More Mayberry shit. Somebody wake me up when the Blount Co. Democratic Party grows a pair.

A report with some photos over at KnoxViews...

This photo pretty much sums it up.

Call to Blount Co. Election Commission re. early vote: Mitchell 4401, Kerr 1782. The good ol' boy establishment appears to have prevailed.

UPDATE: Another call to Blount Co. Election Commission, with 14 of 34 precincts reporting:

County Commission 1A: Cook 215, Burchfield 357.

CC 1B: Carter 344, Ballard 215.

CC 4C: Reeves 755, Moon 1412.

CC 7B: Dees 65, Green 325.

CC 6A: Lail 961, Wynn 250.

CC 10A: Webb 110, Kirby 386.

Not a good night for Democrats. Keep an eye on 1A in the morning, though.

Tony Webb, candidate for County Commission District 10, Seat A has a new campaign website...

Wendy Pitts Reeves, incumbent running for County Commission District 4 seat C, has a new website...

Every Democrat running for County Commission in the Aug 5th general election has a last name that causes them to all be listed second on the ballot after their Republican opponents.

Blount Dems: Recruit more Aarons and Abbots.

Reminder: Early voting starts Friday, July 16th.

County Commission 6A candidate Gary Wynn now has a website and there's some very interesting discussion about energy and commerce in Blount Co. with some concrete numbers showing how local decisions can make a huge local impact.

In other election news, the Blount Co. Election commission has posted sample ballots for the Aug. 5th county general and state primary elections.

Early voting starts July 16th, just two weeks from today.

The last day to register to vote is Tuesday, July 6th.

The Blount Co. Election Commission has posted sample ballots for the Aug. 5th county general and Democratic and Republican primaries.

Daily Times:

What is your position on the proposed Pellissippi Parkway extension?

Kerr: "There is a fixed amount of dollars. Federal money is not infinite. ... We’ve got a certain amount of money, and I believe that Pellissippi should be delayed for a certain time." Kerr added that the money should be spent improving local roadways like Morganton Road.

Mitchell: "I’m for the extension of Pellissippi Parkway. It opens up a real avenue for resources to come in. ... We need some small commercial development."

From a reader:

Lost Chocolate Lab in Louisville. Our 3 yr old granddaughter's chocolate lab has been missing since her birthday Sunday 6-6-10. Please call 567-3220 if you find him.

Maryville Daily Times, Jun. 8:

One way local people can help fight the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is to donate human or animal hair to Operation Hairball for use as "booms."

Samm Riggin said the Veterinary Centre of Greenback is collecting the hair for what she calls Operation Hairball and will be shipping five large boxes to a warehouse in Alabama on Thursday. That will be their first shipment.

Unified Area Command, May 21st:

The Unified Area Command for the Deepwater Horizon/BP Response announces it will not use hair boom in its response efforts.

[Hair booms were] not deemed feasible after a technical evaluation.

In a February 2010 side-by-side field test conducted during an oil spill in Texas, commercial sorbent boom absorbed more oil and much less water than hair boom, making it the better operational choice.

"Our priority when cleaning up an oil spill is to find the most efficient and expedient way to remove the oil from the affected area while causing no additional damage. One problem with the hair boom is that it became water-logged and sank within a short period of time," said Charlie Henry,

NOAA’s Scientific Support Coordinator in Robert, La. Commercial sorbent boom is readily available and scientifically designed and tested for oil containment and absorption on the water. Additionally, response teams are familiar with and properly trained to safely deploy, maintain, recover, and dispose commercial sorbent boom.

Individuals and organizations are asked to discontinue the collection of hair for the hair boom.

The Little River Chapter of Trout Unlimited is hosting Troutfest 2010, the Great Smoky Mountains Fly Fishing Expo at the Townsend Visitors Center on Saturday May 15th and Sunday May 16th. This highly regarded two day event is one of the largest fly fishing expos in the Southeast.

Featured instructors Lefty Kreh, Bob Clouser, and Joe Humphreys among other notable fly fishing experts will hold seminars throughout both days of the event. There will also be dozens of expert fly tyers, entertainment, food and fun. All events are free, parking donations are accepted.

There is also a fundraising banquet and auction on Friday May 14th, 6PM at the Visitors Center. Tickets are $50 and should be purchased in advance.

It's fun for the whole family, and even if you're not a fly fisher you can learn about stream ecology and meet the folks behind conservation efforts in the National Park.

Proceeds from the Fly Fishing Expo benefit the Great Smoky Mountains National Park Fisheries Department and Friends of Great Smokies National Park Fisheries Scholarship Endowment Fund. Some funds will also be used for youth fishery education programs. Last year's event raised $40,000 for the GSMNP Fisheries Dept. and Friends of the Smokies.

Event volunteer and Trout Unlimited member Jack Gregory told me that the local TU chapter is a major source of funding for the National Park fisheries program because of past federal budget cuts. TU has also been instrumental in ongoing research and restoration projects, which include the highly successful efforts to reintroduce and preserve native brook trout populations.

More info:

• Troutfest 2010 official website

• Little River Chapter, Trout Unlimited

Mitchell: 4916
Cunningham: 3851

UPDATE: WBIR.com:

As there is no Democratic or independent challenger on the ballot in the general election, Ed Mitchell is effectively the mayor-elect of Blount County.

Uh, Howard Kerr is on the ballot as an independent and has a fighting chance. Massive fail by WBIR.

Early vote totals according to the Blount Co. Election Commission:

Mitchell: 1312
Cunningham: 1104