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Seven Days

Wednesday, April 3
The AP reports that even Americans themselves say they are rude.
Yeah, well...hey, bite us, AP.
It's confirmed that Pat Summitt is to be a consultant to Washington's Mystics. Will she read their palms, or what?

Thursday, April 4
Knoxville's Police Advisory and Review Committee releases a report saying the chief citizen complaint against Knoxville police is that they are rude. Maybe KPD should start hiring non-Americans.
UT's team of students wins the TVA Investment Challenge by showing a return of more than 24 percent for 2001 on their portfolio. Merrill Lynch and Hilliard Lyons chiefs order orange ties for all their brokers.

Friday, April 5
The News-Sentinel catches up with the fad resurgence of head shops around town. Now that they've noticed, we assume their reporters will soon be issued love beads to fit in with the "scene."

Monday, April 8
President Bush makes a stirring speech here on vigilant...er...volunteerism, hyping Knoxville's Citizens Police Academy. Each member of the overflow crowd at the Civic Coliseum is issued a blue light for his or her automobile.

Tuesday, April 9
The state Senate braces to hear arguments that colorful "hair wrapping" practices with beads and ribbons at Dollywood should be banned. Opponents of the practice are apparently limited to licensed, incensed hair dressers who complain that it's an unsanitary and risky business. One senator is heard muttering that the hair lobby's argument is "lousy."

Knoxville Found

(Click photo for larger image)

What is this? Every week in "Knoxville Found," we'll print the photo of a local curiosity. If you're the first person to correctly identify this oddity, you'll win a special prize plucked from the desk of the editor (keep in mind that the editor hasn't cleaned his desk in five years). E-mail your guesses, or send 'em to "Knoxville Found" c/o Metro Pulse, 505 Market St., Suite 300, Knoxville, TN 37902.

Last Week's Photo:
Sarah Cates knew that this birdhouse is perched on a telephone pole along Northshore Drive near Union Jack's. For her perspicuity, Sarah will receive a book of short stories by Kevin Brockmeier, Things That Fall from the Sky, which has a very attractive cover design.

Sarah didn't mention the story behind the house, which Dan DeRidder, who put the house in place, explains: "Yes, I know what it is and where it is because I put it there! I'm a carpenter and use my scrap wood to make bluebird houses for a little extra money...[One day] I got the bright idea of hanging a birdhouse up where all the traffic stops" as an advertisement. Unfortunately for Dan, the "permanent" magic marker he used to write on it didn't resist our recent rains. Dan would like it known that the house was advertising "Bluebird houses, 2 for $15." Call Dan at 281-0745 for more info.

Meet Your City
A calendar of upcoming public meetings you should attend

METROPOLITAN PLANNING COMMISSION
Thursday April 11
1:30 p.m.
City County Bldg.
400 Main Ave.
Monthly meeting. Agenda items include proposed historic overlays for two buildings on Union Avenue and the old Knoxville High School.

JAMES WHITE PARKWAY TASK FORCE
Thursday April 11
4 p.m.
South Knoxville Baptist Church
522 Sevier Avenue
First meeting of the group reviewing the pros and cons of completing the James White Parkway extension in South Knoxville.

KNOX COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION
Friday April 12
11 a.m.
Andrew Johnson Bldg.
Board Room, 1st floor
912 South Gay Street
On the agenda: a proposal for a possible compromise between the school board and the County Commission.

TVA WORKSHOP
Saturday April 13
10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Anderson County High School
Clinton, Tennessee
Workshop to hear public comments on TVA's reservoir operating policies.

KNOXVILLE CITY COUNCIL
Tuesday April 16
7 p.m.
City County Bldg.
Main Assembly Room
400 Main Ave.
Regularly scheduled meeting. Council is expected to discuss proposed historic overlay zoning for the Coughlin/J. Allen Smith house adjacent to Cherokee Country Club.

Cycling through Election Changes

Where are Council's lines drawn on changing the election cycle?

Following low voter turnout in last fall's City Council primaries, Mayor Victor Ashe advocated moving the city's current election cycle to coincide with state and national elections. He followed up by introducing the idea in City Council on October 18, 2001 to amend the City Charter to provide just such a change.

