swvacsas2

The kid did the right thing. This is nothing but liberal political correctness. It goes both ways. If I were on the school board in Logan County I would not only reverse the policy but suggest that the originators of it might be more happy working in Yankeedom. There should be short shrift for educators pushing political correctness at the secondary level.

A lot of these hikes are transitioning related to either other fuel sources or plant retrofitting etc. Cost is being passed on.

When Jefferson was closed back in the 70's comments were made that the closure was due to race and to allow PH and Fleming to get the Jefferson athletes. Franklin will eventually need to do something if it keeps growing. Building new schools right now is an expensive proposition- can wreck a localities finances in a hurry- as Wise County is finding out.

At the rate Wise County is dropping in enrollment you will have more kids than Union and Central- maybe by the next cycle. The decline in coal employment will cause a sharp enrollment drop in all the coal counties. Wise had already dropped due to consolidation. Will be interesting to see how it plays out elsewhere. A tough time for rural schools in this area.

Mark Twain- "No man's life, liberty, or property is safe while the legislature is in session." This is the most accurate summation of your average General Assembly or Congress.

Marion is fortunate that back in the 20's no one had a warped sense of humor. In the West years ago a high school had the moniker Maniacs- I believe it was an Idaho school . The Marion Maniacs would have been an interesting nickname for obvious reasons- alliterative too.

Marion was originally Royal Oak after the Campbell farm. There was a strong urge in the 19th century to rename places after Revolutionary War participants, Marion never lived in this area. We did have a lot more local ties with South Carolina than one would have thought.

Paul was right. Nobody with PTSD should be on a firing range and probably not in possession of a firearm. I strongly support the right to bear arms- but reason has to be applied- people with known mental health issues do not need firearms.

Bobby Dodd played on the Kingsport team that beat Norton 198-0

Elkhorn City actually won a state championship under Jack Hall in the mid 60's. They were a runner up in the early 70s. They had decent teams until the early 80s. Letcher Central and the new Pike schools haven't made any noise in football- Shelby Valley has a state championship in basketball. Some folks here may remember the great Lynch football teams of Ed Miracle. When Lynch got out of the school business they went to Cumberland and then to Harlan County. Lynch won three or four state titles in the late fifties and sixties and I believe lost out on an equal number. They were the Beechwood of their day. I also think Cumberland may have played for a title. Some time ago I mentioned on a thread the results of a survey that a friend of mine conducted for a thesis at UT. It showed that kids who lived 10 miles from a school had a precipitate drop in extracurricular participation. This research was done in the early 70s so gas prices were beginning to be a factor- believe most of the research was done before the '73 embargo. The larger rural consolidated schools had trouble competing. Several of the schools were located in areas not suffering from a demographic crisis or from a prolonged economic downturn- they just suffered from geographic determinism. Compactness of population and proximity to the school governed turnout. The results of consolidation in this five state area seem to bear these conclusions out. The bigger geographical area covered by the school the more problems. It does seem that schools that can develop a proficiency in one sport can do well enough in that sport to overcome some of the disadvantages of geography- but it seems difficult for them to be successful in multiple sports.

One statistic that never comes out is the percentage of assault weapons in the overall scheme of murders in the US. Granted that most of the publicized mass killings have involved assault weapons- but I feel that they will be found to compose only a small percentage of guns used in overall crime. How many killings have occurred locally using assault weapons? The most publicized crimes plainly involve individuals with mental problems- this should be the crux of a public response.

Interesting Forbes article. http://www.forbes.com/special-report/2012/business-of-college-football.html

A tragedy he was not appointed- but at least we got Scalia. I do not think I was ever more angry at a Virginia politician than I was at John Warner for voting against him.

There is no antidote for madness.

Petrino is the new coach at WKU. He is willing to take a good cut in pay or there are blondes on staff.

Petrino has three major problems: 1. He got caught. Bad publicity. 2. The nature of the offense might turn off both female and religious boosters and alumni especially in the South. 3. Given the fact that the affairee was an athletic department employee and he was in a position with supervisory duties, you have an opening and potential openings for sexual harassment actions. Most ADs want to avoid lawyers if possible. I don't think Petrino was ever even remotely under consideration at UT. He could return- as has been said- at a lower level, but even that may take a few years to cool off. Just found out he may have been approached by Arkansas State. The latter comments may be down the drain. Interesting if true. Jones hire is better than UT could hope for under the circumstances.

