The future of the state lies in these thumbs <shiver>
Image Credit: Squalto-rant

Considering the huge shift from a nearly 50-50 split house to the 64-34-1 Republican super-majority, there’s gonna be a lot of changes coming our way. As Jeff Woods reports in the Nashville City paper, they may not be exactly what voters expected.

From the article:

On the to-do list:

• Changing state law to restrict eligibility for unemployment benefits and make it less difficult and time-consuming for businesses to deny payments to workers.

• Enacting caps on damages awarded in lawsuits against businesses, including product liability and medical malpractice cases.

• Streamlining or even eliminating some business regulations, particularly regarding environmental protection.

Good times. 10% unemployment means gut the little bit of help that is keeping these unfortunate folks barely treading water.

Tort reform means that if someone sells you something that hurts you, you’ll only get a percentage of what you might have before regardless of how negligent the business was.

As for the third item, I hope you like Selenium in your water.

Woods also draws quotes from Knoxville stuntbaby and newly elected State Senator Stacey Campfield who is continuing to push his extreme socially conservative bills, saying social and fiscal conservatism shouldn’t be mutually exclusive.

Joy.

Oh, but this is only the beginning. Still caught in an economic downturn that has seen the return of huge bonuses for banks execs that were previously mere seconds away from failure while regular folks still struggle to survive, the newly elected Republican majority in the US House wants to make sure things get so bad down at the state level that they can effectively force bankruptcy on states by cutting the availability of low interest bonds and in the process, drive a stake in the hearts of those dastardly unions, that have been seeking to ensure people have a living wage for generations. Welcome to the new era of the Pinkertons.

Here’s Sam Seder, subbing in for Keith Olberman on Countdown last night:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Looks like the next two years are going to be a barrel of laughs.

We’ll be keeping an eye out once the legislature gets back in session. A quick glance at bills already filed may be an early indication, including this retaliation bill against the Memphis City Schools filed by Senator Brian Kelsey.

I’m sure these developments will keep keyboards a clicking over the next six months.

Ok, on to the coffee!

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Extending the Bush Tax Cuts did more for businesses than anyone else. If you don’t itemize your taxes and you’re a homeowner, you may see an increase.

The economy in Memphis is stagnant, or so says a report by the Federal Reserve.

Mississippi is going to teach Civil Rights in all grades. Suggestion, start with your Governor.

Shelby County Commissioner Terry Roland is making shit up again.

Shelby County School Board President David Pickler is promising answers about MCS charter surrender. Of course, he’s perplexed by the whole development, even though a report that his body commissioned with the Memphis City Schools tells the inconvenient truth that he summarily rejects. You can have your own opinion Mr. Pickler, but you can’t have your own facts.

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Ok, have a good day out there. Chances are we’ll be out of pocket until after the New Year.

This may be the end of MCS as we know it, and I'm fine with that.

Twas the week before Christmas and all through the County,
Leaders in the east were assessing their bounty,
The Legislature won by the right wing with care,
In hopes that a Special School District would be there.

The schoolchildren enjoying their Christmas break,
Awaiting decisions that deciders will make,
And I at my computer trying hard to remember,
All the information concerning surrender.

Out in the City there had been such a clatter,
Somehow Mr. Pickler didn’t see what was the matter,
He thought SSD was a forgone conclusion,
And didn’t consider the current resolution.

Ambition became his great miscalculation,
The consequence of which is consolidation,
When what to his wondering eyes did appear,
But the MCS board, whose votes were all clear.

The resolution’s sponsor, Martavius Jones,
Brought the specter of merger which chilled Pickler’s bones.
More rapid than eagles, the vote count it came,
And they voted aloud as they called them by name.

The ayes had Hart, Webb, Gatewood and Jones,
Kenneth Whalum and Williams comprised all the noes,
There were still some votes, whose fate were in question,
Mallott, and Warren and Patrice Robinson.

The vote was all set, it was on the agenda,
But nobody knew if they would approve surrender,
So up to the boardroom the Commissioner they flew,
Voting the fate of the district, and Kriner Cash too.

Ok, that’s all I can write right now. We’ll find out how it all turns out this evening and maybe I’ll be able to finish this epic.

Now, on to the Coffee!

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The Bredesen legacy parade continues on the menu today, Blame storming.

It’s been two years since the Coal Ash Spill in Kingston, TN and the EPA rules are still uncertain, as is the result of the numerous lawsuits that begin next year

Over the weekend the US Senate voted to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. One former Marine from the Mid-South plans to re-enlist. Also check out this post from Grand Divisions regarding the votes of Tennessee’s Senators and the state of equality in Tennessee. Good stuff.

Spygate: Memphis Police Department Edition.

As I mentioned in the opening, the vote to surrender the charter happens tonight at 5:30. David Waters at the Commercial Appeal says we need to focus on helping our students by helping our teachers. I couldn’t agree more. Also, Smart City Memphis is looking at achievement gaps.

Over the weekend there were several blog posts and Op-Eds about the issue. Here’s a short rundown:

MCS Board Member Jeff Warren offers Let’s get MAD about our schools face-off.
Over at vibinc I talked about the trust issue, as well as some of the other issues ultimately asking the board to surrender.
Steffens also had a similar, though decidedly more pointed argument.

There are several others. As I re-find them I’ll update the post.

Regardless of your faith, Ricky Gervais has A Holiday Message for you.

And finally, Memphis says goodbye to a journalistic icon. Over the weekend WREG’s Norm Brewer lost his battle with cancer. Thoughts and Prayers go out to the family.

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Have a good day out there. Do something unexpectedly nice for someone if you have the chance. It’ll make you feel good.

Speaking of yesterday, the “sense of the commission” resolution on consolidation passed 6-3-1. Two commissioners weren’t in attendance at the time of the vote. The matter comes up again on Monday. Send your Commissioner an email in support of the resolution.

It’s been busy and that business isn’t gonna stop until after the 16th. Then it’s time for the “holiday busy” that will, no doubt, ensue. As for me, I’m just ready for this semester to be over so I can sleep for a week.

For those of you not following along in your bulletins…Trace started her new gig yesterday. Keep her in your thoughts, moving ain’t easy (I know, I’ve done it more times than I care to recount).

So what about the title? Yeah, I don’t know, just felt it this morning…

On to the coffee!

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Yesterday was, among other things, World AIDS Day. Mediaverse looks at the numbers with a skeptical eye. One thing to think about, the Ryan White numbers are just those who benefit from the program, not all people infected are included. So in addition to those that don’t know their status, there are a whole bunch of folks who do, but may not be in the dataset. #justsayin’

Unemployment benefits are likely to be cut soon. Think that’ll damage the economy? Probably. Think it’ll make people’s already hard lives harder? Definitely.

Sell the TVA?!?! Not now, they’re just finishing up the first part of their coal ash cleanup.

Pickler, take note…Negotiation CAN work, but only when you’ve got two sides that trust each other.

I noted this a couple of days ago… the blatant fear mongering from the CA. Well, I’m sure in light of that article and this event someone’s head is exploding right now.

Luttrell readys the veto pen for the first time.

Here’s a wholly incomplete and half-hearted attempt at reporting what went down at the County Commission Committee meetings yesterday. For more better coverage follow @mikecarpenter1 or @memphisdaily.

All I can say is WOW.

And finally, Mary Cashiola says goodbye to the Flyer faithful as she embarks on a new gig at the Mayor’s office. Good luck Mary, and cheers!

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I need a donut. Have a great day!

The harsh reality is that, in times like this, people can get Balkanized, in ways that may or may not be in their best interests depending on a whole host of factors, but usually it has more to do with who they trust and listen to (and their take on an issue) than what the proposal actually is.

All of this is complicated in a media environment where the most succinct talking points are parroted endlessly. Retaining the Bush Era tax cuts for all but the wealthiest 1% of Americans is called a “Tax Hike”, and somehow that sticks even though 99% of the population would benefit from the lower rate established in 2003, and the additional revenue collected for those with the least want, would help decrease deficit spending…something that all quarters of the populace seem to endorse.

But once a group of people have made their mind up on an issue and fought passionately either for or against that issue, it’s often hard to remove the emotion from any discussion on the topic. For instance, healthcare reform. There are plenty of people, on the left and on the right, that have and continue to express their disappointment or even opposition to the reform passed earlier this year. The right wants it gone, the left doesn’t think it went far enough. Caught in the middle are people who believe the system is flawed, but don’t really know which way to go. One thing they do know is that the system that has ultimately left over 45,000,000 people without healthcare and led to the massive increases in cost of care, is unsustainable.

And that’s where we find ourselves today on the issue of consolidation. You don’t have to go very far to find someone that believes our current political situation here in Shelby County is broken. That is, in fact, one area where just about all sides agree. Where people disagree is on the details. This was made both clear and cloudy with the recent failure of the Metro Charter in the November 2 election. In effect, the majority of folks in Shelby County aren’t opposed to dancing (reform), they just don’t like the music the last DJ played. In fact, the opposition was strong enough that the County Commission passed a resolution opposing the plan.

The question we have to ask ourselves is, are we REALLY against dancing (reform), or just against the playlist the last DJ played?

To that end, Commissioner Steve Mulroy has proposed a resolution. The resolution doesn’t seek to establish a new Charter Commission, or any other formal body exploring the subject of Consolidation. Rather, it seeks to simply clarify that the County Commission isn’t wholly and completely against the idea, even though it was against the LAST idea, just like a majority of the County electorate was against the LAST idea.

Here’s the meat of the resolution:

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Shelby County Board of Commissioners supports the concept of consolidation, and is open to the idea of revisiting
a Metro Charter process in an upcoming election cycle, provided that:
(a) The City Council and County Commission have greater input into the selection of
members of any appointed Metro Charter Commission;
(b) Greater efforts are made to achieve racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic diversity
among any Charter Commission appointees;
(c) Appropriate efforts are made to avoid any undue influence of corporate interests
on the process; and
(d) The issue of school consolidation, if still applicable, should be given weight equal
to that of any other major issue in Charter Commission deliberations.

