Free Republic

Any Freepers going to the Townhall debate on Oct 7th in Nashville? We need to destroy Obama and hit him hard with questions on Ayers, Wright, his Stalinist tactics, everything. This is the one big chance to destroy this Communist, anti-American liar once and for all.

Gores to host Obama fundraiser Nashville | July 24, 2008 12:01:13 AM IST Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore is preparing to host a Nashville fundraiser for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, say officials. A spokeswoman for Gore, has confirmed that Al and Tipper Gore have agreed to the event although a date and location have not been set, nor even whether Obama himself would attend, The Tennessean, a Nashville newspaper, reported Wednesday. Wade Munday, a spokesman for the Tennessee Democratic Party, said we would certainly welcome the senator with open arms should he arrive in Nashville before the October...

NASHVILLE, Tenn - The 5-year-old daughter of contemporary Christian music star Steven Curtis Chapman was struck and killed Wednesday by a sport utility vehicle driven by her brother, authorities said. The girl, Maria, was hit in a driveway on the family residence Wednesday afternoon by a Toyota Land Cruiser driven by her teenage brother, said Laura McPherson, a spokesman for the Tennessee Highway Patrol. McPherson said no charges are expected. "It looks like a tragic accident," she said. She said several members of the Chapman family witnessed the accident, which happened in Williamson County just south of Nashville. The brother...

AUSTIN — Deirdre Delisi once aspired to be a diplomat, and Gov. Rick Perry may have finally granted her wish. As head of the Texas Transportation Commission, Perry's former chief of staff will test her diplomatic skills in an emotion-filled arena in which a state senator has already called her a "political hack." In an early sign of her peacemaking potential, the 35-year-old Delisi scheduled one of her first meetings as chair with that senator, Transportation and Homeland Security Committee Chairman John Carona, R-Dallas. "I was left with the impression that she genuinely wants a new and fresh start for...

MOUNT VERNON, Mo. - , an influential gospel singer and songwriter, died early Sunday when her tour bus ran off the highway and struck an embankment. She was 74. Seven other people on the bus were injured in the wreck about two miles east of Mount Vernon on Interstate 44, the Missouri Highway Patrol said. They were hospitalized in Springfield with moderate to severe injuries, according to the patrol. It was unclear whether the crash was related to the severe storms and tornadoes that hit the region on Saturday. Storms also swept through the area later in the night, according...

“Diplomacy without force is like music without instruments.” http://home.peoplepc.com/psp/newsstory.asp?cat=TopStories&id=20080508/48227ac0_3ca6_155262008050828422566 Biographer: Country superstar Eddy Arnold dies at 89 Thursday, May 8, 2008 NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Eddy Arnold, whose mellow baritone on songs like "Make the World Go Away" made him one of the most successful country singers in history, died Thursday morning, days short of his 90th birthday. Arnold died at a care facility near Nashville, said Don Cusic, a professor at Belmont University and author of the biography "Eddy Arnold: I'll Hold You in My Heart." His wife of 66 years, Sally, had died in March, and in the same...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Eddy Arnold, whose mellow baritone on songs like "Make the World Go Away" made him one of the most successful country singers in history, died Thursday morning, days short of his 90th birthday. Arnold died at a care facility near Nashville, said Don Cusic, a professor at Belmont University and author of the biography "Eddy Arnold: I'll Hold You in My Heart." His wife of 66 years, Sally, had died in March, and in the same month, Arnold fell outside his home, injuring his hip. Arnold's vocals on songs like the 1965 "Make the World Go Away,"...

