Month: February 2015

Categories
News News Blog

Free Dental Care Being Provided to Middle School Students

UTHSC students provide dental care to a middle schooler.

A significant amount of kids across the nation lack access to oral health care. 

According to a Pew Center on the States report, an estimated 17 million low-income children — one out of every five — go without dental care every year.  

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) will contribute to lowering the amount of disadvantaged kids who fail to receive dental care during its adaptation of “National Give Kids A Smile Day.” 

The event will take place Thursday, February 5th from 8:30 a.m. until noon.

This is the fourth consecutive year UTHSC has participated in National Give Kids A Smile Day. The program was launched in 2003 by the American Dental Association with the goal of making dental education and services more accessible to underserved children.

Faculty, students and staff from the UTHSC’s College of Dentistry will provide more than 80 students at Memphis Academy of Health Sciences Middle School with free dental screenings, teeth cleaning and a range of other oral health services. Students will receive assistance on the third floor of UTHSC’s Dunn Dental Building (875 Union Avenue).

“Outreach to low-income and underserved communities is part of what we teach every dental student,” said Tim Hottel, dean of the UTHSC’s College of Dentistry, in a statement. “In the three years since we started participating in this national initiative, our students and faculty have performed almost 2,000 dental procedures on more than 340 children. Without this program, many of these youngsters would go without the quality dental care that they need.”

The value of the nearly 2,000 dental procedures that UTHSC has donated to Memphis students thus far reportedly amounts to more than $57,000.

In addition to Memphis, there are UTHSC College of Dentistry clinics in Jackson, Tennessee and Little Rock, Arkansas. Dental clinics in Bristol and Union City are scheduled to open this summer. Facilities in Nashville and Knoxville are slated to launch next year.

All UTHSC dental clinics are supervised by faculty and staffed by senior-level students. The clinics are focused on serving underserved adults and children.

Categories
Memphis Preps Blog Sports

The Other Lawson Brothers

Johnathan and Chandler Lawson

The first family of Memphis basketball is positioned all around the Havenview Middle School gymnasium. The father, Keelon Lawson, sits midcourt on the second row of the visitors’ side of the gym. He’s a silent observer. His wife, Dedra, is on the far end, on the opposite side of the court. She will soon be giving continuous instructions for the game referees. They are not here to watch their University of Memphis-bound sons, Keelon, Jr. and Dedric, play. They’re here to watch the youngest Lawsons, Jonathan and Chandler.

Dedric sits two rows behind his father. Sixth grader Jonathan, is moving about, laughing with teammates. He looks like Dallas Mavericks’ guard Rajon Rondo with a smile he may have borrowed from the Fresh Prince of Bel Air.

Chandler sits alone at the very top of the bleachers. Maybe he needs the space. The eighth-grader is already 6’-7” and has been put on notice that he will soon reach 7’. He welcomes the possibility. “I like being taller than everybody,” he says.

Height is a big-time commodity in basketball. Luke 12:48 of the Bible reads, “To whom much is given much will be demanded.” Chandler is familiar with both, which may explain his pregame solitary. His coach, Cedric Franklin, sums him up with two words, “a blessing.”

Coach Cedric Franklin

Franklin has had many of blessings himself, when it comes to the Lawson boys. He’s coached all four. He will not say if Chandler is any better or worse than his older brothers. “He’s right in there with all of them. They all know the game.” he says. “But the difference is that Chandler is taller and longer. He’s also a little bit more athletic than Dedric was.

“I compare Chandler to a 14-year old LeBron James, special phenomenal athlete,” Franklin says. “Well ahead of his time. He makes the job easy. He has all the skills and attributes for the game. He’s a ferocious rebounder. He’s an intimidator on defense. He can win the game without scoring and he makes everyone around him better. Anything you want, he can give it to you.”

Chandler gives his own assessment of his game, “I’m a playmaker. I like to get my team involved first.” Other teams are not buying his self-assessment. Havenview is focused on stopping him. He gets a lot of attention from defenders, particularly in the paint.

Havenview players are hacking Chandler as soon as he touches the ball. His mother is making sure the officials are not missing this. “All they’re doing is fouling,” she protests. Then later, “You didn’t see that? You’re not going to call that?” Chandler appears to be frustrated, looking over to the refs for relief.

