vibinc

Progressive Politics from Memphis

  • On #RecallKemp

    Last week the Commercial Appeal reported on an effort to recall City Council Chairman, Kemp Conrad. The announcement of the petition, which can be found here, lists some of the dismissive things Chairman Conrad has said about activists seeking to protect the Greensward in Overton Park. As a general statement, I’m supportive o citizen led…

  • Gibbons Returns Triumphant

    Bill Gibbons, the former Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security and a former Shelby County District Attorney General has returned to Memphis to take on crime once again. Gibbons will join the Public Safety Institute at the University of Memphis to lend his experience as a DA to the study of…

  • The Scattershot Effect

    Last night’s passage of HB779 by the Tennessee House brought to light some features of the bill that I was previously unaware of, and some problems that will most certainly result if the bill is passed. Here’s Rep. Carter speaking on two features of the bill that haven’t gotten a lot of play in the…

  • The Egregious Overreach

    The Tennessee House passed HB779 in a nearly party line vote tonight 68-25. The bill if approved, would allow as many as 10 previously and lawfully annexed areas of Memphis to petition for a referendum, which if approved by a majority of the voters in the area, would remove them from the City. I watched…

  • De-Annexation Episode IV: A False Hope

    If the post this morning gave you an introduction to the idea of making Memphis smaller through de-annexation via referendum, or some other planned de-annexation, the flavor of which Mayor Strickland indicated he’s “open to”, this post will take a look into some of the challenges of the actual doing of de-annexation. But first, some…

  • Chopping up Memphis

    It seems like its been a while since the caucus of hillbillies up in Nashville set Memphis in their sights. That’s not to say their disdain for Memphis has diminished any, just that they’ve been too busy fighting the United Nations, Affordable healthcare, and and closing down rural hospitals as a result, and fighting for…