No. 245: May Primary Day

Good morning, everyone.

The big news nationally is the draft leaked from the SCOTUS showing the court's intent to overturn Roe v. Wade which furnished constitutional protections for abortion access. If you happen to witness another man bemoaning the decision, just walk away. A simple "hope she hears this, bro" will suffice. That people invest their spiritual and emotional energies in protecting the right of women to abort a child is one of the great indicators that, at some point in the past 60 years, we veered far from the path.

In other news, it's the last day you can vote in Davidson County's May primary elections.

• If you're wondering where you need to go, look up your address here.
• We put together a voting guide to help you out. You can access that here.

And finally, we're moving our Bar Hours to once a month. We'll hold it at the same spot but do so on the last Thursday of every month. Our next Bar Hours will be on May 26th. Pencil it into your calendar.

Today, we look at how the SCOTUS ruling would affect Tennessee, note the stakes of today's US Senate primary in Ohio, gander again at the pulpy drama in British Parliament, and reflect on The Northman.

You can follow us on Twitter (@realpamphleteer), LinkedIn (@realpamphleteer), or Instagram (@realpamphleteer) for additional content.

Thanks for reading.

➥ WHAT REPEALING ROE V. WADE MEANS FOR TENNESSEE

The entire country is abuzz about the leaked documents reported on by Politico that point to the overturn of Roe v. Wade. The reversal would kick the abortion issue back to the states.

TENNESSEANS MIGHT BE IN FOR A SURPRISE

Back in 2019, a Fetal Heartbeat bill was filed and passed by the Tennessee State legislature that will effectively make abortion illegal in Tennesee if courts will uphold it as Constitutional. Until now, the Supreme Court Ruling of Roe v. Wade prevented the bill from taking effect. If the overturn of Roe v. Wade occurs, it will shake things up in Tennessee.

POLITICIANS NOT MISSING A BEAT

District Attorney Glenn Funk took the opportunity to sound off about the issue as we head into the primary election today that will determine his future as Nashville’s DA.

Here’s what he had to say:

On September 24, 2020, I stated the following:

‘With regard to reproductive issues, the criminal law must not be used by the State to exercise control over a woman’s body. As long as I am the elected District Attorney for the 20th Judicial District, I will not prosecute any woman who chooses to have a medical procedure to terminate a pregnancy or any medical doctor who performs this procedure at the request of their patient.’

It has now been reported that the Supreme Court is on the verge of taking away the reproductive and health care rights of women. I am appalled that this assault on a woman's personal health decision is in jeopardy. I stand by my prior statement.

〶 IN OTHER NEWS...

The Metro City Council Meeting will be held on Thursday instead of Tuesday this week.

WORTH NOTING

• Metro City Council Member Freddie O’Connell announced his bid for Nashville’s 2023 Mayoral race. O’Connell has represented District 19 since 2015. Mayor Cooper has yet to announce if he will be running for a second term, though his State of Metro Address last week sounded very similar to his original campaign platform.
• Metro City Council has been granted the ability to raise the hotel-motel tax by 1%. This is part of the rushed funding plan for the new Nashville Covered Stadium build.

PERSPECTIVES

• ⭐️ Crime in Nashville isn't at an "all-time high" (Public Comment) There’s plenty of coverage out there about the candidates, but what I want to focus on is a strategy being employed by candidate Sara Beth Myers. It boils down to, “Crime is skyrocketing, and incumbent DA Glenn Funk is not doing a damn thing to keep you safe.”

HEADLINES

• TDOT announces pothole repair and prevention plan (Main Street) Most of the work is being done at night to reduce the impact on traffic. This program is in addition to the regularly scheduled resurfacing projects and maintenance of patching potholes across the state.
• Chief Drake Announces Appointment of 2 New Deputy Chiefs and 8 New Appointments and Promotions (nashville.gov) The deputy chief vacancies were created by the retirements of Kay Lokey after 25 years of service, and Chris Taylor after 30 years of service.
• Executions in Tennessee paused through 2022 as Lee calls for independent review of lethal injections (Channel 5) On April 21, Gov. Lee issued a last-minute temporary reprieve in the hour before Oscar Franklin Smith was set to be executed.
• Austin Peay students feel effects of ransomware attack during final exams (Tennessean) Because of the attack, final exams on Friday were canceled and, according to the Austin Peay website, faculty would determine grades based on coursework to this point or students could elect to receive an "incomplete."

