Protecting the Quarterback

Recently the local paper, The Mountain Press had an editorial, Protecting the Quarterback.

They wrote about the ranting done by the coach of Oklahoma State University’s football team. The coach was upset over a column in the newspaper critical of his second-string quarterback. The column suggested the quarterback had a bad attitude……. Then they wrote “It’s hard to know how far to go in critiquing and analyzing college athletes. They’re amateurs for sure but……”

Later in the same edition there was an article attributed to The Associated Press under a headline Vols’ Lincoln tunes out distractions. In the article the author wrote about Fulmer’s Boot Camp where “Some of it can’t be put into print, most of it can’t. It’s been everything from trying to distract you. Standing behind you talking, yelling at you while you’re doing it. Get hit in the head with things, having to run stadiums if you miss something or you get a kick blocked.” I’m not an expert in writing in the English language but I believe The Associated Press’s sentence structure would not be looked upon favorably by an English teacher.

Now back to your editorial ……..college sports are a multimillion dollar business, and people fork over hundreds, thousands, of dollars to get good seats to support the team.

Now let’s think for a minute. Is Coach Fulmer a sadist? Is he the only football coach who abuses players in attempts to get them to do better and maybe even their best?

Do you suppose Oklahoma State University’s Coach Gundy just did not like someone criticizing his player? A woman criticize him? Football is a man’s sport. Coach Gundy has charged that reporter Carlson’s article is 3/4ths errors but refuses to identify the errors. Do you suppose Coach Gundy may have been upset over his defense allowing a school record 718 yards or that they helped the opposition’s quarterback rack up the fourth-highest passing total in major college football history, which in turn dropped his team to 116th in the nation in pass defense? Only three teams have worse marks.

Maybe Coach Gundy was distracted and a reporter asked him the wrong question at the wrong time. This is not the first time Gundy has overreacted. Maybe it is because his program lives in a huge shadow in its own state (ever hear of Oklahoma?) and is an afterthought in the national conversation. Maybe Coach Gundy just wants his super-secret, sacrosanct program to be accountable to no one.

DUI Punishments

This is part of an email I sent to Governor Bredesen, Senator Finney, and Representatives McCord and Montgomery.

In Sunday's The Mountain Press there were several articles concerning DUI laws. One of the articles listed the current punishments. I do not believe Sevier county uses those laws and punishments. Sevier counth has too many guilty of multiple offenses.

I believe, Illinois has $10,000 fine and 14 years in jail for accidents in construction areas that kill construction workers. I believe South Carolina has a $7,500 fine for the same offenses.

If Tennessee law is ever to be taken seriously there must be harsher punishments. On the second offense the offender should be declared an habitual offender and lose driving rights permanently in Tennessee. The fines must be enough to be feared. Automobiles should be confiscated regardless of ownership.

Habitual offenders should be given jail sentences long enough to be feared and violations on probation or suspended licenses should result in life without parole sentences. The laws must protect the public.

It is long past time to get serious. If the lawmakers, and governor do not pass stricter harsher laws the next time there is a DUI death or devastating accident you all will know you permitted it.

It appears for lawmakers to be personally affected is the only way laws will be passed. An example is District Attorney General Dunn's nephew. I realize Dunn is not a lawmaker, he has some influence. Green county, in Ohio, has the toughest DUI laws in the state. Why? Their Federal Congressman's daughter was killed by a driver DUI. Also in Ohio, people tried for years to get crossing warnings for some railroad crossings where there were many accidents. One day a state truck was involved and several state employees were killed. Crossing warnings were installed within 2 months. I hope you and your compatriots will act to prevent needless deaths and injuries and not wait to respond. Laws are meant to protect.

America Get a Clue.....

Someone took a lot of time and effort but maybe one day America will get a clue.

In which of these counries have the people been raised with Christian values, with the same view of ethics, morality, and character we take for granted? My guess is it will take a death to get people in the mindset to bring the manufacturing and agriculture back to the U.S. and pay more. By the way brake shoes from China have been found in the U.S. supply chain made of grass.

