The Anniston Star
| Location: | Anniston, AL, 36201 |
| Phone: | 256-236-1551 |
Displaying 3 of 10 posted items
Source: www.annistonstar.com
A story in today's USA Today newspaper said the Pentagon, in a report to Congress, suggests it is considering shipping chemical weapons to the Anniston Army Depot and other states to speed their destruction.
Posted by The Anniston Star
Source: www.annistonstar.com
Today's predatory lenders have two distinct advantages over their shadier forebears: skilled public relations defenders and laws legitimizing their work. But the toll exacted on the economically vulnerable by these modern-day loan sharks is as harsh as it ever was.
Sunday The Star's editorial department offers its last installment in the predatory lending series.
Posted by Bob
Source: starpolice.blogspot....
Here at The Star we went all out for today's story about an alleged crack-cocaine ring in Anniston. It's a really interesting story that's got undercover detective work, government seizing property, phone taps and years of alleged drug dealing. ...
Posted by The Anniston Star
Displaying 1 discussion topic
Our main news feed now FREE!
1 post by 1 person. Updated on Apr 7, 2008 at 3:11 PM.
My Feeds
Today
Crews are cleaning up and assessing damage in eastern Calhoun County, as more heavy rain is predicted through tonight. View a slideshow of the storm's aftermath.
August 20
Remember records? 1:29pm
August 19
Beach Boy bounces back 3:28pm
Beach Boys' Brian Wilson sunny about new album
AP — A lot has changed for the historically reclusive Southern California native, who speaks with a slight slur, a result of his drug-abuse past and medicated journey through mental illness.
He is a second-round father at the age of 66 (musician daughters Wendy, 38, and Carnie, 40, from his first marriage, tour as The Wilsons). Following 2004's long-awaited rock opera "Smile," and a 2005 Christmas release, he has a new, ambitious solo album, "That Lucky Old Sun," due out Sept. 2. He is touring behind the material, pushing through years of stage fright.
"I think the new album is just as good as anything the Beach Boys ever recorded," says Wilson. "Playing these songs live, I feel proud. You know that funny feeling you get in your stomach, like, 'Oh my God, this is sounding great!'"
Two years ago, he says, he recorded 18 songs then chose 10 last year for Capitol Records/EMI. He came up with the album's lush orchestration and music, while 43-year-old bandmate Scott Bennett scribed the lyrics, with colorful narrative interludes by Wilson's longtime collaborator Van Dyke Parks.
The outcome is a blend of uptempo pop and piano-based ballads. The title track, a cover of Louis Armstrong's "That Lucky Old Sun," flows into the bouncy anthem "Morning Beat," setting the album's tone.
Read more >>
AP — A lot has changed for the historically reclusive Southern California native, who speaks with a slight slur, a result of his drug-abuse past and medicated journey through mental illness.He is a second-round father at the age of 66 (musician daughters Wendy, 38, and Carnie, 40, from his first marriage, tour as The Wilsons). Following 2004's long-awaited rock opera "Smile," and a 2005 Christmas release, he has a new, ambitious solo album, "That Lucky Old Sun," due out Sept. 2. He is touring behind the material, pushing through years of stage fright.
"I think the new album is just as good as anything the Beach Boys ever recorded," says Wilson. "Playing these songs live, I feel proud. You know that funny feeling you get in your stomach, like, 'Oh my God, this is sounding great!'"
Two years ago, he says, he recorded 18 songs then chose 10 last year for Capitol Records/EMI. He came up with the album's lush orchestration and music, while 43-year-old bandmate Scott Bennett scribed the lyrics, with colorful narrative interludes by Wilson's longtime collaborator Van Dyke Parks.
The outcome is a blend of uptempo pop and piano-based ballads. The title track, a cover of Louis Armstrong's "That Lucky Old Sun," flows into the bouncy anthem "Morning Beat," setting the album's tone.