His dad, who coached at Hamilton before taking an assistant coaching position under Josh Pastner at the University of Memphis, understands Chandler will have to get used to the abuse. “He’s my non-aggressive one out of my boys,” he says. “But he can be really good. He’s still a kid in his mind. I just try to tell him to play hard all the way to the end.”

Still Chandler finds a way to stamp his imprint on the game. Big block and stare down here. Nice pass on the break there. He finds his brother Jonathan alone on the other end of the court for an easy lay-in.

How did Johnathan get so open? He likes to gamble more than Kenny Rogers. He sticks his arms into passing lanes. He sneaks to creates double teams. He taps the ball from behind his man. The end result is usually the same, as he takes off down court for an uncontested two.

Like Chandler, Johnathan considers himself a playmaker. He sounds a lot like Chandler. “I like to get my teammates involved and block shots,” he says. “I score when I have to.” Johnathan is long and versatile also. He is one of four American Way players, including Chandler, who can bring the ball up the court. He also plays on the wing.

“He’s a hybrid point guard,” say Franklin, of Johnathan. “He’s a baby Magic Johnson.” He’s also just two points shy of tying Chandler for the games’ high scorer against Havenview. Johnathan finishes with 14 points and Chandler 16 during American Way’s 50-36 win.

By the time the game is over, Dedric has already left the building. Their older siblings are the young brothers measuring sticks and their source of early wisdom.

“They tell me to keep the motor high and score when I need to.” Johnathan says of Keelon Jr.’s and Dedric’s counsel.

“They give me advice,” says Chandler. “We work out together. They teach me a lot about the game.”

Plus, they play him one-on-one often, with Chandler usually on the losing end of the equation. “They never take it easy on me,” Chandler smiles, shaking his head. But he recalls besting Dedric in a game to 32. “I only won one game,” he adds. “It was 32-24.” The difference that game was motivation. “My dad said if you beat Dedric I’ll give you some money, so I beat him,” says Chandler.

Chandler use to imagine the possibility of playing with Dedric in college, but Dedric reclassified to senior status this high school season so Chandler will likely miss out on that opportunity. He admits he likes the University of Memphis and would consider playing there, but college is not on his radar now, despite the early interest from many schools. He is living in the moment, as is his younger brother, Johnathan, who enjoys playing along his side.

“It’s fun because he encourages me and helps me win games,” says Johnathan. “And he gets me involved with the team.”

You can follow Jamie Griffin on twitter @flyerpreps.

Categories
Intermission Impossible Theater

Theatre Memphis’ “Of Mice and Men” Doesn’t Say Much About Either

CREDIT: Skip Hooper, Courtesy of Theatre Memphis

Skip Hooper, Courtesy of Theatre Memphis

George and Lennie, together again.

I try not to play favorites, and work hard to consider every show based on its own merits. I want to write about the play I’ve seen rather that the play I wish I’d seen. But some productions stick with you, and letting go of the past is hard. Take, for example, Memphis’ last production of the play inspired by John Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men. It really wasn’t good. No, it was “Holy Crap” extraordinary, top to bottom. The perfectly cast ensemble was tight. And with it’s narrow swath of blue sky, Bruce Bergner’s expressionist design dropped audiences into the hope-twisted minds of damaged people, and the austere, off kilter world of the Great Depression. Michael Ingersoll’s bantam rooster edge couldn’t hide that his George needed the giant, developmentally stunted Lennie just as much as Lennie needed him. But it was George Dudley’s rich, humane portrayal of Lennie, an infinitely sweet, extremely dangerous man who literally loves things to death, that really elevated Playhouse on the Square’s take on material that can easily slide into cliche.

When awards season rolled around, it became evident that the Ostrander judges were also mightily impressed.

So, what does any of this have to do with Theatre Memphis’ perfectly competent, epically-imagined revival? Maybe not so much, as far as the average audience member is concerned. For me, however, these two takes on an American classic represent a clear line in the sand dividing things I value from things that make me shake my head. The earlier production was poetic and evocative. The current one, while beautifully executed, is often literal to a fault. After all, it’s the empty spaces— the things things left to an audience’s imagination— that turn our imaginations on, and optimizes a theatrical experience. Show me an elephant and I’ve seen an elephant. Good show! But hold up an apple and make me believe it’s an elephant; that’s magic and the stuff that sticks with you after you’ve seen your share of elephants.

