Adventure to Paducah

Toby and I got word this morning that our rescue services were needed in Paducah, KY. A major ice storm lead to power outages, phone outages and dangerous roads, and my dear Great Aunt Margie and Great Uncle Charles C. were feared stuck. So we left work early, rented a four wheel drive and raced off to the rescue. Toby quite enjoyed the adventure, if I do say so myself. After all, he had a perfectly good excuse to buy new "rescue gear" including a camping stove, thermal blankets and other assorted goodies.

Charlie and Margie had been stuck without electricity or phone service for a few days, but thankfully their daughter Judy was stuck with them. By the time we arrived in Paducah, all was well, and Judy was packing them into the car to take them home to Memphis with her. Charlie and Margie needed only hugs, hand-holding, and a little help to the car. I was very happy to see them all, and felt moderately useful. Toby (as always) took some great photos, but only of the ice, not people. I think he was trying to balance between wanting good shots and not taking pictures of people during hard times.

This one (above) is a great shot of Charlie and Margie's house behind the tree. If not for the general devastation of the area, it would be a nice Christmas card.

Epperson Road - very well cleared of the fallen trees, but really only on this part of the street.

The tree in their backyard won't quite be the same after losing all its branches, but we're hopeful that it will survive.

Newsflash- Nashville does the right thing!!!

I am very proud to report that Nashville voters defeated the so-called "English-Only" charter amendment. I am so impressed by the number of people who stood up to fight against hatred. Below is an excerpt from a Tennessean newspaper article this morning.


Nashville listened to its leaders — the governor, the mayor, and a vast coalition of churches, businesses and universities — and defeated an English-only measure by nearly 10,000 votes in Thursday's special election.
No one predicted the massive turnout on the special election, one that inspired strong emotion from voters on either side. Ultimately, opponents said, the message that diversity is a good thing came through.

"With the defeat of this amendment, the citizens of Nashville tell the rest of the country that we are an incredibly warm city with an entrepreneurial spirit," said Tom Oreck, a vacuum cleaner company owner who worked to defeat the measure.

The final was 32,144 for English only and 41,752 against — at about 19 percent, the largest turnout for a special election in a decade.

The measure would have forced all Metro Nashville government business to be done in English, with the council allowed to vote on exceptions. The city's legal department contended early on that conflicts with federal law would enmesh Nashville in litigation for years to come.
By defeating the measure, Nashville will not be the largest city in the nation with an English-only rule in its charter despite dogged efforts by Metro Councilman Eric Crafton, who spearheaded the amendment. The city's size attracted the attention of national media.

After the final tallies, Mayor Karl Dean also called for the city to move on from this chapter.
"The results of this special election reaffirm Nashville's identity as a welcoming and friendly city and our ability to come together as a community — from all walks of life and perspectives — to work together for a common cause for the good of our city," he said.

Its a beautiful day!

Just taking a moment to celebrate the days and years ahead. How lucky we are to live in a country where regime changes are peaceful, people are free to celebrate publicly, and anybody can grow up to be President.

As I hoped, Tracey is at the inauguration, standing with three million of her closest friends in the freezing cold. I'll post a full report from her as soon as she thaws out.

Update on Toby's Dad's mission in Zimbabwe

We just received an email from Toby's dad about his trip. It sounds like he's been able to help a lot of folks that are suffering. I've copied the email below so that you can read it for yourselves.

Hello Toby,
Nice to get your message. It has all been a bit confusing to start with but is getting better now. I am normaly based in Johannesburg but at the moment I am up at the Zimbabwe border in a small town called Musina. This is where the refugees come to when they get out of Zim and we have set up a medical centre and also help out with sorting the water supply and sanitation at the "show ground" where they all congregate to be processed by the authorities. They have quite a tough time - first they have to cross the Limpopo river which is huge, fast flowing and full of crocs! Then they have to go through like a no mans land which is full of robbers who jump on them and steal anything they have, then they have to get through the South African border fence which consists of several layers of curled razor wire which is also electrified! Then they have to get into town without being picked up by the police. Once in the show ground they then wait to be processed - if they get through that (sometimes taking several weeks) they can then travel on into the rest of SA and look for work - if they get rejected they get sent back! Because the SA government doesn't accept that they are refugees they do not get any help - they are classed as economic migrants and therefore get nothing. I suppose they are economic migrants but only because Zim no longer has anything and what there is cost a fortune (1$ is now worth several trillian Zim shillings!!). Added to all this a lot are infected with cholera which is what we are helping with as well as those with AIDS and those that have been beaten up and raped - so all pretty grim stuff. A lot of them go to Johannesburg, the largest city, to look for work but of course there is not much around and then they end up either in this big Central Methodist Church or in other places run by the mafia types who then exploit them. My job in Joburg is to sort out the sanitation in the Church which now holds about 2000 with only about 8 toilets!! The problem is that the church is right in the middle of the city so no room to do anything.It has been nice to get out of the city and into the country - I had to drive a 4x4 up here (6hours) for sending over into Zim for one of the sections working over there. It was a good drive and I was surprised to see so much green - it is the rainy season - later it will all turn brown as one tends to imagine it. Although it is only about 560Km north of Joburg, it is much hotter - up in the 30C's but it is a dry heat so OK for me.Well better go and get on with writing my visit report - late start this morning after quite a heavy night last night - we got some steaks and had a barbe - fantastic steaks and so cheap.Cheers for now. Love, Dad.

