Mon
Mar 18 2024
08:06 am

We've said before, in 2018 Death to Bradford Pears! And in 2021 States starting to ban Bradford Pear trees.

The problem persists.

Bradford Pear trees threaten Tennessee ecosystems.

South Carolina has enacted a ban on new Bradford pear sales effective on Oct. 1, 2024. A ban on the sale and cultivation of the tree in Pennsylvania will also take effect in February of that year

The tree was placed on the invasive species list in Ohio in January 2018, meaning in-state nurseries and landscapers must phase out selling the trees over the next five years.

At least three states have banned these trees outright, and others discourage the public from adding them to their yards.

Now legislation is being proposed in Missouri for a similar ban, while the Kansas Department of Agriculture also considers how to curb the spread of the popular but invasive ornamental pear trees.

Do your part to rid our state of Bradford Pear trees. If you have one or more of these trees in your yard, when financially and physically possible, tear down that tree!

Topics:

How long can you last without checking your phone? Administrators at Buxton School, a small private boarding school in Massachusetts, announced a ban on smartphones in 2022. Meet the teens who adapted to life with less social media and gained a new perspective on their relationships with devices.

'Absolute chaos': What happened when a boarding school banned smartphones

Sun
Mar 17 2024
08:13 am
By: bizgrrl

"May you have all the happiness and luck that life can hold—and at the end of your rainbows may you find a pot of gold."

Topics:
Sat
Mar 16 2024
11:39 am
By: Midori Barstow

Tennessee Freedom Riders – Tennessee Rise

Lyrics
(link...)

Sat
Mar 16 2024
11:30 am

The Monday, April 8, 2024, total solar eclipse will cross North America, passing over Mexico, the United States, and Canada. The total solar eclipse will begin over the South Pacific Ocean. Weather permitting, the first location in continental North America that will experience totality is Mexico’s Pacific coast at around 11:07 a.m. PDT.

The path of the eclipse continues from Mexico, entering the United States in Texas, and traveling through Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. Small parts of Tennessee and Michigan will also experience the total solar eclipse.

Officials in Texas along the path of totality for the April 8 total solar eclipse are advising residents to stock up on food and gas ahead of the event.

Mike Jones, Hays County, Texas’s direct of the Office of Emergency Services, said the area is expecting thousands of visitors to arrive to see the eclipse. To prepare for the crowds, Jones advised residents to stock up on groceries and fill up on gas. If they are out on the day of the eclipse, he recommends residents “pack your patience.”

Smoky Mountain parking fees are now sold at the new Great Smokies Welcome Center, no longer at the Townsend Visitor Center.

The Great Smokies Welcome Center
7929 E Lamar Alexander Pkwy
Townsend, Tennessee, 37882

The new Great Smokies Welcome Center is a brown two story wood building with green trim on the left going towards the mountains. It is just past the Visitor Center on the right and Dollar General on the left. We went to the Visitor Center to pick up a new parking pass and were directed to the new Great Smokies Welcome Center. There were two other couples doing the same thing. Maybe there needs to be a sign?

Thu
Mar 14 2024
06:03 pm
By: bizgrrl
Topics:

CDC Director Mandy Cohen endorsed the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ (ACIP) recommendation for adults ages 65 years and older to receive an additional updated 2023-2024 COVID-19 vaccine dose. The recommendation acknowledges the increased risk of severe disease from COVID-19 in older adults, along with the currently available data on vaccine effectiveness.

People who are immunocompromised were already eligible for additional doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Data continues to show the importance of vaccination to protect those most at risk for severe outcomes of COVID-19. An additional dose of the updated COVID-19 vaccine may restore protection that has waned since a fall vaccine dose, providing increased protection to adults ages 65 years and older.

Adults 65 years and older are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, with more than half of COVID-19 hospitalizations during October 2023 to December 2023 occurring in this age group.

As I referenced in a post a couple of days ago,
as of mid-February, more than 21,000 people were hospitalized with Covid, and there had been roughly 10,000 Covid-related deaths in 2024.

Wed
Mar 13 2024
01:47 am

Interesting program on Trump, 2020 election, Jan 6 capital riot and subsequent Jan 6 committee proceedings.

Democracy on Trial (full documentary) | FRONTLINE

Corporate America has enjoyed healthy profit margins in recent years, even as many people have had to make sacrifices to cope with the surge in prices. Inflation hit 40-year highs in 2022, and though it has cooled since, consumers have not gotten a break.

Profit margins at nonfinancial firms should remain elevated this year, as they benefit from lower costs, according to Goldman Sachs analysts. Companies are typically slower to reduce their prices when costs decline than they are to raise prices when their expenses jump.

“Corporations just got used to ‘If I can charge the consumer X, Y and Z during the pandemic, and I can still continue charging them that now and they’re going to pay it ...

Why are prices still so high? Corporate greed, some say

Topics:

The total annual cost of owning and maintaining a new car climbed to more than $12,000 last year, up from about $11,000 the previous year. Monthly car payments also spiked along with rising interest rates. NBC News’ Christine Romans has the story.