If the wonderful short story writer George Saunders teaches us anything, it’s that nothing highlights artificiality like attempted verisimilitude. And, from a design standpoint, that’s where TM’s Of Mice and Men takes its first wrong turn. When water is splashed in an onstage creek and embers glow in a realistic fire (that looks anything but real) we aren’t drawn into the world of the play, but taken out of it and reminded of something that has nothing to do with the majesty of nature or Depression-era austerity. We’re reminded instead of sumptuousness, excess, and so many things at odds with the tone of the source material. But maybe it’s not about the set at all. A more thoughtful and dynamic lighting design wouldn’t just illuminate all of the beautiful space all the time. It would instead frame the actors and focus the action on a stage big enough for eyes to wander about.

It’s easy to make an audience say, “Awwww.” Walking an adorable, and obviously very loving three-legged dog on stage will do it. Finding the interior life of a play and its characters can be more difficult, however, and this is the kind of play where any “awww”-inducing sweet things really need to have their guts crushed by Lennie in short order. The sympathy we feel for old man Candy’s soon-to-be-executed dog shouldn’t stem from adorability, but vulnerability, and the pathetic animal’s bond with a failing one-handed laborer, too feeble to keep up.

Todd Nelson delivers a grounded performance as Slim, the sure handed crew boss, and Joshua Hitt effectively conveys douchey entitlement as Curley, the ranch owner’s son, desperately jealous of a wife he treats like property. For the most part, however, the supporting cast seems flat and disconnected. One, functional but frustrating performance is so lacking in depth it might be described as shouting in a peculiar accent. 

The casualty in all of this may be Stuart Turner’s simple, emotionally honest performance as George. Turner’s an under-appreciated area performer who raised his profile last year with a funny, physically generous performance in the iffy 60’s-era sex farce Boeing Boeing. Turner’s George is plainspoken, and easily agitated, but a little too decent, exhibiting no trace of the cruelty he eventually confesses. It’s a subtle, against type performance and I wish I could have seen it in a more intimate circumstance, where there was no need to enlarge character traits and project them across so much distance. I’d have also liked to see him play the part opposite a more genuinely threatening Lennie.

Theatre Memphis’ ‘Of Mice and Men’ Doesn’t Say Much About Either

On the surface Jeremy Bukauskas would appear to be a great choice to play Steinbeck’s man child, a challenging character that never really grows or changes as the story plays out. He’s sweet faced, and he dwarfs everybody else on stage. But Bukauskas can’t seem to muster more than one note, and at every turn performance choices call to mind a half–century of “pet him and squeeze him” cartoon parodies by Warner Bros. The scene where Lennie’s love of soft things turns deadly needs serious attention. To borrow a line from Dennis Miller (something I almost never advise), I haven’t seen choreography that stiff since Ruby shot Oswald.

Having said all of this, I never regret time spent with Steinbeck and his characters. And for all my complaints, this was no exception. I appreciate the fine craftsmanship on display, and more than anything else, I appreciate that director Tracy Zerwig Ford saw something big and wanted audiences to experience Americana on an operatic scale. I just wish that George, and Crook, and Slim, and even the giant Lennie weren’t somehow rendered smaller than life in the process.

As always, Theatre Memphis delivers a quality production. But I strongly suspect that customer satisfaction will vary.   

Categories
Music Music Blog

JPK To Lead Thacker Mountain Radio Band

Memphis-based telecaster encyclopedia John Paul Keith will lead the band for Thacker Mountain Radio, a syndicated public-radio show that is taped weekly before a live audience in Oxford Mississippi. Since 1997, Thacker Mountain Radio has broadcast the voices (the singing AND reading kinds) of Mississippi and the South. The band, known and the Yalobushwackers, has had some notable leaders, including Jim Dickinson and Georgia folkster Jake Fussell, who released his solo debut album, Paradise of Bachelors, last week. 

Those familiar with John Paul Keith know that he is a quick-witted student of stage banter and has a gift for the Twitter. He has roots in the area through the label Big Legal Mess, which has released three of Keith’s albums. 

Thacker Mountain Radio tapes and broadcasts on Thursday evenings and rebroadcasts on Saturday nights on Mississippi Public Broadcasting, FM 90.3 in Memphis..

Categories
Beyond the Arc Sports

Next Day Notes: Grizzlies 102, Suns 101

Larry Kuzniewski

Zach Randolph’s streak of double doubles ended last night against Phoenix.