Eddy Arnold, whose mellow baritone on songs like "Make the World Go Away" made him one of the most successful country singers in history, died Thursday morning, days short of his 90th birthday. Arnold died at a care facility near Nashville, said Don Cusic, a professor at Belmont University and author of the biography "Eddy Arnold: I'll Hold You in My Heart." His wife of 66 years, Sally, had died in March, and in the same month, Arnold fell outside his home, injuring his hip. Arnold's vocals on songs like the 1965 "Make the World Go Away," one of his...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - A Midstate family claims that someone stole votes from a mentally challenged woman who lives in a state-run facility. The state is investigating the claim. Although there are laws to prevent such a crime, it still happens. Kelly Harper, 24, never recovered from a childhood accident. A head injury caused a stroke and, in essence, froze her brain in time. "Mentally, she's at the 1-year-old stage," said her mother Becky Moss. Helpless on her own, Kelly's lived at the state-run Clover Bottom Developmental Center in Nashville the past 16 years. Moss is Harper's conservator. A court order...

Good reporters flee The Tennessean as the paper flounders in the free media age by Matt Pulle Imagine you're Tennessean editor Mark Silverman. The job is not what it once was. First of all, one of your titles is vice president for content and audience development, which makes you sound like a middle manager at the WB network. The stock of Gannett, your corporate parent, is down 42 percent in just the last year. And worst of all, you feel the need to tailor the paper's coverage away from politics and crime and toward soft, lifestyle features as you try...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - A teenage passenger from California was arrested in Nashville for plotting to hijack a plane from Los Angeles to Nashville, the FBI said Friday. FBI spokesman George Bolds told The Associated Press the 16-year-old boy was removed from Southwest Airlines Flight 284 Tuesday night by authorities at Nashville International Airport and found with "suspicious" items. Bolds said the teen had handcuffs, rope and duct tape in his bag and was believed to be traveling alone. The juvenile's name has not been released. "His plan had a low probability of success," Bolds said. Southwest Airlines spokeswoman Brandy King...

Democrats angered at the image of country and western as Right-wing “redneck music” are planning a tour of Middle America during the 2008 election campaign by Nashville artists opposed to the Iraq war. An alliance called the Music Row Democrats is poised to re-launch itself early next year in an attempt to seize back country music from the Republican camp and spread their message that President George W. Bush’s party does not care about ordinary people. Slowly but surely, more country singers are performing songs critical of the Bush administration. Merle Haggard, who once sang the anti-hippie anthem “Okie from...

Mrs. Risya Posner, who with her husband Rabbi Zalman Posner established the first Chabad-Lubavitch presence in Nashville, Tenn., died Tuesday at the age 80. An inimitable force behind Lubavitch outreach operations and techniques across the world, she was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., to Lubavitch parents who had immigrated from Russia. She and her husband pioneered the field of campus-based outreach, almost immediately inviting Vanderbilt University students to their home after their arrival in Nashville. From when she was a baby until her last day in the hospital, she elicited love from those who were mere acquaintances as easily as from...

Before Tennessee Republican Fred Thompson began running for president, the South did not have a top-tier Republican candidate in the field — even though that region is fertile political ground for that party. Thompson, an actor and former U.S. senator (1994-2003), last month formally joined a field in which the best-known Republican contenders were either from the Northeast (former New York City mayor Rudolph Giuliani and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney) or from the West (Arizona Sen. John McCain). So it was not exactly shocking that a detailed campaign finance report Thompson’s campaign filed Monday with the Federal Election Commission...

Percy Priest Elementary in Forrest Hills was placed on lockdown Wednesday after an intruder entered the school. The man, 43-year-old Michael Street, was first spotted in the school yard and then pushed his way into the south Nashville school. After about 45 minutes, Metro Police managed to subdue Street and he was taken into custody. Parent Michelle Evans was volunteering at the school when Street pushed his way inside. “I heard a call come into the office that said, ‘Second grade… Call the police.’ I had a second grader and so I went to one of the doors to see...

We've got our first country music celebrity endorsement in the presidential race. John Rich of Big & Rich is going for the hometown guy. After a music row party today celebrating the duo's first number one hit, "Lost in this Moment," John Rich joined Fred Thompson for a fundraiser in Chattanooga. Joe Nichols got hitched last night to his longtime buddy, Heather Singleton. The ceremony was traditional, in a candle-lit chapel in Savannah, Georgia. Joe said in a statement that he has known Heather since they were 18, and that he fell in love with her the first day he...