Vote "NO" on English-Only

The following is taken from a letter circulating widely around Nashville. It does a fabulous job of describing the potentially negative impacts facing Nashville if the so-called English-Only act passes. Please take the time to read it before voting.


As you probably know, Nashville is currently voting on two proposed Amendments to the Metro Charter, including the infamous “English Only” Amendment. The full text of the Amendments as well as voting locations and times can be found here:
http://www.nashville.gov/vote/PDFs/090122_election/referendum_election_notice_090122.pdf
I believe that these Amendments represent bad government policy and are potentially damaging to Nashville’s economy and reputation.

Most concerning from a business perspective is the fact that Amendment #1 would literally make it illegal for government officials to address representatives of international corporations who are considering locating operations in Nashville in their native language.

Nashville boasts 76 companies with some level of foreign investment. Those companies employ 7,660 Nashvillians and generated more than $19.6 billion in sales last year. At a time when Nashville is enjoying tremendous success recruiting international companies, the English-only effort sends a negative and inaccurate message to the world. The potential impact extends to domestic companies as well. Tom Oreck, CEO of Oreck Corporation, said, “I can tell you that if this had been the law when we were considering Nashville, Oreck might not have chosen this city.”

The Amendments will also consume precious government resources sorting out the protracted litigation regarding implementation. Amendment #1 is poorly worded and potentially unconstitutional. In general, English-only laws are inconsistent with the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and this Amendment most likely violates the Voting Rights Act. In an attempt to avoid certain of the potential challenges to the Amendment, the proponents added the language, “The Metro Council may make specific exceptions to protect public health and safety.” I’m sure that you can easily see the inevitable lawsuits around what specifically constitutes “health and safety”. Doesn’t the Metro Council have enough to do without having to pass judgment on each and every instance when a police officer or doctor can or cannot speak in a language other than English?

I believe that this proposal would also damage Nashville’s tourism industry (as does the Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau, which has come out strongly against the English Only Amendment). If the proposal is enacted police officers wouldn’t be able to provide directions to tourists in any language other than English. Any governmental tourism marketing info couldn’t be in the native language of the people we’re trying to convince to come here. That makes sense! Just imagine if you went to a foreign country and none of the officials there would address you in English. That would probably diminish your experience and make you less likely to visit (and spend money there) again.

The group of folks who have lined up in opposition to these Amendments represent a broad cross section of political views. Individuals and groups that have announced their opposition to these Amendments include:
• Nashville Chamber of Commerce
• Governor Phil Bredesen
• Mayor Karl Dean
• Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau
• United Steelworkers of America – District 9
• More than 200 faith leaders representing virtually every major religion in Nashville

Anything that the Chamber of Commerce, unions and religious leaders all oppose must have some issues!

So that you can compare the arguments on both sides, the websites of the opponents and proponents of the Charter Amendments are:
http://www.nashvilleforallofus.org/About.html
http://nashvilleenglishfirst.com/
A conservative perspective rebutting some of the arguments in favor of these Amendments can be found at: http://moorethoughts.com/.

And all is right with the world again...

