Author Archives: Netmom

Judging the Judge

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The corruption saga of Roane County’s Judge Thomas Alva Austin continues this morning in two News-Sentinel pieces: one paints a tragic picture of a man distraught by his wife’s extramarital lesbian affair; the second reveals a coarse and corrupt parasite, extorting financial and personal gains from the public he was paid to serve.

The defense, led by Greg Isaacs, is pleading for leniency based upon the personal hardship he faced, which they claim drove him to reckless ruin.

The prosecution, led by US Attorney Charles Atchley, is pushing for a heftier sentence:

“This case represents an almost incomprehensible breach of the public trust”
“He is corrupt to his core”

Audio recordings of Austin’s own words support the US Attorney’s contention that a tougher sentence is warranted.

Austin on sexual harassment:

“See, back when I first started, you didn’t have to worry about that. They didn’t have no court judiciary and all that (expletive). I’ve granted girls divorces in the morning and (expletive) them that afternoon.”

Austin on financial kickbacks:

“Well, you need two books. What you don’t report, you don’t need to put in the bank.”

The two men who ultimately reported Austin to the FBI were a juvenile court employee tapped by Austin to head a driving school for motor vehicle offenders, and the probation chief. The video and audio recordings are damning.

The whole situation does illuminate the potential for corruption within law enforcement and the judicial system. Where a judge has the power to require persons before his court to participate in “fee for service” activities — whether driving school, parenting classes, or probation — there exists the necessity to keep a close eye on the money trail. Especially when the people in charge of those fee-for-service activities are handpicked by the judge who refers “customers.”

Properly conducted, these services provide value to the public… except when the goal is personal and/or financial gratification at the public’s expense. It’s worth thinking about the details of this particular corruption scheme, now exposed, and looking for similarities that may exist closer to home.

Pigskin Playtime!

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This year’s Clinton-Oak Ridge matchup was a far better football game than we’ve seen for several years. Although Oak Ridge prevailed 35-9, Clinton is not a team to be taken lightly.

They’re bigger. They capitalize on any mistake by the opposing team. They can run, and they can tackle. The stadium was standing room only until the last three minutes of the game, following Oak Ridge’s final score.

Clinton narrowly missed a touchdown at the end of the first half that would have put them in the lead, thanks to Oak Ridge’s having scored a 2-point touchback for them in the beginning. Had they closed the first half in the lead, it might have been a different ball game in the second half.

On the way home, I was surprised to hear that Maryville beat Alcoa, given that Alcoa now has Gary Rankin, formerly of state powerhouse Riverdale. Enjoy it now though, as I expect that after a couple of years of building that team, Alcoa’s going to be fearsome.

Still, the Wildcats showed a few good tricks of their own; Connor Gulmire has quite an arm. And he’s fast. With some hard work and support from the fans, we could have a really good season ahead.

I love football!

FCC in a Red Cape

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A ZDNet news flash came across a couple of days ago stating that, although an FCC fee on digital subscriber lines (DSL) has been eliminated, neither Bellsouth nor Verizon DSL customers will see a discount.

No big surprise for Bellsouth customers… once there’s an add-on fee, it never goes away even when it goes away.

Today, the Wall Street Journal reports that the FCC has opened a formal inquiry:

Federal regulators have prepared formal inquiries asking Verizon Communications Inc. and BellSouth Corp., for more information about their decision to keep money high-speed Internet customers would have otherwise gotten back following a government decision that broadband subscribers no longer have to pay into a federal subsidy program.

The letters, which sources said could be sent as early as today, are the first step toward a formal Federal Communications Commission investigation. The inquiry is particularly unwelcome for BellSouth, whose $67 billion acquisition by AT&T Inc. is still pending before the agency. It’s somewhat unlikely the issue would have any significant impact on the merger, which is still being reviewed by staff. But FCC Chairman Kevin Martin was “very upset” by Verizon and BellSouth’s decision to keep the money, an FCC official said.

“The commission takes its obligation to protect consumers very seriously,” said FCC spokesman David Fiske. “Consumers must be provided with clear and non-misleading information so they make accurately access the services for which they are being charged and the costs associated with those services.”

It’s easy to get frustrated with the government, but I’m sure glad someone’s following up on this one. It’s about time.

