Blount County Public Library, 508 N. Cusick Street, Maryville

"Please join us as we continue our discussion on the future of mobility in the Knoxville region. We will review the feedback we received during the spring workshops and talk about how to get around the region in the future. The discussion will help us identity steps we can take as a region to achieve our common vision."

SAVE IT, DON’T PAVE IT!
A benefit concert for CAPPE

Friday, Sept. 5, 7-11pm at The Shed

More details and info on the all-star lineup after the jump...

Here's a preview of the clear, crisp, clean air days on the way, taken just a few minutes ago:

(Click for bigger)

Rikki Hall's column in this week's Metro Pulse explains the controversy surrounding a heated race for Blount County Circuit Court. Rikki is the only journalist to get it right so far. He has more commentary at BlountViews.

Related: A BlountViews interview with Judge Meares

See BlountViews.com...

Personally, this kind of stuff makes me wonder why we have partisan races for judges, or even elections at all.

At any rate, there's some real hardball bullshit going on over here in Blount Co. re. the GOP establishment v. an outstanding judge appointed by Gov. Bredesen last year.

Here's a sort of summary, and here's the latest, with annoying facts and stuff. It's a disgrace reminiscent of Bill Hobbs and Robin Smith and the rest of the TN GOP slime machine.

And here's a poke at the outrageously biased KNS coverage.

This ought to concern anyone interested in "liberty and justice for all." If you're interested in that sort of thing and would like to help a good guy fighting the good fight, urge your Blount Co. friends to vote for Judge Meares, and consider sending him a couple of bucks.

We caught up with Remote Area Medical just as they were loading out from this weekend's expedition in Blount County. Ron Brewer, Director of Tennessee Operations for Remote Area Medical, recaps the free clinic for uninsured and underinsured:

If you would like to help Remote Area Medical bring free medical, dental, and ophthalmology services to America's working poor, uninsured, and underinsured, you can make a donation here.

Previous KnoxViews discussion here.

The Foothills Fall Festival and WIVK are conducting a poll to nominate a replacement for Willie Nelson, who canceled as the headliner. One of the available artists is the Allman Bros. Band. Please go here and vote for the Allman Bros. Band. Thank you.

Maryville Daily Times:

Country music icon Willie Nelson has canceled his performance at the 2008 Foothills Fall Festival, leaving the festival at least temporarily without a closing headliner.

No word if Led Zeppelin will be available to fill in. AC? (Also, the article makes it sound as though there was never an actual, you know, booking contract. Wonder what gives?)

P.S. Seriously, if they're in a jam, I wonder why they don't give AC a call? I'm guessing that one of the top promoters in the U.S. could probably help them line up an awesome headliner. Maybe even Led Zeppelin!

Check out our review of the Hum-Dinger Drive-In in Maryville.

Details at BlountViews...

A surprise visitor on our front porch a few minutes ago. A rat snake? By the time I could cobble together a snare to catch him, he had moved on to the neighbor's yard, with birds harassing him along the way. Another pic after the jump...

The woods around Cades Cove were covered with them this afternoon. Here's what they sounded like.

(Also saw an Indigo Bunting. It flew away before I could get a photo. What a beautiful, brilliantly blue bird.)

And not just any market. This could kill downtown Knoxville.

Spotted this suburban predator on the roof of the house across the street yesterday evening. There was a mockingbird on our roof raising hell at him/her, and sparrows were dive bombing him/her. (S)he seemed mostly unconcerned, preening and ruffling his/her feathers and looking around. (S)he finally got bored or annoyed or both and flew away.

Our best guess is an immature Sharp-shinned Hawk. Larger version and some more photos that might help with the ID after the jump.

A fire caused extensive damaged at the Maryville Daily Times offices this afternoon. Publisher Max Croster was hospitalized for smoke inhalation. Full report at BlountViews.

UPDATE: Knoxville News Sentinel

It remains unclear whether the company will be able to publish its Tuesday edition.

Note that the KNS reporter is also a reporter for Maryville Daily Times competitor Blount Today.

I spoke with an employee at the Maryville Daily Times who said "we have to put out a paper every day," and that they have contingency plans in place. You can watch the interview at BlountViews. We'll see if I have a Daily Times tomorrow. I'm betting I will.

UPDATE: Our paper arrived as expected this morning, actually a little earlier than usual. Police and fire officials say the fire is suspicious and they are conducting an arson investigation.

Calls Blount Democrats "far-left loons" and refers to three county commissioners as "monkeys." Sen. Lamar Alexander was in attendance and apparently concurs because there is no report that he objected. Read all about it at BlountViews.

or a kinder, gentler vandalism.

