Tag Archives: ffrf

Week of November 12, 2012

Posted on by
Reply


Blake Stiles (right) is shown with Athens ISD Board of Trustees President Rob Risko.

Story No. 1 – The lone finalist named: Blake Stiles was named the lone finalist for the Athens ISD superintendent’s job. According to the law, there is a 21-day waiting period before AISD can officially hire him. Stiles has been serving as the interim superintendent, and was the assistant superintendent prior to that.
Why it is important: It’s the top job at possibly the most important entity in Athens. … And 5 Things says that AISD school board members made the right choice.
Learn more: The Athens Review had a story.

Story No. 2 – Playoff football on tap: The regular season ended last week for high school football around the state, but that isn’t slowing down Henderson County. Athens, Malakoff, Eustace and Trinidad all made the playoffs and will be playing tonight.
Why it is important: Because now it’s not only football, it’s the playoffs!
Learn more: The Malakoff/Athens News and the Athens Review.

Story No. 3 – Get ready for the holiday events: Thanksgiving is next Thursday, which means Christmas is right around the corner, and there will be plenty to do in Athens. There’s a parade, Holiday on the Square, Home for the Holidays, and the annual Keep Athens Beautiful decorating contest.
Why it is important: Because it might take a little planning for you to participate in any of these events.
Learn more: The Athens News has a roundup of those events in this week’s paper.

Story No. 4 – Sen. Robert Nichols prefiles legislation: Henderson County’s state senator filed three pieces of legislation this week “designed to limit the growth of property taxes, prohibit the use of eminent domain for recreational purposes, and to significantly reform the state’s welfare system.”
Why it is important: While Nichols’ bills may not excite you, they are a reminder that we are just a little more than seven weeks away from the start of another Texas Legislative Session … and that is important.
Learn more: The Review has a story.

Story No. 5 – The FFRF takes the next step: It is almost Christmas in Athens, so that means it is time for our new holiday tradition: the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF). The now well-known-to-Henderson-County group of Wisconsin atheists filed an open records request with the county this week.
Why it is important: Because this whole thing is moving inevitably toward a court date.
Learn more: The Malakoff/Athens News.

Week of December 12, 2011

Posted on by
Reply
Story No. 1 – No Banner This Year: A Freedom From Religion Foundation spokeswoman confirmed Friday that there will be no FFRF banner on the courthouse lawn this year.
Why it is important: Pushing the issue to next year should drain some of the emotion out of the situation and give attorneys a chance to work out the legal points.
Learn more: The Malakoff News broke the story here.

Story No. 2 – Rally Time: A big crowd is expected for the Henderson County Nativity Rally Saturday from noon to 1 p.m. on the courthouse square.
Why it is important: After being relegated to social media for nearly two weeks, county Christians will be able to personally turn out “ in love, to unite and show the world the true spirit of Christ and Christmas.”
Learn more: The Athens Review, the Tyler Paper, and The Malakoff News all have stories.

Story No. 3 – Primary mess: By court order, filing for a spot on the Republican and Democratic party primary ballots has been extended to Monday. And it will be opened up again at a later time because no one knows what’s going on with redistrict maps. A good sign is that officials from both parties agreed to move the election date back to April 3, but that also has to be approved by a panel of judges, so who knows.
Why it is important: Because candidates can’t file if they don’t know what district they are in.
Learn more: The Review had a basic story, and here is a story from the Texas Tribune .

Story No. 4 – Thunder Bridge closing: The bridge over the Union Pacific Railway on CR 1500 on the edge of Athens will be closed, according to railway officials.
Why it is important: The bridge is more than 100 years old and it will cost around $1.5 million to replace, officials said. There are also several families along CR 1500 who have been cut off from a direct route to Athens.
Learn more: The Review had the story here.

Story No. 5 – School finance lawsuit: The Texas Coalition – which includes Malakoff ISD – filed its school finance lawsuit against the state in Austin last week.
Why it is important: Although it seems far away, legislators will soon be battling over more budget cuts.
Learn more: The Malakoff News had a story.

Week of December 5, 2011

Posted on by
Reply

Most of the time, 5 Things is for busy area residents to catch up on the week’s big stories. This time, however, since just about everyone has heard that a Wisconsin-based organization is working to get Henderson County commissioners to remove a nativity scene from the courthouse lawn, we’ve decided to list the 5 Things you need to know about the issue.

Story No. 1 – Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) demands action: Monday afternoon, Henderson County Judge Richard Sanders received a letter, addressed to all commissioners, from the FFRF demanding that the commissioners “take immediate action to ensure that no religious displays are on city or county property.”
Why it is important: The threat of a lawsuit was implied by the letter, even if it wasn’t specifically stated.
Learn more: The story was reported by The Malakoff News, and the Athens Daily Review. After that the story was picked up by every media outlet from Dallas to Tyler and beyond.

Story No. 2 – County responds: County Attorney Clint Davis framed the county’s written response, saying: “Henderson County believes that it is in complete compliance with the requirements of the Constitution and acting very much in accord with prior U.S. Supreme Court rulings.”
Why it is important: Mainly because the FFRF, after reading Davis’s response, changed the direction of their legal argument.
Learn more: The Malakoff News  and the Athens Daily Review both had the story.

Story No. 3 – Social media drives story: While undoubtedly important, the issue went from a local to a regional story because of the deluge of comments from area residents on Facebook and media websites. Literally thousands of comments were posted in two days.
Why it is important: First, because it gives you a way to follow the twists and turns of the story. Second, because the entire episode is a lesson in the power of social media.
Learn more: Jayson Larson at the Athens Review took an interesting look at the first few hours on Facebook after the story broke.

Story No. 4 – National media pays attention: By Thursday morning, Henderson County Judge Richard Sanders and FBC Malakoff Pastor Nathan Lorick were on the Fox News Channel. Friday, Lorick was interviewed on the Glenn Beck radio show.
Why it is important: Any time a local gets on national television or radio, it’s news. It also is an example of just how big the story has become.
Learn more: Google “Nathan Lorick” and then click the news button. As of Thursday night there were 52 stories, including pieces from Fox News, the Washington Post, and St. Louis Today.

Story No. 5 – Pastors schedule rally: There will be a Henderson County Nativity Rally on the Courthouse Square from noon-1 p.m. next Saturday, Dec. 17. Today (Dec. 9), a group of more than 70 church leaders from around the county showed up at a meeting to help plan for the rally.
Why it is important: A few reasons – first, this has the possibility of blowing up into something really, really huge; second, nothing in this county has brought 70-plus Christian leaders together before; and third, there is a possibility of a live nativity scene on the square, which is always cool.
Learn more: Check out the event Facebook page here.