The latest puzzle: Cabin Fever...

Roger Kane resigned from his post as Knox Co. Mayor Glenn Jacobs' education liaison after reporting all his accomplishments to County Commission on Tuesday.

The Knoxville News Sentinel was unable to get a comment. Compass says he told others that Jacobs asked for his resignation but he wouldn't comment. Sandra Clark says he was fired on the spot.

Regardless of the circumstances surrounding his departure, it at least clears up confusion regarding Kane the actual person county employee and Kane the fictional wrestling alter ego of Glenn Jacobs. You wonder how many misdirected calls Kane got that were intended for the mayor.

How about you quit trying to restrict my vote

Holt brought the bill — sponsored in the Senate by Sen. Joey Hensley (R-Hohenwald) — after the Tennessee Republican Party voted last year to endorse such a proposal, which would limit primary elections in the state to those who register as a member of that party at least a month before the vote.

Closed Primaries Bill Moves Forward

Bill to close primaries, require voter registration by party in Tennessee advances

Casada doubling down. CNN is apparently on the scene. Beth Harwell wasn't this dumb. This will not end well.

Background...

(And we probably shouldn't even mention that Gloria Johnson, a career special ed teacher, was passed over for a spot on the Education Committee where Byrd now chairs a subcommittee.)

Miss sends shares lower, hostile takeover and proxy fight drama continues... (link...)

The Mrs. just informed me that we are out of fudgesicles and brown cows!

Try the experimental KnoxViews mini crossword...

Did you happen to visit Grand Canyon between 2000 and 2018? Did you leave feeling a special glow? That glow might not be just from the awesomeness of the canyon's beauty but from being exposed to upwards of 400 times what's considered a safe level of radiation. For children it was 4000 times the safe dose.

Seems there were three buckets full of uranium ore sitting next to a popular exhibit for nearly two decades in the the collections museum. The buckets have since been removed.

I'm curious how they remained there for 18 years unquestioned?

By the way, The Grand Canyon National Park celebrates its hundredth birthday in just 7 days. 02/26/19

CBS News

News.com

Bernie Sanders says he will run for president again in 2020 as a Democrat. He is not a Democrat. State Democratic parties should not allow him on any primary ballots.

His only accomplishment is helping Trump get elected. Time for him to ride off into the sunset.

Join Clarence Vaughn, III, for a discussion of The Black and the Blue: A Cop Reveals the Crimes, Racism, and Injustice in America's Law Enforcement by Matthew Horace, Wednesday, February 27, noon–1:00 in the East Tennessee History Center auditorium at 601 South Gay Street.

The Black and the Blue is described by reviewers as a brilliantly researched examination of policing. Authors Matthew Horace and Ron Harris posit that many of today's police tactics are built upon decades of toxic internal policies and the post-civil rights era War on Drugs. The author started his career in local policing and eventually ascended to the Department of Justice’s Senior Executive Service. After a personal encounter with racial profiling by a white officer, Horace sought to understand the very system he represented.

"Horace provides a riveting and portentous view from differing perspectives regarding community engagement with law enforcement," Vaughn said. "The Black and the Blue sheds light on the importance of maintaining certain key principles of the civil rights movement and transitioning those principles into a human rights movement, with a concentrated emphasis for all humankind to be treated equally and fairly."

Vaughn is Executive Director of the Police Advisory and Review Committee for the City of Knoxville, where he ensures that citizens have a voice in police matters. He is also a member of the National Association of Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement focused on improving relationships between law enforcement and citizens. Recognized by Knoxville Business Journal as a “40 under 40” honoree, Vaughn’s passion for service and philanthropic activities motivate him to serve in leadership roles in citizen academies at the federal and local level.

Books Sandwiched In is made possible by the generous support of the Friends of Knox County Public Library. Bring a sandwich or pick up something at a downtown restaurant. Drinks will be available for 50 cents.

A new survey of 41,000 Americans conducted by the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation demonstrates why a greater emphasis on American history learning is essential to the nation. The Foundation found that in the highest-performing state (Vermont), only 53 percent of the people were able to earn a passing grade for U.S. history. People in every other state failed; in the lowest-performing state (Louisiana), only 27 percent were able to pass.

Results of new 50-state survey finds only four in 10 can demonstrate basic history understanding. Vermont only state in which a majority passed.

Tennessee had a 38% pass rate.

At the link is a 20 question survey to see how well you would do on a citizenship exam.

Did y'all see this? What are your thoughts? I know there seems to be a disconnect between the legislators and the TNDP but this seems counter-productive.