Nowhere in there does this resolution call for a new Metro Charter Commission despite reports to the contrary.

What I’d like to see is the pro, the con, and the undecided come together and talk about what they want local government to look like in the next 20 years. What future are we working towards, and what things can we do together. The rhetoric on this issue has gotten too hot. In order to come up with some kind of future that will ultimately benefit all of us, we have to look for ways to work together and build some bridges. Where that leads, who knows? but one thing is for sure, if we don’t put down our pitchforks and start working together to better our community, we’re going to lose more ground than any possible gains, and that is truly unsustainable.

See also:
Memphis Daily News
Commercial Appeal
LeftWingCracker

On to the coffee…

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Worst Re-election Strategy EVAH!

The SCOTN (Supreme Court of Tennessee) issued an order to halt the executions of 4 death row inmates over the recent lethal injection ruling.

Insight into the mind of an elitist Teabagger – Shorter version…Property owner = voting rights, recently foreclosed = disenfranchised.

The race for HD98 is on. Here are your candidates so far…

Shelby County School Board President David Pickler is officially crapping himself. It’s so bad that even Norris and Lollar backed down. While they’re backpedalling, we should still call their bluff to ensure they never try to hold us hostage again.

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Have fun stormin’ the castle. I’ll see ya on the flip side.

Gobble, Gobble...

Black Friday and Cyber Monday will ultimately give way to “Whoopsie Wednesday” (12/22) and “I can’t find anything I want Friday” (12/24).

As someone who used to co-own a retail establishment, I can tell you this is the time of year that I most dreaded and looked forward to. When times were bad the cash infusion that the holiday season brought was a Godsend. When times were good, it was like an end of the year bonus. Retailers, especially the mom and pop joints that used to heavily populate the retailing landscape, rely on this time of year to make it through.

Even though we’ve seen a steady decline in these mom and pop shops in the past 30 years, the ones that remain still rely heavily on the end-of-the-year boost the holiday season provides.

In a tip of the hat to the small businesses of the world, American Express launched Small Business Saturday over the weekend to help small businesses compete with the huge marketing power of the big box retailers.

Even though the promotion has passed, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t stop by your friendly neighborhood locally owned business. These are the shops that help make your town unique. Without them, your town is just another anonymous exit on the retailing bypass.

Take some time over the next 27 days of frenzied spending to pay your favorite locally owned business a visit. You’ll be glad you did, and you’ll be helping out a neighbor that is truly invested in the community.

Ok, on to the coffee!

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If you think the crazy political season is over, think again. The State Legislature goes into session in just over a month and I predict it will make last year’s session look tame by comparison.

Gail Kerr at the Tennessean thinks this is ironic, I think it’s two people doing their jobs by welcoming 50k folks that will spend money in their city.

The Commercial Appeal is fear mongering a business deal between Memphis and Monterrey, Mexico. Because everyone knows that strengthening trade with Mexico ultimately leads to some kind of drug turf war. (rolls eyes)

Last week Memphis Mayor A C Wharton announced that the Memphis Flyer’s Mary Cashiola would be joining his team. Congrats to Mary, we’ll miss your voice at the Flyer, but we look forward to what you’ll bring in helping revitalize the Memphis brand.

Education is important, but not important enough to keep it affordable. Yep, state college tuition is on the rise again. All I can say is this makes my wallet hurt.

For those of you that didn’t know, there’s a runoff election for the District 6 Memphis City School Board Seat on December 7th. The CA published profiles of the candidates, Sarah Lewis and Cherri Davis. Don’t forget to vote on the 7th.

Speaking of the Memphis City Schools, the candidates for that District 6 post may be running for a seat that could disappear by early March if the School Board votes to surrender the charter and voters approve the measure. At least one member of the MCS School Board supports this action.

On a sad (or sadder for that matter) note, comedy genius Leslie Nielsen has gone to that big comedy B movie in the sky.

And finally, a fond farewell from the Hootsvillians to their beloved Newscoma who starts a new job, and a new chapter in Nashville later this week. Congratulations!

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Alright, get back to work people. I know we just had a long weekend and all, and you’re still suffering from belly tightness and credit card looseness, but there stuff to do.

Have a great one!

Keith Olberman and Conan O'Brien are back on the air

I don’t really watch late-night tv, but watching the build-up to Conan’s return has been interesting. From a purely PR perspective, I don’t think anyone has taken lemons and turned them into lemonade quite as well as he has in recent memory. I have no idea what the ratings were last night, but here’s the liveblog of the premiere if you’re interested.

The other return that’s going to be interesting is that of MSNBC personality, Keith Olberman. Olberman’s absence has been just a few days long, but in that time nearly half a million people have signed a petition in support of him. Trace has a good rundown of what all happened at Newscoma

Olberman returns tonight, but you can get a preview of the statement he will read on-air here.

Ok, on to the coffee…

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Rich dude is handed a get out of jail free card because he’s rich. Of course there will be civil litigation, but should wealthy people be able to just write a check when they leave someone for dead? I don’t think so.

I don’t know what kind of head injury is required to serve on the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, but I suspect it involves leaving your head up you rear too long. The court that’s so full of conservatives it scares the Christian Coalition ruled that a cheerleader who pressed rape charges against a school athlete must cheer for said athlete. WTF? Oh, and she also has to pay the court costs for the defense.

One of the funniest lines ever.

Blame storm rising. According to Governor Phil Bredesen, the blame for the losses last Tuesday lies squarely with the White House.

Today at 3:30 the Memphis City Council will hear the first reading of the proposed Employee Non-Discrimination Ordinance. Here’s a link to the agenda.

In other news, the Shelby County Commission, yesterday, voted to decline funding for a Head Start program. WTF? I find it VERY strange that Wyatt Bunker and Terry Roland voted for this, but Brooks, Burgess, Chism, and Ford voted against it. (I’m not surprised at all that Heidi Shafer voted against it).

And finally, another poll that makes Memphis look bad. Apparently we’re ugly and dumb but make some badass ‘cue. Cutting funding for Head Start isn’t gonna make us any smarter any time soon.

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Ok, get out there and do something constructive with your day, like watch the leaves fall. Going to work is for suckers!

Update: We just learned of the passing of State House member Ulysses Jones. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family.

Casada and Harwell in Battle for the gavel

House Republican Caucus Chair Glen Casada and former TNGOP Chair Beth Harwell are in a pitched battle for the gavel.

You may remember Casada from this post in response to a boneheaded comment from Casada that people should just “get out there and get a job”. That’s right. This guy wants to be in charge of the State House of Representatives.

The Tennessean’s “In Session” blog posted a letter to the House Republican Caucus by Harwell on Friday. For his part, Casada has been making his case to colleagues as well.

Who will win? Who knows. I don’t have any particular insight into the minds of the House Republican Caucus, so it seems like a wait and see until the caucus gets together on December 8th.

On to the coffee!

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The Nashville City Paper looks at the coming thundering herd of Republicans to the State Capitol and the challenges they face… like redistricting.

Speaking of redistricting, Lt. Governor Ron Ramsey says Northeast Tennessee is safe from too many changes. That means West Tennessee is screwed.

The Rutherford County Daily News Journal is reports on the Democratic Party’s way forward. Thankfully there’s little blame-storming…for now.

The Commercial Appeal looks at the impact the wave may have on Shelby County. It’s gonna be a weird one for us, no doubt.

In the wake of the election, Governor Phil Bredesen is looking to his future in the Solar biz. To that end, he is defending his investment in his new venture as “nothing improper”. If it walks like a duck….

Reclusive Leftist is talking about feminism and the deletion of the word sexism in the definition. Key phrase:

It’s fascinating the extent to which women have been shamed out of even claiming a movement to address sexism. We just aren’t allowed to have that. Too strident. Too pushy.

Stands, applauds…

The Memphis City Council will conduct its first reading of the Employee Non-Discrimination Ordinance on Tuesday, the West Tennessee Liberal reports. Hopefully it won’t be marked by the shenanigans the last first reading brought forth.

And finally, a shout out to the University of Memphis Mock Trial Team, of which I am a member.

This weekend we went to St. Louis to compete in the Sixth Annual Billiken Barrister Tournament sponsored by Saint Louis University and won 5th place overall, as well as individual awards for Kim Marking, who received a Best Witness award, and Allen Porter was recognized with an attorney award. I’m really proud of our team and look forward to more success in upcoming competitions.

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Alright, get out there and do something with your day for chrissakes…and I’m not talking about work. You know, do something productive!

I don’t really know what to expect, but I’m looking forward to it.

This has been a whirlwind of a semester. My decision to take only Tuesday and Thursday classes was a mistake that I won’t repeat. There’s just too much time between Thursday and Tuesday and not enough time between Tuesday and Thursday. Between that and having EVERYTHING due on just two of the seven days of the week, I’ve been more than a little overwhelmed. I think a lot of people are feeling overwhelmed too.

Back to Mock Trial for a second. In the coming weeks we’re going to have a fundraiser for our Spring Competition. If you’re interested in helping out, let me know in the comments. I’ll have more details after the weekend.

Ok, enough shameless self-promotion, on to the coffee!

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Speaking of trials, the SCOTUS will soon hear a case that may put the future of class action lawsuits in danger. In the wake of the Citizen’s United decision, I have no doubt that they will screw the little guy on this one.

Now that the election is over, the former Democratic Candidate for Governor, Mike McWherter is trying to reclaim normalcy in his life. In the process he has an interesting observation:

McWherter said not having a primary opponent for the Democratic ballot hurt his campaign.

“In retrospect, I feel like I would have been better served if I had an opponent,” he said. “I think it makes you a better candidate. My father had a contested primary, and Haslam had a vigorous primary and I think that helped him.”

Interesting.