The ordinance reads, "Shall the Charter of the City of Knoxville be amended so as to change the time for elections and to change the terms of the office for the Mayor, the Municipal Judge, and members of City Council, all as more fully set forth in Ordinance No. 0-366-01 of the City of Knoxville as duly published?" The proposal passed 6-2, meaning the amendment referendum will be on the ballot in the county general elections this August.

But many of the Council members who have taken office since are concerned about the change, and the debate looks to get spirited as the vote approaches. It's even possible the issue could be taken off the ballot, if two-thirds of the current Council decides to revisit it.

In previous statements, those in favor of the change cited cost savings to taxpayers (because it would mean advertising elections and deploying voting machines less often) and increased voter turnout as benefits of the move. Those opposed are not convinced that actual savings will be substantial, worry that local issues and candidates will get lost among state and national elections and have concerns over the nonpartisan city elections getting mixed in with the sometimes vociferously partisan state and national politics.

For their part, Council members seem to be standing pat on their previous positions. Councilman Ed Shouse, who voted for the resolution in October, says, "It's very simple math to me. Do you want 40-50 percent turnout or 12-13 percent turnout? People can try to twist and turn that, but that's the way it's been for the last several years." Larry Cox, who also voted in favor of the amendment, replies in a similar vein. "I am hoping that we'll get more people involved in the election process. I thought it was well worth a try."

Freshman Councilman Joe Hultquist, who is well-known to be an opponent of changing the election cycle says, "I spoke recently to the League of Women Voters on this issue, speaking as someone opposed to the change. Dennis Francis [a former Election Commission chairman in favor of the change] said, 'Having elections on off-years is expensive.' I said, 'Democracy is expensive,' a point President Bush made in his speech [Monday]." Hultquist goes on to note that, "the city will still have to pay a portion of the cost." He sums up his opinion with, "It's a bad idea."

Steve Hall, another newcomer to Council who is opposed to the change, focuses on the potential for overlooking local issues. "I think we wouldn't get any attention. City issues would just be lost." Rob Frost, new Councilman for the 4th District, points out more potential drawbacks to the change. He worries that it "might increase the power of incumbency." And although he acknowledges it could have the desired effect of increasing voter turnout, he also says, "[P]eople have a finite amount of time to study the issues. If local elections occur at the same time as state and national elections, people will have the same finite amount time to study the issues, but there will be more issues to study. It will be the same pie, but divvied up into smaller slices." Frost notes that the same will be true of people's financial contributions to local campaigns. "People are more interested in national elections than in local ones, even though the local ones will have a more immediate impact on their lives."

Although Councilman-At-Large Nick Pavlis abstained on the original vote, he voices similar concerns about the potential negative effects of an election cycle change: "I don't think local elections can compete with national and state elections from a financial standpoint, from a volunteerism standpoint, from a media standpoint—everybody wants to be involved in the big 'important' races, right?"

Barbara Pelot, freshman representative for the 2nd District, makes no bones about her dislike for the proposed change. She says there are three main reasons that the cycle should not be moved: Leaving the cycle as is keeps city elections nonpartisan, allows adequate media coverage of local issues and candidates and avoids having local candidates compete with national ones for campaign dollars. "Given these three reasons," Pelot states, "there is absolutely no reason to change. I feel very, very strongly about this. I am so disappointed that this was taken up before we—the new Council members—took office. It should have been left to us."

New 1st District Councilman Mark Brown (also a former Election Commission chairman) says, "Issues that are voted on by City Council are very important to the community, and the current election cycle...allows the citizens to fully focus on those issues. There is a potential danger that moving the election cycle could [allow] those issues to be lost among the federal and state elections." But Brown adds, "While I recognize that City Council is elected to represent the citizens and to do the people's business, sometimes the best gauge of a vote is to let it go to the people."

Neither Mayor Ashe or Vice Mayor Jack Sharp returned calls to their offices, but Ashe clearly wants the change. Sharp has previously supported the move, saying, "I hope this will do something to create more interest in the elections. I'm willing to try it to improve turnout and participation." However, he added, "[I]f changing the election cycle doesn't fix the problem, I'll be the first to say we should change it back."

