The line is open early. The roundup of odds and ends is in the political vein:

* THE RELIGIOUS RIGHT HAS DESIGNS ON ARKANSAS: Church and State magazine reports on plans by the American Renewal Project, a Religious Right organization, to politically target 12 states including Arkansas in 2014 to "restore America to its Judeo-Christian heritage." The group plans pastor policy briefings and voter registration drives, speakers include wackjobs like Rep. Steve King of Iowa and faux historian David Barton. The American Family Association is part of the jihad. Gay marriage is high on the list of calls to arms.

* CAN I INFLUENCE YOUR VOTE?:: Saline circuit clerk Dennis Milligan — who just happens to be a Republican candidate for state treasurer — is floating a plan that seems likely to win Saline Quorum Court approval to pay mileage to out-of-town court jurors as well as the statutory daily fees of $25 to $50, which Milligan says can be eaten up by gasoline from those coming from a distance to the Benton courthouse. Only a handful of cases go to trial. Milligan says he can pay mileage from money saved by a juror notification system that prevents unnecessary trips to the courthouse for jurors drawn for canceled cases.

* IS MIKE HUCKABEE STILL A GOOD FACE FOR RADIO: Politico reported further today on some uncertainty about Mike Huckabee's syndicated radio show.

* BILL: TOO MUCH HILLARY TALK: The former president said the country has too many big problems to obsess right now on whether Hillary Clinton will run for president in 2016.

* WHICH ASA DID YOU SEE? A newspaper reader in NWA notes an interesting team change yesterday in the Fayetteville federal court appearance by indicted failed developer Brandon Barber. Republican gubernatorial candidate Asa Hutchinson was the first chair legally, handling Barber's courtroom defense work. But others, including the candidate's son Asa III, handled the photo ops with Barber before and after court. No shame in doing legal defense work, is there? Though some of the people flimflammed by Barber — some of them the kind who bankroll political campaigns — might be of a mind to think the friend of my enemy is my enemy too. UPDATE: A federal magistrate sent Barber to jail today. No more home detention pending trial. The judge said Barber didn't have a permanent residence because a New York court restraining order prevents him from living with his girlfriend

* FROM THE FAR RIGHT: A CANDIDATE FOR ATTORNEY GENERAL: North Little Rock lawyer David Sterling announced today as a Republican candidate for attorney general. He made a point of announcing his willingness to defend the unconstitutional abortion ban approved by the 2013 legislature and to defend the ban on gay marriage. If that gives you any idea, along with a promise by the Federalist Society member to battle an "overreaching" federal government. Maybe he could sue if he wins over the Republican-backed implementation of Obamacare. There'll be more Republicans. Possibles include Faulkner Prosecutor Cody Hiland, Leslie Rutledge, who's worked for the National Republican Party including on election issues, and the Kochhead/Religious right/failed Pulaski JP candidate Chris Stewart.

* JIM ARGUE DOESN'T SUPPORT MIKE ROSS: We've mentioned before (a month ago) that former Sen. Jim Argue is supporting Bill Halter for governor in part because of an opinion formed about Mike Ross when they served together in the Senate. He's now made a video. He criticizes Ross for shifting positions.

“Leadership is more than just sticking your finger up in the political wind and figuring out which direction the winds happen to be blowing at that time and setting your sails always in a favorable wind,” Argue said in a video released by the Halter campaign. “I think those are things that need to be founded on core principles and you need to have the backbone to stick to your guns in however you believe.”

* GETTING THE GAY OUT IN IMBODEN: The Imboden Live website has opened a comment line on the dispute over a decision not to welcome a former student, now TV producer to be a graduation speaker. He happens to be gay. Opponents of his appearance grab hold of the superintendent's defense that no formal invitation was issued, etc. At least one person gets to the crux of it: If Bryant Huddleston were NOT gay, the 1990 Imboden graduate would have been the graduation speaker.

* HOG HEAVEN: Jacqueline Froelich of KUAF has posted some photos and a report on the public relations media tour arranged at the C&H Hog Farms in Mount Judea, a concentrated feeding operation that conservationists believe imperils the nearby Buffalo River. The hog pens were far short of capacity for visiting press. If only we had smellovision.

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Interesting story from Texas on the Texas legislature. Republicans, who control nearly everything in Texas, apparently suffered huge blowback from their war on women in the last legislative session that cut health care to women in the battle to destroy Planned Parenthood.

Result: A "grand bargain," engineered by a female Republican legislator from the Houston area.

No abortion bills have, so far, made it to the floor of the legislature. Plus, nobody is offering crippling amendments to the legislation to restore health services, including family planning, to women.

“A lot of people really felt they got snookered by some of the people in the pro-life movement about that family-planning issue,” said State Senator Bob Deuell, Republican of Greenville, who has been a strong advocate for restoring family-planning financing for low-income women by way of primary care.

Dr. Deuell, a primary care physician, is an ardent opponent of state money going to Planned Parenthood clinics. But he said the vitriol of some abortion opponents last session had prevented the state from pursuing good policy decisions. He recalled being compared to Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood, when he argued that cutting family-planning services would lead to more unwanted pregnancies, and therefore more abortions and more children living in poverty.

Texas is actually going to increase family planning spending, though no money may go to places affiliated with abortion clinics. Some direct federal grants have managed to keep some money flowing to Planned Parenthood family planning clinics.

No Arkansas Republican would believe this. Their votes were automatic on these issues, though Democratic strength in a House committee did manage to derail some of the anti-woman agenda, including a bill to stop sex education funding in Little Rock because the program was provided by Planned Parenthood.