At Least be Rational

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The announcement of the FDA’s decision that the “morning after pill,” now called Plan B, will be available to adults without a prescription has been in the news for several days. This morning’s article in the News Sentinel states the opposition as:

Opponents believe making the pills more available could increase promiscuity and spur their use by sexual predators.

Given the price tag of $25-$40, I think not. Even if it were $5, it’s neither convenient enough, nor cost-effective enough, to become anyone’s first choice for a birth control method — aside from the fact that most of us are a little wary of gobbling up large doses of hormones, due to the inherent risks and inevitable side effects. It’s certainly not enough to change anyone’s morals or lead to dreaded promiscuity.

A similar argument has been used against the recently-approved vaccine for human papillomavirus, now known to be a leading cause of cervical cancer. From NewScientist:

In the US, for instance, religious groups are gearing up to oppose vaccination, despite a survey showing 80 per cent of parents favour vaccinating their daughters. “Abstinence is the best way to prevent HPV,” says Bridget Maher of the Family Research Council, a leading Christian lobby group that has made much of the fact that, because it can spread by skin contact, condoms are not as effective against HPV as they are against other viruses such as HIV.

“Giving the HPV vaccine to young women could be potentially harmful, because they may see it as a licence to engage in premarital sex,” Maher claims, though it is arguable how many young women have even heard of the virus.

The last sentence is important: it’s likely that the only young women who have ever heard of the virus, or its link to cancer, are those who have already visited a gynecologist or family planning clinic, or whose mothers are open, educated, and forthright enough to actually tell their daughters about it. Those mothers are also most likely to have counseled their children on the dangers of promiscuity (which includes a variety of other health, emotional, and social risks) as well as prevention of pregnancy and disease.

The second point is, of course, that the virus could be transmitted on a woman’s wedding night, neither spouse knowing that he carried it.

No mother wants her daughter to sleep around. But the danger of unexpected pregnancy or sexually transmitted disease is far, far worse than the moral or social effects of premarital sex.

The traditional barriers to premarital sex have been 1) pregnancy, 2) parents finding out, and more recently, disease. With options now to decrease (but not eliminate) the risks of pregnancy and disease, the key lies with parents: to instill in their daughters a sense of self esteem — low self esteem likely being the greatest factor in promiscuity among teenage girls — and to convey the benefits of reserving something very special for someone very special.

The latter won’t always work, so it’s important that girls and women also know how to protect their health and avoid unplanned pregnancy.

It’s time to put an end to the shrill voices that would risk women’s lives for one group’s version of morality.

ACES

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Atomictumor broke the news yesterday about the Atomic City Education Society; today, it made the Oak Ridger.

That’s the single greatest thing about this town: the people who live here. ACES started with a few friends who saw a problem, identified a need for public involvement, and stepped up to the plate. It’s not the first time: one of the few sat through an entire City Council meeting not long ago for his three minutes at the microphone… but that wasn’t enough.

AT, GAC, Mrs. Eaves, and Bosphorus: you are the greatest!

There are others working toward the same goal, from PTOs to the Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation, and it’s my hope that the collective, coordinated efforts will turn the tide of the last six years, so that we can continue to offer a public education that prepares all of our kids for the future.

One of mine has already benefited, and started her first day of classes at UT yesterday. Three more are working their way through, from 11th grade down to 6th. But this is about much more than children; the quality of the school system affects most or all of what our city strives toward — increased residency, bringing in new business and retail, and generally improving the quality of life in our community.

I’ll be signing up for some bumper stickers as soon as I can get them, and I hope you will too.

Election Review

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The first hearing in the contested August election for General Sessions Judge will be on September 1, according to the Oak Ridger. It’s just a touch of irony that Layton, the disputed winner, will be sworn in only an hour earlier.

Whatever you may think about the new e-Slate voting machines, one advantage is that much more data can be gleaned than under the previous system. Information like how long each voter took to cast his or her ballot, which is central to the premise of the suit.

With the Probation Department being disbanded, does it still matter?

Actually, yes. Eliminating the Probation Department, or more specifically, removing Alan Beauchamp from the position where there were serious, formal allegations of wrongdoing, is only one part of the problem. And, Beauchamp is still a County employee, so it’s not like Anderson County has cleaned up its act.