In the wake of the elections Tuesday, it the national media is re-starting the narrative that southern Democrats are a dying breed. Of course, the death of the Democratic Party in the south has been a common line for many cycles, particularly since the 2000 election when Democratic Candidate Al Gore pretty much ignored his home state of Tennessee, and as a result, lost it, and the Presidential election. But not everyone agrees. Some point to the plight of working Americans who may not have time to follow politics as closely as others, and get fed a steady diet of bs in the weeks before an election from candidates and organizations that have the scratch to spend. I don’t think this means the future extinction of the Democratic Party in the south, I think we just have to think and act differently.

Defendants in the case challenging state law on Metro governments say the pending lawsuit is moot in the wake to the solid rejection of the matter here in Shelby County. I think there’s a bigger legal issue here than just one vote, and the impact could reach further than Shelby County. We’ll see what the court thinks in the coming days.

With a new Shelby County government starting it’s 3rd month, there’s been some sprucing of the County offices to the tune of $38,000. I’m not complaining or anything, I just find it funny that if a Democratic Administration had done the same thing, they would have been characterized as out of touch and engaging in “wasteful spending”. Gotta love those double standards.

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Alright, y’all have a good Friday and a great weekend. I’ll try to have a report on how we did at the invitational on Sunday or Monday.

That, my friends, is the question of the next several months.

There will be plenty of time to point fingers and blame-storm. I’m sure there’s quite a bit of that going on in the comments of Post Politics as we speak. But at the end of the day, none of the finger pointing is going to change anything, so I won’t be engaging in it.

Tennessee Democrats are in the minority, and there’s no escaping that for some time (at least 2 years). In February or March the Feds will report our census numbers, and the task of redistricting will begin in earnest. What the few districts that we were able to hold on to will look like after that, nobody knows.

But while all this portends doom and despair, I see an opportunity. We’re at the crossroads, and we have the chance to remake the Democratic Party in Tennessee in a way that we haven’t for decades. There will be leadership changes. There have to be.

Regardless of those changes, we need to recognize that right now is not the time to paint our friends as enemies, even if we disagree on the details. This means that the extremes of the party have to be willing to work together, to craft a partnership. To hear each other for the common interests that we share. There are more common interests than we’re often willing to accept.

Will Republican control of the legislature be any different than conservative Democratic control? I believe the answer will be yes, and we have at least two years to see just how different it will be.

As a general statement, I agree with Southern Beale’s analysis:

Simply put, the Republican base was motivated. The Democratic base was not. That’s really all you need to know. Whenever Democrats run to the right they lose. When given a choice between a real Republican and a fake one, voters will pick the real one. Democrats need to show they are the alternative, not a paler version of what the other guys are offering.

Throw in a half a million bucks that flooded many state house races in the final weeks from the deep pockets of Karl Rove and his ilk, and honestly, its easy to see that the bar was just too high.

There’s a lot of confusion and anger in the state. I blieve that last night’s result was the electorate saying you forgot about us more than anything else, though I’m sure that’s not the takeaway the victors want to express. I don’t see this as a rejection of Democratic ideals, but an angry lashing out at a formerly strong establishment that many feel has been disconnected. It’s time to bridge that distance.

On Facebook this morning, one of my friends posted a comment from a worker at a McDonalds who he asked about the election results and the coming Republican control of the state. His reply:

“can’t say as i know any of ‘em…the real question though is whether or not they’ll ever take the time to get to know folks like me.”

That’s it in a nutshell folks. People won’t support you if they don’t feel you understand the circumstances of their lives in a real and tangible way. They’ll even support someone that doesn’t necessarily further their interests if they feel that they might listen.

We have to make sure we open up and listen if we want to recover from this.

It’s too soon to prescribe some kind of comprehensive fix for this, but I don’t think ideological presumptions are the likely solution. I don’t believe that most people are ideological like me. I just don’t. People want solutions they can understand, and they don’t care where they come from. They want to be listened to. They want to be talked to. They want to feel like we understand their situation. Ideology just isn’t personal enough to do that.

Our task for the next two years is to rebuild our connection with the voters. To restore their faith in us. To own our achievements as well as our failures, and look for ways to make life better for the little people without belittling them. We have to empower them in order to regain ground. And to maintain any future gains for our party, we have to ensure that we make their lives better, and that they were part of the solution. In short, we all have to have skin in the game, not just the elite or powerful.

Wedge issues can’t prevail when you build an environment like this. Wedge issues become less relevant to regular folks if they honestly believe their lives will be better and have some investment in the solution. If we do this, I feel confident we will find success, but it’s going to be a lot of hard work, and we all have to be willing to invest.

What happens over the coming weeks will be critical. The most important thing we can do is move beyond the results of this election and start working for the next one. The village has been burned down. Now is the time to rebuild it, but we can’t do it alone. The more people we enlist, the faster it will be rebuilt, but we have to have a real plan and work on crafting a solid foundation. Without a solid foundation, anything we build from here on out will be as, or more fragile than the house of straw we just lost.

We have an opportunity, now let’s seize it.

Mabel Was A Protester To Get Pups In Pubs. Photo from 2008

The election is right around the corner. Early voting has begun. Democratic candidates around the state could use your help if you have a little bit of time to phonebank for a couple of hours, hand out a few palm cards or just post why you are voting for whom on your blog, Facebook page or Twitter account. Every little bit helps. Of course, my dog, Elderstatesman Mabel, has won the battle so close to her heart.

WE GOT PUPS IN PUBS, BITCHES!!

On to a mid-morning stroll around this great state. Those pesky bloggers are at again writing about politics, stirring the proverbial witches’ stew and talking about things that the MSM doesn’t.

Let’s take a peek into the boiling cauldron.

Well, it’s time to vote for the worst legislation in Tennessee. Do IT!

An interesting chart at Roane Views on political fundraising emails.

Knoxville has a satellite Rally to Restore Sanity on Oct. 30.

Grand Divisions has a post from earlier this week on the Tale of Two City Councils.

I am committing the moral sin of linking to myself, but I think the issue of Reelfoot Lake is a big damned deal.

Reinventing the Mojo in Memphis.

See you soon!

This Picture Is Unrelated To Anything In This Post. I just like it.

Let’s take a stroll, shall we:

Katie Allison Granju, who just got honors as a best blogger at Knoxville.com, writes of an epidemic. One that you may not know anything about unless you are living through it in your family. And it’s not getting much media attention.

The primary reason I had no idea of the extent of the overdose problem in my own community is because of the way drug overdoses are treated by medical, law enforcement and prosecuting authorities. For a variety of reasons – many of which might seem to make sense considered in isolation from the others, or outside the context of a problem this urgent – the agencies that deal with drug overdoses – paramedics, law enforcement, physicians and medical examiners – generally treat each individual overdose as a discrete, isolated occurrence. In our community, virtually all overdose injuries and deaths are treated as unfortunate accidents suffered by individuals who bear all responsibility for illegal behaviors they should have known to be risky.

Because overdoses in my community and from what I am learning, many others around the country, are generally treated as private medical events suffered by individuals rather than as potential crimes that have claimed the life of a victim, these deaths rarely garner any media coverage, no matter how suspect the circumstances of the overdose may be.

Chris Sanders is writing on his Facebook account on candidates to watch who support anti-bullying all across the state. It’s a good read and it’s more than just wearing a purple shirt today in honor of LGBT rights.

There are helpful candidates in every part of Tennessee and they come from both parties.  If we live in a state where we have a law that these issues CAN NOT be discussed at all, then we have a major obstacle to addressing the specific types of bullying occurring in grades K-8.

These are my recommendations and not those of any organization, but I hope some of you will consider them.  Working to elect these folks involves voting, volunteering for, and funding them.  Let’s do what we can to make sure we don’t have any legal hurdles to moving toward safe schools in TN.  And then let’s take positive steps toward safety and equality for all our students.

Southern Beale is writing that there is an effort to suppress the Latino vote:

I guess the Republican Party has conceded the Hispanic vote, judging by this ad telling Latinos not to vote. The ad is running in Spanish and English.

Seems the guy behind this “don’t vote” campaign is linked to the Republican Party and his organization was once connected to a prominent Swift Boater.

I know, y’all are shocked.

And for a few quick morning hits of stuff we might have missed.

• Left Wing Cracker has been on a role this week. He has a Bill Haslam parody, and several posts trying to fire up Democrats across the state.
• Aunt B. has a few words for the Wild West antics regarding firearms across the state: As for the Guns in Everywhere push, call me when state legislators start pushing to lift the ban on guns at Legislative Plaza. Until then, they’re full of shit.
• Cathy at Domestic Psychology is going to the Rally To Restore Sanity. She gives you 10 reasons why.
• Finally, go check out what Cup of Joe Powell is doing this month. It is plum fantastic.

The Rent Is Too Damned High Party. Jimmy McMillan and Basil Marceauxdotcom could possibly make a compelling ticket.

From a TNDP presser.

NASHVILLE – A Union City resident filed a complaint with the Tennessee Registry of Election Finance against state House candidate Bill Sanderson of Kenton for his continued disregard for campaign finance laws as the candidate has yet to reveal any campaign expenses other than one in-kind contribution.
Sanderson lists only one in-kind contribution of $4,195.82 from a Republican political action committee during the first three quarters of this year despite mailing several fundraising solicitations, operating two campaign websites and advertising in local newspapers.
“Mr. Sanderson would have the state to believe he is running a full-fledged campaign without spending any money,” Tennessee Democratic Party Chairman Chip Forrester said. “That is illegal and Mr. Sanderson knows it. This isn’t the first time he has run for the state House.
“If Mr. Sanderson wants to represent citizens in the General Assembly, he should abide by the laws just like everyone else. If he cannot follow the law, then how will he represent the people of Lake, Obion and Dyer counties? That’s not the kind of leader Northwest Tennessee deserves.”
The complaint was filed with the state today (Thursday, Oct. 14). Sanderson lost a bid for the state House during the November 2008 elections to state Rep. Judy Barker of Union City.
“We need state legislators who are serious about balancing the state’s budget, providing top-notch educational opportunities for our children and creating good-paying jobs for our communities,” Forrester said. “Rep. Barker has proven her dedication to serving the people she represents.
“Mr. Sanderson, on the other hand, wants people to vote for him but he doesn’t want to follow the law. Just last year he sent a fundraising letter to potential donors and included an advertisement for his furniture store in it.
“I guess his strategy is to hawk as much furniture as he can to potential campaign contributors if he comes up short in his bid for the state Legislature. That strategy just strikes me as a little weird and insincere. Northwest Tennessee deserves a serious and honest leader like Rep. Barker,” Forrester added.