Read more >>
August 15
Blog focuses on mix tapes 12:20pm
Yesterday
Braid is bold 8:52pm
Microsoft promised to provide hit after hit this summer on the Live Arcade, and so far they have delivered. Geometry Wars 2, Bionic Commando: Rearmed and the upcoming cooperative slugfest Castle Crashers are all worth your hard earned spacebucks (Microsoft points). However, one game seems to stand out above the others. I'm talking about Johnathan Blow's time-bending platformer/puzzler titled Braid.
The game is indeed a platformer at heart, but the real innovation comes in the ability to manipulate time in order to solve puzzles and fix mistakes. Now I know that rewinding time is hardly a new element of video games, but this is not a "Blinx: The Time Sweeper" quality game. Braid does everything well including gorgeous hand-drawn characters and backgrounds along with a wonderful musical score. I've hummed the tune from World 2 for the last several weeks. The story is also a strong point in Braid. The life of Tim and his Princess is surely one that will have you thinking ahead.
Let's get back to the gameplay. The game is pretty much the standard Mario-esqe 2D platformer of yesteryear. A quick jump on an enemies noggin' will take them out. A simple rewinding of time will fix any booboo that Tim might get from a foe. This obviously means that you cannot "die" in Braid, but the solving of puzzles is the focus point here. There is plenty of challenge to be found.
Obviously the manipulation of time is crucial in solving the games puzzles. The real treat is that each world has a different gameplay tool that you must learn. For example, if you rewind time in World 5, a shadow clone of Tim will appear to act out the motions that you had just previously done. You are given a ring in World 6 which will slow everything down in a small radius. The smart implementation of these tools makes it easy to look forward to the start of a new level.
Braid is a hard game to put a length on, mainly because a few of the puzzles could have a gamer stranded for hours. It took me around three hours on my first playthrough for those wondering. The replay value is pretty good for a Live Arcade title, as Braid features a speed run option. The challenge time to beat for the full game is 45 minutes, which is cutting it close.
I strongly recommend Braid to any puzzle/platform loving gamer with an Xbox 360. The title is fairly expensive by Live Arcade standards at 1200 points ($15 US), but is more than worth it. The game will appear later this year on the PC, and I'm also crossing my fingers for an eventual PSN release. Braid is a solid 4.5 buttons out of five.
August 17
So long, farewell 2:09pm
My friends Josh Weiss and Mike Faulk are over here smacking each other around on "Super Smash Brothers Brawl." They're also playing some Wii Play, a game which got horrible reviews, but came with a Wii mote, so there.
Josh will be leaving us for a job in Georgia. He was an intern at The Star over the summer and took some amazing photos. We wish him well.
Back to level grinding on WoW.
Josh will be leaving us for a job in Georgia. He was an intern at The Star over the summer and took some amazing photos. We wish him well.
Back to level grinding on WoW.
August 16
Anthony's test post 4:48pm
Doing a little training exercise for the blog don't mind us....
We saw this cool post on
August 14
It seems the tired AIDS Mary story has been making the rounds again, this time in the Star's circulation area.
It's an old tale that people are spreading AIDS intentionally, but this one has a decidedly local twist. Supposedly the Calhoun County Sheriff's Office has caught at least one person doing so, and charged them with attempted murder. To make it even better, supposedly the Star reported it.
A thorough check through our archives turned up no such story, and a talk with the sheriff disproved any recent AIDS case.
Sheriff Larry Amerson he said he hasn't heard of any attempted murder cases from intentionally spreading AIDS. In the past, his office had arrested a few people for knowingly spreading a disease, he said. Clarification: Amerson also said that those arrests were treated as assaults, not murders.
Sheriff Larry Amerson he said he hasn't heard of any attempted murder cases from intentionally spreading AIDS. In the past, his office had arrested a few people for knowingly spreading a disease, he said. Clarification: Amerson also said that those arrests were treated as assaults, not murders.
Captain Rick Sanford of the Anniston Police hadn't heard of any either. There had been some cases in the 80s when AIDS was much more terrifying, he said, but nothing recently.
Neither Lynn Hammond or Brian McVeigh, assistant district attorneys, had heard of any such case.
