Cohen endorses the Mayor for re-election

I have heard that my friend and Congressman, Steve Cohen, has chosen to endorse AC Wharton for re-election.  He has endorsed Mayor Wharton each time he has run for County or City Mayor, which is his right to do so.

Funny thing, though.  I can't EVER remember Mayor Wharton returning the favor when the Congressman has sought re-nomination and re-election.  Mayor Wharton seems to be afraid of offending people, people who have never done as much for the Mayor as the Congressman has done for him.

I don't understand it, I am not joining him in that effort, but I respect his right to do so and will continue to support my friend and Congressman.

It would just be nice, next year, if the Mayor does manage to win re-election, if he would remember the man that helped put him there.

The City Court Clerk race and the cloud hanging over it

There are five major candidates for City Court Clerk, and all bring something to the table.

You have Justin Ford, Chair of the County Commission, Wanda Halbert, City Councilor from District 4 and a former MCS Board member, former County Commissioner and Juvenile Court Clerk Shep Wilbun, Thomas Long II, the son of outgoing City Court Clerk Thomas Long (who tried to not have to have the II listed on the ballot, the better to fool people into thinking they were voting for his father), and former City Court judge, prosecutor, and 23-year Circuit Court Judge Kay Robilio.

While I am disgusted with the younger Long's attempts to profit from his father's name with no apparent reason to vote for him otherwise, he is not necessarily the problem here.  While Kay Robilio was presumed to have a good career, everyone seems to have forgotten how it ended two years ago, a year earlier than her term as Circuit Court judge would have ended.  As the linked story notes, Judge Robilio resigned as a condition of her agreement with the Court of the Judiciary in regards to an ethics complaint filed in May 2013.  According to the CA story, she was accused of violating the judicial rules of impartiality in the handling of a post-divorce child custody issue.  Through her attorney, she claimed that she had done what she had done with the approval of all parties and had done nothing wrong.

If that is the case, why did she resign?  To this point, the local media, besieged by the Mayoral and Council races, have not had the time to ask that question.  It needs to be asked, because there is a very real chance, given the racial demographics of the City of Memphis, that the former judge could well be elected in October; There is NOT a runoff in this race, she is the only Caucasian candidate, and she has as much name recognition as the other major candidates.

I have no personal malice toward Judge Robilio, nor do I have any reason to have any.  I have never appeared in her courtroom (nor any others, for that matter, except on traffic tickets), and I have heard nothing but nice things about her and her family on a personal level.  However, if there is a real possibility that she is going to be elected to office, she needs to give a full as explanation as possible without violating her agreement with the Court of the Judiciary.

Because I am raising this issue, in order to avoid hurting any of the other candidates, I will NOT offer any endorsements in this race, because I do not want anyone to think I am doing this on behalf of anyone other than the average voter of the City of Memphis.  Judge Robilio, as a re-established public figure, needs to explain why this action had to be taken so that there can be no misunderstandings if she is elected City Court Clerk.

On the subject of Hillary

No, she's not my first choice; Bernie Sanders is.  Second, she is far from the worst choice, Jim Webb is.  Third, of course I am going to vote for Hillary if she is the Democratic nominee; have you noticed the GOP candidates?

My differences with the former Secretary of State, US Senator and First Lady have to do with her too-conservative for my tastes stances on issues.  I want someone who is going to give us RED MEAT, as Sanders is, and as even DONALD TRUMP is doing by attacking Wall Street.  (That strategy, by the way, is brilliant for handling populist Dixiecrats who want to share the wealth with other white people only, such as themselves).

I don't attack Hillary, but I DO get pissed whenever anyone suggests my opposition to her candidacy is rooted in misogyny.  I would have supported Elizabeth Warren had she chosen to run for the White House; unlike MoveOn.com, when she said no, I accepted that decision and went to Bernie Sanders.  That, my Bernie-following friends, is the BEST way to shut that conversation down in a heartbeat.

So, some of you may ask, why not Jill Stein?  Call me when they can elect a majority of Congress or even a state legislature.  Most of them are too national-policy centered to ever care about local races, which is how you get to majority status, from the bottom up.  I WOULD like to see the Greens get more electorally sound, because I find that I like most of their policies; they just don't seem to know how to get their folks elected.

I look forward to having my rest-of-the-Council and City Court Clerk post up soon; deeply torn in the Clerk's race between two people I respect and admire.  Plus, I will ask why no media is covering why one of the other candidates in that race had to leave her prior office EARLY.

More later.

Quick overview of the debate

1) Kyle Veazey did a fantastic job of keeping it moving and asking great questions, some of which were provided by the audience.  I liked the format much better than the WMC fiasco at the CRM.  More from him here at First Word, if you didn't see it, you can watch it here.

Daily News,

Jackson Baker's take on the debate is here..

2) Mike Williams came on strong but slipped over the course of the evening when he never could seem to tell us HOW he would change things.  My wife observed, correctly, IMO, that he seemed to be a one-trick-pony.  Very confident, but you need to tell HOW you will do things.

3) Wharton put up a fierce defense of his record, but one couldn't escape the fact that he was trying to re-sell us a used car, one on which the wheels are falling off.  He is a good debater and is not afraid of anything or anyone.

4) My man Strickland started off slow but built up steam and was really cranked up and passionate by the end.  He needs to get cranked up sooner, IMO. While I think he may have hung on to his message a little TOO tightly at times, he reaffirmed my decision to support him.

5) If there was a winner, it was Harold Collins. Had I been undecided going in, I doubt I would be now.  It's too bad there was a time limit at times, because he got cut off on more than one occasion when I wanted to hear more of him.

6) The fact that no one asked a MATA question until late in the debate is very upsetting.  You can't help people get jobs that they have no way to access.  Public Transportation can no longer be thought of as just a way for domestics to get from North and South Memphis to East Memphis any more.  if you think you are too good to ride MATA, you are part of the problem.  (One point I will give to the Mayor: he did find good leadership to replace Will Hudson, who ran it into the ground.)

