Reuters: "This evening, the president asked Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius to serve as his Secretary of Health and Human Services, and she accepted."
Anonymous spokesmen for Gov. Bredesen and other assorted Nashville blog trolls say the Governor continues to not be in consideration but still wouldn't rule out accepting the nomination. [/snark]
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Greenville Sun by way of ACK. Ramsey will be tough competition for Haslam and Wamp, and that guy from Memphis. It's looking pretty certain that the GOP nominee for governor will be from East Tennessee.
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Rep. Karen D. Camper (D-Memphis) brings HJR132: Adds new provision to Article I to provide that nothing in Constitution of Tennessee secures or protects right to a vasectomy.
Full text of the legislation. (By way of ACK.)
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The motion to limit comments about a high-profile murder case at local media websites is generating a lot of controversy. (See the Knoxville News Sentinel, WBIR, and KnoxViews).
This opens up a whole can of "free speech" worms that will be hotly debated, but one thing really bugs me about all this. I am sick and tired of hearing about "blog" this and "blogger" that in reference to comments at sites like the News Sentinel.
I know that sounds trivial, but it matters and here's why.
People who should know better throw the term "blogging" around as a catch-all to describe every kind of internet writing. The media does it, and even supposedly educated professionals such as lawyers (see the WBIR link above) who presumably research their cases yet still use the terms incorrectly in their arguments.
Morons with a keyboard and a couple of functioning brain cells at these sites call themselves "bloggers" and consider spewing idiocy and hate speech to be "blogging" on comment sections they call "blogs."
You won't find such socially retarded extremist commentary and hate speech on any respectable blogs -- not even the most extreme conservative blogs. Some of it creeps in to comments from time to time, but responsible bloggers at least try to moderate it. I'm sure there are plenty of racist and inappropriate blogs out there, but I don't read them and I'm guessing you don't either and neither do most other people.
But people do read newspaper and other news media websites. Why mainstream media wants to provide a home for this stuff and defend it is a mystery to me. Well, not really, as discussed here before.
Judge Baumgartner seems to get it, though. According to the News Sentinel, he told their lawyers "It's a commercial site. It's a site run for commercial purposes. This is not the Internet. This is a site created by you in which you invite comments. This is something you control."
Something you control. Or not as the case may be.
Anyway, the point is that the terms "blog," "blogger," and "blogging" have been hijacked, co-opted and corrupted by idiots and some people who should know better. Blogging has taken on a negative connotation that is undeserved. Any semblance of responsibility and respectability has been lost and will never be regained.
And that's why bloggers should stop using the term. I strongly urge writers formerly known as bloggers to start using the term "new media" or "independent media" (or something -- suggestions?) instead of "blog," the term "citizen journalist" or "new/independent media reporter/writer" for "blogger," and "new/independent media publishing" or just "internet publishing" instead of "blogging."
Blogs are dead. Long live independent media writing. Or something. And thanks a lot to the creeps who killed blogging.
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In the new Republican 10 point action plan, they admit to being
• outgunned: fighting a 21st century war with 20th century weapons.
• outclassed: Democrats' structural advantages, including their use of the Internet, their more than 2-to-1 advantage with young voters, their discovery of a better grassroots model
• and leaderless: waiting for a political savior to materialize out of thin air is not an option.
Their 435 district strategy has a fancy new website with links to facebook and twitter and there's a membership counter at 8,390 so far, and if you go waaay down through the ten bullet points of their plan followed by nine paragraphs devoted to explaining the success of "Obama's winning strategy," you'll come to the bottom line, the Republican goal for 2012, which is to figure out how to use the internet well enough "to fund the first $1 billion Presidential candidate."
Update on that billion dollar benchmark : In the last 10 months the Rebuild the Party campaign has grown it's national grassroots force of the future at little more than 1 person per day (21 strong in Tennessee) and still doesn't seem to know what to do with itself.
Meanwhile, GOP abandons Scott Brown , hopefully paving the way for Martha Coakley to replace Ted Kennedy.
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in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into . . . the Tennessee Theater and watches Casablanca the way it was meant to be seen.
Friday, March 6 at 8:00 PM
or
Sunday, March 8 at 2:00 PM
I have my tickets for the Sunday Matinee.
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On the subject of media shakeups, for years I've read the Handlebars magazine, that I think Randy Gracy and Bruce Hartmann at the KNS started together around 05. Bikes scare me, I just like bike fests and biker bars and enjoyed the pictures. Now I see Gracy is gone and the Metro Pulse staff is putting out the magazine with more articles, but a different style. Judging from the letters people are either outraged or they love it now. The articles are probably better now, but I really liked how Gracy seemed so personally involved in the magazine and I wonder what happened there. I assume its all about cost like the other staffers being let go.
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Visit the Arts & Culture Alliance's Web site to vote for your favorite artwork for the Top 40 Exhibition! Encourage your friends to vote! View the works directly by clicking here!
74 artists from around the United States submitted 182 pieces of artwork for the show. The general public, art enthusiasts, and anyone around the world with an internet connection can cast their vote for their favorite ten works!
The 40 works receiving the highest number of votes from the public will be exhibited at the Emporium Center in downtown Knoxville from April 3-21, 2009. At the opening reception on Friday, April 3, a winner-take-all award will be given to the piece attracting the most cash "votes"!
Don't delay! Cast your vote today! Voting will end at 9:00 AM (EST) on Monday, March 9.
For more information, please contact Suzanne Cada at (865) 523-7543.
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I mean really OK, not just the “I support their right to dress up in whatever kind of f---up way they want” variety.
Can you imagine Knoxville ever having a trans-gendered mayor?
Probably not. Its hard enough for most East Tennesseans to accept members of their families and communities who are gay, lesbian or bisexual. For most of us it is simply beyond our capabilities to treat a trans-gendered person like we would anyone else.
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I thought it was kind of eerie not to hear all kinds of howls, grunts, and shouts every time this president stops to take a breath. There was some applause, but it paled in comparision to the clamor that usually erupted when GWB spoke.
Perhaps having a commander-in-chief that takes war seriouly, one who doesn't just promote the glory of it, is so new to the troops they will need time to adjust.
Toward the end, however, when he was talking about helping veterans, the audience did warm up a lot. When he talked about raising miltary pay, benefits, and a new GI Bill, the troops exloded with excitement.
So maybe in the end the troops came away with a lot more affection for their new boss.
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CAFKIA has an interesting find over at the Blab. Someone figured out that the New York Times could buy a Kindle for every subscriber and the one time cost would be about half what they spend on printing and distribution annually.
I was just looking at the new Kindle 2
Anyway, does anyone have a Kindle? Anyone played with one of the new Kindle 2 versions? I think it's the future of 95% of publishing. The tipping point will be when they perfect affordable, high-quality color electronic ink.
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An attorney representing TVA said Thursday afternoon in court that they might file a discretionary immunity motion which means that the utility because they are a government entity might not have to pay restitutions to the affected residents.
TVA wants to be a corporation when it's convenient (like when it's time to hand out big bonuses) and a government agency when it's not so convenient (like when they're getting sued).
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Business was curiously slow at the feeders...
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Coral Juras
Crossing Desert Sands
collagraph
I'm glad to be back to Knoxviews and to let you know about some exhibitions and events in the area. The Children's Museum of Oak Ridge is the sixty eighth museum on Art Museum Touring.com ((link...)). There is a nice exhibition of printmakers in the Imagination Gallery at the museum. It is "Printer's Quartet: Woodcut, linocut,collagraph, etchings" with works by Terry Batiste, Coral Juras, Aase Vaslow, Phyllis Wichner. The exhibition closes Feb. 28.
For the Girl Scout community, there will be a reception honoring Joyce Maienschein, Sunday, March 1, at the Children's Museum of Oak Ridge. Her Senior troop 69 started the museum in 1973 and was the director and one of the founders of the Girl Scout Museum of Tanasi Council until she recently retired. Mrs. Maienschein's uniform collection and memorabilia will be the basis for the Girl Scout Room in the Children's Museum of Oak Ridge.
Sherrie
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We have just received word that Rachel Craig has been appointed to the Knoxville/Knox County Metropolitan Planning Commission. Congratulations, Rachel!
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Statement from Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN):
In recent days, Governors Bobby Jindal (LA), Haley Barbour (MS), Mark Sanford (SC) and Phil Bredesen (TN) have stated that they may not accept funding that increased unemployment insurance benefits for citizens of their states.Today, the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development announced that the jobless rate rose a full percentage point in one month to 8.6 percent in January, up from 5.3 percent a year ago.
...When President Obama’s economic advisor Larry Summers laid out the parameters for the recovery package, he explained that it should be “timely, targeted and temporary.” An extension of unemployment benefits manifests these core principals. These federal dollars are put back into the economy immediately, and in states like Tennessee where there is a 9 percent sales tax, they generate revenue for cash-strapped state and local governments. I fail to see Governor Bredesen’s logic in refusing money to assist our most vulnerable citizens: the unemployed.
Please take a moment in the next few days to call or write to Governor Bredesen to let him know your feelings about his proposal to refuse funds from the recovery package. Here's how you can contact him:
Governor's Office
Tennessee State Capitol
Nashville, TN 37243-0001Phone: 615.741.2001
Fax: 615.532.9711
Email: phil.bredesen@state.tn.us
Nice touch on the Jindal and Barbour associations. At any rate, Rep. Cohen is Exactly Right.
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Sometimes ideas bounce around like beads from a broke necklace, so that you have to help restring them all in order to get your footing. It’s impossible to focus on just one. Herewith, beads on a string...
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• Bill filed to abolish UT trustees, Board of Regents
• UT chancellor: 9 percent tuition hike, 326 positions cut
• RELATED: UT Budget Central
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One of the lamest things I've heard is Jindal site the lack of government help for Katrina as a reason to not accept government help now. Then I saw a WATE reporter interview folks in the UNEMPLOYMENT line in Knoxville. When asked about Bredesen possibly not taking extra help for Tn's unemployed (who get one of lowest payouts in the country), the men talked about how government help and spending was bad. Go Vols!
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Representatives from the Tennessee Economic Partnership (TEP) are attending the RETECH 2009 annual conference of the American Council of Renewable Energy in Las Vegas this week.
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"...while we must add to our deficits in the short term to provide immediate relief to families and get our economy moving, it is only by restoring fiscal discipline over the long run that we can produce sustained growth and shared prosperity. And that is precisely the purpose of the budget I'm submitting to Congress today....We have already identified $2 trillion in deficit reductions that will help us cut our deficit in half by the end of my first term.
...We've targeted almost $50 billion in savings by cracking down on overpayments of benefits and tax loopholes.
...With this budget, we are making a historic commitment to comprehensive health care reform. It's a step that will not only make families healthier and companies more competitive, but over the long term it will also help us bring down our deficit."
Bloomberg: Top marginal tax rates of 36% and 39.6% on incomes over $250,000 with limits on deductions. Closing of other corporate tax loopholes. Raise capital gains tax to 20%. $615 billion "down payment" on health care reforms. Cuts in defense spending.
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Josh Flory has this report saying that area home prices were up slightly in the fourth quarter as compared to 2007.
Besides the fact that this doesn't make any sense, here's the troubling part:
Knoxville's performance in the federal index may have been boosted by refinancing activity.
Does this mean borrowers and lenders still haven't figured out that borrowing against inflated (sometimes fraudulently as we are finding out) home prices and equity is a recipe for disaster?
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Omnibus bill has $570,000 for South Waterfront pedestrian bridge
Congressman John J. Duncan, Jr.: ...many bills that sound good on the surface have wasteful, pork barrel spending buried deep within the bill.
One man's pork is another man's prime rib, or something.
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According to the AP report, GM has received $13.4 billion in federal bailout loans and needs $30 billion more to avoid bankruptcy. Auditors are said to be analyzing whether the company is a "going concern."
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More from the you can't make this stuff up department.
SEE ALSO: John McCain: socialist!
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The Knoxville News Sentinel has eliminated it's printed "Newspapers in Education" program and gone to an electronic only version. WBIR says teachers are not happy.
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A report on the recent National Clean Energy Summit, with video and summary of remarks by speakers...
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According to a statement by Wacker Chemie AG, the German company is investing $1 billion in a new facility in Bradley County (near Cleveland) to produce "hyperpure polycrystalline silicon" used in solar panels and semiconductors.
The company has purchased 550 acres for the facility which will create 500 new jobs. They cite "the size of the site, the availability of reliable and affordable TVA power, over-the-fence supply of chlorine from the adjacent OLIN Corporation facility, and excellent transportation infrastructure" along with local and state incentives as reasons for selecting the site.
According to the Chattanooga Times Free Press, the company will receive approx. $27 million in local and state incentives.
UPDATE: The Knoxville News Sentinel says incentives are $75-$100 million.
PREVIOUSLY: $1.2 billion solar investment in Clarksville
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The City of Knoxville has some good press in an article in tomorrow’s New York Times with the lead story in Energy and Environment section
The article describes the City’s work as a leader working on energy and sustainability and our being ahead of the curve in having good projects for stimulus funding. We had hoped they would also have time to discuss the Solar Cities and LEED housing, both of which the author talked to us about, but I guess we should be thankful for the words we got.
Knoxville’s timing is excellent. It had already begun the arduous work of cataloguing deficiencies before the stimulus bill passed, and it is well along in planning its next steps. But experts worry that other beneficiaries, especially cities, are not ready to oversee the huge sums of energy-efficiency money that are about to come their way.
……….
Knoxville — which says the stimulus money may help accelerate or expand its program — hopes to reduce the city’s energy bills as much as 25 percent, and the city is “definitely on the front end of the wave as far as efficiency and municipalities addressing efficiency,” said John Plack Jr., a director of project development for Ameresco, which is conducting the Knoxville energy audit.
Anyway, this is not super exciting or anything (and apologies for cheerleading (about which I have been appropriately criticized), but it is nice to be a part of the fabric of a positive narrative about who were are and what we do, especially following a recent story in the NYT about the “Big Ears Festival” with nice comments about our downtown and AC's leadership.
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The Chattanooga Times Free Press looks at some local telecom/utilities who are ready, willing, and able to use part of the $7.2 billion in stimulus money allocated for broadband rollout.
Stimulus watchdogs should keep an eye on telecom giant AT&T, though, considering their close ties with state policy makers. The article quotes Connected Tennessee. See Joe Powell here and here for why that might raise eyebrows.
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Roll Call: Rep. Lincoln Davis (D-Tenn.), who sat on the Republican side of the aisle after space ran out on the Democratic side, joked that he was teaching Republicans how to stand.
The Hill: Rep. Lincoln Davis (D-Tenn.) sat deep in Republican territory, grinning broadly when he was the only one in his section to cheer.
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With the happenings with UT president position and the Board of Regents move suspending the Chancellor search, then the comment "potential restructuring of higher education in the state," could those be more than coincidence?
Short KNS online article
(link...)
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Jeff Woods at the Nashville Scene writes:
Democratic insiders are questioning whether new party treasurer Bill Freeman can withstand outrage over his history of campaign giving to Republicans. "All those contributions just look awful," one party executive committee member tells Pith. "This is just very contentious. This whole thing, it's like it's on steroids. I don't see how Freeman can hang on."
Party chair Chip Forrester, whose own support is tenuous, isn't strong enough to fend off Freeman's critics on the executive committee should they demand the treasurer's ouster, according to these sources. "Chip is a lightning rod in a ****storm," one insider says. If any of Forrester's dreamy supporters desert him over Freeman, Forrester would have little choice but to dump the real-estate developer, these sources say. "He just can't afford to lose any of his own people over this."
According to Woods, when asked if he would quit, Freeman responded:
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From the East Tennessee Society of Professional Journalists:
Different Faces: How the media cover race and diversity is set for February 26, 2009 at 7 p.m. at the Cansler Family Branch, YMCA, 616 Jessamine St, Knoxville TN. (For a Google map, click here.)
