Source: Link...

So, more than 3 out of 5 students are not proficient in math and virtually half are not proficient in reading.

What can we do? Every year this continues is a great loss for the students and indeed for all of us.

-- OneTahiti

For more information, see: Link..., or see the schedule of events on the Kingston Parks and Recreation web site. The fireworks show is at dusk on the river.

Please consider attending a public fireworks display instead of setting off fireworks yourself. The county's woods are full of excess fuel and our dry weather does not help the fire danger situation. Even sparklers can reach 2000 degrees Fahrenheit, hot enough to melt many metals.

West Roane County VFD has a free fireworks safety brochure (PDF format, 685KB). See also the U.S. Fire Administration's Fireworks Safety page.

Also, Volunteer TV has a list of Knoxville-area public fireworks displays.

-- OneTahiti

National Geographic is making a new "geotourism-centered" "interactive map" "of the Tennessee River Valley from Chattanooga to Knoxville."

They are asking for "nominations for notable locations" such as "historic sites, parks, museums, restaurants, scenic roads, festivals and wildlife." To nominate your favorite Roane County features, go to EastTNGeoTourism.org (Link...). Nominations will be accepted from Saturday, June 25, through August 8.

The Chattanooga Times Free Press has the story.

-- OneTahiti

TVA and the NRC "will address the public ... on Monday, June 20, at noon in Athens, Tenn. ... at the Comfort Inn located at 2811 Decatur Pike." The subject of the meeting will be Unit 2 at Watts Bar Nuclear Plant.

The Rhea Herald News has the story: Link....

-- OneTahiti

A man just admitted his crime of "report(ing) inaccurate or fabricated readings of power supply cables at the plant." The Herald-News in Rhea County has the story.

-- OneTahiti

Since we lost the private weather station on Joiner Hollow Road in Rockwood earlier this year, the HADS Kingston Fossil weather station at the TVA coal facility has been the one closest to Rockwood and West Roane County available through Weather Underground as well as the NWS. This morning the station was offline.

Rep. Desjarlais' phone number in D.C. is (202) 225-6831; to send him an email, go to his website: Link...

Here's a sample letter with talking points (courtesy of the National Volunteer Fire Council):

 

For more information see: Link...

The striking answer is that folks in Tennessee do, far and away more than folks in other states, at least according to the spiffy new lab, Google Correlate (Link...).

-- OneTahiti

From Rep. Hurley's FaceBook wall (Link...):

"TN State Representative Julia C Hurley: My desk!

May 21 at 8:00pm"

From Rep. Hurley's FaceBook wall (Link...):

"Bill Kistner: Saw you in Lenoir City this morning... nice Bimmer! But put the windows down when you have the top down... looks silly with them up! LOL
Monday at 2:24pm"

"TN State Representative Julia C Hurley: hahaha... it keeps the wind down so I can still talk on my vcell phone! You know I can't go without that Blackberry!
23 hours ago"

A Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) report (Link..., 7.2Mb PDF) has the dismaying news that 85% of counties in Tennessee--including Roane County--have reported incidents of sexual slavery. Worse yet, Roane County has reported incidents of both child and adult sexual slavery.

United Way of Roane County is holding its free annual Family Fun Day from 8 AM to 4 PM on May 21, 2011 at Roane State Community College. Bring the whole family, have fun, and check out Roane County's community services, resources, and volunteer opportunities. Attractions include:

"...Slumming in America is fast becoming a business model for some of Europe's leading companies, and they often do things here they would never think of doing at home. These companies — not banks, primarily, but such gold-plated European manufacturers as BMW, Daimler, Volkswagen and Siemens, and retailers such as IKEA — increasingly come to America (the South particularly) because labor is cheap and workers have no rights. In their eyes, we're becoming the new China.

Summer Fest is an annual fun event in Roane County Park. Bring the whole family and stay the day! You'll enjoy delicious food, a 5k run/walk, a motorcycle event, a Law vs. Order ball game, disc golf, the new Splash Pad, and more. For more information, see: Link...

-- OneTahiti

Amazon may build three more distribution centers in Knoxville and Nashville, bringing its proposed investment to $319 million and creating "about 1,700 full-time workers and 2,000 part-time or seasonal workers within two years" (Link...) in addition to the thousands of jobs already slated for Chattanooga.

Huffington Post has the story: Link...

-- OneTahiti

Arson is a continuing problem in Roane County, as elsewhere. Arson Awareness Week is an excellent time to take a few minutes to learn more about this timely topic: Link..., Link...

Alternet has the story by Joshua Holland: Link...

A quote: "Tennessee is included, despite having a lower unemployment rate, because its benefits are stingy and don't cover a lot of its jobless citizens."

-- OneTahiti

Watch all the way through. It's worth it, even on dialup.

-- OneTahiti

In the Tennessee House (via R. Neal at KnoxViews):

HB7 requiring photo ID to vote passes 57-35: Rep. Hurley votes "Yes" to make it either more expensive or more difficult for some people to vote.

HB1498 "freedom to discriminate" against gays, others passes 67-24: Hurley apparently absent.

HB1114 giving state election coordinator secret subpoena powers over county election commissions passes 67-20: Hurley votes "Yes" for more state power and secrecy.

-- OneTahiti

Photo by A.S., used with permission. Taken from my yard in West Roane County.

-- OneTahiti

The West Roane County Volunteer Fire Department is launching their Spring appeal. Please consider a generous tax-deductible donation by mail to WRCVFD, P.O. Box 417, Rockwood, TN 37854, or online at WestRoane.com (Link...).

Our neighbors in this all-volunteer IRS 501(c)(3) nonprofit not only fight our fires but also provide our emergency medical services. Last year they went out on 269 calls, including 150 EMT/medical calls, and on 28 mutual aid calls helping other fire departments.

This is just wrong. People serving in our military will have to keep serving, but will not get paid during a government shutdown. They must continue risking their lives while their families go without. See "Where to Turn if Shutdown Happens" at Military.com (Link...) and the "Federal Furlough FAQ" at federalnewsradio.com (Link...).

-- OneTahiti

The researchers at CountyHealthRankings.org just released their report (Link...) on how thousands of U.S. counties are faring, Roane County included. Unfortunately, Roane County does not rate that well compared to the nation as a whole.

Mrs. Witter's classroom at Cherokee Middle School in Kingston, Tennessee has a project up at DonorsChoose.org (Link...).

They could really use "Hunger Games" books! Five people have donated so far, but there is more to go and the time period is up April 1.

Let us hope the un-American travesty unfolding in Michigan does not happen here.

-- OneTahiti

When you change your clocks this weekend, be sure to check your smoke alarms as well. Also, change the batteries in all alarms with 9V batteries.

-- OneTahiti