How Many Brownies (and Alaskan Jobs) Did Lisa Murkowski Just Give Away?
Friday afternoon, the offices of the AFL-CIO in Anchorage were hopping. Look at the sinister faces of all those “union thugs.” That’s one thing I’ve never understood. How can any Alaskan, in a state with the second-highest union density in the country, think of unions as “thuggery.” Union men and women are your neighbors, your friends, your kids’ soccer coaches, your fellow church members – people who work hard, and enjoy good jobs with benefits that let them enjoy life and give back to their community by volunteering, putting money into the local economy, sending their kids to college… all…
Mudflats on Wall Street (Video of Arrests at Protest)
The Mudflats’ New York Bureau Chief, Zach Roberts, has been doing an outstanding job covering the movement known as Occupy Wall Street. He has been our boots on the ground since the protests began, recently putting himself in harm’s way to expose the latest happenings. We’ve posted his photos before, but his current shots, and some outstanding video footage show a decidedly different mood than his earlier coverage. The following videos show some of the arrests that happened Wednesday night in the Wall Street area. A quick email from Zach said: People need to see this stuff… They threw…
Oyster Roundup – Theft, Shakedown, Hot Sauce and More…
~Thick and fast they came at last, and more, and more, and more! [The Walrus and the Carptenter, Lewis Carroll] A half dozen on the half shell. Slurp ’em up! (Links in the titles) Rick Perry, Evangelical Economist Rick Perry thinks that God crashed the economy on purpose to teach us a lesson and return us to Biblical principles. I think that God inflicted Texas with Rick Perry for not allowing gay marriage. Rembrandt Returns! I have conflicting feelings about art theft. While I understand more the impulse and obsession to own great art, rather than simply a desire for…
Is Chris Christie “Pulling a Palin?” New Jersey Rape Survivors Billed for Forensic Kits
A rape kit is a forensic evidence kit, and is used to collect any physical evidence that may have been left behind by the rapist. It involves having the victim report to a medical facility as soon after the crime as possible, where samples are taken of hair, blood, fingernail scrapings, vaginal swabs and other invasive tests. It can be highly traumatic for the victim to have this type of evidence collected just after they have been sexually assaulted, but it is key to the identification, and prosecution of the perpetrator. Back in the late ’90s, in one community in…
Sensing Impending Doom, Mayor Sullivan Pulls the Sidewalk Ordinance
Yes, you can still fight City Hall! The latest news from Rosemary Shinohara at the Anchorage Daily News is that Mayor Dan Sullivan has requested a “postponement” of consideration on the new sidewalk etiquette ordinance: The administration asked that it be referred to the city’s Public Safety Commission, said Ossiander. A public hearing on the matter will still be held at today’s Assembly meeting as advertised, said Ossiander. But the hearing will remain open until the measure comes back to the Assembly later for a decision, she said. For those who need a recap… Mr. John Martin, a homeless man,…
Mayor Appoints Schoolbus-Following Guy to the (School) Budget Advisory Committee
By Linda Kellen Biegel Here at The Mudflats we did a post not long ago about an incident discussed during an Anchorage School Board Meeting. It seems that Bob Griffin, a twice-failed candidate for the school board, was pulled over by the police. Here is the explanation in the words of School Superintendent Carol Comeau at that meeting: Carol Comeau — I have no idea what he said or what he’s doing. I do know that shortly after the election he was following the bus route of one high school, middle school and elementary school and the bus driver…
Alaska Outlaws Synthetic Cannabis – What’s the Big Deal?
Synthetic cannabinoids, originally intended to mimic the effects of medical marijuana, have now been criminalized in Alaska with House Bill 7, signed by Governor Sean Parnell. The bill will take effect on July 7. These products have been changed from Schedule 2A to Schedule 3A controlled substances. Alaskans caught possessing less than 12 grams of substances like Spice or K2 (both recently for sale in Anchorage and Fairbanks smoke shops) will face a misdemeanor. Possession of more than 12 grams becomes a felony, effective next Friday. The bill also criminalizes sale of K2, Spice and other synthetics, often marketed as…
Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell Endangers Children’s Health for Political Posturing
Alaska is a land of extremes, both good and bad. We have the most coastline, the most islands, the best fishing, the most park land, and I can confidently say the most natural wild beauty of any state in the nation. On the flip side, we have the most earthquakes, the most infant botulism, the most alcoholism, the most mosquitoes, and the worst rate of chlamydia of any state. We’re second in the nation for gonorrhea. ~Chlamydia The state has been first or second in reported rates of chlamydia every year since 2000, state public health officials said. Alaska’s rate…
Terror on the High Seas! Beware, Coastal Alaska!
Brace yourselves Ketchikan, Skagway, Juneau, and Seward. If you think hard and make your eyes go all blurry, you can just imagine two lanterns hanging in the church steeple warning you of the coming invasion. That’s right, a horseman is galloping by to remind you of the signal – one if by land, two if by sea. Well, it seems the dark forces have chosen the sea route, and they are coming. Intelligence tells us that they will enter Alaskan waters at the end of August making land in Ketchikan on the 28th, Juneau on the 30th, Skagway on the…
Oyster Roundup! Guns, Money and Cheese…
~Thick and fast they came at last, and more, and more, and more! Pass the Bree Hey, remember when Anchorage Mayor Dan Sullivan “favorited” a porn star on Twitter last year? It was quite an entertaining tale, and you can refresh your memory HERE. Little did we know that the story would have a Chapter 2, and become more entertaining still. You see, it turns out that Mayor Sullivan’s favoritest porn star has now shed her porn name, and become (are you sitting down?) one of Charlie Sheen’s two “goddesses.” That’s right boys and girls… Sully’s Bree Olson is now…