Apollo 11-- 40 Years Later

Despite what I and many others thought on July 20, 1969, so far only 12 people have walked on the surface of the moon. The first two - Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin - literally flew in on sheer will-power and some dicey technology.

Some sharp color images from all the Apollo moon landings are here in full panorama views.

NASA is holding several key celebrations of the 40th anniversary.

But as much tremendous respect as I have for NASA and their achievements, I wonder if it is time to create a new agency, supported by our government and our nation, which is focused more on the future than the past, an agency which makes plans for tomorrow's children.

It's a bit sad to think of the achievements as part of America's history and not it's future. Combined with the recent death of you-are-there news anchor Walter Cronkite , it seems too many in our nation are content to let our dreams of moving past life on Earth be a memory rather than a goal.

Camera Obscura: Harry Potter Returns; Comic-Con News; 'Futurama' Fail; 'District 9'

The newest Harry Potter movie opened this week with midnight shows and Cathy at Domestic Psychology has the skinny on what that event was like --

Midnight movies are fun, but I fall two days behind every time I do an all-nighter anything.

HBP doesn’t suffer from the “trying too hard” to be dark, funny or normal that previous installments had.

This movie has an inevitable destiny feel that makes each of the characters more interesting and more forgivable.

Calvinists will like this movie.

Be sure and read the full report. HP6, as my niece calls it, is breaking records already for box office earnings and is on track to earn even more (and there are still two movies left in the series).

Warner Brothers is looking to fill the soon-to-be Potter gap with a new series of movies based on another popular book series, this time it's writer Angie Sage's Septimus Heap series:

"Sage's seven-volume series shares a lot of similarities with young Potter. Septimus Heap is the seventh son of a seventh son, who possesses magical powers, and is apprenticed to ExtraOrdinary wizard, Marcia Overstrand. Naturally he must overcome many trials and tribulations in his magical training, and his life is a sharp contrast to that of his adoptive sister, Jenna, who gets to live in the comfort and security of the Heap household after a Skywalker sort of switcharoo. While she lacks magic powers, Jenna makes up for it by being a princess, and heir to the throne of Castle. The overarching villain of the story is necromancer DomDaniel, who is power hungry and up to no good, as all necromancers are. Unlike the Potter movies, Magick will be animated. Not only is that bound to be disappointing to fans, it's a pretty big departure for Frankel, who is best known for live-action flicks like Marley and Me and The Devil Wears Prada. "

Warners is also planning a big push for their TV schedule at next week's frenzied Comic-Con in San Diego. From "Smallville" to "Fringe" and "Vampire Dairies" a re-boot of the alien-filled "V" series and much more, all can be yours to review and inspect at their official web site.

Online sites are humming about the news too - which may be either confirmed or dispelled as wanton publicity hunting - that the return of the cult favorite animated "Futurama" series has hit a negotiations snag prompting the studio to promise to get rid of the entire cast of voice actors for the show and go for all new ones:

"We love the Futurama voice performers and absolutely wanted to use them, but unfortunately, we could not meet their salary demands. While replacing these talented actors will be difficult, the show must go on."

Bad move - though bloody typical for the idiots at Fox - if it is true, and perhaps it is just a stunt to gain some talk for the show.

Cinematical also has some preview pics of movies sure to be hot at Comic-Con - a new Iron Man, the next Twilight movie and Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland. Check it out here.

Speaking of aliens, this trailer for the new movie "District 9", produced by Peter Jackson, looks just fantastic, It's set for an August release:



Speaking of alien movies, this week I saw one of my favorites from years past - itself a remake of a 1950s classic. "John Carpenter's The Thing" was one of several first class genre movies which came out in the summer of 1982. My brother and I saw this one summer day while in Erwin, TN in an older downtown theater which had just converted their balcony as a single screen. It was a jaw-dropping experience to watch the horror roll out on a gigantic screen in room with just a few dozen seats for the audience.

It's by far Carpenter's best movie and has a great soundtrack, and a great cast, featuring Kurt Russell trapped in the frozen Antarctic along with a bizarre alien who had been trapped for perhaps as long as 100,000 years before breaking loose. The creature is not cute or even remotely human, until of course, it begins to imitate humans. The alien is more like some weird Lovecraftian silly-putty with endless power and energy. And the cast of victims quickly discover how vile and ruthless this creature can be. Rob Bottin's special effects are likewise first-class.

If you've never seen it, it will curl up your hair and if you have seen it, it's worth seeing again.

Congressman Zach Wamp's House of Secrets

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Shoot-Out Or Opt Out?

Thanks to the short-sighted, political goofballery of the Tennessee State Legislature, any community in the state which has a public park has been forced to formulate a policy on whether or not folks can tote their guns with them when they head out to the park. It's the great Opt-Out Debate of '09.

Thanks, state legislature, really. THANKS.

