Go, Palmer. Go, Palmer.

True happiness is knowing you are a hypocrite. -- Ivor Cutler

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Palmer looks like a lock. Abbas v. Della Volpe appears to be the closest race in early/absentee voting...

Special congratulations to Ray Abbas!

I'm rooting for Mr. Pavlis!

Got my fingers crossed for Ray Abbas. Not that DLV wouldn't be a good choice but Abbas is just so hard working and has achieved so much for his young years.

Palmer is the big surprise for me. I thought I was supporting the underdog but woohoo, she pulled ahead. It's hard to explain why, but somehow I really believed her when she said she wouldn't be beholden to anyone.

_________________________
more construction, less politics

Looks like my congratulations to Abbas were premature.

for what it's worth, both grieve and della volpe walked the streets of old north knoxville knocking on doors. never saw either knight or abbas ...

a higher profile in the knoxville's arab-american community might have pushed ray over the top, but from what i've heard, he didn't get much attention within that community.

Congrats to Bill on the Pavlis win.

Turnout: 7,986 voters (approx. 4700 on election day), less than 8%.

The right wingers in my office seem to be more interested in the GOP governors' wins in other states. They probably don't even know there was a city election.

Ok, here's the question I've had all campaign season, and I've never figured out the answer.

Nick Pavlis is clearly popular in the 4th district. He carried it last night by a wide margin, while losing his own 1st district.

So why didn't he stay in the 4th and run for that seat? Why did he move south of the river?

And to compound my confusion, if he was going to move south of the river, why move to a sliver of the city that was hanging on by a fingernail of annexation?

I am buffooned about this (unless a wild theory I have concocted is correct. It's unlikely enough that I will keep it to myself).

Again, can someone close to Pavlis enlighten me? Bean?

I am not personally close to Pavlis, and do not know, or care, where he lives. As long as he is a resident of the 1st District, what's the problem?
Perhaps a more legitimate question is why Marlino is still an "intern" 25 years after getting his degree.
I voted for Nick because I believe he is the better candidate.
Period.
I do not expect to have his ear or "own" a piece of him.
And since you've called my name here, I'll import the response I just posted to you on the Blab. You are seriously working my last nerve with your bellyaching. We can all hope Nick Pavlis is more mature than i am because if I were in his position, I wouldn't give you air in a jug.

Hells bells, Rachel, you went out and recruited a lightly-qualified candidate at the 11th hour whom hardly anyone had ever heard of.
And, as I recall, in the past you have agreed with me when I've stated my preference for the city's system of district primaries and at-large general elections as a way of making all local legislators answerable to all the people. I came to that belief after watching Mary Lou Horner literally laugh at people out on Westland Drive who dared to ask her not to vote to ram a parkway exit in on them just to accommodate a developer buddy of hers.
And even if I'm mis-remembering your agreement that it's good to make council/commission members accountable to everyone, these laws have been in place for longer than I can remember, and whining about them the day after an election is bush league.
You rolled the dice and lost.
Suck it up and go on. Nick Pavlis was a good, independent-minded member of Council when he served before. I see no indication that he has changed.

Nick & his wife were looking for a place
..saw a place they really liked..bought
it & there you have it.

I wonder if this will come back before City Council...

http://www.knoxviews.com/node/10983

Perhaps a more legitimate question is why Marlino is still an "intern" 25 years after getting his degree.
This has been raised several times like there is some kind of salacious back story here.

Salacious "1. Appealing to or stimulating sexual desire; lascivious.
2. Lustful; bawdy."

I explained this once already.

I was chided by an architect for referring to Marlino as an architect in a story. So was Hayes Hickman, btw. This led me to ask what the deal was. I never got a real answer, except that he was an intern.

When a candidate runs on the basis of some professional credential, like "In my training as an architect," it leads people to assume that the candidate is an architect. If that's not the case, the question is begged, and just hangs there awaiting an answer. I don't think this makes him a bad person or a bad candidate, but his campaign should have dealt with it, that's all.

I never got a real answer....his campaign should have dealt with it, that's all.

Oh, good grief. This again.

You never got a real answer? B.S. In the first place, I don't recall you calling Marlino and asking him.

In the second, the real answer is that Robert has an architecture degree and works as a production manager for an architectural firm. Both Robert AND the campaign said exactly that (and I said it here about 20 times). Neither ever said he was a licensed architect. Yes, we implied he has the background to understand urban design issues. Hell, we didn't IMPLY it, we SAID it. It's true. He does.

What do you suggest he should have done beyond that? Walk around town wearing a sign that says "I am not an architect?" Write an op-ed piece for the KNS explaining why he hadn't gotten licensed? Given you the scoop you didn't ask for?

For the record, I have no idea why he hasn't gotten his license. I never asked him. I just assume he's happy doing the work he's doing.

Knoxville, Knox County May Recall Voters
Faced with disappointing election turnouts, government officials ponder voter improvements

From APB reports. KNOXVILLE - Faced with distressingly diminishing election returns, leaders in Knoxville and Knox County are considering a number of options to improve both the quantity and quality of local voters. The proposals include recalling the suffrage from voters who fail to exercise their franchise in 4 or more consecutive local elections, revoking the registration cards of indolent voters, extending the franchise to groups seen as more engaged in the civic process and instituting a voter draft, among many others.

At a hastily called summit meeting between city and county leaders, representatives tossed out a variety of ideas for consideration.