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Boswell-Mourot Fine Art at 5816 Kavanaugh Blvd. will open a new exhibition, "Arkansas Artists & Their Works," Saturday, May 11, with a reception from 6-9 p.m.

The exhibition will showcase a variety of media, with abstract sculpture by Andy Huss, raku vessels by Winston Taylor, collaborative works by Megan Chapman and Scotsman Stewart Bremner, and paintings by Melissa Wilkinson.

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Oil company cheerleader Jason Rapert, the senator for the Mayflower oil spill zone, helped get out the ExxonMobil public relations message today by tweeting news of the oil company's report a month after a ruptured pipeline spewed Canadian tar sand crude on a Mayflower neighborhood.

Exxon is sorry, of course, but upbeat about the cleanup and cooperation of all involved. Photo coverage includes a cleaned turtle being released to its native environment. An Exxon exec comments:

More than that, I am grateful for the patience and understanding displayed by the wonderful people of Mayflower. Quite frankly, I have been overwhelmed by the generosity of the local community — the welcome they have shown us — in light of the circumstances. I speak for everyone working on the cleanup in saying we won’t be satisfied until we can give them back the beautiful community they know and love

Still awaiting answers on what caused the break; the nature of what's being pumped through the pipe; whether pressure on the pipe flow was excessive; what's the possibility of pollution seeping below ground; what sort of damages Exxon plans to pay to those not "directly impacted" by oil flow; and lots more.

UPDATE: Attorney General Dustin McDaniel held a news conference this afternoon to offer his own progress report. Not so sunny. He faulted the process for making claims for damaged property and advocated Exxon purchase of all property at pre-spill values. He said carcinogens remain present in the air. He said he was making plans for a lawsuit, though stopped short of saying for certain that one would be filed. He says his office will have a task force for those affected and invited calls to an 800 number.

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Word comes in today of completion of a documentary on Jim Lindsey, the Razorback star who became a successful real estate developer and behind-the-scenes political power.

It's the work of a young filmmaker, Clint Fullen, and includes narration by Lindsey's old teammate Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys.

Fullen tells me this about opportunities to view the film:

The film is scheduled to release this coming football season. We are currently in the process of organizing the premiere. Public screenings will be held in Fayetteville, Little Rock and Forrest City. If there is demand, additional locations will be added. DVDs will be available upon the film's release.

Lindsey's brief fling with electoral politics was a victim of the story editing process, Fullen tells me. The news release follows.

NEWS RELEASE

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones headlines upcoming documentary “The Jim Lindsey Story.” The film covers the career of Jones’ one-time teammate and business partner. Emmy Award winners Larry Foley and Dale Carpenter executive produced the project. The official trailer is available online.

Jones and Lindsey played together during the University of Arkansas’ 1964 national championship football season. Between 1963 and 1965, the Razorbacks captured 22-straight victories. That streak remains a school record. According to Foley, Lindsey helped lead the Hogs to the championship.

“Jim Lindsey has been one of the most important people and contributors in my life,” Jones said.

Jones said he first became “sold” on Lindsey while traveling to games. “He was my bus riding partner. We would talk about our dreams, our ambitions,” Jones said. “I remember his insight into life was amazing at such a young age.”

In 1965, the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings drafted Lindsey in the 2nd round. The Razorback competed as a running back for seven seasons in Minnesota. Coach Bud Grant named Lindsey a team captain. In 1969, the Vikings won the NFL title.

During offseasons, Lindsey bought and sold real estate in Northwest Arkansas. According to Lindsey, he started making more money selling property than playing football. After retiring from the NFL, Lindsey began developing homes and apartments. Lindsey now owns and operates more than 37,000 apartment units and 42 golf courses.

“The documentary shows how he evolved from a child to the influence he is today,” Jones said. “It depicts his will, desire and ambition to achieve.”

“Lindsey is an influential business leader whose story needs to be told,” Foley said. “This film is a must-see for Arkansans.”

“The Jim Lindsey Story” features interviews with College Football Hall of Fame coach Frank Broyles, former Arkansas head coach Ken Hatfield, former NFL players Fred Cox and Dave Osborn, and Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Bud Grant. The film is scheduled to release fall 2013. For more information, visit jimlindseystory.com.

About “The Jim Lindsey Story”
The history of the Arkansas Razorbacks is composed of legends, and without a doubt, Jim Lindsey is one of its most successful players—on and off the field. Lindsey won a national championship, became an NFL captain and built a thriving real estate empire across the South.

Narrated by Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, “The Jim Lindsey Story” begins in the Arkansas Delta. Back then, Lindsey was simply a small boy who dreamt of playing ball. Weekdays were spent in the cotton fields, and weekends were used for cow-pasture baseball. In time, that boy grew up to be a very big man.

With the Razorbacks, Lindsey contributed to one of the most dominant winning streaks in college football. As a Minnesota Viking, the athlete captured the 1969 NFL title. Lindsey was never the fastest or the strongest. Still, he is one of the most remarkable players to put on pads. Lindsey possessed two traits that are often overlooked in sports: intelligence and determination.

At 21-years-old, Lindsey wagered his $75,000 signing bonus on a tract of land in Northwest Arkansas. He bet on a winner and found a new profession. During the NFL offseasons, the former Razorback continued to buy and sell property. Over time, he transformed his opportunities in athletics into a sizable fortune. After retiring from football, Lindsey established a real estate operation that flourishes today.

This film is an Southern success story. It is about a delta boy who went from the henhouse to the penthouse. Using his available talents, Lindsey seized victories in both business and athletics. He may have not been the fastest or the strongest, but with intelligence and determination, Lindsey has become one of the most accomplished athletes in Arkansas history.