The new Montessori Middle School in Louisville (the Blount Co. TN Louisville) is hosting their 1st Annual Farm Festival on Saturday, May 10, 2008 from 11AM to 4PM at the school, which is located at 3725 Louisville Rd (map). The event is open to the public and there is no charge for admission.

According to Nicole DeBurton, head of the school, Montessori Middle School is a unique and innovative program in that it is located in a farm setting, with plans to include gardening, building, and animal husbandry as part of the curriculum. This is the first school of its kind in the Southeast, and only three other such farm-based Montessori Middle Schools exist in the entire country.

Click read more for a press release with more details...

In looking at the Look Rock web cam Link..., it looks like there may be a fire between the Top of the World community and Rich Mountain. Does anyone have any information on this? I hope the appropriate authorities are aware of the problem.

While thousands were gathering on Market Square, I drove from South Knoxville Bubbaville to Marybubbaville to hear the Carolina Chocolate Drops performance on the Maryville College campus. My third or fourth time to hear them perform. I highly recommend that folks do if they have any interest in African American string and jug band music of the 20’s and 30’s. The Chocolate Drops are not only marvelous entertainers and musicians; they are musical scholars who are collecting and performing a unique form of American Roots music.

As interesting was my walk from downtown to the campus and the discovery of a wonderful chain of parks and greenways. What a wonderful walking city. I also caught glimpses of many interesting older homes. Can’t wait to get back there when I have more time particularly after finding Springbrook Park in Alcoa late last fall.

Did not have a pen with me to write down the phone number, but I did notice there will be a tour of Maryville’s Historic Homes this Sunday, April 20 afternoon from 1:00 to 4:30. Can one of the Maryville Viewers fill us in with the details?

Tonight, 7PM, Music Row of Maryville, 2808 E. Lamar Alexander Pkwy. Details here.

...over at BlountViews

UPDATE: My observations.

Memo to any of you folks over in Knox County or anywhere else in the area who would like to help save Townsend (the "peaceful side of the Smokies") and push back against wealthy land speculators (including Lamar Alexander) who want taxpayers to fund a tourist thruway to their new Blackberry Farm developments...

Come out to the TDOT hearing on the Pellissippi Parkway extension, tomorrow Tuesday Feb. 19, from 5-7pm at Heritage High School. We hope to be there live-blogging it.

More info here, here, here, and some talking points here.

KNS: Voting machines may get replaced

The proposed "Tennessee Voter Confidence Act" calls for replacing the "touch screen" voting machines used in Knox County and 92 others with the new paper-trail devices by "no later than" the 2010 elections.

This is great news, and you can read the article for the details.

There is a glaring inaccuracy, though, in the first paragraph that is repeated several times throughout the article regarding "touch screen" systems. Knox County does NOT use "touch screen" voting machines.

In fact, a recent TACIR report on Tennessee election systems says that all 95 counties in Tennessee use electronic voting in some form. Two use optical scan systems (one by Diebold, one by ES&S), 17 use touch screen DRE systems (by Diebold and ES&S), and the rest (the vast majority) use pushbutton DRE systems (by Hart and Microvote).

So in fact, only 17 counties use "touch screen" systems and Knox County is not one of them, nor is Blount County. The rest (78 counties) use a more reliable system. Knox and Blount counties both use the Hart system.

But all of these need to be replaced with optical scan ballots, which can be read by humans for audits and in the case of recounts or machine failures.

An election day early afternoon report from Blount County over at BlountViews...

Today's KNS local section has an article about a recent feud between the Maryville paper and some local officials.

BlountViews is mentioned, and there's a quote from me taken from the blog. It's the article's only real defense of the local paper, which seems to have trouble resisting outside editorial pressure from local officials sometimes.

Blount Co. Mayor writes a letter of complaint to the Sister City program director:

Additionally, there is a lot of adverse comment about all the Russian kids coming here in the summer. They are competing with out kids for jobs, etc. and I have heard story after story relative to displeasure over the deluge. We need to take care of our kids first when it comes to jobs, The Russians, as far as I am concerned, can do likewise. Enough is enough.

He also has issues with Putin, and brings up Vietnam. Read the story here, and the text of the letter (which was printed on county letterhead) here. I'm told there will be a story about it on WVLT at 5:30PM.

In case you missed it...

(Doesn't seem like the best PR move.)

A few pretty fall colors left in Alcoa and Blount Co. Larger view and a few more photos at BlountViews.