There remains the complaint that persons appearing before the General Sessions Court in Clinton are often treated rudely, including police officers. Also remaining is the question about the propriety of having persons with business before the court referred to programs only available in Anderson County, such as the 9-hour parenting class (State law requires only 8).

Contesting an August election is risky business, as the logical recourse is to hold a new election in November, concurrent with State and Federal races. Given that many more people will vote in November than voted in August (at least that’s the pattern), how many even know anything about this race? How many will still care?

Any thoughts on whether the suit will prevail, and if so, whether the new result will differ from the first one?

Baptist Teaching

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Reuters reports on a New York Baptist preacher who fired an 81 year old Sunday School teacher — with more than 50 years in that job — because she is… female. He does not “allow women to teach or have authority over a man.”

I guess he doesn’t believe in college, since there are female professors and deans.

Over the last couple of years, the Southern Baptist Convention has wrangled with the question of whether to officially encourage their members to remove their children from the “godless” public schools. Is it because so many public schoolteachers are women? Or, because public schools recognize that it’s the parents’ role to see to their children’s religious instruction, if any?

Then, there’s this group — advocating the abolishment of all public schools. If you go to their search page and type in local zip codes (37830 for Oak Ridge, 37716 for Clinton), you come up with names of local people who agree. I didn’t know all on the list, but those that I did recognize are — you guessed it — Baptists.

More disturbing is that the Republican candidate for State Representative in our district is on the list. Of course, Rep. Jim Hackworth (D) has done a good job for us, and has been particularly helpful to me in gathering information on the battle for state funding for our schools, so I wasn’t going to support the preacher anyway.

Back to the “women shall not teach” thing: it rather reminds me of the Palestinian (IMHO, terrorist-in-training) from my sophomore year of college, who dropped a beginning computer science course because I was the instructor of the only section. I still remember his “a woman is not qualified” statement, which I found amusing, since I knew the subject matter, and he did not.

What is the world coming to? Unfortunately, one extremist is no better, no less dangerous, than the other. I fully support anyone’s right to home school their kids, or to send them to a religious school; why do they wish to trample the rights of everyone else?

TACIR on Taxes

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Both Anotherthing2 and Cup of Joe Powell have noted the recent TACIR study: Local Government Property Tax Revisited: Good News and Bad News. In short, the analysis by Harry Green and Stan Chervin finds that

the growing property tax burden and growing local government dependence on the property tax are on a collision course.

While they note that the problem stems from the fact that property tax revenues, while fairly elastic, is not growing at the same rate as demand for services, no mention is made of exactly which local government services might be driving the pressure on local government budgets.

I would surmise that for all counties, along with the cities and special school districts that support school systems, one of the largest drivers is education costs.

Green and Chervin close with three proposed actions:

1. An expanded state circuit-breaker program designed to blunt the impact of rising property tax burdens on a broad-spectrum of low and moderate income households. The state aid should be targeted to phase out as family income rises, but not set so low that moderate income families are excluded from the program.

2. A significant increase in state aid to local governments designed to help them provide a basic level of services to their residents. The aid should go to the level of government that supplies the service (need based), and reflect consideration of both fiscal capacity and fiscal effort.

3. Significant new taxing authority that allows local governments to take advantage of existing tax bases or activities that are currently untaxed. Possible changes include an increase in the local sales tax single article limitation (currently set at $1,600), the authority to levy payroll taxes, and local ad valorem vehicle taxes in lieu of existing wheel taxes.

So, while admitting that the problem stems from the cost of services not keeping pace with property tax revenues, their first suggestion is to put some sort of limit on property tax increases. How, then, will local governments pay for these services? And of course, no mention is made of the fact that low to moderate income residents already pay low to moderate property taxes, simply because the amount is determined by the value of their property. One exception would be for the elderly, who may well have a more expensive (paid for) residence, while on a fixed retirement income.

That the State needs to step up to the plate with a significant increase in aid to local governments is a no-brainer, but I take issue with tying such aid to “fiscal capacity,” as the fiscal capacity formula is flawed in that it does not take into account property tax rates relative to others — a local government with a high property tax rate is deemed “more wealthy,” while those with lower property tax rates are categorized as “more needy.”