The Grizzlies had no business winning last night’s game in Phoenix against the Suns, and yet somehow they did. Despite losing the 4th quarter 29–25 and having absolutely no one who could do anything to stop Isaiah Thomas from going off for 16 points on 10 shots in the final frame, the Grizzlies got a rebound, basket, and free throw out of Jeff Green with 4 seconds left, followed by a Marc Gasol block of a Markieff Morris jumper as time expired. Winning 102–101 felt like a lucky break, considering the Griz had been down 101–94 only 1:49 earlier—but this year’s Grizzlies team has shown time and again that they know how to close out games, and they did it again on Monday night.

Phoenix is a very good team, with a very good coach. They may only make the 8 seed this year, but I see a future in which they’re dark horse Western Conference contenders. When they went to a small three-guard lineup of Isaiah Thomas, Eric Bledsoe, and Goran Dragic, the Griz had no answer for it, other than to go small with a Beno Udrih-led lineup. But that didn’t work nearly as well as going with Nick Calathes down the stretch (especially after Conley picked up his 5th foul and Joerger sat him down, something I felt was unnecessary). Calathes certainly lacks Udrih’s scoring firepower, but his length and his overall theftiness (hat tip to Chase Lucas) paid dividends last night.

The Grizzlies nearly lost the game in the second half for several reasons:

  • I’m not convinced Dave Joerger made the right decisions about which lineups he was playing for how long. In the first half, a bench lineup featuring Nick Calathes, Tony Allen, and Kosta Koufos did some serious damage to the Suns and opened up a lead in what been, to that point, a close game. Joerger didn’t go back to that lineup, choosing instead to deploy Udrih in the second half even beyond the point that it was obvious he couldn’t keep Isaiah Thomas from going left.
  • Phoenix is known for getting out and running in transition, looking at every opportunity to turn a rebound into an outlet pass and a break. By the 4th quarter, this had worn Marc Gasol—who played 20 minutes in the second half—down to a nub, and his legs were too dead to consistently defend well. That’s the downside of Joerger’s recent “play Gasol/Z-Bo the entire second half” strategy: they’re dead tired by the end of the game.
  • The Grizzlies just don’t have any lineup that matches up well defensively with Phoenix’s 3-guard set. Of course, I don’t think any team in the league does. Maybe Calathes/Lee/Allen, or Calathes/Conley/Allen, but last night Conley couldn’t defend Thomas without fouling and he’s never been able to defend Bledsoe much if at all. TA is pretty much the Grizzlies’ only hope of stopping Bledsoe, all the way back to his days on the Clippers.

This is where this year’s Grizzlies are different, though: they just decided somewhere around 1:30 remaining in the game that they weren’t going to lose, and they didn’t. The comeback was fast and furious, and it looked like it caught the Suns completely off guard. There’s always a lot of talk with young teams that they need to “learn how to win.” I never used to believe in that—I always just figured guys wanted to win the minute they stepped into the league. And they do. But there’s something about a group of players who have been together this long… they really do know how to win together. We’ve seen them do it time and time again this season, mounting all sorts of improbable comebacks, seemingly never anything but sure that they’re going to come out on top. They know how to win, and they’re doing it really often.

Game Notes

➭ I touched on this above, but Mike Conley’s defense was pretty bad all night. None of the three guards Phoenix rolled out—Thomas, Dragic, or Bledsoe—were great matchups for Conley, and he struggled to do anything to slow any of them up without fouling. He was able to make a couple of steals, and on offense, he had a great night, scoring 23 on 9–15 shooting. But Phoenix really hampered his defense and his facilitation (holding him to one assist) in a way that few teams have this year.

➭ Kosta Koufos was, as I said in a message to a friend, balling out of control. In fifteen minutes, Koufos had four points in eleven rebounds, the most boards he’s ever grabbed off the bench for the Grizzlies. His presence anchored some key bench lineups last night, and Phoenix, despite the improvement of Alex Len and Miles Plumlee (well, mainly Len), had no answer for him on the glass. The fact that Koufos was mentioned in trade rumors recently made sense at the time, but in his limited minutes, he’s proven more and more valuable to what the Grizzlies are trying to do this season. He only ever seems to play about 15 minutes, which I feel is too few—especially in light of Joerger’s preference for playing Gasol the whole second half. I’m not as big of a fan of the Gasol/Koufos “Twin Towers” pairing as I used to be—those lineups haven’t been very good this year—but I do think Koufos should play 20 to 25 minutes and Gasol should be as close to 30 as possible. Underusing Koufos is overusing Gasol, and both things are happening right now.

