City Law Director Debbie Poplin and City Council Attorney Charles Swanson are in agreement that current local law banning guns in parks in the City of Knoxville are still valid and won't require an additional vote.

Swanson told Council Tuesday night that ordinances banning guns in parks that were approved prior to June 8, 1986 remain in place and thus, Council doesn't have to vote to opt out of the new law.

Earlier today we reported that the President would not be attending the rededication ceremonies in September for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  Our story was based on information given to us by a Park official.

Right after our report this:

Tennessee Democratic Party Chairman Chip Forrester responds to Lt Gov. Ron Ramsey's criticism of Lamar Alexander's decision to vote in favor of Supreme Court Nominee Sonia Sotomayor. Forrester says the criticism is a "bad move for a gubernatorial candidate."

"The lieutenant governor is obviously pandering to his extreme far right base, which may be foolish in the long run," Forrester said.

Lt Governor Ron Ramsey - candidate for Governor in the Republican Primary - weighs in on the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor for the United State Supreme Court:

"While Judge Sonia Sotomayor has a very compelling life story and has accomplished a great deal, Tennesseans should strongly encourage their U.S. Senators to vote “no” on her elevation to the U.S. Supreme Court. 

Senator Bob Corker makes up his mind on Supreme Court nominee, Sonia Sotomayor. 

I didn't watch Tom Watson on Sunday.  Not that I wasn't pulling for him - I was.  I just didn't think I could handle the emotion of it - if he failed.

As Rick Riley of Sports Illustrated said, Watson's run for the Clarett Jug this weekend would be a win for the ages and made all of us 50-somethings feel younger. 

Heck, if he could win the British Open at 59, then surely I could do something equally spectacular, like maybe getting through an entire night without having to go to the bathroom.

Congratulations to Greg Mackay, who held on to his job as Knox County's Election Coordinator  today.

Mackay - who is a Democrat - won the post despite a majority of Republicans on Knox County's Election Commission.

The vote broke down along partisan lines - 3 to 2 - with Republican Paul Crilly crossing the aisle and casting the deciding vote for Mackay.

Crilly's vote will be seen by some Republicans as a betrayal.  There were a number of solid candidates for the job, with R's on their resumes.

I've written before how news stories sometimes bleed into our personal lives. And how we try not to let our feelings affect how we report those stories.

In the case of the murder-suicide today of Erik Webb and his estranged wife, Sarah, that is a very difficult thing to do. 

It is very difficult to report this story without a deep sense of sadness.  I knew them both.  Not well, but well enough to see both their faces now, in my minds eye, in happier times. 

A lot has already been said and written about Bill Lockett's admission that he embezzled money from his former law firm.  So much so, that one wonders if he can actually continue to serve as law director.

Lockett says he stole the money because of financial pressures created by a sick child. He admitted his wrong doing this week, because his former law firm discovered the theft and threatened to blow the whistle if he didn't.

He had no other choice.

We can all sympathize with a parent struggling to cover the costs of medical care for a sick child. 

TVA Inspector General Richard Moore says a preliminary report on the Roane County Ash Spill should be out in the next week or so.

Moore - speaking on Tennessee This Week - says TVA will have an opportunity to respond to the Inspector General's review before a final report is submitted.

The I. G. also talked about the procurement card scandal uncovered by his office.   He says TVA administrators are taking appropriate actions to make sure it doesn't happen again.