An Open Letter to Tony Basilio:
Dear Tony:
Tony, your Metro Pulse column on October 9, 2003, blasting my record on sports was the biggest boot since Buckner let that grounder go through his legs and cost the Red Sox the Series in 1986.
My administration has substantially improved park and recreational opportunities for all Knoxvillians across the entire city.
So, for you to say that sports has not been on my agenda ignores the more than $50 million invested in baseball and soccer fields, basketball and tennis courts, new parks and greenways in the 16 years of the Ashe Administration.
Under Sam Anderson's leadership, we have one of the best sports programs for a city the size of Knoxville in America. The Recreation Department has constantly looked at better ways to meet the recreational needs of the citizens it serves.
More than 25,000 children and adults participate in city-sponsored leagues for football, baseball, basketball and softball each year.
And remember, while we all are proud of our great National Parks Service, most people get to one only a couple of times in their lives.
The most important park is the one down the street from where you live. It's where you go to see your son or daughter's game, where you take the family for a picnic and where you go to work on a healthier lifestyle. That is where the city has concentrated its efforts, not building stadiums for "for profit" minor league sports.
While I favor historical preservation, I don't support your historical revision in recounting the efforts of the city and the county to retain various minor league franchises. As I was in the meetings, and you weren't, let me say that we did most everything we could to keep the Cherokees in Knoxville...short of paying them city tax dollars to play here.
The math was simple, and I don't blame the Cherokee's owners for the decision they made. If the team had sold every ticket for every game in the Coliseum, it still could not have turned the corner financially in Knoxville. There were not enough seats in the Coliseum to generate enough revenue to cover the team's expenses. The facility in South Carolina had enough seats for them to make a move towards profitability, but I understand their attendance has suffered in the past couple of seasons.
And I did not hear a chorus of citizens calling for a new, larger arena to be constructed by the city for a "for profit" minor league hockey team.
As a matter of fact, when former Knox County Executive Tommy Schumpert held a public meeting to explore a location for a new baseball stadium for the Smokies off of Pellissippi Parkway, more than 400 angry residents attended in opposition to the plan.
Both the city and county leadership put hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars into the effort to find a suitable location for the team. There was not enough support for either the baseball or hockey to overcome the neighborhood opposition or the costly price tag to retain the teams.
As to Tony's lament that it would be nice to have the "Smokies playing in close proximity to the Old City," let me just say that the team's owners didn't want to stay at the Bill Meyer Stadium. From the beginning, the team wanted to be at an interstate interchange location and that is what it got.
The team owner's did not want to be anywhere near the old Bill Meyer Stadium location, a location that could have helped to stabilize some of the surrounding historic neighborhoods.
So, I think that the right decisions were made in the best interests of the taxpayers. I fully understand your right to disagree with these actions, but it is not an accurate statement to say that sports have suffered during my term in office. And the city voters returned me to the Mayor's Office twice after all of this had occurred.
Tony, you are a great radio personality and a great American, and I was even thinking of honoring you with a city street in your name. But, as a result of your column errors, I may have to yank you from the starting street-naming lineup.
Sincerely,
Victor Ashe
Take TDOT Out!
In 1986 I noticed TDOT camped out in Knoxville. A world traveler, I have known many places. The one thing prevalent my first Knoxville visit seventeen years ago was the dismal state of Knoxville's primary road system. TDOT had Knoxville paralyzed. It still does.
I moved here in 1993. The road system sucks still. The people in this town are great souls. I elected to come here and make this my home.
I count myself as a Knoxvillian. I have been here 10 years. I feel that I have the right to say this: TDOT, finish up and leave Knoxville. Victor Ashe is no longer your meal ticket. Victor is gone, hopefully, so are you. Finish up your pork barrel jobs and get out of our town.
Jerry Hubbard
Knoxville
Bring Back Cagle
Thank you for Barry Henderson's [Oct. 9] piece on Frank Cagle. I teach political science at UT, and while there is much my wife and I love about Knoxville, we find the range of talk radio here disappointing.
NPR is great, of course, but if you want to hear discussion of current issues weekdays between 9 and 4, WNOX is basically it, and for me Frank Cagle's show was the centerpiece of it. He has a bit of an axe to grind on some issues, and like Henderson, I don't agree with him on everything, but so what?
By contrast to a predictable windbag ideologue like Neal Boortz or Rush Limbaugh, he is basically fair and reasonable, and thus credible. His show was also interesting and fun: Having just moved to Knoxville a year ago, I'm still a beginner with local history and politics, and Cagle is very knowledgeable on both fronts. From the people he had on to the issues he discussed to the "Tennessee Trivia" contest, I always looked forward to his show.
If there's a petition to displace Boortz with Cagle, show me where to sign.
Martin Carcieri
Knoxville
Listen to Boortz More
Appreciate your article about the Neil Boortz program on WNOX. You asked at the end of your article who's listening? I am. As well as many others in the Knoxville area who are fed up with the left-wing rhetoric we continue to be subjected to in our local newspapers and national media.
The reason you don't care for Boortz is that he has been successful in generating a following. I never heard of you until he mentioned you on his program. You should feel honored!
Hopefully, your negative article on the Neil Boortz radio program will get a few more people to listen to him. He makes a lot of sense in what he says. I do not agree with everything the man says, but he gets us to look at things that we may or may not like about ourselves, and about our country. Perhaps that is why you seem to dislike him so much.
