Right now tonight...If you have a 10 x pair of binoculars you can see four moons of Jupiter. There are 75 more!

These moons are all pretty tiny, ranging between less than a mile and nearly two miles wide. And they break down into three different types. Two orbit closer to Jupiter, moving in the same direction that the planet spins. Farther out from those, about 15.5 million miles from the planet, there are nine that rotate in the opposite direction, moving against Jupiter’s rotation. But in this same distant region, one strange moon that astronomers are calling Valetudo is moving with Jupiter’s spin, like the two inner moons. That means it’s going in the opposite direction of all the other moons in the same area. “It’s basically driving down the highway in the wrong direction,” Scott Sheppard, an astronomer at Carnegie who led the discovery team, tells The Verge. “That’s a very unstable situation. Head-on collisions are likely to happen in that situation.”

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I am working up my thoughts on the broadband meeting from last Friday morning. We appreciate Ron Berry and Darrell Meadows getting it together but nothing came out of it except a renewed feeling that service providers don't have any interest in serving rural America. The only people who count are shareholders.

Let's note that the Trump tax cut just gave Charter an $8.5 BILLION increase in profits in ONE QUARTER year over year. That is an obscene 17 times increase in profit. That they did not work to earn.

The solution is simple! Reinstate their original taxes and use that money to fund high speed internet to the entire nation.

The average internet speed for Tennessee is around 7 megs.

South Korea has an average of 26 megs.

More later.

The Senate is divided 51-49 at the moment. Senator Bob Corker is retiring in 6 months. Basically Corker has the power to stop Russian tool Donald Trump from destroying American foreign policy. So what does he do?

Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), another retiring senator who helped champion yesterday’s symbolic resolution, warned Americans yesterday that Trump is “diminishing” the United States’ international influence, adding that he’s “troubled” by the president’s antics on the global stage.

Those are certainly worthwhile sentiments, but the Tennessee Republican is the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

All this huffing and puffing and total lack of real action begs the question: Can Bob Corker get any smaller?

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After working during the hot months with a survey crew last year I conducted an independent study all on my own. Tick bites went from several per day to none at all. I also spray up with DEET to stop chiggers and no-seeums. The deep Tennessee woods are amazing but treacherous if you aren't prepared.

The official study is very carefully worded in a scientific way that I find over cautious. The stuff works. Say it!

"There are several studies that provide pretty compelling evidence that wearing permethrin-treated clothing has the potential to reduce tick bites," says Neeta Connally, a medical entomologist who oversees the Tickborne Disease Prevention Lab at Western Connecticut State University.

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I was a manufacturer of plastic products. Yes it's true. Thankfully, they weren't "single use" products and some are still in use 30 years later. We recycled everything we could and used post consumer recycle plastics everywhere it was feasible. There weren't many manufacturers who did this but the canoe and kayak industry in particular and the outdoor industry in general have always been committed to environmental awareness and action. This was not true of the plastics industry as a whole and we all suffer for that. Our world is at a tipping point.

I think that if there is an anti-christ it is not Dick Cheney, rather it is the corporation that paid him. Corporations have no soul, no conscience, no heart and they rule the world. It is only when their Chief Financial Officer informs them that they face annihilation, or are simply losing money, that they will consider change. A portion of the plastics industry is now facing the reality that all those "extreme environmentalists" were right all along and something must be done.

Here are the words of Ron Larson, a spokes person for a plastics manufacturer:

Bottles...must have improved design for recycling guidelines to help promote their recovery. And this, he said, is a big one, a "cuss word" to some in the business — more bottle bills.

"That's a nasty word in this industry," he said, "but it works."

Bottle bills will help improve the supply available to meet recycling demand. "Something has to happen," he said. "We need people to lobby for it, not against it, in this industry."

Larson is staring into the crystal ball at the future of his industry and sees it dying. Me too.

So what do we do? Sure, it's good to refuse drinking straws. Don't buy bottled water if at all possible. Recycle your plastic waste. That's all nice but it won't save your children's planet. We have allowed the most anti Planet Earth administration in history to rise to power in the United States of America.

Vote them out! All of them. The big ones and the little ones. The anti science ones. The global warming deniers and their enablers. All of them. VOTE THEM OUT!

There, I feel better. Now let's get to work!

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Diane Black got disgraced EPA Director Pruit to allow super polluting diesel trucks back on the road as he walked out the door...

Tom Humphrey noted last month, the Crossville company blamed the EPA and government regulations for layoffs and cutbacks in production. They also donated $225K to Diane Black's campaign for governor. Rep. Black had previously fought to get the law repealed.

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And then there's this:

"All told, the Trump administration’s environmental rollbacks could lead to at least 80,000 extra deaths per decade and cause respiratory problems for more than one million people, according to a recent analysis conducted by researchers from Harvard University. That number, however, is likely to be “a major underestimate of the global public health impact,” said Francesca Dominici, a professor of biostatistics at the Harvard School of Public Health."

