More Needed Than a Name Change and Haircut
To thinking people, it is already abundantly clear the Left in this country has lost its tether to reality some time ago. As I indicated in an earlier column, the Left in America long ago divorced Reason and has since been living with Delusion. Some of the absurdities of the Left are small, such as the declaration by the New York Times, Washington Post, and the Associated Press that henceforth the word “Black” would be capitalized to express respect. That caused some in the media to consider whether the word “White” should also be capitalized as a matter of consistency. Some on the Left shrieked that would be legitimizing white supremacy, while others argued it should not be capitalized because whites don’t share a common culture.
Other things are so patently absurd as to defy reason and common sense; for instance the notion there might be as many as 72 genders. Yet another absurdity is the idea that the Knoxville News Sentinel is an impartial, unbiased journalist-based publication. Not hardly. The Sentinel has its own point of view and it is distinctly on the Left. Angela Dennis seems to write about nothing but race. Her recent article glorifies David Hayes, who has cut off his hairdo, which she generously referred to as a “freestyle” do. Hayes has cut off his dreadlocks for a more modest look, albeit dyed the remainder some variation of magenta, painted his nails, put on some lipstick and a dress, and says his “pronouns” are “they” and “them.” The premise of the story was that Hayes has shed his “slave name” and renamed himself Nzinga Bayano Amani. Just call him “Z” for short.
As far as I am concerned, Hayes could call himself Puddin’ Tame or anything else he could think of. Nor is Hayes the first person to struggle with identity.
The notion that David Hayes has been “targeted” by the police, according to Angela Dennis, is just simply not true. At best it is complete fiction; at worst, it is just a plain old lie. The only grain of truth is that I suppose anyone who has broken the law is “targeted” by law enforcement and subject to arrest. Yet evidently Ms. Dennis would have us believe Hayes is above mere laws.
To her credit, Dennis does report Hayes describes himself as “a revolutionary socialist and troublemaker…” He is also an advocate of releasing every prisoner from jails and penitentiaries in the country, David Hayes or Z says, “A good cop is a cop that quits.” Z is facing charges of assault of a first responder, inciting to riot, and obstruction of a highway, all of which led to his arrest in the City-County Building. That arrest outraged those on the Left, as they pretended it was supposed to be some sort of safe space where Hayes was immune from arrest.
The story written by Dennis has a great many suppositions, such as the notion that David Hayes gave up a life of comfort and ease as a highly paid corporate executive when he dropped out of college. The story glorifies activism over working for a living and supporting one’s family. But then again, one of the clearly enunciated goals of the Black Lives Matter founders was the destruction of the nuclear family.
It is interesting how Donald Trump is supposed to be hung for allegedly inciting to riot, yet David Hayes or Z is performing community service. It is simply another example of the hypocrisy of the Left in this country.
More on Candidate Residency
The bill sponsored by State Representative Dave Wright and Senator Frank Niceley has passed the legislature and is on its way to the governor’s desk for signature by the chief executive. The bill creates a residency requirement for candidates for federal offices in Tennessee. Should Governor Lee sign the bill, candidates for Congress and the United States Senate would have to have lived in Tennessee for three years before running. The carpetbagging in the new Fifth Congressional District has grown so bad that two of the candidates should be ineligible under the Wright-Niceley Bill immediately. It may very well affect candidate Robert Starbuck Newsom, too, who is from California.
At least four candidates for Congress have had their bona fides challenged before the Tennessee Republican State Executive Committee. If the SEC will do its job, the herd will be thinned out.
The Democrats have finally got a serious candidate to enter the race for Congress from the newly redrawn Fifth Congressional District in State Senator Heidi Campbell. Campbell is a relative newcomer to state politics, having beaten the last Republican to represent Davidson County in the State Senate in 2020.
“I was elected in November of 2020 to represent District 20 in the Tennessee State Senate,” Campbell states on her website. “Since that time, I have been an outspoken advocate for science, the LGBTQ community, public education, local control, women’s and kid’s issues, Medicaid expansion, and the environment.”
