Senator John McCain was in Little Rock late last week, and he called President Obama's reaction to tension in Syria a failure of American leadership. Speaker of the Arkansas House Davy Carter wanted more time to explain the federally backed Medicaid expansion to constituents, so the vote was postponed until today. And Governor Mike Beebe speaks in favor of changes that are coming for some child welfare programs in the state.
Ozarks At Large

Here are our ten clips from our montage dedicated to April Showers. Well, dedicated to rain at least…
- B.J. Thomas sings "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.
- Hugh Grant and Andie Macdowell admit their mutual love at the end of Four Weddings and a Funeral.
- Prince sings "Purple Rain."
- Bill Cosby with an early TV rendition of his famous Noah routine.
- Mahalia Jackson with the gospel great "Didn’t It Rain".
- Gene Kelly about to launch into the best three minutes ever recorded in a movie musical.
- Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst exchange a rainy kiss as Spider-Man and Mary Jane Watson.
- Tom Hanks (as Forrest Gump) describes the many kinds of rain.
- Sam Neil tries to save kids from a hungry T. Rex in Jurassic Park.
- Audrey Hepburn finds the cat…and George Peppard…at the end of Breakfast at Tiffany’s. The Mancini notes should have given this away.
Apologies to: The Weather Girls, Andy’s escape in Shawshank Redemption, the bubbling skeletons in Poltergeist, the Eurythmics, John Wayne in the Quiet Man and all those movies with Notebook in the title. Maybe next time.
In case you need a spot to duck into in between April showers, local and regional art galleries and exhibition spaces will have plenty for you to soak up throughout the month, including exhibits at the Arts Center of the Ozarks, the Fort Smith Regional Art Museum, the John Brown University art gallery, and elsewhere.



The proposed expansion of Arkansas' Medicaid system cleared a preliminary hurdle in the House yesterday, though final approval is still pending. And families who live near the Pegasus Pipeline rupture in Mayflower will be allowed to return to their homes this weekend.



Latest Edition of Ozarks at Large
Sunday, March 30, 2014
Ahead on this edition of Weekend Ozarks, the Museum of Native American History in Bentonville may be a secret for now, but it won't be for long. We'll explain why, and we find out how distance education will have a larger footprint in the University of Arkansas School of Law next fall.
The classic tale of jealousy and betrayal will be staged at the University of Arkansas this weekend for the very first time.
"Marital Sabotage" by Hans Zimmer
Increase in e-filing of Arkansas tax returns, development of a low cost water-treatment system at the U of A, Northwest Arkansans' performance at the Boston Marathon and No Impact Man for the fall 2011 One Book, One Community project -- on Ozarks at Large Half Time today.
Farmers' markets in the region are dusting off the cobwebs.
"On the Sunny Side of the Street" by Joshua Redman
Written and produced by environmental anthropologist, Brian Campbell, the feature film profiles Ozark organic farmers and activists in Newton County struggling to protect their property and the Buffalo National River from herbicide spraying by Carroll Electric Cooperative on power line right-of-ways. Jacqueline Froelich speaks with Campbell and brings us a preview.Story Addendum: With regard to it's herbicide vegetation management program, Carroll Electric Cooperative says members have prioritized reliable service at an affordable cost. As for petition validation to secure a ballot position for elections to the board, every signature is validated by match to membership records--with only one signature per membership accepted.
"Too Young to Fail" by Eddy Grant
Wayne Bell from www.fayettevilleflyer.com recounts reasons to be grateful to soap operas and why we should miss them.