7)  Here's a question that should be asked for the next debate: to the MAYOR: This has been one of the most contentious terms EVER between your Administration and the Council.  What steps can YOU take, if re-elected, to have a better relationship with your next Council?  To Collins and Strickland:  Having been on the other side of that battle, what steps can YOU take to have a good relationship between your Administration and the next Council.

8) There is another debate tonight at Central High School from 6-8, sponsored by the Evergreen Historic District Association.  Go, if you can, I wish I could, but life intervenes.

UPDATE: From Brad Watkins, this powerful observation on Facebook, which is shown here with his permission:

Bradley Watkins

After watching the Mayoral debate I am even more resigned to the fact that I have no candidate in this race..but that's okay, it does not really matter.

One of three men on that stage tonight will be our Mayor for the next four years...and no matter who it is..on a CERTAIN LEVEL does not matter.

I heard virtually nothing last night about homelessness, about MATA, about police accountability or CLERB or housing. Nothing about accessibility for people with disabilities or MLGW....nothing about confronting systemic racism..or sexism.. or homophobia or transphobia...almost nothing about domestic violence and nothing about rape, and only one real mention of POVERTY..among myriad other issues.

So, whoever this next Mayor will be... they will have us to relentlessly contend with. Many of us have no candidate...so we have to ORGANIZE to push this next Mayor to be the Mayor this city really needs, one who is unapologetic about these issues and one who openly acknowledges inequality in our city...not just a paycheck issue..but how it permeates our entire lives.

It's not about falling in love..it's about hiring someone for a job.

Your thoughts?

Let's talk about the City Council races

Jerome Wright wrote in the CA on Sunday (sorry, behind a paywall) about the upcoming Council races, which I believe are AS important as the Mayor's race, if not more so:

Voters should listen closely to what the council candidates are saying. Do they have solid ideas on how to move the city and council districts forward? Have the incumbents done more than complain or bluster? Are they more than one-issue candidates? 

Have they done a good job managing their own finances? It’s an important point to consider for people who want to determine how to spend millions of your tax dollars. 

Do they have any thoughts about privatizing some city services or providing those services on a sliding-fee scale based on usage? 

Also, listen carefully to what they have to say about city’s debt situation. The city still has to bring its pension fund into solvency by 2020, according to state law, but has not been putting enough into the fund to accomplish that goal. 

That has raised concerns in some circles that a big property tax increase may be coming next summer or in the summer of 2017. The council has the final say on whether that happens.

To a great degree, he is spot on, especially when he talks about privatization of city services, which I believe is a disaster in the making.  Why, you ask?  First, any savings you as a taxpayer MIGHT receive will more than likely be turned into profits for an OUT-OF-TOWN concern.  Secondly, this is also an attempt to KILL public-sector unions, which allow our city employees to have middle-class incomes and be able to buy homes and cars and have disposable income.

You know, like YOU might have if YOU had a PRIVATE-SECTOR union to join.

You should ask EVERY Council candidate (and remember, you have FOUR to choose, one District and THREE SuperDistrict positions) how they feel about privatization, about what THEY intend to do about the debt and pension situation.  And yes, there WILL be a property tax hike in 2017, otherwise the State of Tennessee will attempt a takeover and imposition of Greek-style austerity on this city and its citizens, whom they despise.  (Why do you think I want Strickland for Mayor?  Because he knows how to deal with those schmucks without selling us out, that's why.)

So, I am going to start out (there will be more than one post on this) with the races in which I have a vote.

SUPERDISTRICT 9, POSITION 1 - Kemp Conrad is the incumbent, a man who came to office eight years ago when Mary Wilder and Desi Franklin split the progressive vote and he won (UPDATE: I was wrong about this, that was Reid Hedgepeth that they ran against, thanks to Caroline Todd for the heads-up!), giving us eight years of attempts to privatize most areas of government, even the SANITATION WORKERS.  You know, the very organization that Dr. Martin Luther King was assisting when he was assassinated here on April 4, 1968.  I'm not saying they have sacred posts, but it's pretty damned close, in my opinion.  He is a former GOP chair here (Note, so is interim City Councilman Alan Crone, who is not seeking re-election.  However, Crone has been nothing short of terrific since he joined the Council, to the point that I am sad he is not running. FULL DISCLOSURE: My wife used to work with an associated law firm.

Conrad's opponents are Charley Burch and my neighbor in Humes Heights, Robin Spielberger.  It is Robin for whom I will cast my vote.  No, I don't agree with her on everything, but she does support a Citizens Law Enforcement Review Board and has interesting ideas on using tiny homes to help solve the homelessness issue, which I found interesting, and I think you will as well.  Please consider her if you live in SD 9, unless you like the idea of privatization.  Of course, if you DID, I doubt you would be reading this blog.

SUPERDISTRICT 9, POSITION 2  - This is the seat vacated by Shea Flinn and currently held by the aforementioned Alan Crone.  This is the largest field of these three slots, with several interesting candidates, from former MCS Board members Rev. Kenneth Whalum and Stephanie Gatewood (for whom I would vote if my choice were not running),  Lynn Moss,  Philip Spinosa, an Inside Sales manager for FedEx Services (Flinn's personal choice to succeed him), and MY choice for this position, Paul Shaffer.

Paul is the business manager for IBEW Local 474, a longtime supporter of progressive causes, and a former candidate who lost to Kemp Conrad in 9-1 four years ago.  Now, more than ever, we need Labor to have a seat at the table on the City Council.  Paul is smart and has great experience working with the Council on negotiations, and would be a solid force against the privatization of city government.

Spinosa has more signs and is the candidate of the big business community (drive down Walnut Grove and you will see what I mean).  He may well be a good guy, but I fully believe Paul Shaffer is the best candidate in the race.