Fred Thompson dipped into the Tennessee fund-raising well again Wednesday for his almost presidential bid, attending a $1,000 per couple west Nashville event that was also graced by top country music stars. The event was held at the home of Gary and Lou Ann Brown. Gary Brown, an attorney with Baker Donelson in Nashville, used to work for Thompson, serving as special counsel on the U.S. Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs in 2002 when Thompson was the ranking member. The event was attended by his mother and oldest son, Tony, Republican activists, state legislators and former Gov. Winfield Dunn. Country...

City Looks To Deport Criminal Illegal Immigrants Via Program After a recent spate of violent crimes allegedly committed by illegal or suspected illegal immigrants, Nashville has asked to become one of five American cities empowered to deport its own criminal illegal immigrants.On Aug. 15, Davidson County Sheriff Daron Hall—with the full support of Metro Chief of Police Ronal Serpas and District Attorney Torry Johnson—filed paperwork to take part in a little-known federal government initiative called the Delegation of Authority Program or section 287 (g) of the Immigration and Naturalization Act.The 287 (g) program gives local law enforcement agencies the “training...

ONE of the songs Elvis Presley liked to perform in the ’70s was Joe South’s “Walk a Mile in My Shoes,” its message clearly spelled out in the title. Sometimes he would preface it with the 1951 Hank Williams recitation “Men With Broken Hearts,” which may well have been South’s original inspiration. “You’ve never walked in that man’s shoes/Or saw things through his eyes/Or stood and watched with helpless hands/While the heart inside you dies.” For Elvis these two songs were as much about social justice as empathy and understanding: “Help your brother along the road,” the Hank Williams number...

Excerpt - NEW YORK - Porter Wagoner looks right at home in the marble lobby of Manhattan's Roosevelt Hotel. He wears a dark Western suit and tie and holds a shiny black cane. The glare from the crystal chandelier reflects off his eyeglasses as he tilts his head back, trying to remember the last time he played Madison Square Garden. Sometime in the '70s ... one of those package tours ... Little Jimmie Dickens and Faron Young were there ... some others he can't recall ... Back then, "The Thin Man from West Plains" was still the grand showman of...

It took a while, but Republican Fred Thompson’s opening report on his fundraising for his presidential exploratory campaign committee is providing the first glimpse of the prominent early supporters of his still-unofficial White House bid. Thompson’s report — filed with the Internal Revenue Service, with which he registered his “testing the waters” committee, rather than the Federal Election Commission (FEC) — showed that he raised $3.46 million and spent $626,000 between the committee’s incorporation on June 4 and the end of that month. Thompson’s report is studded with contributions from prominent business leaders and politicians in his home state of...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- A proud enclave of Kurds has lived in this city for decades, starting businesses and soccer leagues, holding down good jobs and blending into the immigrant neighborhoods south of town. But now the Kurdish immigrant community has been shaken to see its young people joining a street gang that blends old-world customs and new-world thuggery. Police blame the gang for a string of rapes, assaults and home invasions. The gang calls itself Kurdish Pride and is made up of 20 to 30 teenagers and young adults. "We don't have the phenomenon anywhere else. This is a unique...

It was no surprise at a mayoral forum sponsored by a state immigrant and refugee rights coalition that Nashville’s 287(g) immigration policy would demand the most attention. All mayoral candidates attending a forum Thursday night — Bob Clement did not attend — said they supported the city’s relatively new 287(g) policy, but some had more reservations than others. Candidates David Briley, Karl Dean, Buck Dozier, Kenneth Eaton and Howard Gentry attended the forum sponsored by the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC) and many other groups like the Tennessee Foreign Language Institute, the Nashville Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce...

NASHVILLE, July 9, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Thousands of people, primarily young adults, gathered in Nashville, Tennessee on Saturday to pray for a spiritual revival in the United States, Christian Newswire (CN) reports. A crowd of people gathered at the LP Field, home of the Tennessee Titans football team, to join together in a massive prayer rally organized by The Call. Although news services reported various numbers, Local TV channel WKRN estimated that the crowd swelled to approximately 100,000 by the end of the day. Many participants had fasted for days from food and other personal indulgences prior to the gathering....

