Alabama
Planned Alabama execution latest example of barbarism in America
In 1996, Kenneth Eugene Smith was convicted of committing a murder for hire in 1988, stabbing Elizabeth Sennett to death on behalf of her husband. The husband died by suicide when he became a suspect in his wife’s murder. Smith and John Forrest Parker were sentenced to death for their role in the barbaric murder.
Tomorrow, Jan. 25, it seems likely the state of Alabama will outdo Smith on the barbarism scale, executing Smith with a new method, nitrogen hypoxia. If it works as planned, Smith would become unconscious, and then it “would cause death by forcing the inmate to breathe pure nitrogen, depriving him or her of the oxygen needed to maintain bodily functions.” That is a big “if” because the method has never been tried before.
At least not on humans. A team of veterinarian researchers analyzed various means of euthanizing animals and concluded in 2020 that nitrogen hypoxia was suitable for birds and for pigs under certain circumstances but is “unacceptable for other mammals.”
Smith is entitled to some doubts about Alabama’s track record on performing humane executions. In November 2022, he was punctured with intravenous needles for nearly four hours as doctors searched for veins capable of handling the execution cocktail for a lethal injection.
“I was strapped down, couldn’t catch my breath,” Smith told NPR’s Chiara Eisner recently. “I was shaking like a leaf. I was absolutely alone in a room full of people, and not one of them tried to help me at all, and I was crying out for help. It was a month or so before I really started to come back to myself.”
Smith’s case, as is typical of such situations, is not as cut and dried from a legal perspective. His “initial conviction was overturned by the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals. In his second trial, the jury recommended 11-1 that Kenny receive a life sentence without the possibility of parole,” according to the Catholic Mobilizing Network, the nation’s leading anti-death penalty organization. “But the judge overrode this verdict and sentenced Kenny to death, once again.”
What is more, according to Catholic Mobilizing Network: “Alabama has since amended its sentencing laws to say that the jury, not the judge, makes the final decision on sentencing in a capital trial.” If Smith’s second trial happened today, and the jury reached the same conclusion, he would not be on death row at all.
There are so many reasons to stop the execution that are particular to this case, it is remarkable that we are even discussing it. Still, the most important reason to stop the execution is not because of what it does to Smith but what it does to us. It turns us into barbarians.
Alas, America in 2024 is not allergic to barbarism and our culture has long since stopped evidencing any particular concern for human life.
When asked earlier this month in a radio interview about his fight with the Biden administration over how to handle migration, Texas Gov. Greg Abbot said, “The only thing that we’re not doing is we’re not shooting people who come across the border, because of course, the Biden administration would charge us with murder.”
The violence in our cities and in our schools has not caused a single prominent Republican politician in the pro-gun caucus to reevaluate their stance.
Pro-choice Democrats vie with each other for who can craft and adopt the most extreme laws, eliminating any restrictions on abortion.
Assisted suicide laws stalled in the U.S. last year but our neighbors to the north are planning to extend their law to allow people with mental illness to sign up for state-sponsored, doctor-administered, death.
Rome had its gladiators and America has professional wrestling and mixed martial arts.
The internet is littered with videos of school kids beating up other kids, people getting beaten up on the street by thieves.
Last Sunday, at Mass, the first reading told of the prophet Jonah warning the city of Nineveh to turn away from its sins: “Jonah began his journey through the city, and had gone but a single day’s walk announcing, ‘Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed,’ when the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth.”
Americans are not likely to start fasting anytime soon. We have no sackcloth. We cherish our indifference to human life and we enjoy our barbarism. Smith is the most obvious and immediate victim, but it is the rest of us who will be judged too, and judged by what we do to him.
Alabama
Alabama-Texas A&M free livestream: How to watch SEC basketball game, TV, schedule
The No. 5 Alabama Crimson Tide play against the No. 10 Texas A&M Aggies in an SEC basketball game tonight. The matchup will begin at 7 p.m. CT on ESPN. Fans can watch this game for free online by using the free trials offered by DirecTV Stream and Fubo TV. Alternatively, Sling offers a first-month discount to new users.
The Crimson Tide enter this matchup with a 13-2 record, and they have won seven consecutive games. In their most recent game, the Crimson Tide defeated South Carolina 88-68.
During the victory, Alabama’s star guard Mark Sears scored 22 points and shot 7-12 from the field. He also shot 4-6 from beyond the arc, so he will try to perform similarly this evening.
The Aggies also enter this matchup with a 13-2 record, and they have won nine games in a row. The team has a 4-0 record against ranked opponents.
In their most recent game, the Aggies defeated Oklahoma 80-78. During the victory, Zhuric Phelps led the Texas A&M offense. He scored 34 points and shot 6-10 from three-point range, so he will try to continue his great play tonight.
Fans can watch this game for free online by using the free trials offered by DirecTV Stream and Fubo TV. Alternatively, Sling offers a first-month discount to new users.
Alabama
Alabama-based content creator reacts to possible TikTok ban
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) – Some social media users are bracing for a possible ban on the popular social media app TikTok.
The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to ban the social media platform by Jan. 19 if the Chinese-owned company does not sell the platform due to the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act.
It’s a dilemma between free speech and national security.
“Many of the content creators on TikTok are Americans, so they are protected under the First Amendment, and it was also argued that TikTok could be seen as a public forum, and Americans have freedom of speech in a public forum,” Troy University Assistant Professor of journalism and communications Dr. Stefanie East said.
Montgomery-raised content creator Funmi Ford says this ban could affect many Americans financially, not only content creators, but also small business owners.
“There are entrepreneurs that have used TikTok not only to get income but to get new clients,” Ford said. “There’s so many people that use this app to feed their families that I think it’s going to be really hard for them.”