About the filmmaker
Clint Fullen, producer and director, was raised on the Razorbacks. He may have been born in Texas, but he was brought up by Arkansans. Transplanted to Little Rock, Fullen nurtured a love for football and film in the Natural State. Attending the University of Arkansas, the young filmmaker received degrees in broadcast journalism and creative writing. In 2013, he was awarded a master’s in documentary filmmaking. Throughout his academic career, Fullen freelanced as a commercial and documentary director. His short films have toured more than 100 locations across the United States, and his work has been broadcast nationally through "PBS Frontline" and "PBS Planet Forward." “The Jim Lindsey Story” is Fullen’s largest and most ambitious project to date.

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THE DEVIL MAKES THREE
8:30 p.m. Revolution. $13 adv., $15 day of.

At this point, bands that mix it up at the intersection of country, folk, blues, hillbilly, ragtime, rock 'n' roll and punk aren't really a novelty anymore. That's just a normal thing, now that everyone figured out it was all pretty similar to begin with and stopped acting like genres are these walls that are necessary to keep things separate. What a silly way to be that was, right?

The Devil Makes Three is one of the bands that figured that out about a decade ago. They're a trio out of Santa Cruz, Calif., and their drummer-less, all-string approach doesn't keep them from kicking up a ruckus. Just give a listen to any of the band's albums, but especially their live sets, "A Little Bit Faster and a Little Bit Worse" from 2006 or 2011's "Stomp and Smash."

Also on this bill is Jonny Fritz, (formerly known as Jonny Corndawg), a country performer with a gentle lilt and a yen for humorous tunes. He's got a new album out: "Dad Country" on ATO Records.

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The Jackie Robinson movie, '42,' inspires a history lesson from Ernest Dumas this week on breaking the color line in Arkansas minor league baseball, along with a reminder that anybody who believes this a post-racial world should perhaps ask a black person before making any definitive judgments. He gets around to Richie Allen's hard season with the Travelers, but more interesting is the account of the Cotton States League.

Hot Springs passed for a liberal precinct in 1954. The people who ran the Hot Springs Bathers in the Cotton States League, including a Republican lawyer and politician named Hank Britt, hired two black pitchers, Jim “Schoolboy” Tugerson and his brother Leander. The other Arkansas and Mississippi cities in the league announced they wouldn’t play the Bathers if they fielded a Negro. The attorney general, J. P. Coleman, declared it illegal in Mississippi for a black man to play baseball on the same field as whites.

My beloved Oilers at El Dorado and the other teams voted to expel the Bathers until their management agreed not to play a Tugerson. When Schoolboy went to the mound anyway against the Jackson Senators, before he could deliver a pitch the umpire forfeited the game to Jackson.

The Tugersons picked up and went to Knoxville, Tenn., where the unhittable Schoolboy won 33 games that season. Before the season was out, Britt managed to put a black Langston High School lad, Uvoyd Reynolds, and another player from the Negro American League on the field for a few games at Hot Springs, and attendance jumped. But other cities—El Dorado, Helena, Pine Bluff—were not ready to see black athletes. I went to town one August night that year to see the Oilers pound the Greenville Buckshots. Jim Johnson from nearby Crossett, who was running for attorney general to fight integration, stood at the plate with his wife and sang “On Mockingbird Hill” at the seventh-inning stretch. The Cotton States League, facing integration and other issues, folded the next season, and for some of us summers were never the same.

PS — A hardcore fan sends an image from a retailer of historic baseball garb of a Hot Springs Bathers replica jersey, now sold out.

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Now that the Arkansas legislature has opened the sanctuary doors to guns in churches — if the churches choose — decisions are being made.

John Lyon at Stephens Media updates the situation and the story includes a couple of points worth highlighting:

* NO GUNS, BUT SOME SWORDS: This from the Catholic bishop in Arkansas:

Catholic churches, however, have been instructed not to allow concealed handguns. After the law was enacted in February, the Diocese of Little Rock sent a directive to pastors stating, “Bishop (Anthony) Taylor has stated that all weapons, whether concealed or unconcealed, are prohibited on the premises of all Catholic churches in our diocese. The only exceptions are law enforcement officers in the exercise of their duties and ceremonial blunt swords used by the Knights of Columbus.”

* PICKING AND CHOOSING: Several pastors seemed to favor a policy that would allow some, but not all, to carry guns. For example, Rev. Schanon Caudle, pastor of North Park Baptist Church in Van Buren.

Caudle said he has not declared a policy for the church, but he would not object to allowing certain church members to carry concealed weapons in church, if they request permission and can give a good explanation for their request.

“I don’t think it ought to be a blanket invitation for everybody to carry one,” he said. “I think it would hurt your witness in the community, if you found out that was a church where everybody was carrying a weapon.”

Where are the 2nd Amendment purists now? A church may decide who may and who may not carry weapons? What part of "shall not be infringed" don't these liberals understand?

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Some other odds and ends that floated in overnight:

* JOHN BOOZMAN, STOOGE OF THE NIGHT: I can't find a clip yet, but multiple readers report that U.S. Sen. John Boozman joined Sen. Mark Pryor in David Letterman's pantheon of "stooges of the night" for his vote against broadening background checks for gun purchasers.

* JUSTICE AND MERCY: Gov. Mike Beebe has been famously stingy in granting pardons and commutations to applicants. Yesterday, he recommended a rare sentence commutation. He recommended a reduction of a life sentence to a term of 103 years, which will make the prisoner, now being held in California, eligible for parole in two more years. She's served 23 years so far for selling two rocks of crack cocaine to an undercover officer in Smackover in 1990. It is no exaggeration to say murderers and rapists have served less time.

