Has Fayetteville Finger been withdrawn? (part 12)

My sons Hunter and Wilson (on right) went to Yosemite with our friend Sherwood Haisty Jr. (on left) from March 21 to March 27th.

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 State Rep Clark Hall is questioned by Senator Gilbert Baker concerning the Fayetteville Finger. (From Jason Tolbert)

John Brummett in his article “Legislators have their ups and downs,” Arkansas News Bureau, April 5, 2011 stated:

arrowupsmallState Rep. Clark Hall — This old-style East Arkansas Democratic politician did actually handle the gerrymander bill in the House, so he deserves an arrow, too.

arrowupsmall State Rep. Greg Leding of Fayetteville — Yes, up, for the simple reason that he went against his local chamber of commerce and his local commentariat to support the Pig Trail Gerrymander, and, I figure, will survive to get re-elected, or at least renominated.

At the time Brummett wrote this article it looked like the gerrymander would go through with the 18 votes the Democrats thought they had in the Senate. Brummett was praising Greg Lading for standing up to Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce. However, I think it is rather stupid to fight for something that  81% of the people in your district oppose and that is exactly what he did when he voted for the Fayetteville Finger!!!

Max Brantley reported a few minutes ago in the Arkansas Times Blog:

The state Senate recessed immediately after reconvening this morning so closed-door negotiations could continue on a congressional redistricting map.

Likely outcome: 1st District somewhat more hopeful for Democrats; 2nd District stronger for the Republican; 3rd District as usual; 4th District, without Fayetteville friendlier to Republicans, particularly when DINO Mike Ross leaves the seat open to run for governor.

Let the angry Democrats of Fayetteville cheer if the plan keeps them under Boss Womack’s wing. But let them also know that Republicans are chortling. They’ve been handed a political tool that they’re swinging gleefully and either alternative is acceptable to them. They make hay if the original Democratic plan prevails. If the Republican/Fayetteville opposition prevails, they will have made it harder to elect a Democrat in the 4th in the post-Ross future. No need to worry about a candidate from a population center like Fayetteville.

Jason Tolbert notes:

Apparently there are lots of state legislative huddles going on.  Will they emerge with a new map and how long with that take? It’s anybody’s guess at this point.

Noted – No map has been released/leaked but glimpses seen by roaming reporter’s eyes show one with smoother edges and no fingers

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One can only hope that the politicians have moved on from considering the Fayetteville Finger. What was first considered a joke to Max Brantley quickly became wise Democratic politics to split 7 counties in order to get as many Democrats out of the 3rd District as possible. I hope this is the last of the dozen posts have I have to cover on this.

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Free-lance columnist Rex Nelson is the president of Arkansas’ Independent Colleges and Universities. He’s also the author of the Southern Fried blog at rexnelsonsouthernfried. com.

Rex Nelson wrote in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette on April 2, 2011 a great article called “Arkansas Bucket List.” The readers of his blog http://www.rexnelsonsouthernfried.com came up with a list of things you must do at least once in your life to be considered a well-rounded Arkansan. Nelson asked others to add their suggestions at his website. I am going through the list slowly.

 1. Search for the Gurdon Light late one night.

Wikipedia reports:
The Gurdon Light is an unexplained light, said to be of supernatural origin, found in modern day Gurdon, Arkansas folklore. It is a series of unknown phenomena which occur in a wooded area by railroad tracks, appears to observers as a light or lights hovering in the air. The light has been featured on local media and on the TV show Unsolved Mysteries. The location is still in use by the railroad and is one of the most popular Halloween attractions in the area.[1][2][3][4][4]The light has been ascribed various colors, ranging from blue, green or white, to orange, and has been described as bobbing around as if being from a cord. Its location varies within a select geographic area and witnesses have described it appearing at various times of the day or night.

According to Lauren folklore, the light originates from a lantern of a railroad worker who was killed when he fell into the path of a train. The legend states that the man’s head was separated from his body and was never found, and that the light that people see comes from his lantern as he searches for it. Other variations state that the light is a lantern carried by railway foreman William McClain, who was killed in the vicinity during a confrontation with one of his workers at the time of the great depression. The lights are believed by some to be from passing cars on the highway off in the distance which looks like small floating lights that flash off in the distance. However, this highway opened in 1974. The light has been reported seen and spoken of since the Great Depression. .[1][2][3][4]

My sons Hunter (on left) and Wilson (on right) went to Yosemite with our friend Sherwood Haisty Jr.  from March 21 to March 27th

 
By Everette Hatcher III, on April 5, 2011 at 12:51 pm, under Jason Tolbert. No Comments
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