News Briefly
Lamar takes a punch
The Wall Street Journal, which probably runs the country, slammed Tennessee Sen. Lamar Alexander in its lead editorial Tuesday for supporting a measure that would allow states to tax Internet access. The newspaper, along with the pro-business Bush administration, wants to permanently ban taxing Internet access. But because of his years as a governor, Alexander argues the federal government has no right to tell states what they can tax. To him, it's all about state's rights. A Republican, Alexander has taken a number of positions that differ from the Bush administration.
Fresh orange
The University of Tennessee's new president is generally getting good reviews, although it won't take much to exceed his predecessors'. John Petersen, formerly chancellor and provost for university affairs at the University of Connecticut, spent his first few days on the job touring UT's facilities across the state, which he promptly labeled first-rate. If he seems a rather sunny fellow, you're probably correct. Petersen's first job will be to clean up the image problem at UT, which has been tarnished by sexual scandal and outrageous spending.
Cool off the CMM
Just about every runner struggled to make it through the fifth annual Country Music Marathon and Half Marathon on Saturday, battling sweltering temperatures, oppressive humidity and a revamped course that's flatter but uglier. Some runners finished 30 minutes slower than their projected times while even the top Kenyans lagged well off their pace. As long as the marathon is run in late April, this scenario will continue to play out and the Country Music Marathon will struggle to keep runners coming back for more. And then there's the not-so-baseless fear that one of these days, someone is going to die out there after logging too many miles in the heat. So here's a suggestion to the capable folks at Elite Racing, the for-profit company that organizes the race: Move the race up a month. Better yet, run it in October.
