Legislators need to pass child protection bills (04/12/08)
When it comes to passing laws concerning child abuse, our state legislature needs to quit fooling around and take care of business. While covering a speech this week by Bedford County Sheriff Captain Becky Hord, who investigates the abuse and sexual abuse of children, this writer was stunned to learn that there are over 30 pieces of legislation before the General Assembly dealing with the topic...

OPINION: Where do we go from here? (02/02/08)
This is the text of the speech staff writer Brian Mosely gave during an appearance Thursday at Shelbyville Rotary Club. Thank you very much for inviting me to speak to you today. This is truly an honor. About six months ago, I was approached by a local official with a proposal to write a series of stories about the population of Somalis that have been moving to Shelbyville over the past few years...

Refugee problems stem from lack of communication (01/19/08)
On Wednesday, a delegation from the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition dropped by our offices to pick our brains about how to help out Shelbyville's Somali community, which was the focus of a recent series of articles that have provoked quite a discussion in our community...

OPINION: Somalians respond poorly to local hospitality (12/29/07)
Over the past few years, this community has given a helping hand and opened their arms to the new arrivals from Somalia. In return, many of these refugees have given Shelbyville the finger. When I began researching this story about the Somalis, I knew it would be controversial. We were aware that many in Shelbyville were having serious concerns about hundreds of Sunni Muslims moving here...

OPINION: Finding the truth about the Somalis (12/26/07)
Sunday marked the start of a series of stories about our new neighbors from Somalia, who have been moving into the community over the past several years. We hope our readers find these stories informative and educational. Over the past year, this writer has heard many stories and rumors concerning these new additions to Bedford County and decided to try to sort out facts from fiction. ...

Standing up to bin Mahfouz (12/01/07)
A couple of clarifications must be made about last Sunday's column. Dr. Rachel Ehrenfeld, Director of American Center for Democracy, who was one of the subjects of Sunday's piece wrote to say that the film on YouTube titled "The Libel Tourist" was initiated, funded and produced by the Moving Picture Institute, and not by Ehrenfeld herself...

Where's the outrage over Saudi abuses? (11/24/07)
Last year, this space related the story of a gang rape victim in Saudi Arabia who was sentenced to 90 lashes of the whip because she was alone in a car with a man to whom she was not married. At the time, this writer was stunned, but not surprised, that the Saudis would pull something like this, since their laws have remained the same since the mid-seventh century...

Clinton column causes controversy (11/14/07)
Last week's column about an overlooked matter involving Hillary Clinton produced just three responses, but to this writer, the content of them spoke volumes. One stated very simply that we should move on by not having another Clinton in the White House. Another was a complementary phone call asking permission to send it to others...

A 'new' Hillary scandal (11/10/07)
This writer's eyes have glazed over. I for one have already grown tired of the current presidential campaign, which still has another agonizing year to go. It kicked off mere moments after Bush was reelected in 2004. I clearly remember after John Kerry conceded the race that news anchors immediately when into long discussions about Hillary Clinton's chances in 2008, which effectively defined Bush as a lame duck, and he had not even been inaugurated yet...

'Sunshine Law' shouldn't be weakened (10/27/07)
Last year, those of us in the news media welcomed the "Sunshine in Government Improvement Act of 2006." Sponsored by State Rep. Joe Fowlkes, D-Cornersville, and State Sen. Randy McAnally, R-Oak Ridge, the bill was drafted by a team of attorneys representing the Tennessee Press Association and the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government...

Mussels have too much muscle in water decision (10/20/07)
A lot of areas of the country, including this one, are beginning to find out that when the chips are down, creatures much further down the food chain come before humans. Local residents have been learning this over the past two weeks after the reduction of water from Normandy Lake was delayed due to concerns about the birdwing pearly mussel...

Southern hospitality proves itself (09/19/07)
Bedford County should be proud of its hospitality. A couple of weeks ago, I met a young man by the name of Jason Bliss [Jaybo] who is walking across Amercia to raise awareness about obesity. I met him in Tullahoma for an interview and told folks in the article when he would be expected to pass through the county...

Putting the blame on Bush (09/08/07)
While going over our Times-Gazette blogs this week, I have noticed a massive upsurge in severe cases of BDS [Bush Derangement Syndrome]. The spread of this disorder saddens this writer. For those of you unaware of this sickness, the term was invented by columnist Charles Krauthammer, who defined it as "the acute onset of paranoia in otherwise normal people in reaction to the policies, the presidency -- nay -- the very existence of George W. Bush."...

She's not an activist; she's a criminal (08/25/07)
It's amazing how some like to twist words to fit their particular agenda. Case in point is the latest person selected by the media to be "the face" of those poor migrants [illegal immigrants], a lady by the name of Elvira Arellano. Elvira is termed an "activist" and "a national symbol" because she defied a deportation order and hid inside a church in Chicago for over a year, all the while complaining how terrible it is for this country to enforce their own laws...

