What a Surprise

8/31/25 CNN:

"Billings, Montana

AP — 

A man suspected of killing four people at a Montana bar and evading capture for a week while hundreds of law enforcement officers searched for him in the nearby mountains faces four counts of murder, according to court records....

"Authorities have not commented on a potential motive for the 45-year-old former soldier. His niece has said Brown long struggled with mental illness."

U.S. v. Harrison (10th Cir. 2025)

Upheld ban on marijuana users (ever used) possession of firearms overturning district court. Cited article by me and Don Kates. 

They used Test Acts passed nearly contemporaneous to state RKBA provisions as evidence that persons potentially dangerous could be disarmed. What they neglected is that all these Test Acts were repealed almost immediately after the war. Some, such as Pennsylvania, only disarmed non-Associators to arm militia. North Carolina did not disarm of pistols and provided for disarming of anyone if arms were needed by militia. 

More Tennessee

July and August are hot and humid.  Not hot by Boise standards but both together are not so pleasant.   Of course in summer in Boise, I am uncomfortable outside except in the morning or after sunset.  This is no different.   I do feel like I am breathing cotton, perhaps because of allergic reaction.   Others in my family group are having similar reactions. This may be something my body learns to handle or become dependent on antihistamines. 

Bristol in the far northeastern tip of Tennessee is a nice little town with a cut late 19th century downtown.  There would seem to be nothing to create sky glow here.  Houses are much cheaper than not only Boise but even Johnson City.  This is in danger of being, "Buy two; they're cheap."

People are friendly in Bristol.  We walked across the street into Bristol, Virginia for barbecue and it was very good and not terribly expensive. 

Eastern Tennessee

Beautifully green.  No traffic.   People generally friendly.  Houses are far less expensive than Boise area.  I have some misgivings still about dark skies.  We have a quarter Moon tight now so I really have no idea how dark the sky is.

Lots of cute little towns with gobs of history and charm like Elizabethton.

Jonesborough is the oldest city in Tennessee.   Washington County courthouse. 

Once you subtract the murders and population of Tennessee's big cities (Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville, Chattanooga, and a couple of others), Tennessee's murder rate is only about 50% higher than Idaho. Rape, burglary, and aggravated assault rates are similarly higher.  Gun laws are generally similar to Idaho, so moving here will just mean carrying more consistently.

Gasoline is definitely cheaper: $2.44/gallon is typical.  Meals out are cheaper and obviously so.  Electricity is no cheaper. 

CO2 Storage in Permafrost

More precisely, the evidence shows thst permafrost assists in storing carbon in plants in less.  8/30/25 Phys.org:

"Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere vary naturally between ice ages and interglacial periods. A new study by researchers at the University of Gothenburg shows that an unexpectedly large proportion of carbon dioxide emissions after the ice age may have come from thawing permafrost."

If you look at long-term graphs of CO2 and global temperature, you often see temperatures rise before CO2 increases.  So CO2 may be the symptom not the cause. 

Nashville Honky Tonk Row

We walked down Nashville Honky Tonk Row.  I could only think of the Pottersville segment of It's a Wonderful Life.  Worldly, unhappy, and even more depraved.   Lots of police and security guards at 4:00 PM.  Every bar/restaurant blaring country music at high volume, overwhelming each other in a cacophony. 

A fair number of homeless/mental ill people.   A number of beggars, some with signs so vulgar that I can only euphemize them.  Carnal pleasure purchase "ain't cheap." 

I cannot imagine bringing your children there.

Made a Wrong Turn