TikTok has provided Ford with a way to share her culture from Accra Ghana and interact with other cultures. She fears without this social media platform, it may be more difficult to make those global connections.
“I feel like TikTok is one of the few places, because it’s video and it’s short form, you got to digest a lot of information, whether good or bad, that either widened your horizon, made you think differently, made you want to travel,” said Ford. “So with it possibly being banned, which we hope it’s not, it’s going to close a window to somebody else’s life, a window to another part of the world that you would not see otherwise.”
TikTok, as well as some of its users, have sued to block the U.S. ban contending that it violates First Amendment rights. The Supreme Court is now faced with the decision between those claims and Congress’ concern the Chinese government may have influence over the social media platform.
President-elect Donald Trump filed a brief at the Supreme Court asking justices to temporarily block the law so he can “pursue a political resolution” once he takes office.
Not reading this story on the WSFA News App? Get news alerts FASTER and FREE in the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store!
Copyright 2025 WSFA. All rights reserved.
Alabama
SEC regular season conference winner odds for Auburn and Alabama basketball
The SEC has taken the men’s college basketball world by storm this season. When this week began, the SEC had nine teams in The Associated Press top 25, including six in the top 10.
Auburn and Alabama are in the top 10 and making their marks as favorites to win the national championship. Before they cut down the nets in the Final Four, they will try to win a conference championship.
The SEC regular season conference winner odds for Auburn and Alabama show a pair of teams expected to be there at the end. That’s what we are examining today.
Note: Odds are based on the best value our experts find as of publication; check lines closer to game time to ensure you get the best odds.
SEC regular season conference winner odds
These are the odds for each team to win the SEC regular season men’s basketball conference title from BetMGM Sportsbook:
Team | BetMGM odds to win SEC regular season |
---|---|
Auburn | -115 |
Alabama | +450 |
Tennessee | +500 |
Florida | +800 |
Kentucky | +1800 |
Mississippi State | +2000 |
Texas A&M | +2000 |
Ole Miss | +5000 |
Arkansas | 100-to-1 |
Georgia | 125-to-1 |
Oklahoma | 125-to-1 |
Texas | 125-to-1 |
Missouri | 200-to-1 |
Vanderbilt | 200-to-1 |
LSU | 250-to-1 |
South Carolina | 250-to-1 |
The top five teams in this betting odds market rank in the top eight in this week’s AP poll. The next two are not far behind at Nos. 10 and 14. After that, the odds drop significantly, but even Ole Miss is a top-25 team.
Don’t nitpick about how the odds and rankings compare. Tennessee entered this week undefeated and ranked No. 1 in the nation but lost to Florida on the road by 30 points. With so much parity in college basketball, the regular season is more of a survival challenge than an expectation to win every game.
Auburn and Alabama were among the favorites to win the regular season title when the season began and both teams have played well thus far. They’ll be favorites if they win a large majority of their games and beat a couple of fellow contenders along the way.
Auburn SEC championship odds
Sportsbook | SEC championship odds |
---|---|
BetMGM | -115 |
FanDuel | -130 |
DraftKings | -105 |
No. 2-ranked Auburn (14-1) has lit the court on fire throughout its 14-1 start, including marquee wins over Houston, North Carolina, Iowa State and Purdue. The Tigers’ only loss came on the road against Duke.
The biggest spark has been forward Johni Broome, who averages 18.7 points, 11.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 2.7 blocks. His performance has catapulted him to the top of the Wooden Award odds listed by DraftKings Sportsbook. Broome has odds of -280 while Duke’s Cooper Flagg is at +230. No other player has odds better than 16-to-1.
Broome is the MVP, but five other Auburn players average at least 10 points per game. That’s an incredible feat in this day of college basketball.
The Tigers rank fourth in the nation in points per game with 87.9. They rank first in blocks per game with 6.9 and 26th in shooting percentage allowed at 39.2%
Auburn hits the road to play South Carolina on Saturday before returning home to face No. 14 Mississippi State on Tuesday. A home game against Tennessee looms Jan. 25.
Alabama SEC championship odds
Sportsbook | SEC Championship odds |
---|---|
BetMGM | +450 |
FanDuel | +380 |
DraftKings | +550 |
No. 5 Alabama (13-2) has had an incredible season with the only blemishes being losses to Oregon and Purdue. The Crimson Tide have big wins over Illinois, Houston, North Carolina and Oklahoma.
The whole SEC schedule will be tough, but the next three games especially stand out for Alabama. The Tide play Texas A&M on the road, Ole Miss at home and Kentucky on the road.
Like Auburn, Alabama has balanced scoring at the top. Five players average double figures, led by Mark Sears’ 18.3 points. Fellow returner Grant Nelson has been pivotal, too. He averages 13.1 points and a team-high 8.8 rebounds.
If Alabama is going to win the regular season title, it will have to earn it over the final handful of games. The Tide’s final five games are against Kentucky, Mississippi State, Tennessee, Florida and Auburn.
-
Politics1 week ago
New Orleans attacker had 'remote detonator' for explosives in French Quarter, Biden says
-
Politics1 week ago
Carter's judicial picks reshaped the federal bench across the country
-
Politics7 days ago
Who Are the Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom?
-
Health6 days ago
Ozempic ‘microdosing’ is the new weight-loss trend: Should you try it?
-
World1 week ago
South Korea extends Boeing 737-800 inspections as Jeju Air wreckage lifted
-
Technology2 days ago
Meta is highlighting a splintering global approach to online speech
-
World1 week ago
Weather warnings as freezing temperatures hit United Kingdom
-
News1 week ago
Seeking to heal the country, Jimmy Carter pardoned men who evaded the Vietnam War draft