* MIKE ROSS' TREASURE HUNT: Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mike Ross has always been a fearsome money raiser. He's promised to file an initial report somewhere near what Democratic candidate Bill Halter and Republican candidate Asa Hutchinson combined to raise in their first reports. His unceasing phone work is one way he gets the job done. Another is fund-raisers such as this one next week at Vince Insalaco's North Little Rock home. List of "hosts" below. An interesting mix of political, liberal, business and lobby names.

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The Little Rock Technology Park soap opera offers another episode Wednesday, with a board meeting at 4 p.m. at UALR.

Topic A apparently will be the late-arriving idea — championed by Board Chair Mary Good — to plunk the park into a couple of unconnected parcels on University Avenue. Good has been on a personal inspection tour, an unannounced visit that earlier drew critical comments from Authority Board member C.J. Duvall about Good's "unilateral decision making."

To recap: Little Rock taxpayers have committed tens of millions in new sales tax money to build a "technology park," an office project seen by some as a business incubator, by others as additional research space for UAMS and UALR (yet another bone of contention because of the contradictory comments during the tax campaign by city officials). An extended site search produced three finalists. Mary Good and the "expert" hand-picked by Tech Park godfather Dickson Flake didn't like the finalists because none was the residential neighborhood near UAMS that Flake, consultant Charles Dilks and Good favored. So Dilks, unbidden, came up with another site. And he produced his own site evaluator to study the sites. Minimum acreage and contiguous property — once absolutely vital characteristics to Dilks — were no longer so vital. The sites are the former Brandon Furniture store at 12th and University and property currently occupied by Sears several blocks to the north.

In any case, here's the campaign for the new site, as outlined in a document dump less than 48 hours before Wednesday's meeting:

* BRANDON BUILDING DESIGN: This is a drawing of space use in the old furniture store.

* BRANDON BUILDING SUITABILITY: This is the report to Good by Dilks' self-selected architect/planner William Gaudreau on the suitability of the Brandon building for "multi-tenant" use. It has such potential, he said, and presents "many interesting and intriguing opportunities for future redevelopment."

* SEARS PROPERTY: This document maps the Sears location on the north side of I-630.

* SEARS PROPERTY PRICE AND AVAILABLITY: A real estate consultant talks here about existing leases on the Sears property (it would be at least a year before a portion of the parking lot could be available for redevelopment and longer before the Sears building itself could be taken) and the cost of the property (owners say they'd take a bargain $7.9 million.) This document responds to a number of questions about environmental, parking and other issues raised by Board member Jay Chesshir.

* AND WHAT ABOUT THE BRANDON PROPERTY SALE? There's no specific discussion in these documents of the fact that a deal is reportedly in the works to sell the Brandon property to an investor. A land flip shortly before a public decision to use the property could alter the purchase or lease price, you'd think. The Gaudreau letter does say:

Whereas I have not had the benefit of all the work or investigations that has occurred to date, it appears this property opportunity may require immediate action to secure future development rights.

The push is on from the Board chair. Will other Board members toss the months of work on other sites and accede to the Good/Dilks gambit? Check in Wednesday. Like sands in an hour glass, these are the days of our lives.

(Did I actually read a city official saying the plans by a medical group to tear down the old Doctors Hospital just north of the Sears property for a new medical facility somehow was a "chip" toward development of a tech park there? Why not say the new Target, Radio Shack and Sport Clips in a nearby shopping center are also "chips"?

As it happens, problematic parking related to Doctors Hospital came up in one of the memos to Good:

Question #5: Is there potential to negotiate shared parking as between the Authority and LRMA [owner of the Sears property] as related to structured parking to be later constructed within the LRMA complex?

Response: It is impossible to provide a definitive answer at this time. In order to answer the question, it will be necessary for LRMA to conduct a detailed analysis of (a) its present and future parking needs; and (b) the best way to utilize the land which will be available after the new medical office building is constructed and the Doctors Hospital Building is demolished. Any sharing of structured parking to be constructed on land owned by LRMA would obviously need to be based upon fair and reasonable economics and could occur only in the event that LRMA’s parking needs were fully addressed. In the event that the Brandon Property becomes unavailable for purchase and/ or that the Authority determines that it wishes the Park to be located only upon contiguous land, the above described analysis could also address how the Authority and LRMA might work together in an effort to provide additional land and/or office space for the Technology Park within the LRMA complex. Given that the Authority’s Consultant strongly prefers this University Avenue and I-630 location and that there are many sound reasons for this recommendation, it would seem that such an analysis should be performed before any final site selection decision is made.

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Over to you. Some final notes:

* DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOUR SECRETARY OF STATE IS? The Blue Hog Report notes that Arkansas law requires the secretary of state to reside and keep an office in Little Rock and keep the official record of the legislature. So what the heck is with all this Twitter business by Secretary of State Mark Martin from Prairie Grove? (Long students of Mark Martin might prefer him to spend more time away from work, not less.)

* UALR NAMES NEW LEADER OF RACE INSTITUTE: UALR Chancellor Joel Anderson has named Dr. Michael R. Twyman director of the Institute on Race and Ethnicity. He's been director of grant programs for the Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust in Indiana. His history includes college teaching with racial diversity as themes. The mission of the Institute is to seek racial and ethnic justice in Arkansas.

* SCHOOL VOUCHERS; DISASTER AVOIDED IN ARKANSAS: Arkansas's legislature came close to approving a school voucher bill this session. (Bad enough that the anti-public-school forces pumped $30 million more into the "vitual charter" scheme, a profit-making enterprise for a national corporation). Could have been worse if the voucher bill had passed. Check out Diane Ravitch on Louisiana's voucher program, expanding despite an adverse federal court ruling, particularly into religious schools.

