On Saturday night, Little Rock’s Robinson Auditorium was filled with supporters of the so-called West Memphis Three  (if you are unfamiliar with their cause, see my previous posts here or here).  Attendees at the fundraiser were entertained by celebrity supporters, including Eddie Vedder, Natalie Maines, Patti Smith, Johnny Depp, Fistful of Mercy (which includes Ben Harper, Joseph Arthur, and Dhani Harrison (George’s son)).  John Brummett was there and has a good write-up of the evening here.

I was pretty dissapointed that I was travelling elsewhere and had to miss this event.  Luckily, some in attendance captured some great footage.  I posted a few clips below.  

The State Supreme Court will decide on September 30 whether or not Damien Echols will receive a new trial.

John McWhorter has a nice review of my book in The New Republic. A highlight:

Buck’s terrific book is longer on analysis than prescription; but its analysis comprises such invaluable history, and so deftly counters any fears underlying the pretense that the “acting white” charge is fictitious, that I cannot imagine we will soon see another book so utterly necessary on what used to be called the Race Question. Buck has cleared the ground of many illusions and innuendos, and this can only help us to get closer to a solution for the vast problem that still remains.

Some of you may have heard that there was a small earthquake in Northwest Arkansas last week.  What you may not know is the reason.  Well, it turns out that earthquakes actually have nothing to do with shifting tectonic plates.  According to an Iranian government official and cleric, earthquakes are women’s fault, specifically women who do not dress modestly (think burqa).

Iranian cleric Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi was quoted as saying “Many women who do not dress modestly … lead young men astray, corrupt their chastity and spread adultery in society, which increases earthquakes.”

If you’re keeping up with current science, then you already know that Pat Robertson discovered that gays and lesbians were responsible for hurricane Katrina, and that the earthquake in Haiti was a result of their pact with the devil.  Of course, a major difference is that here in the US we are free to make fun of Pat Robertson-types.  In Iran, these types of lunatics run the government.

Here in the U.S., many women tested Sedighi’s theory by conducting a massive “Boobquake.” News reports claimed that the Boobquake failed to trigger an earthquake.  I guess they failed to notice the small one that hit NWA.

Then again, the local quake could have been our own fault.

This skit is a pretty good follow-up to Stuart’s report on State Teacher Pension Funds.

Courtney Fortson is officially no longer a Razorback. It was announced today that he has signed with an agent and is entering the NBA draft.

That means that out of coach(?) Pelphrey’s 2006-07 recruiting class of six players, only Rotnei Clarke remains (and he was recruited by Stan Heath).  Gone are Fortson, Andre Clark, Brandon Moore, Jason Henry, and Montrell McDonald.  As I’ve said previously, with this many failures, it is hard to have any faith in Pelphrey’s ability to recruit and develop quality players.  The future of Razorback basketball is alarmingly bleak.

I’ve also criticized Frank Broyles for running off Mike Anderson when we had the chance to make him Nolan’s successor.  After another successful season this year coaching at Missouri, Anderson was courted by Oregon.  He ultimately turned them down.  In a semi-related note, Arkansas’ top prospect for next season, 6-foot-8, 240-pound forward Ricardo Ratliffe, recently bailed on Arkansas and will join Anderson at Mizzou.

However, while the speculation about Anderson’s decision concerning Oregon was ongoing, ESPN reported this little tidbit:

“Sources close to Anderson say that if he were to leave Missouri, the job at Arkansas–if open–is one he’d have strong interest in.”

What are we waiting for?

Welcome to Spring .. Some Interesting News is Hitting the Wire Today.  Read on ….

Progressive School District in Mississippi Planning “Straight-Free” Prom

• Ricky Martin and Toby Keith will headline the afterparty

Teacher Union Leader Comes Clean: “We don’t really care about children!”

• NEA general counsel Bob Chanin admits surprise — “Frankly, I can’t believe we had people going this long … I just had to tell!”

Texas Removes All References to Arkansas in State Textbooks

• State’s lead educator argues that “like evolution, the claim that there are fifty states is merely a theory.”