Some 250 boosters of Fred Thompson's undeclared candidacy for president chanted "Fred! Fred! Fred!" this morning as the former senator/actor unfolded his six-foot-five frame from a small private jet in Nashville. Accompanied by wife Jeri Kehn Thompson and their two small children, Thompson delivered brief remarks at the general-aviation Mercury Air Center. "This is an important time in our lives and an important time in our country," Thompson told the assembled throng. "As you know, we may be taking some steps toward doing something about it." That line prompted enthusiastic applause. "I have always been there for you, and you've...

FredFest '07: Supporters atwitter as Thompson comes to town Email | Print By Ken Whitehouse and E. Thomas Wood 06-26-2007 10:36 AM — Some 250 boosters of Fred Thompson's undeclared candidacy for president chanted "Fred! Fred! Fred!" this morning as the former senator/actor unfolded his six-foot-five frame from a small private jet in Nashville. Accompanied by wife Jeri Kehn Thompson and their two small children, Thompson delivered brief remarks at the general-aviation Mercury Air Center. "This is an important time in our lives and an important time in our country," Thompson told the assembled throng. "As you know, we may...

NASHVILLE, Tenn.- Former U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson is coming to Nashville Tuesday. A lot of people are still wondering if he's going to announce a presidential run. Sources told NewsChannel 5 that if he does run, the announcement would not happen Tuesday, but possibly during the Fourth of July holiday. Thompson is flying in to Nashville on a private jet Tuesday morning. His main focus will be raising money. "My mentor's right in the middle of the picture with my wife," said Bob Davis, Jr., chairman of the Tennessee Republican Party. For Davis, Thompson is more than just a possible...

http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070624/NEWS01/706240398

Headquarters To Be Based At Fall School building A source close to the campaign planning tells WSMV that that Thompson planned to announce his candidacy on the steps of the historic Fall School Building Tuesday, but Thompson campaign officials deny that Tuesday's announcement is an official run for the White House. The source tells WSMV report says that the Thompson campaign has obtained the lease for that building to turn it into a national campaign office. "Everything's in place for tuesday," the source told WSMV. "There are three major events built around his announcement." But Bob Davis, the Tennessee Republican...

Fred Thompson is set to announce that Nashville will be the home of his national campaign headquarters, WSMV is reporting. A source close to the campaign planning tells WSMV that that Thompson planned to announce his candidacy on the steps of the historic Fall School Building Tuesday, but Thompson campaign officials deny that Tuesday's announcement is an official run for the White House.

http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070616/NEWS03/706160347/1017/NEWS link ony can be posted.

NASHVILLE — MAKE no mistake: This is still Guitar Town, and the cavernous Nashville Used Music store is proof. Here, amid rows of new and used six-strings, one finds country music veterans, hirsute rock dudes and honky-tonk strivers picking away most hours of the day in a gloriously dissonant jumble of twang. But in a back corner, co-owner Charlie Shrader has been stocking, in ever-growing numbers, the gaudy symbols of the new Nashville: the Gabbanellis. That is, Gabbanelli brand push-button accordions — bright, spangled things, some tricked out in the red, white and green stripes of the Mexican flag, and...

ANTIOCH, Tenn.- Some people in a Nashville neighborhood are furious over a new rule that makes it illegal to own a gun. Residents in Nashboro Village said it's unconstitutional and leaves them defenseless. Two weeks ago, residents received a [letter] from their homeowners' association indicating that guns are not allowed on the property. "It (sic) thought it was ironic that they say you can't have something when the United States government says you can," said resident Cristina Salajanu. Salajanu would like to give her neighborhood management company a history lesson. "I think it's unconstitutional," Salajanu said. "They can't tell you...