Meanwhile, some good writing and thinking on this issue for the city of Rogersville comes from DeMarCaTionVille:

"Folks, I’m a gun owner. Hell, I’m a gun lover. I am also a strong defender of Second Amendment rights – yep, another one of those “pry it out of my cold, dead hands” types. But before all else, I am a mother, a volunteer and an advocate for the children of this community.

While I’d like to believe that only the most responsible gun owners would be packing heat at the T-ball games – you know to pick off the zombies, I sincerely doubt it would happen this way.

My husband and I are very involved with the local AYSO region. We have also participated or volunteered in most programs offered by the city. Over the years, we’ve dealt with our share of negative sideline behaviors, angry spectators, verbal disputes that have escalated to shoving matches or fist fights, and the occasional group teen vandals. We know firsthand that even the most responsible, level-headed person can become completely irrational if they feel their child has been attacked or treated unfairly by another adult.

I can also tell you that approaching these people to discuss a behavior they need to curtail, particularly when they’re already angry, is scary enough without adding firearms to the mix.

Therefore, I fully support the proposal to opt out. I’d also remind Pop and his cronies that their grandchildren play baseball, softball, soccer, tag and pin the tail on the donkey in that park. So, for me, this isn’t a battle against the conservatives and the others or government versus the common man.

It’s about common sense, the safety and welfare of children and making sure that my ass doesn’t take a bullet when I have to calmly approach the Dad, who just threw his chair across the field and threatened to assault the opposing coach, or the opposing coach, who yelled back: “Yeah, Bring It Fatass!”… right before she flipped him the middle finger.

Since the logic seems to be that if more folks have guns to protect themselves, why not just require every resident in the state to tote a gun with them wherever they go - that way, we will all be equal ... except of course for the ones who have the best quick draw and dead aim.

Yeehaw.

UPDATE:

"JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. - Patrons headed to a Johnson City sports bar will be handed water pistols on the first day when state law allows guns in bars.

Dan Numan said the gimmick is a facetious protest of the new statute, which he called "ignorant."

The first 100 people who visit Numan's Cafe and Sports Bar today will be offered the water pistols. A massive water gun fight was anticipated.

Numan said he and several other restaurant owners in the city intend to post signs, as allowed by the legislation, that lets them opt out of permitting real handguns in their establishments."

Via the Knoxville News Sentinel

Toxic Tennessee Valley

The aftermath and current struggle of residents living in the midst of a full-blow disaster, the giant 1.1 billion gallon coal ash spill from TVA's coal plant in Kingston, gets a medical report from CNN.

"People think they're going to die before they'll see results."

Mixed into this daily nightmare is the sludge of economic debate about what to do about it, whether or not it is a health hazard, what category of "waste" this ash spill is labeled, and how does TVA handle coal now and in the future.

Best Blog In Tennessee - A Summer Full of Fun

I'm not sure what the best blog in Tennessee might be, but it seemed a catchy headline to note that yes I have been most active in the non-online world this week so please pardon my absence and let me get you all caught up. Our town is bursting at the seams this summer with some live theatrical shows for the entire family so let me fill you in.

I have been most busy with rehearsals for the production of Roald Dahl's "James and The Giant Peach" for Rose Center's Summer Players program, which opens for three shows only, July 31, August 1 and 2. Showtimes are 8 pm Friday and Saturday and 2 pm on Sunday. I promise to put some cast photos up next week -- and this cast of young actors are fantastic. And yes, I'm still designing set pieces and am about to start making the Giant Peach itself plus the giant Octopus which will be large and appropriately aquatic. Some hints of the images are here, but you'd best just come see the show to see the Final Product. Call Rose Center at 423-581-4330 for tickets and find out how you can support the show through ads in our program too, but do that ASAP!!

The cast includes:

James -- Graham Christophel

Aunt Spiker - Page Winstead

Aunt Sponge - Emily Ray

Grashopper - Hannah Beth Moorehouse

Ladybird - Jamie Afghani

Earthworm - Eric Miller

Centipede - Chelsea Helton

Spider - Carli Rick

Tour Guide/Reporter/1st Officer - Erica McCoige

Mr. Trotter/Old Man/ Captain - Austin Pratt

Mrs. Trotter/2nd Officer - Sunny Edmonds

Sharks, Octopus, Tour Group and Tech Crew -
Josh Mattocks
Kylian Andrew
Sunny Edmonds
and some others to be announced

Assistant Director/Stage Mgr-- Autumn Leming

Plus my enormous thanks to all their parents who are working on costumes and sets and selling ads and planning concessions and selling tickets and are working as hard as the cast, AND all the staff at Rose Center, whose commitment to our community and promoting arts and education and other community services always astounds me and makes Morristown a better town.

Bringing to life on stage a Giant Peach and aquatic monsters and giant insects is terrific fun, and we all often laugh like crazed goofballs at times and I know they'll make the audience laugh just as hard. The creative energy we are making daily is practically beyond description. There is nothing better, plain and simple.

