Chancellor Dismisses Suit Attempting to Overturn Election

That's what Richard Holden's wife has just said on Facebook. Nothing online yet in the news media.

UPDATE: Memphis Daily News confirms on Twitter.

UPDATE: Memphis Commercial Appeal's first story on the matter: "Shelby County Election Committee's mistakes in Aug. 5 election weren't illegal, judge rules."

WKNO-TV to Present Gubernatorial Interviews

UPDATE: You can now watch these two half hour shows online, as in, right here too.





You can also find the showtimes in the nifty election season calendar I put in my sidebar over there --->>

Here's the station presser:

Press Contact: Teri L. Sullivan

WKNO/Channel 10

(901) 729-8735

tlsullivan@wkno.org

September 10, 2010
For Immediate Release

WKNO-TV to Present Gubernatorial Interviews

WKNO will offer voters a chance to learn more about the two candidates for Tennessee Governor.

A Conversation with Mike McWherter: Election Edition and A Conversation with Bill Haslam: Election Edition will premiere on Thursday, October 7 at 7:00 p.m. on WKNO/Channel 10 and will also air across the state on public television stations.

With Nashville producer Tim Weeks, WKNO is the first station to talk with the two candidates in their homes. Who is Republican Bill Haslam? Who is Democrat Mike McWherter? In these two landmark half-hour programs, interviewer Vicki Yates (Nashville’s NewsChannel 5) finds out by asking the questions that every Tennessean wants to ask. Throughout the two 30-minute shows, the candidates talk about where they are from, their parents, their values and influences. They also talk about their public records, the highlights of their campaigns and what they hope to achieve if elected in November. In addition, the candidates’ wives (Crissy Haslam and Mary Jane McWherter) reveal how the couples met, what attracted them to each other, and what has made their marriages work. “There’s much more to a candidate than just his or her political views,” said Weeks. “With these two conversations, we learn more about what makes these candidates tick and how their backgrounds and environments affect what kind of leaders they’ve become.” “An important mission for public television,” said Michael J. LaBonia, WKNO President and CEO, “is to inform citizens, helping them be more engaged voters. The position of Governor is the highest position in the state. It’s essential that our viewers be prepared when casting their votes, and it’s an essential role of public television to help prepare them.”

Airdates/times:

A Conversation with Mike McWherter: Election Edition

On WKNO/Channel 10:

Thursday, October 7 at 7:00 p.m. and midnight
Friday, October 8 at 7:30 p.m. and 12:30 a.m.
Wednesday, October 13 at 6:30 p.m.

On WKNO2, available over the air on Channel 10.2 and on Comcast Digital Cable Channel 910:

Saturday, October 9 at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, October 10 at 3:30 p.m.
Saturday, October 30 at 7:00 p.m.
Sunday, October 31 at 3:00 p.m.

A Conversation with Bill Haslam: Election Edition

On WKNO/Channel 10:

Thursday, October 7 at 7:30 p.m. and 12:30 a.m.
Friday, October 8 at 7:00 p.m. and midnight
Wednesday, October 20 at 6:30 p.m.

On WKNO2:

Saturday, October 9 at 7:00 p.m.
Sunday, October 10 at 3:00 p.m.
Saturday, October 30 at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, October 31 at 3:30 p.m.

WKNO is a non-profit, private foundation serving the Mid-South for more than 50 years. An important community resource, WKNO uses the power of non-commercial public broadcasting to provide the Mid-South with quality educational and cultural programs that inform, entertain, and inspire. For more information: wkno.org

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Behind the Headlines

UPDATE: This week’s Behind the Headlines features Governor Bredesen’s new book, which is critical of the President’s health reform laws, plus a wrap-up of the Dotson trial, the city of Memphis cracks down on urban blight, and more. First showing October 15.