Great news! From a press release put out by the Southern Strategy Group -

Governor Phil Bredesen today named John Morgan as Deputy to the Governor. Morgan replaces outgoing Deputy to the Governor Stuart Brunson, who announced plans to leave the administration earlier this month.
"John Morgan understands the organization and issues of state government as well as anyone I know," said Bredesen. "He's intelligent, well regarded and an outstanding leader. He will be a valuable addition to my team, and I'm very pleased he has agreed to continue his service to the state in this new role."
Morgan is a 31-year veteran employee of the state of Tennessee. In 1999, he was elected Comptroller of the Treasury to replace retiring comptroller William R. Snodgrass and served five consecutive two-year terms as one of the state's three constitutional officers.
"I'm extremely honored to have this opportunity to work with Governor Bredesen and to help him achieve his goals for Tennessee, particularly in this challenging economic climate," said Morgan. "I can think of no better way to continue my career in public service than by helping him keep education as our number one priority and focus on job creation, and I look forward to joining his team as we address the challenges and opportunities ahead."
Morgan, 57, is an outspoken advocate for improvements in public education. Financial accountability, professionalism and integrity have been hallmarks of his career in public service. He is a member of the Association of Government Accountants and the American Society of Public Administration.

Toby and I are so thrilled that things have worked out as they should for the Morgans. I'm please the announcement came so soon, so that I could shoo away the cloud that has been hanging overhead. Break out the champagne!!!

Sad Day for Tennessee

If you know me, you probably know or have heard of "The Morgans." The Morgans are great friends, wise advisors and all-around great people. They hosted our rehearsal lunch at their house before our wedding, and it was just perfect.

Most of you know that Mr. Morgan is the Comptroller for Tennessee, and has been so for some time. Some of you know that the Tennessee General Assembly was recently taken over by the Republican party. The Republicans have brought with them extreme puffery and ugly partisanship, though I am certain these issues have probably been building in the Assembly for years. In any event, today the Republicans voted in a new Comptroller - not because they had a better candidate, and not because any of them truly believe that another person would be better than Mr. Morgan for the job, but because Mr. Morgan is not affiliated with the Republican party.

Its a sad day for me and for Tennessee. I look forward to seeing how Mr. Morgan next changes the world.

Canada trip - Chateau Lake Louise

In late February, Toby and I will be taking off on our first Thornton-Cooper sibling retreat. Toby and I are flying to Canada to meet up with Toby's sister (Beth), her boyfriend (James) and my brother (Bill). Toby and Beth are very good snowboarders, and James and Bill will be trying to transition from skiing to snowboarding. I tried to snowboard one afternoon when Toby and I went to Breckenridge while we were dating. I hated it. HATED IT. So I'll be skiing, and probably spending some time in the spa.

Anyway, we're flying into Calgary and then headed to Banff. I've never been to Banff (and had never heard of it before we planned the trip), but I hear it is the heart of the Canadian Rockies and absolutely gorgeous. You MUST check out our hotel at the link below. One of James' friends is working at Chateau Lake Louise this winter, and he has secured for us great rooms at amazing rates. Thanks Macca!

http://www.fairmont.com/LakeLouise/

Please let us know if you've been there before - we'd love recommendations on great places to eat and drink!

Another first - Woman to give Inaugural Sermon

Rev. Watkins is the head of the Disciples of Christ - the not-well-known denomination of our wedding officiant, Sunny. Rev. Watkins' husband taught and mentored Kyle Harris (a great friend and husband of colleague Elisa Harris) in seminary. We chose Sunny to be our wedding officiant in part because of the open and progressive views of the Disciples of Christ demonination (and also, frankly, because they allow you to believe what you believe, and they aren't preachy about it).

In an interview with CNN (find the link below), Rev. Watkins said, "I hope that my message will call us to believe in something bigger than ourselves and remind us to reach out to all of our neighbors to build communities of possibility." Surely that is a statement that we can all endorse.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/01/12/inauguration.sermon/index.html

Tobias Photography - Favorite Christmas photo

Here is my favorite photo from Christmas this year. Notice the cute matching stockings and monogrammed tree skirt! :) Ahh, domestic bliss!

Sadie's Christmas Season

We have so many cute and funny pictures of Sadie from Christmas that she deserves her own post. Here goes:

Christmas started out great for Sadie, with the promise of very good things to come.


Christmas got even better when Santa brought her a very large rawhide bone. She carried it around and tried to hide it for a very long time, and only forgot where she put it once.

The Christmas season got even better when we all went to the Smoky Mountains and Sadie got to partake in one of her favorite activities - rolling in wild animal poo. Our efforts at cleaning her up with leaves in a small creek were mostly futile.

In the end, a very contented Sadie enjoyed a fabulous holiday season. She hopes you did, too.

Tobias Photography - Evins Mill

Here is my favorite photo from our trip to Evins Mill - isn't Toby talented!?!?