I am so thankful to the Rose Center for allowing me to direct this performance and I want to encourage you to support them to -- they've got some other fine performances coming up soon too, like the concert on July 17th with The Dirty Guv'nahs, Limo Wreck and Jenna and the Juvies -- ticket info and more is here on the Rose Center page.

Our town has a whole summer full of fun going on right now - tonight, the Morristown Theatre Guild, which is celebrating it's 75th Season, opens up their production of "High School Musical 2" -- check out their Facebook page here. Here again are some very talented local actors and tech crews making some fantastic entertainment. Here's a clip from the rehearsals and interviews with the cast:



Also opening at the end of July and running through August is Morristown's Encore Theatrical production of the musical "The Producers", and you can check out their Facebook page here. In fact, one of the cast of "The Producers", Susan Christophel, is the mother of the young fellow playing James in the Giant Peach, Graham Christophel. Our town is chocked full o' talent, people.

Come spend some fine summer evenings with us and you'll have a great time, we promise!!

Sen. Ramsey Fails At Tea Party Math

Cultivating his supporters for a run for Governor of Tennessee, Sen. Ron Ramsey spoke with a passion at a "tea party" rally in the Tri-Cities this weekend, but he (or the Johnson City Press typesetters and/or their reporter) failed to realize just when the Declaration of Independence was created.

"I’m excited about these (events). It’s exactly how our country got started. If you look back 223 years ago today ... there were 56 men that walked out of a building there at Independence Hall and had the Declaration of Independence,” Ramsey said. “Just ordinary people just like us. Ordinary people with no political agenda other than they wanted to be free and that’s exactly what we’re doing here today."

Missed it by a few years, there Senator. 223 years would put the date at 1786, not 1776. And let's be honest too - there were crystal clear agendas - a desire to be the next governor for Sen. Ramsey,- and that the extraordinary writers of that declaration did indeed have very strong political agendas, from freedom to taxation to dreams of a new nation. I'd call those mistaken comments a Political Fail on a couple of levels.

I wrote some yesterday about the multiple mini-protests in East Tennessee, with numerous Republican officials in attendance. And what I wrote yesterday continues to amaze me - crowds of people decrying how bad Congress and the President are -- even though East TN has consistently elected only Republicans to Congress, for more than 120 years in the case of the 1st Congressional District.

Maybe the tea warriors need to think about getting someone other than Republicans elected as their representative if real change is their goal. Otherwise, just what are they protesting?

Maybe, as the photo from the Johnson City Press shows, the events are meant to simply praise certain cable news channels:

Rep. Phil Roe's Odd Tea Party

According to the OpenPen blog, 1st District Congressman Dr. Phil Roe (aka Dr No) had some fiery words to stir the crowd -- but just what was he calling on the crowd to do?

(Rep. Roe also made time to attend a few other "tea party" events, along with the former 1st District Congressman David Davis, State Senator Steve Southerland R-1st, of Morristown, and state Rep. David Hawk, R-5th, of Greeneville, but they did not speak and were not recognized by any of the speakers and other elected officials.)

Chris Lambert at OpenPen writes:

"While I have my own differences with the Tea Party crowds and some of the reasons that they claim have brought them together, I fully respect and appreciate their right to protest and gather to voice their concerns. But what really confuses me is their timing and I have to ask, where were they for the past eight and a half years? The timing is highly suspect in many eyes, coming right after a very heated campaign and election of a Democratic President. So why all of a sudden, have these protests started popping up? They rail against government spending and the economic collapse, two areas where the previous administration redefined our perception of the terms and set the stage for the greatest economic collapse since the Great Depression. Where were the Tea Party protests then? I ask because I would have considered joining them myself, if these are the two areas that are the most troubling to this group. I think all of us, irrespective of our political ideology, could get behind a movement to hold our government accountable for rampant and out of control spending across the spectrum of our government."
---
"Dr. Phil Roe, our Congressman, decided that he would use the opportunity to fill in the Tea Party protesters on just what he is doing in Washington – voting No at every opportunity on every issue, much like the rest of the Republican Party. He also had this interesting quote to give to the crowd:

“It’s not about firecrackers. It’s about 56 people standing up declaring themselves independent of a king and we might have to do it again,” Roe said.

That raises some interesting questions about Congressman Roe and what he feels is needed at this point. Looking at his words, it’s plain that he see’s President Obama as a “King”. Does Congressman Roe believe, like many others in the Tea Party protests, that another revolution is somehow warranted because of policy differences with the present administration? I thought we had a political system that was designed to prevent such horrific things from occurring, mainly through the ballot box and through such offices as the one that Dr. Roe now holds? So why is it that Congressman Roe feels that our current state as a nation rises to such a level as to suggest such a thing? It’s clear by his own presence at this protest that he was playing to the crowd, but does Congressman Roe have the backbone to refuse all Federal funds coming his way to our district? That’s the only way that he can put his money where his mouth is and prove to all of us that he really is standing against what he perceives as a threat to our “freedom”. And going further, how exactly are our freedoms being threatened by this administration? The last time I checked, the Bill of Rights is still intact (albeit after 8 years of being threatened in many ways).

