Fred Thompson Looking Like A Likely Candidate

Some who read my blog are maybe curious as to why I haven't talked about former Tennessee Senator Fred Thompson considering a run for the Presidency. I guess I just haven't gotten around to it yet.

I believe Mr. Thompson will announce a run this summer. This article I read yesterday on WorldNetDaily enforces that so much more. It reports that his wife, who is a political consultant, is encouraging him to run. That makes a run much more likely. If you listen to him when he fills in for Paul Harvey on the radio, his commentary sounds like it points strongly towards a run. One gentleman I know from Tennessee Tech University says, "It's not a matter of if Fred runs, It's a matter of when he announces."

Down here, the Tennessee GOP seems thrilled about the possibility. WorldNetDaily reported that in this article. Three of the "Volunteer State's" four GOP congressmen are already working to draft him. Former GOP Senators Bill Frist and Howard Baker, both of Tennessee, are working to get him to run, as is state Lt. Governor Ron Ramsey, who is the first GOP to serve in that position in this state in history. Forty congressmen are believed to be excited about the prospect, as are countless voters across the country.

I am not planning on working for Thompson in the primaries in the event that he runs, because I have thrown my endorsement and support to Colorado Congressman Tom Tancredo. I am working to get Tancredo support as well. However, in the event that Thompson would win the nomination, I plan to work to get him elected. I cannot see myself doing that for Giuliani, McCain, Romney, or Huckabee. I may do that for Brownback, but I still have major questions there.

Keep your eyes on Fred over the next few months.


Draft Fred Thompson

Fred Thompson for President 2008

Grassroots website for Thompson

Fred Thompson 2008 (Tennessee) (NO SURPRISE!)

Fred Thompson 2008 (Florida)

Fred Thompson 2008 (Colorado)

Fred Thompson 2008 (Iowa)

Fred Thompson 2008 (South Carolina)

Fred '08 blog

Another Fred '08 blog

The Daily Fred ~ Latest news on Thompson

Ruffini news on Fred

Wikipedia entry on Fred

GOPUSA petition to encourage Fred to run

AND THE LEFT EXPECTS US TO LISTEN TO THEM!

WorldNetDaily is reporting something appalling today. Since when did someone's serious illness become political. Well, apparently the left is treating White House Press Secretary Tony Snow's cancer situation that way. Not only that, they are dropping F-Bombs and all kind of profanity his way. Not that I completely agree with Tony Snow, but I don't know of anyone who is deserving of that kind of treatment. Even Al Gore, Hillary Clinton, and Barack Obama, who, from what I can see, are some of the worst people in "leadership" today, if they came down with some deadly disease, you wouldn't see me wishing death upon them with a ****. I guess that is a big difference between them and those of us who are Christians, we don't wait for an illness and start wishing death upon those who oppose us. Then again, the left doesn't even wait for illness. They start spreading profanity about everyone they oppose at every opportunity.

It just makes me sick to see someone fighting cancer, then they have to see people with such hatred spewing their profane venom against them. Well, I guess we'll have to leave that to God.

Visit this link to the article, and anyone in their right mind will be just as appalled as I am.

Keep Tony Snow, Elizabeth Edwards, and all those who are suffering from horrible diseases in your prayers! They suffer physically, emotionally and even more so when crazies spew out venom towards them!

GOD BE WITH ALL OF YOU THROUGH YOUR STRUGGLES!

TAXES

The following was sent to us by e-mail from one of my Dad's former co-workers in Pennsylvania. It is certainly true. My favorite part is at the end where the writer says America was more prosperous 100 years ago when all these taxes didn't exist. Ya think that runaway taxes might have something to do with the dwindling middle class, along with cheap foreign workers and the offshoring of jobs. Hmmm.

TAXING

At first I thought this was funny...then I realized the awful truth of it. Be sure to read all the way to the end!

Tax his land,
Tax his bed,
Tax the table
At which he's fed.

Tax his tractor,
Tax his mule,
Teach him taxes
Are the rule.

Tax his cow,
Tax his goat,
Tax his pants,
Tax his coat.

Tax his ties,
Tax his shirt,
Tax his work,
Tax his dirt.

Tax him if he
Tries to think.

If he cries, then
Tax his tears.

Tax his car,
Tax his gas,

Tax all he has
Then let him know
That you won't be done
Till he has no dough.

