By R. NealTennessee’s State Senator Rosalind Kurita of Clarksville (home of Ft. Campbell and the 101st Airborne) is an interesting Democrat. She has figured out how to win elections in a predominately Republican district. She started her career in politics... More...

By R. NealWe’re watching the reports from the Gulf Coast and New Orleans. I am unable to process, much less describe, the magnitude of what we are seeing. Not much else seems very important today.As the personal accounts start coming... More...

By R. NealA new report by the Census Bureau says that the number of people living in poverty in the U.S. has increased by 1.1 million since 2003:The nation's poverty rate rose to 12.7 percent of the population last year,... More...

By R. NealIn addition to looting, price gouging, home repair scams, and insurance fraud, there are always those looking to exploit victims of natural disasters, especially via telephone solicitation and the internet. The Better Business Bureau has established a "Wise... More...

By R. NealSome reports on relief efforts:(Click on the "there's more" link below for the rest of the article...)American Red Cross: The American Red Cross is mounting the largest relief effort in its history. More than 200 emergency response... More...

By R. NealThe U.S. military and National Guard units around the South are mobilizing in response to Katrina. Here are some reports:(Click on the "there's more" link below for the rest of the article...)Army News Service:More than 5,000 National Guard... More...

By R. NealThe Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is mounting a massive response in the wake of Katrina's devastation:(Click on the "there's more" link below for the rest of the article...)FEMA’s emergency teams and resources are being deployed and configured... More...

By R. NealLousiana Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco said on CNN last night that the situation was "dire." Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour called it "catastrophic." There are at least 50 confirmed fatalilties in Mississippi. Officials in both Louisiana and Mississippi expect... More...

By R. NealEast Tennessee’s Blount County lies in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It has a population of approx. 110,000 and is part of the East Tennessee Knoxville Metro area with a population of approx. 680,000.... More...

By R. NealThose of us who have lived in Southern coastal states are all too familiar with hurricanes, but we haven’t seen anything like Katrina in over a decade. The last Category 5 hurricane to make landfall in the U.S.... More...

…they pull me back in. A big ol' East Tennessee Howdy! from R. Neal, “the artist formerly known as South Knox Bubba”. Chris Kromm at Facing South has coaxed me out of retirement temporarily to guest blog here this week.... More...

[The Institute for Southern Studies released a new report today about the South's unique ties to the military and foreign policy. Here's the press release -- the full report will be up soon. UPDATE: You can read the full report... More...

The Palm Beach Post sums up the Rev. Pat Robertson/Hugo Chavez assassination/kidnapping fiasco in an editorial today:"Who Would Jesus Wack?"(Hat tip to Political Wire)... More...

My friend Max Sawicky beats me to the punch on the devastating blow a jury in Angleton, Texas dealt to pharma giant Merck this week. The jury awarded a $253 million lawsuit to the widow of a man who died... More...

For those enjoying the spectacle of Rev. Pat Robertson digging himself in deeper over the Chavez-assassination-threat fiasco -- he's now claiming that by "assassinate" he merely meant we should "kidnap" the Venezeulan leader -- you might enjoy this short history... More...

It's not getting a lot of press, but disability rights advocates and their allies are in their tenth week of a sit-in at Gov. Phil Bredesen's (D) office in Tennessee.The spark for their protest -- which some say is the... More...

You thought war was hard? Not for these people:US defense contractors are riding high these days, buoyed by rising Pentagon spending on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as the high cost of homeland security in the US-declared... More...

The blogosphere is abuzz with yesterday's news that 700 Club host and Christian Coalition founder Pat Robertson issued a veritable fatwa on his TV program yesterday against Venezuela President Hugo Chavez:ROBERTSON: There was a popular coup that overthrew him [Chavez].... More...

Kentucky Governor Ernie Fletcher (R) is having a rough summer. After sweeping into offic with a vew to clean up the state's culture of patronage and favoritism, nine of his administration officials are under indictment for hiring scandals. Two have... More...

