No. 446: Making Better Dirt

Good morning, everyone.

Bill Lee just signed the bill cutting Nashville’s Metro Council in half. We’ll have more on that tomorrow, but first. . .

Yesterday, the Tennessee Holler "broke news" that Lt. Gov. Randy McNally had been liking a gay man's racy Instagram photos and writing wholesome comments on them. The news intended to point out the hypocrisy of McNally and his ilk, in line with last week's powder puff attack on Bill Lee.

At first, I was shocked. Then, as I investigated the matter further, that emotion settled into amusement. Though the Holler and Lookout seem determined to stick this on McNally and his GOP compatriots, it hasn’t found purchase. The man whose photos McNally was found guilty of commenting on vehemently defends him in the article and, admittedly, even if it’s all a bit creepy, the comments are weirdly endearing and could just as easily be blamed on his being nearly eighty years old (see for yourself).

His office’s response to the ordeal is even more entertaining. The release downplays the interactions and notes that assigning something sinister to a “great-great grandfather’s use of social media” to communicate with constituents is misguided, especially one who, as “anyone in Tennessee politics knows… is a prolific social media commentator” with “no intention of stopping.” It even adds, “Does he always use the appropriate emoji? Maybe not. But he enjoys interacting with constituents and Tennesseans of all religions, backgrounds and orientations on social media.”

This is either the best spin on potentially devastating news we’ve ever seen or the truth. Only time will tell.

What’s shoddy about this kind of journalism is that it implies something without explicitly proving it. In this instance, the implication is that McNally is gay, which may or may not be true. Judge for yourself. The Holler addresses this implication in their article, saying, “We don’t judge Randy for liking Franklyn’s pictures. In fact, we’re glad he does.” The hypocrisy is the problem, of course.

It’s all very weird.

Onward.

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From Geneva DeCobert

Every year as the weather is just beginning to warm, I start paying attention to my compost bucket. As someone who rents property, I can’t commit to an enormous pile, but a five-gallon bucket with some holes drilled into it can do enough for my needs. While composting is a science (and a slew of articles online will dump every detail of that on you) it doesn’t have to be daunting—you’re only decomposing things in a strategic way, and making sure they get enough air to avoid growing mold. People have been doing it forever, and you can commit as much or as little time as you please into your own compost pile.

The goal is simply to introduce organic matter to your soil in order to furnish it with nutrients. Many of the guides you read online about this promote composting methods that are more sophisticated and designed to expedite the breakdown process, but it can be as simple as throwing your orange peels into a patch of soil and raking some leaves over them.

When people talk about composting methods, they will mainly discuss two umbrellas under which the rest fall: cold and hot composting. These are exactly as they sound; hot compost will be in large piles that maintain a higher temperature of 110° to 160° Fahrenheit, and cold compost can be in much smaller piles with no specific temperature. While the hot stuff will prevent the growth of weeds and certain bacteria, it’s a lot more work to maintain and requires a large amount of space—bigger piles of at least three by three feet are needed to retain the right amount of heat. For those of us who have table scraps, dead leaves, and old paper but not enough space and time, cold compost is a great way to go.

All compost is made by layering up “browns” and “greens” at a ratio of about 2:1, but this can be fiddled with. Browns in your compost pile, like dead leaves, paper, and dried-out garden clippings, supply carbon to the mix. These provide food for your compost microorganisms, bulk up the mixture, and let air flow through—an important factor to avoid nasty fungi and mold. Greens like food scraps are more nitrogen-heavy, allowing microorganisms in the pile to multiply. These microorganisms are what will break your compost into a consistent mush that can be mixed into your soil.

❏ LICENSE PLATE READERS AND MORE

Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) officially flipped the switch on twenty-four automated license plate readers (ALPRs) this Monday. As part of the LPR pilot program approved by city council, these devices will automatically scan plates and run them against MNPD’s database to help further criminal investigations and improve the safety of Nashville’s neighborhoods.