I find it very strange that I didn’t see Dr. Roe in the streets a few years ago, when President George W. Bush was spending our country into oblivion and making some of the worst decisions on an international scale that have cost our country billions and an immeasurable amount in human suffering. Now, a new administration comes along that just happens to not be of the same political party of Dr. Roe, and he’s outraged and ready to take to the streets? Call me skeptical of his intentions."

Meanwhile, former congressman Davis offered this comment:

"The event’s keynote speaker, former U.S. Rep. David Davis, spoke out against politicians using the tax code as a tool for social engineering.

“They use it to control our behavior, steer our choices and change the way we live our lives,” Davis, a Johnson City Republican, said of the tax code. “Our elected representatives should only use taxes to fund the necessities of government, and they must put a stop to both social engineering and corporate bailouts.”

Before he spoke, Davis was asked if his remarks represented an unofficial kickoff to his 2010 campaign to unseat Roe.

“I haven’t decided whether I’m going to run yet,” said Davis, who lost to Roe in the 2008 GOP primary. “I’m keeping the door open. This event is really about freedom and liberty. ... We’ve lost our faith in God as a Christian nation. And we’ve lost our faith in the Constitution. If we get back to those two things, America continues to be a shining city on the hill.”

When asked why “Tea Parties” weren’t held when the policies of former President George W. Bush were adding to the national debt, Davis responded: “I think there should have been. The Republicans spent too much money. But this is not a Republican crowd. This is not a Democrat crowd. This is an American crowd. I think Americans right now are fed up with politicians.”

Part of me is rather proud that citizens feel duty-bound to speak out on how our government works. But the real work is done day-to-day, talking directly to elected officials, writing letters and making phone calls, encouraging discussion among friends and family, taking part in community groups whose goals include improving the quality of life on local, state and national levels.

But here's the problem in the 1st District - voters have allowed for only representatives from the Republican Party to hold office for over 120 years in Congress. Maybe that's the problem you should fix first.

VIDEO VIA THE KINGSPORT TIMES NEWS of the event:

Tennessee, Others Say Goodbye to Rest Stops

Via the Wall Street Journal:

"Later this month, cash-strapped Virginia plans to barricade entrances and switch off the plumbing and electricity at nearly half its highway rest areas. Other states also are lowering budgetary axes on the public pit stops that have lined the interstate highway system since its creation in 1956.

"But rest stops aren't going quietly.

"Truckers, blind merchants and a dogged historian are fighting to preserve them. If the battle is lost, every long-distance motorist will need "a strong rear end and a strong bladder" to hit the road, warns John Townsend, an official with the American Automobile Association in Washington.

There are about 2,500 rest areas along the interstates. State governments build and maintain them. Most have remained steadfastly utilitarian: a parking lot, a simple building with toilets, a few picnic benches, and maybe some vending machines. Because many of the interstates bypassed cities and towns, travelers often had no other options when they needed to pull off the road.

But over the years, big clusters of gas stations, fast-food outlets and motels have sprung up just off interstate exits in all but the most remote parts of the country. A national directory lists nearly 2,500 privately owned truck stops, each with at least 10 parking spaces and two showers. Even Wal-Mart Stores Inc. -- which permits overnight stays by recreational vehicles at most of its more than 4,000 locations -- offers a popular alternative to old-fashioned rest areas.

A growing number of states have come to see rest areas as obsolete. Rather than spend the money on maintenance and repairs, states began closing them.

Louisiana has closed 24 of its 34 rest areas since 2000, four of them last year. Maine, Vermont and Colorado have recently announced plans to shutter more rest areas because of cash constraints. Rhode Island, Tennessee, Arizona and others are thinking of doing likewise."

Bela Fleck's Star Spangled Banner

Happy Independence Day!

Sarah Palin - Train Wrecks Get Top Ratings

Details about the Big Run Away From Blogging Bullies and Evil Media, aka Gov. Palin resigns, are mighty strange given the rambling speech the broadcast by soon-to-exit governor. (Full rambling text here.)

