I was with a survey crew as a gopher and had some spare time to check these out. Cell phone shots just don't do them justice but here is a winter berry holly and a turtle head. There are some really interesting things blooming out there right now. Go see them for yourself.

Derek Pacifico is an interesting guy. He seems to have a very good background in Law Enforcement, has his own consulting firm and is the author of "Writer's Guide to Homicide":

(link...)

He is also a Criminal Justice Instructor at Farragut High School. I didn't even know they had Criminal Justice in high school.

Welcome to Roane County, Chief Pacifico.

My Kent Calfee Internet has slowed nearly to a stop. I called the service number and was referred to their website, since they don't open until 8 am EDST. Of course the internet is too slow to get their website to open.

GRRRR!

No surprises here:

The National Center for Education Statistics says a fifth of all new teachers leave their positions before the end of their first year, and nearly half don’t last more than five years.

(link...)

From Tyler Overstreet,

I've decided to take a different angle in campaigning for State Representative. Since one of my platform objectives is to raise awareness of the opioid abuse & addiction epidemic in our district, I will fund one Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) treatment for one person. Now to figure out a way to identify & select the person I will help. That in itself is a tall order.

Overstreet is asking for public input on how to select the person in need of treatment and maintain confidentiality. His website is here:

(link...)

This is a stunning bit of news...The US Senate can't find the time to do its Constitutional duty to hold hearings on a Supreme Court nominee but they have plenty of time to meddle in our lake regulation here in TN.

Deplorable!

(link...)

More Planned Parenthood witch hunting by Marsha Blackburn. It apparently makes no difference to her that every investigation has ounf Planned Parenthood innocent of all charges.

“We would not participate in what we view as a very illegitimate process,” the panel’s top Democrat, Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois, said after all six Democrats walked out of the meeting just before the contempt vote.

The contempt charges now go to the House Energy and Commerce Committee for consideration and then onto the full House.

(link...)

What a cloudless blue sky to welcome in the new season. What did we do with Summer?

I don't think I'd panic just yet but this does deserve to be looked into.

3 water systems tested positive for chromium-6. 19 out of 23 samples tested positive for chromium-6.

County-wide Statistics

Average: 0.0672 ppb

Range: ND - 0.141 ppb

California Public Health Goal: 0.02 ppb

Systems Containing Chromium-6

Harriman Utility Board

Cumberland Utility District

Roane Central Utility District

(link...)

So the epic battle is setting up between for profit prison lobbyists and the Tennessee Coalition for Sensible Justice made up of the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee, the Beacon Center of Tennessee, the Tennessee Association of Goodwills, and the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce which represents over 2000 businesses represented.

Tennessee’s incarceration rate is 11 percent higher than the national average as of 2014, costing Tennessee taxpayers over $900 million annually. The state’s high incarceration rate does not appear to correspond with a proportional increase in public safety: Even as Tennessee’s imprisonment rate increased by 256 percent between 1981 and 2013, Tennessee’s violent crime rate remains among the highest in the nation. However, in 33 states that have reduced imprisonment rates, there has been a 13% decline in crime rates.

(link...)

I guess the theory of "floating homes should be legal" is that if you break a law for long enough then is should be legal to do so especially if you might lose money.

Frank Cagle goes all squishy on people who are losing money because their "houseboats" have been banned by TVA. Had Frank done just the least bit of research instead of cribbing from a propaganda piece put out by a floating home group he would know that what he is claiming is absolute nonsense. Let me say it slowly...

TVA HAS NEVER AND HAS NOT NOW BANNED HOUSE BOATS!

FLOATING HOUSES BUILT ON BARGES HAVE NEVER BEEN LEGAL ON TVA LAKES! In a total rollover to pressure, TVA has given existing barge houses a pass for 30 freakin' years, apparently because they have been illegal for so long it is only right that they be allowed to continue to do so.