Memphis, Tennessee public television station WKNO has launched a new half-hour show, Behind the Headlines, featuring prominent local reporters discussing the most salient news developments of the week.  I saw the first installment Friday evening at 6:30pm and was very impressed at the quality of the discussion.  I intend to watch it every week from now on.  Each show will replay at 11:00pm Friday night on WKNO2 and Sunday morning at 8:30am on the main channel.  Set your DVR's!  Here's a link to the new show's webpage, including the video of the show available the Monday after; and here's the complete presser from WKNO's Teri Sullivan:

Press Contact: Teri L. Sullivan

WKNO/Channel 10

(901) 729-8735

tlsullivan@wkno.org

August 23, 2010
For Immediate Release

WKNO Premieres New Weekly Locally-Produced News & Information Show

WKNO is pleased to announce the premiere of Behind the Headlines on Friday, September 10. Hosted by Eric Barnes, publisher of The Daily News, Behind the Headlines will take an in-depth look with local print and broadcast journalists at the week’s top news stories impacting the Mid-South community. It will air Fridays at 6:30 p.m. on Channel 10 as part of the new local programming initiative, ‘KNO Tonite.

“WKNO is making a commitment to produce a locally focused program, which fits perfectly with what we at The Memphis Daily News do,” said Barnes. “This is a great opportunity to use television to delve into the type of locally relevant issues that affect the whole texture of the city. There are already many TV outlets for breaking news. This is a chance to talk about the deeper issues and the bigger issues.”

“We recently conducted research with our viewers and members,” said Michael LaBonia, WKNO President & CEO. “The public indicated that they wanted more in-depth local news and information, – not just the headlines, crime events, or sports scores, – but rather a more in-depth look at the issues which affect their daily lives. We were pleased when Eric Barnes agreed to host. We worked with him on the Gubernatorial Forum last May and were delighted with his journalistic knowledge and his appeal on-air.”

Because Behind the Headlines is very topical, information about the show’s guests and focus may not be available until close to airdate. For updates, viewers can visit the Behind the Headlines web page at www.wkno.org. There will also be updates posted on WKNO’s Facebook page and Twitter feed.

‘KNO Tonite is a new local programming initiative combining the new digital capabilities of the WKNO Digital Media Center with the community’s desire for more local programming. It will air on WKNO/Channel 10 Monday through Friday at 6:30 p.m. and feature a different program each night. ‘KNO Tonite, which will be hosted by WKNO’s Mark Koonce, will also air weeknights at 11:00 on WKNO2, available over the air on Channel 10.2 and on Comcast Digital Cable Channel 910.

On Mondays, the WKNO series Southern Routes will air in its new weekly slot. A new series taking an in-depth look at sports in the Mid-South will air Tuesdays – Sports Files with Geoff Calkins. Interviews with a variety of artists, musicians, authors and more will air Wednesdays on A Conversation With . . ., and various local documentaries will air Thursdays.

WKNO is a non-profit, private foundation serving the Mid-South for more than 50 years. An important community resource, WKNO uses the power of non-commercial public broadcasting to provide the Mid-South with quality educational and cultural programs that inform, entertain, and inspire. For more information: wkno.org

# # #

Graven Images

[I'm bumping this February 2006 post of mine back up to the top of my blog because of its renewed relevance to the Koran burning uproar.]

Religious and culture clash caused by the Danish cartoons made me think about why Abrahamic monotheism prohibits images of its god and -- in its Islamic branch -- its principal prophet, Muhammad. Let's take it from the top, so to speak:

Exodus 20 (King James Version)

3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.
5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me....

This prohibition set the new religion apart from the idolatry central to other cults operating in the ancient Middle East and consolidated the religious impulses of Abraham's people under a single deity and moral/legal code, thereby helping to unify the Hebrews socially, economically, and militarily against other peoples in the region.