Join a discussion on issues like: Are stories covered differently when they involve minorities? Are issues of importance to minority and other diverse groups given appropriate coverage in the media? Are differences of diversity helped or made worse when they become part of a news story?
Confirmed speakers include:
• Saadia Williams: Former executive director of the Race Relations Center of East Tennessee
• Rev. Harold Middlebrook: Pastor of Canaan Baptist Church of Christ in East Knoxville, a friend of the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and longtime civil rights activist
• Loida Velazquez: Senior Trainer for Hispanics in Education and Training and former University of Tennessee professor
The public is invited and light refreshments will be served.
If you would like to submit a question for our moderator to consider asking at this meeting, please visit www.etspj.org
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The Mrs. was going over our tax stuff and noticed a new box on the 1040A form for property tax deduction. You can take this deduction (up to $500 for single or $1000 for joint filers) in addition to the standard deduction even if you don't itemize. (Not available on the 1040EZ form.)
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Is anyone else (besides Mike Cohen) following Top Chef? I'm rooting for Carla. That Stefan guy is a [expletive deleted] and that other guy is pretty good but I don't think he's in the same league. That said, he will probably win because he isn't as quirky, personality-wise. I hated to see Fabio go, but he was a little erratic. I bet his restaurant is awesome.
I like Top Chef better than any of those other cooking competition shows because it is all about the food and the cooking, with just enough personality and drama to keep it interesting. And Padma. Hell's Kitchen is like watching cops beat up victims of a car wreck (although he has a restaurant turnaround show that is OK sometimes.) I don't get Iron Chef (is it still on?).
(I don't normally do TV blogging, but since I mentioned it I hope you are following Friday Night Lights which is the best show on television right now. Leverage turned out to be better than expected, too.)
UPDATE: Chef Hosea wins
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Here's the latest list of energy tax credits updated to included new credits in the stimulus bill. Can someone tell me where to get one of those plug-in hybrid cars so I can qualify for the $2500-$7500 credit?
(By way of RoaneViews)
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I thought the speech was good but too long by twenty minutes or so. I'm glad to hear he's going to attack the deficit. But with across the board spending in the stimulus bill, I'm not sure where the cuts are going to come from.
I like that he expects a recovery, and doesn't see the current situation as the new status quo like some of our Republican friends and state government officials.
I'm also glad to hear he's looking to protect Medicare and Social Security. The talk about tax free savings accounts* is great, but not as a replacement for Social Security in my book. Unless it's only for people under 30 or so, because they don't seem to see the value of it anyway. They'll understand someday.
Full text of President Obama's remarks
(*We already have tax free savings accounts. They're called self-directed IRAs. But there are so many rules and limits they are virtually useless. Get rid of the caps and let people participate even if they have an employer pension or 401K and we're all set.)
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Voting's about to start. Tune in to Channel 12 (Comcast) to watch the excitement! They're discussing logistics.
Update for those unwilling to click through to comments: Bob Becker wins on the 6th vote! North Knoxville rules! :)
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Presser: The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation will host a public availability session and meeting along with the Tennessee Department of Health and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday, March 5, 2009, to share information with the community about environmental sampling results related to the Kingston ash spill and what those results mean.
Staff from each agency will be available from 5 to 6 p.m. EST for an open house to answer questions from the public one-on-one. Beginning at 6 p.m. EST, the agencies will present and interpret their findings. There will be additional opportunity to ask questions following the presentations. The availability session and meeting will take place in the Roane State Community College Student Lounge, which is located in the Dunbar Building.
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Former Knox County Trustee Mike Lowe retains attorney Greg Isaacs amid TBI payroll inquiry. The latest question is how he could take vacation pay after he was removed from the job...
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Some interesting developments regarding mass transit.
Flory's blog is sometimes better than his articles.
From the City Paper of Nashville
First, it would allow other major municipalities in Tennessee to establish their own Regional Transportation Authority, like the one already in place for Middle Tennessee.
It would then allow a local RTA to take one of two routes in order to establish a dedicated funding source for regional transportation. An RTA could take a dedicated funding proposal to voters for a referendum, or it could ask a local legislative body like Metro Council to pass a law created a new funding source for mass transit.
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I bought a book the other day that is the brainchild of a man who says that making artisan bread need not be a pain in the backside. He's not daft, it really works. Last night I mixed four simple ingredients in a large tub and refrigerated it overnight.
This afternoon I removed about a pound of it, rounded it into a 'boule', let it rise 40 minutes, and baked it on a pizza stone. The remaining dough is good in the fridge for about two weeks. He says the taste improves with time and even tells how to make sourdough.
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Looks like there's a new sheriff in town and he doesn't just smile and take it when someone decides to play against the team. This makes me happy.
Here's a weird one. Obama agreed to host a "fiscal responsibility summit" because Jim Cooper was pushing for one in December, and it was a way to get Blue Dog support for the stimulus bill.
But when the list of invitees to the summit was released today, no Jim Cooper.
What happened in the meantime? Well, Cooper threatened House leadership in the WSJ by saying the Blue Dogs could join with either Republicans or Democrats to pass the legislation they wanted. Then he took a swing at Nancy Pelosi and said he was encouraged to do by the White House. He voted against the stimulus the first time around, and Pelosi's group Americans United For Change started running ads against him for doing so in his district. Then he voted for the final conference version, and the Republicans blasted him, too. Then he said "10 or 15" House Republicans wanted to vote for the stimulus but were too afraid of their own leadership to do so.
Who nixed Cooper at the summit? Hard to say. Can't imagine there were too many complaining, though.
(link...) Go visit!
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A bill sponsored by Stacey Campfield has cleared subcommittee.
(Is this a first? At least it's not a crazy talk bill.)
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Kristina Shands with the Tennessee Clean Water Network says there are 14 destructive water bills in both the Sentate and House that threaten the quality of our state's waters. TCWN needs everyone to call their elected officials and tell them TO PROTECT TENNESSEE'S WATER.
We especially need folks in McCord, Sutherland, Woodson, Yagar and Nicely’s districts.We are hoping to defeat most of these bills in committee. They are bad. One of them is the return of the Limited Resources Waters bill, which removes protection from more than 30,000 miles of streams. Another one states that TDEC cannot act on anonymous tips (they received 431 anonymous calls last year). They all have one thing in common - if it’s already polluted, then we should keep on polluting instead of cleaning it. I have a list of the bills on our website with a summary and talking points.
I’d like to encourage everyone to call their state Senators and Representatives and demand they protect our water.
Contact info follows...
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At 4PM (Nashville time) today, the Public Health and Family Assistance subcommittee of the Tennessee House Health & Human Resources committee will consider bills to ban abortion in Tennessee.
HJR66 is the Republican sponsored bill that proposes a state constitutional amendment paving the way for the state legislature to outlaw abortion, even in the case of rape, incest or when necessary to save the life of the mother.
HJR61, the version sponsored by Democrats, is also before the subcommittee. It has exclusions that would allow abortion in the case of rape, incest, or to protect the health of the mother.
SJR96, the Senate Republican version of HJR66, was also filed yesterday.
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The case of the teen who died after prayer failed to heal her cancer is back in the news. The would-be faith healing mother and her alleged lover and "spiritual father" of her daughter were charged with child neglect. Ironically, their lawyers are challenging a state law that would have protected them but didn't.
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As far as the University of Tennessee Board of Trustees is concerned, half a million dollars is a small price to pay to make John Petersen go away.
Meanwhile, UT is set to cut the nursing program by about the same amount.
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It's Fat Tuesday!
Mardi Gras costume suggestions from The Times-Picayune:
Friends and family can throw on their most threadbare clothing, for instance, and go as the economic recession. Or dress as Wall Street bankers carrying buckets for a bailout.
Happy day to all!
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Education Secretary Arne Duncan wants to rebrand the dubious "No Child Left Behind" Act. One hopes that some policy changes will follow, not just a new name.
What's your fav?
- All American Children Are Above Average Act
- Double Back Around to Pick Up the Children We Left Behind Act
- the Rearranging the Deck Chairs Act
- the Teach to the Test Act
- the Could We Start Again Please Act
Jay Leno, for instance, pointed out in 2006 that Mr. Bush’s approval rating had dropped to 35 percent. “You know Bush’s No Child Left Behind program?” Mr. Leno said. “Now even the children left behind are going, ‘You go ahead, we’re fine.’
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WATE files this report, says 3000 people signed the petition.
PREVIOUSLY: UT budget cuts threaten nursing program
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City Council selects a new vice-mayor tomorrow night (2/24 at 7 p.m.) If I understand correctly, it's the first thing on the agenda, so tune in to comcast ch. 12 to watch.
After several weeks of jockeying, it will be very interesting to see which council member ends up with the job.
Bets on who and why?
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Much of this material was also placed on the Blab. I think the KnoxViews readership shares much concern with the evolution of Downtown so I would ask for your indulgence.
As many know, the 200 block of Gay St. is now blocked as the first phase of the 100 Block Construction project. This is a major project to fix failed infrastructure, especially the bridge holding up the sidewalks in front of the buildings. Rick Emmett has been assigned as the contact person and laison among the city, the contractor, and the residents, building owners, and retail business operators. We have set a web page that provides a lot of information about this project.
(link...) and a blog so we can keep folks appraised of situations as they occur. (link...)
Unfortunately, the problem with almost century-old infrastructure is that one never knows what one will find when digging commences. We have had numerous meetings with all stakeholders in re: design and know that we will have a great block when we get done, but the omelette / egg-breaking relationship unfortunately holds and we have some businesses that we simply must support through this. In addition we want to make sure the Arts Alliance space and the residents are not inconvenienced any more than necessary. We are meeting regularly with each of them, including a great lunch some us enjoyed at Little Havana, recently opened just south of Nama, a great downtown landmark that merits your continued support as well.
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I'm not down there, I'm down with a cold, but loving the CTV stream. Hillcrest is dragging on. Who else is out there?
Lumpy:"If you're in the financial shape you say you are, you couldn't afford Moxley Carmichael to represent you here today." Hillcrest: "I can't wait until we're cash depleted" [and can turn the residents over to someone else]."
Looks like quite the game of chicken. Too bad the residents are the pawns.
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The stimulus bill has transparency rules that require states to track how federal funds are being spent and the number of jobs that spending creates. Reporting requirements include:
• Total amount of recovery funds received from the agency.
• Amount of funds expended or obligated to projects.
• A detailed list of all projects for which recovery funds were expended, including:
- The name and description of the project
- Evaluation of the completion status of the project
- Analysis of the number of jobs created or retained
- Detailed information on any subcontracts or subgrants
Progressive States Network has an analysis of what states are doing or need to do to comply, along with recommendations and links to additional resources. Only a few states have the necessary transparency reporting mechanisms in place, and Tennessee does not appear to be one of them.
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There is a storm brewing among Tennessee Democrats. The selection of Bill Freeman as Treasurer of the Tennessee Democratic Party is now a national story. The Associated Press picked up the story, verified the facts, and ran it. The State Party is looking more like the keystone cops everyday and the captain is the new State Party Chair, Chip Forrester.
For those of you who haven’t kept up, Mr. Freeman, of Freeman Webb in Nashville, was new Party Chair Chip Forrester’s choice to be State Party Treasurer. He was nominated to be the treasurer of the State Party after former Chair Gray Sasser had taken on the job on an interim basis. Reportedly, Mr. Freeman was nominated by none other than Knoxville’s own Sylvia Woods during a State Executive Committee conference call late last week. Indeed, Ms. Woods announced last Thursday at the Knox County Party’s Executive Committee meeting that she would be participating in the call and that it appeared Freeman was “the choice.”
More with an update after the jump...
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Obama revealed that his administration will release $15 billion Wednesday to help governors meet Medicaid payments to poor Americans.
Thank you, Mr. President.
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Kleinheider talks with Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Ward Cammack re. his conversion.
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Georgiana Vines reports on changes at the Knox County Election Commission and how it might affect Greg Mackay's tenure as adminisrator. You won't believe one of the names being discussed as a possible replacement.
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With the cutbacks at local newspapers and TV news operations, there has been some discussion about the impact on local news reporting.
What do you think? Is local, state, and regional news being adequately covered? Have the recent cutbacks had a noticeable impact? What should be getting more coverage but isn't? What is getting too much coverage? What about the quality of reporting and journalism in general? Examples? What should local media be doing differently? How can local news reporting be improved? Where do people get their local news? Do people even care about local, state, or regional news? Can local newspapers and TV news survive? What happens if they don't?
Discuss these or any other related questions/topics in comments...
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Some have inquired about both what Knoxville's being chosen as a Solar City has meant for the area. One very positive development was the recent free 'Solar for your Business' Workshop held on Feb 12th at the Knoxville Chamber. The link below provides information, videos, etc. from the very well attended (75+)event.
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A coyote on the prowl:
More photos in this slideshow from our quick drive around Cades Cove on a snow dusted Sunday afternoon. In addition to the coyote, there were Meadowlarks all over the place, which we had not seen there before. And lots of deer, which we presume you have seen before.
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has the US military been allowed to recruit temporary immigrants. Now, to increase recruitment and, possibly, recruit volunteers with "more education, foreign language skills and professional expertise than many Americans who enlist", the military is starting a new recruitment program. The program will all temporary immigrants to join and provide them a quicker path to citizenship, "in as little as six months". They are expecting this program to eventually include 14,000 temporary immigrant volunteers a year into the US military.
What could the US military offer US citizens to become educated/skilled and then volunteer for service?
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I have this little electronic dictionary program that I've had on my PC since about 1993. It's 8MB and would fit on the tiny hard drives of the day and on even smaller notebook hard drives.
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Those of us who struggle every day trying to figure out this new media thing and worrying about economic models for journalism get distracted by many ideas and lamentations.
Thanks, then, to Jonathan Rosenberg, senior vice president for product management at Google, for this long, thought-provoking, and perceptive piece that helps to refocus on what we should be about: a superior user experience.
. . . As written communication has evolved from long letter to short text message, news has largely shifted from thoughtful to spontaneous. The old-fashioned static news article is now just a starting point,
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It was 50 degrees around 10 PM. The wind was blowing furiously, now snow. High today 38. How long will the snow last? Dunno. Time to feed the birds.
Another pic...
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So, does this mean the Wamp campaign is DOA and it's Haslam's to lose? Sounds like that's the spin the ET GOP money machine is putting on it. Should be interesting. Especially for Nashville Democrats.
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Good morning,
I am writing to ask if your associations or any you may be aware of are working to REVERSE this INSANE CFL bulb law. I thought for sure Congressman Poe might have been, but I was mistaken. I have begun a group to gain support to this end. This law must be reversed. It is not an option.
Simple math:
2008: Over 300 million bulbs bought in America. Each Bulb contains 5mg of the deadly and extremely dangerous Mercury.
With this small amount of purchases, compared to where that number will grow, I believe you will see the answer is simply outrageous. WAL_MART is excited to plan on selling 100 MILLION of these bulbs this year. These numbers are mere guesses as to what the real number of sales are IN THE WORLD are is any ones guess. A law? If they were sooooo good we would not have needed an 882 page Law and the EPA would not have had to write a 3 page single spaced document regarding the uses and disposal of the same. This law was and is sheer lunacy.
This massive amount of Mercury is posed for our landfills and then into our water. The government and the EPA stance that the energy saving is worth the danger is ludicrous. There are many ways to save energy as well as lower emissions rather than this bulb law.
Indulge my little rant here: Last I read this government was of the people, by the people and for the people. The government has grossly overshot their position on this matter. I know it is not the first time, but as for me, I am tired of letting them get away with whatever they want at the people's expense. Most people have thrown their hands in the air and allow the government to do as they please, and to this end we find ourselves in the positions we are today.
I aim to see this law REVERSED. I am looking to connect with anyone who feels the same. Congress passed this ridiculous law in darkness without informing the people. People had no knowledge of it, so therefore could not make an informed decision and or approve it. People are in the dark to the dangers these bulbs pose for us, our children (both born and unborn), our homes, landfills and our planet.