SUPERDISTRICT 9, POSITION 3 -  The incumbent is first-termer Reid Hedgepeth who won a lot of people over when he voted for the Non-Discrimination Ordinance to protect LGBTQ people from discrimination by city government or contractors with city government.  As he was elected with a lot of conservative votes, that took guts and I applaud him for doing so.

That said, the rest of his voting record has been pro-developer and anti-union.  This is why I do NOT support his re-election.  In the race to unseat him are former County Register candidate Stephen Christian, with whom I served on the SCDP Executive Committee this past year, and my choice, local activist Zachary Ferguson.  Ferguson is one of two openly gay candidates for Council, and faces an uphill battle, as it's always tough to unseat an incumbent.

However, he has been very active in civic organizations as well as his church, St. John's United Methodist. He is currently President of the Board of Directors for the Workforce Interfaith Network.  He shares our progressive values, not just socially but ECONOMICALLY as well, and I urge you to vote for him in this race.

DISTRICT 5 -  This is the tough one for me.   There are seven people in the race; however, I confess that I have no clue who Jimmie Franklin or Jennifer James Williams are, couldn't pick them out of a lineup.  Of course, I haven't gotten mail from them or had them knock on my door yet, either.

There WILL be a runoff in this race (SuperDistricts and Citywide races are not allowed runoffs due to a quarter-century old consent decree), because the remaining five candidates are, for all intents and purposes, running for two spots in that runoff.

28-year old Jonathan Worth Morgan, who uses his middle name as his first name n the ballot and on his signs, is the son of Morgan-Keegan Financial founder Allen Morgan.  He raised a good bit of money to start, and was seen as a favorite to make the runoff.  However, Dan Springer, a veteran of Mark Luttrell campaigns who does have the occasional progressive supporting him, may well take a lot of that vote.  Springer has a good website with a good video promoting the good things about the city,on which we all can agree.  However, there is not much in the way of specifics on how he might vote on say, the Pension issue.

Fighting for what might be the liberal spot in the runoff are three people I like a lot, of whom only one can receive my vote.  (insert Chicago joke here.)  Mary Wilder is a community activist well-known in the Vollintine-Evergreen Community Association, and sat in Carol Chumney's vacated House 89 seat in the early Oughts after Chumney resigned to take a City Council seat (this one, as it were).   She has a base of the older Midtown Democratic stalwarts who cut their teeth on Steve Cohen campaigns.

Next is the person whom I originally intended to support,  Charles (Chooch) Pickard.  He is an architect who has lived in Memphis for twenty years and has a keen eye for how the city SHOULD be developed, rather than how it HAS BEEN developed.  He is a first-time candidate but he is very calm with a good head on his shoulders with a good vision.  If he won, he would be a great voice, and he is the other openly gay candidate for Council this year.

I can easily support Mary or Chooch if they get in the runoff against Springer or Morgan.

However, at the soiree Mr. Carroll and I throw each year, Bratfest, our friend John Marek showed up with a petition for this race, catching me off guard.  I signed his petition, and began to re-think my position.

For those who don't know John, he has been Congressman Cohen's campaign manager the last two elections, and has been associated with the campaigns since 2006.  He is an attorney and would be the ONLY attorney on the Council if elected, as Alan Crone is not running.  (How do you NOT have an attorney on the Council?  Allan Wade can't do EVERYTHING, no matter what he may think!)

John has an incredible passion to serve.  He sits on the CLERB and supports its strengthening.  His work led to the MPD agreeing to have body cams for all uniformed policemen, which will take effect this fall.  He is also the local president of NORML, which has a following among people of ALL political stripes.

You want to know what he wants to do?? You can read it here.   John also has the endorsement of his mentor, Congressman Cohen:




John has the energy to move this community forward RIGHT NOW, because he is already doing it.  Let's give him that chance, I URGE you to vote for John Marek for District 5.

More on the other races in the next day or so.

Poor People get the Shaft part eleventy billion

So let's say you live in a small town in the South.  Most everyone with the means has left for the city.  Those that have stayed have let's say, a severe dislike of government and taxes.  But court fees, they may hate em, but only people who break the law have to pay them and that's usually out of town speeders or "those people".

See, a little known fact is that most of these towns raise almost all their operating budgets from fines, usually speeding tickets.  Go through any small town in the south and you'll discover this.  Ferguson was a classic case of this as the city incentivized officers to bring in as much as possible.  You think fines here are high, try close to 200 for going as little as 8 over.

So, lets say you live in one of these small towns.  You get a couple tickets, you now owe over $1000 in fees and costs.  You don't have the money so the court sends you to the PRIVATE probation company that handles this for them.  This company has offices throughout the state and has bought this right from the city and charges the city nothing, with one cavaet.  Head over here for more information.  I'll break it down for you here though.

That company forces you to meet with them every week about your case and charges you to do so, usually $35-$45 every time.  So lets say the person who owes the fine pays $50, this company takes its fee off the top, stringing out what you owe even longer, making them more money.  You can't pay, you likely will go to jail.  Who controls the jails and prisons in a large part of this country?  Another private company, like CCA.

We complain about predatory lenders in the check cashing industry, title loans, and the used car industry.  Thanks to Elizabeth Warren and Obama we have the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau to help with this and activists in many states are fighting these groups,  The ACA is a great first step in helping lower the chances of medical debt bankruptcies.

But who is fighting to stop the privatization of the prison and corrections industry?  Do we really want to go back to the days of debtor's prisons?  Do you trust your local leaders to prevent these companies from getting their claws into Memphis in the name of "efficiency" and "private business does it more effectively"?  Transparency and the betterment of everyone.

Who.Do.You.Trust?

 

Strickland??? Yes, Jim Strickland for Mayor.

Now, I KNOW what you're going to say before you say it.

Jim Strickland is for cutting pension benefits, yada yada yada.  I am certainly not for that, because we made a promise to our workers and it should be kept, even at the risk of a property tax increase.  (Remind your friends who may be Republican that if we had a STATE INCOME TAX we wouldn't be so damned dependent upon property taxes!).  I don't agree with Jim Strickland on every issue.  That's why I want a whole new City Council; however, to paraphrase Alton Brown, that's another post, coming in the next day or so.