(link...)

“You want to talk about a national emergency?” [House Speaker] Pelosi (D-CA) said. “Let’s talk about today, the one-year anniversary of another manifestation of the epidemic of gun violence in America. That’s a national emergency.”

Join DTV Host Renee Hoyos as she hosts a panel of Knox Couty Democratic Party leaders in a discussion about the upcoming Knox County Democratic Party reorganization convention. This discussion includes current KCDP Chair Emily Gregg, Tennessee Democratic Party Executive Committee member Sylvia Woods and LaKenya Middlebrook who has declared her candidacy for the next KCDP Chair. This program airs live on Friday, February 15th at 7:30 PM on our local Community TV Channel.

DTV streams live (here!) or on cable/satellite at:
Comcast Channel 12
Charter Channel 193
Wow! Channel 6
ATT U-verse Channel 99

According to the IRS, tax refunds are down 8 percent from the same time last year. But of course the GOP claims it has nothing to do with the tax bill they passed that promised larger refunds for the middle income. The GOP keeps shoveling it out, and the conservative voters keep consuming it and never seem to be bothered by the flies in their teeth.

NPR Article

Divided board decides to shutter coal plants despite appeals by Trump, Senate Majority leader for delay

(link...)

NASA: One of the most successful and enduring feats of interplanetary exploration, NASA's Opportunity rover mission is at an end after almost 15 years exploring the surface of Mars and helping lay the groundwork for NASA's return to the Red Planet.

Designed to last just 90 Martian days and travel 1,100 yards (1,000 meters), Opportunity vastly surpassed all expectations in its endurance, scientific value and longevity. In addition to exceeding its life expectancy by 60 times, the rover traveled more than 28 miles (45 kilometers) by the time it reached its most appropriate final resting spot on Mars - Perseverance Valley.

About Opportunity...

In 2017, there were 41 thousand visits to the 30 treatment rooms in the emergency department at Physicians Regional (St. Mary's Hospital). Now that it has closed the other hospitals in the area have to accept possibly 41,000 more ER visits a year. That is a lot to absorb.

Tennova North Knoxville, Fort Sanders, and UT Medical Center appear to be feeling the most affects.

The shutdown has reportedly affected ambulance services as well.

AMR has been dealing with ambulance shortages, in part because ambulances are tied up with lengthy off-load delays in overcrowded hospital emergency rooms, the ambulance service told the News Sentinel last month.

In an attempt to get more ambulances on the road, Knox County is temporarily changing its contract with ambulance provider AMR (Rural/Metro). County Mayor Glenn Jacobs' office announced Monday a 90-day agreement will allow Basic Life Support ambulances to respond to all but the most severe calls. Normally, the contract requires AMR respond to calls with Advanced Life Support ambulances, which carry more equipment, but of which there are fewer.

Did you know that for a Medicare recipient to get admitted to a skilled nursing facility for rehabilitation therapy they have to be admitted to a general hospital as an inpatient for 3 days? This means that if you are getting observation services, the day(s) under observation do not count towards inpatient status in a hospital. Sitting in the ER would not be included as an inpatient day. Thus, a woman referenced in this article that spent 24 hours in the ER waiting to be admitted would have lost a full day if there had been a need to go to a skilled nursing facility for rehab. It's possible there are clauses in many private health insurance contracts with this requirement.

About five years ago I had to meet an elderly person at the UT Medical Center ER after that person had been taken there by ambulance. When I arrived the elderly person was on a hospital stretcher in the hall near the ER criminal intake area. Not a pleasant experience for this person. Luckily actually being in the ER gets you close to the services you need if it becomes unbearable or life threatening.

I worked at UT Medical Center for about five years, many moons ago. To this day I admire all they do for their patients, employees, and the community. I just hope they can keep up with demand and changes in society.

Let's hope the remaining open hospitals in the area and the ambulance services can continue to provide excellent services as expected.

From NPR:

Severe mold, asbestos and electrical hazards are among the dangers in private military housing for thousands of service members' families, according to a new survey conducted by the Military Family Advisory Network.

Nearly 17,000 people responded to the survey across 46 states. And more than 55 percent of participants who lived in private housing said they were dissatisfied with how management companies oversaw their dwellings.

More than 7 million car loans were past due by at least 90 days in the fourth quarter, according to data released this week from the New York Federal Reserve.

Lenders are more frequently offering funds to people with low credit scores, contributing to the increase in the number of car loans.

More Americans behind on car loans ...