Land Between the Lakes spokesman Chris Joyner tells news outlets that the man approached the bison after illegally entering the enclosure and was rammed Wednesday night. The man was at the South Bison Range, which has no driving trails.

Idiot!

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We've added the TN Journal and the Nashville Scene to our Eco Warriors and Politics feed over on the right. Tom Humphrey cannot be replaced but perhaps these voices will ease the pain somewhat. It's election crazy time in Tennessee and America and we will need all the rational information we can find to wade through the muck.

Just please remember to think for yourself and don't trust anybody without doing some of your own research.

It's no secret that I am very critical of our current media and it's failure to fulfill it's constitutional mandate to inform citizens of what people in power are actually doing. One bright light in Tennessee has been Tom Humphrey. Not only did he tell us what was going on but what the goings on actually meant to us. He's been retired but not really. Now he's moving on to being really retired. Here is a comment from the On The Hill announcement"

Connor Coffey says:
July 2, 2018 at 7:09 pm
The continuing disintegration of thoughtful, local political journalism, especially in medium sized media markets like Tennessee, will only serve to reduce civic awareness & engagement and diminish our government’s accountability to its citizens.
It is tragic – and ultimately dangerous – that this type of journalism, often the one true lifeline from constituents to their respective state capitals, county seats and city halls, is now considered by publishers to be an unaffordable luxury.
Mr. Humphrey, I will miss your dedication, insight and equilibrium – attributes needed more than ever in times like these – good luck to your successors and may they keep your flame burning.

It's a darkening day in Tennessee.

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It was fun seeing old friends hanging out and talking about "stuff". Phil Bredesen made a point to speak with everyone there. Maurice Grief holds his attention in this picture.

Click on the photo to see more.

Should a President under FBI investigation for collusion with a hostile foreign power be allowed to nominate ANY federal judges, let alone a Supreme Court Justice to a lifetime appointment?

We host a fundraiser for Conservation Fisheries Inc. around this time and we have to get ready for 75 - 100 people at our home and yard. Wandered around the yard with the big camera this morning just to see how things are looking. I think we're going to be OK...

Are there really only two suppliers of newsprint in the whole world, as the RCNclaims?

Dear **********,

There is a fight underway in Washington D.C. to save jobs in the printing, publishing and news industries.

We have joined the STOPP coalition, a group of printers, publishers, paper suppliers and distributors that represent mostly small businesses in local communities that employ more than 600,000 workers in the United States.

We are fighting against a single newsprint mill, NORPAC, that is owned by a New York equity fund, with no additional pulp or paper operations in the United States or globally. NORPAC has filed a petition with the U.S. government to request a tax on Canadian newsprint.

This will increase our costs and will threaten our ability to provide real, honest local news. We need your help to protect jobs and the future of our industry.

Bottom line – we are fighting for you. And we could use your help!

Thanks,

Kevin Kile
Publisher
Roane County News

It appears that the gubernatorial candidates in the GOP Primary are running for Ayatollah.

Elizabeth Bean....Knoxville based Journalist

The Obed River sends us a large portion of our drinking water in Roane County. We need to thank these folks for every inch of land they protect upstream of us.

Obed Wild and Scenic River recently added two tracts totaling 114 acres within the park’s legislative boundary. These tracts were donated by Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning. The first parcel is a 90-acre tract located along the Obed River a few miles upstream from Obed Junction. This tract features extensive river frontage, giant riverside boulders and mature hardwood forests. The second parcel is a 24-acre tract located about halfway down Clear Creek along the popular whitewater run from Barnett Bridge to Jett Bridge.
“Over the past 50 years, Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning has been fortunate to participate in the formation and preservation of the Obed Wild and Scenic River. We are thrilled that a little more of this Tennessee treasure will now be protected and enjoyed forever,“ said Mark Bevelhimer, President of Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning.

Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning (TCWP) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection of natural lands and waters by means of public ownership, legislation or cooperation with the private sector. Their efforts focus on the Cumberland and Appalachian regions of East Tennessee, but sometimes extend to the rest of the state and nation. TCWP was instrumental in the establishment of both Obed Wild and Scenic River and Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area.
“Through this generous donation, Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning has demonstrated their longstanding commitment to the protection of the Obed River and their desire to ensure that this special place will remain a part of our nation’s public lands open to all who want to experience its beauty and sense of wildness,” said Superintendent Niki Stephanie Nicholas.

The most effective methods involve mechanical harvesting and then proper application of herbicide but this is a start.

Milfoil and hydrilla grew rapidly in local lakes, carried here by boats, Niekerk said.

“A lot of people didn’t know what to do and how to handle them,” he said.