So, you say, look at all the companies that have expanded or built plants in Memphis under AC Wharton!  True enough, until you see the tax incentives they have received and you realize that YOU, the taxpayer, are paying for most of the jobs brought by Electrolux, IKEA, Bass Pro Shops and the rest, and not these companies.

But wait, you say, didn't Strickland vote for some of these things?  He may have, but he also called for oversight, and besides, that's why we need a whole new Council, one that is NOT beholden to developers or the Chamber of Commerce.  Again, that's coming later, hold your horses!

For my disagreements with Jim Strickland, I can tell you this much about him.  When he disagrees with you on an issue, he will look you in the eye and tell you why.  He allows you to make your argument and will listen to it, and discuss it with you.  He may even change his mind, or he may not.  JIM STRICKLAND WILL NEVER PLACATE YOU.  For my differences with him, there are also agreements.

Jim Strickland is also going to clean up and clean out City Hall, which has been necessary for a long, long time.  Robert Lipscomb needs to be getting his resume in order, I suspect.   (No, Jim hasn't said that to me, but I would hardly be surprised if it happens).  No more running amok from the Retired Directors Club, er, the Riverfront Development Corporation.

At the end of the day, there is absolutely ZERO bullshit in this man's body.  He will be straight forward and honest with you, even if it pisses you off.  Memphis city government needs a cleaning, Jim Strickland will be our cleaner.  That is why his sign is in my front yard.

And, as good government should provide checks and balances, he needs to have a City Council that works with him and checks him as needed.'

That, however, is another post, which is coming later.

UPDATE:  I was just thinking about this, and I realized that I have been voting in Memphis mayoral elections since 1979, that I can remember.  Not counting the vote for the Zambodian fellow in 1991, this will only be the THIRD time in all these years that I have voted for a white candidate for Mayor.

The list:  1979 - Otis Higgs, 1982 - Mike Cody, then JO Patterson, 1983 - John Ford (yes, John Ford), 1987 - Minerva Johnican, 1991 - Mongo, 1995, WW. Herenton, 1999 - Shep Wilbun, 2003 - WW Herenton (albeit reluctantly), 2007 - Carol Chumney, 2009 - Myron Lowery, 2011 - AC Wharton, 2015 - Jim Strickland.

Four Simple Words

  I listen to a lot of podcasts.  My job requires a lot of travel and solo computer work, so to pass the time, I listen to podcasts....around 35 in a given week.  Some daily, some weekly, some whenever they come out.  The vary in length from 5 minutes to 2 hours.

  They generally fall in to two categories,  News/politics and sports.  I was struck on my way home last night from a fundraiser by a story on one of my long time favorite public radio shows, APM Marketplace.

  The story was about a credit union, Hope Credit Union, in the bayou of Louisiana that has opened several branches in the last few years.  There were two things mentioned in the article that made me think of Memphis.

  One, was what he called banking deserts,  We are all familiar with the concept of food deserts where there is a lack of grocery stores providing ready access to fresh food in poor neighborhoods.  Banking deserts are similar.  Here's the comments I am referring to:

He says the picture serves to remind him of the credit union's mission: to invest and lend in high-poverty, low-income communities, the types of places often neglected by big banks. 

"It is frustrating to drive through the Delta and through low-income communities and see street corner after street corner, shopping strip after shopping strip littered with payday lenders, with check cashers with financial predators, but no bank to be found," Bynum says.

This is a common site throughout Memphis and parts of Shelby County.  Areas where there is no bank that people have easy access to bring investment to the  community.  Or the bank is a large multinational one that doesn't have the incentive to reinvest as much.

The second line refers to a Bloomburg report from 2013.  Since the recession began in 2008, 1800 US bank branches have closed.  Ninety three percent of those have been in low income communities.

Now, you are probably saying to yourself.  Okay, what is the point to this.  The point is that we need to decide about the candidates running for office here and what they could do to bring about reinvestment.

Who do you trust to bring development on a large and small scale, to the neighborhood level, to Memphis?
Who do you trust to bring good jobs to Memphis in all neighborhoods, not just certain zip codes? Who do you trust to look out for the builder, not just the developer?
Who do you trust to make sure good public schools are something every child should have?
Who do you trust to be a watchdog and make sure that things are done fairly and in the open and not behind closed doors to line their pockets and provide a cushy outside job?
Who do you trust to work tirelessly to work as hard for the city of Memphis and county of Shelby to succeed, and not just the district and his friends?
Do you trust someone who has known struggle, known discrimination, known poverty, known what it is like to fight for everything or do you trust...well, the exact opposite?

Four simple words for Memphians in the council races.  Four simple words to think about at the ballot screen.  Four simple words to ask yourself when choosing a candidate.

Who.Do.You.Trust.

A brief interlude for biographical purposes

Our good friend Trace Sharp would every once in a while on her Newscoma blog have what she called Annoying Autobiographical Pauses where she talked about what had gone on in her personal life recently.  I am going to take one of those now.

A little over eleven years ago I started a temp job with Dell at their kiosk at Wolfchase.  It was selling computers and other Dell products through their website.  We were a display location for people to come and see the product and allow it to be demoed and ask questions before you buy.

The manager of the location was a guy named Ken Tabulog.  Ken and his wife Diane and their three childeren, Dallas, Austin, and Victoria (Vicki) (Yes, he is a Cowboys fan) grew to become very good friends of myself and Pam.

Ken sparked my interest in golf (thanks, I think).  They gave us the table I am typing this on in the dining room.  They gave us the Crock-Pot I use for the chili at Weenie Roast as a wedding gift.

Ken helped me and Pam move before Jack was born.  I helped them move when they left Atoka adjacent for a house near the Quince YMCA.  They and their surrogate son, Nick who they all but adopted when he moved here from Hawaii, babysat Jack on several occasions when they moved in across from St Anne.