Early voting starts in about two weeks and there’s a whole lot happening with the many contested elections across the state. Last week, Roy Herron filed a complaint against opponent Stephen Fincher over a questionable loan made to the Fincher campaign. That wasn’t Stephen Fincher’s only problem, he also didn’t know parts of Memphis were in his district. Oh well, what do you expect from a simple farmer from “Frog Jump”.

Y’all remember that blackbird mailer from the 2008 election? Yeah, the guy who benefitted from that says it wasn’t racist. As an interesting side note, now it seems that Rep. Shipley is too chickenshit to debate Vaughn. bock, bock!

Speaking of Shelby County, last week a judge refused to dismiss a suit against the Shelby County Election Commission alleging irregularities in the August 5th election. The trial starts today.

In an email to Memphians last week, Mayor Wharton sent this spiffy video reminding us how we got to owe the City Schools $57m. Looks like the City departments have found $37m to help ease the pain. Just $20m more to go! Whee!

Coming soon to a Memphis curbside, your privately owned trash can won’t be emptied by city workers after Oct. 11th. You got that much trash you’ll have to rent another city bin.

And finally, congratulations to the Dyersburg High School band for placing in the top three at a regional competition. Ahhh, reminds me of my youth….

Alright, there’s your abbreviated Morning Coffee for this Monday. Have a great day!

That IS what it's all about

For over a year we’ve been hearing about the Tea Party and whatnot, as if that’s the only political movement that’s energized in the nation. Certainly there’s some evidence out there that shows conservatives are energized this year. That’s not particularly unexpected. When one party takes the White House, the other party typically gets fired up to wrest control. 2002 was a notable exception, primarily because of 9/11, but by and large, the rule holds true.

But is all this supposed energy really widespread support, or a refutation of the status quo articulated through voter outrage? That’s a question that likely won’t really be answered until November.

Chris Clizza at the Washington Post reported last week that voters don’t really like either party. From my perspective, both parties, particularly in the federal government, have become agents of the status quo, which, by the way, hasn’t been too kind to average folks, rather than advocates for their constituents. It’s no wonder people feel disillusioned.

In this environment, the reality is that people want reform more than they want “same” regardless of what the much more vocal opponents of reform would have you believe.

A recent AP poll on healthcare bears this fact out. By a 2-1 margin more Americans think the landmark healthcare reform should have gone further. While this particular issue may not resonate with Tennessee voters, chances are we can apply the same kind of benchmarks for voter dissatisfaction with “same” here as nationally.

There are other issues feeding into this feeling of a need for reform. Unemployment is SUPER HIGH and not likely to decrease that much for several years. This means that people are suffering far more than they were even in 2008. The fact is, income disparity is at the highest rate it’s been since the Great Depression. Furthermore, those heralded “Bush Tax Cuts” that Republicans are running on, turn out to have sucked about $2.7 TRILLION from total income in the US. For some point of reference, $2.7 trillion is about 21% of the total federal debt and about half the debt that the Bush administration ran up in it’s eight years in office.

So what do voters REALLY want? In 2008, Obama ran on “Hope” and “Change”, but neither of these things are necessarily what voters were really asking for…”REFORM”. However, Obama can’t be blamed for the lack of comprehensive reform on many issues, nor can he be held accountable for a recalcitrant US Senate, which is where progress goes to die it seems.

The largest burden Obama bears is that he hasn’t used his bully pulpit effectively to provide direction and reframe the debate in a way that serves his mission of “Hope” and “Change” which can manifest itself as “reform”. Until he learns this lesson and uses his political power to at least try to reframe the debate he’ll continue to see downward pressure on his job performance.

The other side of this is the people who are currently running for re-election, those congress-critters. It’s not really fair to paint all 535 of them with a broad brush as agents for “same”, but there are enough of these “same agents” out there that a whole bunch of them are going to suffer defeat.

This is not a “Pro-Republican” year, but an anti-incumbent year. People want to see clear distinctions and effective solutions, and when they don’t they disengage. In both Federal and State elections, the lack of clear contrasts between the various parties and real solutions on key issues that impact voters (jobs, economic development, education) will ultimately hurt members of the party which is perceived to hold the power. In Federal elections this means that Democrats will suffer. In State elections it SHOULD mean that Republicans, who hold majorities in both the State House and Senate will suffer. Unfortunately, this may not be the case for several reasons.

First, Democrats held solid majorities in the House and Senate until quite recently. Most Tennessee voters are relatively disengaged from state politics as they don’t dominate the media the same way national politics do. Taking that into account, I would wager that if you conducted a “convenience store poll”, which is unscientific, but I think, a good indicator of how engaged regular folks are, few would know that Republicans hold the majority in Tennessee.

Second, a Democrat has held the highest position in the land for the past 8 years in Tennessee. This further feeds the perception that Democrats have been in power even though they haven’t necessarily had control of the legislative agenda over the past two years. This isn’t Phil Bredesen’s fault. He didn’t create the national problems that are impacting us stateside, however, because people see executive power as ultimate control, it feeds the perception that Democrats are the problem.

Third, and this is something I’ve been preaching for years now, from a practical perspective, voters perceive little difference between many state Democrats and Republicans. The absence of these clear distinctions, as I’ve stated before, puts negative pressure on Democratic candidates which translates into what we saw in the August elections here in Shelby County… an energized right and an absent left.

With just 36 days to go until election day, if Democrats don’t get it together and start drawing clear distinctions between themselves and their Republican counterparts and providing solutions they’re going to suffer dire consequences that will likely result in decades of life living in the shadows of political power. This isn’t about “Hope” or “Change”, it’s about “reform”. Democrats have to re-form the way they do business with their constituents and re-connect with them to re-gain their trust, ultimately showing them they are not the agents of “same”.

Same ain’t working for anyone right now. It’s past time we recognized that and acted on it. Old habits die hard, and barring some divine intervention, so will a lot of longtime legislative careers.

I, and many other people, have been preaching this since the after 2008 state legislative losses that gave Republicans the State House and solid majorities in the State Senate, but few have actually listened. I’m not sure why I’ve gone to all the trouble to put this out there again, but here it is. Same will give you a more devastating repeat of 2008.

While many current elected officials won’t be around in 20 years to feel the effects of this election, I (God willing) will. This isn’t about running to the left, or right or anything like that. In fact, I think we need to stop quantifying things in this manner. It’s about being trusted advocates for the people rather than trustees that assume to know what’s best. It’s about educating your voters instead of trying to justify your votes. It’s about flipping the relationship between representative and constituent around from the plantation mentality scenario that currently exists between many elected officials from both parties and their constituents.

Voters don’t need their current representatives as badly as those representatives need the voters. That’s reality. If something doesn’t give, a lot of people are going to find this out the hard way come November.

Ok, I think I’ve stepped in it good enough for a Monday morning. On to the Coffee!

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I can’t wait to see someone try and sneak up on the “Stealth Tax”. Since when was closing a loophole a bad thing? Since the world went mad.

Bill Haslam’s pick for President in 2008 famously said, “Bomb, bomb, bomb…bomb, bomb, Iran.” Tom Humphrey reports on Haslam’s Iran Connection and other developments in the Tennessee Gubernatorial race.

With all the racket about the Murfreesboro Mosque, it’s good to see some sanity brought into the conversation. And right here in Memphis, no less.

The City Paper in Nashville looks at the race for State House District 60.

Southern Beale on privatizing libraries, and Andy Meek on Shelby County libraries that are privatized.

Who left West Tennessee out of the electric car?

Finally, the debate over Metro Government rages on in Shelby County. In this episode, black political power is the topic of the day.

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Have a great day out there. Not sure if I’ll be able to do this daily, but I promise to try and get at least a couple a week until my schedule calms down.

It’s been a crazy month for both Trace and I. Election Day is just around the corner, and between our schedules and the demands those schedules have placed on us, we just haven’t had the time or the energy to dedicate to STP.

It’s been a long, hard, near month for both of us.

I can’t speak for Trace, but I know that my schedule is not likely to calm down until the end of this semester in December. That doesn’t mean we’ll experience another blackout like the past three weeks, but it does mean that service may be spotty until then.

There’s a lot of stuff going on right now in the world of politics. I’m so far behind on keeping up with it that I won’t even try to cover it.

I will say that over the past month I’ve really missed writing here, and while I can’t promise that I’ll be able to return to my previous pace, I do hope to be able to get back to writing more often.

We’ll see how it pans out.

In the mean time, Trace and I thank you for your patience. We’re proud of the devoted readership and the general message that we’ve worked to cultivate here at STP, and hope you all will stick with us as we work through the challenges of our individual schedules.

Cheers,

Steve Ross

I said hit, not punch. Sheesh.

School started for me yesterday, and I have more reading to do than a speed reader tackling the federal tax code. We’ll probably be experiencing some lighter than the already light schedule of blogging over the next few weeks.

Of course, last time I said that I posted a whole bunch the very next day…so I guess it just depends.

In any case, that’s the plan for now until the plan changes.

On to the Coffee!!!

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McWherter recognizes illegal immigration for what it is, a supply and demand problem. As long as there’s strong demand for illegal workers, they’ll keep coming. His proposal, ratchet back demand.

#TNGOOBERS on the Mosque arson.

