Comments by lafcadio

Written on Middle TN commissioner's Facebook post frightens Muslims:

Wow. The hate is strong here. Jesus has a sad.


Another effective jobs bill by our favorite "small government" republicans.

Written on Southern Baptists urge continued ban on gay Scouts:

Scouting benefits boys tremendously. Why would anyone want to withhold the experience of scouting from any interested boy? As a former scout, a current scout leader, and the father of a scout, this disgusts me.

Written on Violence against women up in Tennessee; state third worst in nation:

Hey, just vote for Romney and you won't need to worry about women getting uppity in their demands for the right to control what goes into and out of their bodies. He and the rest of the Republicans will keep them in their place.

Adjust sarcasm detector as necessary.

Written on Poll: Do you trust election polls?:

A poll about whether polls are trustworthy? My head explodes.

Written on Candidate's Facebook post shows gun, tells Obama, 'Welcome to Tennessee':

The second amendment is not the most pressing issue facing our state and nation, Mr. Staats.

Written on Obama, Romney trade barbs over '47 percent' comments, 'change':

So I suppose Romney wants us to never mind that whole "Give me your tired, your poor/Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free" thing.

Written on GOP OKs platform barring abortions, gay marriage:

Ah, such warm feelings arise knowing that Romney is going to lose.

Written on Fall color around Asheville may be good but spotty:

Asheville? WTH? The colors in my backyard here in Knoxville will be just fine.

/God, I'm starting to sound like I'm from here.

Written on Tenn. mosque long a focus of controversy to open:

A victory for freedom... as were the BSA and Chick-Fil-A incidents, despite the fact that I disagree with their views. Thankfully, people are still free to speak their minds and worship as they please, although they are not free to marry whom they please. That will come in time.

Written on 4 dozen become ill after church picnic:

It was the salmon moose.

Written on Report: Mitt Romney photo on Facebook sets off man, who assaults girlfriend :

It baffles me that whenever anyone criticizes Tennessee, they're attacked and told to "move north." What if we don't like a bit of what we see, and wish to change it? Perhaps such criticism hit a little too close to home. At least you're safe in your mom's basement playing internet tough guy.

Let's not defend behavior like this, and let's not get defensive when it's illuminated. Let's work to change it.

Written on Tea Party supports prayer, opposition holds rally:

The Unitarian of the bunch looks like the only one who's acting as Jesus would advocate.

Written on Judge grants Tenn. mosque's petition to open:

in response to what_a_joke:

For all you who went after the Boy Scouts of America on their stance on Homosexuals in the Scouts..

I expect you to treat the Muslims the same way, since they are in agreement on this issue.

Be careful what you wish for might just get it one day..

And I expect you to treat the Baptists the same way, since they are in agreement on the issue.

Written on Despite protests, Boy Scouts reaffirm ban on gays:

in response to rexregal7:

Can we see your "science?" Just to the contrary, science hasn't proven or settled anything regarding homosexualities causes.

Just do some homework. Gays tend to have stabler jobs and higher incomes than straights. They're less likely to be convicted of crimes, and the children of gay couples turn out just fine-- no different from those of straight couples (unless you're reading that recent study from the other UT that was very poorly conducted).

Written on Despite protests, Boy Scouts reaffirm ban on gays:

A scout can be trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent, and still be gay.

There is no good reason to practice discrimination here. As a former scout and father of a current scout, I am ashamed of the BSA.

Are they concerned about sexual predation? Most molesters aren't gay.

Are they concerned about 'moral conduct'? See above-- whether you are attracted to the opposite sex or the same sex has nothing to do with your moral character.

The science does not support them in any way, so why do they persist in this policy? Bigotry is the only answer I can see.

Written on Haslam's higher ed review targets efficiency, maybe more funding :

in response to tamarashepherd:

Skipp & True: I'm pretty sure this newspaper has reported very recently that TN has cut higher ed funding by over $60 million in, like, the last 10 years? No time to search the archives right this miniute...

Anyway, there's a reason so much of our colleges' cost increases have been passed on to students and the state legislature has been complicit.

The privatizers have placed enough policy makers in the legislature in recent years that they (these same privatizing interests) are now able to ride in on white horses to "save" students from the very crisis they manufactured.

Their solution: Fewer degree program offerings and a fevered interest in students' ripping through college ASAP in order to more quickly become cogs in the wheel of commerce.

Say, more for-profit online schools would fill the bill (and pad the privatizers' pockets, all the while)!

Thanks so much, TN Chamber of Commerce!/sarcasm

So nice, it should be read twice.


Why on earth would we want higher ed to follow a business model when it's business models that have gotten this country into the economic mess it's in? Education is not a business, and shouldn't be looked at like one. College isn't just about job skills. If that's what you want, go to a vocational school. College is also about personal growth and development, discovering a meaningful life, and finding one's place in the world. It's a shame people either try to put a dollar value on that, or worse, minimize the importance of these goals.

Never mind. I'll just get back to my Walmart job so I can afford that new HDTV. I wonder what's on tonight. There's really nothing happening in the world that I should care about.