Look in any Chemical Handbook and you will be enlightened about the Dangers of Mercury - there is a reason it is handled with Iron Flasks. This law is sheer lunacy.
I know this was long and I am sorry to take your time, but as you may sense, I am passionate about the reversal of this law. How do you feel about it? If you read this far, I thank you. It is more important than anyone might realize.
Best to you,
Karen Nardella
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Treehouse has forwarded the information package (PDF) from the recent TDOT public hearing on the South Knox Boulevard project. Previous discussion here.
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President Obama addressed the leadership of the U.S. Conference of Mayors yesterday at the White House. He laid out his plan to help local governments:
...you're on the front lines in our communities. You know what happens when folks get laid off, or they lose their homes or their health care, and they turn to the mayor's office for help. And just as your services stretch, your classrooms get crowded, and your streets grow less safe, your budgets shrink. You can't deficit spend, so you face impossible choices: raising taxes; cutting essential services; laying off teachers, firefighters, police officers....Because we know we can't build our economic future on the transportation and information networks of the past, we're remaking our cities with the largest new investment in our nation's infrastructure since Eisenhower built an Interstate Highway System in the 1950s. Ray LaHood is going to be busy because we're putting 400,000 men and women to work rebuilding our crumbling roads and our bridges, repairing our faulty dams and levees, replacing our aging water and sewer pipes, and rolling out broadband lines to nearly every community in America. We're going to unleash the potential of all our regions by connecting them with world-class transit systems and high-speed rail, making our metropolitan areas more livable and sustainable in the process.
Because we know education is the single best bet we can make to change the odds of our children and our cities, we are making the largest investment in education in our nation's history. It will prevent harmful education cuts and save jobs of tens of thousands of teachers -- 14,000 just in New York City. And it will make a historic investment in early childhood education and upgrade classrooms and libraries and labs across America, so that millions of our children are prepared to compete in the 21st century.
Because we know that spiraling health care costs are crushing families and businesses alike, and straining budgets across government, we're taking the most meaningful steps in years to modernize our health care system.
...And because we know we can't power America's future on energy that's controlled by foreign dictators, we're making an investment that within three years will double the renewable energy output it's taken us 35 years to reach.
...We'll build a bigger, better, smarter electricity grid that delivers clean energy from communities that produce it to the cities that need it.
He also laid down the law:
Now, what is required in return, what I will need from all of you, is unprecedented responsibility and accountability on all of our parts. The American people are watching. They need this plan to work. They expect to see the money that they've earned, that they've worked so hard to earn, spent in its intended purposes without waste, without inefficiency, without fraud....So I want to be clear about this: We cannot tolerate business as usual -- not in Washington, not in our state capitols, not in America's cities and towns. We will use the new tools that the recovery act gives us to watch the taxpayers' money with more rigor and transparency than ever. If a federal agency proposes a project that will waste that money, I will not hesitate to call them out on it and put a stop to it.
And I want everybody here to be on notice that if a local government does the same, I will call them out on it and use the full power of my office and our administration to stop it. We have asked for the unprecedented trust of the American people to deal boldly with the greatest economic crisis we've seen in decades and the privilege of investing unprecedented amounts of their hard-earned money to address this crisis. And with that comes unprecedented obligations to spend that money wisely -- free from politics and free from personal agendas.
On this, I will not compromise or tolerate any shortcuts. The American people are looking to us, each of you, as well as myself and Joe and others in our administration, for leadership, and it's up to us to reward their faith.
President Obama also noted that the stimulus plan includes immediate relief to help the unemployed and those at risk of losing their health insurance, and investments in public safety.
He also announced a new White House Office of Urban Affairs to coordinate urban programs and form an advisory committee made up of mayors from around the country to help develop "a new metropolitan strategy."
More than 80 mayors from across America attended. According to a press release, the U.S. Conference of Mayors leadership was invited. After the meeting with President Obama, the mayors were to meet with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson, U.S. Department of Energy Weatherization Program Director Gil Sperling, and U.S. Department of Justice COPS Office Acting Director Tim Quinn.
Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam was not on the initial list of invitees. The list did not include any Tennessee mayors and there is no word on whether Mayor Haslam attended as a late addition attendee. The U.S. Conference of Mayors does not list him on any boards, committees, or task forces. Former Knoxville Mayor Victor Ashe is a past president of the organization.
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It's what makes winter fun..the Big Orange basketball boys annual treck to Big Blue Country to play da Cats in hoops.
Some of the Big Orange wins @ the Big Blue
'67 Ray Mears first win on the road over UK..52-50.
'76 Ernie & Bernie beat the Cats up there 90-88 in OT.
'79 Big Orange go north & win the 2nd leg of the triple crown 66-55.The Vols had already won @ home over UK & beat them again in the SEC tournament championship.
'99 a week after John Ward calls the Vols football national championship he's at the mike for the UT win over UK in Lexington..47-46.
'06 Bruce Pearl makes his first trip to the land of the Man in the Brown Suit & wins..75-67
Got the beer on ice..the chili is cooking.
I'm ready for UT-UK to hoop it up @ Rupp.
GO BIG ORANGE..CRUSH DA CATS!!!!!!!!
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Details here.
Maybe it'll be students who, in the end, get us out of this mess.
Take Back NYU! is a coalition of nearly two dozen groups and hundreds of students at New York University demanding budget disclosure, endowment disclosure, and student representation on the Board of Trustees.
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The Knoxville Zoo is holding a job fair tomorrow (Saturday Feb. 21) from 10AM to 2PM and will be interviewing on the spot. Seasonal positions are available in gift sales, admission, education programs, security, membership sales, rides and concession areas. More details after the jump...
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Dawn Coppock and the good folks at Tennessee LEAF are back this year with the Tennessee Scenic Vistas Protection Act (SB 1406), and are determined more than ever to get this bill passed!
It only takes a moment to help - you can make a huge difference in protecting our Tennessee mountains from the scourge of mountaintop removal.
On Tuesday, February 24, the bill goes to the Calendar for the Senate Environment Committee. If it passes there, it will go to the Senate Floor. If the Tennessee State Senate votes yes, we are half way to our goal of passing a bill to stop mountain top removal coal mining in Tennessee!
Tennessee LEAF is asking people to contact Senators on the Senate Environment Committee BEFORE 11:30 AM on Tuesday.
The simple message is, "Please vote for the Scenic Vistas Protection Act (SB 1406) in the Senate Environment Committee this Tuesday." The most effective thing you can do is place a brief telephone call to a Senator, or send a personal e-mail. If you don't get the Senator, leave a message.
Knox County's own Jamie Woodson is on the Senate Environment committee and needs to hear from you as soon as possible. Please also call or e-mail the following people - there are both Democrats and Republicans on the committee, so enough to go around for everyone, regardless of your stripes!
Easy contact info after the break!
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While our genius state legislators are making headlines by calling on the governor to reject federal stimulus funds, other states are getting busy figuring out the best ways to put the money to good use.
To that end, Progressive States has put together a resource guide, Implementing the Recovery Plan: A Resource Guide for State Legislators and Advocates:
Built into the plan is a recognition that while the federal government can assist in funding the work, most of the implementation of the plan will happen in the states. This [guide] provides facts, guidance and a collection of resources to state leaders and advocates on how to implement the recovery plan in a strategic manner that strengthens our states and honors our progressive values.
The guide analyzes each program area and provides links to reports and background information useful to policy makers.
An accompanying report, Why States Need to be a Focus for Any Economic Recovery Plan warns against "50 Herbert Hoovers," saying:
Paul Krugman wrote in the NY Times about the dangers of a pro-growth federal spending plan being derailed by what he calls "50 Herbert Hoovers -- state governors who are slashing spending in a time of recession, often at the expense both of their most vulnerable constituents and of the nation’s economic future."...Ultimately, support for the states is a key to recovery not just to avoid the negative effects of state cutbacks, but because the programs administered by the states, from transportation systems to health care to unemployment insurance systems, are key levers for reviving local economies across the country.
These reports should be must reads for state legislators and policy makers, and anyone else who wants to learn more about the stimulus plan. Hopefully that will include Tennessee legislators, although I'm sure there are some who wouldn't want to be caught with a website called "Progressive States Network" in their browser history.
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He's a rich, good looking Nashville banker dude running for Governor as a Democrat. He's got Facebook, a website, and apparently an office staffed by someone who returns alt-media phone calls.
Ilissa Gold checks him out and likes what she sees, but see also some troubling info in the comments over there.
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"Original Soul Man" Sam Moore of Sam and Dave fame is suing the producers of the movie "Soul Men." According to a press release, "the eight count complaint alleges violations of Moore's rights of publicity and trademark, as well as unfair competition and false light, unfair and deceptive practices, and conspiracy."
Sam Moore says "There are just too many problems with this shameful film -- too many similarities to my career and events in my life, too many references to significant cultural moments and people in our country's musical history, too many racial slurs and obscenities, too many degrading and demeaning scenes."
You can read the complaint and accompanying exhibits that chronicle Sam Moore's career at originalsoulmen.com.
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Some Knoxville teens involved in the the Planned Parenthood of Middle and East Tennessee FYI and PG-13 Players peer education programs hope to attend the organization's national conference in Houston in March. They've been invited by the Young Leaders Summit to meet with other youth leaders and peer educators from affiliates across the US and to meet with Cecile Richards, president of the national organization. PPMET says that some local peer educators went two years ago and "it was a fabulous experience for all of them."
The cost for the trip will be approx. $2600. PPMET says they hope to receive a scholarship that will cover half of it, so they are looking for supporters to help send them by raising funds for the remaining $1300.
If you would like to help out, contact:
Carolyn N. Edrington
Vice President of Development
Planned Parenthood of Middle and East Tennessee, Inc.
50 Vantage Way #102
Nashville, TN 37228
615-345-0952
carolyne@ppmet.org
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From Cathy Rhodes, Executive Director, Little River Watershed Association:
Do you want to know more about conservation easements? Confused about what they really are and what they are NOT?Come to an educational seminar and get your questions answered about them. You will also have the opportunity to see a variety of maps of the Little River Watershed and learn some facts about your watershed.
7PM - Thursday, March 12, 2009
@ Blount County Public LibraryCall Little River Watershed Association (980-2130) or Foothills Land Conservancy (681-8326) for more information.
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The Little River Watershed Association and the Foothills Land Conservancy are presenting an educational seminar about conservation easements. There will be two opportunities to attend. The first is 7PM Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2009 at the Townsend Visitor Center. The second is 7PM Thursday, March 12, 2009 at the Blount County Public Library.
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Amy Byington, a senior in the University of Tennessee's nursing program, has organized a petition asking the university to reconsider proposed budget cuts to the program.
Amy says supporters are gathering at the UTK College of Nursing on Monday, Feb. 23rd at 7:30 AM and will march to the Chancellor's Office to deliver the petition. She is asking the community to join in their efforts because "a decrease in nursing students will greatly impact our community."
According to a recent Daily Beacon report, budget cuts have already reduced the number of admissions by half. The report says that the Tennessee Center for Nursing estimates the state is looking at a shortage of 9,000 nurses by 2020.
Kim Carlson, another nursing program senior, is quoted in the article as saying "It’s one of the few professions that’s actually hiring. I think it’s a little ridiculous that they’re going to cut the one program that’s actually in demand."
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It's hard to know what to make of this piece regarding Secretary of State Clinton's trip to the far east.
Clinton has unleashed the ebullient public persona she showed in the final giddy stages of her unsuccessful 2008 campaign.
The tone of Clinton's diplomatic charm offensive was a significant departure from the traditional approach of some previous secretaries of state, who were on the road a great deal but tended to be more comfortable in private settings than out in public.
the grueling pace has exhausted her traveling staff and local embassy employees, not to mention the reporters accompanying her on the trip.
The State Dept.'s "efficient team of transcribers" can't keep up.
Have they set aside any stimulus money to hire more transcribers?
Maybe what they are trying to say is, there is once again someone in the position that knows what they are doing, likes their job, works hard, has lots of energy, and will hopefully rebuild US diplomatic relations with the rest of the world.
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A very loud BOOM just shook the house here in Maryville, followed by about three or four follow-up booms. We heard the same thing the other morning. I thought it was a sonic boom, but nobody outside our immediate neighborhood heard it. Then we thought it could have been Vulcan Materials doing blasting - but they wouldn't do it this time at night. Now we're thinking it was an earthquake. The ENTIRE neigborhood is out in the street at 11pm wondering what the hell that was. People are driving around from other neighborhoods too. The police and fire trucks are out as well.
Did anybody else hear it? Anybody know what the hell that was?
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UT should make it official that it's a football school and make Phil Fulmer president, and let him have his parachute money and his president's salary at the same time. Go Vols!
A note about UT presidents, a few months ago before the total meltdown I read an article that UT has decided it needs a new airplane. The Shuemaker (?) thing started when he made that request. I've always wondered if what he did warranted him having to resign or if it was just a media drumbeat thing.
People seemed more concerned when word broke that he was getting a divorce and had an Ala. girlfriend flying in the plane with him and Gilley's whole thing mostly centered on a girlfriend. Stuff that would have gone unnoticed if not for the media drumbeat, I forget exactly what started the Reed, Gilley investigation.
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A new study is out from the Center for Public Integrity on the danger nationwide from coal ash storage. It includes a customizable map of fill ponds and landfills nationwide.
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UT is closing the Golf Range married student housing apartments, citing declining demand. The article says 627 of the 780 units are currently rented. Sounds like pretty good demand to me.
They also say it would be too expensive to repair and upgrade the forty and fifty year old electrical and plumbing. Demolition by neglect seems to be standard operating procedure for UT.
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"Lawmaker wants Bredesen to refuse stimulus money for Tennessee."
At last check, the state is facing an $800 million budget deficit. What a brilliant proposal!
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ACK's guest column in the Nashville City Paper makes the case for open primaries.
RELATED: KnoxViews poll
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They could use some extra help!! Call Tonya TODAY @ 865.919.5584 if you think you can help them out. Location is Alcoa, TN.
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Four Congressional representatives have sponsored resolution calling for the U.S. Postal Service to “take all appropriate measures” to maintain its six-day-a-week delivery schedule.
Led by Rep. Sam Graves R-MO), Nick Rahall, (D-WV); Chris Smith, (R-NJ); and Zoe Lofgren, (D-CA), the non-binding resolution HRes 173 expresses the sense of the House that the USPS stay with this schedule that it has had since 1912 and not try to cut it back in an attempt to try to save money.
The proposed resolution has been referred to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
Late last month, Postmaster General Jack Potter asked the Senate Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management Federal Services and International Security Senate panel to consider “temporarily” reducing mail delivery from six to five days a week and for legislative relief from the U.S. Postal Service’s nearly $5.8 billion yearly prefunded retiree's healthcare benefit obligations. (Direct Newsline, Jan. 28 and Feb. 18).
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The Mrs. and I were discussing this the other night. I don't recall a more strident, coordinated attack on policy in quite some time, much of it fueled by disinformation spread by extremist right-wing talk radio propaganda outlets.
There's also the steady stream of talking heads, so-called experts, and Congressional Republicans on the cable "news" shows and op-ed pages telling us how the stimulus bill won't work and we're headed for "socialism". The right-wing bloggers have taken their cue and gone ballistic. They all openly admit they hope for President Obama to fail.
Will it work? And work to do what? Further wreck our economy? What is it they hope to accomplish? More tax cuts? Is it always and only about tax cuts?
Liberals complained loudly for years about Bush policies and nothing happened. Well, nothing except our economy and our respect around the world going down the toilet. Maybe this campaign will have the same effect, i.e. none, and cooler heads will give the plan time work so we can start climbing out of a hole that took Republicans eight years to dig.
On the other hand, liberals complaining loudly consists of an occasional op-ed in the New York Times, Air America chirping, and Keith Olbermann, which are hardly a match for the right-wing, corporate owned propaganda machine.