The Mudflats blog has some info that real troubles are about the submerge the You Betcha Girl:

"I’ve now been able to get independent information from multiple sources that all of this precedes what are said to be possible federal indictments against Palin, concerning an embezzlement scandal related to the building of Palin’s house and the Wasilla Sports Complex built during her tenure. Both structures, it is said, feature the “same windows, same wood, same products.” Federal investigators have been looking into this for some time, and indictments could be imminent, according to the Alaska sources. From Brad Blog

“I don’t think this is buckling to pressure,” said Ayers. “I think this is her coming to the realization that the legislature in Alaska and that some bloggers and activists in Alaska are going to do everything they can to stymie her progress. This is a governor who didn’t run for the office because she wanted a title. She wanted to make significant change in the state. She realized that that was no longer going to be able to happen, because things had become so partisan there.” From HuffPo

Democratic National Committee spokesman Brad Woodhouse issued a statement characterizing Palin’s resignation as “bizarre behavior”:

Either Sarah Palin is leaving the people of Alaska high and dry to pursue her long shot national political ambitions or she simply can’t handle the job now that her popularity has dimmed and oil revenues are down. Either way, her decision to abandon her post and the people of Alaska who elected her continues a pattern of bizarre behavior that more than anything else may explain the decision she made today. From The Daily Beast

Watching the family scene at her house on the raw video running on CNN right now, it is obvious that little knowledge about this was shared ahead of time, no matter what Palin said in the conference itself.

What we are seeing here is either a preface to some indictment, or the final chapter in the career of what has been the biggest political joke of the 21st century. She is so obviously a combination of extreme narcissism and even more extremely bad advice by really, really pathetically bad advisors.

And:

"In the past two years, the state of Alaska has spent millions of dollars processing ethics complaints, public records requests, and related lawsuits.”

That was the claim coming from the office of Governor Sarah Palin, who likes to use the phrase “frivolous ethics complaints.” That was nine days ago.

Today, we learn that “millions of dollars” is in fact, actually $296,000, as far as ethics complaints go. Numbers shmumbers.

The complete breakdown is not yet available, but we do know this about the three spendiest ones:

$187,797 stemmed from the Troopergate investigation, a good chunk of which Palin initiated herself. We’ll get back to that.

$43,028 stemmed from a complaint by Andree McLeod which resulted in a recommendation that a state employee undergo ethics training for a series of “troubling emails.”

$29,962 most likely came from the “travel gate” investigation in which Palin reimbursed almost $10,000 for expenses billed to the state for her children’s travel expenses.

That’s the top three, none of which sound particularly “frivolous.” So once we crunch the numbers, it’s highly likely that the most expensive investigation brought about by an individual, is Palin’s investigation of herself. And let’s just review that one more time.

The Legislature found enough evidence to approve $100,000 to investigate Palin’s firing of the Commissioner of Public Safety, in light of accusations that he was dismissed for not firing her ex-brother-in-law with whom there was bad blood. They spent $75,000 of the money allocated, and the bipartisan Legislative Council (composed of 8 Republicans and 4 Democrats) voted unanimously to go forward. An independent investigation by someone that they all agreed to found that Palin violated the Executive Branch Ethics Act. They unanimously voted to release that decision to the public.

As a counter-measure, and a panicked move to look good during the campaign, Palin (with the advice from the McCain cadre of lawyers headed up by Ed O’Callaghan who had no license to practice law in the State of Alaska) initiated her own ethics complaint against herself, knowing that the outcome would be decided by a friendly panel of governor-appointed people who report to her. Guess what? They found her innocent, and refused to even investigate the matter of testimony from Palin that went completely against testimony from the former commissioner. Frivolous ethics complaint? No….a calculated one that the state paid for.

What did the legislature do about their own $75,000 investigation that found the governor in violation of the Ethics Act? Nothing. So, why did we, as a state, pay that $75,000? What did we get for that money? Maybe that’s the question we should be asking.

Speaking of not knowing what you get for your money…

Palin herself reportedly has incurred over $600,000 in personal legal bills defending against complaints, although she won’t provide a breakdown of the expenses or what cases they were for. Palin friends and supporters set up a legal defense fund and are soliciting contributions for her legal bills.

SEE ALSO: From Post Politics:

"Sarah Palin doesn’t care about statecraft or making government smaller and/or more efficient. She just wants to be the IT girl.

She doesn’t care about experience or gravitas because those are things you would need only if you wished to affect change and make a difference. Those are things you only need if you wish to hold office and steer the ship of state. Sarah Palin only wishes to ride the wave of celebrity.

YouTube's 'School of Journalism'

Following weeks of intense and on-the-scene reports from the streets and cities of Iran made possible by those using camera phones and Twitter feeds, YouTube has announced the creation of a Reporter's Channel - but is it to help reporters who need ideas from the non-professional or just a way to insure traditional media is included in citizen-led reporting?

The San Francisco Chronicle has details of the channel, and a list of their contributors, who include folks from Newsweek, the AP, Time, the Washington Post and many more traditional news services.