Max Brantley of the Arkansas Times - Caught Shopping at Wal-Mart

• Sources close to the Arkansas Times admit that Brantley is also an avid Glenn Beck listener.

Nation’s 4th Graders Continue to Trail Nation’s 5th Graders

• Experts fear this will continue into grade 6

There’s some good conversations happening out there in the blogosphere that are worth checking into.  Here’s a few of them:

Over at his blog, Jay Greene comments on the new set of uniform national education standards proposed by a panel of “experts.”  If you think a one-size-fits-all approach is a good idea, why not see if your favorite novel made the recommended reading list?

Strangely,  Max Brantley over at the Arkansas Blog thinks he likes the national standards approach.  I am pretty sure Max has voiced his opposition to NCLB numerous times, yet now he says he likes the idea of national standards?  I thnk this illustrates the confusion people have with the abstract and the actual.  In the abstract, of course national standards sound good.  But when they are actually articulated it’s another story.

I don’t care at all to get into the debate about Diane whats-her-name’s opinion about school choice and NCLB.  The whole story, for the most part, lacks any substance.  It’s really more of a story of political alliances and betrayals and personal motivations and feelings. If I wanted that I’d be better served following the Tiger Woods saga.  That said, I have to give credit to Rick Hess for bringing some actual substance to the conversation over at his blog on EdWeek.

Locally, Jonah over at the Iconoclast blog is skewering Fayetteville’s Advertising and Promotion Commission over a lack of transparency.  Why does it matter?  Well, check out Ozark’s Unbound for a breakdown of how much money is being doled out, and who is receiving it.

As a parent, I’ve never been a huge Santa fan.  I do a lot of research and make a lot of  exhausting trips to the stores during Christmas to track down the items that will make my children happy come Christmas morning, and it’s always annoyed me that the guy in the red suit gets all the credit.

But the whole Santa enterprise got a lot more annoying this year.  During a trip to the Northwest Arkansas Mall, I discovered that parents are no longer allowed to take their own pictures of their kids sitting on Santa’s lap.

Obviously the mall and the guy in the red suit deserve to be compensated.  But, in the past, that compensation has always been indirect: The mall provides a Santa, I visit the mall as a result, and I inevitably spend some money while I am there.  I thought that was the deal.  And, if I want to snap a picture with my own little point-and-shoot camera that fits into my pocket, so what?  The lunch I bought my whole family at the food court should cover the 30 seconds my son spent with Santa.

Given how long this Christmas-time transaction has been implicit at malls, I was mildly annoyed (though not as annoyed as most of the parents I encountered) when I found that the Northwest Arkansas Mall was prohibiting parents from taking their own photos of their children with Santa.

I might have easily dismissed this act as yet another sign of the struggling economy and respected the tough decision the mall managers had to make.  That is, if myself and every other shopper hadn’t been insulted in the process.  Here is the sign the Santa Plus company had posted at the Santa Line:

Now, I would have had no problem with a straightforward sign that spelled out the policy.  Heck, I would have admired a brutally honest sign that said something like “your kids have snot noses and we’re trying to make a living here, so no personal cameras are allowed, Bub.”  But to cite safety?! If you’ve ever doubted how stupid some retailers think we are, you should make a mental note to never doubt again.  That is, unless you think a bit of Allspark might be loose in your local mall and could turn your camera into a killing machine.

And, in case you’re wondering how much they were charging for photos:  The cheapest item a parent could buy was a single 5×7 for $14.99, and the prices went up from there.  At these prices, you’d be better off buying your own Santa suit.

This is probably the last year Santa will be a part of my Christmas, simply because my kids are getting too old.  But I expect annoying policies like this one will cause a lot of other parents to reconsider whether or not this whole Santa business is even worth it.  I also think that retailers at the mall will eventually suffer as a result.

I would advise other parents to do what I did this year.  If the people who wrote that sign truly think that people are that stupid, then oblige them and play along.  I acted like I couldn’t even read when I pulled out my own camera and took my own picture of my son sitting on Santa’s lap.