SEE ALSO:
Joe Powell
WhitesCreek Journal
Southern Beale
Washington Monthly
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The Maryville Daily Times reports that Puleo's Grille hopes to open in the former Up the Creek space by late March.
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TDOT is doing an Environmental Impact Statement for the South Knoxville Boulevard Extension. This is regarding the James White Parkway which is an interstate through South Knoxville that currently dumps out at Moody Ave. A meeting was held last night that I could not attend but I have received the handout and map suggesting proposed routes.
A major concern is the proximity of this "boulevard" next to Hastie Natural Area. This is a rural, forested area that is envisioned as an urban greenspace with trails that connect downtown to Ijams Park, Forks of the River and the Smokies.
Monday, Feb. 23, at 7:00 p.m. at Lake Forest Presbyterian Church, the Hastie Natural Area Task Force will present the Master Plan for Hastie Natural Area. It includes the desire to expand and connect beyond the current 75 acre park. Four of the five alternative routes for the proposed "boulevard" pass directly north of Hastie, cutting off access to the park and greenway connections. An interstate next to this park would alter the environment such that this jewel of nature within the city limits would be ruined.
TDOT has a public comment form that must be returned by March 10. Please go to (link...) and review the alternatives and give your opinion about the South Knoxville Boulevard. Please consider "no build" as I see no good reason to build this new road in South Knoxville.
UPDATE: Public meeting info package
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THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS EXTENDED TORNADO WATCH 23 TO INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING AREAS UNTIL 6 PM EST THIS AFTERNOON. IN TENNESSEE THIS WATCH INCLUDES 14 COUNTIES. IN EAST TENNESSEE: ANDERSON, BLOUNT, BRADLEY, CLAIBORNE, HAMILTON, KNOX, LOUDON, MCMINN, MEIGS, MONROE, POLK, RHEA, ROANE, UNION
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Continued...SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 69-3-107(5), is amended by adding after the semi-colon “;” the following language: provided, however, no such inspections and investigations shall be conducted based in whole or in part upon an anonymous communication, either oral or written;
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The new White House recovery.gov website runs on Drupal, the same open source software that powers KnoxViews.
(Here are a bunch of others.)
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According to a story in the News-Sentinel, there will be nine citizens appointed to serve on Knox County's Board of Zoning Appeals.
The Board of Zoning Appeals will be suspended this month, and commissioners will hold meetings to pick one resident from each of the nine districts to serve in commissioners' nine appointments to that board through the remainder of their unexpired term on Aug. 31, 2010.
At the March meeting, new members will be appointed, receive training the next day and meet the third day as a new BZA.
The BZA's practices have long been a sore spot for neighborhood groups in the county because they hand out variances like lollipops to almost anyone who asks, especially if there is no one there to oppose the variance. In theory, the person asking for a variance is supposed to show a hardship as the reason their request should be granted. In practice, almost anything goes.
This opportunity holds great promise and great danger. If the neighborhood groups don't actively contact their commissioners and rally behind an appropriate candidate, we could end up with nothing but developers, architects and real estate agents on the BZA.
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Alan Greenspan, Communist sympathizer and proxy for the global Zionist financial conspiracy*, calls for nationalization of foundering US banks, calling such action "the least bad option."
Ayn Rand** could not be reached for comment.
* sarcasm fully intended
** sarcasm not so much
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President Obama is set to announce details of the Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan which is designed to "help bring relief to homeowners and bring some order to the housing market."
The White House website has already released a FAQ that explains what help is available and who is eligible. The Treasury has prepared some examples of how the incentives will affect eligible homeowners' monthly payments.
President Obama will unveil the $75 billion program in Phoenix shortly after noon local time.
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The Securities and Exchange Commission has shut down Stanford Financial Group, alleging an $8 billion "fraud of shocking magnitude."
Federal agents raided the company's offices in Houston and other U.S. cities including Memphis, prompting an unexpected call to Tennessee State Senator Paul Stanley (R-Memphis), a "wealth manager" with the company, informing him that his office was being searched.
According to the Memphis Commercial Appeal, Stanley said he was "amazed and dumbfounded," and that he was not involved in any of the alleged fraud nor were any of his colleagues as far as he knows.
The SEC enforcement action charges company founder Robert Allen Stanford, Stanford International Bank chief financial officer James Davis and Stanford Financial Group chief investment officer Laura Pendergest-Holt with "orchestrating a fraudulent, multi-billion dollar investment scheme." No other employees or associates are implicated at this time.
The SEC complaint alleges that so-called CD deposits, which were misrepresented as "safe," were funneled to Stanford's bank in Antigua where depositors were told they would be invested in "liquid financial instruments monitored by a team of 20-plus analysts" and "subject to yearly audits by Antiguan regulators." Instead, the SEC says the funds were placed in "illiquid investments, such as real estate and private equity," and were monitored by only two people, Stanford and Davis, and not audited by Antiguan regulators.
Bloomberg has more on Stanford Financial Group and the alleged scheme to sell CDs offering "improbable, if not impossible" returns.
According to Reuters UK, Stanford is a bi-partisan kind of guy, and in fact Democrats were the beneficiaries of more than two-thirds of his campaign donations. The article will likely be a source of embarrassment for some high-profile Democrats whose names are mentioned.
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Two lawyers representing one of the defendants in the Christian/Newsom carjacking and murder case want off the case because of death threats in comments at local media websites including the Knoxville News Sentinel and WBIR. They also ask that the media be barred from reporting on the pre-trial hearings.
In their motion, court-appointed attorneys G. Scott Green and Kimberly A. Parton say:
The media, especially in the age of instant access via the internet, has an enormous responsibility due to its influence over public opinion. The manner in which a story is reported, the editorial position of the media outlet, and public comment generated by that outlet's published content, all bear directly upon the attitude(s) and upon the prejudice(s) which society embrace. One need look no further than the tragedy which occurred on a quiet summer morning within a place of worship on Kingston Pike to understand the consequences of disseminated hatred. If the media cannot responsibly report, and/or monitor the public dissemination of its website content where such failure to monitor affects the effective representation of counsel for one or more defendants, it should not be allowed to further publicly disseminate information about this case. While the public has a right to be informed about these proceedings, that privilege will always be subservient to the constitutionally guaranteed right to receive effective assistance of counsel where one is charged with a capital crime.
They say they did not ask for the assignment but they took an oath and learned early in their careers they would have to take on unpopular cases. They argue that this duty does not obligate them to compromise their own safety or the safety of their families "simply for doing the job the law compels us to perform." They also remind those seeking justice for these crimes that anything less than a vigorous defense will result in reversal on appeal if there are convictions.
It was only a matter of time before these chickens came home to roost. Read the motion for more specifics about the threats and the media's lack of response to complaints. It's an interesting look at how internet hate speech affects the intersection of justice, the media, and the public interest.
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Speaking Monday at a gathering of the Chattanooga Engineering Club, Nissan's product planning and strategy director Mark Perry said the all-electric car, capable of seating five, will be sold starting late next year. It will initially be built in Japan but eventually production will be in their Smyrna, Tennessee plant.
He said that Tennessee is expected to be one of three American 'launch sites' for the new venture in late 2010.
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Great Backyard Bird Count reports are coming in at a record pace, and so far Knoxville leads the way in Tennessee by a wide margin.
Across the state, the top ten most widely reported species are: Northern Cardinal; Mourning Dove; Carolina Chickadee; Tufted Titmouse; American Goldfinch; Blue Jay; American Robin; House Finch; Downy Woodpecker; American Crow.
The top ten most numerous: Common Grackle; European Starling; Red-winged Blackbird; American Goldfinch; American Robin; Lesser Scaup; Mourning Dove; Northern Cardinal; Pine Siskin; Ring-billed Gull.
The least common sightings are: Black Scoter; House Wren; Lapland Longspur; Merlin; Osprey; Rough-legged Hawk; American Tree Sparrow; Black-crowned Night-Heron; Greater Yellowlegs; Peregrine Falcon.
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The Tennessee Department of Safety has revoked the handgun carry permit of Knox County school board member Bill Phillips as a result of his misdemeanor assault conviction.
Good.
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Harold Ford Jr. to Republicans on MSNBC Hardball last night:
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UTK is granting an honorary doctorate to Dolly Parton.
Okay, I love Dolly's music, especially her mountain roots work. (Little Sparrow is one of my favorite albums.)
I think her contributions to East Tennessee through Dollywood and philanthropy are wonderful.
However... UTK has only presented one other honorary doctorate, and that was to Howard Baker. (I'm amazed that they didn't give one to Alex Haley when he was living in Anderson County.)
This just strikes me as one of the things that makes honorary degrees.... as cheap as Dolly dresses. :-) ("It costs a lot to look this cheap!")
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• GDP down 3.8% (annual rate) for 4th quarter 2008
• Construction spending for 2008 down 5.1% from 2007
• Personal income growth down from 6.1% in 2007 to 3.7% in 2008
• Personal savings rate up from 0.6% in 2007 to 1.7% in 2008
• Dec. 2008 residential building permits down 50.7% from Dec. 2007
• Dec. 2008 housing starts down 45% from Dec. 2007
• Dec. 2008 new home sales down 44.8% from Dec. 2007
• Jan. 2009 retail and food service sales down 9.7% from Jan. 2008
• Dec. 2008 durable goods shipments down 8.7% from Dec. 2007
• Dec. 2008 durable goods new orders down 19.7% from Dec. 2007
• Dec. 2008 wholesale deliveries down 11.8% from Dec. 2007
• Dec. 2008 trade deficit improved $17.6 billion from Dec. 2007
• Dec. 2008 exports down 8.4% from Dec. 2007
• Dec. 2008 imports down 14.7 from Dec. 2007
(Source)
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Rich Hailey: "The ignorance of Mr. and Mrs. Neal is outweighed only by their arrogance. But then again, we knew that already."
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Weird events at Halls Republican Club tonight.
Andrew Graybeal showed up and sat in the back corner.
Former county chair Gerald Turner called him out, challenging him as a Democrat basically to sign a loyalty oath or leave the meeting.
Graybeal said he had resigned in writing from the Democratic Party last month and wanted to be welcomed into the GOP. He received tepid applause.
Later Turner jumped on the Republican county commissioners (present were R. Larry, Dave Wright and Michele Carringer) for electing Democrats rather than Republicans. Republicans hold a 15-4 majority on the commission.
Turner said Tank Strickland is a "nice guy," but "he's a Democrat." He also alluded to the recent selection of Mark Brown as a judicial commissioner.
Former commissioner Scott Moore won a door prize from Ted Hatfield -- a script in English of Slumdog Millionaire. Someone in the back (not Graybeal) yelled, "Who says there's no justice!"
Club president Wally Welch ended the meeting with a joke: Seems he had discovered a classified ad selling a tractor with no seat or steering wheel.
"It's for people who have lost their ass and don't have a clue which way to turn," he said. "Congress."
Gotta love the Halls Republicans. -- s.
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Unbelievable!
According to the Wall Street Journal, "Earlier in February, the French Navy had said that the 450-foot Le Triomphant had shortened its patrol after 70 days at sea because its nose had been damaged by a collision with an unidentified object, possibly a drifting container. It was only after sending inquiries to other navies that France realized Le Triomphant had actually rammed into a British craft, the HMS Vanguard."
Comedy of Errors? Confederacy of Dunces?
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Judging by what I saw in interstate this weekend, along with around town, ticket writing is on a significant upswing. I could go with adding cell phone talking while driving to the apparent revenue generating push that is going on.
One study from the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis estimated that 636,000 traffic accidents each year -- about 6 percent of all accidents -- are caused by drivers using their cell phones, resulting in an estimated 2,600 deaths.
The CNN article
(link...)
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Looks like he will have to be making some tough choices, which usually ends up making somebody mad.
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TVA ready to revise strategic plans
"Many have said that TVA should be a role model for the nation, rather than seeming to resist environmental initiatives," [CEO Kilgore] said. "I’m willing to accept that challenge."[..]
"There ought to be some people on the TVA board who have real environmental experience and training, not just bankers who like to go fishing," Mr. Smith said.
The article notes that Obama will be appointing up to four new board members, possibly as soon as May. It also notes that President Carter's pick to chair the TVA board launched a conservation program which fell by the wayside in more recent years. Instead, they have been spending money defending environmental lawsuits.
(By way of RoaneViews.)
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Rep. Stacey Campfield (R-Crazytown) is in the news again with his slate of Bizarro World legislative proposals, most of which are reruns.
He recently explained that joining a lawsuit demanding President Obama to turn over proof of his identity was just his way of defending Obama from attacks and helping him clear this up. Right.
Campfield is the Andy Kaufman of state politics. Or Ali G for you youngsters. He is running the longest performance art hoax in recent memory. There's no other logical explanation. His explanation to constituents regarding his quest for Obama's birth certificate gives him away.
Yes, we know he is "joking," but along with everything else it suggests that deep down he thinks some voters actually believe he's for real. He has no respect for the people of his district and regularly insults their intelligence. He doesn't take anything seriously, state politics is just a big joke, and the only thing he's interested in is getting his name in the paper.
People often wonder why the voters in his district keep electing him. Besides the fact that Democrats seem afraid to run against him, most folks can't even name their state representative and senator. When they go into the voting booth all they know is "Campfield? Isn't he that nice boy who knocked on our door and asked us to vote for him? I think I read about him in the paper. And I heard the liberals hate him, too." If they were paying attention, they would be embarrassed and insulted to even see his name on the ballot. But mostly embarrassed.
(Reviewed strictly on the merits of his performance art, though, we give him three and a half out of four stars, with a half point off for being a little too obvious.)
RELATED: Katie Allison Granju on Campfield's stream of sexually oriented legislation.
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Hopefully you’re enjoying a day off, but either way you are living history. For the first Presidents' Day in history there is a black man in the White House. Once considered only three-fifths of a person by the United States Constitution, President Obama is now the most powerful man in the world.
That is quite a remarkable thing to have witnessed in our lifetime -- especially those of us old enough remember the “coloreds only” signs at downtown Knoxville lunch counters.
It’s progress that has been a long time coming. Perhaps it means there is hope we will also live to see the first woman in the White House.
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C-SPAN has announced the results of their second survey of presidents. 65 presidential historians ranked former presidents on ten points of leadership.
Just as he had speculated, George W. Bush was treated kindly, they actually named six that they deemed worse.
I must say I would have placed him just south of Buchanan on this list.
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Hello bbeanster I am Sue Sbuttoni of Albany NY. I saw that your husband Joe Sbuttoni died in the military. I am sorry to hear that and am curious. In researching my family history I found a monument in honor of Guisseppe Sbuttoni in Italy. Would this be your husband?
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Georgiana Vines reports that Will Minter will seek the Knox Co. Democratic Party chair.
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Has anyone else noticed the dramatic and abrupt change in our national debate?
Instead of Democrats protesting billions for the ill-advised and possibly illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq that killed thousands upon thousands of people and ruined America’s reputation around the world while lining the pockets of assorted White House cronies and deregulated crooks and liars who were bankrupting our economy, Republicans are now running around with their hair on fire freaking out about federal spending on jobs, health care, education, infrastructure, technology, energy independence, health insurance for disadvantaged children, and keeping people in their homes.
Maybe it’s just me, but the latter seems more like the debate we should be having.
And President Obama has only been in office for 25 days.
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The AP reports that the nation's largest mortgage lenders have agreed to halt foreclosures for several weeks to give the Obama administration time to finalize a mortgage restructuring plan.
The plan, expected to cost in the range of $50 billion, could contain incentives to lower mortgage rates or cash buydowns of principal on troubled properties. The goal is to keep people in their homes by lowering payments so the government can avoid more buyouts of mortgage backed securities.
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The Senate passed the stimulus bill 60-38 late last night and it's on its way to President Obama to be signed into law.
