It was just after lunch time when I pulled in the long gravel driveway of Uncle Sid's and Aunt Sadie's farm. The day had been a beautiful spring day as May days can be around the end of the month and I could see Uncle Sid just getting out of his old faded red pickup parked near the tool shed out behind the couple's white weather boarded home. A visit with the old farmer always sends me away a much better person than when I had arrived. more

With Memorial Day and the official summer driving season approaching, drivers are paying a heavy price for our nation's dependence on foreign energy. On average, U.S. families are paying a record $3.10 for regular gasoline, which is 72 cents more than the price at the beginning of the year. In Tennessee, the average price per gallon is $2.84 -- 111 percent higher than it was in 2001. more

Tennessee Fainting Goats can be a trip! Suffering from "empty nest syndrome" and anticipating retirement I decided I would like to have some animals to tend. Before I went to work full time I had geese, ducks, turkeys, rabbits, chickens and other animals... more

Maybe teachers ought to take a lesson from cops, figuratively speaking. The federally funded Community Oriented Police Systems looked back on the day when officers on patrol walked a beat and talked with people and got information about crime in the community; hence COPS. . . . . more

"A year ago the city passed an ordinance stating "no single wide trailers in city limits." There is one located behind a house on Verona Road. Since there is a trailer there, does this mean the ordinance has changed. Because I have a relative that would like to move a trailer behind my house if this is allowed."... more

Here's a little public health reminder, courtesy of the Lewisburg Water and Wastewater Department, along with an old story that arises from a scatological thought born of a my uncle's new lawn. We'll start with the serious business and finish with the funny business punch-line... more

Chances are that you've heard the expression, "nice guys finish last." Nothing could be further from the truth. This statement is used by many to justify less than ethical treatment of others. Under the guise of not wanting to finish last, people engage in inconsiderate conduct. At best, this type of behavior will give the illusion of short-term gains. These apparent gains come with a high price; the forfeiture of building a solid foundation of living which will last a lifetime... more

Modernists. Theological Progressives. Liberal Theologians. Whatever nametag you use, they stand in contrast to conservative or traditionalist theologians. Rudolf Bultmann was a famous liberal theologian who insisted that the modern scientific worldview should be used as a basis for "demythologizing" the Bible. ... more

by Stephen Rowland I didn't figure I had a chance. While stopping by the Yamaha/Suzuki Cool Springs motorcycle shop to purchase a manual for my son, the salesman asked me "Why don't you enter your motorcycle in the bike show contest held here March 24th?" The bike show was for a very worthy cause. ... more

"My favorite animal is the mule. He has a lot more horse sense than a horse. He knows when to stop eating. And he knows when to stop working." Harry S Truman Spring has always been my favorite time of year: as the weather begins to warm up, so does the NCAA basketball tournament, the Masters, and Mule Day. Two of the three events get plenty of press, so let me tell you about my hometown's annual Mule Day event... more

by Charlie Howell When I ask myself the question "what would Nashville be without our churches," the cynic in me might quickly retort "BETTER OFF". However, the more positive, trusting, more Pollyanna me revolts at that idea. What if I drove around my neighborhood and there was no Presbyterian Church, Christian Church, no Synagogue, Church of Christ, no Methodist Church, No Baptist or Lutheran Church, no Episcopal Church out the way and no hospital built by an order of Catholic Nuns? On your way to shop or to work today look around you and consider my query. ... more

by Frank Gibson This is "Sunshine Week." No, it has nothing to do with celebrating the start of Daylight Savings Time. This is sunshine in government as in "sunshine is the best disinfectant." "Sunshine Sunday" star-ted five years ago in Florida, where the news media used it to focus attention on inadequacies of Florida's open government laws. It soon expanded to "Sunshine Week" nationwide to focus on the public's right-to-know everywhere... more

The results of a just-released national study serve as a chilling reminder that teenagers have a much higher risk of dying or suffering severe injuries in a traffic accident than do older, more experienced drivers. The study, conducted by the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and State Farm Insurance Co., found that while an overwhelming majority of teens say they rarely or never drive after drinking or using drugs, it's quite common for them to operate vehicles while talking on cell phones, text-messaging, playing hand-held games or being distracted by their teenage passengers.. ... more

Marshall County Mayor Joe Boyd Liggett takes a neutral position with regard to controversy swirling around the pending rezoning of land for another rock quarry in the county, one that would be immediately next to a long-time quarry at Pottsville. Liggett brought that and another matter to the attention of the Marshall County Tribune late last week as he'd been mentioned in a news commentary on WSMV TV Channel 4 in Nashville where one of his campaign contributors, Todd Warner of B&W Excavators, was also mentioned.. ... more

According to the Assoc-iated Press, Leavitt Area High School in Leeds, Maine has gone beyond banning guns, to symbolically banning XY chromosomes. Boys basketball coach Mike Remillard was fired after a (successful) halftime pep talk in which he challenged his players to reach into their pants and "check their manhood" before re-turning to the court... more

I have a special place in my heart for real-life examples of individuals who, in the face of great adversity, rise above their circumstances to achieve greatness. With February being Black History Month, there will undoubtedly be several short biographies published in newspapers and magazines of black individuals who did just that. ... more

Like reform schools of yesteryear, today's "boot camps" reflect a culture where "anything goes" in dealing with children labeled "incorrigible". They make the headlines when something goes terribly wrong: A child dies at the hands of guards administering "tough love." A child collapses from dehydration during an outing of "character building." For the most part, these are children (predominantly boys) who have not been convicted of crimes serious enough to warrant imprisonment. ... more

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The U.S. Senate has approved a measure based on a bill written by U.S. Rep. Bart Gordon to speed the deployment of emergency 911 services to Internet phone users. "This is a tremendous win for public safety," said Gordon, a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over telecommunications and Internet issues. "New technologies are meant to improve lives, not put them at risk... more

The Community Speaks Out more

I get calls regularly from citizens and reporters with open government questions, but this one threw me. The AP reporter wanted my reaction to statements an assistant state attorney general made at the National Conference of State Legislatures. Janet Kleinfelter, "senior counsel" in the AG's office, had told NCSL attendees that the press drives government underground when it asks for too many public records... more