➭ Even though his consecutive streak of double-doubles ended last night because he only grabbed 9 rebounds, I don’t think there’s any question that this is the best that Zach Randolph (that’s Reigning Western Conference Player of the Week Zach Randolph to you, buddy) is playing the best ball he’s played since his 2012 MCL injury. His rebounding, especially on the offensive glass, is the engine that drives his newfound “garbage man” role (a role that faded back into “primary scoring option” over the past few weeks while he’s been playing so well) and watching him now, there’s little doubt that he can continue to be a 12–10 guy (or, more likely, a 10–12 guy) for the next three or four years. This Z-Bo is the one that we love so much, the one who captured our hearts in the first place. It’s been a beautiful, slow, wrenchingly violent and mean-mugging stretch to watch, and utterly captivating.

Tweet of the Night

Chris Herrington, moments after Dave Joerger let the final possession play out without calling a timeout, resulting in the Jeff Green basket-and-one that turned out to be the gamewinner:

Joerger’s decision not to call a timeout wasn’t just blind faith in his players, of course; it prevented Phoenix from being able to substitute players, from drawing up a defense to whatever play Joerger drew up, and let the players find a basket in rhythm instead of trying to run a set halfcourt play. But at the time, it felt really risky, and the fact that it worked out felt like a minor miracle.

Categories
Letters To The Editor Opinion

What They Said (January 29, 2015) …

CREDIT: Greg Cravens

Greg Cravens

About Toby Sells’ post, “Bass Pro Jobs Fair Coming in February” …

Y’all might as well not even apply for the gator wrastlin’ job, cause I got it locked up.

Jeff

After reading the review by Chris Davis of Opera Memphis’ production of Hansel and Gretel, I was confused. I thought that I had attended an opera. However, the review made apparent that I had attended an art show of the works of Michelle Duckworth with a ballet and musical backdrop of Hansel and Gretel. It was all about the stage art, as if the performers had nothing to do with mood, story propulsion, or much of anything else.

Perhaps I should contact Opera Memphis about a refund and scold them for false advertising. Or perhaps you should scold your reviewer for a single-minded review of an opera that had little to do with operatic performances. No named credit for the singers, some of whom spent nearly the entire 90 minutes on stage (a long time to gaze at nothing but scenery, however splendid) to say nothing of the musicians and directors responsible for the overall success of the show. Are there not appropriate avenues for praising Duckworth’s art that do not by backhanded negligence discredit an entire production in the process?

I. Miller

Editor’s note: Davis’ webpost was not a formal review of Hansel and Gretel; it was intended to spotlight a unique local artist, Michelle Duckworth.

About Jackson Baker’s story, “The Governor and the Majority Leader” …

Sounds like the Mark Norris I know: prudent. Keeps an open mind. Knows all the facts before he makes a decision. Pays attention to the details. Not swayed by emotion, but understands the reality. We shall see how this plays out.

Arlington Pop

About the passing of former University of Memphis Provost Ralph Faudree …

Recently for the first time ever, the University of Memphis football team was ranked in the end-of-season AP Top 25. This is a great accomplishment and deserves great praise. That said, year in and year out for several years, the University of Memphis math department has consistently been ranked in the top 25 of a major subfield of mathematics: discrete mathematics. This is due largely to the efforts of one person, former provost and math professor Ralph Faudree.

One of the biggest figures of 20th century mathematics was Paul Erdős. With over 1,500 articles published in peer reviewed scholarly journals, Erdős is the most published mathematician in history. Erdős was so prolific and revered, it became an honor to co-author an article with him. If you co-authored a paper with him, you became an Erdős 1.

Due to Professor Faudree’s dedication, the University of Memphis math department has had at least five Erdős 1 mathematicians. Out of the roughly 500 Erdős 1 co-authors that Erdős had, three of the five most frequent Erdős co-authors were University of Memphis professors: Cecil Rousseau, Richard Schelp, and Professor Faudree himself.

In the immediate short run, his death will have a significant impact on the department’s status as a top discrete mathematics program. Faudree’s contributions to math and the University of Memphis are his legacy. I hope that the greater Memphis community will recognize that legacy and rally around and support the University of Memphis math department, like we have admirably done for basketball and football, and ensure that the department maintains and improves its status as a premiere discrete mathematics department.