Cost of car ownership on the rise, becoming unsustainable for some drivers

Car ownership is getting more expensive due to rising repair costs

Sun
Mar 10 2024
07:06 am

From WATE,

Jellico Regional Hospital has been forced to close its doors this weekend, forcing patients to travel long distances to the next nearest hospital for medical care.

From Fox Chattanooga,

Since 2010, Tennessee has had the highest number of hospital closures per capita in the nation and these closures are limiting access to healthcare for our rural communities.

This not only affects those in rural communities, it affects those closer to the remaining hospitals. More people competing for healthcare.

Tennessee is one of 10 states that has not adopted Medicaid Expansion. Tennessee has failed to take advantage of the billions of Federal funds to help the citizens with healthcare. How backwards is our state government? It is apparently a South Eastern thing. Six of the 10 states that have not expanded Medicaid are in the Southeast (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Tennessee).

Topics:
Sun
Mar 10 2024
06:51 am
By: bizgrrl

From the New York Times, Your 2024 Guide to Covid Symptoms and Treatment

The most common Covid symptoms haven’t changed much since the start of the pandemic...fatigue, sore throat, congestion, runny nose, headache, body aches and cough. Less common symptoms include pink eye, or experience gastrointestinal issues, like nausea, vomiting and diarrhea... Less common as well are the loss of taste and smell.

...as of mid-February, more than 21,000 people were hospitalized with Covid, and there had been roughly 10,000 Covid-related deaths in 2024.
...
The antiviral pill Paxlovid is very effective against severe Covid, reducing the risk of death by 73 percent if taken within the first five days of an infection, according to a preliminary study conducted by the National Institutes of Health. Experts urged people who are high-risk to contact their doctors about getting a prescription as soon as they have symptoms or test positive.

Sat
Mar 9 2024
02:21 pm
By: bizgrrl

I watched the SOTU Thursday night. As I mentioned in a previous post, Wow. It was great.

I watched it on C-SPAN, from the moment Biden walked into the chamber until they stopped airing.

It was a little concerning at the beginning when seeing Biden walk by the seats of Repub. Reps. Burchett, Boebert and Gaetz.

Burchett proceeds to stalk Biden. The video shows Biden walking down the aisle. Burchett is hanging over the seats to get Biden's attention. They talk for 10 seconds. Biden moves on. Burchett crawls over some seats to get in Biden's face again. UPDATE: new video. Burchett crawls over more seats, tries to bother Biden a third time. WTF!

Burchett was acting like an adolescent.

And, it appears Burchett did it on a dare. According to this video, Rep. Gaetz dared Burchett to talk to Biden and delay his trip to the podium:

No excuse for this type of harassement. Is Burchett cognitively impaired?

Burchett didn't mention Gaetz's dare in an interview with the Knoxville News Sentinel, or maybe it wasn't reported by them. He did suggest that Biden's "cognitive level is slipping'. I feel sorry for Burchett. Bless his heart.

Department of Labor officials decried "Tosh Pork’s appalling actions and clear attempts to intimidate and retaliate against its employees."

Tennessee farm worker finds severed pig's head at workstation after asking about pay, complaint states

Topics:
Fri
Mar 8 2024
12:09 am

Wow. Four more years!

We want to know what you would ask Senators Marsha Blackburn or Bill Hagerty if given the chance, as well as learn what issues brought before Congress matter to you most.
You can begin the survey below...

WBIR Survey: What would you ask Senators Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty?

In January, Borne took a foster baby, born extremely premature at just over 2 pounds, to her first doctor’s appointment. The health providers said that without the consent of the child’s mother, they couldn’t vaccinate her against diseases like pneumonia, hepatitis B, and polio. The mother hasn’t been located, so a social worker is now seeking a court order to permit immunizations. “We are just waiting,” Borne said. “Our hands are tied.”

Tennessee vaccine law pits parental rights against public health

From Rolling Stone,

Mark Robinson, the Republican candidate for North Carolina’s gubernatorial election, said he wanted to go back to a time “where women couldn’t vote” in a video that resurfaced in the wake of his Super Tuesday victory.

The video, recorded at a Republican Women of Pitt County event in March 2020, shows Robinson when he was a candidate for North Carolina’s lieutenant governor, which he later won.
...
before his foray into politics in 2019, he had a habit of posting on his personal Facebook screeds against Muslim invaders, calling Michelle Obama a man and quoting Hitler. Even after his election to state office in 2020, he continued to make hateful remarks about LGBTQ+ people.

And he still got 64% of the Republican vote. Say what?!?!?

Tue
Mar 5 2024
01:52 pm

Although Mark Cuban voted for Nikki Haley as a "protest vote against Trump", Cuban told Bloomberg News, “If they were having his last wake, and it was him versus Trump, and he was being given last rites, I would still vote for Joe Biden."

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    To date, the failure to expand Medicaid/TennCare has cost the State of Tennessee ? in lost federal funding. (Source)

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