“The school willing to accept the most voucher students — 314 — is New Living Word in Ruston, which has a top-ranked basketball team but no library. Students spend most of the day watching TVs in bare-bones classrooms. Each lesson consists of an instructional DVD that intersperses Biblical verses with subjects such chemistry or composition.” It did not receive 314 vouchers last year.

* BOMBS UNDER CONSTRUCTION: A report on a bust in Lincoln where young teens were found making homemade bombs in plastic soda bottles amid drug-related items. Look more like "Justified"-style meth heads than jihadists.

* THE HUCKSTER STRIKES AGAIN: Apparently suffering from a lack of media attention, Mike Huckabee went shambolic today, predicting that President Obama would be driven out of office before the end of his term on account of the "coverup" of events in the attack at Benghazi. And those facts on which Huckabee bases his certainty of a presidential coverup? To be revealed at the proper time, no doubt.

* SEN. ROBERT THOMPSON TO RUN FOR RE-ELECTION: Democratic Sen. Robert Thompson of Paragould, mentioned periodically as a potential candidate for attorney general, announced today that he'd be seeking re-election in 2014.His news released touted his work "across the aise" during the last session, with its new Republican majority. He said his young family had influenced him a decision not to mount a time-consuming statewide race. Another Paragould legislator, Rep. Mary Broadaway, is considering the race on the Democratic side.

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A coalition of conservation groups announced plans today to file a lawsuit over Agriculture Department approval of a major hog feeding operation at the C&H Hog Farm at Mount Judea near a creek that flows six miles away into the Buffalo National River.

Find the news release on the jump.

The Arkansas Farm Bureau arranged an outing for media to the farm today. The Arkansas Times wasn't provided a notice. We got a belated invite not long before the event was to begin. Some hogs are reportedly already on the property, but nowhere near the 6,500 eventually planned to supply agri giant Cargill.

NEWS RELEASE

Contact:

Jack Stewart, Buffalo River Watershed Alliance
Emily Jones, National Parks Conservation Association
Robert Cross, The Ozark Society
Hannah Chang, Earthjustice

Conservation Groups Notify USDA of Violations of Law Regarding Industrial Swine Facility in the Buffalo National River Watershed

Animal waste from factory farm could jeopardize endangered species, contaminate America’s first national river

Mount Judea, Arkansas—A coalition of conservation and citizen groups sent a notice of intent to sue today to the U.S. Department of Agriculture regarding its Farm Service Agency’s loan guarantee for an industrial 6,500-pig swine facility on the banks of a tributary that flows straight into the Buffalo National River — an action that was not properly examined and may violate the Endangered Species Act. The facility, C&H Hog Farms, is under contract with Cargill, an international producer and marketer of agricultural products.

Designated in 1972 by President Richard Nixon as America's first national river, the Buffalo National River travels freely for 135 miles and is one of the few remaining undammed rivers in the lower 48 states. The river watershed is home to over 300 species of fish, insects, freshwater mussels, and aquatic plants, including the endangered snuffbox mussel, the endangered Gray bat, and the endangered Indiana bat. A popular camping, canoeing, and fishing destination, the Buffalo National River attracts more than one million visitors a year.

“This factory farm will produce massive quantities of waste just six miles from the Buffalo River, and that waste will be spread on land that is right next to one of the Buffalo’s major tributaries,” said Emily Jones, Senior Program Manager, Southeast Region at National Parks Conservation Association. “We are talking about one of the most beautiful areas in the country. To think that our government would allow this hog factory in the watershed without examining its impacts is unconscionable.”

C& H Hog Farms received a loan, 90 percent of it guaranteed by the FSA, for the purchase of 23.43 acres of land in Mount Judea, Arkansas, and for construction of two barns. The barns would house an estimated 6,500 pigs, making it by far the largest of six existing swine farms in the Buffalo River Watershed. Plans are to spread the estimated two million gallons of waste produced by the C&H facility on seventeen fields totaling 630 acres. Eleven fields are adjacent to Big Creek, a large tributary of the Buffalo National River.

"This is the greatest threat to the Buffalo River since the Corp of Engineer's dam proposal that we were able to thwart 50 years ago," said Robert Cross, president of the Ozark Society. “The porous limestone and karst that underlies all of the soil in the Mt. Judea region provides a direct passageway for leakage from the waste holding ponds and for untreated recharge from the waste application fields to reach the groundwater and thus Big Creek and the Buffalo River. The risk for contamination of the Buffalo River is unacceptably high."

The C&H facility’s loan and guarantee were issued in the summer and fall of 2012. Because of a failure to notify local residents, however, the community in and around Mount Judea did not find out about the facility’s construction until this year. The lack of adequate public notice is just one of a number of egregious failures on the part of the state and federal government to ensure that this facility will not have detrimental impacts on the exceptional natural resources of the Buffalo River watershed.

“The letter we are sending today is a notice to the Department of Agriculture that its Farm Service Agency failed to undertake the consultation that is required to ensure that endangered species are not harmed as a result of the agency’s action,” said Hannah Chang, an attorney with Earthjustice, a public interest law firm representing the groups.

“Our aim is to prevent this farm from going forward without a thorough examination of the consequences — consequences that could result in irreversible damage to one of America’s most treasured places, the Buffalo National River,” said Jack Stewart of the Buffalo River Watershed Alliance.

Earthjustice and Earthrise are representing the Buffalo River Watershed Alliance, the National Parks Conservation Association, and the Ozark Society in sending the notice of intent to the USDA.

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Dr. Charles Dunn, who retired in 2008 after more than 20 years as president of Henderson State University, died Sunday of pancreatic cancer. He was 67.

