Blount Mayors to MDT: You suck
Submitted by R. Neal on Thu, 12/13/2007 - 07:01.

Mayor Cunningham has gone completely off the rails and is dragging Mayor Mull and Mayor Swann into the trainwreck.

Can't recall ever seeing anything like this before. It doesn't appear Cunningham actually wrote it, though. It has correct spelling and grammar and stuff.

Topics:
Gotta love the "fair and
Submitted by R. Neal on Thu, 12/13/2007 - 07:47.

Gotta love the "fair and balanced" BS. They want the Daily Times to be more like Fox News.

And this part: "Perhaps The Daily Times should seek public comment on its direction and fulfillment of its charge to be a balanced observer of events in our county."

So, the Daily Times starts acting like a newspaper and reporting stories that weren't faxed in by the good old developer boys prayer meeting club, and now they are no longer "balanced observers"?

The irony is amazing.

Regarding Ruby Tuesday
Submitted by mello on Thu, 12/13/2007 - 07:57.

The paper’s latest target is one of our best and brightest corporate citizens, Ruby Tuesday Inc.

I don't understand just how it was a target when the question the DT ask was in all honesty one aimed at helping RT thus helping the community.

The question ask
Link...

Local answers given/printed
Link...

and the thank you* LTTE from Sandy Beal seems to be missing from the website now. Anyone got the link to that LTTE>

I think since when is it the
Submitted by david_blo on Tue, 06/22/2010 - 21:53.

I think since when is it the job of the Mayor to make excuses to the stockholders for a private company's poor performance? Can you imagine the uproar in Congress if summer jobs for 15 year olds the President were to make excuses for Walmart's poor performance.

If you are reading this Jerry, please be reminded that the County has some serious problems. Stick to trying to solve those.

Sandy Beall's
Submitted by R. Neal on Thu, 12/13/2007 - 08:24.

Sandy Beall's letter:

Link...

Was that on the funny page?
Submitted by K.T. on Thu, 12/13/2007 - 08:42.

Okay, that is really funny. Who needs the comics? I'm imagining what would happen to our beloved hometown if the New York Times staff was unleashed here for a week to produce a copy of The Daily Times.

Nostalgic references to our "hometown paper" are both nausiating and a great example of the "good old boys" mentality/network that our county mayor says does not exist.

His letter reminds me of the belief that the way to "support the troops" is to not criticize the administration. I get that the mayors want a dynamic community that solves problems and lives well. A strong newspaper that finds problems that are below the surface will take us in that direction...if they want a community newsletter that highlights our strong (a-list) citizens and businesses, then they can make a newsletter. A newsletter is different from a newspaper.

Canceling Subscription
Submitted by FarmerJohn on Thu, 12/13/2007 - 11:34.

I wanted to cancel my subscription to the rag because of the poor local reporting but now I want to keep subscribing because it's like a soap opera unfolding. Poor Daily Times can't do anything right. Realtors hate it, attorneys hate it, government officials hate it, business leaders hate it, now what? Any hope of doing investigative reporting is out the door. The rag will become even more generic and print press releases that may be 6 months old.

Hey Dean Stone, quit signing books and pay attention to what your rag is producing! Hey Max, pay attention to your paper and what's printed!

The rub of it is...
Submitted by mello on Thu, 12/13/2007 - 11:49.

IF the DT were printing lies it would be an entirely different matter. No one has said THAT is a LIE. Yes, there was one little old 'geeze, we could have explained that a bit better' but no out and out lies.

This boils down to the Mayor having his hands full trying to explain stuff to his developer buddies.

I just wish that the DT would do what other papers across the country do and that is even if they make a choice not to publish a LTTE they post all the letters on a bulletin board in the newspaper's lobby. Then Joes and Jills can walk in and read all the stuff which is either not fit for print or was sent to the Daily on County letterhead and they choose not to print it to save a certain official a great deal of embarrassment. Woodshed indeed.

I go back and forth on this...
Submitted by local_yokel on Thu, 12/13/2007 - 11:51.