Written on Bob Black guided Fulton athletics for 31 years :

If only we cared about who was guiding their academics. Strange priorities here.

Written on Petition asks UT chancellor to skip $22K raise :

in response to Tennball:

Jimmy Cheek has been a great supporter to the College of Engineering to provide better education and recruit the best students possible into our university. We have seen a consistent climb in rankings due to the efforts of Dean Davis, but without the support of the Chancellor, these gains would likely fall on deaf ears. Mr. Doss should focus more on his education, electrical engineering, rather than leading political discussion where he does not have the background. The advanced technology in the beautiful building where he currently studies was supported by many individuals including Dr. Cheek. He would do well to just say; “Thanks!”.

I'm an award-winning tenured professor at UT and Cheek makes literally 6 times what I make in a year. 6 times! I'm not saying the man doesn't deserve decent compensation, but nearly 400k? That's more than most people in the world will see in a lifetime. It's shameful.

Written on Petition asks UT chancellor to skip $22K raise :

Every year he gets a raise, I send him a personal email asking him to turn it down. Guess I'll go sign that petition now.

Written on Haslam says Tenn. on track if health care upheld:

in response to lester_phinney#218848:

Obamacare is done. One thing liberals cannot answer, why is an expansion of government good? When has it ever worked?

police and fire departments? elementary schools?

Written on UT trustees approve 8 percent tuition hike; Haslam wants to address college costs :

This tenured UT professor would gladly forego a raise to keep tuition from rising, but it's not salaries that are the problem; it's a reduction in state and federal funding. We need to make higher ed more accessible to Tennesseans, and this isn't the way.

Written on UT to seek 8 percent tuition increase at Knoxville:

Not that FACULTY salaries is the reason for increasing tuition (it's a reduction in state and federal funding), but as a tenured UTK faculty member I would forego a raise this year to keep tuition from hiking again.

Written on Knoxville firefighters douse two-alarm blaze in Fountain City:

I heard that series of buildings was already slated for demolition, but that's just rumor. Still, I got it from my barber, so it must be true.

Written on KPD seeking woman who robbed Walgreens on Broadway:

Hey MouthBreather--

Research indicates that the race of a suspect is more likely to be identified in news media if the suspect is thought to be Black. Facts! Get them!

Written on Knoxville City Council members deride Burchett's county budget :

I'm baffled by those who support Burchett. It's really difficult to listen to him speak and not conclude that he's an idiot.

Written on New principal appointed at Sequoyah Elementary School :

Indeed, Canpflier, indeed.

Written on Residents voice support for Knox Schools funding plan :

First, our schools are crumbling and they desperately need this budget.

Secondly, we haven't had a tax increase in years.

Third, Knox County has some of the lowest taxes in the nation. That's great, but even with this tax increase we'd still be on the very very low end.

Finally, this is not throwing money at the problem. This is getting kids out of decaying portable classrooms and putting them in real classes. This is fixing massive over-crowding. This money would be for much-needed basics.

Written on Slope failure forces closure of I-75 South in Campbell County until Thursday :

in response to Puffy:

It's pretty simple. The contract should be structured to account for potential failures in design or physical workmanship in the form of non-payment, repair, or restitution. If the government office in question can’t even write an adequate contract, what are the odds that they’ll be able to tackle the much more difficult job of self-performing the work?

That would be a reasonable solution if the contractors weren't in bed with the politicians.

Written on High school yearbook article sparks furor in Lenoir City:

This was not an article about with whom someone likes to sleep.

This was an article about the bigotry, hatred, and fear that is alive, well, and in dire need of having a light shown on it.

Congrats, students. Way to speak truth to power.

Written on EPA rules Knox, Blount don't meet air quality guidelines :

They're called 'freedom particles' people!

Written on Knox Mayor Tim Burchett unveils $673.7 million budget :

Mold and mildew in one school's 'portable' classrooms (meant to last 15 years, now going on 25) chased several classes into the gymnasium for about a week this year.

In a few other schools, faulty ventilation makes the place unbearably hot.

Classes are over-crowded in many schools.

These are just a few of the many examples of cases where a decay in the infrastructure is interfering with student learning.

But God forbid we invest in our future.

Carry on.

Written on Knox Mayor Tim Burchett unveils $673.7 million budget :

It's too bad about the school budget... my children's school is literally crumbling. It also troubles me that people would use children as pawns in their opposition to McIntyre. Our taxes are among the lowest in the nation, and a small tax increase (e.g., about 2 bucks/household, as the council recommended) would do wonders for our schools, and ultimately, our future.

Written on Knoxville moves to combat child obesity through 'flash mob,' other events:

I can't beat doglips' snark. Funny!

Written on Pit bulls who attacked dogs, people quarantined :

Research shows that the dog owner's own criminal record is a better indicator of a dog's danger than the dog's breed. It's not the pit-bulls; it's a sub-set of pit-bull owners who are the problem who have come to believe that pit-bulls are tough and mean. The pit-bulls are the way the are because of their owners.

Written on 1 in 2 new graduates are jobless or underemployed:

We told them to go to college if they didn't want to be stuck flipping burgers.

Then we criticize them for complaining about having to flip burgers after graduating from college.