According to WKRN, the new ALPRs already have “. . . 22 verified hits, one apprehension with a vehicle recovery, and one arrest with a vehicle recovery.” While this particular LPR pilot program in Nashville is new, the police department’s use of LPRs is not; this time, however, rather than mobile LPRs mounted on police cars, fixed LPRs attached to street lights in the public right of way will be used.

BLACKBURN PUTS BIDEN BUDGET ON BURN NOTICE  In her press release this morning, Senator Blackburn criticized the Biden administration’s proposed $2 trillion tax hike before outlining her own alternative budget proposal.

“The federal government can’t get enough of taxpayers’ hard-earned dollars,” the senator said . “This time around, President Biden’s plan is to increase taxes on business owners to fund his radical, socialist agenda.”

The proposal calls for up to 5 percent in budget cuts in each department for both 2024 and 2025, with exemptions for defense spending, homeland security spending, and veteran affairs discretionary spending.

PROTECT THE CHILDREN On Monday, the attorney general’s office filed a motion on Monday requesting TikTok, Inc.  fulfill a Request for Information (RFI) AG Skrmetti served to the company over a year ago. According to this press release, the AG’s office believes that “TikTok may be in violation of the State’s Consumer Protection statute by providing and promoting the use of its social media platform to minors, children, and young adults in Tennessee, and causing profound harms to these vulnerable users.”

It appears that the social media platform hasn’t just been dragging its feet during this process, but has also continued to delete internal messages pertinent to this request while turning in indecipherable evidence. Skrmetti’s office has requested “the court hold regularly scheduled status conferences regarding TikTok’s compliance with the RFI until the company fully discharges its obligations under Tennessee law.”

HEADLINES

Nashville Changes, Belle Meade Tries to Stay the Same (Scene) The future of Belle Meade Plaza rankles a city that cares about the past.

Gov. Lee signs bill slashing size of Nashville Metro Council (TNJ) The Senate voted 23-7 on Thursday to give final approval to the measure cutting the capital city’s legislative body from 40 members to 20. The House earlier in the week passed the bill on a 72-25 vote.

Bill To Close Tennessee Primaries And Stop Crossover Voting Fails In Committee (TCN) A bill giving the General Assembly a second chance this legislative session to heed the will of Tennessee voters regarding closing the state’s primaries failed in the House Local Government Committee yesterday.

Bills to take over Nashville airport, sports authority boards advance (Tennessean) Though neither of the bills specifically mention Nashville, the changes are tied to boards in counties with metro forms of government and populations over 500,000. Only Nashville would be affected by the legislation.

Tennessee tree owners' rights and responsibilities come to light after storm (Channel 5) Some people are still without power after last Friday's storm, and trees are to blame for a lot of the problems. Thousands of them were taken out by strong winds, which caused them to fall on homes, cars, and of course power lines.

DEVELOPMENT

• Midtown bar property sells for $7.25M (Post)
• State pays $4.3M for Radnor Lake-area site (Post)
• Atlanta chain taps Midtown for first Nashville locale (Post)

THINGS TO DO

View our calendar for the week here and our weekly film rundown here.

👨🏻‍🌾 Check out our Nashville farmer's market guide and our 2023 southern festival guide and 🎥 2023 movie guide.

🎧 On Spotify: Pamphleteer's Picks, a playlist of our favorite bands in town this week.

📅 Visit our On The Radar list to find upcoming events beyond this week around Nashville.

TONIGHT

🪕 Margo Price @ Ryman Auditorium, $35+, Info
+ Nashville-based singer-songwriter

🎸 Dylan Leblanc @ The Basement East, 8p, $20, Info
+ singer-songwriter influenced by the music of the Deep South

🎸 moe. @ Brooklyn Bowl, 8p, $30, Info
+ jam rock

🎸 Paul Burch & WPA Ballclub @ The Blue Room Nashville, 8p, $5, Info
+ esteemed American roots musician

🍀 Live Irish Music @ McNamara’s Irish Pub, 6p, Free, Info

🎸 Kelly’s Heroes @ Robert’s Western World, 6:30p, Free, Info

🎸 Open Mic @ Fox & Locke, 6:30p, Free, Info
+ vet community here