See the difference, Frank? One is a navigable boat and is totally legal. One is not navigable and has never been legal until now.

Any bets on whether Frank Cagle corrects the record?

(link...)

A strong majority (80 - 85%) of Tennesseans favor decriminalization of pot. Lobbyists for the for profit prison industry are dead set against it, because it could reduce prison populations in Tennessee by one third. With drug overdoses becoming the number one cause of death in the USA it's time to acept medical and recreational use of pot and focus on the prescription drug abuses that are killing so many of our young people.

Political leaders in Tennessee’s two largest cities are taking steps toward marijuana decriminalization with ordinances that would allow police to reduce the penalty for people who possess small amounts of it.

Nashville’s Metropolitan Council is set to take a final vote on its ordinance on Tuesday, while the Memphis City Council is scheduled to make its decision Oct. 4.

Both cities have similar proposals on the table: Police who encounter people in possession of a half-ounce or less of marijuana have the discretion of giving them a civil citation for a $50 fine or community service.

(link...)

You still have at least 2 more days of Summer!

FALL EQUINOX September 22, 10:21 A.M. EDT

Things are changing fast. Daytime tomorrow will be 2 minutes and 15 seconds shorter than today.

I love science! As techniques evolve, analysis evolves and our knowledge evolves. This little guy hunted the forests of about 40 million years ago and is amazingly well preserved.

(link...)

Pay attention, folks. This is getting crazy and extremely dangerous!

"There are few easy answers, but one thing is clear: the current trajectory of climatic change presents a strategically-significant risk to U.S. national security, and inaction is not a viable option," said a statement published on Wednesday by the Center for Climate and Security, a Washington-based think tank.

It was signed by more than a dozen former senior military and national security officials, including retired General Anthony Zinni, former commander of the U.S. Central Command, and retired Admiral Samuel Locklear, head of the Pacific Command until last year.

They called on the next U.S. president to create a cabinet level position to deal with climate change and its impact on national security.

A separate report by a panel of retired military officials, also published on Wednesday by the Center for Climate and Security, said more frequent extreme weather is a threat to U.S. coastal military installations.

(link...)

Tennessee is now first in the nation for fatal accidental shootings, according to the Safe Tennessee Project, a nonpartisan gun-violence prevention organization.

The group cites recent data from the Centers for Disease Control. Tennessee previously ranked 9th based on statistics from 2013, when 19 people died in accidental shootings.

That number jumped to 105 in 2014, according to the group.

(link...)

Gloria Jean's Restaurant has closed. Just as the fried okra was coming in season, too...

The man who convinced Teddy Roosevelt to create the National Park System, John Muir, spent the night in Kingston 149 years ago today. This is from his journal "A Thousand-Mile Walk To The Gulf":

"Crossed a wide cool stream [Emory River], a branch of the Clinch River. There is nothing more eloquent in Nature than a mountain stream, and this is the first I ever saw. Its banks are luxuriantly peopled with rare and lovely flowers and overarching trees, making one of Nature's coolest and most hospitable places. Every tree, every flower, every ripple and eddy of this lovely stream seemed solemnly to feel the presence of the great Creator." Sept. 12, 1867 John Muir

I wonder how he would feel about this area today?

When medical cannabis was first legalized in California in 1996 for compassionate use, support for nationwide legalization of the drug was only around 25%, per Gallup. A decade ago, just a third of Americans polled supported full legalization efforts. Yet in Gallup's most recent poll, 58% of respondents favored legalizing marijuana for medical and recreational use. In separate polls on the legalization of medical cannabis alone, favorability often exceeds 80%.

With public opinion on marijuana rapidly shifting, we've witnessed a recent surge in state approvals. Today, half of all U.S. states have legalized medical cannabis, and four states (along with Washington, D.C.) have allowed adults over the age of 21 to purchase recreational marijuana. In the upcoming elections this November, five more states will vote on recreational marijuana, and four will decide whether to legalize medical cannabis.