Thus far, there are 23 people running for Congress to represent the Fifth District, some of whom are actually from and live in Tennessee.
Congratulations, Judge Kyle Hixon
Speaking of the governor, Bill Lee has announced the appointment of Kyle Hixson to serve as a judge of the Tennessee Criminal Court of Appeals. Congratulations are due to both Judge Hixson as well as Governor Lee. Hixson was overwhelmingly elected by the people of Knox County to serve as a local judge of the Criminal Court after a stint as a prosecutor. The appointment must be ratified by the Tennessee General Assembly before it becomes effective. That should prove to be little more than a formality and Hixson, who isn’t even 40 years old, will take his place on the state bench.
Governor Lee couldn’t have made a better choice and Kyle Hixson will clearly have the opportunity for a long and productive career as an outstanding jurist in the Volunteer State. It would not surprise anyone who knows him should Kyle Hixson end up on the Tennessee State Supreme Court.
Confiscatory Taxes
Joe Biden is singing a siren song to the far left of his own party by proposing his “billionaire tax.” Of course, the idea of confiscatory taxes on the super-rich is popular with many Americans, especially those who expect to derive a direct benefit from such a tax. Biden’s proposal is merely a recycled Bernie Sanders idea. In fact, that idea has been popular for generations. Our historian, Ray Hill, reminds me that Huey Long once proposed to take every dollar of income past the first $1 million of wealthy Americans.
Touché, Tom Spangler!
Tom Spangler and Jimmy “JJ” Jones tussled on WBIR TV’s talking head show last week discussing the Sheriff’s race. Jones attempted to place the blame on Spangler for 500 employees having left the Sheriff’s department. Spangler retorted that it wasn’t as bad as the 650 that had left under Jones’ own administration. Jones didn’t have much to say to that. Also, Jones didn’t have a pandemic or a Defund the Police movement to deal with.
Democrat Candidates
The current crop of candidates sponsored by Knox County’s Democratic Party might as well be a poster for a mother’s love. Oddly, the people who will like the assorted Democrat candidates for countywide office best are doubtless going to be the Republicans. That is because the Democrat candidates veer sharply to the Left.
Jackson Fenner, candidate for District Attorney General, ran two years ago as an Independent for Law Director and got the stuffing beaten out of him. Now the young attorney is off and running against Charme Allen and seems more interested in prosecuting cops than criminals.
Dana Moran, who is running for Circuit Court Clerk, is promoting a bigger pro bono program for the indigent, perhaps not realizing Charlie Susano is not the Clerk of the Criminal Courts. The Clerk’s office has nothing to do with the selection of pro bono attorneys for anyone or the pro bono program. There is also the Legal Aid Society to assist folks who need, not to mention a fully taxpayer-funded Public Defenders’ office.
Susano had one of the highest ratings from the Knoxville Bar Association as to effectiveness and it’s going to be hard to top that.
Debbie Helsey, the Democrat candidate for county mayor, seems to be running instead for superintendent of public schools.
Dylan Early, who was once a supporter of Congressman Tim Burchett, is squalling that opponent Larsen Jay is insensitive to the rising homeless problem inside the City of Knoxville. The source of Dylan’s complaint is a post by Jay of a photo of a tent village inside the City. Early pounced claiming it outrageous Commissioner Jay hasn’t done something about it. Naturally, Dylan doesn’t seem to wonder why city Mayor Indya Kincannon or the City Council hasn’t done something about it.
Early complains the county taxpayers should pony up to help the city solve its problem, which it hasn’t done. It’s simply more campaign hyperbole and fairly embarrassing at that. Dylan is going to find out the folks in Halls, Doyle, Farragut, Hardin Valley, Karns, Gibbs, and Powell don’t want to pay the City of Knoxville’s bills.
Vivian Shipe, another candidate for the County Commission, sounds as if she’s running for City Council. Her platform looks identical to that of a Council candidate and she, like Dylan Early, is pretty certain to face some pushback from those voters outside the City of Knoxville limits.
The coming general election ought to be fun.
