Craig Ford: Republicans are trading in that 'Jobs, jobs, jobs' slogan for 'Taxes, taxes, taxes'"

  After five years of passing millions of dollars in tax cuts for big businesses and billion-dollar, out-of-state corporations that, in some cases, pay zero state income taxes, Republicans in the Alabama House of Representatives are about to raise taxes on working men and women.

  Only six months after campaigning on a pledge to create more jobs and never raise taxes, House Republicans have traded in that “jobs, jobs, jobs” campaign slogan for “taxes, taxes, taxes.”

Richard Cohen: Underlying dynamics of civil unrest in Baltimore are same as identified 50 years ago

  The indictment of six Baltimore police officers in connection with the death of Freddie Gray was greeted with cheers from many in Baltimore and a collective sigh of relief from much of the country. At the same time, fully 96 percent of Americans expect additional racial disturbances this summer, according to a recent Wall Street Journal/NBC poll.

  For better or worse, the polls are probably right. Although the indictments may quell the anger in Baltimore, the underlying dynamics that fuel the cycle of police violence and community outrage in so many American cities will not change in the absence of deep reforms. Neither indictments nor body cameras will be enough.

David L. Hudson Jr.: No First Amendment right to not cut grass

  Not every free-expression lawsuit has a prayer of being accepted in court – a lesson from an Indiana appellate court involving a man who asserted freedom of conscience and free-speech defenses to not mowing his lawn.

  Alexander Gul of Bloomington believes that modern-day lawn maintenance practices harm the environment, and he refused to cut his yard, causing his grass to reach more than eight inches in height.

Bill Morlin: U.S. Military ‘Jade Helm’ training plan draws fears from the antigovernment right

  The U.S. military’s plan to conduct a training exercise this summer across seven states has become the latest hot-button topic for antigovernment conspiracy mongers who are advancing a plethora of wild-eyed theories.

  The exercise, called “Jade Helm,” is tantamount to martial law, they say, where special operations forces from four branches of the U.S. military will secretly train and further militarize local police, blending in with local populations and gearing up for an eventual battle to disarm Americans.

Hank Sanders: Senate Sketches #1456: Why don't we celebrate the end of slavery in the United States?

  I wonder why the end of slavery is not celebrated annually in these United States of America? I wonder why the 150th anniversary of the end of slavery is not celebrated in 2015? I wonder!

  The end of slavery was one of the most momentous events in the history of this country.  Slavery affected nearly everyone and everything. The end of slavery also affected everyone and everything. Yet, slavery’s end is not celebrated. Not even the 150th anniversary is being truly celebrated this year. I wonder why.

Craig Ford: Our legislature thinks brown shrimp are more important than people

  When I first saw the list of bills we would be debating in the Alabama House of Representative last Thursday, I thought it was a joke. The first bill up for debate was a bill to make brown shrimp the official state crustacean.

  This is your state legislature's priorities, folks. Not peoples’ lives or jobs, and certainly not being responsible with your tax dollars... brown shrimp. That's the priority. You just can't make this stuff up!

Steve Flowers: Inside the Statehouse: The redistricting chickens are coming home to roost

  There is an ominous cloud hanging over this legislative session. Last year the U.S. Supreme Court surprisingly agreed to hear a Hail Mary complaint filed by the black legislative caucus over the 2014 redistricting plan. In an even more surprising opinion, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the complainants and remanded the case back to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, instructing the lower court to tell the legislature to try again.

  The super majority Republican legislature fully complied with the Voting Rights Act and the Justice Department guidelines when they crafted the new districts prior to the 2014 legislative elections. Specifically, they protected African American districts. The plan not only reserved the current number of minority districts, which by the way has the best reflection of African American districts of any state in America, they actually created a new additional minority House seat in Huntsville.

From risk to resilience: Preparing U.S. coasts for climate change

  America’s coastal cities are global centers of innovation, output, employment, and trade. The communities built around the country’s beaches and working harbors capitalize on marine natural resources to promote fishing, tourism, aquaculture, and other industries. As a result, America’s coastal counties produce nearly half of U.S. economic output while taking up less than 10 percent of its land area. And they continue to grow faster in population than the nation as a whole. Put simply, America’s coasts are a pillar of success and vitality for the entire nation.

  Yet even as population and production continue to concentrate along U.S. coasts, overwhelming physical evidence shows that coastal counties sit squarely in the destructive path of climate change. Intensifying storms, accelerating sea-level rise, chronic “nuisance” flooding, and the intrusion of salt water into aquifers and wastewater infrastructure are all prime examples of the impacts already beginning to undermine the attributes that make America’s coasts special. Scientists say that these impacts will only worsen during the century ahead.

Michael Josephson: Do a little more

  In 1964, a young woman named Kitty Genovese was stabbed to death outside her apartment building in Queens, New York. She was attacked repeatedly over the course of an hour and despite her screams, none of the 38 neighbors intervened or called for help. Some were afraid. Some didn’t want to get involved. Some thought someone else would do it.

  This incident has become a symbol of the increased callousness, self-centeredness and fearfulness of a society where brutes, bullies and other bad guys act without worry of interference from onlookers.

Hank Sanders: Senate Sketches #1455: An open letter to Governor Robert Bentley on Medicaid expansion

Dear Governor Bentley:

  I write this as an open letter because the people of Alabama have a critical stake in your decision. I want Alabamians to fully understand what is at stake, so I am sharing this letter with them as I share it with you.

  Governor, I really pray for Alabama. I pray for Alabama to be the very best that it can be. I also weep for Alabama. I really weep for Alabama because we sometimes seem to be hell bent on being the very worst that we can be. It’s terrible to be constantly praying for the best and yet constantly weeping because the worst is forging our reality.