Verse 3 seems to acknowledge other gods, but other translations offer an alternative "besides me" to "before me." Verses 4 and 5 complete the prohibition of idolizing, worshipping, or serving other gods popular in the region at the time, like the Ba'als ("lords") Moloch (the sacred bull or golden calf) and sky and rain god Hadad, the fertility goddess Astarte or Asherah, Egyptian sun gods, god of the underworld Mot, and river and sea god Yam. In fact, the use of many different names of God in the original Hebrew scriptures which are also the names of other Canaanite gods probably indicate that a process of assimilation of these other gods into one was going on. The prohibition on visual representations of God assisted this process.

Searching the King James Version for "graven image" also brings up interesting directives; this one is representative:

Deuteronomy 7

1 When the LORD thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, and hath cast out many nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than thou;
2 And when the LORD thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them:
3 Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son.
4 For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly.
5 But thus shall ye deal with them; ye shall destroy their altars, and break down their images, and cut down their groves, and burn their graven images with fire.

So we see the earliest scriptures of Judaeo-Christian religion command behavior that we would be outraged by if perpetrated by Muslims today.

Judaism still observes the "graven image or likeness" prohibition. Christianity allows graven images and likenesses of Jesus, even though he came to be regarded as the son of God and part of a godly Trinity including the Holy Spirit. One Pope even allowed an image of God on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. Perhaps Muslims seek to raise Muhammad even closer to God (Allah) by including him within the Abrahamic image prohibition.


Not-so-distant European history is scarred by torture and burning at the stake by agents of the Christian church to punish heresy and blasphemy. Many colonists came to America to escape religious persecution in their own lands. When the American colonies achieved independence, leaders influenced by Enlightenment philosophy wrote into our country's Constitution the First Amendment, which cannot be read too often:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

Under this simple, beautiful paragraph, our courts have found blasphemy laws unconstitutional and unenforceable, notably in the U.S. Supreme Court case Joseph Burstyn, Inc v. Wilson, involving a "sacrilegious" movie:

The case was invoked to the Supreme Court by Joseph Burstyn following the rescindment of the license of the short film The Miracle. Burstyn was the (subtitled) English version's distributor; the movie was the work of Italian neorealist Roberto Rossellini. It centred around a man, "Saint Joseph", who villainously impregnates "Nanni", a disturbed peasent who believes herself to be the Virgin Mary.

The Burstyn case "largely marked the decline of motion picture censorship in the United States" and set the stage for the liberating influence of American cultural products around the world.

I beseech Muslims everywhere to observe how thoroughly Judaism and Christianity have modernized, abandoning violence against blasphemers, heretics, and other sects and faiths. As United States Supreme Court Justice Brandeis said, "the remedy to be applied is more speech, not enforced silence."

Look at the incidents of bans, fatwas, prosecutions, imprisonments, death sentences, and murders perpetrated for religious reasons. In the cartoon riots, scores were killed, hundreds injured, churches destroyed, and newspaper people driven into hiding by threats and bounties on their heads. It's not just the massive, violent intolerance; it's also this:

In Britain, a poll of Muslims last night found evidence of growing alienation, with four in 10 calling for religious sharia law to be imposed in parts of the UK with a mainly Muslim population. The law specifies stonings and amputations as punishments, and involves religious police bringing suspects before courts.

Why would any freedom-loving American want this problem over here? Read the words of Flemming Rose, culture editor of the the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten:

I commissioned the cartoons in response to several incidents of self-censorship in Europe caused by widening fears and feelings of intimidation in dealing with issues related to Islam. And I still believe that this is a topic that we Europeans must confront, challenging moderate Muslims to speak out. The idea wasn't to provoke gratuitously -- and we certainly didn't intend to trigger violent demonstrations throughout the Muslim world. Our goal was simply to push back self-imposed limits on expression that seemed to be closing in tighter.

UPDATE: Mohammed Image Archive: Depictions of Mohammed Throughout History

UPDATE: The thought police keep marching West

UPDATE: Terrific subtitled video of Arab-American psychologist Wafa Sultan shown on Al Jazeera.