Its hard to drop anchor when you’re working all over for votes. Truth is, McWherter has been to Shelby Co. more than Haslam since the primary.

The Big Dog to campaign for McWherter.

What? They want to hold credit rating agencies accountable for instilling false confidence in shaky investments? Next thing ya know they’ll be demanding that FICO scores be more transparent. Hey, that’s not such a bad idea…

Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell will be sworn in today. First item on the agenda, instill trust in government. How’s about making the Mayor’s office more transparent then? That’d be a good way to instill some trust.

Memphis fights nepotism.

Memphis City Councilman Jim Strickland learns about unintended consequences.

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Enjoy your day!

After digesting it for a few days, this post is actually more interesting than I originally thought. While I don’t think anyone would argue that technological advances have increased our overall quality of life, there is some question about the ever diminishing value of our work, and what that has done to the psyche of workers, not just in the United States, but worldwide.

Here in the states, with unemployment still ridiculously high, and mired in the grip of a jobless recovery, folks are looking for any answer to their continuing uncertainty. Some of this has manifested itself in the nativist rhetoric of anti-immigration advocates and Islamophobes. Others have railed against government spending, both as being too much or too little. In the end, most average folks are just pissed, not knowing what to do or who to be mad at, except for the usual suspects as defined by their personal bias.

The underpinning of all of this is a sense that we’ve lost our way. That we no longer have the power to determine our future. That our outlook is held hostage by some shadowy force, be it the Government or leaders of industry, again, determined by our personal bias, and that we have little if any power to change course and make our future and the futures of our children bright again like we believe they were in some mythical time in the past.

The truth of the matter is that while these changes seem like a sudden onset of instability, they have been in the works for far longer than I’ve been alive. While its convenient to point to our leaders as failing to provide the vision to bring a brighter future, we also have to recognize that we have selected these leaders, unlike the Luddites in the days of yore, through our vote and our consumption choices, for the past two hundred years.

Its a hard reality to face that we, the regular folks, might have more power than we’re willing to recognize. While its convenient to point that-a-way and cast blame and doubt, if we’re going to be honest, we also have to acknowledge that our choices – to go to a chain store rather than a more expensive local store, to vote for people who favor multi-national corporations rather than mom-and-pop business, to move to the suburbs, expanding local infrastructure beyond all feasibility – are the hands that pull the strings that move the marionette that is our future.

Without our support, over decades of actions, many of these things simply would not have been able to happen.

If we, the people are going to call for more responsibility from our leaders, be they political or otherwise, we also have to demand responsibility from ourselves and recognize the role we play, actively or passively, in the future that we have taken part in creating. It’s easy to point outwardly and look for a bogey man to blame, what we too often fail to realize is that when we point a finger at someone else, there are three pointing right back at ourselves.

The Luddites didn’t have the choices we have today, politically or economically. They didn’t have the access to information we do today. Most importantly, they didn’t have the economic power to change the face of their environment.

While we as individuals may not have that economic power, as a group we do. We have to recognize that power, and pull the strings in a way that benefits the majority of us for the long-term, rather than between paychecks, if we want our future to be brighter.

On to the Coffee…

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Don’t these people have something better to do?

Remember, these were the policies that got us here in the first place.

Honest Campaign ads that we’ll never ever see.

The two major parties are striking out against independent candidates.

Are cuts to the lottery scholarship looming?

City of Memphis Fleet services has taken taxpayers for a ride.

Retaliation or not?

What is the Midtown Overlay?

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Have a great day!

Honestly, I felt like death warmed over

I actually had to pull over to deal with it, as massive coughing spells and driving a crappy old van with no air conditioning don’t mix. After about 15 min. the coughing subsided, and I was certain that I had expelled all of the offending liquid. By now, I think it was about 10am.

By 4, after completing our primary set-up, I was starting to feel the effects of what I call “the lung”. This is that kind of watery feeling you have in your lungs when you breathe in. Yeah, I knew I was gonna get sick. Still, I soldiered on. Having spent some time in the early 90′s at Jonesboro hospitals, I have less than zero desire to make a return appearance. We finished the show, and drove back to Memphis. I was hacking the whole way.

The Friday I had scheduled for myself didn’t allow for illness. An early morning call, followed by an afternoon of setting up equipment that was larger than the space allowed. I didn’t have time to be sick. By 2pm I was asleep in a parking lot with the car on awaiting my next assignment. I felt horrible. Thankfully, we got it done fairly quickly and I called it a day. By now I knew that I would be spending the next 24 hours mostly on the couch.

I don’t do “sick” well, but I know pretty well how to knock it out when I need to. After procuring my “tools of the trade” which consisted of Sudafed, lots of soup, saltine crackers, various juices and Emergen-C, I retired to the couch to be pitiful for a while. Really, I needed to get over this because the next day I had crap to do, and I couldn’t afford to be sick then either.

My 1pm meeting on Saturday came all too quickly. I still felt like death warmed over, and the Sudafed and nearly 24 hours of forced sleep had my brain feeling like someone had covered it in plastic wrap and left it in the back of the freezer. I could tell I was feeling better, but I didn’t want to over-do it, lest I fall back into the sickness that had been the past 24 hours. By 4 I was done for the day and got back to sleeping. I’m not much of a sleeper, but when I don’t feel good you’d be hard pressed to get me to do anything else. I slept pretty much non-stop until Sunday morning.

By then I was sick of being sick. Like I said, I don’t do sick well, and I hate feeling like I can’t do something when I want to do it. The congestion had subsided somewhat, a box of Kleenex later, the chest pain was at a manageable level, it was time to do some work. Ellyn and Frannie were set to return from vacation in the early evening and the last thing I wanted was to be sick when they got here.

I worked my way through it, doing menial, but important chores around the house that didn’t require too much brain power or stamina. By 5pm I almost felt like my old self again. Chores nearly done, I anxiously awaited their arrival back from “Arkansas with a beach” aka Florida.

Their arrival made the transformation complete. If I felt sickly before, that feeling was replaced with the joy of having them home after over a week away. I missed them so much, I can’t tell you how happy I was to have them back.

Yesterday was our one year anniversary. What a great present to have them return. It was a long week without them, made longer by my untimely illness. I’m so happy to have them in my life, and don’t want to have to go another second without them.

I love you guys. Happy Anniversary Ellyn, here’s to many more.

Ok, how’s about some coffee…

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There was a fire at the proposed site of an Islamic Center in Murphreesboro. Yeah, it was arson, big time. Tom Humphrey also with the coverage.

Tonight at 7pm there’s a candlelight vigil against intolerance sponsored by Middle Tennesseans for Religious Freedom.

Dreamday Cafe on religious intolerance.

Folks are none too happy with how the whole Making Home Affordable Program hasn’t been working. I can tell you first hand that borrowers are doing everything in their power to NOT help people.

Looks like Bill Haslam is putting his family’s billions to work. Shiver.

HFJ says he has no political future in Tennessee. Well not now, especially after that book!

The former face of the TNGOP is popping up a lot since the primary. I don’t know if this is a good or bad thing.

Coal Ash is worse for you than originally thought. I’m sure that’s comforting to no one. Has TVA fixed that yet or are they still dragging their feet?

The search for the mystical $57 million begins. I smell another tax bill.

Wendi says history will put Glen Beck in his place. History still has working sanitariums? Who knew?

Is it time for local third parties? Personally, I think the majority of the American public is stuck in binary.

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Ok, off to the races. School starts this week and it’s busy as all get out anyway. have a good one!

There are a lot of reasons real, lasting change takes so long. First and foremost, as I noted yesterday, its a lot easier to change laws than it is minds. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 changed the law, but minds were lagging. From a purely political perspective, this change turned the Solid South from a Democratic enclave to a huge toss-up in the wake of this change. But despite this political condition, I think there are few people who would do it differently now.

From my perspective, it was more important to be right than to genuflect to a group who sought to maintain an unequal status quo. Its interesting that even though the Republican Party employed the Southern Strategy to gain favor with Southern whites in the wake of these landmark legislative moves, they never really overturned either the Civil Rights Act or the Voting Rights Act. To do so would have rendered their successful strategy moot.

It took nearly 145 years from the signing of the Declaration of Independence and over 70 years from the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848 to gain enough momentum for the 19th Amendment to pass. But through dedication and resolve, pass it did, thanks to the vote of the Tennessee Legislature 90 years ago. While many saw the potential for women’s suffrage as an end to the white male dominated power structure of the past, this hasn’t really come to pass.

Currently, only 17% of the seats in Congress are held by women, despite being over 50% of the population. And while women have made great strides in the years since the passage of the 19th Amendment, the United States still lags behind our European counterparts when looking at the percentage of women in elected positions in government.

Laws do change faster than minds.

Today, at the Memphis City Hall, there will be a celebration of the passage of the 19th Amendment at 4pm. If you have some time, stop by and honor the women and men that worked hard to gain women the right to vote. Even if you don’t have time, take a moment to think about the next big change and the challenges that this change brings. Then resolve yourself to stay vigilant and fight for that change. As Mahatma Gandhi noted, “Justice does not help those who slumber but helps only those who are vigilant.”

On to the Coffee…

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We reported yesterday on the challenge to the August 5th elections here in Shelby County. Here’s news coverage of that suit.

Speaking of courage, Wendi Thomas has some thoughts on the subject.

Jackson Baker talks to Jim Kyle on partisanship and primaries.

The Tennessee Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of the Memphis v. Memphis City Schools funding case. Here’s coverage from the Memphis Daily News, the Commercial Appeal, and our very own LeftWingCracker.

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Ok, have fun out there. Looks like it’s gonna be a nice day for a celebration.

Was Your Vote Counted? Who Knows!

Since election day an investigation has been underway to expose all of the problems voters faced. From the looks of things, the plaintiffs have found far more than they expected in that investigation, prompting the suit.