I’m certain that the prospect of allowing new taxing authority to local governments is bound to cause significant outcry, but it’s worthy of consideration. Take, for example, the concept of a payroll tax: communities with a large employment base, where many work in, but do not live (or pay taxes) in that community are an expense — traffic management, streets, utilities, and emergency services. Currently, the expenses for the non-resident workforce falls heavily on the residents, especially in a city like Oak Ridge, where the employer pays no property tax.

If some of the expense for those commuter costs were relieved via a payroll tax, then more of the resident property tax receipts would be available for resident services (like education).

I agree completely that something has to change, and that the local property tax is being squeezed. The State and Federal governments must commit to fully funding their mandates — or simply making optional recommendations.

I’ve taken Harry Green to task before, with no success in changing his perspective… but I have had some measure of success in pointing out the flawed reasoning to others. Like the Senate Education Committee. Harry and I have written dueling editorials for Tennessee Town and City. Unfortunately, rather than intelligent public discourse, this argument seems to have gotten personal.

Heaven forbid that anyone should challenge the great and mighty statistician on the formula that he personally developed… one so complex that few in government understand, but simply take at face value.

It’s simple: a community with a high tax rate to support essential services must be given credit for that effort, or else the incentive is to not support those essential services. And the only way to properly measure that effort is to compare tax rates, particularly measuring the allocations to services required by the State.

If Tennessee would only commit to a realistic level of per-pupil spending in education, an equal amount for every pupil in the state, then a huge burden would be lifted from the local property tax.

Corporate Medicine

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I’ve had the same family doctor for about 18 years, and he’s a great guy. Fortunately, I don’t have cause to visit him often. Over the years though, two things have changed: my insurance (which costs more, covers less, and is increasingly a pain in the ***), and his office, which is now corporate-owned and run.

My doctor recognizes me on sight, and knows the bill will be paid. He knows I only show up if there’s really something wrong — bad enough to waste a couple hours of my time for 20 minutes of his. However, there is a fairly large staff of front-desk nazis whose sole job seems to be to keep sick people from seeing the doctor at all, starting with the phone system.

When you call, you’re immediately dumped into one of those bizarre “press 1 if you’re a health-care provider…” automated systems. So, I pressed the right number for an appointment clerk, whereupon I was subjected to no less than 15 minutes’ worth of really bad music (sick people don’t want to listen to disco), interspersed with three episodes of “hold please – CLICK” from a real person.

The usual routine if you’re even able to get an appointment is to show up on time, only to be greeted rudely by the front-desk nazis with “have you ever been seen here before?” “Do you have insurance?” and about 50 pages of paperwork… not one item of which has changed since the last time I filled it all out. Then, once all the papers are processed and the insurance cards copied, there’s a 2-hour wait in a full of people who are 1) gossiping, 2) complaining about their list of ailments to others waiting, or 3) taking cell phone calls nonstop. Oh, and the front-desk nazis want the $10 co-payment before you see the doctor.

I guess they know if you pay before you’re seen, you won’t walk out because of the long wait in a roomfull of crazy people.

This week was the last straw. Whatever crud got ahold of me on Monday, it was clear by Thursday evening that it had migrated to bronchitis, and I needed to get rid of it. After waiting on hold to make an appointment until my cordless phone died (quite a long time), I gave up and went to a relatively new walk-in clinic: Park Med Ambulatory Care.

The deductible was $25 instead of $10 due to my preferred-providor insurance, but who cares. Someone saw me, confirmed that I do have bronchitis, and sent me off with an appropriate antibiotic, cough medicine, and an inhaler. I’m still horizontal more often than vertical, but hopefully this crud will be gone in a day or two.

Now, to find a more permanent solution for a regular physician… one whom I won’t see often, but when I need to get in, I can. I won’t waste their time, but I expect them to have the same respect for mine. I don’t mind paying promptly for my visit, but I do object to being treated like a deadbeat by a front-desk nazi… so I won’t go anywhere that has one. Yes, I have insurance. No, I haven’t moved in 19 years; my phone number is the same, along with all the other mindless questions I’m asked every single visit.

Any suggestions? Surely to goodness there’s one good general practitioner in this city who works the old fashioned way.

I wish my kids’ pediatrician took adults; he’s really the kind of doc I’m looking for.