There's a picture I break out every once in a while to annoy her that is of her and a 20 month old Vicki at the wedding, Austin is in there, but he doesn't matter :-p.  Diane hates her hair in the picture. I and Pam always kinda treasure it because Pam's mother pointed at Vicki and said that she wanted one of those to Pam.

Now, Pam at this point had just turned 41.  Her mother was 80.  SHE HAD NEVER ONCE SAID ANYTHING ABOUT A GRANDKID.  Pam laughed about it, told me, and we laughed about it.  A week later, Steve asked me while we watched games up at Tracks if we were going to try to have kids.  I said those infamous words of, "If it happens, it happens."  Well, six weeks later it was conceived and it is currently in the other room playing X-Box while I write this before I go for a run in the 85 (soon to be 95) degree heat.

Last night, I went to a going away party for them at El Puerto on Highland.  They are leaving in a few days to move to Monroe, LA where Diane took a job earlier this year as a partner in a staffing firm there.  She previously worked at Vaco doing a similar job.  They expect this to be their last stop on their journey back to Hawaii where Ken was born and raised.

We left earlier than we wanted.  Pam and Jack were tired.  The party I'm told and seen went on to the wee hours of the morning.  We've drifted a little bit aways from each other over the years as you do when you get older and things (kids, work) get in the way, but we remained friends.  We will likely go down and see them, but it won't be on the more frequent basis that we used to see them.

All I can say is safe journey my friends.  Aloha and mahalo.

"You Need To Be Moving"

These are the words of former President Bill Clinton yesterday at the funeral of Judge D'Army Bailey.  They are the words he uses to young people who ask his advice on what they should be doing.

We have young people in this community who are doing this trying to make this county and city better by running for office to improve the lives of everyone, not just a privileged few.  They are working to shake up things and breathe new ideas into the community at large.

John Marek, District 5 City Council

Rachel Knox, District 2 City Council

Chooch Pickard, District 5 City Council

London Lamar, Tennessee Young Democrats Chair

Zach Ferguson, District 9-3 City Council

Alvin Crook, Shelby County Young Democrats Chair

Mickell Lowery, District 8-3 City Council


All deserve your support and time and most importantly, your vote.  Get to know them.  They are the future.


Embrace the change.

What If I Told You

Time for another one of these

What if I told you that a life of Public Service can mean many things to many people?
Is it being a community organizer in a fairly well off Democratic neighborhood?
Is it running campaigns for candidates that are dedicated to Democrat values?
Is it being the chosen one of the business class of a district?
Is it being an advocate for under served constituencies, fighting to have their voices heard to effect much needed changed?
What if I told you that "This is not your time, let XXX run, it's his/her turn" limits choice and the chance for change?
What if I told you that youthful insurgents have helped carry our banner and effect change?
What if I told you that a person of 30 can have lived and experienced more than a person of 40?
What if a certain 32 year old had listened to that in Arkansas?
What if a certain 36 year old had listened to that in California?
What if a certain 41 year old had listened to those calls in Illinois?
What if I told you that public service means fighting for things we don't know we need, before we find out we need them after horrible tragedies?
What if I told you that shining a light on city government and its disengagement from the people is public service?
What if I told you that organizing and fighting for Democratic values is public service?
What if we had a candidate that will campaign throughout the city, not just for their own benefit, but for the benefit of all Democrats?
What if we had a candidate that will fund raise and make connections throughout the county and country in order to shine a positive light on the city and what it can do?
What if I told you that Republicans are loving the infighting going on in the Democratic party because they feel that makes it easier for them to win?
What if I told you that sniping and innuendo against those that once supported you will result in a loss of that support in the future?
What if I told you that change is coming?
Will you fight it and lose, and set what should be the dominant faction in this county from being what it should be?
Or, will you embrace the change, move to strengthen and protect it, realizing that happiness comes from a legacy you lay down of helping others succeed, not from awards you yourself receive?

A preview of the City Mayor Election

The above video, which matches the depressing lyrics of the great Chris Cornell with the soothing vocals of America's consummate George Gershwin interpreters, Steve Lawrence and the late, lamented Eydie Gorme, sums up the state of Memphis politics in both substance AND style.  Giving us crappy news and ideas in a smooth, slick style seems to be how things are done at City Hall these days.

We are less than a week away from filing deadline, and the Mayor's race has yet to see a few of the Major candidates (and there really are only four or five at most if WHALUM! files) file their petitions.  Those who are major candidates (folks who can pull more than 10% of the overall vote) are Mayor Wharton (who hasn't filed as of Thursday afternoon), Jim Strickland (filed Thursday), Harold Collins (not yet), MPA leader Mike Williams (nope) and the aforementioned WHALUM! (not yet).

No, Justin Ford is NOT a major candidate, even though he filed; I expect him to wait until after the deadline and then withdraw in favor of Wharton, making the biggest spectacle possible.  Hell, if we could have gotten either Patrice Robinson or Keith Williams to withdraw from their Commission race last year, Ford wouldn't even BE in office, much less County Commission chair.  (Note: those two haven't learned a damned thing, either, they are both up against each other again in the Council 3 race).

The rest of those who have pulled petitions either shouldn't file or withdraw after the deadline because you haven't a prayer in Hell of getting 5%, much less winning.  No one cares about your vanity run, so get out and leave this race to the professionals.  I am serious, you are wasting your time AND ours.  And yes, that means YOU TOO, James Harvey.

(UPDATE:  I just found out Prince Mongo is coming home from Zambodia to run.  Your Highness, the prior paragraph does not apply to you, now or EVER.  You are ALWAYS welcome to run).

Of the remaining five, we have the incumbent, who inherited the Administration of his predecessor, the legendary Dr. Willie W. Herenton, and KEPT most of them.  That fact was one reason I voted for Myron Lowery in 2009, whom I thought would clean house; Lowery now supports Wharton for re-election.