(link...)

For more information, see (link...).

-- OneTahiti

This is not looking good. are already seeing trees turning yellow and brown.

(link...)

From our "Can't Make this Stuff Up" Dept:

More than 40 officers converged Saturday on the Hardy Township field after concerned parents notified the Holmes County sheriff’s office of a large party expected to attract over 1,000 Amish from Ohio and neighboring states.

(link...)

Sam Russell was the runner up in the election and was approved. One seat will remain vacant for now.

(link...)

Look...If you want to vote for someone who has twice been named as a rapist in sworn under penalty of perjury court documents, why that's fine. You have that right. If you want to vote for a candidate who is under investigation for bribery of Two state attorney generals to keep then from indicting Trump University for Fraud, why that is your right. What isn't your right is to deface and destroy campaign signs of the person running against your candidate. That is just un-American thuggery.

I managed to find time to wander around Hooray for Harriman yesterday and was very happy to get to listen to a music set by Zach Miles, an up and coming singer songwriter who is often seen with the group, Handsome and the Humbles. I just missed Temper Evans.

At the Democratic Party Labor Day Picnic Local guitar slinger phenom Joey Pierce performed the National Anthem on acoustic guitar and played a few more songs before the speechifying began.

Interesting non sighting was Democratic State Representative primary winner, Corey Stafford, at either event. Stafford appears to be a non candidate, who, by the mere fact of his name on the ballot, will split the votes of the many voters dissatisfied with Kent Calfee who faces strong opposition from independent candidate Tyler Overstreet. State political observers have downgraded the District 32 race from "Likely Republican" to "Probable" Republican. Overstreet worked the Labor Day Picnic and had a booth at Hooray for Harriman and seems determined to make this a race.

Eh440 - Coming To The Princess September 20th!

Sep 20 2016 - 07:00 PM

Eh440!

As a popular and well known a cappella music group from Toronto, Eh440 has won numerous awards for their 2014 CD “Turn Me Up” and received rave reviews for their latest work. The five-artist quintet often tours both Canada and America, wowing both young and older crowds with an upbeat eclectic mix of harmony, R & B, beatboxing, and more. Their crisp sound and electric performances are like nothing else you will see!

Come join this amazing, talented group as they perform live at the Princess Theatre in Harriman!

Admission is free and the general public is welcome. Generously sponsored by the Roane State Campus Activities Board.

Doors open at 6. Event starts at 7 p.m.
https://youtu.be/_ELX_buxhHk

Sep. 15, 2016 - 07:00 PM

The RSCC Arts and Lectures Committee is pleased to sponsor September’s free movie night: Lincoln (Rated PG-13, 2012).

This soul-searching movie explores the tragedy of the Civil War, the carnage of the battlefields, and the many difficult decisions made by one of our most interesting presidents. With an introduction by local historian and professor John Brown, we invite you to celebrate Constitution Day at the Princess Theatre.

General admission; free to the public. Donations appreciated and accepted.

Running time: 150 minutes.

Enough of whether highly paid athletes should stand during a song that celebrates their slave heritage, or sit out a devalued ritual. I think it's time to get on with it and choose a new National Anthem.

The current one was adopted by President Woodrow Wilson in 1914 and officially enshrined into law when President Woodrow Wilson signed the Congressional resolution in 1931. Before that we had "My Country 'Tis of Thee", "Hail, Columbia", and America the Beautiful".

Don't we all think it is time to choose an anthem that doesn't celebrate the preservation of slavery and the hierarchy of the rich? Perhaps one whose melody was written by an American? Perhaps one whose melody was NOT written by a patron of a "gentleman's" club that celebrated wine and sex as its guiding principles?

(Though that isn't necessarily bad, I just think we can do a bit better)

So what would I pick? I'm not sure but I like this one and think it would be awesome to hear it played 46 times at the Olympics...