[pennquaker09]

Well, I didn't like him before, so he still has the same standing with me.

Am I the only one that still doesn't understand why he was elected? And what I mean is that he basically ran on a generic Republican platform. He didn't deviate and offer any ideas from what we've been hearing for a while now.

Personally, I find him to be incredibly daft.

[zenjenn]

Frankly, I don't get why Bentley or Sparks won their primaries when voters had Byrne and Davis to choose from. It seriously perplexes me.

[Keeper]

I liked Davis from what I saw and heard from him but I am not one to vote by party, I vote for the person who makes the most sense to me. Sparks had a bad rep with animal lovers for his views, Bentley stated he was for new animal laws (we'll see) especially those regarding dogs who are chained and gassing animal shelters.

While I didn't always agree with Gov Riley he definitely did a lot for this state.

[michgc]

I'm outside of DC and heard about through an email from a synagogue in North Carolina. When people in high power say stupid things, word gets around.

[EscAlaMike]

Originally Posted by Ynot

Based on his comments, I can only surmise that our new governor is no better than a Muslim extremist and, IMHO, his comments will bring further shame to this state. I would think a learned man such as he would know better than to mix religion with his politics, or perhaps he just doesn't know how to keep his big foot out of his big mouth! Sheesh, can't wait to hear the media on this clown.

A Muslim extremist? That's taking it a little far don't you think? Bentley isn't going around threatening and killing people who don't agree with him.

Who gives a rat's a$$ what the man said anyway. He's a politician. Since when do we take politicians seriously?

[cpg35223]

Originally Posted by zenjenn

Frankly, I don't get why Bentley or Sparks won their primaries when voters had Byrne and Davis to choose from. It seriously perplexes me.

Beats me on Sparks. He was the consummate party hack who won based on the endorsement of the old-school black politicos in this state. That in itself should tell you a lot about the politics of this state.

At the same time, I was heartened that a lot of the corrupt Democratic leaders were shown the door. Lowell Barron was a terrible lawmaker.

I'm neither Republican or Democrat. But anybody who pulls the straight Democratic party ticket in Alabama must have had a lobotomy, given that party's wretched record in the state since Reconstruction. Bob Riley looks positively enlightened compared to pack of greedy, myopic yahoos.

[bluebeard]

I don't vote straight Dem, but I tend to vote Dem or nothing. I can only compromise my beliefs so much. Basically, any statewide candidate of any party I would vote for probably would never have a chance.
However, I must admit that Riley is above my expectations for my idea of an Alabamian governor. I likely will miss him. But who knows Bentley is yet untested.
Sparks, blech. He had nothing to say. I really couldn't tell what he was going to do when he got in office, except try to legalize gambling. whether he or Bentley won didn't really matter to me much. I probably would have preferred Byrne over him. Davis would've been better as well, but I don't think a Democratic governor could get elected in this state, let alone during the Republican wave last year.

[Tourian]

Originally Posted by zenjenn

Also, Governor Bentley offered an apology yesterday. Frankly, it was a little weak... sort of a "I'm sorry you're wrong" kind of apology, but public religious leaders are taking what they can get! Hopefully he will monitor his language more carefully in the future.

The man is a Christian and said as much in a church. He can apologize, but as you say it may have been a very conditioned apology because he is not going to renounce his beliefs and alienate the people he said it to - which are devout Christians.

[zenjenn]

Oh gosh, Tourian, I can think of about half a dozen different things he could have said that would have been perceived as more sincere of an apology without "renouncing his beliefs", but it would require being more diplomatic than he obviously is.

And THAT's the real problem here, not what he believes about Christians or non-Christians, but his lack of diplomacy. A leader at that level needs to be diplomatic.

...alienate the people he said it to - which are devout Christians.

As a governor, when he says something in public he is NOT just saying it to one group - he is saying it to everyone in Alabama. Get it? He is governor, those comments end up in the living room of every voter in Alabama whether "devout Christian" or not. Not that all devout Christians agree with his choice of language... someone here said he meant "brothers and sisters-in-Christ." I won't say that he didn't mean that, but that is NOT the language he chose to use.

[Reactionary]

zenjenn - FWIW Dr. Bentley and Southern Baptists consider Jews to be their brothers and sisters (y'all are grandfathered-in to heaven) - that's been a tenet of the SBC since the 1870s. It wouldn't have made Bentley's Baptist speech to Baptists in a Baptist church honoring a Baptist preacher any less awkward for our Hindu / Muslim / Buddhist / Wiccan / Atheist friends, but it would have been that much more 'inclusive'. Bentley was trying to foster racial unity by honoring Martin Luther King Jr. at Dexter Ave Baptist Church, but ended up in trouble for badly paraphrasing MLK's sermons (his choice of language) which often used the same 'brother' line (however King didn't say you're not my brother).