Mahendra Ramanna Prasad

About Toby Sells post, “Trolley Plan to Go Public” …

It’s disappointing that a total shutdown was the course of action taken by MATA last June. Then it was only for “three or four months.” It was a total overreaction on MATA’s part. Get the trolleys back now; all lines are a vital part of our city. 

Midtown Mark

Categories
Politics Politics Feature

Sentiment Divided on “Insure Tennessee”

NASHVILLE — Like his 11-minute re-inauguration speech delivered two weeks ago, Governor Bill Haslam’s 15-minute opening address Monday night to this week’s special session on Insure Tennessee, his Medicaid expansion plan, was brief and to the point and couched in accommodationist rhetoric.

The previous speech had no particular mission in mind other than to hint at a more assertive second term: “[W]e haven’t had nearly high enough expectations of ourselves. In many ways, we’ve settled and haven’t lived up to our full potential. So one thing I can guarantee you that we are not going to do in the next four years is coast to the finish line.” But Monday night’s address was designed to spell out a key resolve that could be crucial to the success or failure of that race to the finish line.

The good news, from the governor’s point of view, was the prolonged standing ovation he received upon entering the chamber Monday night — a sign of the general good will that the General Assembly, on both sides of the political aisle, continues to extend to Haslam.

The bad news, from Haslam’s point of view, was that, by general agreement, he still has — in the words of state Representative Glen Casada (R-Franklin), who has been a prominent opponent of  the governor’s plan — “his work cut out for him.” Said Casada about House prospects: “He needs 50 out of 99, and right now he doesn’t have it.”

That outlook was echoed by state Representative Craig Fitzhugh (D-Ripley), the Democrats’ House leader and a firm supporter of Insure Tennessee. Fitzhugh said, “He answered the questions. The main questions my friends on the Republican side have had. … The Republican caucus needs to show they have a concern for ‘the least of these’.'” The plan had “no downside,” said Fitzhugh, but, “I think he’s got a lot of work to do.”

State Senator Brian Kelsey (R-Germantown), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and a foe, not just of the governor’s plan but of Medicaid expansion in general, said he thought opposition to Insure Tennessee was “mounting, the more we hear about it.”

Referencing a point Haslam had extemporized into his prepared remarks, to the effect that Republican governors had persistently expressed a wish to President Obama that Medicaid funding be presented to the states in the form of block grants, and that Insure Tennessee came close to that goal, Kelsey said, “My takeaway is this: The governor and I agree that we’d love to have a block grant in Tennessee, but that’s not what the president is offering.”

There were, however, signs that a bipartisan support coalition of Insure Tennessee from Republicans and Democrats (a distinct minority in the legislature that Haslam, however, had made a point of courting) might be possible.

In the immediate aftermath of the governor’s speech, state Rep. Antonio Parkinson, a Memphis Democrat, and state Rep. Mark White, a Republican who represents East Memphis and the suburbs, agreed that Haslam had made enough distinctions between Insure Tennessee and the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) to coax reluctant GOP members to support the plan.

White himself had been one of those GOP members who’d been biding his time but now expressed support.”I think that was important for him to distance himself from the president,” White said. “He also gave a personal side. It’s not all politics. … The more you weigh it on our measuring scale, it weighs out that we need to do something.”

Two Democrats differed on the role of their party in the debate over Insure Tennessee. State Senator Lee Harris, the former city council member who was elected by Senate Democrats (5 members out of 33) to be minority leader, said, “It’s not about the Democrats. It’s not newsworthy what the Democrats are doing. That’s irrelevant. It’s about the Republicans. They have control of both chambers. If you’ve got control, you’ve got responsibility.”

State Representative G.A. Hardaway, another Memphis Democrat, begged to differ. Of the 26 Democrats in the 99-member House of Representatives, Hardaway said, “We hold the key in the House.”

• In his Monday night address opening the week of special session, the governor — Haslam being Haslam, a man of soft persuasion rather than faustian and bombast — artfully pitched an appeal that was simultaneously above partisan politics and designed to address what have been the main sticking points among GOP legislators.

The governor dutifully paid lip service to Republican talking points, loosing his own shots at what he consistently called Obamacare but taking pains to distinguish his own plan from the superstructure of the Affordable Care Act.

