Alabama Burning

I don't know what the hell this is all about, but it is quite disturbing....

Fires burn 4 more Alabama churches

BOLIGEE, Alabama (AP) -- Fires damaged or destroyed four more Baptist churches across the Alabama countryside Tuesday, less than a week after a string of five blazes that were ruled arson.

"I'm not prepared to talk about the evidence yet ... but common sense tells you there is a clear indication these fires are going to be linked," FBI acting assistant director Chip Burrus said in an interview with The Associated Press in Washington, D.C.

Rich Marianos, a spokesman for the federal Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agency, said more than 50 agents were assigned to the case in Alabama.

"This is our No. 1 priority nationally," he said.

Among the churches damaged was Morning Star Baptist in Boligee. Member Johnny Archibald said smoke was pouring from the church when he arrived around daybreak.

"They had kicked the door in," he said. "Evidently they had set the pulpit on fire and went out the front door."

Tuesday's fires took place at churches off rural roads, about 10 to 20 miles apart. They were in a cluster of three counties, about 60 miles from the Bibb County area where the five other churches were burned early Friday.

This is exactly the kind of shit my beloved Alabama does NOT need. No one ever talks about the fact that Birmingham is the headquarter city for more of the nation’s top 50 largest banking institutions than any U. S. city outside of New York City, or the state of the art medical facilities of UAB, or the aeronautics and space research done in Huntsville, second only to NASA's headquarters in Houston, or having one of the best restaurants in the United States, or the many state parks and scenic beauty that abound across the state. Nope, we've got ignorant hicks burning churches, which only serves to enforce the rampant negative stereotypes that stain Alabama's reputation. Hopefully, they'll catch these assholes soon, but until then, I fear I can look forward to more negative press and rushes to judgement caused by religious fervor by a minority of extremists. And New Jersey thinks IT has it bad....