A first-generation college graduate from a Magnolia family, Dr. Dunn left a positive mark at Henderson and many friends and admirers, me among them. He continued to teach political science after his retirement.

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The Arkansas legislature just passed a new school choice law to replace one contested in federal court in a case that began over students who wanted to transfer from Malvern to whiter schools in Magnet Cove.

Is that old law now moot? That's the question the 8th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals posed today in a brief order asking for supplemental briefs in the case:

The court believes that supplemental briefing would be helpful in this case in light of the Arkansas legislature's repeal of the Arkansas Public School Choice Act of 1989 and passage of the Public School Choice Act of 2013. Parties and intervenors, and any interested amici, are directed to submit simultaneous supplemental briefs of no more than 15 pages due May 22, addressing whether this appeal is moot in light of the enactment of the Public School Choice Act of 2013.

Briefs should address, among other points of interest to the authors, whether the conduct challenged in the complaint continues under the new law, see N.E. Fla. Chapter of Assoc. Gen. Contractors v. City of Jacksonville, 508 U.S. 656, 662 & n.3 (1993), the application of the "voluntary cessation doctrine," see, e.g., Northeastern Florida, 508 U.S. at 661-62, City of Mesquite v. Aladdin's Castle, Inc., 455 U.S. 283, 289 (1982), and, if the appeal is moot, the appropriateness of vacatur of the district court's judgment. See, e.g., U.S. Bancorp Mortgage Co. v. Bonner Mall Partnership, 513 U.S. 18 (1994).

A federal judge had said the old Arkansas law, which prohibited transfers that contributed to resegregation, didn't meet race-blind dictates of the U.S. Supreme Court. In in the interim, the thousands of children already using the choice program were allowed to stay at the transfer districts.

The legislature passed compromise legislation. It allows free choice, with some asterisks. 1) There's a cap on transfers of 3 percent of enrollment; 2) districts can opt out of choice if they say they are "subject to the desegregation order or mandate of a federal court or agency remedying the effects of past racial segregation.”

Several schools districts, such as El Dorado and Camden Fairview, have already served notice that they will opt out of choice. These are districts that have long contended that free choice would cause resegregation. Other districts are considering an opt-out. School districts in Pulaski County remain enmeshed in a desegregation case, particularly the Pulaski County Special School District, which has yet to be declared "unified," or desegregated. UPDATE: These four districts have officially submitted opt-out resolutions — Blytheville, Camden-Fairview, El Dorado and Hope. The El Dorado school board's resolution is typical of what can be expected.

A larger question looms, I'm told, about what exactly the opt-out provision means. How recent must a district have been in court? One lawyer who's active in school law has even argued that the entire state, given the mandate to end segregation. The four districts that have already asked to opt out all cite the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision and the 1969 directive from the federal Department of Health Education and Welfare to end segregated schools. These antecedents apply, at least arguably, to any district in the state.

At a minimum, the ambiguity of the law is certain to prompt school board discussions — and likely some lawsuits — in the future. Parents might have cause to seek intervention for or against choice when administrators, for political reasons, make decisions with which they disagree. Springdale is a particular sore spot. It's never been involved in a school desegregation lawsuit, but its leaders have long feared it could lose hundreds of students to neighboring school districts fleeing Springdale's rising Latino population.

The law provides no review process on these opt-out requests. The state Education director apparently is merely expected to accept them. Else that state official take the risk of being seen as moving back into the state's well-established history of abetting segregation.

Meanwhile, still, there's the old law. Some legislators had favored waiting for a decision there before moving ahead with this year's legislation. My education sources say it's generally believed that the old law is moot thanks to the new law and that the 8th Circuit will never rule on the lower court's ruling on the old law.

But that's what briefs and decisions are for. The wheels of justice are grinding.

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Fox 16 says the Little Rock police are responding to a possible double homicide at 32nd and Bishop Streets.

UPDATE: Two bodies found in house on W. 33rd. Fox 16 said the dead were a man and woman, a couple though unmarried.

UPDATE II: The police have identified the dead as Bobby Broadway Jr., 40, and Natasha Avery, 32, both of 1513 W. 33rd.

The bodies were found by a friend who'd visited the couple the night before, the police report said of the shooting. Animal control officers took custody of three pit bulls and six puppies found in the house. Nothing reported yet on motive.

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State Auditor Charlie Daniels, a nearly eternal state officeholder, is hanging it up. He won't seek re-election in 2014, he announced today. He'd previously served as land commissioner (five terms) and secretary of state (two terms). He's 73 and won 70 percent of the vote in 2010, but says he's ready to retire.

This further opens the field to a Republican challenger in reddening Arkansas. Republican State Rep. Andrea Lea has said she might run. A Republican even more conservative than Lea, Ken Yang of Benton, is already in the race.

Daniels' name, the same as that of a well-known country musician, has always been credited for his electoral success, but he also was a capable politician with roots deep in what was once a one-party state. It was not name alone that made him the biggest vote getter of the 2002 election cycle, when he won re-election as secretary of state against a challenge by then-First Lady Janet Huckabee. (That might have also had something to do with his opponent.)

Daniels' news release follows:

State Auditor Charlie Daniels says he will not seek re-election when his term expires in 2014. Daniels, a Democrat from Bryant, was elected Auditor of State in 2010 with 70% of the vote, and is currently serving in his first term. Under Arkansas’ constitution Daniels is eligible for a second four-year term, but says after nearly four decades of public service, he is ready to retire. Daniels will turn 74 in December.