Shelby County Election Results for August 5, 2010

Shelby County Commissioner Mike Carpenter Discusses His Paid Leave Proposal

(The Daily Docket is honored to have the single most interesting Shelby County (TN) Commissioner, Mike Carpenter, present some thoughts on his proposal to make changes in County employees' paid leave.  I have posted his piece in full.  Thank you, Mike.)

Americans, beyond just the Tea Party movement, seem to be making their voices heard on the issues of taxes and spending. Just ask your neighbors, friends, fellow parishioners or strangers on the street, and you will hear outrage at the cost of government and wasteful spending. You will hear disdain and demand for reform until of course, that "reform" threatens to eliminate or reduce a program or benefit near and dear to the hearts of the outraged. Such is the case with Shelby County's paid leave policy -- employees and elected officials who decry the spending of the County Commission are fighting tooth and nail to hold on to an excessive paid leave policy.

Costly, Excessive Benefit

Under the current leave policy, every employee receives 11 paid holidays. In addition, employees accrue annual days, sick days and bonus days based on years of service. For example an employee after one year of service earns 11 holidays, 12 sick days, 10 annual days and up to 4 bonus days for a total of 37 days of paid leave. After 20 years of service, that same employee can earn up to 68 days in a year, including holidays. For employees who don't use all of their time and make less than $60,000, that time can be cashed out at retirement for a sizable parting bonus. The cost of all paid leave to county government averages $37 million, which means the average employee is away from work 38.5 days per year including holidays. Another $26 million of unused leave sits on the county's books as a liability. To look at it another way, an employee who serves for 15 years and uses none of his time could be paid for a year without coming to work.

A Modest Proposal

My original proposal, which is a revision of a proposal from the Wharton Administration two years ago, would reduce the number of days an employee could earn in the future. In other words, any time "banked" by an employee would be preserved, so the employee does not lose that time. The maximum number of days an employee could accrue would be capped at 225 days, just shy of the 260 days that comprise the work year. Rather than having separate leave accounts (sick, annual, bonus), employees would have one account for paid leave that could be used for any purpose. There would no longer be any bonus days to be earned. The maximum days that could be cashed-out at separation would be 20. While limiting the number of days off, increasing productivity and reducing costs, this proposal would still be more generous than the vast majority of private sector companies.

However, opposition from fellow Commissioners resulted in a request to defer the item when it was originally considered until after the August 5th election. Also, in an effort to garner the 7 votes needed to pass the reform, I have offered two new amendments. The first amendment would gradually phase-in the reduction in leave over a three year period, rather than all at once. The second amendment would create an emergency leave bank filled by excess leave time donated by employees in the event a fellow employee has an extenuating circumstance and lacks the necessary paid time off. Despite these new amendments that water-down the proposal, county employees and prominent elected officials, both Democrat and Republican, oppose the change.

But we're entitled to it

Proponents of the current leave policy have as a primary argument that compared to the private sector they are woefully compensated, and therefore must have better benefits to bridge the gap. This may have been true in the past, but today it is a myth. The Bureau of Labor Statistics National Compensation Survey demonstrates that nationally and regionally public sector wages in most vocations are on par with the private sector. When benefits are included, nationally the public sector outpaces the private sector by more than $11 per hour on average. Regarding paid leave, public sector paid leave far exceeds what most private sector companies offer.

Another argument against reform is that abusers are the problem and we should crack down on them. There are two problems with this approach. The first is that the Civil Service system makes timely and effective discipline difficult for any manager. The second is that abused or not, the total cost of the benefit is too high. Most employees may be using their time appropriately, but it doesn't change the fact that there is an expense to the government that in my mind is unreasonable.

Opponents of change also argue that any change should only be applied to new hires. Because the county is working to reduce the number of positions and a hiring freeze is imposed, less than 250 employees on average have been hired over the last five years. With more than 6,100 employees in county government, it would take years to have an impact on what is not only a change in efficiency and productivity, but in the culture of county government.