Niekerk hangs hoses from a 46-gallon chemical mixing tank over the boat’s side, releasing herbicide near the plants’ root systems. The chemical calculations must be carefully done to be effective, he said.

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The story is at Knox News Sentinel web site.

One of our members sent me this thought:

"Most Roane Co candidates running for office have no contact information, other than maybe Facebook. I don't do Facebook. And the Facebook posts look like a high-schooler's social page. No information on qualifications; no information why they can fill the position; no information as to HOW they will implement any of their ideas/goals.
Can't be an informed voter if I can't contact them!"

I agree completely.

If you’re in the Northern Hemisphere, the June solstice is your signal to celebrate summer. If you’re in the Southern Hemisphere, winter starts at this solstice. This 2018 June solstice takes place on June 21 at 10:07 UTC; translate UTC to your time. In North America and U.S. time zones, that’s June 21 at 7:07 a.m. ADT, 6:07 a.m. EDT, 5:07 a.m. CDT, 4:07 a.m. MDT, 3:07 a.m. PDT, 2:07 a.m. AKDT (Alaskan Daylight Time) and 12:07 a.m. HAST (Hawaiian-Aleutian Standard Time). At the instant of this June 2018 solstice, it’s sunrise in the Americas and sunset in Japan and Indonesia. The sun is at zenith (straight overhead) over in South Africa, not far from Polokwane (Pietersburg). The solstice happens at the same instant for all of us, everywhere on Earth; only our clocks and calendars are different.

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The Roane County Board of Education will meet this Saturday (June 16, 2018) at 9 a.m. at the Williams Building in Kingston in an emergency session to formally accept the resignation letter of Director of Schools Dr. Leah Watkins. Members could appoint an interim director at the meeting. Watkins was offered the director of schools position by the Obion County School Board last night. Watkins steps down as the school system works toward a $66.75 million school-building plan.

from 105.7

But, City Councilmen can't.

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Trump-appointed FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, "a former Verizon lawyer, bucked the law, ignored public opinion and twisted the facts to make his ill-advised case for handing control of the internet to the anti-competitive cabal of giant phone and cable companies"... Free Press's Timothy Karr

"Poll after poll after poll after poll shows large majorities of Republican voters in opposition to the FCC's repeal..."

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Overlooking the child labor question, is this some kind of back door statement that Randy is willing to raise the minimum wage? $1 in 1962 when he was 8 is worth $8.20 today, about a 14% increase.

“I never expected the government to take care of me, but today, too many people do. I believe those who can work, should work – not permanently live on welfare,” Boyd touts.

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Here's the entry form...Fixed Link.

The name "chipmunk" comes from the Ottawa word ajidamoonh or the Ojibwe word ajidamoo, which translates literally as "one who descends trees headlong."

Just watched a chipmunk descend a tree head first. As much time as I spend outdoors I didn't know that is how they did it. Apparently they climb trees for tender buds, caterpillars and bird eggs.

These are the cleaner messages my friends the Russians sent this morning. I get a dozen or so every single day. I leve it to you, fine readers, to figure out what some of these are about. They always have a link to click but I never click on any of them. Don;t you do it either.

From vikladex@xxxxx
"Order sleazy sldnfl without remedy"

jacquelynzv60 tells me that:
"My self-controlled protrude"

sandywj2@orbinato.lady-and-lunch.lady-and-lunch)

This one wants to sell me expanded polystyrene:
"пенополистирол экструдированный купить в
самаре"

EverLem sent this one to tell me about the Chevy Volt:
"Это первый в истории автомобиль,
использующий электроэнергию в качестве
основного источника энергии, совершенно
нового класса – с технологией “E-REV”

Somehow I'm thinking the link won't be all that automotive. Ha!

This would be much more fun if it weren't so foreboding of disaster for the State of Tennessee...

An attorney for Diane Black’s gubernatorial campaign is asking TV stations to stop airing a TV ad that declares “Dishonest Diane Black” is “good for illegal immigrants, bad for Tennessee.”

“To permit recirculation of this advertisement would condone the disclosure of plainly false and misleading statements that lack any nexus with the factual citations contained within the advertisement,” wrote Rocklan W. King III, an attorney with Adams and Reese LLP.

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"Black is pushing legislation to establish a dedicated fund where Americans could make donations for the wall, which Trump administration have said will cost at least $20 billion — and which Trump promised Mexico would pay for."

During an appearance on Fox News on Monday, Black — who is running to become the next governor of Tennessee — floated the idea of putting up plaques along the wall to commemorate those who donate.

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This defies basic economic theory. Wages are not supposed to fall in times of rising employment.

Tennessee employers added 45,000 jobs across the state in the past year, lowering the state's seasonally-adjusted jobless rate from 4 percent a year ago to 3.4 percent last month, reports the Times Free Press. But the average hourly wage paid Tennessee workers was lower than a year ago.

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