People who had a way with words in the news last week:
“The board basically gave customers the middle finger by approving this dirty gas plant instead of commonsense, healthier renewable energy.”
— Jean Su, director of the Center for Biological Diversity’s energy justice program, on TVA’s decision to expand a natural gas plant in Memphis.
“CARTA is showing evidence of sound financial management. Doesn’t mean we don’t have challenges. The lack of an operational reserve continues to keep me up at night.”
— CARTA board Chair Johan de Nysschen on an internal audit of the transit authority as it enters its third year of new management hoping to reverse the stagnant state of public transportation.
“There’s a lot of substance (in the show episode). I really appreciated that. They wanted to go the extra mile to make sure they were really particular about details, really particular about the facts and everything. And that really said a lot to me about who he is and what he believed in.”
— Chef Kenyatta Ashford speaking about show host David Moscow and the episode they filmed together for the series “From Scratch,” which is streaming on Peacock.
“The more retail we can get down here, the more we can kind of make this a destination.”
— Tiffany Byram, owner of the Main Street clothing shop Orange You Glad, on making Chattanooga’s Southside a shopping destination
“Basically, the sheriff stopped by on Christmas Eve to present this ornament, add it to the tree, and they were expressing gratefulness and all those types of things, and I imagine that was done without thinking about how the public would perceive that or somebody who is interested in ethics might perceive that.”
— University of Tennessee at Chattanooga political science professor Marcus Mauldin discussing the possible issues with a Hamilton County agency posting pictures of the sheriff posing with reelection campaign merch.
“In my mind, it would be akin to an open heart surgery. That in itself would introduce some extra levels of stress.”
— Rome, Georgia, City Manager Sammy Rich on the difficulties the municipality would face if it tried to introduce the process of osmosis for removing forever chemicals at its existing water treatment plant. The city plans to build a new plant.
“It takes about two weeks to become effective, so the earlier you get it, the sooner you will be protected.”
— Lauren Hawkins, a registered nurse with the Hamilton County Health Department, reminding people that it is not too late to receive this season’s flu vaccine.
“These actions by those in power create an environment of widespread, long-term fear that affects not only people’s ability to live and work safely in their communities, but also erodes trust in law enforcement and undermines efforts to create genuine community public safety.”
— Spring Miller, senior legal strategy director at the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, on immigration enforcement efforts in Tennessee, which is among the national leaders in transferring people from jails into Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody.
“Accordingly, in these narrow circumstances, the government believes that the appropriate sentence for defendant is one year of probation with no special conditions and no fine.”
— A prosecution filing in support of former state Rep. Robin Smith’s request that her sentenced be reduced from eight months in prison after her codefendants in a corruption case received presidential pardons.
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