Comments by efjohnson

Written on Defiant Knox sheriff to stack illegal immigrant violators "like cordwood" in jail :

No matter which side you're on, he's going straight to the national news and that's just great for East Tennessee. Doesn't he try this out on trusted advisors first?

Written on Letter: Obama's comments on trial constructive:

What he should have said was get rid of the hoodies, backwards caps, and baggy pants and start acting like you are somebody. Then maybe you won't get profiled all the time. Or said nothing. Instead he set the clock back on race relations to about 1950.

Written on Pilot deal draws fire from attorneys:

in response to moonpie-ellie:

Or they're doing the same thing and think its normal practice to rip off customers. Well here's a news flash Pilot apologists, it's not common practice and it's not 'wink wink' okay to run your business this way.

+1. September 2008, people.

Written on Nonprofit challenges prayer before Knoxville City Council meetings:

I have called this principle, by which each slight variation, if useful, is preserved, by the term of Natural Selection. -Darwin

According to the standard set on these pages, I have just proved evolution by quoting from Darwin.

Written on Knoxville gay couples 'thrilled' with court's ruling:

Literally the word "bible" means books or a library of books. It is a collection authored, and lets face it re-authored, hundreds of times over thousands of years by hundreds of men.

Leviticus was from a day and time that included human sacrifice, bodily mutilations, a prohibition against the eating of pork, and women were not equal to men. That's just for starters.

If you accept that Christ came into the world to change all that, show a better way, and be the savior, then accept the fact that Christ never commented yea or nay on the subject of gays. Instead, Christ taught us to love one another.

All other interpretations are written by men of their own beliefs and thoughts. They are no more valid than the Bible itself, a collection of stories authored by men.

Consider this before you quote me scripture: Can you prove Darwin by quoting from Darwin? Then how can you prove the Bible by quoting from the Bible?

Written on Scott McNutt's Snark Bites: Y-12 implementing special security measures aimed at harmless older people:

Reportedly the backups caused by increased security measures were traced to the apparent lack of silver Buicks in the Y-12 work force.

Written on Lakeshore Park plans and ideas receive discussion:

A great piece of parkland in a city sorely lacking in parks. It's not in my back yard, but I go there a lot for the walking trail. I'm not alone-- folks come over there from all over the city. I'm happy for the positive changes coming soon.

Can't wait to see the 8 foot fence come down. It will be nice to open up the lakeshore for all to see and enjoy.

The course has been set for Lakeshore. No further debate needed on the use. Contribute something positive to the discussion or be gone.

Written on Tom Humphrey: Governor, majority of citizens together in muddled middle:

Thank you for writing that Tom. It's what I've suspected all along. The majority of us are just trying to make it through this crazy life. We raise our kids the best we can. We work hard. We play by the rules. The crazies on either extreme are a wonder to us. But there is one truth about the supersupremists and the tree huggers-- they are the two most vocal groups on these comments.

Written on State gives UT OK to buy, demolish three historic homes:

The "State" granted "itself" approval to demolish three historic houses...let's call it what it is.

Written on Updated with photos: Massive tornado roars through Oklahoma City suburb :

in response to PotatoHead:

I believe the country should come to the aid of those that have a disaster happen to them. No matter where the disaster is!
To hades with those that hindered the NE storm relief. Those are the ones that should get a first class non stop trip.

Amen. We've got to pull back from trying to take care of the rest of the world and put more of our resources into helping our own.

Written on Sorority woes: Setbacks delay UT house's opening :

in response to knoxfather:

Don't know why it wasn't covered by a set of tarps if they knew the roof was leaking. Wouldn't cost all that much, even if insurance didn't cover it, and maybe would have allowed an earlier move in.

Experience from 2011 would seem to indicate that the first order of business is to secure the property. There were firms contracted by the insurance companies to "tarp" the properties even before the adjuster showed up. Even though this was an uncompleted structure, that would have been prudent in this case.

Evidently a performance bond is a lot more sketchy than a homeowner policy. It will ultimately be the insurance company's responsibility to fix it right regardless of their shortsightedness in the early days of the claim. And the decision not to secure this property will probably cause someone to lose their job.

Written on Knoxville's bond plan targets zoo, Lakeshore, Prosser Road:

Lakeshore Park has been in place for a large number of years now and the truth is that the old mental health facility was only a small percentage of the land in question. It has been and will be a great park for the people of Knoxville. Folks come in from the whole county to use it, I've been coming for over 15 years now And I live in Halls.

