Table of Contents: March 1-March 7, 2012

COVER STORY

Red-State Blues
While we weren’t looking, Tennessee does seem to have become dyed in the wool as a “red state,” a state that votes Republican in presidential races every four years. For most of its history, Tennessee was never subjected to the finality of a political label. By the recent criteria defining a state’s color, Tennessee was often a “blue state” as recently as 1996. So what happened? And what does it mean for us? Jack Neely ponders our redness.

KNOX TRIAGE
What Knoxville Needs: More Art and Cityscapes With Salad
Quote of the Week: "We've reimagined Tennessee Shines...."
Knox Found Online: Look Out, Molly
Street Talk: Q&A: Mary Lynne Bell, co-resident manager of the Sam Houston Historic Schoolhouse

NEWS & VIEWS

Citybeat

Planning It All Out
When Plan East Tennessee—PlanET for short—kicked off last October, the three-year regional planning initiative for Anderson, Blount, Knox, Loudon, and Union Counties drew comparisons in some places to the vague agenda launched by Envision Knoxville at the same time. Both are envisioning processes looking to better the community in as-yet unspecified ways. But as Cari Wade Gervin finds, PlanET’s planners are taking it very seriously.

Ear to the Ground
Popcorn Sutton gets even more famous, Vanderbilt Brabson IV may toss his hat in the ring, a previous downtown brush with Walmart, and more mysterious white powders at legislators’ offices.

Secret History
Jack Neely fills us in on a London crime scene, Knoxville Gray, our almost-superlative statue, and a chronic building-naming dilemma.

Frank Talk
Frank Cagle wonders what kind of boss Mitt Romney is to his staff.

Olive in Wonderville
Olive J. Keith visits her late father's friends.

Thrift Store Finds
Anthony Nownes recalls the one hit of one-hit-wonders Ram Jam.

GAMUT: ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Music: On Tour
Heartless Bastards

Music: Local Heroes
The Mutations

Eye on the Scene
Count This Penny come back to town, and Music Voyager gets a local air date.

Theatre: Backstage
Black Pearl Sings

Books: Pulp
The Guardians

Video Games: Digital Hackery
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning

Movies
Act of Valor

Guest Speaker
Novelist Christopher Hebert

Artbeat
KMA's Liquid Light

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