Since this is National Girl Scout Month, we thought this was a good story to share with everyone. There is a real Knoxville connection. "Izzie" was Elizabeth Ijams the daughter of Mr. And Mrs. Harry Ijams. She was a member of Mohican Troop 8 by 1923. There were one-day camps weekly at the Bird Preserve at the Harry Ijams house. This became Ijams Nature Center. Mrs. Harry Ijams joined the first Girl Scout Council in Knoxville in 1923. In Jan. 1930 Elizabeth Ijams, daughter of Mr.and Mrs. Harry Ijams, was hired as director of Knoxville council and later director in Nashville and then on to National. Mrs. W.E. Ijams was very active in GS, Her father, Col. Townsend, donated property of a GS camp in the Smokeys. After the gov. wanted the land for the national park, this camp became Camp Tremont.

The implications in this are very large. It starts with a wink towards improper search and seizure because the raids only affect poor people who might be criminals. But it is a slippery slope that quickly goes from "them" to "us". The excuses the government is using to break the back of our constitutional protections are varied and some even sound like they make sense, but these large dragnets not only scoop up those guilty of a crime,they obviously can harass and embarass innocent people.

"San Diego County’s district attorney has a program called Project 100% that is intended to reduce welfare fraud. Applicants for welfare benefits are visited by law enforcement agents, who show up unannounced and examine the family’s home, including the insides of cabinets and closets. Applicants who refuse to let the agents in are generally denied benefits."

You can be sure these teams are not using kid gloves, but if you're a welfare recipient "suspected" of fraud who will care?

Joe Powell brings an interesting case to our attention.

They used to do this at the CompUSA in West Knoxville, and I would always give them a hard time about it. After reading Joe's post, it occurs to me that the appropriate response is to walk right back inside and return everything you just bought.

In case you missed it, the federal government used the "sneak and peek" warrant provisions of the Patriot Act to bust up the Cock County cockfighting scene.

It seems we have forgotten that the "Patriot" in "Patriot Act" stands for "Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism," (you can thank John Ashcroft for the tortured acronym, which along with color coded terrorist threat charts are keeping America safe from terrorist attacks since 2001).

Not that I'm trying to defend it, but can someone explain when cockfighting became "terrorism"? First they came for the cockfighters...

Michael Silence has more here and here, and Joe Powell comments re. the ever expanding threat to civil liberties.

I suppose many people already know about this, but it was news to me.

This suit is not settled but the group against the library site change won a victory in having two letters both saying the County was in violation of their civil rights. It's up to the federal Institue of Museum and Library Services now to send it determine if it should be sent to the Justice Department.

MSNBC's Keith Olbermann is reporting that Gitmo will be shutdown following an announcement by Bush tomorrow. Developing...

UPDATE: White House denies there was any meeting or any announcement re. Gitmo scheduled for tomorrow. Olbermann says that AP reported there was a meeting scheduled, but now it has been canceled. Speculation is that Dick Cheney leaked the story to kill the whole idea.

UPDATE: Here's the updated AP story.

I recently received a press release regarding an upcoming 43rd Annual Mississippi Civil Rights Martyrs Memorial Service and Conference and Caravan for Justice. You can read all about the event here.

I wasn't familiar with the Civil Rights Movement Veterans, but their website is an amazing historical archive of information about the civil rights movement. From their mission statement:

Our purpose is to make sure that there is at least one place where the Movement story is told by those who actually lived it. We want to set the record straight. Without the courage, determination, and activity of hundreds of thousands of men and women of all ages in cities, towns, and hamlets across the South there would have been no Civil Rights Movement, no famous leaders, no court rulings, no new laws, and no change.

In addition to documenting the Southern Freedom Movement by telling it like it was and testifying to what we did and what it meant to us, the website is also a place to begin renewing the ties that once bound us together in a beloved community, a place for finding lost friends, and a tool for helping fellow veterans in need. And it is a living memorial for our fallen comrades.

The maintain a "roll call" of civil rights movement participants from all over who register at the site and provide background on their involvement. There is also a Frequently Asked Questions section where members answer questions by relating their own experiences.