I go to a local church, and I do not always like what the preacher says. But I agree with the message. Maybe you should listen to Boortz more often. He may have a positive impact on your view of our country. Yours seems to be very negative.
Mike Fisher
Knoxville
Not Listening in Missouri
Barry Henderson, (in Knoxville's Metro Pulse) pretty much writes that the Neal Boortz show now on www.newstalk99.com News Talk 99 WNOX is a complete waste of time. I would almost have to agree with him as I live in the Kansas City area, and we don't get his show, so I have to park my rear at my computer for hours to catch his every word.
If only I had a decent radio station that would air his show so I could clean house, jog or garden in the morning while listening. I guess this means not only is Neal's show not worth listening to, he is responsible for my lousy housekeeping and weight gain. Barry, I suspect that no one is listening to you.
I recommend that Barry closely monitor the IQs of the area residents and if found to be increasing, do what ever it takes to make sure that you run Boortz off the air, because if people wise up they may demand a columnist with more substance for their local newspaper.
Iris Lillie Fields
Lee's Summit, Mo.
There are Boortz Fans
The basic principle of talk radio is to be interesting, informative and entertaining. Neal Boortz has been doing this for 30 plus years with insight that you can't/don't appreciate.
We have enjoyed listening to Neal for a few years locally. Frankly, we were thrilled that he was promoted to a clearer and stronger station in the Knoxville market.
I know that you were the cheerleader for a local talent, Mr.
Henderson....but the show was a big yawn. I may be the only person in this area that is a fan of Neal's, but I remain a new listener to a "different" station.
William H. Stoneman
Kingston, Tenn.
Let Boortz Be Boortz
In agreement with both Mr. Boortz and Mr. Cagle, I believe the scope of government should be as limited as is practically possible. I believe I'm better able to make decisions concerning my own life than the government. Obviously, government has a place in our lives, but must be viewed with extreme scrutiny because the ability of it to cause harm rather than help is also extreme.
Don't let Mr. [Neal] Boortz get under your skin. He's often tough to take, my wife can't take even a second of his spiel; but he often gets it right as well.
If I had the chance to tell him myself, the one criticism I would like to tell him would be that his solution is too often to just pack up and go.
Regarding public (government schools, as he puts it) schools, his solution is to put your kid in private school rather than making the public schools do a better job. Though I also believe that public schools in Georgia are often so bad that they may be beyond helping. Of course that's a conversation in itself.
Another example would be his decision to move out of Atlanta because Atlanta taxes its residents heavily and doesn't seem to much back in return. Strangely enough, his personal desire to have a short commute was enough to get him back in the city over his political reluctance.
You make some good points, but I still believe Boortz is worth a listen. He makes a lot of sense at times too. If you're willing to give him another listen with an open ear, I imagine you'll find that Boortz and Cagle are actually quite close in viewpoint. The difference I'm betting can be summed up as: Boortz is an insensitive smart-ass while Cagle is a gentleman in the mode of [Lewis] Grizzard. Thus Cagle's viewpoints are easier to swallow, as they are dished out with just a touch of honey to help them go down.
Jeffrey Whelchel
Newnan, Ga.
There's More, Too
Editor's Note: Most of the fun letters on the column decrying the end of the daily Frank Cagle show and deriding the Neal Boortz show couldn't be verified or came in unsigned. Here's a sampling—
From Fred in Atlanta: "You appear to be another mindless, irrelevant, liberal shit-for-brains hack on a word processor. Boortz is going to tear your balls off (er...assuming you have any balls...)."
From Robert, somewhere in Tennessee: "Yes, Mr. Henderson, I am listening. Everyday from 8:30 to 1. However, I must say I have never read your little paper. I don't believe that you know a thing about Libertarism[sic]. Have a nice day."
From Tom in Roswell, Ga.: "What's wrong Barry? Scared of logic? Reason? I've read some of your stuff, and you sound every bit a leftist to me....And where is your banter carried? I doubt anyone north of Norris, south of Loudon, west of Oak Ridge and east of Sevierville has ever heard of you."
From DOCH on the Internet: "Barry Henderson, the ultra-liberal, socialist douche bag that has become so "Clintonized" that he no longer knows right from wrong! That's the main trouble with "Lib's" is that they want tolerance, but they have none for anyone who doesn't believe they way they do..... Maybe Henderson will turn to the Muslim religion, and then he can move to the Middle East and help with the downfall of the U.S., these are exactly the type of mush-mined[sic] Americans that are welcomed in these countries!"
From Shain.o on the Internet: "I read your review of the Neal Boortz Show...where have you been living?... your comments only go to show how truly afraid you are of logic and common sense.... I hope for your children's sake that your genes don't compromise their ability to live normal healthy lives..."
From Rich in Naples, Fla.: "You point out jerk-off reactions well, as is understandable, since it perfectly embodies your reaction to the Neal Boortz radio show. Typical left-wing knee-jerk reaction, no specific points of disagreement, nothing of substance..."
And...: "Yes Barry, we are listening. and we hear your desperate cries as your political agendas are exposed. You don't have any fresh ideas so you can only make these pathetic attempts at mudslinging and defamation. I'm sure Neal appreciates the free advertising! I'm sure Lewis Grizzard liked Neal much better!
Signed, the aware masses"
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