When he screams and hollers,
Then tax him some more,
Tax him till
He's good and sore.

Then, Tax his grave,
Tax the sod in
Which he's laid.

Put these words
upon his tomb,
"Taxes drove me to my doom..."

When he's gone,
Do not relax,
Its time to apply
The inheritance tax.

Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL license Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Excise Taxes
Federal Income Tax
Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax,
Fuel permit tax
Gasoline Tax (42 cents per gallon)
Gross Receipts Tax
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Interest expense
Inventory tax
IRS Interest Charges IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
Luxury Taxes
Marriage License Tax
Medicare Tax
Personal Property Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service charge taxes
Social Security Tax
Road usage taxes
Sales Tax
Recreational Vehicle Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone federal excise tax
Telephone federal universal service fee tax
Telephone federal, state and local surcharge taxes
Telephone minimum usage surcharge tax
Telephone recurring and non-recurring charges tax
Telephone state and local tax
Telephone usage charge tax
Utility Taxes
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Worker s Compensation Tax

COMMENTS: Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, and our nation was the most prosperous in the world. We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.

What happened? Can you spell "politicians!"

And I still have to "press 1" for English.

I hope this goes around THE USA at least 100 times

NOTE: I took the liberty to clip out some words that weren't fitting, as well as some "sin taxes".

IDAHO LAWMAKERS WANT OUT OF SPP

WorldNetDaily reported today that Idaho is the latest state to oppose the Security and Prosperity Partnership. However, the Western state is the first to pass a measure, thus completing the approval process. The other states have pending resolutions against the "Partnership", which is believed to be a frontrunner to a North American Union.

The other states with pending resolutions on the subject are: Arizona (S.C.M. 1002), Illinois (H.J.R. 29), Georgia (S.R. 124), Missouri (S.C.R. 15 and H.C.R. 33), Montana (H.J.R. 25), Oklahoma (S.C.R. 10), Oregon (S.J.M. 5), South Carolina (S. 416 and H. 3185), South Dakota (S.C.R. 7), Tennessee (S.J.R. 88), Virginia (S.J.R. 442 and S.J.R. 387), and Washington (H.J.M. 4018 and S.J.M. 8004). All resolution information from WorldNetDaily.

For much more on this latest development on America's response to the North American Union, as well as numerous articles on this emergency issue, visit this link to the article from WorldNetDaily.

WAY TO GO IDAHO! YOU OFFER GREAT LEADERSHIP FOR OUR GREAT COUNTRY DURING THIS LATEST FIGHT AGAINST THE ANTI-U.S. SOVEREIGNTY FORCES. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK, AND THOSE WHO CARE ABOUT OUR COUNTRY'S FUTURE STAND WITH YOU!

TANCREDO SUPPORT PUTS EXPECTATIONS IN THE DUST!

-OFFICIAL DECISION EXPECTED WITHIN TWO WEEKS!

It was reported on Saturday that Congressman Tom Tancredo's 2008 Presidential bid has received way more support than expected. The candidate's exploratory committee had put up a fundraising goal of $1 million, which has already been surpassed. The exploratory committee was founded in mid-January.

Even better news is the number of vocal supporters Mr. Tancredo has lining up. Well, at least KNOWN SUPPORTERS. "I am humbled to have over 40,000 Americans tell me to run for President and over half of them have backed this up with their hard earned money," said Mr. Tancredo. "I now know that with a grass roots campaign we will have the funds necessary to go the distance."

The Congressman is saying he will make his final decision sometime in the next two weeks.

For more, visit here and here.

Red China And Pet Food

Although I haven't paid a lot of attention to the recent news about pets dying from poisoned pet food, this point I do know and want to bring up. I found out from ABC Radio News yesterday that the food was made in Red China and tainted with rat poison. For those of you who do not know the story, there has been a large recall of pet food because the food was sickening and killing a number of pets. It now seems apparent that the rat poison that tainted the food was from Red Chinese fields.

The point that came to my attention is this-if this happens to pet food, what other items made in Red China could be tainted with damaging materials and chemicals. Will we allow our food manufacturers (who make food for people) move production over there as well, for the sake of satisfying our appetite for cheaper and cheaper goods, at the risk of our very lives? Our very livelihoods have already been damaged, at least for tens of thousands of Americans, because our companies have decided that it is just too expensive to make products in their own homeland.