Related: Statement by Auditor Daniels

Recalling a career in elected office that began in 1985, Daniels says he has witnessed an enormous evolution in technology in the public sector, changes that offer new and innovative ways to connect with the citizens he serves, and says he’s proud of the services he has been able to bring online. “When we first started in the Land Office, we didn’t even have computers. All of our work was done manually. Today, we offer a way for people to claim their missing money on a mobile phone. Almost everything we do today is electronic. People expect to do business online, and it’s been my goal to meet those expectations.”

As examples, he points to the creation of Voter View, an online resource for voters to view their ballot and polling place, and the launch of online business and commercial services applications such as online franchise tax payment, as two of the more significant and wide-reaching improvements he made during his eight-year tenure as Secretary of State. As Auditor, his office recently launched an e-Filing system for unclaimed property, and connects more and more with constituents through social media and Smartphone applications.

Daniels, who has occupied an office in the Capitol for over 30 years, says his work as Secretary of State in preserving and maintaining the Capitol Building provided some of the greatest rewards of his career. “This building is such an incredible treasure for the people of Arkansas, and that’s always how I thought of it — as the people’s building. My staff used to joke that I would pull weeds out of the flower bed myself and that I had been known to be critical of a wax job on the floor. I took a lot of pride in protecting the Capitol and making it more accessible to visitors.” His administration supervised the renovation of the east entry promenade to the building, repaired bases of all the monuments on the grounds, and turned the first floor of the Capitol into a state-of-the-art visitor’s center.

The offices Daniels held have required close working relationships with county elected officials, and he points to the consensus-building with county clerks and county election commissioners during the implementation of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) as one of his proudest accomplishments. “HAVA required us to change everything we knew about the mechanics of elections. We had to change all the voting machines and get the 75 county clerks on board with a new statewide voter registration system. It was tough, and we didn’t always agree. But we made it work together.”

Under Daniels’ tenure as land commissioner, the office went from generating $300,000 to $12 million in annual revenue, and he was the first commissioner to begin a program for preservation of historic land records kept by the office. His service on the Arkansas Natural & Cultural Resources Council gave him an opportunity to be involved with the preservation of historic sites throughout Arkansas, and oversight of the state’s submerged lands afforded unique opportunities for preservation and care of Arkansas’ natural resources. “Probably my fondest memory in that regard was the discovery of the sunken steamboat that emerged along the banks of the Mississippi during the drought in 1987. It fell to our office to figure out how to best preserve the 19th century artifacts from the boat, which are on display today at Arkansas Tech University.”

As Director of the Labor Department, Daniels created the Office on Women in Work, created a pilot program providing grants to train women in non-traditional jobs, and hosted the first Governor's Conference on Women and Work. Under his leadership, the office became nationally recognized for its innovations in Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) programs and Mine Safety and Health Administration programs to improve mining operations in Arkansas.

“I’ve always felt it was a marker of success when another state called my office for advice on imitating a program we’d created, which proved what I’ve always known —even though we’re a small state we are still innovators and leaders, and I’m proud that we’re still setting that standard in my office today,” Daniels said.

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Kind of a nicely written narrative from Rep. Nate Bell of Mena on what he says was a formative episode of his youth, when, he says, a 30-30 rifle gave him the backing he needed to scare a would-be intruder away from his Alabama home.

That early spring morning, I learned that having a firearm at the ready could give a terrified little boy the ability to successfully defend his mother and siblings from the evil intentions of a criminal. No one was harmed, no shots were fired, and what could have become a horrific crime scene instead remained the home of our unharmed family.

Physically, I was no match for the grown man attached to those large hands on the bathroom window sill. Powder, lead, walnut, brass and steel made an adult criminal flee from a 12 year old boy.

I know firsthand that firearms in the hands of responsible individuals prevent crimes and save lives. As a citizen and elected official, I am 100% committed and dedicated to protecting and preserving the right of EVERY American to defend himself, herself, or loved ones from those who intend to commit evil.

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I wrote this morning about the latest development on the woebegone Little Rock Technology Park — a rump effort to take over the site selection process because of factional divisions. In short, Chair Mary Good has introduced a new site on University Avenue outside the agreed-on selection process.

I thought to myself as I wrote this morning — what a disaster (I actually thought of a coarser word beginning with cluster). What credibility this undertaking ever had — and it's had its share of doubters from the start — is shot. With a 3-3-1 vote likely spelling impasse on possible site alternatives should the board ever get around to voting, I wondered: Does any leadership exist in Little Rock to right this operation? If not, can voters take matters in their own hands and circulate a referendum to at least shoot the cripple and put all of us out of misery?

Surprise. Something akin to forceful leadership may have finally shown up. I'm on the trail of the evidence and hope to share it before long. Stay tuned. I'm quite sure it will be a subject of discussion at tomorrow's Board meeting, 4 p.m. at UALR.

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Some late arriving news item:

* IMBODEN SUPERINTENDENT DID TALK ABOUT BRYANT HUDDLESTON AS GRADUATION SPEAKER: We've been writing about the complaint by California TV producer and former KAIT anchor Bryant Huddleston that an invitation for him to speak to this year's graduating class at Sloan-Hendrix High School in Imboden had been withdrawn because he is gay.

Since then, Superintendent Mitch Walton has said there was no formal invitation. Huddleston's father Steve, president of the School Board, has said there had indeed been discussions in January about having Bryant speak, but objections from two school board members, Preston Clark and Aaron Murphy, had led Walton to decide to have no graduation speaker at all.

Community opinion has been sharply divided, with many staking out the position on a local news website that it was a blow for morality to prevent a gay man (successful and a father notwithstanding) from speaking, no matter whether he intended to talk about homosexuality or not. Huddleston has said he was going to speak about continuing education and to encourage women, such as his sister, a graduating senior, to take positions of leadership.