The election process is the cornerstone of our Republic. Without confidence in the process, the whole system falls like a deck of cards. While some have characterized this as a political exercise, the reality is, without a comprehensive independent investigation, there’s no reason to believe that our electoral process is safe and secure. Hopefully this suit will restore faith in the process by mandating a level of transparency that hasn’t been forthcoming since this process began.

Below is the text of their press release.

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AUGUST CANDIDATES FORMALLY SUE DUE TO IMPROPRIETIES IN ELECTION

Ten countywide candidates in the August 5th election have formally filed an election contest in Shelby County Chancery Court requesting injunctive relief. The ten plaintiffs in the suit include certain non-partisan judicial candidates as well as certain Democratic nominees, all of whom competed in the County General Election earlier this month. Based on an inspection and investigation of the Shelby County Election Commission (SCEC) and of August 5th election records, the suit claims that the election process was incurably flawed to the extent that the citizens of Shelby County were denied a free and equal election as required by Article I of the Tennessee Constitution.

The suit alleges widespread irregularities, improprieties, discrepancies and voting problems so significant as to have affected the outcome of the August election and to have caused the election results to be incurably uncertain. Already known is the massive error already acknowledged by the SCEC and described by the SCEC itself as “unacceptable” where invalid and inaccurate voter eligibility records were provided to polls on Election Day potentially affecting 5,400 voters and turning away thousands.

“This lawsuit is intended to assure that the OTHER substantial and appalling improprieties which occurred in the August election are brought to light, investigated and resolved for all citizens and for every future election. The handling and mishandling of the August election by the SCEC is an embarrassment to our county and a violation of every principle on which our country was founded. Regardless of race, party or gender, every citizen is entitled to better and is entitled to an unimpeded and transparent voting process. Our upcoming November election, including the vote on consolidation of Memphis and Shelby County, is important to many, and we intend to do everything in our power, with the approval of the courts, to assure that every citizen’s vote counts. None of us should tolerate incompetence or impropriety.”

Examples of problems from the suit:

1. Votes Without Voters: According to SCEC records, the Participating Voters List for the August election includes 176,119 voters. Without explanation, the Certified Statement of Votes Cast shows 182,921 votes as being cast in the August 2010 election. Thus, according to SCEC’s own records, 6,802 more votes were cast than individuals who participated in the August 2010 election.

2. Missing Vote Batches: Unexplained errors in vote count are reflected by the voting machines. Vote batches are numbered sequentially based on when they are uploaded from the voting machines, and all early vote uploads to the central tabulator should reflect an upload date of August 5. However, two of the batches mysteriously reflect an upload date of August 12 (the first day of inspection) –yet they remain sequentially listed with the other early vote batches that were all uploaded on August 5. Further, twenty batches of vote uploads are no longer in the system at all (vote batches 245-265) with no record of them at this time. The missing batches potentially contain between 6,000 and 18,000 votes.

3. Provisional Ballots: Errors were committed with provisional ballot counting. Eight entries appear in the GEMS software audit log at SCEC stating that provisional ballots were manually entered on August 12, 2010, but only one entry appears in the batch entry, and according to the poster log, 13 batches were manually entered. Plus, only about 70% of the provisional ballots cast are being credited as valid.

4. Turnout Inconsistencies: Inconsistencies exist in the SCEC’s daily turnout figures for early voting sites. During early voting, poll watchers for candidates documented voter turnout at specific early sites, yet the turnout figures subsequently released by SCEC for each day were inexcusably inconsistent. Final voter count taken after the last voter voted each day should have exactly matched the actual count released from the SCEC. In some instances, the count was off by as much as thirty (30) votes in a day. Such widespread and pervasive inconsistencies occurred at the twenty satellite voting locations over the approximate two-week early voting period as to make the results of the August 5th election incurably uncertain.

5. Poll Tapes: Poll tapes from each voting machine with vote results are to be signed by poll workers and maintained by SCEC in accordance with law (TCA 2-8-108). During the first day of the post-election inspection at the SCEC Operations Center, two large trash bags were found containing crumpled, but original signed poll tapes, without reasonable explanation from the SCEC except that they were being thrown away. Such election documentation is required to be preserved by law. On the other hand, many poll tapes being kept by SCEC to allegedly verify the certified vote totals lack proper signatures and verification, and others are just missing, making it impossible to confirm vote totals.

6. Unsealed/Unsecured Equipment: Voting machines, tabulators, memory cards and other voting apparatuses used in the election were seen at the SCEC Operations Center and were not secured or stored in a manner to protect them from manipulation. Many voting machines used in the election were not sealed and had not been sealed since Election Day, August 5th. Multiple voting machines were not returned to the SCEC until August 12, 2010, a week after the election in violation of law. There were voting machines running at the SCEC between August 12th through at least August 17th, all open and able to accept votes – more than a week after the election. Memory cards holding votes were in open boxes throughout the facility.

7. The Ghost Race: The election machines chosen by SCEC affix an ID to each race being run. One ID number is found on the GEMS report and poll tapes and a corresponding but different ID is in the MDB tables. For example, the Sheriff’s race is ID 92 in the MDB tables and is identified as race 408 in the export to GEMS. According to the MDB and GEMS tables, there are a total of 105 races. However, only 104 races were visible to the public while voting, with one race existing but hidden from view. In the MDB tables, this “Ghost Race” is designated Race 105, with GEMS export ID number 440. This “Ghost Race” was created on June 11 and remained in the system until after the August election. It is coded so as to be hidden on both touch screen (early voting and at the polls) ballots and absentee ballots. It does not appear to be designed to capture votes entered by voters – but it can be used to transfer, delete or temporarily store votes. The race contains no candidate and is marked “nocount” which will cause any votes in this race to be omitted from vote count reports.
The existence of a “Ghost Race” is similar to a dummy bank account or a second set of log books. It allows votes to be moved around without reflecting transactions in the audit data. The most troubling aspect is that it only appeared on ballot styles 2, 10, and 80 – which encompass 54 primarily Democratic precincts.

8. Obstructionism: On August 17, 2010 during inspection, employees of the SCEC were stopped while taking computers to their cars. SCEC represented to the inspection team that the computer memories had been wiped clean, and the computers were being given away due to their age – per a ‘policy’ of the SCEC. However, upon examination, the computer memories were not wiped clean; voter files were on the machines and the machines’ memories indicated they had been accessed multiple times in the wee hours of August 12, 2010, before candidate inspection teams arrived that same day.

9. Vote Swap: Numerous incidences of “vote swap” were recorded during the election, where voters voted for one candidate by touching the appropriate candidate’s name on the electronic touch-screen, only to have another candidate’s name appear. The vote swap issue was consistent and pervasive throughout the election period and SCEC did not cure the problem.

10. Party Identifiers: Another distinct problem during the election was “party identifiers” being erroneously placed next to candidate names on voting screens. For example, numerous reports exist of non-partisan candidates for judicial elections having “party identifiers” labeling them as Republicans or Democrats next to their names. Such political identifiers are improper and significantly impact judicial races, which are non-partisan.

11. Voting Unavailable: In both May and August elections, some polls opened late – as much as an hour and a half – or had voting machines which were inoperable for periods of time while voters were turned away. The SCEC denied all requests to keep the respective poll(s) open longer to make up that down time. Some voters attempted to vote 3 times.

12. The Wrong Early Voting Database: SCEC has acknowledged loading the wrong early voter database in the Electronic Poll Books (EPBs) used for August 5th, potentially resulting in 5,400 voters being told they already voted. Affidavits have been collected evidencing voters turned away without being given options and/or threatened with prosecution. Some affidavits have been turned over to TBI, which is also investigating. The SCEC was correct when it stated that this error was “unacceptable”. Infringement on a person’s right to vote is not a minor matter; it is illegal. Candidate inspection teams have thus far been denied sufficient data or documentation to even verify that that SCEC used the May 2010 early voter database rather than a larger early voter database which would have affected more voters, as some voter statements would indicate. The error itself was not corrected on Election Day, since SCEC allegedly advising their poll workers how to handle the issue, is not the same as not having had the issue. Voters were told they had already voted, and the voters’ reluctance to try to vote, after being told that they already cast a vote in the General Election was undoubtedly magnified by the arrest of two individuals in July 2010, who were charged with voting twice in the 2006 election. The media publicized these arrests throughout Shelby County, and specifically included quotes from members of the SCEC. This public decision to prosecute immediately prior to the election, after a lapse of four years, unquestionably had a chilling effect on voters that was magnified by the use of the incorrect voter file.
******

The lawsuit requests that the Court immediately restrain SCEC from destroying, erasing or disposing of any voter information or data from the August election, seize all election paraphernalia, and that an exact copy of all computer data and hard drives be preserved for examination by the Court. It further requests that the actions of the SCEC for the November election be monitored.

Jonathan Cole Speaks Before the Memphis City Council

As has been widely reported, the ordinance was withdrawn yesterday due to a belief that support for the ordinance was lagging, and that the ordinance had not been treated fairly by members of the City Council, particularly Barbara Swearengen Ware, who requested the ordinance be pulled off the Consent Agenda on its first reading, and Councilman Bill Morrison who offered an amendment even more watered down than the ordinance that passed in the Shelby County Commission earlier this year.

These circumstances, and the pillow soft support of Memphis Mayor A C Wharton ultimately led to the withdrawal.

Shelby County TEP Chair Jonathan Cole spoke before the Council last night and cited the appearance of bias against the ordinance as one of the reasons for the withdrawal.

Councilman Myron Lowery contested Cole’s assertion that the Ordinance had not received a fair hearing, and said he wished the Ordinance would be allowed to come up for a vote. Lowery voted for the Ordinance on First Read two weeks ago.

In talking to Jonathan after his statement he noted that a great deal more work needed to be done in order to secure workplace protections for GLBT City employees and that the TEP would continue to strive for those protections despite the withdrawal of the Ordinance.