Because of FR rules, we can only link but not excerpt. Summary: At preliminary court hearing, the victims testified that the cab driver ran them over after they disapproved of his statement that Hitler had done the world a great service by attempting to exterminate the Jews. This was the content of the "religious disagreement" mentioned in earlier reports.

NASHVILLE - A woman who is nine months pregnant was robbed and attacked in a violent home invasion Sunday night. Officials said three armed robbers surprised the woman and several other victims outside a home near McGavock Pike and Lebanon Pike in Donelson. Police said Sunday night a few of the victims were bringing in groceries. Three armed masked men forced their way into the home. They took more than $1,000 and raped a woman who was several months pregnant at gunpoint. "We're very concerned about the violence involved in this case. We're very concerned about the sexual assault," Metro...

To live peacefully with Muslims and Jews, Christians must put aside the notion that their faith requires the creation of a Christian kingdom on Earth, a Lipscomb University theologian told an interfaith gathering at the university. "We are not going to get very far in our relationship with Jews or Muslims if we do not let go of this idea," Lipscomb professor Lee Camp said at Tuesday's conference. The unusual gathering of several dozen clergy and lay people was devoted to resolving religious conflict in Nashville and around the world. "We need to forsake the Christendom model," Camp said. "The...

Sunday night, just outside Nashville Tennessee. Twenty one year old Sheldon Hope and Twenty eight year old Joseph John, attempted to rob the Smoke Depot, a convenience store owned by Magdi Danial. While pistol whipping Danial on the head, Hope dropped his gun behind the counter. Then as Danial lie on the floor being kicked, he found the dropped gun and promptly dropped the perp, Sheldon Hope, dead. He then chased John out the door while trading shots. Ear witnesses claim to have heard at least eight shots in quick succession. Joseph John was hit and is now at Vanderbilt...

D.A. cites gang 'war' in grim national stats Memphis and its surrounding counties ranked second in the nation for violent crimes committed last year, according to the FBI's annual report on crime released this week. The 2005 data shows the Memphis metro area had 1,197 violent crimes per 100,000 residents last year. That's up slightly from 1,132 in 2004. Dist. Atty. Gen. Bill Gibbons said one reason for the increase in crime is because "we are in a war" with gangs and drug traffickers. "The gangs are targeting Hispanic residents in robberies and the homicides increased because of warfare between...

BOOK REVIEW & DISCUSSION: Ain't Got No Cigarettes: Memories of Music Legend Roger Miller By Lyle E Style "It's an endless story about Roger. He was one of the cleverest people I've ever met in my life." (Waylon Jennings) This is my own review of Ain't Got No Cigarettes, the first Roger Miller book ever published. My review is based on reading the book (twice) and having several discussions with Lyle E Style, the author. He may stop by later to answer questions (as his schedule allows). This one is a must-read, folks. And for you radio personalities who...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - A convicted murderer who escaped from a Michigan psychiatric facility in 1976 was back behind bars Thursday after living most of his 30 years on the run as an otherwise law-abiding family man in Tennessee, authorities said. Thomas Ball, 76, was arrested at his Nashville home Wednesday morning, Deputy U.S. Marshal Danny Shelton said. Ball had been using the name Thomas Fry and had run a storage business near Nashville for years with a woman he called his wife, Shelton said. After she died last year, he turned to the government for financial help, and that led...

Just a quick taste of this "quality" citizen of the NFL community ... 10/2003: Jones was sentenced to one year in jail following a bar fight while he was a student at West Virginia University, but the sentence was suspended and he was placed on two years probation. His probation was scheduled to end on Thursday. 4/27/05: Adam "Pacman" Jones was at Club Blaze in Conley, Ga., around 3 a.m. ET on April 27 when officers responded to a fight involving two women. Andrea Akins, a supervisor at the club, told police she was punched in the mouth by a...

On Saturday evening August 12, 2006 The Gore Family Dinner was held at the Loews Vanderbilt Hotel in Nashville with John Murtha as the primary speaker. The gathering of Gorons was Freeped by three stalwarts who took position across the street from the main entry. These Freepers were Girl angler and husband and Bert. The Freep line was short but seemed proportional to the attendees. The paper said hundreds attended but that seemed considerably inflated.