Article in the Kingsport Times this morning stated that a task force had recommended bringing back the football program at ETSU. ETSU task forces recommend football team, dental school By REX BARBER NET News Service A new football program could be started at East Tennessee State University and a new fine and performing arts center could be built in a few years, according to the school’s president. Beginning the process of starting a football team, establishing a dental school and creating an arts initiative for a new fine and performing arts center were among the many recommendations for ETSU made Wednesday by committees tasked with looking into the century-old school’s future. The recommendations were made by task forces created by the Committee for 125 and announced Wednesday at the Millennium Centre by ETSU President Brian Noland, who emphasized there will be no football at the university next fall, just that the establishment of a football team has been recommended. “As I’ve said on a number of occasions: We have no helmets, we have no shoulder pads, we have no tackling sleds, we have no field and we have no practice facility,†Noland said. “So this is starting something rather than restoring something.†Football was eliminated at ETSU following the end of the 2003 season. The program was losing $1 million a year at the time it was ended. The issue of football will be explored further on campus and in the community, Noland said. “We are going to put together a feasibility study around football,†Noland said. “We need to talk to our students about the revenue sources. But being mindful that the presence of intercollegiate football directly impacts conference affiliation, and as I’ve said on a number of occasions, we will do anything and everything we can to expand and enhance the capacities of ETSU. And if that means we have to expedite something, we’re prepared to expedite something.†Noland said it would cost about $200,000 to exit the Atlantic Sun Conference. The Committee for 125 was created earlier this year to generate a report on what ETSU should be at its 125th anniversary. Members of the committee hail from academia, private business and from across the country.

"When I was a student there, the students voted against bringing back the team. It was not the money maker that football is at other schools. The interest of the students is not there because it is a commuter school. Most students do not live at the school and do not spend time there when not in class. " One reason ETSU did not build up a strong base of local support is their failure to recruit locally. They did not even do a good job of recruiting in ET much less than SWVA. Would like to see the program return.

Handled in an inept fashion. His age would preclude it- if he were younger- would like to see him in contention at UT.

UNC will not leave the ACC. UNC is actually not tied to Duke but to NCSU. UNC does not function as an independent entity- it is part of a state system run by one board of governors. NCSU has enough clout to block any move. In short the ACC is viable for the long haul.

Rutgers will announce Tuesday. This could be interesting- outside of Jersey itself don't think Rutgers has a much of a fan base in metro Philly or NYC. One factor influencing Maryland could be the simple fact that the state has changed orientation. Sixty years ago a lot of people would have considered Maryland a Border or even an Upper South state. This has changed dramatically with an influx of new people and the explosive growth of the DC suburbs. The area has changed a tremendous amount since I was there in the mid-seventies. There is probably a feeling that the newcomers may not be totally in love with the move but will accept it and that the older- more loyal to the Acc- alumni just don't matter.Even with the addition of BC, Pitt etc. no doubt a great many of those in influential positions in Maryland look on the ACC as a Southern slanted conference. Should be curious as to how long it will take the ACC to invite UConn.

FSU to the SEC will depend on Florida. Gators will have veto power. The SEC will not add just one- as of yet I have not heard another name mentioned. Think the Big 12 will make a play for FSU and possibly Clemson- depends how much money is on the table. "Maryland has always seen itself as academically superior to the rest of the ACC with the exception of Duke. They feel like they fit better with the Big 10." Still feel Maryland is driven by cash. If you compare the Big 10 payout to the ACC and then factor in what they want to get once they land Maryland and Rutgers- Maryland will be getting- on the face of it- a pile of cash. This may not work out as rosy for them as they think. Outside of basketball- Maryland might have an easier go of it in the Big 10 for their other sports programs.

"Why doesent the ACC offer membership to Rutgers? The ACC is a much better fit for them and would further expand the ACC into the northeast. Why does Maryland want to leave the ACC anyway?" Money. "Big Ten apparently could pay for it, and then defer a portion of Marylands media rights money back into the league to cover it over X number of years." Hadn't thought of this but you are absolutely correct. Maryland could still make money and pay a hefty departure fee with the Big Ten media rights package they want to negotiate.

Hamilton didn't help. There were more problems than Hamilton- i,e, certain boosters. Hamilton can be blamed for the football hire- Kiffin- that was the gift that keeps on giving. The Bruce Pearl mess was brought on by Bruce Pearl.

Expect a lawsuit- Maryland will probably find some way to go to court to get the price reduced. Maryland obviously thinks they can do better in the Big Ten financially- can't see it helping attendance or recruiting. The revenue factor may be more iffy than they think- expenses may mount up as well.