Discrimination is a destructive force in our community, yet it persists in many different forms. The passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 provided protections for women and racial minorities long before attitudes about those groups began to change. Laws often change more quickly than minds. It takes strong leadership, from both the people these laws would impact, and political leaders to allow the law to lead us out of the darkness of discrimination into the light of equality. It seems that many of our political leaders are more interested in maintaining their political capitol than spending it on an issue that should be a no-brainer.

If we use the Civil Rights Act as a model for reform, we see that the use of the words race, color, religion, sex, or national origin are critical to provide specific protections for people who faced discrimination. Using “non-merit based reasons for dismissal or lack of consideration for a position” to cover a specific group of people is inadequate. Opponents of reform consistently use this tactic to avoid the issue. Without specificity there really is no reform. This seems to be the stance taken by the TEP, and I couldn’t agree with them more.

It is the specificity of the Civil Rights Act that made it possible to positively impact the lives of millions of Americans by making discrimination based on the metrics provided in the law illegal. Without that specificity there is no protection, and while policy makers may feel the need to compromise on controversial issues, there can be no compromise on protecting communities of people who face discrimination. Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expression must be included in order to truly protect GLBT employees.

Memphis has a long history of being resistant to provide protections for populations that face discrimination, as any Civil Rights activist in this city can tell you. It is unfortunate but perhaps not that surprising that the conditions in the City Council have ultimately continued this resistance through their actions on this issue.

I know that the TEP will be back and stronger than ever to fight for equal workplace protections for GLBT employees in City government. I also know they have a lot of work to do to change enough minds on the City Council to eventually change the law. I applaud them on their commitment to hold firm on the specific language. Its an uphill battle, but its a battle that must be fought to truly gain the protections they seek.

Yesterday’s meeting of the Memphis City Council was not only a study in process, but also a prime example of one of the problems facing Memphians. Our elected officials chose to chart their own course, despite widespread public outcry decided there was more need for a ninth Pharmacy in a 2 mile area than for the citizens to have a voice in the character of their neighborhood.

This is government at its worst on several counts. First, with all the opposition to the new CVS, and so many options nearby, there is a good possibility that there will not be enough local support for the business meaning that in the long-term we’ll be left with a building we don’t like that will be vacant. Second, the only two no votes came from the people who know the area best, Jim Strickland and Shea Flinn. The rest of the Council’s decision to ignore both the wishes of the locals and two of the four people who represent those locals is inexcusable.

From my perspective, this is why people don’t trust our local government. Bill Boyd, who represents District 2, which is nowhere near the intersection of Cooper and Union even noted that no amount of public outcry or lack of support would sway the Council. Let’s hear it for accountability and doing the business of the public.

Regardless of any referendum or potential change in government, this illustrates a major problem for our community. If our elected officials believe they know more about the communities they serve than the people who live in those communities, they’ve got their priorities all switched, especially when they don’t even represent those communities. The structure of our government matters little if elected officials can act with impunity toward the wishes of local residents. What the Memphis City Council did yesterday is paternalism at its worst, and they need to be held accountable for it. That’s the only way our voice will ever be heard.

On to the Coffee…

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Here’s the Memphis Daily News and the Commercial Appeal with coverage of the CVS vote.

Smart City thinks the Council wasn’t too smart in their decision yesterday.

Guess what? We also have the highest sales taxes in the US.

The ACLU is going after a severely antiquated law.

Anger motivates voters? Who knew?

Resume padding in Rutherford County.

TN Citizen Action notes a Commercial Appeal editorial on predatory lending.

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Have a good day out there!

I actually have been on the road in northwest Tennessee meeting with constituents. It has been rather interesting. These folks aren’t online and following the political groove of Tennessee bloggers. They are asking questions and aren’t looking for a specific answer, just answers in general. I really needed this because it’s helped me more readily understand the non-virtual world a bit better regarding that most people really just want to know about how to be a part of bringing the area back to what it once was. As northwest Tennessee has a large amount of unemployed people at this point due to loss of dozens of manufacturing industries, the main concerns were how they can be a part of redeveloping the area.

The most intriguing group of people I’ve met recently were a group of bikers whose main objective, other than getting on their Harleys and letting the wind rip through them, is raising money for charities. Toys for Tots, cash for uninsured friends who are facing debilitating medical bills and Walk of Hope. In one place I stopped, it was amazing to see that they have even set up a book exchange for their friends.

It takes different and diverse people to make a community. I’ve been learning this and have been reminded that the world is much bigger and has more layers than I could ever imagine.

So, yeah, that’s what I’ve been up to.

On to the coffee …

Southern Beale breaks down many things. Specifically is why is the GOP getting their blogging base and Democrats aren’t, as on commenter wrote, supporting their supporters.

Mike McWherter will be in Memphis tomorrow night meeting with the Germantown Democratic Club. Cracker has the details.

Captain Kona discusses the “truthiness” of Phil Roe.

Democrat Vs. Democratic.

Chas Sisk has a story in the Tennessean today on how TN Democrats, focusing on the race in the 48th,  hope to take back the house.

Bianca Phillips has some non-discrimination events today in re: to the second reading of the Memphis Employment Non-Discrimination Ordinance this afternoon.

And finally, take a look at history in Chattanooga through the eyes of Dan Lehr at the Public Interest. Amazing.

Nothing bad has happened, in fact, yesterday I got some REALLY good news about my Financial Aid for the upcoming semester. But, for whatever reason, this morning I’m just kinda blank.

It happens. Most of the time when there’s too much going on I thrive. All the activity keeps me moving like a perpetual motion machine. Sometimes it doesn’t work like that. I guess this morning is one of those cases.

So, rather than fight it, I’m just going to embrace it and get to the Coffee!

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Matt Pulle at the Nashville Scene is taking a deep look at Islamophobia.

McWherter slams Haslam on leaky tanks.

With all the election controversy, the TNDP points the finger at the guy who gutted TVCA.

Speaking of elections, Election Administrator Mark Goins is blaming all the problems on human error, errors that might have been avoided if his office hadn’t pushed so hard for the gutting of TVCA.

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton is downplaying his recent visit with Republican Gubernatorial Candidate Bill Haslam.

Nike Inc. is all about the Memphis NDO and Jonathan Cole talks about some surprise opposition that cropped up during the first reading of the proposed ordinance.

The second reading is Tuesday, August 24, at 3:30, 125 N. Main in Memphis.

The Shelby County division of Community Services has launched a campaign to inform people with HIV/AIDS about area services.

Ahh, the good ole days…weren’t really all that good.

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Have a great day and an even better weekend!

Next week, there will be celebrations all over the state for the 90th birthday of the 19th Amendment. These celebrations don’t just commemorate the victory of women’s suffrage, but also the work involved in getting such a monumental change passed.

Big changes require a big effort. I can’t think of a single instance where something big changed that was a revolution of one. Sure there are leaders, but there are also organizers and activists and foot-soldiers. When all of these elements work together, eventually, the change you seek can happen. Such was the case with the suffragist movement.

If you look at the history of the women’s suffrage movement, it took over seventy years from the Seneca Falls Convention for an amendment to the Constitution to gain the approval of enough people to pass. Despite advances in communication over the 160 years since this convention, there’s little reason to believe that significant changes will take any less time. Technology changes faster than minds.

Which is why it was with great interest that I read this post on Grand Divisions last night. I encourage you to go read the whole thing yourself, but the Cliff’s Notes version is that stuff doesn’t get done in a vacuum. It takes a movement of like minded people to make lasting change happen, whether it be in local, state, or federal affairs.

We’ve got a lot of great voices here in Tennessee. People who are passionate about their issues and willing to put that passion out there for the world to see. But sometimes I feel like much of that passion is spent on specific instances or particular situations, rather than confronting the big picture thing in an organized manner. Maybe this is how movements get started, the problem is posed in the public sphere until enough people coalesce around the issue to confront it directly, but more often than not it seems like a lot of individual voices calling out in a crowded field rather than a movement.

As Chris’ post notes, we can make a much bigger impact as a group than as individuals. We have to get involved in the process beyond just talking about the change we want. We have to work together as a group for people who are interested in making that change happen, and we have to engage those who may be on the fence to make the case for the change we seek. We have to engage to a degree far beyond our comfort level to push things in our direction. Conservatives realized this in the 70′s and started working for it, now we’re facing many of the same challenges that conservatives did in that time. Its our time to organize.

We have a lot of strong voices in this state, but we suffer from a lack of organization. Until we build some strength in numbers, we’ll continue to suffer the consequences of our inaction. The floor is open to suggestions.

On to the Coffee

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Joe Powell has been on fire this week, and he keeps the momentum going with this post.

Looks like the Yarbro-Henry recount will be decided on Monday.

The Feds are helping big time on the flood recovery funds, I’m sure somewhere conservatives are freaking out.

Campfield in the crosshairs.

In Shelby County, the finger has been pointed.

Accountability returns from a long absence in Memphis City government.

Test your electric cars here.

Carpenter wants an opinion on Mayor Ford’s impending veto, and in the process is preparing for a veto override.

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Ok, have a good day!

We live in a world with lots of complex problems. Some are more complex than others. Yet despite the complexities, we, as a whole, seem more than willing to focus on one or two things, to prescribe a solution. And even though we know that said solution will not solve all the problems, we often bill it as such to help persuade those who also recognize there problem even though we may not all agree on what that problem is.

While reducing an argument to this lowest common denominator may be useful in the rhetoric of campaigns or persuasion, it is also somewhat intellectually dishonest. No solution is a panacea. No solution is going to make things magically better. In fact, the only way to make things better is through a lot of hard work and concerted effort, though the people who present their solutions to problems would be loathe to admit that, because we all know no one likes hard work, or concerted effort. We just want it fixed and we don’t want to have to do much to achieve this state of “fixed”.

In government, most solutions are a balance of plusses and minuses. There will be those who believe they are losing something, and those who believe they are gaining. Once the solution is implemented, the problem may not actually be solved, which creates a whole new round of “winners” and “losers”, except this time its not based on perception.

