Free Republic

A Tennessee woman who found her stalker ex-boyfriend hiding under her bed shot him in the foot and held him until his arrest Tuesday, police said. Tony Joe Gunter, 52, violated the woman’s order of protection against him by sneaking into her Nashville-area home while she was having a security system installed around 3 p.m., according to a Goodlettsville police affidavit cited by WZTV. The woman had ended her relationship of two years with Gunter earlier this month after finding out about his criminal history, according to investigators. He vowed, “I will kill you, you stupid c--t,” when she told...

Jimmy Cheek, the chancellor of the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, is resigning to rejoin the faculty. In a Tuesday announcement, the university praised Cheek for increased diversity at the school, record fundraising and $1 billion in new construction and renovation. Cheek has also faced numerous challenges during his tenure. They include a lawsuit over the university's handling of sexual assault complaints and lawmaker anger that led to the defunding of the UT Office of Diversity last month. Lawmakers had opposed the Office of Diversity's recommendations to use gender-neutral pronouns for transgender students and to avoid religious-themed holiday parties. They...

As some Republicans struggle with justifying their support for Donald Trump after a series of controversies — including his recent attack on an American-born judge for his “Mexican heritage” and a doubling down on his call for a temporary ban on Muslims entering the U.S. — the two Republican senators from Tennessee aren't lending their overt support. Sen. Lamar Alexander isn't calling Trump the GOP nominee just yet, as reported by an Associated Press reporter. When his office was asked about the comments, Communications Director Jim Jeffries confirmed them and said, “Republicans officially choose our nominee in July. Sen. Alexander...

One day after the worst mass shooting in American history, Tennessee State Rep. Andy Holt (R) said he plans to give away two AR-15 assault rifles — the same kind of weapon used in the massacre — as a “door prize” at an upcoming political fundraiser. Holt, a self-described conservative Christian, had announced last week that he would give away one AR-15 at “Hogfest,” a barbeque fundraiser on his farm that has a petting zoo and hay rides. But when reporters asked him after the Orlando, Florida, shooting on Sunday whether he still planned to give away the assault weapon,...

It's time to update your copy of the periodic table. Four new elements discovered in recent years have now been named, pending final approval by the international group of scientists in charge of the table. The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry has announced these proposed names: Nihonium and symbol Nh, for the element 113 Moscovium and symbol Mc, for the element 115 Tennessine and symbol Ts, for the element 117 Oganesson and symbol Og, for the element 118 The new superheavy, radioactive elements were actually added to the periodic table late last year and given these temporary and...

Nihonium, named after Japan (Nippon is a Japanese word for Japan), with an atomic number of 113. Its symbol is Nh. Moscovium (Mc), element 115, named after the Russian capital city. Tennessine (Ts), 117, named after — you guessed it — the state of Tennessee. ("Tennessine is in recognition of the contribution of the Tennessee region, including Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Vanderbilt University, and the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, to superheavy element research," the IUPAC states.) And finally, 118 is oganesson (Og), which bears the name of Russian physicist Yuri Oganessian, who led several elemental discoveries. Nature reports this...

SMYRNA, Tenn. (WKRN) – A U.S. Navy Blue Angels jet crashed Thursday afternoon in Smyrna ahead of their weekend air show at the city’s airport. A La Vergne official confirmed the accident happened around 3 p.m. near Weakly Lane, not far from the bowling alley. LifeFlight helicopters from Vanderbilt University Medical Center were called to the scene. Further details have yet to be released.

SMYRNA, TN (WSMV) - A Blue Angels airplane has crashed at or near the Smyrna-Rutherford County Airport, airport authority confirmed. According to Rutherford County Emergency Medical Service, one person was killed in the crash. The Blue Angels had been practicing on Thursday ahead of this weekend’s Great Tennessee Airshow in Smyrna. They flew over downtown Nashville on Thursday morning.

Sen. Marco Rubio is facing intense pressure to run for re-election to his Florida Senate seat, with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell taking the lead in a campaign to get him to reconsider his plans to retire. Republicans fear that if Rubio doesn’t run for a second term they could lose his seat. And if Republicans lose Florida they increase their odds of losing their Senate majority altogether. […] At least one Republican, Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee, subsequently took the unusual step of issuing a public statement calling Rubio a “very valuable member of the Senate” and disclosing that...

CROSSVILLE (WATE) – A Crossville congressional candidate said she’s guilty after a large-scale marijuana grow operation was busted last week, but says she’s also victim of a bad law. Detectives raided Flo Matheson’s property Friday after “in-depth undercover investigations led to the discovery of an indoor grow operation,” according to a press release that says Crossville Police Department narcotics detectives worked with the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office, 13th Judicial Drug Task Force, the HIDTA/TBI Drug Task Force, and the Office of the District Attorney General to execute the search warrant at Matheson’s home. Matheson said they broke through her gate...

Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., was labeled by Charles Krauthammer on Friday as the pundit’s leading pick to be the running mate of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. The Washington Post, citing unnamed sources, said Corker will be meeting Monday with Trump at Trump Tower in New York City Krauthammer used a hypothetical pot of $100 in casino chips to make his point, putting $25 on Corker, $20 on former Sen. Scott Brown, R-Mass., $20 on Ohio Gov. John Kasich, $10 on former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, and $5 on Heritage Foundation President Jim DeMint. The rest went to “the field,”...

During a May 14 commencement address to Old Miss graduates, retired news anchor and journalist Tom Brokaw said, “more guns … will mean more homegrown acts of terror.” Tom Brokaw lamented the continuing expansion of gun ownership and the success of gun rights organizations that support that expansion. According to The Commercial Appeal, Brokaw referenced the homicide rate in Democrat-run Memphis, Tennessee, then said: I’m appalled by the determination of organizations and individuals to arm more people without any appreciation of the consequence of evermore lethal weapons in our midst. More guns and more firearm tolerance will mean more homegrown...

Citing concerns about about a possible economic crisis and a desire for monetary stability, the State of Tennessee is now officially on record supporting the establishment of a depository facility to house gold and other precious metals for Tennesseans. In a remarkable example of bi-partisanship on serious issues, the resolution passed unanimously in both the state House and Senate before being signed by the governor. But more work remains, according to pro-Constitution and sound money activists supporting the efforts. Analysts and supporters said the measure was an important step on the road to restoring honest money and a stable monetary...

A Tennessee lawman who posted an Easter message and other religious-themed comments on Facebook said Tuesday he is ready for a legal showdown with an atheist group that accused him of violating the Constitution. Bradley County Sheriff Eric Watson, who had the message posted on the department’s Facebook page on Easter, said he is considering a countersuit against American Atheists and a woman identified as “Jane Doe,” after they sued him in federal court over the message. "Today is one of the most historic days; not only did Jesus die on the cross for our sins, but he rose on...

There was some big news in the entertainment industry recently as the television show “Nashville” was cancelled after four seasons. As a casual fan of the show and a Nashville resident, I enjoyed watching the show. It allowed me to brag to my friends about where I live, plus the music was always on point. Obviously, the market didn’t agree, as the ratings were not high enough for ABC to renew the show for another year.However, the real issue with this show being cancelled has nothing to do with the quality of the show itself. The problem is that this...

After raising its premiums for coverage on the Obamacare exchange by 36.3 percent for 2016, the state's dominant health insurer is heralding another increase of the "same order of magnitude" for 2017. BlueCross BlueShield claims it lost more than $150 million in 2015 when its rates were among the lowest in the land. But the 36.3 percent increase for 2016, the largest of any state, brings Tennessee rates to just about the national average. So how on Earth can costs be going up so exponentially to justify such a rate increase on the part of a nonprofit insurance company whose...

KNOXVILLE (WATE) – Three Ridges Baptist Church in north Knox County is now scarred after someone vandalized their building, Pastor Darryl Wilson can only look at the damage and wonder why? “Heartbreaking, heartbreaking…It hurts us but we’ll keep going,” he said. The person responsible busted out windows and spray-painted a vulgar message on the church doors. “Of course it’s frustrating for a small church like us,” said Pastor Wilson. It’s frustrating because the church has to spend money out of its own pockets to fix the damage, pastor Wilson says the church will eventually re-paint the doors and replace the...

It only takes a glance at what is occurring around the world to see Islam becoming the largest and most dominant way of life. Muslims are adhering to exactly what their doctrine ascribes, to make Islam dominant over all religions. So why then, do Christian pastors believe conversations with Muslims are so important? Do Christian pastors not have a responsibility to protect the church and its congregants from those who practice following the life of the prophet Muhammad, who was peaceful in the Meccan years, but became political and violent on his journey to Medina. “Good” Muslims are commanded to...

Nashville Tennessee usually recognized as “music city” is becoming identified now as a “welcoming city”, but not so much for the tourists but rather for refugees. As a matter of fact, Nashville was once nick named the “gateway for refugees” as groups like the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC) became heavily involved with pushing for more displaced persons to enter the state. But TIRRC isn’t just about refugees, it’s about a plan for a “new south”. TIRRC is about using legal and illegal immigration to change the demographics to mutate our communities until they satisfy a leftist open-borders,...

How is it the Buckle of the Bible Belt is falling into the hands of Islamists and the apologists that embrace them? Wake up Nashville, another Muslim Brotherhood proponent is open for business and making giant strides in changing the culture of the South. Don’t be fooled by its name, Peace Ambassadors USA, it is an Islamic organization, and the peace won’t last long. As if taken directly from the Muslim Brotherhood’s Strategic Goal for North America, Muslim Brotherhood Manifesto Arab & English (a document which was evidence in a federal trial in Dallas TX in 2008 for this country’s...