It does need lake access. The fences must come down along the lake. Who ever heard of a lakefront park fenced off from the lake? You can see it but you can't touch it.

Edward Frank Johnson

Written on Jury finds Y-12 intruders guilty of injuring national defense:

This is part A.

Part B is the total embarrassment of the Y-12 security plan, staff, equipment, etc. It was a joke.

Where Part A and Part B meet is the need by Theodore and Kirby to somehow diminish the embarrassment in a "we'll show you" kind of way. Heh, Heh...

Written on Keeping it in play: Corker joins Obama for golf, policy talk:

On the other hand, Corker's low handicap doesn't come from pacing the floor of Congress.

Written on Faith group joins opposition to 'ag gag' bill:

If passed. expect a long drawn out lawsuit since the bill is clearly in violation of First Amendment rights. It can't win in the Supreme Court, and we the taxpayers will be left to pay the state's legal costs.

Interestingly the folks who brought us this bill are the same one's hollering about Second Amendment rights as it applies to other issues. They pick and choose from our Constitution to suit their agenda, just as they do with the Bible.

Written on Tennessee bill on livestock sparks First Amendment debate:

Interestingly, the same politicians that spout 2nd Amendment rights in regards to the gun laws completely ignore the 1st Amendment in this case. Well, you can't pick and choose from the Constitution any more than you can pick and choose from the Bible. It doesn't work that way.

What will end up happening is we as taxpayers will be footing the bill for a First Amendment fight we can't win.

Written on Briggs: Knox County billboard ban doesn't have the votes:

One problem is that the interstate logo signs that you see a half mile out from the exits in the county are banned within the city limits of Knoxville. So until this is changed, there is really no alternative for the restaurants and motels except the billboards. I haven't seen any supporters of a ban comment on this fact.

Written on Campfield abandons welfare bill this year after stalling in Senate:

in response to progressiveliberal75#1417004:

What kind of a person exploits children to push their political agenda? Campfield was spot on they were using that little girl as a prop!!!!! Absolutely disgusting.

I'd like to personally thank him for this video gift that will come back to haunt him many times over in the next campaign. Heh Heh.

Written on Merchants location becomes second Subway robbed in two days:

At this point it is only alleged. It is an alleged suspect. We don't know if this really happened or not.

Written on West Knoxville sandwich shop robbed by alleged gunman:

It's just an alleged gunman. We can't confirm that this Subway was robbed, or that a man robbed this Subway, or that this was even a Subway that got robbed. At this point it is only alleged.

Written on Jefferson County pulls plug on megasite after landowner opposition:

We have to quit developing every square inch of the good farmland we have left. We have to make re-development of our brownscapes the number one priority.

Thank goodness for all the farmers. We need you. And thank goodness for the majority of these folks who said "enough is enough" and did something about it. We need more farmers and a lot less greedy politicians.

Written on Jefferson County mayor drops support for megasite:

An effort to develop 1800 acres of land that doesn't belong to them. That doesn't belong to them. Yet I repeat myself. IT DOESN'T BELONG TO THEM.

Written on Judge: Wear photo buttons, lose prime seating:

Or perhaps Kurtz is just trying to eliminate the factors that could be part of a future appeal. Gary, as a friend I urge you to reconsider and sit where it will do the most good. You deserve every bit of advantage still left to you.

Written on Jefferson Co. officials crave mega-impact of megasite:

Beware of politicians who covet someone else's property in the name of progress. Big money and backroom deals are more likely the reality. What is the real motive?

Written on Wine-in-grocery-stores bill dies by 1 vote in House committee:

Heh, just a note to those voting against:"Check's in the mail."

Written on Letter: United States needs more common sense:

We've seen hundreds of comments over the last few days, and 99% of them blame one side or the other. But the fact is we have a failure by both sides. That's everyone from the President, down to the least freshman congressman.

Written on Letter: On icebergs with Social Security:

in response to blevit:

There's nothing wrong with Social Security. Congress needs to put the money back in the program that they spent on something else.

Bingo. Read the first two comments, then fast forward to your comment, and discard everything in-between. Now we're getting some place. And disregard any followup comments that don't comprehend the basic truth here. Here they come...