If six Council members decide that they can't abide the proposed amendment, they could bring it up again in City Council and propose another ordinance to negate the amendment. How will it all shake out? To quote from a message about this issue that Mayor Ashe posted October 15, 2001, to the on-line discussion forum k2k, "[L]et democracy prevail...let the debate begin..."

—Scott McNutt

Kaballah Comes to Knoxville

A scholar explores this mystical philosophy this weekend

In an age when people tend to learn about Jewish mysticism from Madonna rather than Moses, an accomplished Kabbalah teacher and scholar plans to bring his teachings to Knoxville.

Warren Kenton, who writes books under the Hebrew name Z'ev ben Shimon Halevi, has studied Kabbalah for more than 30 years and has written 12 books, which have been translated into 14 languages. He is director of tutors for the Kabbalah Society, an international organization.

Kenton describes Kabbalah as a method of searching for the principles of existence, an effort to dig beneath the surface layer of Judaism's texts for a deeper understanding of God and the human condition. He says the universe is God's mirror, and we are his reflections. "God should behold God," he says, by way of explaining the Kabbalistic philosophy.

Kabbalists use a diagram called the Etz Chaim, or Tree of Life, to depict the forces of Creation and the 10 Sefirot, or aspects of God. The Etz Chaim also describes the four worlds that comprise the universe: emanation, creation, formation and action. Practitioners use meditation and mental exercises to rise up through the worlds and reach greater spiritual understanding. "We turn the diagrams into experience... Kabbalah is about real life," Kenton says.

He says the truth about Kabbalah comes as a revelation to many. Some are surprised to learn Kabbalah can be an intellectual enterprise, and magical or superstitious practices are actually extrinsic to Kabbalah. Others, especially those born into the Jewish faith, are just as surprised to realize the religion of their forefathers offers the same opportunities for spiritual elevation as Buddhism, Hinduism or other Eastern faiths. "You mean we have this mystical tradition?" Kenton says he often hears Jews exclaim in surprise.

While Kenton says people should pursue mysticism within the religion of their upbringing, he also welcomes members of all faiths to explore Kabbalah. He recently taught in Japan to adherents of Shinto, and has led groups in Mexico, Brazil, Australia and Europe.

Rabbi Joseph Mendelsohn of Knoxville's Heska Amuna synagogue says Kabbalah should be understood within the rich fabric of Jewish experience. "If you only look at Kabbalah and say, 'that is the true Judaism,' you'd be missing out on what we as Jews are in the 21st century," Mendelsohn says. "What Judaism is on a practical level, especially in Knoxville, Tennessee, is a communal religion."

Because an appreciation of Jewish mysticism depends on a knowledge of Judaism's practical side, Mendelsohn says, non-Jews would probably not truly understand Kabbalah.

Kenton's Kabbalah Society focuses on the Toledano branch of Kabbalah, which boasts a history of embracing diversity. The Toledano tradition began in 13th-century Spain, where Christians, Jews and Muslims met at Toledo in the spirit of intellectual inquiry. The British-born Kenton lives in London, but Kenton himself embodies the confluence of different nationalities, cultures and mentalities of Toledano Kabbalah: His heritage is equal parts Sephardic (Jews of the Middle East or Mediterranean regions) and Ashkenazic (Jews of Eastern Europe).

Knoxville has remained largely untouched by the recent Kabbalah resurgence, so a local enthusiast paid her own money to bring Kenton to the Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel April 12 to 14. Kenton will open the weekend with an evening lecture and slide presentation on the origins and tenets of Kabbalah. Saturday and Sunday's all-day sessions will combine a discussion of Biblical allegory with conscious imagination to help Kabbalah neophytes begin their journeys. Program costs are $25 for April 12, $85 for either April 13 or 14 and $150 for the whole weekend. Those interested in attending should call 450-3166. More information about Kabbalah and the Toledano tradition is available at www.kabbalahsociety.org.

—Tamar Wilner