Today's Christian Science Monitor nails why-- despite all the talk about "economic recovery" -- most Americans still feel like they're struggling:A boom in corporate profits has not yet created a job market that makes workers feel secure, economists say. Hiring... More...

David Sirota points to an important news story in today's Pensacola News Journal -- from the most "Southern" part of Florida (in terms of political culture, not geography).While the Washington pundits still chatter about how anti-war protests are an affront... More...

Will North Carolina become the 16th state to raise the minimum wage? It may happen, but in spite of Democratic leaders in the state senate.In a surprise move, the NC House recently voted to up the minimum wage from $5.15... More...

With Cindy Sheehan's story refusing to leave the headlines, the Washington spin machine's new line of attack, apparently, is to paint Camp Casey as a cesspool of smelly hippy freaks. That's the gist of a bizarre Washington Post story this... More...

Survey USA's polls have been making a big splash, and their latest survey of approval ratings for U.S. Senators (released late yesterday) is no exception. Click here to find the most useful sorting of the results -- the ranking of... More...

Fresh off the fax machine, we have the latest installment in a fascinating story about the growing divide over the Iraq war. The story involves one Rachel Lea Hunter, a Republican candidate for Chief Justice in North Carolina, and pro-war... More...

Raw Story (via Pam's House Blend) gives some much-deserved coverage of the Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery, AL -- a fine group that has taken the lead in ensuring fair legal representation and challenging inequities in the justice system.Here's a... More...

They say it's no use crying over spilt milk -- but sometimes the stench is so bad, it's still worth paying attention to, and maybe even trying to clean up.In today's New York Times, Paul Krugman takes us back to... More...

The House resolution introduced by two Southern Republicans -- Reps. Walter Jones (NC, picture shown) and Ron Paul (TX) -- and Democratic Reps. Dennis Kucinich (OH) and Neil Abercrombie (HI) calling for a timetable for withdrawal from Iraq now has... More...

To the chagrin of the Bush Administration -- and to the discomfort of Democrats who don't have a clear stand -- Cindy Sheehan's encampment in Texas is still drawing huge numbers, getting big media coverage and stirring national controversy about... More...

[David Fellerath of the Independent Weekly serves up his usual dose of occasional Friday Film Blogging -- a day early!]For movie-lovers in the NC Triangle, today is the last day to catch the theatrical run of an extraordinary film. It’s... More...

Still en route back to the sunny South, after a two-day stay in not-so-sunny (but still beautiful) Seattle for the Progressive Legislative Action Network gathering.For those wanting more info on what the PLAN festivities were all about: the AP had... More...

Survey USA has just released a new 50-state poll on President Bush's approval ratings. Not everyone is a fan of their polling techniques, but it's a useful snapshot, being one of the only polls with a state-by-state breakdown. And the... More...

The Institute is represented here in cloudy Seattle at the Progressive Legislative Action Network conference, which is being held amidst the annual gathering of the National Conference of State Legislatures.The PLAN kickoff has been a huge success, with hundreds of... More...

Blogging will be light over the next couple days as I head off to Seattle for the Progressive Legislative Action Network conference. It promises to be a great event, challenging the right-wing dominance of state legislatures and building up a... More...

In its latest bid for world domination, Arkansas-based Wal-Mart has announced it plans to open a financial services arm. The bank, headquartered in Utah as an industrial charter bank (ILC), would offer credit and debit cards to help grease sales... More...

The backlash is in full force against Cindy Sheehan, the mother of killed soldier Casey Sheehan looking for face time with our vacationing President. The signs of the backlash are all around:THE AGITATED BASE: A quick visit to Free Republic... More...

It blew right by us like a gust of summer heat, but August 10 marked the 6-month anniversary of our patch of progressive blogdom, Facing South. Given the blog pioneers in our midst, that means we're still newbies -- although... More...

Well, actually, I do. And so do these people, whose site offers good information and a funny take on SUV's, public health, and the need for a new energy policy -- especially in light of the monstrous energy bill.... More...

One of the great underreported stories of the Iraq war is the whole-scale looting of the country's wealth and resources by outside interests. Under the supposedly watchful eye of U.S. officials, billions of dollars belonging to the Iraqi people --... More...

