What A Sad Display

I attended the 8/27 County Commission meeting and I have to say that I am
sorry to the people of Knox County. I am particularly sorry to those citizens of
the 6th district that expressed their concerns and begged the commission to
re-evaluate the rezoning of the Wyndham Pointe community to build a place of
business inside their community gates. These residents of Wyndham Pointe were
laughed at by their commissioners (Lambert, and Cawood) and then the commission
stood by as if it were entertainment when the developer's attorney pushed one of the
residents out of his way and interupted him.
This commission, this county government has lost its ability to properly lead the
progress of Knox County and its people. It is time to clean house and we need to
start with the main assembly room of the city county building. The commission is
just as corrupt as the mayor's office ever was, if not more. I was embarrassed to be
there and witness such a sad display. We need the meetings to be in the evening so
more hard working people can be there to see what I saw.....oh wait....maybe thats why
the meetings are during the day in the first place, so we won't see what is going on.
VOTE THEM OUT!!!

Lumpy says "I'm Guilty"

I actually heard Greg "Lumpy" Lambert say three
very interesting things at the Powell Republican Club
meeting on 8/21/2007 and here they are:
Lumpy says
" I see us having a redo of the Jan 31st appointments in the near future"
" It (the redo) don't really make sense to me
because we will probably just appoint the same people"
" That day (Jan 31st) was one of the most uncomfortable
days of my life and I don't look forward to repeating it"
WOW!!!
I am just glad the law director John Owings was in attendance because Lumpy just
plead guilty to violating the Sunshine Law.
Let us look at these statements for a minute shall we.
The commission is expecting to give in to the News Sentinel,
because they will lose, not to save the county money
( we know they aren't concerned with that ). So, if they give in
and accept the redo, it is okay because they are just going to
appoint the same people they have in right now, so ha-ha KNS
they really tricked you. Hey Lumpy, if everything was
done the correct way and nobody pressured anyone to vote
for their choice replacement, why were you so uncomfortable?
"One of the most uncomfortable days of my life" you say. I can't
imagine that doing the right thing would make me so uncomfortable.
Maybe im just a little paranoid, but if I wasn't guilty, I don't
care what the cost, I wouldn't say I was.
I have more self-respect than that.
I also have small children that I would have to look in the eye and
explain myself to so maybe that is why I don't understand this whole mess.
Thank you for listening.

Powell Republican Club?

Mrs. Sharon Cawood and Greg "Lumpy" Lambert were the speakers
at the Powell Republican Club meeting last night, and what a treat it was.
I have grown to become ill at my stomach whenever I hear "Lumpy" say
"Your government is working the way it is supposed to" or " You only hear
the bad news because it is more interesting and that is what the media wants to
print". You know what Mr. Lambert when thousands of dollars are being squandered
by elected (appointed) officials because it has been happening for so long and they
don't know the difference, Government is not working they way it is supposed to!
Let me tell you one more thing, the media doesn't print the good stuff because
the citizens expect the good stuff, and deserve the good stuff. It would be like
the Sentinel printing that people drove their cars today, we expect that would happen.
They print "County Official's Stealing Taxpayer Money" because that is not supposed to
happen. I will take my hat off to Sharon Cawood, she has made a lot of friends in the
6th district both republican and democrat alike and spoke well on some Karns community issues. Good luck Sharon.

Who is at fault? We are!

Dear Voters,
In the News Sentinel today in the report on the oh so famous non-profit scandals
Commissioner Mike Hammond was reported as saying " we need to change the way we
do business ". I would like to submit that we need to change the people who are doing the
business. No offense Commissioner Hammond but it is time for change. The things that
are going on in Knox County government right now are leaving a lasting stain on what
should be a respectable position, of service to Knox County. I am running for County Commission district 6 Seat A and I hope that when I am elected in 2008 that the people will at least try not to associate me with this current group of commissioners. I really feel sorry for anyone in Knox County government that has any integrity and is trying to bring relief to the current situtation but you have difficult task at hand. VOTE THEM OUT!!!
VOTE IN FEB AND AUG 2008!!
VOTE MATTHEW JONES COUNTY COMMISSION DISTRICT 6 SEAT A.

Where does it end?