The Mayor is slick and smooth and nice, and is very convincing on a one-on-one basis.  He can claim a lot of additional jobs for the city through the additions of Electrolux, IKEA and Bass Pro Shops, although it appears that you, the city taxpayer, is paying for a higher share of those jobs than the companies themselves.

For an African-American Mayor of a majority African-American populace, it is odd that he is most vulnerable among those very people in terms of votes.  I had someone close to his campaign tell me that the Mayor would get 40 percent of the African-American vote, and was HAPPY about it.  I am not sure he will break 25%.  If you think I am kidding, go to South Memphis or Whitehaven and talk to folks out there, you will see what I mean.

He is, frankly, desperate to keep the business community with him.  That is what prompted the Mayor to move out long-time CAO George Little and replace him with former City Councilor Jack Sammons (who served in that same position under interim Mayor Lowery).  This, even though he had someone JUST as competent and politically savvy who could have stepped right in without missing a beat "coughMauraSullivancough".   However, the good ole boy bidness folks love them some Jack, so there he is.

I like Jack too, hard not to like him and he does do a good job.  However, Strickland has a terrific point when he asks why it took Wharton so long to put Sammons there.

Ah, Jim Strickland.  My Councilor for the last 7 years and a good guy, even though we don't agree on as much as I would like.  He reminds me more and more of Dick Hackett, and that is not completely bad or good.  Hackett, for those of you who remember, was a very good public servant with one big weakness: a lack of vision for the city,  ESPECIALLY downtown, even though the rebuilding of Beale Street took off on his watch.  He got things done, all over the city; however, the city was ready for its first African-American Mayor, and Hackett was narrowly defeated in the historic 1991 election.

I really want Jim to campaign hard and give folks a reason to vote for him, but we need vision AND execution.  He also needs to back away from privatization, no matter how much his friends in East Memphis want to sway him otherwise.   Also, Wharton will not hesitate to remind voters that Strickland voted WITH the Mayor on a lot of issues in which Jim seeks to separate himself.

The next candidate with a chance at victory is District 3 Councilor (Whitehaven/Airport/Hickory Hill) Harold Collins.  Collins should be strong in his own area, which has the highest turnout of African-American majority sections of the city.  The question is whether he will be able to do well outside that area, and can he draw disaffected whites angry with both Wharton and Strickland for going after the pensions of city retirees.

That last group, of course, is the apparent base of support being counted on by Memphis Police Association Director Mike Williams.  While I agree wholeheartedly that promises were made that MUST be kept, no matter WHOSE taxes get raised, there is a question of just how many votes that will bring, as the majority of city retirees no longer live in the City.

And, of course, there is the wildest of wild cards, Reverend Kenneth (If You Can't Beat 'Em,) WHALUM!  The Right Reverend knows how to get unpaid media, and is a Friday morning fixture on what is not as unlikely a venue as you might think, Drake & Zeke In The Morning on WXMX-FM 98.1.  His pro-corporal punishment stance while on the MCS Board struck a chord with conservative voters all over town, and many of them joined with him to block the Sales Tax referendum to support Pre-K.  WHALUM could very well hurt both Wharton AND Strickland.  Can he win?  I don't think so, but I truly believe his presence, if he files, could well determine who DOES win.

I need to see more from everybody, as I am UNDECIDED  at the moment.  Someone needs to give me a reason to vote for them.  How, you may ask, could they do that?

1) Tell me how we can streamline the PILOT programs to ensure that A) there are SERIOUS clawback provisions for corporations and B) How you will ENFORCE those clawbacks.  PILOTs are not going away, but they MUST be fixed because the city is receiving far too little for the amount of tax base they are tossing at these companies.

2)  Tell me how you intend to address not only residential blight, but COMMERCIAL and INDUSTRIAL blight as well, and some of THAT can be tied to the PILOT issue.

3)  Are you keeping or dumping Robert Lipscomb, and will he continue to be the most powerful person at City Hall if you win?  This has to end, and soon.

4) While I agree with the Mayor that bike lanes are a good thing that attract young entrepreneur types to the city, haven'e we done ENOUGH for the Poplar Corridor for a while?  People in the rest of the city, or the C as Polar Donkey calls it, think of those as WHITE FOLKS/FIRST WORLD Problems, since many of them only have bikes because they can't afford cars!  (Don't get me started about MATA, woefully underfunded, and poorly run under Will Hudson).  If a city is only as good as our weakest link, we must DEMAND that any corporation that gets tax breaks must locate near those who NEED the jobs the most, in North and South Memphis, not Cordova.

5)  How do you intend to deal with a state government in Nashville that, frankly, wants to see most of your poor and working class population die or move rather than to do anything for them?

Well, that's enough for one day.  I'd like your thoughts in the comments.


Black Hole Sun, won't you come, won't you come...........

New Blood Part 3

1 for 93000

1 for 104000

1 for 72000

1 for 63000

1 for 18000

Memphis City Council

Shelby County School Board

Shelby County Commission

Tennessee State Representatives district size in Memphis

Nashville Metro Council district size (unified


Which is more representative of the will of the voters?  Which is easier to break into?

I'm not saying Nashville's way is the better way completely (35 single member plus 5 at large is a lot), but they do allow an easier way to break into politics, forces members to represent their entire district, and allows for a greater range of viewpoints on issues.

Why do we have 7 single member districts and 6 super districts?  Shouldn't it be more of a case of 10 and 3?  You cannot really walk these districts easily and have a full time job outside of the campaign.

It is virtually impossible to run and win locally without being able to raise a lot of money.  Money is the mothers milk of politics here.  We continue to elect the same people because the money game is one that insurgents cannot win.  The first question I always here about a race is not what are your ideas or how will you make things better, but rather, how much money can you raise.

You make it difficult for people to run and represent an area because they have to raise money, which is a virtual full time job during election season, and because of the size of the districts, they do not want to anger the well heeled donors.  Our representatives more and more are becoming people who are either connected to a money class or are the money class.  District size means you have to have a job with a very flexible schedule.

