Alabama student scores on the Stanford Achievement Test matched or exceeded the national average in every grade tested for the first time, but six poorly performing public schools are headed for state intervention. About 463,000 students in grades 3-11 took the Stanford 9, with the scores released Thursday being used for the fifth straight year to measure the academic performance of their schools and school systems.

Your June 21 edition once again showed the liberal bias of the paper. The day before, CSE (Citizens for a Sound Economy) held a Day at the Capitol. Where were you?

Call it another profile in courage. A citizen stands up to political assaults and government intimidation, pays a tremendous price, but is vindicated. That citizen is Jeff Eisenach, and his story needs to be told.

It was about two weeks ago when Blanca Lopez offered the two cleaning workers in her office building a little cash for trash, according to the cleaning company. Lou DeLeon, general manager of P&R Enterprises, gave this account: Lopez offered about $ 50 each for the paper coming out the door at the Association for Competitive Technology (ACT). Just bring it over to the offices of Upstream Technologies, on the same floor, she said. When they declined, she sweetened her offer to $ 500 apiece--with an extra $ 200 for the supervisor. They refused again.

Increased spending, not tax reductions, have helped put the pinch on the state budget, House Minority Leader Richard Morgan told a conservative group lobbying the Legislature on Tuesday. "Some people would like to blame the tax cuts while our side was on the watch," Morgan told about 400 people attending a rally sponsored by Citizens for a Sound Economy. "I would be happy for them to try to make that argument.