Joe Smith started the day early having set his alarm clock (MADE IN JAPAN) for 6am. While his coffeepot (MADE IN CHINA) was perking, he shaved with his electric razor (MADE IN HONG KONG ). He put on a dress shirt ( MADE IN SRI LANKA) , designer jeans (MADE IN SINGAPORE) and tennis shoes (MADE IN KOREA). After cooking his breakfast in his new electric skillet (MADE IN INDIA ) he sat down with his calculator ( MADE IN MEXICO) to see how much he could spend today. After setting his watch (MADE IN TAIWAN ) to the radio (MADE IN INDIA) he got in his car ( MADE IN GERMANY ) filled it with GAS from Saudi Arabia and continued his search for a good paying AMERICAN J OB .. At the end of yet another discouraging and fruitless day checking his Computer (Made In Malaysia )(with tech support in INDIA ) , Joe decided to relax for a while. He put on his sandals (MADE IN BRAZIL) poured himself a glass of wine (MADE IN FRANCE!) and turned on his TV (MADE IN INDONESIA ), and then wondered why he can't find a good paying job in.. AMERICA ...

Dogs on the Loose

Editor, The Mountain Press:

Reference the letter-to-the-editor printed in the September 12th The Mountain Press concerning the big brown dog intentionally being hit by the driver of a white four-door car.

How about the more pervasive problem in Sevier county; you know the problem of dogs running loose? The author of the letter described the dog as a family pet wearing a collar with a rabies tag. Family pet; running loose? If that isn’t a contradiction what is? Family pets are at home, in the house not out running around.

Does anyone consider the drivers who accidentally hit dogs or other animals? How traumatic it is for them? Imagine a mother, driving her young daughter to school and accidentally hits a dog, you know one of those family pets. How upsetting it is to the mother? How upsetting it is to the daughter? How upsetting for the family pet?

Owners of animals are similar in their actions as are those who like to smoke. Since they like it EVERYONE must like it too. Some even want to share their animals so much that they leave them outside so everyone can enjoy them, especially the barking at all hours day and night and let them run loose stepping on the flowers and leaving surprises in the neighboring yards (spreading the love so to speak).

Intentionally running over an animal of any species is wrong and should be punished but if that family pet had not been permitted to run loose the cruel and inhumane act never would have occurred. Who is more cruel the person who commits the act or the persons who knowingly create the situation that permits the act to occur?

Beware of Politicians wearing their religion on their sleeves

The 1st amendment to the Constitution prohibits congress from “making laws respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” Most of those involved with developing the Constitution believed in God or a higher power of some sort. Most were not “church goers.” Prior to the Declaration of Independence and the Revolutionary War there was financial penalty for those who did not attend the “official” church, that being the Church of England. The Constitution left open the possibility of that being continued thus, in 1791, the 1st Amendment. Thus today people talk of separation of church and state, which is nowhere found in the Constitution.

Religious convictions and beliefs have no place in government. Hopefully a religious person who chooses to indulge in politics brings from their religion, ethics, morality, and honesty nothing more. Sevier County politicians,as well as those in Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and Sevierville might want to take note.

Claiming religious conviction, our President is unwilling to permit the sacrifice of embryos in an attempt to improve the lives of American citizens but is willing to sacrifice the lives of American citizens, some against their will, in an attempt (futile as it is) to improve the lives of people who hate us and hate those being sacrificed and who will, whenever possible, persecute us because of our religious convictions.

If a member of the Muslim religion becomes a person of influence in our government I do not want them applying their religious convictions concerning women or religious conversions or honor killings. I want them to apply laws and the Constitution not the Koran.

Referencing the Saturday, June 16, The Mountain Press Political View cartoon that quotes Mitt Romney as saying "I can't imagine anything more awful than polygamy;" in the drawing the voters are shown to be saying, "Please tell me 'nuclear annihilation at the hands of terrorists' is a close second." My guess is most of us can think of many things much worse than polygamy even though we do not believe it to be right. I do not want a member of the Mormon religion applying their religious convictions concerning marriage. I want them to apply laws and the Constitution, not the book of Mormon, or Pearl of Great Price etc.

Beware of politicians who wear their religion as a badge. A religious person should bring morals, ethics, and honesty to government, nothing more.

It doesn't rate well

Reference the article "It doesn't rate well" on the front page of the Sunday, July 29th The Mountain Press. Motels and other businesses that advertise low rates that mislead the customer call in to question the subject of ethics.

Ethics, adhering to a moral principal, is nothing more than the Golden Rule; "Do for others what you would like them to do for you.” Ethics is a system of moral standards.