The website has an abundance of resources including an extensive bibliography, a library of links to online civil rights resources, and lots more. The fascinating personal accounts are at times sad and even terrifying, but all are moving and uplifting. This is a great resource for anyone researching the 1960s Civil Rights Movement or who is just interested in learning more about it.

(Originally posted at Facing South)

A new report from the Bureau of Justice Statistics, "Contacts Between Police and the Public, 2005," says that while the number of citizens of all races stopped or searched by law enforcement has dropped since 2002, minorities are still more likely than whites to be searched, arrested, and/or have force used against them.

Read more...

Bush dismantling DOJ Civil Rights Division

The shocking and distressing Appeals Court decision allowing the US to detain 'suspected terrorists' without charges, without access to lawyers, and without an end date seems to have passed virtually unnoticed. But here's some reason for hope: Civil rights, human rights, and the rule of law are being protected in Canada. Since this reminder is so close at hand, maybe someday the United States will restore the rights that we claim to be protecting.

From the New York Times...

See this exchange.

Dr. Martin Luther King, April 16, 1963:

We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed. Frankly, I have yet to engage in a direct-action campaign that was "well timed" in the view of those who have not suffered unduly from the disease of segregation. For years now I have heard the word "Wait!" It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity. This "Wait" has almost always meant 'Never." We must come to see, with one of our distinguished jurists, that "justice too long delayed is justice denied."

Continued after the break...

Dick Cheney says on Fox News that the government has every right to look at your financial records without a warrant, just like they can eavesdrop on your phone conversations, read your e-mail, and open your postal mail without a warrant. Hell, they can arrest you and hold you without any charges and send you out of the country to be tortured if they want.

Here's an idea. It's virtually impossible to catch corrupt politicians in the act unless somebody squeals, so let's make all politicians' financial records, including bank statements, deposit slips, canceled checks, credit card statements, wire transfers, credit reports, tax returns, investment portfolios, and everything else public record subject to Freedom of Information requests.

OK, I know that's silly. And an invasion of privacy. But they might be corrupt! We have the right to know! Anyway, here's a great article on a Bush administration gone wild:

The reason Bush violated the law when eavesdropping is the same reason Lithwick cites to explain his other lawless and extremist measures -- because he wanted purposely not to comply with the law in order to establish the general "principle" that he was not bound by the law, to show that he has the power to break the law, that he is more powerful than the law.

Same-sex couples apparently don't deserve adequate counsel.

Someone told me Pilot Light had no cover on election night if you voted, but charged $20 if not. I suspect they used the honor system, but I was wondering how you could prove you voted. We don't purple our fingers in America.

It occured to me that I had tossed my voting receipt in a trash can on my way out of the polling place. Those tiny slips with the 4-digit code and a timestamp work as a receipt.

So here is my question: is it possible for the eSlate system to spit out a list of all the timestamped access codes for which it stored a ballot? If so, the list could be posted on the walls of the polling place or on the Internet or at the courthouse or all three. Voters could verify that their receipt is on the list and know their vote was counted.

Don't let the GOP rain on our parade.

Read more after the jump...

A friend of mine received an unintentionally hilarious flyer in the mail from the Tennessee GOP today. Here's the cover:

The inside content is after the jump. See how the Dems are preventing the government from intercepting all those calls from Tennessee to Al Qaeda (on rotary phones, no less). It's priceless.

According to Think Progress, Instapundit linked to a weblog outing one of the teens harrassed by former Rep. Mark Foley...Nice work. Nothing like exposing a young person to even yet still more harrassment at the hands of right-wing fanatics in a lather over what this scandal's going to do to the GOP's electoral hopes this November.

Link...

(Somebody go confirm the Insty post so I don't have to, willya? I'd feel like I had to soak my keyboard in Lysol after...)

You know, Martin Luther King really only wanted to get laid by your daughters.

Concise synopsis of the feminazis:

Why the hell do women get offended when they're called chicks? ... Why do some feminist extremists think pornography is degrading to women? ... What's the point of not shaving your armpits and not wearing your bras? ... I'm pretty damn sick of hearing feminists bitch about men being paid more then women.

Excellent points, my man. Excellent points indeed.

