Category: State Politics

  • $15,000,000 For Fewer Than 900 People a Year

    For as long as I can remember, Republicans have been kicking and screaming about the “DEATH TAX”, also known as the inheritance or estate tax. The estate tax is one of those taxes you hear about a lot, but probably won’t ever have to pay, unless your family is fabulously wealthy. Even then, there are…

  • Compromise and Discourse in Redistricting

    If you’ve been watching the news or reading the newspaper, you’ve probably seen a story or 12 about redistricting. Federal, State and Local levels of government are in the process of doing that very thing here in Tennessee. The photo to the left is House Minority Leader Craig Fitzhugh and Caucus Chair Mike Turner. Both…

  • Whose District is it Anyway?

    An interesting exchange on the floor of the Tennessee State House today. Democrats introduced a number of amendments to the House Redistricting plan, all of which were placed on the table by the Republican majority; effectively killed. The final amendment was proposed by Jeanne Richardson. The amendment would have shifted 6 precincts into the new…

  • Drawing Lines – State House and Senate Redistricting Released

    Yesterday the State House and Senate released their proposed maps for the decennial redistricting that comes right after the decennial census. You can view the State Senate Maps here and the State House Maps here. There have been numerous reports about what’s going to happen to various locales. News outlets in Memphis have focused on…

  • On My Impending Tuition Increase

    The Commercial Appeal reported yesterday that tuition at state schools next year will increase by 3-8% next year. This marks the 5th year consecutive year of tuition increases totaling as much as a 50% increase over that time period. In my time in school, I’ve had the pleasure of experiencing these tuition increases, and I’ve…

  • Several Things, and Prolly More

    I’ve been working on a series of special projects over the past week that are likely to continue for some time to come, so blogging will likely be light over here for a while. However, there are several things that have attracted my attention that need to be dealt with, so, here goes. Bill Moyers…