Haslam gave an explanation for why, in 2013, he had rejected the opportunity to expand Medicaid (TennCare in Tennessee) — an expansion that would have allowed the state to avail itself of about $1.5 billion annually, money which the state’s hospitals, charged with caring for indigent patients, contended they desperately needed.

He hadn’t accepted expansion then, the governor said, because “expanding a broken program doesn’t make sense. … But I also didn’t think that flat-out saying no to accepting federal dollars that Tennesseans are paying for — that are going to other states, and that could cover more Tennesseans who truly need our help — I didn’t think that made much sense either.”

Accordingly, he said, he decided to provide his own example of how a governmental health-care plan should work, spending the time since that decision in 2013 to devise what he told the assembled legislators is a two-year pilot program that has incorporated free-market principles, both through an optional voucher component for use with private insurance plans and through requiring co-pays and modest premiums — “skin in the game” — of those new insurees who chose to go through TennCare.

Haslam pointed out that Insure Tennessee would add no new costs to the state budget, since the Tennessee Hospital Association (THA) had guaranteed to pay any additional costs incurred once the federal government, after two years, dropped its own subsidy from 100 to 90 percent.

If either the federal government or the THA proved unable to follow through as promised, or if the state in two years’ time decided Insure Tennessee wasn’t a good fit, the state had been assured by court decisions and the state attorney general’s advice that it could discontinue the plan.

(Pointedly, the governor, in giving the address, dropped this line from his prepared remarks: “I understand the concern, but I think it’s worthy of mention that the United States of America has never missed a scheduled Medicaid payment.”)

As for the professed concern of Insure Tennessee skeptics regarding the pain of having to discontinue coverage for new insurees after two years, Haslam said, “If you gave your loved one an option: You can have health coverage now to address your very real need and with that the possibility that you might lose it in the future, or you could never have it, which would you choose? If you think about your loved one, I bet the answer is simple.”

Ultimately, said Haslam, the state simply had an obligation to the unfortunate and the indigent, one based in commonly held spiritual precepts. “My faith doesn’t allow me to walk on the other side of the road and ignore a need that can be met — particularly in this case, when the need is Tennesseans who have life-threatening situations without access to health care.”

• Back in Memphis, pent-up controversy was also moving toward some overdue discussion. On Wednesday’s committee agenda of the Shelby County Commission is a call for open discussion of the future of the Economic Development Growth Engine (EDGE), which guides industrial and business expansion and awards economic incentives toward that end.

Republican member Steve Basar, chair of the commission’s economic development committee and the commission’s ex officio member of the 11-member EDGE board, placed the discussion item. Basar said he heard “rumblings” of discontent about EDGE on the commission, including possible calls for the board’s abolition, and, as an EDGE supporter, wanted to address it.

Much of the discontent was an adverse reaction to the EDGE board’s recent decisions on PILOTs (payment-in-lieu-of-taxes), but Basar said only minor modifications were needed.

Categories
Politics Politics Beat Blog

Haslam Makes the Case for “Insure Tennessee’ as the Special Session Begins

CREDIT: JB

JB

Governor Haslam opening the special session

NASHVILLE — The special session of the Tennessee General Assembly devoted to Governor Bill Haslam’s “Insure
Tennessee” plan has begun, and — Haslam being Haslam, a man of soft persuasion rather than fustian and bombast — the state’s chief executive artfully pitched an appeal that was simultaneously above partisan politics and designed to address what have been the main sticking points among GOP legislators.

The Governor dutifully paid lip service to Republican talking points, loosing his own shots at what he consistently called “Obamacare” but taking pains to distinguish his own plan from the superstructure of the Affordable Care Act.

Haslam gave an explanation for why in 2013 he had rejected the opportunity to expand Medicaid (TennCare in Tennessee) — an expansion that would have allowed the state to avail itself of something like $1.5 billion annually, money which the state’s hospitals, charged with caring for indigent patients, contended they desperately needed.

He hadn’t accepted expansion then, the Governor said, because “expanding a broken program doesn’t make sense.” He went on: “But I also didn’t think that flat out saying no to accepting federal dollars that Tennesseans are paying for, that are going to other states, and that could cover more Tennesseans who truly need our help, I didn’t think that made much sense either.”

Accordingly , he said, he decided to provide his own example of how a governmental health-care plan should work, spending the time since that decision in 2013 to devise what he told the assembled legislators is a two-year pilot program that has incorporated free-market principles, both through an optional voucher component for use with private insurance plans and through requiring co-pays and modest premiums — “skin in the game” — of those new insurees who chose to go through TennCare.