Similar to the U.S. Constitution (ERA amendment anyone?), Tennessee's Constitution makes itself pretty tough to change. (You can read all about the process after the jump.) This is probably for the best. Despite these built-in safeguards, idiotic, pandering, self-serving, politically motivated proposals do make their way through the Tennessee General Assembly from time to time.

This is one of those times.

There will be two proposed amendments on the November ballot. One is a good thing, the other is awful.

Amendment #2 allows for property tax relief, essentially a property tax freeze, for Tennessee residents 65 or older. It would still be up to local jurisdictions to enact it. This is a good amendment and it should be approved by voting 'YES' for Amendment #2.

Amendment #1, however, is an abomination. This amendment, the "anti-gay marriage" amendment, would define marriage as being between one man and one woman. It takes away rights from citizens of the State of Tennessee, and violates the civil rights of an entire class of people. This is a terrible amendment and it should be rejected by voting 'NO' for Amendment #1.

Note that you must vote 'NO', indicating that the proposed amendment should not be made to the Tennessee Constitution. A 'NO' vote is not a vote against gay marriage, it is a vote for civil rights. (Although many "low information" voters will hopefully read it the first way.)

Read the Tennessee Board of Elections summary of the Constitutional amendment process and the full text of the two proposed amendments after the jump (also available at KnoxVotes.org)...

Is Tennessee ready for a black senator? Is the US ready for a woman president? Why do these questions have to be asked at all?

Should Patrick win the Sept. 19 primary and the general election, he would be the state's first black governor and could be only the second black person ever elected governor in the nation.
.
... 1989 when L. Douglas Wilder of Virginia became the nation's first black elected governor.

Why is the South continuously vilified for racism when it is obviously a problem nation-wide?

"I know that this is America, so race is on people's minds, but the welcome has been warm, and look at what we've built, look at it: We've got 20,000 contributors and volunteers across the commonwealth," Patrick said in an interview.

Why is race on people's minds?

The following is an email I received from the Broyles campaign.  I think you need to know.

CAFKIA

Dear friends -
 
The campaign continues to roll, and I want to thank each of you for your support during this very exciting, but taxing, time!
 
The good news: Today the Knoxville-News Sentinel gave me a great endorsement!
 

There is an option to vote and leave a comment. Please take the time to vote, and to leave a positive comment about my campaign. Elaine Davis and Tom Salter were also endorsed, but several other good people (Mark Harmon, Colvin Idol, Joan Wagner, Leon Daugherty) were not. Feel free to comment on those instead, especially if they are in your district!
 
The not so good news: We are getting a lot of resistence at Knoxville Center Mall. We knew that the Tindell campaign would try to keep us out of that area, so we did our research before early voting started. As many of you know, there can be no campaign activity within 100 feet of the entrance to a polling place, except if the 100 foot line extends over private property. If that is the case, campaign activity cannot be restricted in that area, but you must have the permission of the property owner. If the property owner will not grant permission, the Election Commission must move the polling place. It is the Election Commission's responsibility to inform the property owner about this ahead of time, and to move the polling place, if necessary. This was not done by the Election Commission.
 
Knoxville Center Mall is private property. The polling place is located in the back of the County Clerk's office, which is in the corner of the mall next to JCPenney. So the 100 foot line extends only to the edge of the clerk's office, and we should be able to campaign in that little corner of the mall, with the management's permission. They are concerned, and rightly so, about having a host of candidates and campaign workers milling around and disrupting mall traffic and other businesses, but have no objection to one or two people quietly handing out "generic" literature to voters. So the mall management will not let us push a particular candidate, but they have allowed us to pass out lists of candidates who support term limits vs. those who do not, as general "voter education."
 
This has gone very well, except - people from Billy's campaign are regularly coming by to harrass us, and are calling mall management and complaining. After two days of recieving complaints, mall management has decided that we can no longer be there. This is critical for my campaign. 3,665 of my target voters vote early, and Knoxville Center Mall is the closest early voting site for my district. I have to be able to reach those voters as they arrive at the polling place, and Billy knows it.   
 