The full list is here -- and here are some more samples of those who will 'contribute':

-- Katie Couric, CBS Evening News
-- Jim Drinkard, Accountability Editor, Associated Press
-- Kwame Dawes, Journalist, The Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting
-- Arianna Huffington, Co-founder and Editor-in-Chief, The Huffington Post
-- Michael Isikoff, Investigative Correspondent, Newsweek
-- Riz Khan, The Riz Khan Show, Al-Jazeera English
-- Nicholas Kristof, Columnist, The New York Times
-- Andre Lambertson, Journalist, The Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting
-- Dana Milbank, Political Reporter and Author of the "Washington Sketch" column, The Washington Post
-- Beth Murphy, journalist, The Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting
-- Lizzie O'Leary, Washington Correspondent for Bloomberg TV, Bloomberg -- Adam Pasick, Editor of Reuters.com, Reuters
-- Jon Resnick, Planning Editor, Associated Press
-- Jon Sawyer, Executive Director, The Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting
-- Scott Simon, Weekend Edition, NPR

Broadband Mapping In Tennessee A Low Priority

$350 million in stimulus funding for broadband mapping is flowing to a group called Connected Nation, but the emphasis in Tennessee is on "branding" and mapping plans by Connected Tennessee ends up getting the lowest funding.

Art Brodsky writes about the cautionary tale of Tennessee in Huffington Post:

"There is a more direct way to obtain state funds, short of having to go through the whole cumbersome bidding process. Our second cautionary tale of state mapping comes from Tennessee.

On April 23, 2008 the state gave final approval to a three-year, $6.675 million contract (excerpts here) with Connected Tennessee (CT). The contract, first agreed to in 2007, was labeled as a "non-competitive negotiation," which was justified because, the contract noted, that Connected Nation (the original grantee) had a successful program in Kentucky and that costs for Tennessee were "at similar or lower amounts" than the Kentucky programs.

There is some disagreement, however, about how successful the Kentucky program, the birthplace of Connected Nation, actually is. Jonathan Miller, the Kentucky Secretary of Finance, was blunt in his evaluation, saying in an interview, "We smell something pretty bad" with the mapping program, and the state is trying to "develop plans try to cope with it."

---

"Based on the amount of money being spent, the mapping is fairly far down. At the top of the list is that Connected Tennessee "shall provide a custom branding strategy for Tennessee's Trail to Innovation." Once the state approves a design, CT's top duties were to

a. Create press releases that reflect the goals of the initiative
b. Obtain placement of communications/promotions content in relevant media outlets
c. Develop and place customized ads in key periodicals
d. Publish and distribute reports on the progress of the initiative to the State and other appropriate stakeholders

Also on the list of things to do are creating a statewide steering committee from universities, health organizations and tech companies; establish eCommunity leadership teams, develop through those teams goals for increased tech adoption; provide consultation to the teams and provide regional updates on the expansion of technology programs. They also have to give away 1,000 computers each year.

Listed after all of those - produce a map of broadband services areas, creating "a reliable illustration of where broadband does and does not exist." The first map is due within three months and is updated quarterly. Listed after the mapping is a requirement that CT survey consumers and businesses on the level of technology use.

The contract breaks down into $2.225 million per year. Of that total, $1.325 million is dedicated to the "custom branding strategy," including the steering committee and leadership teams. Another $400,000 is allocated for computer distribution. There are also two consumer survey reports worth $150,000 and two business survey reports, worth another $150,000. The broadband maps are budgeted for $200,000 -- $50,000 per map.

Longway, the president of the Tennessee broadband company, testified before the state broadband task force and before state legislative committees against a Connect Tennessee contract. Longway told us he thought that mapping should be done by a Tennessee company, not an outside group, and criticized the state for signing a non-competitive contract. Longway, who has also worked with Arkansas state officials on broadband planning, said he was once asked point-blank by an influential legislator whether he supported Connected Tennessee. Longway said he replied, "No, they're awful."

Michael Jackson - Smooth Criminal?

At Post Politics, Kleinheider wrote of his angry certainty that Michael Jackson escaped the justice he deserved. And while his gut instinct might compel his viewpoint that Jackson was guilty of the allegations of child molestation, I'm not certain myself of his guilt. Here's a sample of what was written:

"Can someone explain to me when Michael Jackson joined respectable society again? I seem to have missed it.

Last time I checked I remember Jackson flagrantly flouting inviting children into his bed and barely beating a charge of child molestation by the skin of his teeth. This, of course, after he paid another alleged victim off ten years previous for dropping a similar charge.

Now, of course, I understand the concept of innocent until proven guilty. I do. But I thought that we all had come to the conclusion that Jacko was about as innocent of child molestation as O.J was of killing Nicole.

Was I wrong?

Because if O.J dies and I have to watch film of him playing football and people honoring and mourning his death, I’ll lose it. I’m gonna need a heads up on that one, so let me know.

Hell, wouldn’t you forgive a murderer sooner than a child molester, anyway?

At least with murder, the victim is dead. It’s over. Done. Being sexually victimized, especially at a young age, can be akin to a living death.

Honestly, sometimes (let me emphasize sometimes) I think child rapists would be more humane if they killed all their victims. At least they would save them the life of pain and prevent the start of a cycle of abuse that can extend generationally and exponentially.

A few folks in Knoxville cheered the man’s death? And?