POLITICS

• Maury County Mayor Andy Ogles Wins Marshall County GOP Straw Poll (TCN) The poll for the newly drawn district was conducted on Thursday, April 28 at the group’s annual fundraising dinner. Kurt Winstead came in second, Robby Starbuck third, and Beth Harwell fourth.
• Mayor Cooper slots chamber contract, dozens of hires and new initiatives into $2.97B budget proposal (NBJ) A final budget vote will occur in mid-to late-June.
• TN Legislature Reaches Agreement On Campaign Finance Reporting Bill (TCN) A highly debated portion of the bill will require nonprofits to report expenses of more than $5,000 spent on communications with the image or name of candidates on them in the final 60 days before an election.

DEVELOPMENT

• Mixed-Use Development Planned Across From The Mall At Green Hills (Now Next)
• Berry Hill building home to legendary clothier sells (Post)
• Wedgewood-Houston building sells for $3.35M (Post)
• Stocking 51 mixed-use project sells for nearly $50M (NBJ)

➫ OHIO'S SENATORIAL PRIMARY

Nationally, everyone's eyes are on Ohio as JD Vance faces off against Josh Mandel to claim the GOP ticket in their run to replace the retiring Rob Portman. After leading in polls for much of the race, Mandel took a blow when Vance received the almighty Trump endorsement. Since then, Vance has consistently polled higher.

At a rally on Sunday in Nebraska, Trump hilariously mixed up the names of Mandel and Vance. "We've endorsed Dr. Oz. We've endorsed JP, right? JD Mandel, and he's doing great. They're all doing good," Trump said.

Trump has endorsed 144 different candidates heading into the first mid-term election since he left office. Today's primaries are an opening salvo to see whether the Trump stamp of approval holds water. Something to keep an eye on.

✹ THE GINGER GROWLER SHOWS HER HAND

We've had something of a passing fascination with the pulpy drama coursing through British Parliament. We wrote about it last Thursday and yesterday if you want to catch up. In short, it involves Members of Parliament (MP) watching porn in the House of Commons, accusations of misogyny, and the revelation that one MP sexually assaulted a 15-year-old boy. It's bad over there and people of every political disposition are calling for the inclusion of more women in British politics as a solution.

Competing with the aforementioned headlines, the notable and salacious accusation that Angela Rayner would pull a "Basic Instinct" when Parliament was in session to throw Boris Johnson off his stride took the cake. Rayner is a charismatic presence in British politics, all of 42-years-old and handsome, she cuts a fine figure as a kind of anti-politician politician similar in ways to Johnson. Once rumors of her gesture began to circulate, Rayner met the news with cries of "sexism" and "misogyny."

Well, as it turns out, Rayner herself was the one that started the rumor about discreetly revealing her 'ginger growler' (her words) to attract the wandering eye of the philandering Boris Johnson. Whether it worked or not is up for debate. What's clear though is that conversations around 'sexism' do not only apply to men.

↪ GRAPH OF THE DAY: ABORTION POST ROE

⚔ MISSIVES ⚔

• 🏆 The Supreme Court has voted to strike down the landmark Roe v. Wade decision, according to an initial draft majority opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito circulated inside the court and obtained by POLITICO.
• 🏛 The Supreme Court ruled on Monday that the city of Boston violated the First Amendment by refusing to fly a local organization’s Christian flag in front of city hall, though it had flown other groups’ flags.
• 🚙 Lyft and Uber said this week they will fully cover legal fees for their respective drivers who are sued under Oklahoma’s anticipated restrictive abortion law.
• 👀 The U.S. government disclosed that the FBI conducted as many as 3.4 million warrantless searches of U.S. citizens’ data last year that the National Security Agency had collected. The data was collected and analyzed under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act’s (FISA) Section 702, a law that dates to 1978 and that is set to expire at the end of next year.
• 🌎 The Wikimedia Foundation (WMF), the organization behind Wikipedia, has announced that it will no longer accept donations in cryptocurrency. In an update, the WMF says it “has decided to discontinue direct acceptance of cryptocurrency as a means of donating.” It also says it will close its Bitpay account, preventing any future contributions in crypto.