August 7
Posting Guidelines 11:57am
Hello, it's Graham Milldrum, and I'm taking over the blog from Nick's capable hands. He posted the guidelines some time ago, but I'd like to reiterate what kind of discussion we'd like to see.
Comments are wonderful and a great part of this job. Comments develop a community of people concerned about crime and who want to bring crimes to the light.
Sadly, it's impossible for me to report on everything that happens. If there is something I or others should know about, please say so. If it's something you want everyone to see, you can post it here. If you want it to be between me and you, you can e-mail me at gmilldrum@annistonstar.com
The rules for posting are simple- no profanity and a reasonable discussion. I'm not asking that the debate be a tired, bland, even lifeless production- far from it. Instead, I want all of us to have a fair debate. As a journalist, I cannot allow postings that make allegations that are not proven, or cannot be proved.
All comments are first sent to me, where I have to decide if they go up or not, using my guidelines. I cannot edit your comments, so if there is one piece of profanity in a post, it has to go. That is not something I like to do.
It might take me up to a business day to get your post up, so please bear with me. As much as I would like to put up everything immediately, I simply cannot.
I really look forward to talking with all of you.
August 6
New faces around The Star 10:22am
The Star is welcoming some new faces around the newsroom including a new crime reporter.
Graham Milldrum came all the way from Illinois to take the reins of the crime beat. So you won't have to look at my sorry mug anymore, haha.
I've enjoyed my time - and the opportunity - to interact with Calhoun and Cleburne County's finest. I've learned a lot from the folks that make law enforcement and the courts work. Thank you to all of those who have treated me with so much hospitality and respect.
I will now have the privilege of covering Jacksonville, Piedmont, and the northern part of Calhoun County.
Graham will be taking over the blog in a few days. He's a little more tech savvy than I am, so I'm sure he will do a far superior job keeping you up to date on the who, what, where, and how of our crime. I have appreciated all of the crime commentary from the readers of this blog. It has been a pleasure to hear from you.
I wish you all the best,
-Nick
Graham Milldrum came all the way from Illinois to take the reins of the crime beat. So you won't have to look at my sorry mug anymore, haha.
I've enjoyed my time - and the opportunity - to interact with Calhoun and Cleburne County's finest. I've learned a lot from the folks that make law enforcement and the courts work. Thank you to all of those who have treated me with so much hospitality and respect.
I will now have the privilege of covering Jacksonville, Piedmont, and the northern part of Calhoun County.
Graham will be taking over the blog in a few days. He's a little more tech savvy than I am, so I'm sure he will do a far superior job keeping you up to date on the who, what, where, and how of our crime. I have appreciated all of the crime commentary from the readers of this blog. It has been a pleasure to hear from you.
I wish you all the best,
-Nick
August 20
Beer lovers will have to wait just a little longer to get Alabama brew in bottles, but in the meantime there is a suitable substitute newly available from just a little farther north.Things are finally brewing again up in Huntsville, as Olde Towne Brewing Co. gets back in business after a fire in July 2007. Founder and brewmaster Don Alan Hankins reports the company is finally filling kegs
August 12
Looks like Huntsville's Olde Towne Brewing Co. is back in business. The brewery's Web site says they produced the first keg in their brand-new facility at the end of July. The company is in the midst of a series of Huntsville-area celebrations now. Here's a list from the site:
Olde Towne Tasting at 801 Franklin, Wednesday 6-8 p.m.
801 Franklin, Huntsville, AL; $20 per person. For more details and
August 6
08-06-2008 They're lands of long, hot and dry summers tempered by breezes from the sea.And they're lands of incredible food — dishes dominated by intensely-flavored herbs, meats and cheeses.Ah, the sun-soaked shores of the Mediterranean, where the olive trees don't offer a lot of shade, but do provide plenty of oil to flavor the cooking.The arid, sunny climate that is the source of so much
| Website: |
0:42 Added about 9 months ago
0:28 Added about 9 months ago