Depending on stupid editorial decisions retracting things that, at best, need only minor correcting, but I think the DT has become worth reading in the time frame mentioned. That goes back to Darren Dunlap and Lesli Bales-Sherrod as county gov't reporters. For about the past 50 years prior to that, the DT was a newsletter of the Republican Party and the policy was to smear anyone who WASN'T a Republican with impunity. And I can guaran-damn-tee you there was no retraction when the allegations were proven false. But you didn't see ole Jerry complaining about that "policy," did you? He apparently thought that was quaint, and as a hometown paper should be. Now the shoe is on the other foot, anyone who does something worth reporting gets reported on - regardless of "who their daddy was" - and he's can't complain loudly enough.

Keep up the good work, DT - we can forgive the occasional lapses like yesterday's Alcoa story if you promise to keep it honest. Report the NEWS. Without regard to how many generations the characters have been in the county or how much money their industry brings into the community, or who they supported in the last election.

Let's go to the picture show!
Submitted by Dumping Ground on Thu, 12/13/2007 - 11:49.

I miss puttin' on my Sunday best, loadin' up the Studebaker and goin' down to the to the Rx to see the soda jerk for a tall cool soady pop. Afterward, we would put on our long suits for a swim in the crick. I miss getting reported, what I want reported, when I say it should be reported. Ahh, those were the days.

But hey, there's still the other paper not willing to print any "offensive" news.

I guess the boy's will be reserving another room at the library to champion Sandy Beall this time. If Ruby Tuesday folds, so does half of downtown Maryville. I think it's important he knows the truth about his restaurant. And the truth as many see it - An upscale hamburger restaurant is oxymoronic. You can be upscale or a hamburger joint, I'm not sure you can be both.

The fact the three men who signed the letter don't recognize we have the "little" town we have now is due largely to their efforts. For those who don't know, we need two Wal-Marts, convention centers, ridgetop developments, two liquor stores for each end of the county, interstates through our treasures, etc. etc. Don't you people understand, those in charge simply know what's best for us. We are supposed to pay our bill and say thanks. Just like Ruby Tuesday, when we don't like the food, the changes, or the service - it doesn't matter. Again, just shut up and pay your bill.

I'm imagining what would happen to our beloved hometown if the New York Times staff was unleashed here for a week to produce a copy of The Daily Times.

I would bet all the mayors would install close circuit monitoring in their office and would never come out.

I would bet all the mayors
Submitted by mello on Thu, 12/13/2007 - 11:51.

I would bet all the mayors would install close circuit monitoring in their office and would never come out.

What makes you think they don't already have this skybox feature?

It was/is a joke
Submitted by Dumping Ground on Thu, 12/13/2007 - 14:24.

Oh, I was just proposing a funny idea. I mean, what kind of paranoid, elitist, ivory tower minded person would do such a thing? How could anyone who ran for public office be so terrified of facing the public to the point he would watch public meetings in the security of his own office. Only some fear monger, who still uses the terror of 911 (Giuliani style) to keep people away from the buildings they own would do such a thing. The only thing worse, would be if this neurotic mess had other elected officials watching with him. But really Mello, do you really think someone would ever do such a thing?

See for yourself
Submitted by Fairview Angel on Thu, 12/13/2007 - 12:39.

Anyone ever try to find a parking space at Aubrey's for lunch or dinner? Mind you, a restaurant a stones throw away from Ruby Tuesday. If you drive down 321, look at the Aubrey's parking lot, take a right onto 129/411 and observe the Ruby Tuesday parking lot.

Same locations, same price points - but very different results. Maybe Sandy Beall could ask Randy Burleson why, since he seems offended by what his customers are telling him.

Sure, Cunningham wrote it!
Submitted by seejaneride on Thu, 12/13/2007 - 15:40.

SeeJaneRide
It's obvious Cunningham, or someone in GOB club wrote it. Mentioning Judge Young gave away the identity of the author(s). What's not so obvious is WHY the other two mayors would sign their names to it? It draws more attention to something Ruby Tuesday would probably like to forget.

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