Younger people want to be involved.  They get excited.  They don't have the cynicism that older political operatives have.  They want to run for office and help their community.

Why do we make it so difficult for them?  I agree that you want people who have lived a life of some sort (Stacy Campfield is a prime example) and can bring that experience.  But you also want to bring in people with fresh, new ideas and way of doing things.  The system we have now makes that virtually impossible.

Be more representative.  Not less.

New Blood Part 2

AC Wharton
Kenneth Whalum, Jr
Michael Williams
Jim Strickland
Harold Collins
These are your candidates for Mayor. Good men all.

However.

You cannot state that the current mayor has done a lot to deserve reelection. Our tax base is shrinking. Six years as Memphis mayor and before that seven as Shelby County Mayor.  So definitely thirteen, maybe as many as seventeen or roughly the same as former Mayor Herenton.

Controversies surround him and his appointees. He has continued many of the same cronyism that his long time predecessor began and did. People move in and out of public service. Unqualified people are appointed to head departments. Promotions based on who you know and not what you know.  People come back and stay long enough to get a higher pension and benefits.  Which reminds me..

Pensions?

Pensions?

The problems we have in this city, and we're talking about pensions?

Not jobs.

Not disastrous PILOTS.

Not crumbling infrastructure.

Not education.

But pensions?

Pensions?

Not cronyism.

Not improving the city.

But pensions.

I am steadfastly on the side of MPD on this issue.  Public sector employees take lower base pay for the promise of a guaranteed amount in retirement.  They have earned every last dime of it.  The differences I have are negiligible.  The real issue I have are double dippers who get there way too easily.

HOWEVER.

That issue has dominated the news for the last few months.  Distracting us from real discussion of the issues.  Maybe we'll get more once the electoral forums start in earnest in a few weeks.

We cannot continue down the path we have been on for the last 24 years.  There has been some difference between the Herenton and Wharton administrations, but not a large amount.

Change in how we run this city needs to occur.  Ideally, it occurs this year with the election of Whalum (getcha popcorn ready), Strickland, or Williams.

I was not born here in Memphis.  I moved here 20 years ago this August.  But this city is home for me.  I voted for the first time ever here in the 1995 election (Herenton in case you were wondering).

We need new ideas.  New ways of doing things.  Continuing down the path we are on now is not going to grow this city and make it attractive to people to move to and more importantly, for our young people to STAY in.  We don't want to continue to lose people to our exurbs and that city to the east.

More to come.

New Blood Part 1

27
30
32
38
41
What are these? The ages of top candidates for Council District 5 and Super District 8. Last year with Lee Harris, three years ago with Kevin Woods, and five years ago with Justin Ford the new blood has started to arrive that we have long needed for this city and county.

I know he won't believe it, but one thing that Del Gill was correct on in his quest to become party chair was right, young people don't vote and aren't engaged. He was wrong in that we should only focus on older voters though. That disengagement by the young is in large part due to efforts by the old guard to drive people away. Efforts to keep them from power and moving up to become our future are showing in the lack of change in the power structure in the Democratic side especially for the last ten plus years. If you cannot see a future, if you cannot see hope or the chance for improvement, why should you try to make the change happen?

Wait your turn, it't not your time yet. That gets said a lot to younger people entering races or contemplating races. What should be said to them instead include questions like these: Why are you running? What are you going to do to make a change or improve the situation? How are you going to get your agenda passed and implemented?

Too often our local leaders stay in way too long. While that does give you institutional power and control and knowledge, it also leads to stagnation, corruption, and inflexibility. New people have new ways of looking at a situation and explore new ideas. Our older leaders still have a lot to offer, realizing when the time to step aside is difficult.

All of us want to make this city vibrant and strong. Older officials have a lot to offer in advice and counseling. But too often here, political office has become about the job and the power, and not the ideas and the people. We want our city to grow and be attractive to people to move here. One great way is to have young, energetic, dynamic leadership at all levels of government that will both work with the veterans and serve as examples to the future that will replace them as well. Train them up, step aside, and let them go, perhaps before you are willing to let go, but have faith that you did your job right.

Embrace the new. More to come later this week.

On Charleston and the over-ownership of weapons

So, it's been reported that the terrorist Dylann Roof received a gun for his 21st birthday, which he used to brutally murder 9 people at a historic church in Charleston, SC last night.  One of those who lost their lives in this terrorist attack is the pastor, a State Senator named Clementa Pinckney, who also fought for gun control as well as civil rights or all.

The NRA has fought EVERY attempt to bring about ANY type of restriction for purchasing weapons, and it is time for them to be stopped cold.  I know a thing or two about possessing weapons.  I have owned weapons since the age of 11, when I got a 20-gauge shotgun for my birthday. My late father was a part-time gunsmith in NE Arkansas and was known for his ability to fix people's guns for deer season and duck season. Toward the end of his life, even HE thought the NRA was insane. It's time for licensing for weapon-owners, background checks for ALL those who would purchase weapons and simple, responsible actions for those would own weapons.

You don't get to operate a motor vehicle without doing so, and you should not be able to operate anything else that is potentially lethal to other human beings. Maybe, just maybe we can slow down some of these insane shootings in this country.

I can only hope.

Yeah, Hillary's running. And she'll probably win. That's not nearly enough, people

So, I see everyone is delirious over Hillary Clinton's announcement yesterday that she is running for president.  Meh.  I will vote for her if she is the nominee for the reason Jonathan Chait at NEW YORK Magazine noted yesterday:

The argument for Clinton in 2016 is that she is the candidate of the only major American political party not run by lunatics. 

Yep.

However, we have to understand that NOTHING is really going to change in this country until we regain control of A) The US Senate, B) The US House, and most importantly of all, C) STATE LEGISLATURES.  We have to rebuild from the ground up, and that is difficult in the aftermath of the CITIZENS UNITED ruling by the Supreme Court.  Most legislatures are like Tennessee's wholly-owned subsidiaries of the Koch Brothers and the misnamed Americans For Prosperity, which is like being called Chickens for Colonel Sanders.

