26 AUG 08: JENA-ROSITY

At first there were only rumors, which couldn't be confirmed. Then Kaffie Sledge wrote an article about it in the Ledger-Enquirer. Now it's confirmed - through a football ruling, of all things. But no, there are NO plans to merge Carver and Spencer High Schools into a grand "super-band."

The Georgia High School Association ruled Monday that Robert Bailey Jr. can have a special waiver, to play football this season for Shaw High School. That's no big deal, until you learn where Bailey is from - Jena, Louisiana. Yes, the city where Cynthia McKinney is the only presidential candidate likely to pay a visit this fall.

Robert Bailey Jr. is one of the "Jena Six," accused in an attack on a high school student which sparked racial tension. You may recall the big civil rights rally which took place there last September - which based on recent history will lead to a memorial marker being erected in about 40 years.

(One of the six suspects already has pleaded guilty. Mychal Bell said on cable TV this past weekend that Jena, Louisiana is "a real racist town." Isn't it nice to know Robert Bailey Jr. is now in a city where no one ever thinks that way?)

Robert Bailey Jr. is awaiting trial in Louisiana for battery in the "Jena Six" case. He's also one defendant in a civil lawsuit, which was filed by the student who was allegedly attacked two years ago. So it's a bit surprising Bailey went out for football, and not the debate squad....

Robert Bailey Jr. has relatives in Columbus, so he moved here and enrolled at Shaw High School last term. Now he'll be able to play football in his senior season - and how ironic it is that the Shaw colors are basic black and white.

Shaw High School Principal Jim Arnold said Monday Robert Bailey Jr. is a "genuinely nice young man," and makes A's and B's in his classes. That should earn Arnold a nice all-expenses-paid trip in a few months - to testify as a character witness.

A blog I found Monday night quoted from a message spread in July by Shaw Defensive Coordinator Brandon Wood. He says Robert Bailey Jr. has "the ability to sign a major college football scholarship." That sounds impressive, until you realize Georgia State is trying to start a major college football program.

Shaw football coach Scott Newman even called Robert Bailey Jr. "a leader on the team." That really shouldn't be surprising. Bailey's been on TV about his case more often than the Shaw students who do in-school newscasts.

It would be nice to think Robert Bailey Jr. will have a peaceful senior season on the Shaw football team. But I've lived in the South long enough to know better. I've heard enough stories of football fans uttering racial slurs toward players at halftime - and making some of the drunk hockey fans in Huntsville seem almost respectable.

(I even heard reports of students fighting in the stands last Thursday night in Phenix City. Imagine if the Central-Carver game had been for real, and not a scrimmage.)

Now that Robert Bailey Jr. is known to everyone as a Shaw High School student, and especially as a football player, here's hoping other players and fans will keep a cool head about it all. And here's hoping the only people showing up at Kinnett Stadium wearing all-white outfits are playing for visiting teams.

Here's what else we learned Sunday, while trying to stay dry:

+ A downpour struck Columbus in late morning, causing some flash flooding. TV newscasters reminded motorists if you can't see the road, you shouldn't drive. This reminder also should be posted on the inside doors of a lot of bars....

+ Dr. Philip Schley of the Muscogee County School Board told the afternoon news he hopes a new superintendent can be named by the end of November. If this sounds absurd, consider this - we may not be able to name a President-Elect by then, either.

+ The Ledger-Enquirer reported GMAC has broken off its credit relationship with Bill Heard Chevrolet. That special guest "Price Slicer-Dicer" needs to get his knife under control.

+ Auburn attorney Mike Slocumb condemned a proposal before Alabama's Supreme Court to ban celebrities from TV commercials for lawyers. A committee of the state bar association explains its goal is to make attorney ads look "professional." As if Ken Nugent grinning as he says, "One call, that's all" is professional....

(Mike Slocumb is upset because his TV ads feature William Shatner. But c'mon - at least Shatner wears a suit, like he does on "Boston Legal." Slocumb could have asked Shatner to dress like Captain Kirk.)

+ National Public Radio noted Alabama Congressional candidates Bobby Bright and Jay Love are both deacons at the same Baptist church in Montgomery. Hmmmm -- who sits farther to the right of the pulpit?

+ Instant Message to the man I heard complaining about severe weather warnings interrupting his TV favorite program: Wow - I never knew angry males like you watch "Divorce Court."

BURKARD'S BEST BETS: Gas for $3.45 a gallon at Circle K on Fourth Street.... FREE chicken biscuits during breakfast hours at Chick-Fil-A.... and sales of Thompson's Water Seal jumping at local hardware stores....

SCHEDULED WEDNESDAY: An update on that Rotary Club President from out of town....

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