Don’t get me wrong. Celebrating death of anyone, even a mass murderer or a child rapist, is not a healthy activity. But is it absolutely appalling? Honestly, given the givens and assuming the assumptions, I simply cannot muster up a whole bunch of outrage."

My thoughts differ simply because he was never convicted of the crimes he was accused of committing. Despite a vigorous prosecution and many suspicions, there appeared to me a real lack of actual evidence. And he was acquitted not of just one charge, but of nine charges.

I'm not a huge fan of Jackson - although he seemed to posses the savvy to create a career and a style which still carries a massive influence. Also, most media reports included coverage of the many controversies about Jackson. And he certainly lived a life so very far removed from the norm.

So for me, ACK's post seems less factual and mostly emotional anger at an idea rather than the acts of one person. Your views may differ.

TVA and The Real Cost of Burning Coal

With temperatures in recent days hitting 90 and above, residents in Tennessee rely on burning coal to keep them cool, thanks to TVA. But what are the short term and long term costs? With some 60% of TVA's energy coming from burning coal, they have no plans to shift their current strategy.


"Some of TVA's oldest, dirtiest and least efficient coal units should have been phased out years ago and replaced with renewable power," said Stephen Smith, executive director for the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy and a former member of TVA's Regional Resource Stewardship Council.

Matt Landon, a volunteer leader of a 4-year-old group fighting against coal usage in East Tennessee -- United Mountain Defense -- blames coal plants for much of Tennessee's air pollution.

"From the cradle to the grave, coal is dirty and destroys our environment," said Mr. Landon, who was arrested by TVA police in March for trespassing on the site of a major ash spill in Kingston.

In its 76-year history, TVA has shut down only one coal plant -- the former Watts Bar Steam Plant in Rhea County. But TVA officials said the agency also is studying whether it still makes sense to maintain and upgrade its oldest plants, including units in Johnsonville and Widows Creek which already are senior citizen age.

A federal judge has ordered TVA to install scrubbers on the six oldest units at its Widows Creek Fossil Plant near Stevenson, Ala., within the next five years. Mr. Kilgore said the agency is now studying the costs of installing the court-ordered pollution controls. To recover such an investment, the units normally would be expected to operate for at least another two decades."

Meanwhile, state officials and the TDEC want more transparency on how coal and coal ash are handled in Tennessee:


"Following the catastrophic failure of the TVA Kingston Plant coal ash impoundment on Dec. 22, 2008, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reviewed coal ash impoundments across the country.

"The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has apparently requested the results of that review not be made available to the public. Irrespective of the Corps' recommendations regarding nationwide sites, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation believes transparency is important and is committed to sharing results of our own state review with the public.When Gov. Phil Bredesen visited Kingston shortly after the failure, he stressed the need for transparency in the monitoring and cleanup to help assure citizens what appropriate steps were being taken to protect public health and minimize environmental impacts of the failure. Among other directives, he asked the department to begin immediately posting results of water, air and soil testing online so the public could access information easily and directly."

We're stuck on coal. Not clean coal or green energy - just plain old coal, same as we were decades ago.

Camera Obscura: The Artistic Heights of 'Transformers'; Vampires In The Future; 'The Box'; Spielberg Wants 'Oldboy'

Danger, art, and mindless pubescent goofiness are all mingled together in the movie set to claim hundreds of millions in theater ticket sales this weekend. It's the sequel to the movie based on the cartoon created to sell toys in the 1980s, toys called Transformers.

This "new" movie gets the Review To End All Reviews at io9, titled "Michael Bay Finally Made An Art Movie":

"Since the days of Un Chien Andalou and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, filmmakers have reached beyond meaning. But with this summer's biggest, loudest movie, Michael Bay takes us all the way inside Caligari's cabinet. And once you enter, you can never emerge again. I saw this movie two days ago, and I'm still living inside it. Things are exploding wherever I look, household appliances are trying to kill me, and bizarre racial stereotypes are shouting at me."

"Transformers: ROTF is so long, you'll need to wear adult diapers to it. But the movie's pure celebration of the primal urge, and unfiltered living, will make you rejoice in your adult diapers. You'll relieve yourself in your seat with a savage joy, your barbaric yawp blending in with the crowd's screams of excitement."

"So you have a movie that tries to reassure men that they can actually be masters of their reality — but then turns around and says that actually, reality is not real. There's no such thing as the "real world," and the only thing that's left for men to dominate is a nebulous domain of blurred shapes, which occasionally blurt nonsensical swear-words and slang from ethnic groups that have never existed. If you're drowning in an Olympic swimming pool full of hot chewing gum fondue, do you still care if Megan Fox likes you?"


I watched Michael Bay's first Transformer movie twice and was never able to make a moment's sense out of it. It was like watching a car speeding over 1,000 mph crash into a line of stalled traffic while huddled on the floor underneath the glove box.

Bay's movies aren't just bad - they are Exploding Temples of Awfulness.