THINGS TO DO

View our full event calendar here.

🍺 The Pamphleteer hosts Bar Hours on the last Thursday of every month at Lucky's 3 Star Bar from 6-8 PM. The first ten guests get drinks on the company tab.

🎙 Hannah Juanita is playing two-steppin' music every Friday in April at Bobby's Idle Hour. Great show, she packs the place.

🎪 Check out our favorite driving distance festivals this summer.

👨🏻‍🌾 The Pamphleteer farmer's market guide

TONIGHT

🎸 Honky Tonk Tuesday @ American Legion Post 82, 5p, Free, Info‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌
+ Two-step lessons @ 7p, The Cowpokes @ 8p

🎺 Todd Day Wait @ The Underdog, 11:30p, Free, Info
‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌+ Honky Tonk Tuesday afterparty, down the street

GET ‘EM WHILE YOU CAN

🐷 Primus: a Farewell to Kings tour & Battles (5/9) @ The Ryman, 7:30p, $55+, Info

🥁 Gogol Bordello (5/21) @ Brooklyn Bowl, 8p, $33, Info

🎸 Boulevards (7/17) @ Basement East, 7p, $10, Info

⏚ TRANSMISSION FROM THE GROUND ⏚

Saw The Northman last night — the latest in Robert Eggers' series of throwbacks. It's very obviously the kind of movie we like around here. Cinematic sword fights with a twist of emotional denouement at the end of each blade is about as close as you'll get these days to gritting your teeth and howling at the moon as you lug around a sword and a shield to claim vengeance for the death of your father at the hand of his evil brother.

The story played with ideas of fate, kinship, vengeance, and hierarchy sprinkled over a tragic Norse folktale. In a sense, the movie is a perfect corollary to modern times. It portrays a nasty, brutish world in which gathering water has a spiritual component to it, the bloom of the stars beckons Valhalla, and the glow of the aurora borealis wakes you midsea after a thrashing storm. This is a world in which birds carry hidden messages, and a human heart is to kill for — foreign concepts in the modern world, obviously.

Today, we've figured everything out. War is politics by other means. Life without government is nasty brutish and short. Violence is, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), "the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened or actual, against oneself, another person, or against a group or community, which either results in or has a high likelihood of resulting in injury, death, psychological harm, maldevelopment, or deprivation." Definitions, answers, boundaries, and safety codes. No spirit. No God. A flat, dimensionless world.

So, yeah. No fairies or nymphs. No mysteries lie in the hills. Just some trees and bugs. Probably a rusted stove top too. The Northman is a great reminder to cultivate wonder. It's what separates us from the insects.

BE SURE TO CHECK OUT

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Our first, and hopefully last, awards honoring those who stood strong against the rising tide of Covid tyranny and ruthlessly mocking those that didn’t

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FROM THE ARCHIVE

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The Whole World In Its Hands

The Biden administration’s efforts to conserve America’s land and waterways are not what they seem

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Around the Web

❍ Can We Be Human in Meatspace? A new book asks whether the revolution against tech starts at home.

༆ The New Disinformationists We have seven more months before the midterms. Expect more disinformation ministries, censorious czars, and  hack grandees to emerge.

𖼥 The power of shit Our excrement is a natural, renewable and sustainable resource – if only we can overcome our visceral disgust of it

Political Theater Highlight Reel

1. Warren Buffet: "If you told me you own all of the Bitcoin in the world and you offered it to me for $25, I wouldn't take it."
2. USAID administrator Samantha Power says, "Never let a crisis go to waste" talking of the looming fertilizer shortage.

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Words of Wisdom

"To be deeply interested in the accidents of our existence, to enjoy keenly the mixed texture of human experience, rather leads a man to disregard precautions, and risk his neck against a straw. For surely the love of living is stronger in an Alpine climber roping over a peril, or a hunter riding merrily at a stiff fence, than in a creature who lives upon a diet and walks a measured distance in the interest of his constitution."

Robert Louis Stevenson

Today's newsletter is brought to you by Megan Podsiedlik (Nashville), Edward Landstreet (Local Noise), and Davis Hunt (everything else).