Finally, they insist that the leave was promised when they were hired and that the employee handbook is like a contract and shouldn't be breached. Of course, this is a ridiculous argument. With this logic nothing positive or negative for the employee should ever be changed in the handbook. Many of my colleagues who make this argument voted for a budget that increases the health insurance premium, voted to curtail OPEB benefits and have supported changing our unsustainable pension system. The point is benefit changes are necessary as times change to sustain the viability of the corporation. In comparison, the stories of private sector companies, like FedEx who required employees take a 5% pay cut and suspended company contributions to 401Ks are endless.

Hypocrisy without boundaries

The hardest pills to swallow for me in this debate are the "conservative" elected officials who squawk about, lower taxes and reducing spending, but who have come out aggressively against reforming this policy. Many of the loudest objectors, were elected or re-elected last night, while others have been some of my biggest critics, because they say, "he's not a real Republican/conservative." Either they are not who they say they are philosophically or the reality that 70% of the cost of county government is personnel related is not understood.

This past Wednesday, we revisited the issue in committee where it failed to get a favorable recommendation by a vote of 3-3-1. As in the past, county employees on county time showed up to protest. One employee directed her comments to me. She said being a Commissioner and making these kinds of decisions must be easy. She said I didn't understand what it was like to work on the front lines and to work hard. Then she said that because she shows up for work and is a good employee, she deserves to be compensated and therefore had earned this excessive paid time off benefit. My response to her is that she is compensated. It's called a paycheck that the millions currently unemployed would love to have. For that paycheck, she is expected to show up and work hard when the lights are on and the doors are open and to do the best job that she can do (that's not to mention the other very generous county benefits employees enjoy).

The truth is that the proposal, amended or not, won't pass unless those that claim they are tired of spending speak up. Contact from county employees trying to maintain the status quo far out-number the contacts from the average taxpayer. What this proposal needs is a little disdain, demand and outrage from the people paying the bill.

Commissioner Mike Carpenter

District 1, Position 3

(901) 545-4301

mike.carpenter@shelbycountytn.gov

UPDATE: "County Commission passes proposal to reduce number of employee days off."

Foxy Jacky Busted for Domestic Violence

This is too involved for a mere obscure update to a post of mine that is still popular all over the world: Foxy Jacky Link Dump.

It seems that Foxy Jacquelyn McKee has split up with her husband (note that I did not say "porn pimp") and objected when he came to take some objects out of their marital home.  Here's the officer's description of the incident (click graphic to enlarge):

I have done a lot of these as a defense attorney.  I don't know who got hired on this one; our records in the lower courts here don't show this online.  I do know I didn't get hired; but I will come back with what happened at the hearing on this case in November; and I may even go down to watch.  I know I don't have any use for her husband.  I might have a use for Jacky; but I am too old to be more than her fool for very long.  I will give her the presumption of innocence our Constitution demands.  I do applaud the officers on the scene for dealing with the fairly recent must-arrest domestic violence law in a more intelligent fashion than just arresting the man: they detailed going by the injuries.  In fairness, a fight can be started by the person who ended up getting the worst of it, although the question always remains: was the force used excessive by any person?  Here's the court record.  Tune back in to this blog after court day.

Steve Cohen Speaks Against War in Afghanistan

This is the Congressman Steve Cohen we need, as individuals, families, a district, and a nation.

Cyndi Lauper & Jonny Lang on Regis

With her majority Memphis band again. Dig it!

Cyndi Lauper Goes "Memphis Blues"

Memphis musicians (L-R) Skip Pitts on guitar, Steve Potts on drums, Charlie Musselwhite on harp, and Hubbie Mitchell/Archie Turner on keys.

Thanks to ABC's Good Morning America for having them on and for the easy shares to this blog. Here's a link to take you to their site where you can see and full-screen these in even better quality, starting with "Rollin' and Tumblin'."