The national advocacy group Wal-Mart Watch has a useful new round-up of data on the hidden costs to the public of Wal-Mart economics. In 11 states, media and advocacy groups have analyzed how many Wal-Mart employees are forced onto Medicaid... More...

Texas is viewed by some as the politically "reddest state in the country" (and they don't mean communist). But a news report today suggests this won't last:Texas has become the fourth state to have a non-white majority population, the U.S.... More...

Progressives are climbing on board the campaign to help Cindy Sheehan, the mother who lost her son Casey Sheehan in Iraq and is camping out next to President Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas to demand answers.Cindy's encampment was part of... More...

You may have missed it, but on July 30, Smithfield Foods -- the world's largest hog producer and pork processer, based in North Carolina -- made some very generous gifts to their corporate leadership:Smithfield Foods chairman and chief executive officer... More...

From this morning's AM Feed:On Monday House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX) opened a privately-run foster home project for abused and neglected children. Sounds good, right? But as we know, in DeLay’s world, no deed (good or bad) comes without... More...

You've probably heard about Cindy Sheehan, mother of Casey Sheehan, who was killed in Iraq, is camping out next to George Bush's "ranch" demanding some one-on-one time. Retired Special Forces Sgt. Stan Goff is calling for a nation-wide campaign:George Bush... More...

It appears the decision of Hillsborough County, Florida, to ban any recognition of gay pride is bringing an economic backlash:The Florida Library Association has passed a resolution that the association will not hold conferences, meetings of its Executive Board, committees,... More...

Right around the time immigration officials in North Carolina last month were pulling off a deceptive sting -- demanding Latino workers go to a fake "mandatory" health and safety class, which ended up being a deportation trap -- Arkansas was... More...

Those who follow state politics are often amazed at how, even in states where progressives have some strength, the conservative right is successful in pushing its agenda. Especially in the South, the right often seems uncannily organized and effective in... More...

Law-enforcement buff and possible future cop Shaquille O’Neal has been recruited by the sheriff of Bedford County, Virginia, to take part in PSAs for an effort to combat internet crimes against children. This certainly seems like a more productive use... More...

Each year, cash-strapped state and local governments shovel over $50 billion worth of tax breaks, free or low-cost land, and other "recruitment incentives" to corporations who promise to locate or expand in their area. State leaders call it "economic development,"... More...

Sorry for the lack of posts -- the blog's been inexplicably out of commission. Hopefully the problems are fixed!... More...

As states across the country release their education "report cards," the Christian Science Monitor has a good piece up today about why the nation's math and reading scores went up this year. In short, it was the South:[T]he loudest applause... More...

On Tuesday, Bush signed CAFTA into law after almost two years of political battle. Before it completely slips off the media radar, it's worthwhile to step back and stake stock of what could be a long-term victory for progressives (and... More...

Last month, Toyota made a decision that didn't get a lot of press, but sent ripples of concern through state houses across the South.The Japanese auto giant announced that it was going to bypass offers of hundreds of millions of... More...

Atlanta Journal-Constitution columnist Jim Wooten deplores a recent lawsuit brought by 51 local school systems alleging inadequate funding for education by the state of Georgia. “We are well past the day,” he huffs, “where unsatisfactory outcomes can be blamed on... More...

President Bush finally made it to the Boy Scouts’ national jamboree in Virginia yesterday. The 30,000 scouts and their leaders suffered a punishing week that saw the electrocution of four leaders and a dismal Wednesday when hundreds of scouts, waiting... More...

Here’s something to mull over while paying bills or pumping $2.00-a-gallon gas: the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s list of the highest-paid Georgia CEOs in 2004 (reg req’d).Topping the charts is Home Depot’s Robert Nardelli, who took home over $39 million for successfully... More...

Back in April Bill Frist starred in “Justice Sunday,” an infamous televised political rally to push conservative judges (and promote holy war). Having bucked fundamentalist orthodoxy on stem-cell research, however, Frist isn’t invited to the sequel, to be held in... More...