Freed illegal immigrants endanger public (08/18/07)
"I don't want somebody in this county to get run over and killed by someone that I've had in my jail numerous times ... and he's still here." Those were the words from Sheriff Randall Boyce last month as he talked about implementing the federal database sharing program called 287(g) that would be used to identify and then deport illegal immigrants...

Blogs keep the debate coming (08/11/07)
We hope all of you that are online are enjoying the newly revamped T-G website and the neat new features we rolled out last week. Having a blog on the site is an excellent way to generate discussion on both important and trivial issues that we deal with in Bedford County and over the past week, we've certainly seen some lively debate. It even allows some of us to be a bit silly when needed...

New web site promotes dialogue (08/01/07)
You've really got to like the features we now have on our new and improved Website, starting today. The addition of comments to stories is a great idea. Several of the larger papers in our state have this ability and it's a good way to sample public opinion on a given issue. There's also features like photo sharing, videos and slide shows...

Subdivision rule update is badly needed by city (07/28/07)
Ironic sight of the week: The big box retailer demonstrating the picture quality of a huge flat-screen monitor with the film "Our Very Own," yet no copies were available for sale. Next month, the Shelbyville Planning Commission is set to take their first look at a series of updated subdivision regulations, which officials are hoping will improve the quality of life for those who live here...

Local movie sent to Alaska, not Shelbyville (07/14/07)
Our e-mail of the week comes from Keith Heflin, who is currently in Nome, Alaska on an annual gold prospecting trip with his sons Josh and Matt: I often check the Times-Gazette on line to keep up on hometown events and found your story on the DVD "Our Very Own" to be interesting, considering the fact that we have found it on the shelves in the video section of two local stores. ...

Local forces may join fight against illegals (07/07/07)
Back in September of last year, I asked a question about how the idea would go over if a federal system allows local deputies and police to identify and deport illegal immigrants after they are charged with other crimes. The system, called 287(g), is seen as an alternative to the current practice of routinely letting them go after they are charged with minor offenses. Instead, if they are found to be in the country illegally, they could be deported instead of allowed back on the streets...

When it rains it pours -- wait, it didn't rain... (06/30/07)
It always happens all at once, doesn't it? The car is up on the rack this week, after three failed attempts of getting the beast to run properly. It's not a good thing when you're going downhill on a curve and then the engine dies. Not fun at all. Plus, I must have done something dreadful to my back at Bonnaroo, because a dull, throbbing pain has slowly taken up residence in both shoulder blades, making the waking hours all sorts of fun. ...

Bonnaroo's an experience (06/20/07)
Yes, I went to it again. With The Police dropping into your home county as part of a massive four day concert, how could anyone pass this opportunity up? It was the third Bonnaroo this writer has now attended and this one was the most fun, despite all the discomfort the drought produced...

Watching for bias in the media (06/13/07)
One of this writer's pet peeves is bias in the media, which is done either by between-the-lines editorializing in the story or by careful omission of certain facts to sway the reader to take a certain position on whatever issue is being reported. But if a reader is already well aquatinted with an issue, a story with spin can easily be spotted...

Bias and blame in the Middle East (06/09/07)
To call these guys sore losers would be an understatement. I'm talking about the 40th anniversary of the 1967 Six Day War, where a number of Arab counties ganged up on Israel, and got their collective backsides handed to them in what is considered one of the shortest armed conflicts in history...

No vacation from vigilance (05/26/07)
Well, vacation time is here once again, which gives this writer the annual dilemma of "where should I head to this year." With gas prices heading into the stratosphere, and parts of the Gulf Coast either still under repair or packed with tourists, heading down to my old stomping grounds may not be an option...

Eco-friendly or eco-fiend? Environmentalists never learn (05/21/07)
Ah, environmentalists. You just gotta love 'em. They are so concerned with getting the word out to folks about the dangers we pose to this planet that they seem to overlook their own eco-crimes while doing so. For example, on Wednesday we received a rather large envelope from an outfit based in Hertfordshire, England called Earthprint Limited. ...

Posting of gun records was unwise (05/13/07)
Readers of this space may remember a brouhaha in March when the Roanoke Times used Sunshine Week to justify publishing the names and addresses on their website of over 135,000 people in Virginia's New River Valley who possessed a concealed handgun permit...

Idiot drivers, you're warned: Shape up (05/05/07)
It's time for another one of the lectures this writer gives on the driving habits of some in this area. My trips on Highway 41-A to get back and forth to Shelbyville have now ended since I no longer wish to risk my life every day. My new routes change on a whim, just as long as I can arrive at work and home with all my limbs securely attached...