Roll Call: Corker and Alexander both voted NO, making it a clean sweep for Tennessee Republicans. Republicans Specter (PA), Collins (ME) and Snowe (ME) voted YES.
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Karns Volunteer Fire Department has just been dispatched to a "possible plane crash" in the Solway area near Guinn Road.
C.A.P. called it in after having three aircraft reporting sighting a beacon.
Exact location is unknown at present.
2245: KVFD has several units staged at Pellissippi Parkway and Solway Roads awaiting further word from CAP.
2257: KVFD reports speaking with ORPD dispatcher - plane down in Clark Center Park across Melton Hill Lake in Anderson County.
2300: WVLT-TV has just reported the crash and say they have a crew on the scene.
2328: KVFD has returned to quarters. No traffic from ORPD.
2343: WVLT has this and I'm off to bed.
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Young Broadcasting, parent company of local TV station WATE, has filed for bankruptcy.
UPDATE: Letter to employees
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I spotted this poster in the elevator at the Ft. Sanders Professional Building the other day. Proceeds go to some good causes so if you have nothing to do and plenty of time to do it . . .
Knoxville Academy of Medicine's Knoxville Area Project Access (KAPA)
No mention of the admission cost (or possible co-payments) but the Vibraslaps seem to have an endorsement from somebody.
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We cordially invite you to join us in a night of celebration at the official Knoxville Overground community center launch party this February 18th from 7pm - 10pm at the Sequoyah Hills Center on the corner of Keowee Ave & Kenesaw Ave in West Knoxville.
Please help us get the word out and forward this e-mail to anyone you think might be interested! More info after the jump...
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AP: The bill was passed 246-183 with no Republican help. It now goes to the Senate where a vote was possible late Friday to meet a deadline of passing the plan before a recess begins next week.
UPDATE: Tennessee Roll Call: Democrats: Cohen, Y; Cooper, Y; Davis, Y; Gordon, Y; Tanner, Y. Republicans: Blackburn, N; Duncan, N; Roe, N; Wamp, N.
UPDATE: Shuler voted NO. Other Democrats voting against it include Bright of Alabama, Minnick of Idaho, Peterson of Minnesota, and Taylor of Mississippi.
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Students and faculty at Heritage High School in Maryville received a big surprise today. About 50 U.S. Cellular associates, including dozens who live in Blount County, stormed into their assembly to announce that Heritage had won $100,000 in the company’s “Calling All Communities” campaign. Heritage is one of 10 schools to receive the most votes, which were cast by area residents during the holiday season.
“I’m moved by the support of the community,” said Patty Mandigo, principal of Heritage High School. “We had so much help from parents, students, friends and folks from all over Blount County, and we still weren’t convinced it was enough to win.”
Schools across the country are facing tough budget cuts due to shrinking government funding, which is jeopardizing vital academic programs and extracurricular activities. Blount County schools may face a deficit of at least $3.5 million for the 2009-2010 budget year.
Heritage High School is the first school so far to receive $100,000 in U.S. Cellular’s 2009 “Calling All Communities” campaign. The rest of the winners will be announced in the next few weeks.
Each year U.S. Cellular donates more than $4 million to the United Way and non-profits serving its communities, and last year associates volunteered almost 10,000 hours.
Full details - (link...)
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According to AP, government security contracts are not being renewed and Iraq has let them know they are no longer welcome there, so Blackwater is "abandoning its tarnished brand name" and will now be known as "Xe."
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KNS:
Heritage High School became the first high school in the U.S. to win $100,000 from U.S. Cellular's "Calling All Communities" promotion
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Press release:
TVA today filed its fiscal year 2009 first quarter report with the Securities and Exchange Commission, reporting a net loss of $305 million -- primarily a result of the Kingston ash spill recovery efforts.
The loss for the three months that ended Dec. 31, 2008, compares with a net income of $8 million reported for the first quarter of the previous fiscal year. Excluding the charge related to Kingston, TVA had a net income of $220 million.
Revenues during the quarter increased $717 million, or approximately 30 percent, from the first quarter a year ago, while power sales decreased approximately 2 percent. The increase in revenue was due primarily to an increase in TVA's fuel cost adjustment due to higher fuel and purchased power costs and base rate increases.
A decrease in TVA's fuel cost adjustment in January 2009 and again in April 2009 will result in reduced wholesale power rates.
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The City of Knoxville is currently accepting applications from non-profit organizations for Community Agency Grants for fiscal year 2009-2010, which begins on July 1, 2009.
The deadline for filing an application is 5 p.m., Friday, March 6. The city will not consider late applications. More info after the jump.
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The Brady Campaign against Gun Violence says a number of federal rules were violated in Bush's rush to issue the order allowing guns in national parks.
In related news, there is a nationwide campaign opposing legislation that would allow students to carry guns on college campuses. University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and East Tennessee State University have both signed on to the campaign.
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Principle Group, a leading global brand implementation firm based in the U.K., today announced its expansion into the U.S. market, with the opening of its North American headquarters in Knoxville, Tennessee.Founded in 1987, Principle Group has operations and strategic global alliances in more than 50 countries worldwide and offers a comprehensive range of brand implementation services - from consultancy, signage, interiors, graphics, maintenance and facility branding. Today, the company serves clients in nearly every commercial, consumer and industrial market sector, such as automotive, banking, quick service restaurants, and retail.
UPDATE: As expected, company hires laid off ImagePoint workers
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Bob Booker was selected over five other candidates (the 7th withdrew) this evening to be the new 6th District representative on City Council. Booker won in the second round of voting, in which he received all 8 votes. Booker vowed that he would not run for the post this fall. In the 1st round, Booker received the most votes, but failed to get a super majority (6). Stephen DuPree and Ann Dingus both received votes in the 1st round. Booker gave a wonderful account of himself when he was called upon to speak, as did Dewey Roberts, who - surprisingly (to me) - failed to get any votes.
Of course, all of the Council's members piped in prior to the vote and talked about the good field of candidates. At least three sounded very much like mayoral candidates: Marilyn Roddy, Rob Frost, and Joe Bailey. Several past and likely future political candidates were there, including Cortney Piper - now working with Susan Richardson-Williams, and Ray Abbas, now working at the Salvation Army. Cynthia Stancil was there and made it clear that she would be a candidate in the fall in the 6th District. Bill Young was there plugging for votes for the 2013 Democratic Party Chairman race. Madeline Rogero was in attendance. It will be fascinating to have two very credible women candidates for mayor in 2011. The list is long: at least Roddy, Frost, Rogero, Bailey, and Alvin Nance of KCDC. Perhaps a surprise or 2.
Criminal Court Judge Richard Baumgartner arrived prior to the end of the meeting to swear in Mr. Booker.
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Gene Patterson: Not even the Governor of Tennessee wants to mess with Pat and face "the stare." Heh.
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TN Rep Stacy Campfield and the Death Certificates for Aborted Fetuses is Back
The uninformed Campfield has not filed any bills that would safely end abortions, such as making contraceptives available. Instead, this misogynist would rather scare women into not having an abortion, the threat of their identity being publicly available to anyone that wishes to search the public record is to beat you into submission. Because, after all, you are only a stupid brood mare.
What she said. Apparently, Rep. Campfield didn't get the memo that any bill with a fiscal note won't run. Or the one reminding him that Republicans no longer have a majority in the House.
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I read that OPEC wants to cut production again in March and would like to have gas at 70$ a barrel. I say this about myself personally and figure it applies to many people, the only reason the 4-5$ gas prices this summer and fall were not a complete disaster was there was at least some work to be had. The only reason Christmas shopping or being laid off is not a complete disaster is because gas is much cheaper now. What I wonder is how horrible a mix would being without a job and 4$ gas and food prices shooting up will be. That would eat up a few extra bucks on your paycheck real quick, if you had one and probably cause retail to be worse and worse.
I feel this extra money for the states will help--this year. I wonder what will happen next year. Last year it was one side saying cut down on demand and the other side saying drill baby drill. This year demand has dropped and OPEC doesn't want to drill. This worries me and bothers me more than the bankers taking retreats.
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"If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?"
Captured on my daily walk.
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and yes, Stacey Campfield was one of them. He is such an embarrassment to our great state. Somebody, anybody please stop him. (link...)
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The board also elected a new chair, former Republican National Committee Chairman Mike Duncan. Duncan was selected in 4-3 vote.
The report also says the Kingston cleanup will cost up to $825 million, and CEO Kilgore is taking a pay cut. Presumably he will be paid less than one million dollars per day.
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In one of the more blatant examples of irresponsible, happy talk TVA press release BS "journalism" being published by the KNS, today's business section has an article about how TVA is recycling fly ash, which it turns out is "about as toxic as dirt" according to a fly ash industry spokesman.
They fail to mention that no Kingston fly ash has been sold in more than a decade, and the only thing constructed with Kingston fly ash is Kingston fly ash retaining pond dikes that fail, creating monumental environmental and public health disasters for which no one is held accountable.
But the good news is that TVA appears to be spending one million dollars per day spreading fertilizer on the press.
RELATED: Snark.
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WHAT: Project Citizen presentation
WHERE: Beck Cultural Exchange Center
From Jamey Dobbs with the League of Women Voters:
How many Knoxvillians could tell a BZA from a TIF? Some of us know a lot more about local restaurants than we know about local government. A lot of us had a government class and feel pretty comfortable with those three branches of the federal system. We know how a bill becomes a law….but how to change a City ordinance?
Project Citizen is a hands-on program for school students, youth organizations, and adult groups that promotes competent and responsible participation in local and state government. The program helps participants learn how to monitor and influence public policy. In the process, they develop support for democratic values and principles, tolerance, and feelings of political efficacy.
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"Any man who does not like dogs and want them about does not deserve to be in the White House." -- Calvin Coolidge
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An out-of-work truck driver smiled as he pleaded guilty Monday to killing two people and wounding six others at a Tennessee church last summer because he hated its liberal policies, according to the Associated Press.
"Yes, ma'am, I am guilty as charged," Jim D. Adkisson, 58, told the judge, before she sentenced him to life in prison without parole.
Adkisson was scheduled to stand trial next month. Instead, he cut a plea agreement that means he'll likely spend the rest of his days behind bars for the July 2008 assault at the Tennessee Valley United Unitarian Church in Knoxville. That's where Adkisson carried a shotgun inside a guitar case and shot eight people during a Sunday morning children's performance of the musical "Annie." None of the children were shot, but two adults later died.
It's not clear that Adkisson has spent much time in deep thought about his misdeeds or his victims, Greg McKendry, 60, and Linda Kraeger, 61, both of whom were known for their warmth and generosity of spirit. It's clear he never spent much time beforehand thinking about such things. And as the poet and author Wendell Berry writes...
When we cease from human thought, a low and effective cunning stirs in the most inhuman minds.
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AP: Scientists are keeping a close eye on orbital debris created when two communications satellites — one American, the other Russian — smashed into each other hundreds of miles above the Earth.
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Gov. Bredesen has introduced legislation asking for more options to deal with the state's budget crisis.
Some are designed to minimize layoffs, including work week adjustments and furloughs, and others tinker with the way bonds are issued for funding the Volkswagen facility in Chattanooga and the Hemlock Semiconductor expansion in Clarksville. More details in this statement from the Governor's Office.
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The Tennessean: TVA board meets behind veil of secrecy:
Board members have been meeting privately in committees, and on conference calls and closed sessions over the past month and a half — all without the public knowing.[..]
"I think we're very open in the dialogue and what's going on," said Bill Sansom, a Knoxville wholesale grocery executive who has served as TVA's board chairman since 2006.
The article says the meetings may violate federal sunshine laws. The article doesn't say if they are spending one million dollars per day to meet in secret. (By way of Mike Byrd.)
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A new UT "Budget Central" website suggests budget cuts are still in flux so the full extent of the damage is not yet known, but "the university has prepared various scenarios of up to a 20 percent reduction." The FAQ page lays out UT's plan for a massive reduction in force.
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So far commissioners who have resigned from committee assignments include Paul Pinkston from the Board of Zoning Appeals and Cable TV; Bud Armstrong, Amy Broyles and Finbarr Saunders from the Beer Board; Sam McKenzie from Cable TV; Ivan Harmon from the BZA; and Mark Harmon from the BZA and Cable TV.
I'm not clear if this was the intended consequence of a "new state law" that is being interpreted to mean sitting commissioners can't serve on boards and committees. So now the county can load up the BZA with developers and their lobbyists? On the other hand, you won't have commissioners voting on their own board recommendations.
In Blount Co. the beer board is all of county commission. I guess they all have to resign now? There are no commissioners on Blount's BZA, though. It's all very confusing.
My guess is that the state law was intended to prevent someone like Scoobie Moore appointing himself sheriff or trustee and staying on county commission to vote on his own budget.
I suppose Herb Moncier will have to file another lawsuit and get an official ruling to get this all properly sorted out.
UPDATE: Blount legislators file bill to clarify the regulation.
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"The exterior dikes were not designed for additional interior loads which may occur as a result of this dredging future stacking operation," Galloway wrote.Galloway recommended a slope stability analysis to determine if the exterior walls could handle the anticipated loads.
Twenty-four years later, the exterior walls failed.
The News Sentinel was not able to find any record of the recommended analysis. TVA declined to comment, saying it would be "premature to speculate."
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I don't recall ever seeing one of these at my feeders. It has a bright yellow tip on the tail and a dull yellow belly. I heard a loud thump on the patio door during the storm but I thought it was debris from the trees in the back yard. I didn't see this little guy until Gino dropped it on the dining room floor about an hour later. Click the picture for a huge version.
Hopefully I'm the only KnoxViewer who hasn't a clue to its identity.
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Agreement announced in race for stimulus bill
"The middle ground we've reached creates more jobs than the original Senate bill and costs less than the original House bill," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, one of the participants in an exhausting and frenzied round of bargaining.
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THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED TORNADO WATCH 18 IN EFFECT UNTIL 9 PM EST THIS EVENING FOR THE FOLLOWING AREAS
THIS WATCH INCLUDES 24 COUNTIES IN EAST TENNESSEE:
ANDERSON, BLOUNT, CAMPBELL, CARTER, CLAIBORNE, COCKE, GRAINGER, GREENE, HAMBLEN, HANCOCK, HAWKINS, JEFFERSON, JOHNSON, KNOX, LOUDON, MONROE, MORGAN, ROANE, SCOTT, SEVIER, SULLIVAN, UNICOI, UNION, WASHINGTON
UPDATE: Previous tornado warning lifted, above watch still in effect.
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In October, the City of Alcoa expanded its weekly curbside recycling program by switching to "single-stream" recycling that accepts a wider range of materials.
According to statistics provided by city officials, the amount of recycled waste diverted from the local landfill has increased anywhere from 55% to 67% since implementing the new program.
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As far as the negotiations go, one leadership source tells First Read that things are moving so fast that a basic agreement could be done by mid-day. One significant add to the conference agreement: $15 billion for school construction. NBC’s Mike Viqueira yesterday broke down the other points of contention: the $15,000 homebuyer credit, the provision concerning deductible interest on car loans, the Senate’s cut in aid to states, the Medicaid allocation formula, and the yearly AMT fix. (As of now, it looks like the AMT fix will survive.)
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Big changes are coming in our local schools and throughout the state.
Due to Tennessee's participation in the American Diploma Project, new statewide requirements for next year's freshman class include:
Social Studies--1/2 credit in Personal Finance
English--a "directed thread" on communication
Math--4 years, rather than 3 (but Knox adopted the more rigorous standard two years ago; Knox will introduce algebraic concepts to all students before 8th grade, too)
Science--still 3 years, but now one biology course and one chemistry or physics course are specifically required
ACT testing--delivered to all 11th grade students
Also, high school students' end-of-course (EOC) exams will be state-administered and will count for 25% of students' grades. The state plans to eventually administer EOC exams in ten subject areas. Knox County Schools (KCS) Superintendent Dr. Jim McIntyre recommends that students should also be required to pass each of these to earn a diploma (which is not a requirement planned by the state right now).