When a business misleads its customers can you trust anything that business does? Can you trust the cleanliness? Can you trust the maintenance? Can you trust the security? If they provide food is the food safe to eat? The answer to those questions is you can not trust anything associated with that business.

Once a business shows it will deceive its customers to get their money the business shows it will do anything for the dollar and therefore cannot be trusted.

Is misleading the customer considered honest behavior? It is past the time for the local businesses to stop acting like carnival hucksters.

Businesses that are dedicated to doing the right thing have a written commitment to social responsibility, and act on it consistently are more profitable than those who don't. Embracing ethical behavior will not automatically make the business owners rich and successful but ethics + competence is a winning equation.

Believing Impossible Things

Recently in occurred to me that for evolution to work it would require that a male and a female of a species develop the same characteristics within the lifetime of the other. Have you ever wondered how many species died waiting waiting for the sex organs of both genders to be present in the right place to permit procreation?

Then, how would nature know the problem was not with the sex organs but the problem was there were no feet?

How many died waiting for the other gender to develop the eye or nose or feet or paw etc that would permit the movement to meet their mate with everything in the right place only to discover they were sterile? How long would it take for another perfect match to develop and procreate?

I find it fascinating that there are those who believe that over an unknown period of time an unknown number of events spontaneously occurred resulting in nothing becoming matter. Then, over another unknown period, that matter evolved into some material that evolved into the universe and all forms of life. They do not address the reason and the cause of the spontaneous actions.

Either our universe is the result of Intelligent Design or it just happened.

Lacking logic various “theories” have been developed but any theory that does not address the beginning of matter misses the point of the theory, to explain creation of the universe. Scientists agree a theory is not fact only an only a hypothesis but we permit teachers to teach it as fact.

Accepting the Bible requires faith. Rejecting the Bible requires faith.
In Through the Looking-Glass Lewis Carroll constructs an interesting dialog between Alice and the White Queen:

“Now I’ll give you something to believe, I’m just one hundred and one, five
months and a day.”
“I can’t believe that!” said Alice.
“Cant’ you?” the
queen said in a pitying tone. “Try again: draw a long breath, and shut your
eyes.”
Alice laughed. “There’s no use trying,” she said: “One can’t believe
impossible things.”
“I daresay you haven’t had much practice,” said the
Queen. “When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why,
sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.”

To avoid acknowledging God people choose to “believe impossible things.”

Labor Day a Holiday, Not Hardly

Our local paper, The Mountain Press had an editoral on September 3rd (Labor Day) headlined “A most fitting holiday; Saluting labor an American tradition well worth keeping.” We pay tribute to the worker by requiring them to work? Not hardly. Just another holiday for the government, the same people who established it to begin with.

The Revolutionary War freed the colonies from the tyranny of England but did little for the slaves in the colonies.

Some of our forefathers, though they did not like slavery and would have ade importing slaves illegal, could not. Having slaves to work large plantations was a part of the economy and without slaves one could not compete with those who had slaves. To refuse to go along with slavery would have meant losing their livelihood, their plantation and their place in society.

Many businesses in Sevier County are in a similar situation. They cannot afford to pay the inflated leases and rents and still compete unless they can pay their employees minimal wages and minimal or no benefits. Some businesses offer benefits to their employees but the employee’s cannot afford to pay their share and therefore do not subscribe, leaving their family to depend on government assistance such as Tenncare or Medicare.

Land prices in Sevier County are subsidized by the low wages paid the workers, those whom we pay tribute to on Labor Day according to your editorial. Businesses in Sevier County are subsidized by Tenncare etc.

Businesses in Sevier County should tremble at the thought of a Cesar Chavez rising up. Remember him and his United Farm Workers and the boycotts he led in the 1960s and 70s and how farm owners changed the way they treated and paid the workers? Remember how Jimmy Hoffa organized the truck drivers into the Teamsters when they were treated very much like Sevier County workers are treated today?

As long as a husband and a wife can work full time jobs in Sevier County and continue to remain below or close to the poverty level it is only a matter of time before a Cesar or a Jimmy appears.

One last thought. What if those (legal OR illegal) workers, paid lower than minimum wage were permitted to sue their employers for violating Federal Statues by paying less than minimum wage? What if legal residents who are unemployed sue employers for hiring those who are not legal residents or those who’s Visa does not authorize them to work?

The businesses in Sevier County should tremble; it is just a matter of time.