We don’t actually have technical difficulties, but we’ll be taking a break from the interweb to enjoy the holidays.  You should quit wasting your time reading silly blogs and do the same! In the meantime, here’s a fun holiday video.

I’m glad the Arkansas Society of Freethinkers won the right to have their solstice exhibit displayed on the grounds of the state capitol. We are all fond of expressing our love for freedom, but sometimes we forget that freedom can be messy.  It can lead to dissonance and it can make people uncomfortable.  But the cost of removing that dissonance far outweighs the benefit.

If there’s one thing that’s clear about the bickering down in Little Rock, it’s that the reactions of people against the Freethinkers validate the actions of the Freethinkers.  The mere fact that people can get so bent out of shape when their monopoly on public space is threatened  is reason enough to threaten it.  I doubt that the Freethinkers would care to erect their own monument if they weren’t so appalled that so many forces were opposed to them exercising their right.

Disputes over public displays of religion are usually resolved in two ways.  Public displays can become areas where any form of expression is excluded, or areas where anything can be included.  Either nobody wins, or everybody wins.  The Freethinkers chose the latter approach, and it’s the right approach.  They didn’t attempt to remove any acts of expression, they simply insisted that they be given the same opportunity to be included.  It would be nice if their opponents extended them the same courtesy.

Nobody who is confident in their beliefs should be afraid to let their views freely compete in the marketplace of ideas.  The history of free ideas exemplifies the greatest example of a meritocracy that humans have ever achieved.  Good ideas  grow and flourish, and bad ideas whither and die.  And if you’re as right as you think you are, there’s nothing to worry about.

Of course, inclusion can have it’s drawbacks.  In an article where The Economist reported on the display in Little Rock, they accounted a similar chain of events:

The Arkansas Freethinkers do not want the Little Rock Nativity scene removed. They simply want the state to set up a “free-speech zone” and let them be part of it, along with Jews, Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims. “The holiday is big enough to accommodate everyone,” says Tod Billings, a Freethinker.

Some say that this will lead to chaos. In Olympia, Washington, the capitol’s all-inclusive free-speech zone became hopelessly overcrowded. Even the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster mounted a display. This year the state has banned the lot. The only evidence of the holidays? An evergreen tree in the capitol’s rotunda. It’s definitely not a Christmas tree, mind.

Too bad.  I would’ve liked to have seen that Spaghetti Monster display.

On a related note, in an attempt to make fun of the Freethinkers, Arkansas blogger Jason Tolbert requested and got permission to add a Festivus display to the mix.  Word is, however, that he is chickening out and doesn’t plan on delivering the Festivus pole after all.

Come on, Jason, we all want to see you and the Freethinkers engage in a good old fashioned airing of grievances before one of you is pinned in the annual feats of strength!

UPDATE: The Dem-Gaz reported some good and bad developments about this issue today.  The bad: Rep. John Lowery, D-El Dorado, who is against the Freethinker’s display, called for the Arkansas Legislative Council to denounce the federal court’s ruling.  Lowery says he is “fearful,” and that “History tells us when this is allowed to happen in high places by people in authority this is what happens: Societies become chaotic, economies collapse and nations are taken over by other nations.” He added that lawmakers would be “cursed” if they didn’t voice their objections.  Too bad he didn’t provide any examples of the chaos and collapse he is referring to, because history seems to tell us the opposite.  There are many examples of societies that have collapsed when the state has the sole power to dictate one version of state sponsored truth.  On the other hand, governments that allow for greater economic and social freedom have flourished.  Someone should get Rep. Lowery a history book for Christmas.

The good:  Rep. Nancy Blount, D- Marianna, voted “no” on the resolution.  Blount said she was a Christian who believed in free speech: ” I think people ought to have the right to believe in whatever they want to believe in. The Constitution says we are allowed to do that.  We say we will uphold the Constitution when we are sworn in.  We would be double-talking to then turn around and say we were against the Constitution.”  Well said, Ms. Blount.