"New higher standards are obviously going to yield some performance numbers we aren't used to seeing in Knox County," said McIntyre. "There will be some short term pain. Test scores will, in all likelihood, take a dip next year, but after a period of adjustment, our students will find themselves performing at a higher level and better prepared to function in an increasingly global environment."
Learn more about the American Diploma Project and read the full KCS news release at: (link...)
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He's just promiscuous, and apparently has the records to prove it. What a jerk.
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We just endured three weeks of kvetching about "bee insurance," but curiously not one measly chirrup about an line item in the Senate stimulus bill that's:
- 243.3333 times as expensive as the $150m crop insurance provision...and very nearly equal to the aid to state governments that was cut by the Senate "centrists" (BTW has anyone else noticed that Claire McCaskill is quite possibly the dumbest serving elected office holder...but I digress)
- Won't create any jobs
- Won't by any stretch of the imagination achieve it's other purported economic purpose (a gobsmackingly dumbass idea in its own right, even if it worked)
- Won't benefit the vast majority of Americans in any way
Can anyone guess what it is?
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This story renews my suspicions about a certain neighborhood pizza joint in FL. Their pizza was excellent. Never tried their calzones.
RELATED: Someone has way too much time on their hands. (Warning: not safe for work, parental discretion advised.)
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Joe Powell has more interesting information on solar power in the Southeast that might help Rep. Campfield see the light, so to speak.
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Some guidance for local planners. Perhaps print out a copy and hand it out to MPC.
policy makers should also keep this reasoning in mind for their communities, he said.
"If you create municipalities with more parks, bike trails, more hiking trails that make experiences easier, then I think you're going to have a happier population," he said.
The article
(link...)
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KNS says supporters will have a chance to be heard, too.
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Time to lay in some seed and charge up your feeders for the 2009 Great Backyard Bird Count, Friday Feb. 13th through Monday the 16th, 2009.
Total Checklists Submitted: 85,787
Total Species Observed: 634
Total Individual Birds Counted: 9,807,216
A joint project of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Audubon, the "Great Backyard Bird Count is an annual four-day event that engages bird watchers of all ages in counting birds to create a real-time snapshot of where the birds are across the continent. Anyone can participate, from beginning bird watchers to experts. It takes as little as 15 minutes on one day, or you can count for as long as you like each day of the event."
Read more about it and how to participate, get posters, enter the photo contest, and more at their website.
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I watched the great movie Wall-E last night. If you haven't seen it yet, fire up your Netflix or jot down a note to hit Blockbuster after work.
If you have seen it, you probably recognized the corporate behemoth of Buy-N-Large. We have a similar, sinister company down here on Earth called Wal-Mart.
In the movie, Buy-N-Large has gotten so gargantuan and out-of-control that it has taken on every aspect of society: It peddles every possible product at its Supercenters, it sells gas, it controls the banks -- and it has even taken on the role of a quasi-government.
Wal-Mart would love to be Buy-N-Large if it could. Indeed, the Bentonville behemoth has recently attempted to grow beyond its traditional Supercenter model. It has introduced gas stations and has even tried to create a bank!
But perhaps most ominously, Wal-Mart is even getting involved in elections. During the 2008 election, management pulled employees into meetings to urge them not to vote for Obama because -- gasp! -- he would fight for worker's rights.
The similarity between the Bentonville behemoth and the Buy-N-Large behemoth is funny, but it's scary, too. It's why I'm doing work with Wake Up Wal-Mart.
Consider Wake Up Wal-Mart as Wall-E. I know that analogy doesn't really work -- but both WUWM and Wall-E fight/are fighting the behemoth to restore environmental vitality and quality of life back to America. I urge you to join the fight!
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We were wondering over at BlountViews what happened to Up the Creek Fish Camp. The rumor in comments is that Puleo's is taking over the space in late spring/early summer. Anyone else heard this?
This would be a nice addition, and certainly convenient for us. We liked his cooking at the original Regas Riverside Tavern, and it went downhill when he left in my opinion. The few times we tried to visit Puleo's Grille it was too busy, so I'm hoping it's at least pretty good. I like the menu, although it seems a little busy.
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Here's an article everyone should read, particularly mayors, city council and county commission members. It's written by Michael Sorkin, a New York architect and educator, and is published in the current issue of Architectural Record.
"Subsidies should go for removing traffic lanes, not adding them."
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Senate passes Obama's economic recovery plan, Republican filibuster fails. Now it has to be reconciled with the House version.
RELATED: Chart of differences between House and Senate bills
UPDATE: Tennessee could get $3.1 to $4.2 billion.
UPDATE: Separating fact from conservative talk radio fiction.
UPDATE: Markets skeptical.
UPDATE: Alexander and Corker both voted against it. (Both voted FOR the Wall Street bailout bill.)
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Tom Humprey reports on a surprise from Bredesen's speech last night. The Governor wants Tennessee to be a major player in solar power R&D.
Like many of Bredesen's initiatives, this one probably won't go anywhere, especially with a legislature focused on conservative social engineering because the state budget is upside down.
But it's still a great idea. And he's right about our resources. We have ORNL and the nation's largest utility right in our back yard.
Rep. Stacey Campfield, however, being the expert on energy technology that he is, thinks this is a stupid idea because "we're not Arizona." Besides, we are already a "leader in hydro" (which produces less than 6% of the power on the TVA grid) and "clean coal." Right. And besides, solar panels don't work!
Rep. Campfield apparently wasn't paying attention to the R&D part, which is already being done right here in Tennessee. He's probably not aware that one of the goals of research is to make solar power conversion more efficient so it can be used virtually anywhere. Perhaps he's also not aware that East and West Tennessee are only one step down from Florida on the solar radiation scale.
And maybe he isn't aware that one of the world's largest producers of solar panels has a factory in Memphis, or that a leading supplier of silicon for solar panels is investing more than a billion dollars, one of the largest manufacturing investments in state history, to build a facility in Clarksville. He probably missed the announcement that Knoxville was selected by the DOE to be a Solar America City. He must also not be aware of the many homes and businesses in the Knoxville area that are already using solar power, including one that frequently gets negative utility bills.
So, yeah, Rep. Campfield is right. Investing in the technology of the future is a stupid waste of time and money. Our time would be better spent teaching kids about creation and how dinosaurs are only 6,000 years old. At least we will be well prepared when the conservative agenda finally propels us back to the stone age.
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well that was even embarrassing for me.
some intellect!
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The East Tennessee Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists again is participating in the SPJ’s national essay contest. The 2009 essay topic is “Why Free News Media Are Important.”
All public, private and home-schooled students in grades 9-12 are eligible. In addition to the national scholarship awards, the East Tennessee chapter will present a cash award to the winning local essayist at the 2009 Golden Press Card awards dinner in May. The winning local entry will be submitted to the national competition.
Complete contest rules are available at (link...).
All entries must be postmarked by March 4, 2009 and mailed to me at this address:
SPJ Essay Contest
c/o Larry Van Guilder
820 Black Rock Circle
Knoxville, TN 37934
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I've been busy and haven't been able to keep up, but there's a lot going on Tennessee politics today. Here's a roundup:
• TN House Speaker Kent Williams was kicked out of the Republican Party, erasing the GOP majority in the House. Hilarity ensued. For just a small sampling of the reaction, see here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.
• While the TNGOP was self destructing, the Tennessee Democratic Party was getting busy. Here's today's Liberadio(!) interview with new TNDP Chair Chip Forrester. Well worth a listen, but to summarize: he's sharp, he's articulate, he's been around the block a few times and knows the drill but also has some new ideas. So relax, he's got this. Oh, and he sent a shout out to our U.S. Senators re. the stimulus bill. Oh, and Nashville NPR had this on the Tennessee progressive bloggers' "Chip in" blogathon.
• Meanwhile up in the statehouse, Republicans are planning to shut down any bill that would require spending (because of the economy, you know), and focus instead on their conservative social agenda. Which won't cost taxpayers anything other than making us less attractive to businesses seeking an educated work force, sending more families who can't get health care to taxpayer funded emergency rooms, and shifting more of the burden to local governments. Be afraid.
• Finally, Gov. Bredesen's State of the State address tonight will not address the state's budget. Gov. Bredesen is apparently waiting to hear from President Obama on whether the state will receive nearly $4 billion in federal help. That would be the same Gov. Bredesen who, during the general election, told President (and then candidate) Obama not to not waste his time on Tennessee. OK, then.
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Did you hear that Wall Street gave out $18.4 billion in bonuses in 2008? $18.4 billion to the people who crippled our economy with their recklessness and greed and then took $700 billion of our money. Outrageous, right?
Well, I just signed a petition urging Congress to put enforceable, common-sense limits on salaries at all the banks taking taxpayer dollars. Can you join me at the link below?
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I loved Big Ears. On more than one occasion, I heard people from Chicago and NYC saying "Wow, I wish we had this cool of a music festival."
So let me get the bad parts over with so that the good parts are more memorable.
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This is from Chattanooga's Green Committee Webpage last month:
CHATTANOOGA CLIMATE ACTION PLAN RELEASED
The Chattanooga Climate Action Plan represents a year's worth of research, public input, and the collaborative brainstorming of many dedicated individuals. Completed in January 2009; the report recommends actions to lower Chattanooga's carbon footprint. We hope this plan will move the city towards a sustainable future that simultaneously benefits the community, economy and the environment.
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When: Thursday at 9am
Location: TVA West Tower Auditorium, 400 West Summit Hill Drive, Knoxville, Tennessee 37902
Why?: Your opportunity to speak truth to power.
Here's where you sign up to speak: (link...)
Here's their agenda:
(link...)
Here's more info about the board.
(link...)
I'm sure we can all think of a few itzy bitzy little things we might like them to take a look at.
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The 18-month, $3.5 million reconstruction and streetscape project for the 100 and 200 blocks of Gay Street between Jackson Ave. and Summit Hill Drive kicks off next Monday with the closing of the 200 block. More about the project here, the city's press release after the jump...
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Tennessee GOP Chairman Robin Smith today declared that House Speaker Kent Williams will no longer be considered a Republican.
The GOP just lost their majority in the House. Nicely played, Democrats!
UPDATE: ACK has the letter.
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In an apparent response to the Obama campaign's unprecedented use of new communications technology, the GOP has figured out that conservative talk radio is no longer going to cut it.
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***On edit:
My apologies for a poorly-written column.
I jammed the Diane Jordan statement down at the bottom, and it got lost -- it deserved its own headline.
Diane is not going to run for City Council -- not for the appointment, not for the elected seat.
She is pledging to encourage new faces -- maybe young, maybe not; but NEW FACES nonetheless.
And she tells me she was NOT the first person to call Bob Booker, although he has her wholehearted support for the caretaker position.
Diane, who would easily win a primary race in her district, IMO, is acting very unselfishly in this situation and putting her community first. She has been a lightening rod for criticism for a long time, but -- again IMO -- she really is sincere about wanting to help bring new voices into the process, and deserves a lot of credit for this decision.
And yes, this is a column bashing last week's special-called City Council meeting. I saw many of the same things I've come to expect from County Commission, and I couldn't disagree more with the NS editorial praise for the conduct of that meeting.
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But all the dancers are real dogs.
Really!
The Humane Society of the Tennessee Valley invites animal lovers to celebrate Valentine's Day with a free lap dance at the Adopt-A-Pet center on Bearden Hill at 6720 Kingston Pike. Dancers will be performing on Friday, February 13, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday, February 14 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
The performers, both male and female, will allow heavy petting and dance for free, but they would welcome tips of kibble and cash.
What could be hotter than a chihuahua in a garter belt?
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As banks struggle to stay afloat, they are looking to maximize every revenue source including fees. We saw our first $3 ATM fee the other day. That's pretty steep.
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We who contemplate the importance of journalism look at the future with trepidation.
What happens to journalism, we ask, when newspapers continue on their inevitable decline? The question assumes that journalism itself will be diminished.
I am coming to a different conclusion:
Journalism will improve once newspapers die or decline to a minor medium.
Note that I said news-PAPER, not news organization.
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At RedmondKR's suggestion, we have created a KnoxViews Flickr Pool.
www.flickr.com
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Join the group, submit your photos!
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Great news! The RTLodge on the Maryville College campus is now open to the public. Carly Harrington files this KNS report.
We were fortunate to be invited to an event there a few weeks ago. It's a fabulous property. We had heavy hors d'oeuvres which were all good, so I'm looking forward to visiting for dinner. Here's their menu.
They also have a lodge and meeting spaces, so they are set up for weddings, weekend getaways, corporate retreats, and more.
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U.T. journalism professor Jim Stovall has an interesting and informative series of blog posts about online journalism that may also be of interest to bloggers:
• Headline writing for the web
• Writing for Twitter - good journalism in 140 characters
• Mobile as the seventh mass media
• Rules for the student photojournalist
• Qualities of the digital journalist
RELATED: A new website for online journalists.
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According to the Tennessee Department of Finance and Administration, year-to-date collections for the six months ending January were $522.1 million less than the budgeted estimate.
Sales tax revenues are $280.9 million below estimates. The year-to-date growth rate for six months was negative 5.72 %.
Franchise and excise taxes combined are $162.3 million below estimates.
Gasoline and motor fuel collections for January were down 11.2%, $8.9 million less than the $72.2 million estimated.
Tobacco tax collections were $3.3 million below the budgeted estimate of $24.8 million, and for six months they are $5.7 million under the budgeted estimate.
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Does this mean state layoffs are back in picture? Or is there other state money in the stimulus?
$40 billion for state fiscal stabilization (includes $7.5 billion of state incentive grants)
The CNN article with full list.
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Josh Flory's blog with a subset of the list and a link to the online database. That for some reason requires a login to see.
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I attended an OFA Organizers for America (a project by the Democratic National Committee) Economic Recovery House Meeting hosted by Kim Webber at the Time Warp Tea Room Saturday.
There were 50+ community organizers in attendance. We watched a few videos and went over all of the talking points for the stimulus plan Nationally and for the State of Tennessee. Here are the links.
National
(link...)
Tennessee
(link...)
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Bob Booker has filed for the vacancy in Knoxville's City Council 6th district according to the N-S.
Bob is a great choice & Bob is my choice.
I urge the members of council to vote for Bob Booker @ the Feb 12th meeting.
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Why does the KNS print these letters? It's almost cruel.
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The little blue buttons you see attached to each post let you click to "+1" a post you like. Posts are ranked by their vote total in the new "Popular Today" and "Popular This Week" boxes on the left sidebar. (Thanks to Rikki Hall for the suggestion.)
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Michael Silence has the scoop. So, is the TNGOP signaling that Republicans don't want to be at the switch when the train runs off the tracks?
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As of close of business today, the independent "Chip in" effort by Tennessee progressive bloggers raked in $3,690.40 for the Tennessee Democratic Party. We blew through our original three-day goal of $1000 in four hours, and the final results far exceeded anyone's expectations. And even though we didn't quite reach our goal of 100 contributors, 93% is "close enough for government work" in my book.
The credit goes first and foremost to everyone who contributed, and second to the Tennessee progressive bloggers who participated. They are:
• Russ McBee
• NewsComa
• Left Wing Cracker
• Joe Powell
• Silence Isn't Golden
• Vibinc
• RoaneViews
• Sean Braisted
• Progressive Nashville
• Sharon Cobb
• KnoxViews
• BlountViews
• WhitesCreek Journal
• Resonance
• Benintn at Daily Kos
• Southern Beale
• Enclave
• Planet Rye
This committed group of netroots activists has no hidden agenda or special interests other than a desire for progressive government in Tennessee. They sent a message that grassroots Democrats across the state are paying attention and deserve a seat at the table, and that we're ready to move beyond business as usual.