 The President can do many things, but Kings they are not.  We need DEMOCRATS at every level of the legislative process, and that begins here.  We need help at the local level (the SCDP link is here) and at the state level (Here is the TNDP link) in order to get this state back in the correct direction.  UPDATE: Thanks to DWSC President Virgie Banks for providing the link to their Website at the top of the blogroll!

We need to be able to elect Democrats in rural areas that reflect our values and not those of the .001%.  Be excited for Hillary all you want (or not, in the primary stage) but keep your eyes on the prize:

Until we regain control of the legislative process, it will be difficult to do ANYTHING to stop this horrific turn to the ultra-right.

And that starts NOW.

And now, a word from our State Chair, Mary Mancini

Dear Steven,  For Tennessee’s Republican legislators, it’s business as usual on Capitol Hill. Instead of tending to the people's business, they're serving only themselves and their radical beliefs without a care for the destruction they heap upon children, families, and communities. Here's what they've done  in just one month... Senate Republicans, including Sen. Janice Bowling (R-Tullahoma) and Sen. Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet), voted to kill the Tennessee Economic Council on Womenbecause we don’t "have one for men." Read more... Rep. Courtney Rogers (R-Goodlettsville), is pushing a bill that would ban teachers from running for office "as political retribution after several members of Rogers’ faction lost county commission races to candidates backed by Strong Schools..." Read more.... Rep. Sheila Butt (R-Columbia), the Republican floor leader in the Tennessee House of Representatives, posted on Facebook that it was time for an “NAAWP.” Read more...  Rep. Jeremy Durham, (R-Franklin) was caught on video laughing about Rep. Butt because to him racism is one big joke. Watch the video... Sen. Mark Green( R-Clarksville) and Rep. Jeremy Durham (R-Franklin), are seeking to privitize worker's compensation insurance effectively removing the last bit of accountability and oversight left in the state program. Read more.... Rep. Andy Holt (R-Dresden), Republican chairman of an agriculture committee, is under investigation by both the Environmental Protection Agency and Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation for code violations and operating his hog farm without a permit. Read more…  Sen. Joey Hensley (R- Hohenwald), who was served an order of protection after his wife said he hit her with his car, and Rep. David Hawk (R-Greeneville), who was convicted of reckless endangerment in 2013 after an angry run-in with his ex-wife, have filed legislation “dealing with distribution of property during divorce proceedings." Hensley admitted the bill was based on his divorce. Read more…. Seven Republican senators, including Sen. Todd Gardenhire of Chattanooga, made the decision to shut the door to critical healthcare for over a quarter of a million hard working Tennesseans by voting NO to Insure Tennessee. Their vote NO is a direct result of the failure of leadership by Republican leaders Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey and Speaker Beth Harwell who caved to right-wing extremists instead of standing up for 250,000 working Tennesseans who can't go to the doctor when they're sick. Readmore.... Speaker Beth Harwell (R-Nashville) and Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey (R-Blountville) have shown an absolute lack of leadership in refusing to hold any of these members accountable and/or strip them of their leadership positions. Read more... It's clear that Tennessee Republicans are unfit to hold any elected office. It's clear that once given power, they use it to serve themselves and live as though the laws of Tennessee don’t apply to them.   But it’s not enough for Democrats to point fingers and laugh at how “crazy” these folks are. It’s not enough for us to shake our heads and ask, “How in the heck do these people get elected?” In Nashville, the state capitol has been overrun by self-serving Republican legislators and special interests so now is the time to let everyone know exactly who these Republicans are and what they stand for. And now is the time to make sure every voter knows who WE are and what WE stand for... Tennessee Democrats fight for equal pay, because we know that women make up 51% of the population and still make less than men. Tennessee Democrats fight for equality and opportunity for all because we know that racism and inequality in any form is unacceptable. Tennessee Democrats fight for equal justice because we know that no one is above the law. Tennessee Democrats believe in smart government and effective leadership. Tennessee Democrats believe it’s time our state legislators served the interests of all Tennesseans - not just themselves and their cronies.  Tennessee Democrats believe in a good day's pay for a hard day’s work. Tennessee Democrats believe that if someone is injured on the job, they should be able to feed their family. Tennessee Democrats believe that all Tennesseans should be able to take themselves or their kids to the doctor when they’re sick. Tennessee Democrats believe in investing in our future (our kids, our schools, our roads and bridges.) Tennessee Democrats believe in strong families and communities. Tennessee Democrats are the party of opportunity for ALL - THEY are the party of opportunism. Now is the time to start working to take back our state from these radical, self-serving Republicans...so spread the news...DON'T KEEP WHO WE ARE AND WHAT WE STAND FOR TO YOURSELVES! Thank you for all you do, Mary -- Mary Mancini Chair, Tennessee Democratic Party

Drinking Liberally Memphis is under new leadership, and I am happy about it!

Drinking Liberally Memphis faded away for a while because the hosts, of which I was one, got tired of doing it and couldn't attract younger, newer people, so we gave it up.

Fortunately,  Liz Rincon, Allan Creasy and Trenton Woodley have revived DL, which now meets at Celtic Crossing at Cooper & Oliver on the 2nd & 4th Mondays of very month beginning at 5 PM.

In addition, Mondays at Celtic are Pint Night, and the 5 PM time coincides with Happy Hour!

In addition, Allan, who is also a bartender at Celtic, donates tips received during that time to a local nonprofit so that they can give back to our community, which is a win-win for everyone.

For more information, the DL-Memphis Facebook page can be found at

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Drinking-Liberally-Memphis/672725372837484?fref=nf

The next DL gathering is Monday, March 9 at 5 PM at Celtic Crossing at Cooper & Oliver in the heart of Cooper-Young, come on out!

That's Me In The Flyer!

That's me in the Viewpoint, losing my political inhibitions! *

*with apologies to REM.  :)