WHAT I NEED YOU TO DO: Please call mall management and tell them (politely, please, and in your own words!) that you support our First Amendment rights to free political speech. That you do not find what we are doing disruptive, but helpful. You might suggest - in polite terms - that you will think twice about spending your money in Simon Malls if they do not allow us to continue with our voter education. Please remember this is not only my campaign we are working on, but everyone's who supports term limits, so please do not single out a particular campaign when you call. You can refer to the voter education team, or the voter workers in orange shirts, if you want. 
 
It is true that this site has been used for a few years as an early voting site, but there has never been much problem with candidates wanting to campaign there. As I stated earlier, most of the traffic there is District 2 voters, and Billy has run unopposed since 1990, so there hasn't been any need for anyone to be there! Indya Kincannon worked the mall when she was running for School Board in our district (in fact, that is where I first met her, when I went to vote for her in the Primary), but I don't think she had any difficulty as she was not running against a Tindell!
 
We have an attorney conatacting the mall's attorney, and we will push the Election Commission to move this early voting site for future elections, but not much can be done to have an impact on this election, except YOUR CALLS!
 
The number of the mall manager (his name is Dell Ware) is: 544-1500. You can avoid the lengthy menu by pressing 6, then 4, to be connected to his office.
 
THANK YOU!

Amy Broyles

www.WriteInAmy.com

Joe Powell has more on police presence at the Morristown anti-immigration rally. There are photos and links to more photos. As I said before, I probably don't agree much with the protester's politics, but this is insane.

Today’s Morning Edition made it pretty clear that Mr. Bush has failed in his efforts to make NPR “fair and balanced”.

Journalism professor Judy Muller commented on When Tyranny Makes Itself at Home.  You can catch a repeat here.

Four police officers tasered and handcuffed a 61 year old disabled veteran at a Morristown rally protesting illegal immigration on Saturday. The man was arrested for "disorderly conduct" and "resisting arrest" while attempting to carry an American flag onto the courthouse lawn.

According to news reports, the protesters had permission to assemble at the courthouse, but there were more than 80 law enforcement officers including police, a SWAT team, THP troopers, and a police helicopter present. According to other reports, electricity was cut off to the protester's PA system and the helicopter hovered over the crowd disrupting the rally.

I'm probably not aligned much with the politics of these protesters, but since when did "the right of the people peaceably to assemble" get thrown out the window? And since when is it a crime to carry an American flag onto a courthouse lawn? And why does it take four strong young police officers with tasers and SWAT backup to take down an elderly, disabled veteran?

It seems like these peaceful assemblies only turn disorderly when the cops show up.

UPDATE: Joe Powell has more, including reports there were snipers on the courthouse roof.

The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that police armed with a warrant can barge into homes and seize evidence even if they don't knock,...

I thought that was how cops accidentally get shot.

What Matt says:

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/008516.php

Well, now that we know that the US government is collecting a massive database of any phone calls in AT&T, Verizon, and BellSouth territory, it's time to revisit the world of personal counterintelligence countermeasures (especially since our intrepid site host has noted some "interesting" traffic 'round hereabouts).

Fig. 1: An AFDB profile known as "The Centurion."

Some people swear by the tinfoil hat, sometimes known as the Aluminum Foil Deflector Beanie (AFDB).

But beware! (...oremay onyay eethay ipflay...)

Rep. Tommy Dubois, R-Columbia and Sen. Bill Ketron, R-Murfreesboro have introduced legislation (again) requiring Tennessee driver's license exams to be administered in English and English only.

As far as I know, there's no legal requirement that permanent legal residents (a/k/a "green card" holders) are required to speak English. They must learn English and demonstrate basic proficiency if they want to become naturalized citizens, but until then I don't believe it's a requirement. Further, the State of Tennessee issues driver's licenses to anyone with proof of legal permanent residence such as a "green card".

So, on its face, this legislation seems discriminatory. And according to the article, legal experts agree and say that you can expect lawsuits if the legislation is passed.

But what it really amounts to is bad political theater, similar to flag-burning and Ten Commandment amendments. What these conservative yahoos ought to be proposing is legislation that requires all us natural born Tennesseans to learn proper English our own selves. That would be a good start.