This ain't our first rodeo so we're not so naive as to think that the modest funds we raised will have a significant impact on the difficult financial and organizational challenges facing the Tennessee Democratic Party. But the experiment suggests there is tremendous untapped energy and talent out here, willing and able to get involved.
Anyway, Tennessee progressive bloggers ROCK. Thanks again to everyone who participated. There's a lot more work to do, so let's get busy!
(Note: The ActBlue blogathon page will remain active indefinitely, so you can still get involved in this effort which we hope is the first of many to come.)
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Pat
She took a sport of softened expectations
And taught her ladies her intensity,
While never selling short their graduations,
While never selling short Ole Tennessee,
While never giving up on any play,
While never asking less than everything,
While never once taking the easy way,
They made the final four most every spring.
She knows the pain of losing all too well,
She still remembers each bitter defeat,
But what she taught no little poem can tell:
It’s how, when down, to get back on your feet.
A thousand wins and yet she is the same:
Completely focused on the coming game.
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Knox County Law Director Bill Lockett has scheduled a 10 a.m. press conference for Monday, Feb. 9. Natural Resources Recovery is the topic, no word on specifics.
Larry Van Guilder
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This is huge and potentially a victory for Herb Moncier in the BZA controversy.
Larry Van Guilder
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Congrats to Pat Summitt! How nice to achieve the goal at a home game.
Does she get enough kudos locally? Check out the recent NYT article, The sisterhood of traveling Pats...
We couldn't ask for a better representative for the University of Tennessee. Thanks, Pat, and congratulations!
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We blew right through our new goal of $3000 this AM, more than tripling our original three-day goal in a little more than two days. The blogathon ends at close of business today (yay! no more nagging you!), so keep those contributions coming in and push us way over the top. Tell your friends, neighbors, in-laws and outlaws. Chip in $5, $10 or whatever you can spare. We'd like to reach 100 contributers by the end of the day.
Thanks to contributers and to the Tennessee progressive bloggers who participated (see the blog list on the ActBlue page) for making this a huge success!
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The company that packaged the meals, Red Cloud Foods Inc., sent a Jan. 19 memo to the arm of the Department of Defense responsible for getting them to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. But FEMA said it didn't learn of the recall until Wednesday night, more than two weeks later.
What can you say? Is our government incompetent?
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Newspapers are cutting jobs all across the nation. Nearly 16,000 jobs were eliminated by newspapers in 2008. Already in 2009, over 2,000 jobs have been eliminated.
Katie Allison Granju has the opinion that "paper - as in, the actual processed wood-pulp upon which newspapers are currently printed - will be completely gone as a profitable journalism consumer product within 10 years".
If on-line only is the wave of the future, will real news and investigative reporting be included? One thing I've noticed through the years, many people are not willing to pay for on-line content. Will news become homogenized, like McDonald's? Or, maybe we'll be left to relying on the Associated Press, USA Today, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and blogs, all other news content will be superfluous.
I for one appreciate the hardcopy version of newspapers. In ten years, who knows, maybe I'll accept the "change" to on-line. Or, if Katie's right, I'll be forced to change whether I want to or not.
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The Knoxville News Sentinel reports that TVA is "quietly and privately" buying up affected properties in the area of the Kingston Steam Plant fly ash spill disaster.
According to the article, so far there are 14 settlements for 19 properties appraised at $2.5 million covering 93 acres. The acquisitions remove $16,384 in property taxes from the Roane County tax rolls. There are currently 360 property claims and 209 health related claims.
Property purchase prices are not being disclosed and are not recorded on deeds. TVA is also compensating victims for "inconvenience, relocation costs and other expenses."
In related news, TVA has submitted a plan to begin Emory River dredging operations to remove spilled fly ash, although TVA does not yet have a disposal plan. According to the article, the fly ash materials in the water create an increased flooding risk for eleven miles upstream, and TVA is contacting affected property owners.
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Great news! The TNDP found the keys to their web server (along with a competent web slinger with a good eye for appealing graphics) and launched their new website for the next cycle.
There is still a lot of work to be done, but the front page looks pretty good, and some of the links and sections are already shaping up. And it incorporates the new social media stuff these kids today are in to.
Check out the video message from new TNDP chair Chip Forrester. Things are looking up! (But where's his bow tie?)
Coincidentally, the TNGOP also launched their new website today. I'll let you google it up, but trust me, the old one looked a lot better. Not sure what they are thinking with their new design.
All little things, but little things add up.
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The nation’s airlines likely will carry 6.6 percent fewer passengers this year than in 2008, and numbers will remain lower than usual through 2010, generating "massive declines in aviation revenues," according to a gloomy industry report released this week.
The report predicts 41 million fewer passengers in 2009, and declines of 6.6% to 8%. The full (politically charged) report, available here, cites lack of consumer confidence in the ecoonomy. It also says airlines will cut capacity at a higher rate (10%) than the rate of reduced demand.
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I would go for this in Tennessee.
"The recent stats show that texting on the phone has overtaken drunk driving fatalities on public roads,"
The article....
(link...)
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Remember the 93 year old man who froze to death in his home after the utility company cut off his power? There's an update.
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Knox County Democratic Party Chair Sylvia Woods files this report on a recent TNDP conference call:
There has been lots of progress already. The [TNDP] office is full of busy bees working on fund raising, answering the phone, and working on the web site.Chip held his first conference call with the officers yesterday morning. It was very enlightening and just what we asked for. There are going to be weekly conference calls with the officers.
The District VPs will then keep their area of the state informed. On the agenda was fund raising, a summit, and Jackson Day. Updates on the bill for the Kurita event, weekly meetings with state House and Senate leadership, staffing. And more.
Sounds like things are starting to happen.
(And I'd be remiss if I didn't take this opportunity to suggest that you "chip in" and help!)
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If I were the U.T. President, I'd make sure I never set foot on the same tarmac with that damn plane.
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Also says she should have been "calling some of the shots" on the McCain campaign. You betcha! Palin/Plumber 2012?
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Contributions are still coming in and we're about $250 away from our new goal of $3000. Thanks again to everyone who has participated.
Please consider contributing if you haven't already, and if you have, please encourage your online friends and neighbors to contribute, too. Contributions of as little as $5 can help, and in fact a larger number of smaller donations is even better. Just ask President Obama. (Has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?)
A SPECIAL MESSAGE TO EAST TENNESSEE DEMOCRATS:
Please give and give now and get everyone you know to give. The folks over in Nashville need to be reminded from time to time that we're over here.
SEE ALSO: Sean Braisted. Heh. Indeed.
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According to Poynter. Conley also recently invested in an Atlanta alt-weekly.
UPDATE: More details (by way of Josh Flory).
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U.S. Department of Labor: In the week ending Jan. 31, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 626,000, an increase of 35,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 591,000.
The report also says there are now nearly five million (4,788,000) people without jobs. The AP reports that the weekly claims are the highest in 26 years, and the number of unemployed is an all-time record.
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Members of the community of Roane County, Tennessee, impacted by the TVA Coal Fly Ash Disaster on December 22, 2008, has formed a group called Tennessee Coal Ash Survivors Network (TCASN), Thursday, January 29, 2009. This non-profit group was formed to help people impacted by the TVA Kingston Coal Plant fly ash disaster. Their goals are to help with health hazards, air monitoring, ash and water sampling, media, and public education.
More about the group and their efforts at the above link. Here's their website, and here's their blog.
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There are rumors circulating that the KNS is looking to outsource jobs in several departments, possibly accounting, sales, and customer service, possibly in March or April, meaning there could be more layoffs then. We are told that department managers have been advised.
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Agrees to deal for life without parole. According to the KNS, his lawyer said he had an insanity defense ready, but the killer didn't want it. You have to wonder if it had something to do with this.
(Not that this is a justification for the death penalty, but some people sure make it hard to maintain my opposition to it.)
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According to a poll conducted by an admittedly Democratic polling firm, Americans like Rev. Jeremiah Wright and Bill Ayres more than they like Rush Limbaugh.
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WATE: Environmentalists question fly ash cloud
TVA Spokesman Gil Francis tells us he heard rumors about this, so TVA crews onsite went to check it out and didn't see anything. He adds that everything at the site is frozen and so what the environmental workers saw must have been fog.
This guy should have been Bush's press secretary. He's a generation too late for Pravda. They say you can't make this stuff up, but he can!
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After meeting our original three day goal in a little over four hours, we doubled it. We have now met that new goal, doubling our original three day goal in about eight hours. And contributions are still coming in. Needless to say we are very pleased with the results so far, and thanks to everyone who has contributed.
Because of the incredible response, we are raising our goal to $3000 and 100 contributors by Friday. Please consider contributing if you haven't already, and if you have, please encourage your online friends and neighbors to contribute, too. Contributions of as little as $5 can help send the message that Tennessee Democrats are ready to get busy.
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From Matt Cooper on TPM earlier today:
This morning there's talk about Phil Bredesen, the popular governor of Tennessee and former Nashville mayor. Breseden is a big figure and that's clearly what Obama wants at HHS to help push through his health care reform package. So it seems as plausible to me as any name but this is the silly season when lots of names will be floated and unless you're in the room with Rahm Emanuel, Larry Summers, Melody Barnes or some other top person, I think it's really just speculation.
Popular? I don't know whether to laugh or cry.
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TNDP Chair Chip Forrester (who was not involved in the blogathon and did not know about it until it was launched) emails this message to the Tennessee progressive bloggers and supporters who have contributed:
From the beneficiary of this effort, on behalf of the Party, let me give you my heartfelt thanks for doing this. This effort will allow us to, 1) expand the base of the Democratic Party in Tennessee and 2) involve a whole new group of donors in our efforts to Take Back the House in 2010. My deepest thanks for this. Keep "chippin' in" for Tennessee.Chip Forrester
Chair
Tennessee Democratic Party
More info in the sticky post at the top of the page. Chip in!
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At 3:30 today Turner Classic Movies will screen Yes, Giorgio, a truly lousy movie. The story, the acting, almost everything is lame.
But it stars Luciano Pavarotti as Giorgio Fini a 'nice fat opera singer' with loose morals and a love affair with himself.
And he sings. This makes the film similar to Wagnerian opera, hours of boredom interspersed with moments of ecstasy.
I have a DVD that I copied from, of all things, an ancient Beta videocassette. Amazon has a store-bought DVD with the outlandish price of $69.95.
If you like Pavarotti, you may want to endure the pain on TCM for the good parts.
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The Agenda Committee is underway. Filling the Judicial Commissioner spot is item #3. We are discussing now. Lumpy is now revisiting the Creekmore rejection. Anders is pushing a 6-months extension of a current judicial commissioner, then appoint three in six months at the next appointment interval, while Commissioner Pinkston is looking at eliminating the positions entirely. I just argued for using the current good pool of candidates and then making a choice. --Mark
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I heard that Gridiron Burger's original location in Powell has closed and wonder if they still plan on opening downtown next to the Riviera...anyone heard? If not, what other restaurants or types of restaurants would work best?
Personally, I would like to see our City leaders try to recruit existing restaurants downtown even as satellite locations. If you haven't tried Hong Kong House...it is the most authentic Chinese restaurant in Knoxville and is currently tucked in west Knoxville strip mall behind O'Charley's and across from downtown west. Warning...if your idea of Chinese is sweet & sour chicken, this might be a little too authentic for you.
Another popular restaurant...King Tut's would do very well downtown as would Indian restaurant Sitar...and if anyone can ever get it right----Spanish Tapas would surely be a hit in K-town.
Thoughts?
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Click here to contribute.
Wow, Tennessee Democrats have stepped up to support the Tennessee Democratic Party, and progressive Tennessee bloggers met our three-business-day fundraing goal of $1000 in only FOUR HOURS AND 20 MINUTES!
Thanks to everyone who contributed. Because of the amazing response, we are doubling down and raising our goal to $2000 by the close of business Friday. We also want to get at least 50 individual grassroots/netroots contributors, so tell your friends and neighbors.
Thanks again to everyone!
PREVIOUSLY:
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So I was reading through a collection of essays on antebellum history and came across this quote from a Richmond newspaper in 1855 (some of it paraphrased by historian James McPherson). Sounds eerily like the modern day TNGOP, huh?
Young men should avoid education in the North and should instead get their schooling in the South "where their training would be moral, religious and conservative, and they would never learn, or read a word in school or out of school, inconsistent with orthodox Christianity, pure morality, the right of property, and the sacredness of marriage."
It's obvious the "right of property" refers to abolitionism as socialism was virtually non-existent as an intellectual force in the North then. The rest? Well, it sounds like Robin Smith would make a perfect propagandist for the Old South.
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As you're probably aware, photos have been published in a British tabloid of Olympic super Michael Phelps, to put it bluntly, taking a bong hit.
Here's several Washington Post columnists on the issue, all of which argue "God, this is so stupid."
- John Feinstein
- Sally Jenkins (especially worthwhile for her "not that I ever..." tone)
- Kathleen Parker (note that the Sheriff of the county where the photo was
tokin'taken wants to prosecute Phelps)
And a valid point:
Don't screw up with cameras around if you have endorsement contracts
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Progressive bloggers from the hills of East Tennessee to the banks of the Mississippi River and all points in between have launched the Chip in blogathon to support the Tennessee Democratic Party. Here are the participants so far:
• Russ McBee
• NewsComa
• Left Wing Cracker
• Joe Powell
• Silence Isn't Golden
• Vibinc
• RoaneViews
• Sean Braisted
• Progressive Nashville
• Sharon Cobb
• KnoxViews
• BlountViews
• WhitesCreek Journal
• Resonance
• Benintn at Daily Kos
• Southern Beale
• Enclave
• Planet Rye
Democrats and others interested in progressive state government are urged to email the link to friends and family, your neighborhood mailing lists, and post it to any forums you participate in. No amount is too small. Even $5 will help.
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As promised here is a reminder of the Annual Warm Up in the Cave event this Saturday, February 7th from 11am until 4pm at Cherokee Caverns. It will be a balmy 58° inside and they are only charging $5 admission.
The cave is handicap accessible, restrooms are available, and they will have a concession stand selling hot dogs and drinks.
Particulars here at their web site.
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Bob W. forwards some interesting links that suggest LED lighting has come a long way since the last time I looked in to it:
• 5 Watt LED Light Bulb
• 13 Watt LED Light Bulb
• 4 Foot 15 Watt LED Tube Light
I recall reading somewhere that LED lighting will cause architects and interior designers to rethink the concept of indoor space lighting. Here are some examples:
• PaneLux LED lighting panel
• LinearLux LED luminous molding
The benefits of LED lighting are low power consumption, low heat, long life, and unlike CFLs, no mercury.
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A politically connected friend up in Washington tells me the word is that Dean's people are lobbying hard for him at HHS, but to no avail. After all, why would Obama want to nominate a former Governor who was known in his state for balancing his budget, paying off debt, lowering taxes, and passing universal health care for kids and pregnant women. I mean, that would be crazy. Surely there is a Republican out there who believes that Health Care should be the sole domain of private industry who'd be willing to fill this position.
Well, when you put it that way...
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The Tennessean reports that Rep. Jason Mumpower said the legislature may have to "revisit" the Voter Confidence Act because of budget constraints. Passed last year, the law requires all state voting systems to have voter verifiable paper audit trails in time for the 2010 elections.
It was my understanding that this had already been funded by way of Federal HAVA money.
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Larry Van Guilder wrote a very good column about the aftermath of County Commission's attempt to appoint David Creekmore to be a judicial commissioner.
Lumpy was pissed:
"Commissioner Greg “Lumpy” Lambert has donned a new hat – judge parking monitor.
Lambert felt compelled to provide this service after Knox County’s five General Sessions Court judges rejected David Creekmore for one of the open judicial commissioner gigs. Lambert nominated Creekmore for the job, and County Commission appointed him along with Mark Brown and Carolyn Jeter on Jan. 26.