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Goofy and strange movies are not just the Rite of Summer, as January 2010 will bring out the odd vampires-in-the-future tale "Daybreakers" to theaters. Starring Ethan Hawke, Willem Dafoe and Sam Neill, the movie is from the Spierig Brothers, twin brother directors who crafted a very odd but visually compelling zombie movie from Australia a few years ago called "Undead".

"Daybreakers" has a trailer now, complete with some emo music and heaps of explosions:


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In other Weird Cinema news, Richard Kelly ('Donnie Darko') takes aim at audiences with the movie "The Box", based on a short story by the prolific Richard Matheson. The story was offered before onscreen as part of the Twilight Zone series re-boot in the 1980s. The preview explains the set-up for this thriller:



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A very powerful and very odd tale of revenge hit movie audiences a few years ago and scored much praise, called "Oldboy", from director Chan-woo Park and based on a popular manga. The movie is a real stunner of visuals and twists of mystery. For the past few months, director Steven Spielberg has been trying to get the rights for an American remake with Will Smith in the lead.

But who really has the rights to the story? Spielberg says despite legal disputes, his plan is to create a new movie based on the manga, and not a remake of Park's Korean film. With Spielberg's clout, I'm sure he'll settle the legal issues to his advantage. But there are so many strong and powerful scenes in Park's film - like the long hallway battle scene with the hero wielding a hammer against a horde of guards - I think the story has already been told as well as it can be.

Greeneville Neighborhood Battles KKK

Residents in Greeneville's Meadowlark subdivision are forming their own association to protect themselves and to decide how best to oppose the recent presence of white supremacists. Residents found a few dozen racist fliers on their lawns earlier this month, fliers which gave a Kingsport post office box as their headquarters.

However, Greeneville's Police Department says dumping hate mail onto the yards of residents is no crime:

"The only actual crime that occurred in this situation would be possibly littering,“ Greeneville Capt. Terry Webb said.

Webb says investigators alerted the Federal Bureau of Investigation due to the nature of the flyers, but says it would be difficult to prosecute the KKK since its members were practicing free speech.

“People might not agree with what they’re saying, but there was no threats of violence or anything along that line,“ Webb said.

However, for people like Edward Reed who received one of the flyers, that is a hard sell.

“It’s a crime to me,“ Reed said. “That’s like they don’t want me living the way I see I’m supposed to be living.“

More on this story from WJHL-TV and The Greeneville Sun.

Gov. Sanford's Very Bad Day

Does having an affair mean a politician is therefore a bad policy maker and political leader?

Since South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford has made worldwide headlines for scooting out of town and state on a Father's Day weekend to meet up with his lover in Argentina, the public response to the question above seems to be a very loud YES!!

The story of Gov. Sanford merged quite easily yesterday with the news of an impending divorce of the reality show Jon and Kate Plus 8. But one question I have is -- who got the story to the press that Gov. Sanford was missing in action? Because I'm betting that person knew exactly where he was and what he was doing. And since I am just guessing, I am guessing his wife, a savvy campaigner for her husband in years past, is the one who got the story rolling.

But the question remains - does a politician's romantic life erase all his or her abilities as a political leader?

Some say he should be removed from office precisely because of his record while in office:

"I don’t want him to resign because of the affair. I think he should get kicked out of office because he’s been a terrible governor for the state. Their unemployment rate is at its highest rate ever. He’s bankrupted the state. He’s been fighting the Obama administration over unemployment money that his constituents desperately need. So I think on the merits, he’s been a horrible governor."

What's Next For Rep. John Litz?

Last week State Representative John Litz (D) of Morristown announced he would not seek re-election to the legislature in 2010 after serving out his fourth term. Rep. Litz has been making some headlines during the current legislative session and is credited with being an integral part of the surprise move to put Rep. Kent Williams in the Speaker's position over Rep. Mumpower.

Here in Morristown, one way Rep. Litz maintained his popularity and served the local community was by holding regular Town Hall meetings to gather input on a wide range of issues facing the legislature. Tom Humphrey has more info on Rep. Litz's legislative career.

And Democrat Caucus Chair Mike Turner says he's known of the change for some time and is already working to find a new candidate for the seat.

So what's next for Rep. Litz? Will Republicans field a candidate who can win the seat?

Here's what I've been hearing at various local rumor mills: Rep. Litz is considering a run for the County Mayor position in Hamblen County government. The current Mayor, David Purkey (R), is not seeking re-election but sources tell me he's considering a run for the State Representative seat instead.

There are certainly numerous changes taking place on the local scene as Democrats and Republicans work to re-organize at every level.

President Obama - Is He The Kwisatz Haderach?

I'm positive that this weekend marked the first time ever a U.S. President was grilled with tough questions about the plot points of "Dune". After all, is President Obama really a nerdy guy? Only one man dared in Washington ask him about the Culture War of Our Time - Nerds vs. Jocks - and that man was John Hodgman.