Haslam pointed out that “Insure Tennessee” would add no new costs to the state budget, since the Tennessee Hospital Association had guaranteed to pay whatever additional costs would be incurred once the federal government, after two years. dropped its own subsidy from 100 percent to 90 percent.

If either the federal government or the Hospital Association proved unable to follow through as promised, or if the state in two years’ time merely decided “Insure Tennessee” wasn’t a good fit, the state had been assured by court decisions and the state Attorney General’s advice that it could discontinue the plan.

(Pointedly, the Governor, in giving the address, dropped this line from his prepared remarks: “I understand the concern, but I think it’s worthy of mention that the United States of
America has never missed a scheduled Medicaid payment.”)

As for the professed concern of “Insure Tennessee” skeptics regarding the pain of having to discontinue coverage for new insurees after two years, Haslam said, “If you gave your loved one an option – you can have health coverage now to address your very real need and with that the possibility that you might lose it in the future, or you could never have it – which would you choose? If you think about your loved one, I bet the answer is simple.”

Ultimately, said Haslam, the state simply had an obligation to the unfortunate and the indigent, one based in commonly held spiritual precepts. “My faith doesn’t allow me to walk on the other side of the road and ignore a need that can be met – particularly in this case, when the need is Tennesseans who have life-threatening situations without access to health care.” 

Categories
Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

Ugly Mug Open House, other events

• Ugly Mug is holding an open house at its new East Memphis cafe on Thursday, February 5th, 6-8 p.m.

• The event will include free tastings of coffees and pastries that will soon be added to the menu. There will be live music as well as informal talks on coffee roasting.

On Saturday, February 7th, 7-10 p.m., at Memphis Made Brewing, it’s Half Pints for Half Pints, a fundraiser for the Peabody Elementary PTA. 

The event includes an auction, beer from Memphis Made, and food from Central BBQ, Sweet Grass, and Celtic Crossing. Tickets are $50 per person, $75 per couple. 

• Joe’s Wines & Liquors is hosting its annual Passport to Oregon on Thursday, February 19th, 4:30-7 p.m. at the University Club.

This year’s event will feature wines from Patricia Green Cellars and Grochau Cellars.

Tickets are $55 per person and can be purchased at Joe’s. 

 

Categories
Film/TV Film/TV/Etc. Blog

Robert Gordon Strikes Gold At Sundance

Memphis writer/director/producer Robert Gordon’s new project Best Of Enemies was sold to Magnolia Pictures and Participant Media today for a “high six-figure sum”. The documentary film, which was co-directed with Morgan Neville, whose last film 20 Feet From Stardom, won last year’s Academy Award for Best Documentary, premiered last Friday at the Sundance Film Festival. 

William F. Buckley and Gore Vidal square off in this still image from Best Of Enemies.

Best Of Enemies chronicles the series of debates between Gore Vidal and William F. Buckley staged by ABC during the 1968 Republican and Democratic conventions, which the film credits as kicking off the contemporary cable news shoutfest style of political programming. 

Reviews for the film by the cadre of industry professionals who descend on Park City, Utah every January have been nothing short of rapturous. The Hollywood Reporter‘s Todd McCarthy wrote “For American viewers of an intellectual/historical persuasion, there could scarcely be any documentary more enticing, scintillating and downright fascinating than Best of Enemies.” Writing for Variety, Joe Leydon says “Best of Enemies never gets heavy-handed while attempting to illustrate the true historical importance of what might still be viewed by many as nothing more than an obscure and eccentric bit of prime-time misadventure.” The Guardian‘s four-star review, written by Jordan Hoffman, says  “Directors Morgan Neville (20 Feet from Stardom) and Robert Gordon (Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story) have unearthed outstanding footage and interviewed many of today’s best thinkers for a juicy and thrilling documentary about two intellectual titans who truly loathed one another.” 

In addition to Gordon, who directed and produced, the film’s strong Memphis roots include editor Eileen Meyer, composer Jonathan Kirkscey, director of photography David Leonard, consulting producer Tom Graves, and production assistant Andrew Paisley. 

Magnolia Pictures and Participant Media will reportedly give Best Of Enemies a theatrical release sometime this year, with home video, television, and streaming deals to follow. You can watch a short interview with directors Gordon and Neville at CraveOnline.