English-only ballot initiative loses in Nashville!

Nashville voted down a ballot measure requiring all government business to be conducted in English.

All I can say is: Thank God!

The South already has a reputation and history of bigotry. Why must this stuff constantly pop up to remind everyone of the backwardness of many people here?

Here's the utter hypocrisy of the measure.

It was proposed by a Republican, someone who trumpets fiscal restraint. But, the measure cost the city over $350,000.00, just to put it to a vote. Also, if enacted, the cost of changing the government to an English only system would have put a greater burden on the city's coffers. Revenue is down and we can ill-afford such a ludicrous expense for a bigoted law.

The politician who advocated this measure, Eric Crafton, attempted to make good on a campaign promise. That promise, having at its heart an anti-immigrant animus, will haunt Republicans.

Some even argued, an I agree with them, that the measure violated the Constitution and possibly anti-discrimination law. If true, then it shows the sponsor as a bigot. Republicans are already fighting for their political lives with Hispanics and then bozos like Crafton do stupid things like this. Chip Saltsman made the mistake of sending out a CD containing an insensitively title song while running for the chair of the RNC, so it seems that Tennessee Republicans are a font of bigotry and stupidity.

For far too long the Republican party has relied upon pretexts and code words to signal their constituents of the racist aspects of their agenda without having the balls to openly proclaim their true feelings. It high time they get called on the carpet for this stuff.

Thank God this measure didn't pass.

Those of you who know me understand my irritation with politicians who use code and offer pretexts for doing things that they wouldn't openly do because of the public outrage.

Crafton pushed an initiative that was bigoted in its purpose and the consequences should fall directly on his head for it.

Bettie Page passes away. Great loss,

It's a sad day. Pin-up icon Bettie Page passed away in California after suffering a heart attack.

You'll remember Bettie Page as the black haired pin-up who often did bondage photos in the 1950s.

For those of you interested, Bettie grew up in Nashville, Tennessee. She attended a local high school, Hume Fogg graduating salutatorian of her senior class. She was reportedly upset that she wasn't top of the class because that assured her a full scholarship to Vanderbilt.

Bettie did receive a full scholarship to George Peabody College (now a part of Vanderbilt) and graduated with a teaching degree. She taught school for a short time (I would have loved to been her student...). Bettie wasn't just a pretty face, she was smart and academically inclined, albeit with a Southern drawl.

Betty was from East Tennessee, but left because of an abusive father.

She married a few times and finally wound up in New York as a secretary. She did some modeling and finally met the man, Irving Klaw, who turned her into the icon we know today.

Time has a few photos of Bettie here.

Bettie was queen before plastic surgery, before botox, and before photoshop. She was a rare bird.
So long Bettie.

Country music is a little slow on the uptake in the political game

Finally someone other than me has spoken the truth about Country Music.

Ironically, it is the New Republic that carried the story.

I've bemoaned the state of country music for years. It ceased being country and morphed into country-flavored pop music.

This occurred when the Nashville music scene was invaded by New York and L.A. music business transplants. They couldn't make it in pop, so they moved to Nashville, changed country music to fit their tastes, and show us bumpkins how it was really done.

What are we left with? Crap.

Country music made the mistake of cozying up with the Right. That was a big mistake, but typical of Nashville. Nashville doesn't have the balls to strike out on its own, so it waits to see how the wind blows, then jumps on the bandwagon.

Unfortunately, the bandwagon shifted and is going the other direction.

Natalie Maines is having the last laugh on Toby Keith.

The continuing crisis in the air--Fart forces emergency landing

Here's a story that makes me laugh.

The FAA prefers people to smell a fart than to mask the smell.

Ah, the government strikes again.