Today, I asked for and received from Supt. Walton some e-mails he'd written to board members that touched on the subject. He still isn't granting interviews. But to those who think the matter was closed by Walton's previous — and continuing insistence — that no invitation was made, I think you might agree that Steve Huddleston's story dovetails with some of this new information.

January 21, in a lengthy e-mail about various matters, Walton mentioned to board members:

I am planning to ask Col. Witt to speak at our Graduation exercise in May.

A State Police spokesman said State Police Director Stan Witt, himself from Imboden, had never received an invitation to speak from the superintendent. Huddleston has said, after Walton mentioned Witt, that he reminded the superintendent of their earlier conversation about having his son return home to speak at his alma mater. March 5, Walton wrote the following to the School Board

Gentlemen

I meant to mention this to you at the last board meeting, but did not get the "graduation speaker" on the discussion log. A few months ago, Steve H had asked to give consideration to allow his son, Bryant Huddleston, for commencement speaker at the graduation ceremony for the class of 2013 in May. Since Steve was board president and Madicyn was graduating, he wanted to include Bryant as the speaker.

I told Steve that I did not have a problem with this. I usually mention who the graduation speaker will be to all the school board members (and usually it is later in the spring before I have somebody lined up). Please let me know you thoughts. I will need to confirm with Bryant as soon as possible if okay with other board members. Thanks!

The document sent to me added:

Reply from one board member

Sounds like a good idea to me. Robert

By Huddleston's account, two of the five members expressed reservations. No invitation was extended. Bryant Huddleston eventually wrote his letter of protest.

The superintendent's own e-mail indicates he intended to ask Bryant to speak. Then it didn't happen. Is there really much doubt that Steve Huddleston has reflected accurately what happened, that his son's sexual orientation made him an unacceptable speaker?

Walton is trying to cover for the board that hires him. He seems, at the outset at least, not to have been influenced by what I've been led to believe is general knowledge of Bryant Huddleston's sexual orientation. But community wishes are strong. Check out Imboden Live to see how deep feelings about homosexuality run and how openly the antipathy is expressed. I hope even those who hold those views might have a shred of sympathy for Bryant's account of how difficult his high school years had been as a closeted gay youth and why he decided to make a stand against prejudice for the benefit of others in the same position.

Bryant didn't speak because he's gay. Many in the community, including a leading banker and dentist who are school board members, support that decision. Sad.

* REPEAL OBAMACARE: As promised, teabagger Glenn Gallus of Garland County has begun trying to qualify a petition for the ballot to repeal the legislature's implementation of Obamacare through Medicaid financing of private insurance coverage. Attorney General Dustin McDaniel has rejected his first try at a ballot title and popular nam. McDaniel said Gallas' proposal had not fairly and accurately summarized the legislation being referred.

* CATCHING UP WITH AN ESCAPED KILLER: The Detroit newspaper carries a good AP feature on a convicted Arkansas killer, Lester Stiggers, who escaped in 1970 and has been living openly in Michigan for 43 years thanks to sanctuary granted by a moderate Republican governor who disapproved of conditions in Arkansas's then-medieval prisons. Arkansas has recently renewed efforts to bring him back. The law's on Arkansas's side, though Michigan sympathizers think justice won't be served by extradition.

* NORTH LITTLE ROCK ADMINISTRATOR TO TAKE OVER DOLLARWAY: State Education Director Tom Kimbrell has named North Little Rock Assistant Superintendent Bobby Acklin to head the Dollarway School District July 1. Frank Anthony has been serving as interim superintendent since the state took over the troubled district last June.

* THE APPALACHIAN TRAIL TO DC: Enough dreaming. South Carolina voters in a majority white predominantly Republican district will not send a Democrat to Congress, not even when the Republican is the conniving, philandering, cold-blooded Mark Sanford. The race has been called for Sanford, about 54-46 last i looked.

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Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) challenged Vice President Joe Biden to debate him on gun control Friday after learning about Biden’s vague plan to approach Congress with a new plan to restrict gun ownership: “I would like to invite the Vice President to engage in an hour-long conversation and debate: how do we stop crime? If [...]

FORT WALTON BEACH, Fla.,  (UPI) –  Police in Florida said a man was charged with battery after allegedly hitting his girlfriend and then asking officers to arrest him. Fort Walton Beach police said they responded to a report of a disturbance at a home April 21 and a woman at the residence told them her [...]

NEW YORK,  (UPI) –  Some New Yorkers said they were outraged to learn the city’s new bike share program will not allow any riders weighing more than 260 pounds. The city Department of Transportation program, which begins this month, requires those who sign up for $95 per year or $25 per week to sign a [...]

MILWAUKEE, (UPI) –  A Milwaukee man who sold federal undercover agents one of their own guns in a sting operation was sentenced to 18 months in prison, court documents said. Marquise Jones, 19, pleaded guilty Thursday to having a stolen gun but insisted he had nothing to do with its theft. The weapon was taken [...]

Benghazi was just a crappy town in a crappy country, "global warming" was called "global cooling,"  and Kermit Gosnell was just another abortionist. Also: Debbie Wasserman-Schultz occasionally washed her hair. Now: Presented in 1080 hi-def, FOR FREE! It's The Great Eight, from the Personal Liberty Digest™!

The South Carolina House of Representatives passed a bill Wednesday that, if it becomes law, will make it a crime to implement the Patient Protection and Affordable Care act anywhere in the State. The so-called “nullification bill” cleared the House on a 65-39 vote. It’s a pretty ambitious bill. Among other things, it would: Give [...]