The transparent swapping – Brown for Creekmore – that marked the appointment process seemed to bother no one but civilians, so Judge Andy Jackson’s letter to Commission Chair Thomas “Tank” Strickland delivering the bad news about Creekmore was a nasty brush with life outside the large assembly room. So far, Lumpy is the only commissioner who, by damn, will not take this lying down.
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I don't see how repairing roads would provide the stimulus we need. The aid to states would help lessen some of the cuts to education and help people on unemployment, but I wonder what happens at budget time next year. All that said , on the GOP side I certainly don't see how tax cuts will help someone who has lost all their income!!
What seems to not be mentioned enough , IMO, is how gas prices played into the collapse, you hear about housing and the stock market, but I bet restaurants and stores really began having trouble when gas was 4-5$ a gallon this fall and then had the other economic problems added to it. Since the oil companies have purposely slowed production, I wonder how it will be if we have another price spike. Its bad enough to have your pay check eaten up by gas, but what happens when you have no pay check. All the extra food stamps and unemployment that might have given people a bit of a boost will once again be eaten by rising food and energy prices, just like last summer's rebate checks were.
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Even in this economy, some companies are going out of their way to please employees.
Check out the list of 100 best companies. FedEx and Vanderbilt are two Tennessee companies included in the list, numbers 90 and 98, respectively.
Interesting list. Quite a few healthcare companies (hospital systems, etc.) and technology companies (Cisco, Adobe, Microsoft, Texas Instruments, etc.), some grocery chains (I've always liked Publix), and a couple of travel related companies (Marriott, Four Seasons).
It would be nice if some of these companies were hiring (U.S. citizens).
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Think we've got scandals in Knox County government? According to a story in this week's Time magazine, the Mayor of hipster Portland, Oregon is embroiled in a sizzling sex scandal where all the players have names that sound like something out of a porn movie. Compare to Knoxville where our rascals have cartoon-like names - Scoobie, Lumpy, Rags, Finch, etc.
The cast of the scandal in Portland, Ore., has a certain ring to it: Sam Adams. Bob Ball. Beau Breedlove and his dog Lolita ... "Everyone has porn names!" says Mark Wiener with a laugh. "Until yesterday, it had never occurred to me that the worst offending name was mine." Wiener (pronounced Wee-ner) is one of Oregon's most influential political consultants and a former — and now disheartened — campaign adviser to the protagonist in this political soap opera. That would be Sam Adams, the new mayor of Portland and the first openly gay man to lead a major American city. Then there's Bob Ball, an openly gay local real estate developer who once had mayoral ambitions himself. In 2007, Ball hinted that Adams' mentoring relationship with a former legislative intern, Beau Breedlove (now 21), was, in fact, a sexual one that had begun when the young man was just 17.
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Eric Holder was just sworn in as U.S. Attorney General. He pledges to renew civil rights enforcement, which was not a priority of the DOJ under the Bush Administration.
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Check out the website:
Granted I hadn't heard of a lot of these acts before, but having now listened to them I can say that this is truly mind blowing.
Kind of "important" even, both for the music festival scene and for Knoxville. I've never seen anything like this...ANYWHERE. So many truly cutting edge artists in one weekend.
I called up my bro about this (he is your ultimate "urban hipster" out in Oakland, CA), and he was shocked and thrilled.
How could Knoxville get this hip this fast? I could hear him thinking..."hmm maybe I should ditch the $2200 a month rent and move back home..."
This is going to really put Knoxville on the map, globally, as an arts center. It could also draw a lot more people here.
We're already one of the last mid sized cities in a beautiful place where its still relatively cheap to live.
Now we have an astoundingly cutting edge music festival to add to our already impressive arts scene!
The arts are shamefully under-appreciated as a contributor to the local economy. Maybe this is because the arts factor in to a company's decision's to relocate in a less tangible way than for example, cost of living, or location relative to markets. It's not like you can say to your board of directors or shareholders, "we should move to Knoxville because they have a kick ass arts scene." But that arts scene does and should factor in because it influences the general enthusiasm level that a new company's employees will have for a place. Whether they will stay with the company after relocating here, or take another job in a hipper place, could be significantly influenced by how "inspired" they are by living here.
Regardless, thank you so much AC!
All us "urban hipsters" owe you big time for this!
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Travel this morning: neighborhood roads have some ice, but did not affect braking for R. this morning. Alcoa Hwy is clear. There is some ice on secondary bridges.
Both newspapers were delivered on time.
Be careful out there!
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AC Entertainment has announced the all-star lineup for Bonnaroo 2009. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will headline, along with Phish who will put on two shows.
Other performers include the Beastie Boys, Nine Inch Nails, David Byrne, Al Green, Snoop Dogg, Elvis Costello, Ben Harper, Gov't Mule, Merle Haggard, The Del McCoury band, Booker T & the DBTs, Lucinda Williams, Robert Earl Keen, and many more with more announcements coming.
There is no word yet on whether Led Zeppelin will perform.
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Its the fiftieth anniversary of The Day the Music Died.
If there's a levee convenient to you, I suggest driving a Chevy there.
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During the Super Bowl, Denny's advertised a Free Grand Slam breakfast to America. Today, Feb., 3rd, from 6 AM to 2 PM, you can go get your free breakfast.
I have just discovered the closest Denny's to Knox, Blount, Anderson, Loudon Counties is Pigeon Forge. I can't believe it. No Denny's. Too bad Cracker Barrel didn't make this offer. We have lots of convenient Cracker Barrels.
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It is a pleasure to once again be able to read the articulate, well-written prose of Don Williams. No ones says it better, no matter what they say. Don stands for quality, honesty, and integrity. I look forward to reading more of his columns.
Judy D.
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An email from TNDP Chairman Chip Forrester:
In running for Chair I had a clear fundraising plan to ensure that we’d be able to do what it will take to win back the house in 2010.That plan consisted of a 2-pronged effort: a) a small-donor plan to bring in grassroots supporters from across the state expanding out base and enlarging the Party and, b) a high-donor plan to bring our strong Democratic contributor base into the 2009-10 funding cycle.
I took my first week on the job (last week) to get the office set up and began my Fundraising Call Program today. I’m happy to report that since the small-donor program began this past weekend and on my first day of high-dollar donor calls I’ve raised in excess of $15,000.
I want to continue the effort of bringing everyone into the Party and ask those of you who have not participated in the past to join me now. It is easy. Just go to www.tndp.org and contribute, $5, $10, $15, $20, $25 or whatever is most comfortable for you. Just make the commitment to participate
I’ll keep you apprised of how this effort continues with reports from time to time.
Chip Forrester
Chairman
Tennessee Democrtic Party
Excellent.
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A joint press release from United Mountain Defense and the Environmental Integrity Project has new water test results from the TVA Kingston Steam Plant ash spill.
According to the press release, they were not able to obtain samples from wells because TVA has restricted access. More info in the press release and this overview page.
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So he can't walk on water.
Nor heal the sick with a touch.
His smile won't summon sunrise, nor cause angelic choirs to sing from the skies.
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Great News! Don Williams is back and his columns will be appearing regularly at KnoxViews. Watch for his latest column, due momentarily, and please give Don a warm welcome back.
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After getting nagged into installing Flash Player 10 a couple of weeks ago, IE7 has been hanging several times a day. Adobe's support forum says they have heard some random reports, but it's not their problem. Right. About a million people have reported it (OK, that might be an exaggeration), and Vista's crash analysis says the problem is caused by Adobe Flash Player.
I don't know if it's Vista, IE7, Flash 10, conflicts with some of the many plugins that keep getting added to IE, or combination of some or all.
Anyway, I found an obscure link at Adobe to download the older Flash 9 version. Here it is.
After uninstalling Flash 10, installing Flash 9, and turning off a bunch of junk IE7 plugins, the problem seems to have disappeared. And it's faster, too, probably because of removing the useless junk plugins.
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So, if you listen to the conservatives, the greatest threat in the world to the sanctity of marriage is that two people of the same sex might actually solemnify their love for each other.
Apparently, though, 85,000 quickie weddings with no waiting period, including Valentine's Day "marry-thons" (groan), is just fine and dandy.
Feh.
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Last year, some government watchdog types went hard core over some allegedly missing Blount Co. Sheriff's Office vehicles. Now, Knox County Commission can't get a straight answer from the Sheriff's Office regarding take-home vehicles.
Every time something like this comes up I am puzzled by the supernatural powers granted (or taken by?) sheriff's departments in Tennessee. As I understand it, the only Constitutional duty of this Tennessee elected office is head jailer. Yet they spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to get elected and build permanent fiefdoms that wield more political clout than most county executives.
They are answerable to no one other than voters, who keep reelecting them because their house hasn't been robbed lately so the sheriff must be doing a good job.
They've effectively become a fourth branch of government. Tennessee really ought to rethink this. No other law enforcement types are elected in Tennessee are they? Certainly not in the federal government.
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Will we have six more weeks of winter? If Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, then the prediction is yes. According to Yahoo weather as of 7:18AM, it is highly doubtful Phil will see his shadow. Yeah!
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Sandra Clark weighs in on the Jernigan TIF. There's also an update on the Scooby v. Smith feud.
UNRELATED: Ur prking watched by Lumpy. LOL!
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Betty Bean interviews Gloria Johnson about the recent TNDP chair election, OFA 2.0, and more.
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Sen. Paul Stanley (R-Memphis) brings SB78: Prohibits any individual who is cohabitating in a sexual relationship outside of a marriage that is valid under the constitution and laws of this state from adopting a minor.
The prohibition "applies equally to cohabiting opposite-sex and same sex individuals."
The Tennessee Attorney General issued an 2007 opinion stating that "Assuming the adoption is found to be in the best interest of the child, there is no prohibition in Tennessee adoption statutes against adoption by a same sex couple."
Looks like Sen. Stanley wants to change that.
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#9 is always yapping about the KNS's sucking up to the Haslams. I've discounted at least half of it.
But I must admit that Roger Harris sure sounds like he has an enormous mancrush on Jimmy Haslam:
The fit 54-year-old executive with a piercing stare and stern demeanor
Gag.
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In Josh Florys blog...
"A committee of the county IDB this week recommended approval"
Is there really that kind of demand out there for that much business and living space? That seems hard to believe.
project plans include 130,000 square feet of retail space, 10,000 feet of office space, 140 homes and 260 apartment units
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Discussing:
- News on potential passenger rail locations in Tennessee could be coming later this year (3 replies)
- Tennessee legislature passes bill to let teachers carry guns (1 reply)
- Oracle is moving its world headquarters to Nashville (1 reply)
- Boeing was once known for safety and engineering (8 replies)
- Kerns Food Hall to Open Saturday (4 replies)
- KAT working on new micro-transit service to help people get to jobs and needed appointments (1 reply)
- Tennessee Volkswagen workers vote to join union (2 replies)
- Blount County, TDOT make road deal for gun mfg ignoring town of Louisville,TN (1 reply)
- Dickey Betts has gone to meet his brothers (1 reply)
- Nearly 40 families being evicted in Maryville, new ownership (3 replies)
- Cost of car ownership on the rise, becoming unsustainable for some drivers (5 replies)
- Beware bad tax advice on the Internet (3 replies)
TN Progressive
- Toons (RoaneViews)
- Blount County, TDOT make road deal for gun mfg ignoring town of Louisville,TN, (BlountViews)
- EPA Blisters TVA Plans For Replacing Kingston Coal Plant With Gas (RoaneViews)
- Friday Toons (RoaneViews)
- Toon (RoaneViews)
- It's voting time again. Let's get out the vote. (BlountViews)
- Winter at the Big Rocks (Whitescreek Journal)
- Maryville Daily Times Home Delivery changing again (BlountViews)
- Amazon facility in Rockford finally opens (BlountViews)
- Secrets from My Radio Days (Joe Powell)
- Fall 2022 (Whitescreek Journal)
- Mmmm, A Fresh Hot Cup of Joe (Joe Powell)
TN Politics
- Tennessee passes legislation to reform hospital certificate of need law (TN Lookout)
- Biden cracks jokes about Trump’s hair, acquires another major union endorsement (TN Lookout)
- Corporate capture, the Covenant shooting, and a crippled system we must change (TN Lookout)
- House kills anti-reparations bill despite lawmaker’s effort to save it (TN Lookout)
- Supreme Court justices appear split over whether to protect abortion care during emergencies (TN Lookout)
- Fumbling the ball on the one-yard line (TN Lookout)
Knox TN Today
- Hey, what about us – the current residents? (Knox TN Today)
- Central High to host ‘Bobcat Bash’ (Knox TN Today)
- Maples gets another 4-year term at First Utility (Knox TN Today)
- When more (documents) means less (value) (Knox TN Today)
- Three named to Access to Justice Commission (Knox TN Today)
- Two honored at Pellissippi Strong luncheon (Knox TN Today)
- Savannah Jackson’s art on display across ET (Knox TN Today)
- Honey Badger and the Fiery Gizzard (Knox TN Today)
- Ayres Hall (Knox TN Today)
- Service Sunday for retired CHS teacher (Knox TN Today)
- Conrad Majors owned a bicycle shop at age 16 (Knox TN Today)
- Cierra Burdick seeks spot on 3×3 Olympic team (Knox TN Today)
Local TV News
- Bacon, pancakes tossed at Loudon restaurant during inspection (WATE)
- Man indicted in death of UT swimming director’s son (WATE)
- TWRA, bear rescue crews work to keep bears out of trash in Sevierville (WATE)
- Settlement reached in sexual assault lawsuit against Gatlinburg priest (WATE)
- Part of Ocoee Whitewater Center reopening after 2022 fire, comments help create plans for rebuilding (WATE)
- Drug Take Back Day gives East Tennesseans the chance to dispose of unwanted prescription drugs (WATE)
- Man pleads guilty in fatal Magnolia Avenue drag-racing crash (WBIR)
- Former KCSO deputy gets 4-year prison sentence for sending videos from girl's phone (WBIR)
- Fentress Co. grand jury indicts parents accused of starving two adopted daughters (WBIR)
- 'He was a gentle giant' || Family grieves, shares story of veteran who died after being shot by police in Fountain City (WBIR)
- Part of Main Street in Morristown reopens months after historic Parks-Belk Building burned down (WBIR)
- 'It's every day for me' | Mother of woman who fatally overdosed now warning people about fentanyl (WBIR)
News Sentinel
State News
- Tennessee passes legislation to reform hospital certificate of need law - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
- Okpara, a former Hamilton Heights standout, signs with Vols - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
- Cathey Williamson Obituary - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
- Edith Hill Obituary - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
Wire Reports
- Exclusive: ByteDance prefers TikTok shutdown in US if legal options fail, sources say - Reuters (US News)
- Takeaways from the Supreme Court arguments on Trump’s absolute immunity claims - CNN (US News)
- Arrests at Universities Pile Up as Pro-Palestinian Protests Spread - The Wall Street Journal (US News)
- Patriots owner Robert Kraft: 'Jew-hatred' on U.S. college campuses is another parallel to Germany in 1930s and '40s - NBC News (US News)
- Federal judge upholds verdict in E. Jean Carroll case and denies Trump’s motion for a new trial - CNN (US News)
- F.C.C. Votes to Restore Net Neutrality Rules - The New York Times (Business)
- Dow falls by 450 points after GDP report - CNN (Business)
- Southwest will limit hiring and drop 4 airports after loss. American Airlines posts 1Q loss as well - Yahoo Finance (Business)
- Live updates from Biden's return to Syracuse: 'This is a big deal day,' the president says - syracuse.com (Business)
- Mortgage rates continue upward climb to 7.17% - Fox Business (Business)
- Trump trial live updates: Latest news, testimony from hush money case - USA TODAY (US News)
- The US supreme court heard one of the most sadistic, extreme anti-abortion cases yet - The Guardian (US News)
- Rubrik's $5.6 Billion IPO Is Latest Win For The 'IIT Mafia' - Forbes (Business)
- Meta AI spending plans cause share price slump - BBC.com (Business)
- States where noncompete agreements are banned or restricted - Axios (Business)
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