"Something must be done," said City Council Member Rob Frost. "A firm stance needs to be taken that there are limits to the degree of indifference the body politic can take from the voters that stand as its head - or do the voters stand as the feet of the political body? - Anyway, if people don't vote in a defined number of consecutive local elections, say 4, their franchises would be recalled."

"What would we do with the recalled franchises?" asked Council Member Barbara Pelot.

"Repossess 'em," suggested County Commissioner Paul Pinkston. "Strip 'em down and resell 'em for parts."

"Maybe we could just revoke their voter registration cards if they haven't used them for a while and make them go through a civics class to reclaim them," suggested Council Member Joe Hultquist. "I hate to deprive anyone of the franchise entirely."

"I agree," said Knox County Elections Administrator Greg Mackay. "I'd rather use the carrot than the stick to get out the vote, because you attract more flies with carrots than you do with sticks."

"Depends on what the stick's been poked in," drawled Pinkston.

"We could give away guns to everyone who comes to the polls," suggested Commissioner Greg "Lumpy" Lambert.

"Maybe we could offer the right to vote for the governor of another state," opined Commissioner Ivan Harmon. "Knox-area folks certainly seemed more interested in the governors' races in New Jersey and Virginia than in voting for their local representatives."

"Perhaps we could enable voters to make anonymous online comments about the candidates when they vote," mused Commissioner Mark Harmon. "That seems to work for increasing newspapers' online participation..."

I mean enough already. Like Ms. Bean, I do not speak for the campaign, but I do personally know a few people that are close to Mr. Pavlis.

Your first question, why did he not stay in the 4th and run for that seat..?
This is a flat out stupid question, basically you are using the question to state that Pavlis's prerogative in moving into a new home was to run for city council. Nick Pavlis is a smart man. He would not buy a half a million dollar home to run for a 20,000 dollar a year part-time job, hell no one would. Apparently too, you did not know that he works in Maryville about 10 minutes up Alcoa Highway. Why the hell would he want to live in the 4th District, and commute more than 30 minutes to work back and forth every day?

Second, it doesn't matter where he lives, just as long as he lives in the 1st District in the city of Knoxville, and pays city taxes, which he pays more than his fair share. Your whole "Because he lives down Alcoa Highway that he can't understand South Knoxville" theory sucks. Just like it would if you assumed that because someone lives in Lake Forest or Colonial Village that they would be a great city councilperson.

Third, Nick Pavlis is a great man, and is going to be fantastic for the 1st District, which needs a lot of help just like the 6th. Nick will return your phone calls and work hard for you guys there. I don't understand why anyone would not want Nick as THEIR city councilperson. He didn't run for city council to do anything other than help people.

Fourth, and this has nothing to do with Nick and everything to do with you, why don't you reach out to Nick personally and talk to him rather than being a spineless coward and blogging about him, his personal choices, etc. on almost an everyday basis. Rachel, no one else got on here to blow up Marlino before, during, and now after the race. Yet, you have this serious bone to pick until someone calls you out on it, and you take five steps back to say, "Oh, I like Nick, he is a good guy." You will start a whole thread bashing the man and then backtrack after the damage was done.

By the way, I had the opportunity to speak once to Marlino, and have had the opportunity to speak to those close to Pavlis, and everyone involved thinks Robert is a very good person. Nonetheless, South Knoxville and Fort Sanders need to be very excited with the upcoming future they have with Nick as their councilperson.

I have a friend who is an MD, but never took his specialty boards because he went straight into designing orthotics for crippled children. Should I never call him "Doctor?" This is killing me. Have I been HORRIBLY WRONG ALL THESE YEARS?

Jesus, nothing says Knoxville politics like trivial objections....

True happiness is knowing you are a hypocrite. -- Ivor Cutler

Stimulating the economy as best we can!

Further stimulation with Yoga Wear!

I have to agree, it does sound like sour grapes. We should be glad Mr. Pavlis built a home in South Knoxville and we should hope more people will do the same, as well as purchase existing homes. Why did Mr. Marlino move to South Knoxville? Why did you? I don't see why Mr. Pavlis's reasons would be different than anyone else's. If the inference is that Mr. Pavlis moved simply to be a candidate, I doubt it, and even if he did, Mr. Marlino moved from one part of the city to South Knoxville and became a candidate as well. So what? I don't think anybody is wondering about it at all.

I doubt very much every neighborhood in South Knoxville shares precisely the same concerns. The waterfront for example is of far less concern to the residents of Colonial Village than those in Island Home. To suggest Mr. Pavlis is culturally out of touch with the people of South Knoxville is wrong. From my own observation, I believe there is wide diversity amongst the people of South Knoxville, meaning the whole of South Knoxville is not one cultural unit. Certainly Mr. Marlino was in no better position to culturally represent South Knoxville than Mr. Pavlis. I don't believe Mr. Pavlis will have any more difficulty understanding issues affecting South Knoxville than Mr. Marlino would have.

Hmmm, it seems my curiosity has set off outrage disproportionate to my question.

That's interesting, but it still leaves me buffooned about the original question.

Nevertheless, we will all soldier on the best we can.

Catlady, I hope Colonial Village residents are concerned about the waterfront. Its success will benefit not only the people who live close to it, but all of south Knoxville.

And I hope residents of the waterfront are concerned about Colonial Village issues. It's only when we all work together that South Knoxville will reach its potential.