I'd be upset too.

Written on Teachers share tips to get little kids to behave :

On another note, those "back in my day we didn't play 'stupid games'" comments are misguided. Way back in the day there was no kindergarten, and a little less further back kids in kindergarten weren't reading or doing algebra. Today's kindergarten is yesterday's first grade. These kids work hard.

Written on Teachers share tips to get little kids to behave :

in response to willposey:

Does this teacher dress like that all the time?
No wonder children today disrespect their teachers.

The kindergarteners have learned that what one wears has nothing to do with how much respect one deserves. Haven't you?

Written on Teachers share tips to get little kids to behave :

This is my daughter's teacher. VERY lucky kids. Mr. Cameron is a kid genius, and the kids clearly learn a lot from him. We are so thankful to have him at Shannondale.

Written on THP: Bicyclist struck by drunken driver in Townsend :

This is idiocy. Bicyclists have a right to be on the road. Drunk drivers do not. Period.

Besides, if more people rode bikes, fuel prices would be lower and we wouldn't have to care so much about what happens in the middle east. Bikes are patriotic!

Written on Prayer compromise: Lenoir City school board adopts moment of silence :

The PTO at my children's (public) school say a Christian prayer before each PTO meeting. It irks me and a few of the other non-Christians in the PTO, but not terribly so. What would be terrible for the PTO, the school, and the kids is if I made a big stink about it. It just wouldn't be worth it, so I let it be. People are too easily offended on BOTH sides.

Written on Corker, Alexander plan to vote against 'counterproductive' 'Buffett Rule' :

This reasoning about the richest Americans being the "job creators" who will not hire if their taxes rise has been proven wrong time and again. Besides, "job creators" don't succeed at business because they focus on creating jobs. They succeed at business because they focus on creating profits. So long as it remains cheaper for them to outsource to Mexico and China, they will. And so we become a nation of Wal-mart workers as the rich get richer and poor get poorer.

Written on Knoxville, Tenn., ranked among fastest-growing U.S. cities :

I moved here from Ohio in 2004, and I don't regret it. Now if only us Yankee transplants can transform the local good-old-boy, baffoon-filled political infrastructure; I'm not holding my breath.

Written on UT law students stage Trayvon Martin rally :

in response to Magpie:

I've only lived in this area for a few years, and spent far more years in areas considered liberal. I'm a conservative, I graduated from UC Davis with a degree in Economics with honors, and your cite hardly is a valid, unbiased and scientific study. And I've no idea where you came up with liberals tend to be better educated, but I've no doubt you have another equally valid source like the NYU study. Kind of like your blanket statement that according to all the major news sites in the US the majority of Americans believe Zimmerman should be arrested.

You dismiss anyone who doesn't agree with your opinion as an ignorant, uneducated, close-minded person not worthy of engaging in a reasonable fact based conversation about this specific case, and make no attempt to discuss this specific case other than to point out that an armed individual shot an unarmed individual. You conveniently ignore the fact that the armed individual only shot the unarmed individual when his head was being pounded into the pavement with a broken nose and serious contusions and open wounds on the back of his head. You don't want the facts to fall out in an unbiased way. You want to include a very brief mention of what happened in this case in an email attacking conservatives for behaving in the same way you're behaving.

Magpie, I wasn't trying to render a verdict on the Florida case. I was making points-- with evidence-- about how quickly others had come to conclusions on the matter. You question my evidence, yet provide none of your own. What makes you qualified to judge the research I cite as biased? As for my other points that you question: you claim to be reasonably well-educated. I challenge you to provide evidence against my claims. From what I can see, the numbers don't lie.

Written on UT law students stage Trayvon Martin rally :





Written on McIntyre seeks extra $35M in 'bold' schools budget proposal :

To the nay-sayers: I'm not saying money is the only thing that matters, but it does. And those schools were in disrepair long before McIntyre ever entered the picture. I agree that the administration is too top-heavy. But treating kids as pawns in a battle to fight administrative bloat isn't the right solution either.


For those of you claiming that more money spent on schools doesn't lead to positive results, you're just plain wrong. States that spend more per student tend to have higher educational attainment.


I suspect many of you don't have children in Knox Co. schools. If you did, you'd notice that many of them are literally crumbling. Many schools are over-crowded. Did you have to go to school in a 'portable classroom' when you were a child? These are rooms that were designed to be 'temporary' 25 years ago, and now they're falling apart. At my children's school, mold has infested the portable classrooms (which, by the way, house 35% of the kids at the school). Children are getting sick. The wooden staircases that lead up to the portables are rotting and are unsafe. Knox schools desperately need fixed. I invite you to tour a few and I'm confident you'll see the need for this budget.

Written on Growing up 'other': Non-Christian families share their experiences during Christmas season :

Those of us who have lived all over and decided to settle in East Tennessee probably didn't decide it on the open-mindedness of the locals. This is one of the most closed-minded, homogenous places I've ever lived, and I still love it, and I'm not leaving, and I and my kind will eventually make it the kind of open, loving, tolerant place Jesus and Buddha and Mohammed would want it to be. So there!