Written on APNewsBreak: National park cuts detailed in memo:

Heh, folks we all share ownership in these parks. Nothing is or will be closed. Just go there.

Civil disobedience is allowed when it is the only course of action. There will be less oversight, not more.

If this is the best scare tactic they can come up with (and the Knoxville NS must think it is-- they keep running the story), we've got nothing to worry about.

Written on Letter: On icebergs with Social Security:

And yet, we hear nothing about cutting welfare, stopping the abuses, and limiting the length of unemployment. Our elected representatives to the U.S. Senate go straight for the Social Security jugular in all their diatribes.

That being said, the across the board automatic cut in government spending might furlough a few SS staffers, but it doesn't cut the benefit check. If someone told you that, it's a scare tactic. Peace.

Written on Smokies preparing for reduced services and hours:

in response to nattybumpo:

Natty's Law:

Anytime a govenment agency is forced to reduce spending, one thing you can count on is that it will cut where it hurts the most, and gets the most publicity and sympathy.

Bingo. Expect a barrage of scare tactics over the next few days. Some possibilities: Longer wait for IRS refund. Logjam at airports due to Air Traffic layoffs. Late transfers of Social Security benefits. State and local agencies layoff thousands due to cut in Federal funding.

We know the drill. Brace for impact.

Written on Cruise passengers became comrades on trip home:

Literally thousands of cruises under the Carnival umbrella go off every year without a hitch. The over dramatization of this one will serve up bargains in the short term.

Written on Letter: Gun rights come with responsibility:

The failure of responsibility in the recent incident was the failure of this nutso's mother to have her hobby rifles locked up in a proper gun safe. Especially given the kid's history.

Written on Forecast: Chance of ice at 90 percent; freezing rain advisory issued:

Knoxville will be closed Friday. Re-opening Saturday. Thank you for your patronage.

Written on NRA chief says group accepts background checks:

heh, they put LaPierre back on the shelf because he sounded too much like a nut, and rolled out Keene who at least sounds like a reasonable enough guy.

It does seem that the laws are already in place, they just need to change the implementation so the nut cases don't fall through the cracks. Wouldn't have helped in the latest incident, he didn't purchase the guns. Everyone knows a responsible owner has the guns locked in a safe. The shooter's mother was not a responsible owner from that perspective, but there's no way to police responsibility.

Written on Kroger seeks rezoning for Powell Airport development:

Right now the land in question is a "safety valve" for the Beaver Creek watershed, ie. it's an 18 acre floodplain that fills up rapidly during major rain events. So the biggest question is where that water is going after 18 acres of hardscape is put in place. Furthur downstream, into Powell?

Written on Jefferson County seeks to create megasite near I-40/I-81 junction:

This site is not near 11E in New Market; The access would be from the I-40/ I-81 interstate system.

Written on First Watch restaurant opening in Knoxville :

Think "One More Broken Egg", the upscale breakfast places in and around Destin. Different target audience, and located on the byways, not the highways. And hugely successful.

Written on Pam Strickland: Fiscal cliff averted without Tennessee's help :

The payroll tax holiday was ill-conceived, reckless, and we should only be thankful that it expired as it should have. And it's a totally separate issue from the Federal income tax rate.

The answer is compromise--some cuts, some tax increases. There is no silver bullet. Having said that, what the Tennessee delegation did was vote against compromise, and against their party leadership. In doing so they are playing "chicken" with our 401K investments. Let the stock market stand or fall on it's own merits, not some contrived set of circumstances that leads to panic.

Written on Last ditch effort to avoid fiscal cliff under way:

Might be your last chance to get on the computer and change your 401k funds allocation to avoid the crash next week. "Brace for impact."

Written on Jack McElroy: Hard to find any agreement on guns :

Assault weapons were designed for use by the military to quickly kill the largest number of enemy possible during a ground attack. A reasonable compromise is to ban the sale to consumers and leave these killing machines to our armed forces. And despite all the rhetoric, this is the compromise we will see adopted in the near future.

The commentor that envisioned the use of an AR-15 in stopping a home invasion-- that's a stretch by any means. We call that the "conquering hero fantasy."

Armed guards in schools? With what, more assault rifles? How about movie theatres? Malls? Shopping center parking lots? Churches? College campus? Summer camps? Where does it stop?

