The primary objective of ComebackTown is to create a conversation on a “better Birmingham.”
We often talk about what’s great about our metro, but we also want to identify our shortcomings so we can begin to propose solutions.
Many are quick to blame our politicians or corporate leadership, but the root cause of our frailties is poor government structure. Continue reading Why Birmingham’s government is so screwed up
I received an e-mail from a good friend, Henry Long, with a link to an article about Birmingham that made me sick to my stomach.
It was an American Thinker piece titled “Civil Rights and the Collapse of Birmingham, Ala.” written by John Bennett.
It made me ill not only because the article was being read all over the world, but the author totally mangled the facts. Continue reading Article on Birmingham will make you vomit
I was warned by my friends about the commenters on al.com when I first began publishing ComebackTown.
They suggested I not read the comments and certainly not to take them personally. I was told, “They are a bunch of crazies who have nothing better to do than spout nonsense to make themselves feel important.” Continue reading A proposal for pishier
“We’re going to fix it where they can’t get permission to go to the bathroom.”
This is State Representative John Roger’s warning to Jefferson County Commissioners in retaliation for their decision to discontinue in patient services at Cooper Green.
I’ve published 66 blogs this past year to begin a discussion about our dysfunctional government structure, but this trumps them all. Continue reading Is John Rogers a nut?
I hear it everywhere, “Metro Birmingham’s doing fine; it’s the City of Birmingham that has problems. Life is great in the suburbs; if the City implodes, that’s not my problem.”
If we’re all doing so great, how do you explain that the Milken Institute just named metro Birmingham one of the worst performing large cities in America? Continue reading Metro Birmingham ranked 197th out of 200
Moses was a remarkable guy.
He parted the Red Sea, brought us the Ten Commandments, and delivered the Israelites to the Promised Land.
If you need someone to accomplish a task, Moses’ resume looks pretty good.
However, even if you could convince Moses to run for political office in metro Birmingham, he would be unable to make us competitive. Continue reading What if Moses was Mayor of Birmingham?
As you may have heard a petition filed by a Chuncula resident seeking Alabama’s withdrawal from the U.S. reached 25,000 signatures and now requires a response from the White House.
The petition asks the administration to “peacefully grant the state of Alabama to withdraw from the United States of America and create its own new government.”
Well, if this is a good idea, I’ve got an even better one. Continue reading Metro Birmingham should secede from Alabama
Nothing makes me angrier than to see anti-Birmingham; anti-black comments following my blog.
The racial comments are usually insinuated, but they are there—none the less.
There’s a community of people in our region who accuse Birmingham of failing and blame African-Americans for it. Continue reading Black folks are moving into your neighborhoods
Forbes has again ranked Birmingham as one of America’s Most Dangerous Cities.
This is absolute nonsense and another example of how our “too many” governments are screwing us up and ruining our reputation. Continue reading BALONEY: Birmingham named 5th most dangerous city
ComebackTown: To create a discussion on creating better government for our region.
According to an article on al.com on October 11, “A rift developed between the city and county after Birmingham filed a lawsuit to keep open the inpatient care unit at the county owned hospital for the poor. The county responded by withholding chairs and tables for the city’s referendum…”
I only know what I read on-line, so I don’t know the real story, but I have three and four year old grandchildren who get along better than our politicians. Continue reading Birmingham sues Jefferson County–na na na na na na