As I am sure most of you have already seen my favorite commissioner has made the front page of the paper again. Sharon Cawood has been pin-pointed for spending excessive amounts of taxpayer money on stationary. Come one people, we have to see what is going on. Someone came and set down in my office yesterday and said "well, good luck with the election, you know the Cawood's have a good name in the 6th district. It will be a tough one to win". We see what kind of power hungry officials we have been burdened with when they will insult our common sense by doing these things right in front of our faces. This will be the first of many times that you will hear me say this but, " I will take a poll at the end of my first term, and if the people of the 6th district are not happy with the job I have done, I will not run for re-election. Just give me a chance and VOTE THEM OUT for goodness sake.
VOTE MATTHEW JONES COUNTY COMMISSION DISTRICT 6 SEAT A

Hubert Smith Radio Show

I had the great honor of being a guest on the Hubert Smith Radio show this evening. I got the second hour of his show to talk about teen drug and alcohol abuse and treatment. I had such a good time on the show and Hubert is a wonderful host. I do look forward to going back on his show to continue this segment and hopefully have time to talk to some callers next time. We have so far to go and the fight against drug and alcohol abuse in our children is one of the toughest battles we will ever be faced with. This is a difficult battle because our enemies are everywhere and they look like everyone else. Our greatest weapons against drug and alcohol abuse are knowledge and communication. We have to make the business of our young people our business. We have to intrude on their lives and be active participants. Parents TALK TO YOUR CHILDREN and show them you are interested. We must realize that nationwide numbers show young people using drugs and alcohol is declining slowly, but the ages of these children are also declining. This is good and bad because at younger ages children are more impressionable negatively and positively, but at younger ages there is a better chance that those impressions will be made by us, their parents.

Tennessee Juvenile Court Services Association

The Tennessee Juvenile Court Services Association (TJCSA) held it's annual conference at the Sheraton Music City Hotel in Nashville this past week. I am a member of the TJCSA and I serve on the training committee. This association offers scholarships to young people all over the state and training in many different areas to those who work with the troubled youth of this state. Some of this year's training sessions included MySpace and our youth, growing up in gangs, common sexual deviances, progression of bipolar disorder in adolescents, signs and symptoms of sexual abuse, and many, many more training options. These conference meetings also allow a great opportunity to communicate with workers and judges from other courts in the state to learn new ways to work with youth and to give advice and encouragement to our professional peers who are doing a very difficult and rewarding job. I want to thank the TJCSA and all of its dedicated officers and all of the juvenile court staff in the state who help to make the lives of Tennessee's children better one child at a time. The next annual TJCSA conference will be in Knoxville at the Marriot downtown on August 10th through the 13th 2008. If you would like more information about the conference please visit tjcsa.com.

Convicts day out at the Powell Station Park

Me and my son Turner were enjoying the cool water fountains of the Powell Station Park today when all of a sudden a Sheriff's department truck with what appreared to be four plain clothed prisoners and one uniformed officer who was driving pulled into the park. The truck parked about 40 or 50 yards from the park and the four men ALONE approached the water park area where about 12 young children and several parents were sitting around the water. The prisoners began picking up trash and working on the facilities and of course looking at the women around the park in a very upsetting fashion. I began to notice that parents were pulling their children close to them and one lady was packing up her belongings and her three children and leaving. We were all very upset that the Sheriff's department would bring criminals of any kind into our neighborhood park. One lady even approached me and said " I was glad you were here because that officer would not have had time to get over here and help us if one of those guys did something". I took it upon myself to contact my father who is now a captain with the Sheriff's department and he said that those prisoners were very low level security concerns and some of them are only in for a couple of weeks. He did not see any merit in my concern so I will be taking this to a higher level. I will be taking this concern to the people because we should be the ones that they are responding to. You know we would probably be able to afford a few extra workers to clean and maintain our parks if our government officials would quit stealing our taxpayer's money. Once again, a change is coming. Vote Matthew Jones County Commission District 6 Seat A

School is in session$$$$

Wow!!
I am going to have to take out a second mortgage to send my daughter back to public school this year. I am a young parent and really haven't even thought about the cost of sending our children to school. If we have to pay school fees to cover books, and we have to buy our child's school supplies, and we have to pay to get them into clubs and other school activites, well why do we pay so much in taxes? I have an idea, maybe it is because our schools have to beg for money from our government because they are busy cushioning their own lifestyles. Let's try not spending thousands of dollars on fancy dinners and vacations for "political dignitaries"and instead look at how we can quit wrenching our community's hard working parents for every little cent that you power hungry gold diggers can get your hands on. Don't worry, a change is coming. VOTE THEM OUT!!
THE COUNTY GENERAL ELECTIONS WILL BE HELD IN AUGUST OF 2008
VOTE MATTHEW JONES COUNTY COMMISSION DISTRICT 6 SEAT A