Written on 'Fiscal cliff': Armageddon or just 'eh'?:

Whats needed is a middle ground. Both sides are too extreme in the opposite direction. But that's not whats going to happen.

In fact, there was never any intention to compromise- the so called "fiscal cliff" is what was planned all along. If you lost half of your 401k in 2008 and just now recovered somewhat (you can never recover fully--you're missing 4 years of compound interest) get ready for a repeat.

"Brace for impact."

Written on Letter: Gun control not the solution to violence:

Well, this is not from research, this is from the gut. Assault weapons such as the AR-15 were designed for the efficient killing of a large numbers of enemy forces during a ground attack. They have no place at Gander Mountain. This is "fun" we can do without.
A ban on assault weapons and large clips is a prudent and wise move. This is not the whole answer.
Gun licenses would be a good step. Surely no one who is not crazy would be against answering some simple multiple choice questions and be willing to be checked out on a range as our law enforcement officers are every year. Heck, we have drivers licenses, ham radio licences, etc.
Better mental health screening should play a part too.
Politics aside, I agree with the President on this one truth: Doing nothing is not an option. This was the straw that broke the camels back. If we do nothing, we are signing off on the next mass shooting incident to come our way.

Written on Analysis: Obama could risk going over 'cliff':

in response to Cvett69:

B.S. you basically said it's all Obamas fault.
I think there is plenty of fault to cover both sides...get real.

Bingo. In fact, neither side ever planned to forge a compromise-- it was designed that way from the start. Each side blames the other. Commenters all over the country line up on their favorite side. Everyone is happy. Everyone is unhappy.

Think about it--They're all leaving for break in a few days. They won't be back until after the first of the year. "Brace for impact."

Written on Letter: Finding compromise to avoid fiscal cliff:

in response to Caneoverthere:

They don't care.

You're right. Heh, I tried that last year and all it's done is fill my in-box with more political junkmail than you could ever imagine.

Fact is, there is no intention by either side to forge any kind of compromise. Heck, they all leave for break in a few days and won't be back until after the first of the year. Yep, the so-called "fiscal cliff" is what they intended all along. Both sides. "Brace for impact."

Written on Bredesen: Support bipartisan effort to trim debt $4 trillion in 10 years:

If fact, neither side has any intention at all to forge a compromise. The fiscal cliff, mandated by law, was in fact carefully constructed to take the "fall." It's a win-win-- each side can blame the other side, and meantime the hard work of taming the deficit and returning the US to worldwide credibility begins. We don't have 28 days-- does anyone realize they all leave Washington for the Christmas break in a few days? "Brace for impact."

Written on Letter: Finding compromise to avoid fiscal cliff:

When they head into the back room for several days with no news leaks, then we'll know a compromise is being hammered out. Until then, the process is non-existant. Right now they're grandstanding for political position in the court of public opinion just as they always have. I see little hope that any of this will change. "Brace for impact."

Written on Gruden tells Tennessee no thanks:

Listening to all the shows on local sports radio is quite a chuckle lately. These guys aren't used to the Dave Hart "cone of silence." They are so frustrated because they are not in on the deal that they shoot everything down that leaks out from other sources. One of the morning talkers, possibly seeing the handwriting on the wall, says this deal, that doesn't even exist, is "fiscally irresponsible."

Written on Boomers embrace green-car technology :

Well, if the problem boils down to cleaner methods of producing electricity,we can fix that. Easily mined good quality coal is about gone now anyway. Coal burning plants are being converted and can be converted to cleaner burning natural gas. Smaller more efficient nucleur plants are a possibility. Cheap solar is also a possibility. If we put the time and energy into designing solar panels that we've put into cheaper flat screen TVs, we'd already be there.

No, it won't replace your F150. Most of us are two car families, we can have one for the long haul, and one for the commute. We can cut our dependance on middle east countries that hate us. We can cut it to the point we don't need them for oil at all.

Just my thoughts. These electric vehicles will get better, and will be commonplace in twenty years. We're just seeing the cutting edge of a new industry. Nice to see it in Tennessee.

Written on Petraeus began affair two months after taking over CIA:

Reportedly John Gruden is being sought out to replace him as head of the CIA.

Written on Judge tosses one charge against Richard Baumgartner, says others iffy, ‘proof slim’:

Fine. Well, you can't have it both ways. If this is the case, then no new trials for the perps in the Christian-Newsom trial. What would be the basis?