CAVE stands for Citizens Against Virtually Everything.

Look at this 1963 picture of a Nashville policeman.

He was one of the CAVE men who were against Nashville having a unified metro-government.

Nashville voted not to listen to its CAVE men and voted to unite its County and City.  Birmingham did not.

Nashville has left Birmingham far behind.

Metro-government may or may not be a solution for Birmingham, but we continue to allow negative folks to call the shots.

You may remember the 1998 MAPS vote to build a dome stadium, improve public transportation, and transform our city.

It was almost an exact copy of an effort that was passed in Oklahoma City the same year.

Oklahoma City passed MAP’s.  We defeated MAP’s.

Birmingham metro is stagnant; Oklahoma City is prospering.

“Oklahoma City added a new baseball park; central library; renovations to the civic center, convention center and fairgrounds; and a water canal in the Bricktown entertainment district.  MAPS has become one of the most successful public-private partnerships undertaken in the U.S., exceeding $3 billion in investments.”  (Wikipedia)

And in case you didn’t notice, the Oklahoma (City) Thunder played the Miami Heat in the NBA finals last year.  Birmingham still doesn’t have a professional sports team.

Nashville has blossomed.  Oklahoma City has flourished.

We in Birmingham still take directions from our CAVE men.

Let’s turn Birmingham around.  Click here to sign up for our newsletter.  There’s power in numbers. (Opt out at any time)

David Sher is a partner in Buzz12 Marketing and co-CEO of AmSher Receivables Management. He’s past Chairman of the Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce (BBA), Operation New Birmingham (REV), and the City Action Partnership (CAP).