USS NASHVILLE, At Sea (NNS) -- A Utility Landing Craft (LCU) operated by Sailors assisting the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) landed in Lebanon, July 20, to begin transporting American citizens who have chosen to depart that country. The LCU deployed from USS Nashville (LPD 13) and is the first U.S. naval vessel to land in Lebanon in support of the voluntary departure of U.S. civilians. “Nashville moved into position this morning just a couple of miles off the coast of Lebanon,” said Lt. Cmdr. Thomas Ulmer, Commander, Amphibious Squadron 4 liaison. “It launched its LCU and put...

A Nashville judge is calling the state's tax on illegal drugs "unconstitutional". The levy took effect in 2005 and applies to substances like cocaine, crack, methamphetamine and marijuana. Chancellor Richard Dinkins says the tax violates the defendants' right against self incrimination and to due process and is levied long before the accused stands trial. The ruling stopped the state from collecting more than one million dollars from Jeremy Robbins, who is one of at least eight people accused of moving two tons of marijuana from Arizona to East Tennessee. The ruling applies only to the Robbins case; legal experts say...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- In the 1992 film "White Men Can't Jump," dimwitted Billy (Woody Harrelson) and his sassy girlfriend Gloria (Rosie Perez) are riding in a convertible and listening to a cassette of Ray Charles' classic country album, "Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music." As Charles croons "Careless Love," Billy asks, "Would somebody please explain to me why this Negro is singing cowboy music?" "You know, this is my favorite song," Gloria says. "It makes me think about making love to you. It makes me want to just take you, and lock you up in a room, and make...

BREAKING NEWS: Jury Returns With Guilty Verdict Posted: 6/8/2006 2:48:00 PM Updated: 6/8/2006 3:06:31 PM After three hours of deliberation on Wednesday and nearly five hours on Thursday, the jury in Perry March’s murder-for-hire trial found March guilty on all counts. Perry March walked into the court room Thursday afternoon at 2:30. His demeanor was relaxed. There were several people in the court room waiting for the jury to deliver the verdict including police officers, the March family, and the Levines. The jury found March guilty of conspiracy to commit murder, and guilty on two counts of solicitation to commit...

Police Find Pipe Bombs During Home Search Friday June 2, 2006 3:16 AM NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Authorities said they found pipe bombs and a jar containing the potentially deadly poison ricin while searching a home in suburban Nashville. The ricin was found sealed in a baby food jar in a shed at the home of William Matthews, according to a joint statement Thursday from Nashville police, the FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and health officials. Officials said the jar was sealed and they do not believe the neighborhood was threatened. Authorities first searched the shed Wednesday after...

Operation Completion Announces Guest Cities Dover – On Tuesday morning, the Operation Completion Central Advisory Panel (CAP) released the list of guest cities that will host pro-military rallies during the summer of 2006. The list that included seventeen cities in fourteen states and the District of Columbia was accompanies with a partial schedule that included the previously announced event in Sacramento, CA. The complete list included Sacramento, San Antonio, Richmond, Boise, Saint Paul, Indianapolis, Lansing, Columbus, San Diego, Houston, Denver, Tampa, Nashville, Atlanta, New York City, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. Dates were given for Sacramento (May 12), Saint Paul (June...

A black bear was caught in a forest recreation area Sunday and was being sent to a veterinary school to determine if it was the same animal that attacked a family, killing a 6-year-old girl. Authorities found a bear in the same trap where they detected paw prints on Saturday in the remote Cherokee National Forest Chilhowee Recreation Area... The bear, which was captured near the site of the attack, looked to be the same weight as the 350- to 400-pound bear that attacked a mother and her two children on a trail in the recreation area on Thursday... The...

11 tornado warnings issued. Super cells heading towards Nashville. Electric out in many areas. Softball sized hail reported.