Stories from Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Two groups that have different opinions about education held rallies Saturday at the state Capitol in downtown Nashville. Tennessee Education Association had scheduled a rally to protest bills which would do away with teachers' collective bargaining rights, while various Tea Party members held a counter-rally...

A survey sponsored by Intel and quoted by Computerworld magazine found that 75 percent of U.S. adults surveyed believe that mobile telephone manners have gotten worse since 2009, and 95 percent of adults say they've witnessed poor mobile behavior first-hand, whether it's texting while driving or using a mobile phone in a public restroom...

Someone once told me my Mother Mayhem column focused too much on kids and critters, but I have to ask you -- what causes more mayhem than kids and critters? Other than Charlie Sheen and Britney Spears at a cop convention, that is. We are told to write what we know, so that's why it ends up kids and critters, with a few jabs at bad drivers, bad manners and badly behaving celebrities along the way. ...

What do hippies, hula dancers and home builders have in common? Answer: They all served lunch at the third annual Celebrity Waiter luncheon, held Tuesday at the Blue Ribbon Circle to benefit Relay For Life. A representative for each businesses or organization who sponsored the event also donated their talents -- or not -- by making a career change for the day and waiting tables...

Years of work to bring a Boys & Girls Club to Bedford County will be realized when the club opens for children beginning Monday, according to Roger Harrell, area director for the club. A lottery will be used to select the first group of children to become members...

A local chapter of a statewide activist group claims that a new Tennessee law has resulted in a tenfold increase in the number of inmates being held for federal immigration authorities. However, Sheriff Randall Boyce said he is simply following the new rules, confirming that many more individuals are being turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement...

Drew Turner is not the sort of athlete that needs a steam whistle to know it's time to go to work. College baseball carries with it a bottleneck that separates those working to excel at the next level from those who throw in the towel when the pressure turns up...