this transgression....
Noah's Arkanstar - Jul 10 - 8 clicks
A paratrooper from Malvern is one of the latest Arkansans killed in Iraq. Specialist Donavan Witham died Tuesday in an IED attack near Baghdad. Specialist Tyler Seidman, 20, from Lincoln, Arkansas in Washington County was also killed in Iraq. He died in a helicopter crash Wednesday. A Michigan state judge has dismissed a wrongful-termination suit against Wal-Mart by high-profile former ad chief J...
Pat Lynch at Large - Jul 10 - 13 clicks
Former Wal-Mart Vice Chairman Tom Coughlin, confined to his upscale Centerton residence since pleading guilty last year to defrauding Wal-Mart and the IRS, could end up in prison after all. The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis ruled his 27-month home-confinement sentence handed down by a federal judge in Fort Smith was too lenient and ordered a new sentencing hearing. Two months after Pr...
Pat Lynch at Large - Jul 10 - 16 clicks
While trying to save himself this morning on KARK TV Channel 4's Wednesday Wake-Up, Republican consultant and strategist Bill Vickery gained a momentary victory by asking what Democrats would do about Iraq. Of course, no Democrat got us into the war and, last time I checked, it is a Republican who is commander-in-chief. Don't they even believe in personal accountability? Anyway, I was researchin...
Pat Lynch at Large - Jul 10
Carol Dipert, the mother of slain Russellville beauty queen Nona Dirksmeyer, has told the Russellville Courier she is considering a wrongful death lawsuit. Kevin Jones was recently acquitted of that killing. Legislators and county officials have a mixed reaction to the possibility that Gov. Mike Beebe may call a special session to address a flaw in the state minimum marriage age law. The Arkans...
Pat Lynch at Large - Jul 10 - 14 clicks
With the collapse of the Interstate 35 bridge over the Mississippi River in Minneapolis and the closing of the Interstate 40 bridge in Memphis, Congress will likely consider raising the gas tax slightly in order to pay for necessary repairs to improve America’s aging roads and bridges, Rep. Marion Berry told a Jonesboro civic group. Pulaski County prosecutors have linked criminal charges against ...
Pat Lynch at Large - Jul 10 - 11 clicks
Although I have not much promoted it lately, there are some good recent interviews you might want to download on your mp3 player. Included in the list is the Roby Brock analysis of Dillard's difficulties. There is also a good segment with Eric Boehlert from Media Matters concerning Larry Craig. Also, listen for Harry King's pre-season take on the Hogs. It is all in the free "on demand" section at ...
Pat Lynch at Large - Jul 10
We are not supposed to gloat over our adversaries’ problems, so let us consider soberly the case of Republican Senator Larry Craig of Idaho. He was arrested on a misdemeanor charge arising out of lewd conduct in a Minneapolis airport men’s room. Apparently some vice cop became suspicious about the foot tapping coming from the honorable gentleman’s stall. The first reaction, of course, is “good g...
Pat Lynch at Large - Jul 10
Back in the springtime, the Arkansas General Assembly tried to do a good deed by fixing up a state law that treated guys and girls differently on the age of marriage without parental consent. At least that part is my recollection. It started off completely harmless, but by the time it was over the fix may be worse than the cure. At the root of the problem is a little three-letter word, “not.” Th...
Pat Lynch at Large - Jul 10 - 13 clicks