The truth is, in any solutions someone’s “giving something up”, and someone’s “gaining” something. There is no solution, in government or anything else, where everyone benefits equally. In fact, it may take many years for the “winners” to realize their reward, giving them ample time to get frustrated and chart a new course away from this reward.

We all want instant gratification which is impossible.

An honest assessment of any solution will clearly state the problem that it seeks to solve, and additional problems it may create. For whatever reason, we’re not allowed to have that level of discourse in this county on most issues. Instead, we buy into short-term solutions from long-term problems, and maintain a permanent state of disappointment when they are never “solved”, or when they create another “problem”.

Nothing is as black and white as we want it to be. Nothing can be reduced to that level if we’re honestly looking at the entirety of the problem. The key is to find peace in the grey, and be willing to make adjustments so neither side of the see-saw bottoms out shaking the whole system.

Maybe we need to learn to appreciate grey a little more. The wild swings between black and white haven’t been serving us that well.

That was too much bar room philosophy for this early in the morning. On to the coffee!

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I’m sure this will be a love fest.

Should we change our name to the “I wanna be sedated” state?

I’ll take hijacking for $1000 Alex.

Free speech can have costly consequences. Goldni on how the First Amendment doesn’t protect you from being an idiot.

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Have a great day!

So since I’ve been a little out of the loop for the past few days, I want to take this opportunity to riff on something that’s near and dear to my heart, going to college.

Way back in fall of 1990 I started college for the first time. Even though my parents weren’t able to contribute much financially, I qualified for several scholarships that made it possible to go to school. One scholarship was based on my ACT score, and basically paid for my tuition, which at the time was just $700 a semester. The other was a scholarship that I received from the Music department. I was a music major at the time and they recruited me pretty hard. Finally, I was also eligible for some Pell grants and other financial aid.

At the time, I was like most entering Freshmen, young and stupid, away from home for the first time. I over-scheduled myself and basically did everything wrong imaginable. Still, my GPA wasn’t that bad even though my attendance in class was spotty at best. Sometime in the Spring of 1992, then President George H. W. Bush pushed for tightening the requirements on Pell Grants. Suddenly, that money was gone in Fall of 1992, and between that and several other circumstances, I dropped out.

Flash forward to almost exactly a year ago today. Nearly 18 years after I left school I made the decision to go back. There are a lot of reasons for the decision, but mostly, I realized that while I liked my job, I wasn’t doing what I was supposed to be doing. I was merely going through the motions. I was unhappy, and I wanted a change. I spent August through December winding down my business, and in January I took a part time job and enrolled in 9 hours at University of Memphis.

There were some things I wasn’t prepared for, but the biggest thing was the cost. At $300/credit hour, taking one class now costs more than a full time load at ASU in 1990. I thought maybe, eventually, I would qualify for some Financial Aid, but as of right now, that’s not happening. The best I can hope for is to loan my way through this school year, and hope my income is high enough to survive, but low enough to eventually qualify for something.

My GPA is hovering around 3.25 (transfer and current), and my income has been cut in less than half. When school starts in a couple of weeks, I will have paid nearly $8000 in tuition this year. But even though I’ve appealed my FAFSA score, its looking like loans are the only option, for at least another year. This is discouraging to me.

On Sunday, Sen. Jim Kyle wrote an op-ed in the Knoxville News that talked about the lottery scholarship. I had hoped that after my appeal I would qualify, but now three weeks after the appeal process, it looks like that isn’t going to happen. Based on the criteria on the TN Lottery Scholarship site I should qualify based on my income appeal. Maybe there’s something I’m missing. This whole financial aid thing is highly confusing to me.

Last summer, when Sen. Kyle announced his candidacy for Governor, he talked about making lottery scholarship money more available to people like me, who are less that 60 hours away from a degree, to finish school. Like the Op-Ed, he noted at the announcement speech that the fastest way to increase the number of people with bachelor’s degrees was to get people who have started back into school. He also noted that increasing the overall education level of the state was one way to attract more economic development, better higher paying jobs, to the state. His speech was part of my inspiration for going back.

I’m not giving up, but I am discouraged. I knew this would be hard when I started it, but I had no idea it would be financially crippling. If Tennessee is serious about increasing the percentage of people with college degrees, our legislators have to stop looking at the lottery scholarship fund as a means to whatever short term end they have at the moment, and make those scholarships available to more people like myself, who are trying to finish school, but have limited earning potential due to the time commitment of school.

I don’t think anyone realizes just how much of an investment, in time and money, it is for a nearly 40-something to go back and do this. It’s been hard, but also rewarding. The key is to not make it so hard, so financially crippling, that people can’t make the decision to go back and finish. Based on my experience so far, that is the case.

Hopefully in the next session they’ll make it easier…if not for me, at least for the next guy or gal that decides to take the plunge.

Ok, on to the Coffee…

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Mike McWherter was in Memphis yesterday and talking about expanding pre-k programs in the state as well as business poaching that Mississippi seems to be so god at.

Haslam’s still running away from his GOP nomination. I wonder why he didn’t include Don Sundquist in that list?

Both of my parents are on Social Security, and they’ll come down on these people like a ton of bricks if they don’t shut the hell up.

Joe Powell with part 2 of his indentured servitude series.

And finally, someone please go pull a petition against this guy. No, not you Richard Fields.

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Have a great day, see ya on the flip!

In our spiritual lives, the faith in a loving God gives people of many traditions the hope of better things to come.

In politics, there are many levels of faith from many different positions, but perhaps the most fundamental is that our elections will be carried out in such a way that there are few, if any questions about the outcome.

Certainly, every election has problems. The fact is, we’re human, even though some seem loath of acknowledge that, and humans make mistakes more often than not. But mistakes alone don’t shake one’s faith in elections. There are many other contributing factors that ultimately lead to a shaken faith in the system that go far beyond mistakes.

That seems to be where we are now in the ongoing saga of the Shelby County August 2010 elections. As Jackson Baker reported over the weekend, when you add mistakes to a lack of transparency and openness, along with a dash of what appears to be stalling tactics, people lose faith in the process.

As Jackson notes in his article, the Election Commission tweeted on Saturday morning the phrase:

Our silence is us protecting your votes & voting rights while following strong advice from attorneys.

On the face of it, that may seem all well and good, but silence ≠ protection. More often than not, silence = hiding something. Adding that silence to the mistakes, lack of transparency, and stalling tactics, and you’ve got a recipe for ongoing questions, which runs counter to anything requiring faith.

Hopefully things will be different this week. Hopefully, the system, and the people charged with administering the system will be able to withstand scrutiny and faith in our system will be restored. But based on early reports, that’s not likely to happen, leaving faith in our system of elections in limbo or worse.

The hard thing about faith is that once its gone, its difficult to restore. Regardless of your political affiliations, we should all want to have faith in our election system. In order for that faith to either be restored or maintained, some unnecessary barriers must be removed. Hopefully that will happen soon, so those of us with questions will have answers.

At the end of the day, if you have nothing to hide then you have no reason to try an hide anything. The system probably can hold up to scrutiny on its own, if the people in charge will let it.

On to the Coffee…

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Haslam runs to the left in a new ad. One of his great governors says he’s overstating the challenges the state faces. And look, here’s another conflict of interest for the Knoxville Mayor.

Republicans are thinking sweep, but can they do it without the 11th Commandment?

Kyle v. Campfield

Looking at the challenges facing rural west Tennessee.

Joe Powell looks at a TDOT contractor’s employment practices.

Wendi goes for TEA.

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Alright, that’s all for now. More later as time permits.

What We Have Here is an Unwillingness to Communicate

Wanted: Interpreter for Ongoing Elections Dispute

The successful candidate will be fluent in “Yankee” and “Good Ole Boy” and be able to efficiently communicate the concerns of each. Candidate need not have any knowledge of election law or issues surrounding the current question as such information may lead the “Good Ole Boy” contingent to believe that said interpreter is impartial. Further, the successful candidate must leave all rational thought processes at the door to ensure the fragile sensibilities of “Good Ole Boy” are not disturbed. Finally, the successful candidate will also properly genuflect when called upon by said “Good Ole Boy” contingent, even when said request is unwarranted or seriously out of line. Any questioning of “Good Ole Boy” contingent will result in immediate disqualification.

If you don’t know what I’m talking about, then you probably didn’t watch WREG last night. As far as I can tell, none of the other media outlets in the city are covering this issue. Here’s the report from WREG’s Mike Matthews.

LWC has a first person account (part 2) from Regina Morrison Newman.

As Trace noted yesterday, Shelby County isn’t the only place that’s having trouble. This thing is all over the state, and more problems are coming to light.

Over in East Tennessee, a “computer glitch” counted the votes of five precincts twice. That’s reassuring.

The biggest question I have, in light of the hedging and delay that the Shelby County Election Commission engaged in yesterday, is why all the hedging and delay? These are not the actions of someone who agreed just days earlier to be “open and transparent”.

Further, the assertion by election administrators that a text file is somehow “proprietary” is complete and total bull. The text files in question aren’t that much different from the “voter participating list” that the Election Commission posted on its website daily during the election.

So now, this process is tainted, not by any particular “mistake” but by a pattern of unwillingness to maintain the agreed upon “openness and transparency”. In behaving this way, the SCEC is being overly defensive, and creating the perception that they’re hiding something. They’re doing a disservice to themselves, and to the process they’re tasked with administering, by lowering confidence in that very process.

I think Mike Matthews wanted to call the whole scene a “cluster****”, but I’ll call it “self-defeating nonsense” on the part of election administrators who are more interested in protecting an unknown “something” than allowing the public to know the truth.

On to the coffee…

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Over in Nashville, Jeff Yarbro is asking for a recount.

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton brings down the hammer on the General Services Division, and enacts some whistleblower protections.

Be careful what you copy.

Our very own Steve Steffens will be on Informed Sources this weekend.

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Off to the races!