What happens if the Campbell Soup Company decides to start making soups in China. Will it be alright to have the threat of rat poison entering it and killing dozens of Americans. We already face a hostile Red China who would try to kill us if we defended Taiwan. What, will we be willing then to spend less on goods that could be tainted to purposely kill off our own people. Just as bad, will we be willing to have sanctions on goods that we should be making ourselves!

We need to start buying only American-made goods again. If you think things you need are not made right here in the good, old U.S.A., you have to look again. Clothes and shoes are still made here, as is most packaged foods and various other needs. Maybe televisions are not made here anymore, but you think we could just live without them, at least until we get a great American with initiative to start making them here again. It might be best to stay away from the violence, cursing, pornography and propaganda about Anna Nicole Smith and the Duke rape case for a while anyway.

LET'S BUY AMERICAN AGAIN!

I'M RUNNING AGAIN!

That's right, I'm running again. Running for an office that is. Well, not a 'public office'. I am running for the Student Government Association at Tennessee Tech University (The best state-run university on the planet...just look at my mini-biography on the right-hand side of this page). JUST DON'T GO CAMPAIGNING FOR ME YET IF YOU ARE READING THIS AND YOU ARE FROM TTU. I CAN'T OFFICIALLY CAMPAIGN UNTIL EARLY APRIL. I am running for the Senate from the College of Arts & Sciences.

I ran last October for Freshman Senator and garnered 58 votes, just thirteen shy of the fourth, and final, 'seat'. That makes me even more eager this time around. As like last year, my self-made nickname throughout the campaign is the "I-Man", I guess it's a play on G. Gordon Liddy only I use my last name, and he uses his first name. We need 25 signatures on the petition to qualify. I got those, and I turned the petition in back on Tuesday. The College of Arts & Sciences has eight seats open, and I am optimistic going into the campaigning. I am plotting out strategy, making posters and flyers, and quietly telling people about my run over the next couple of weeks.

GODSPEED TO THE CAMPAIGN OF "THE 'I-MAN' FOR A BETTER TENNESSEE TECH"!

Here's Another Great Statesman From Pennsylvania!

Louis J. Barletta, Mayor of Hazelton, Pennsylvania

Photo courtesy of Hazelton, Pennsylvania's website

Now here is the kind of leader we need more of in America! Mayor Lou Barletta of Hazelton, Pennsylvania. Yes, that name should sound familiar...he is the man that Lou Dobbs is encouraging on CNN, while most other press organizations are treating him as un-American and a "racist".

He is the mayor that is upholding his duty and treating illegal immigration and undocumented people in his city as...GASP...illegal. That makes him America's mayor (sorry, Rudy).

I contacted his office minutes ago and offered him my support in the hard times he is facing from people in influence, particularly from the press. He is planning to seek re-election to his office of mayor in Hazelton. I now endorse him, and to make it official, I will announce my endorsement in my column on the right section of this blog under "2007 Endorsements". In my contact to him, I told him he should maybe seek the Governor's Mansion in Pennsylvania in the future.

I urge all reading to give your support to Mayor Barletta. Be sure to keep him, his family, and his supporters in your prayers. He certainly needs it during this rough emotional and physical time for him. He certainly deserves it as well!

For more on the Mayor and his actions visit the sites and stories below.

City of Hazelton, Pennsylvania - Letter From The Mayor (Barletta)

GoogleNews - Lou Barletta

WorldNetDaily

Cities crack down on illegals (Aug 26, 2006)

Town gets tough on illegals (Oct 26, 2006)

Hazelton battles ACLU, feds because of illegals (March 12, 2007)

Wilkes-Barre, Penn. Citizens Voice

"BARLETTA DOESN'T BACK DOWN"

"Barletta supporters rally outside courthouse"

Barletta is running again

Wilkes-Barre, Penn. Times Leader

Big spike in crime led to ordinance

Philadelphia Inquirer

Barletta defends his stand on illegals

Scranton, Penn. Times-Tribune

Witness testifies to illegals negatively impacting wages

Story (with video) from WFMZ-TV, Allentown, Penn.

Kansas City, Mo. Star

Barletta: "We're fighting for the whole country."

Gore: Planet Earth "Has A Fever"

Former Vice President and Global Warming Alarmist Extraordinaire Al Gore was reported on Fox News just minutes ago saying Earth "has a fever". Answer this question Mister "No SUVs but I have a house that will beat your energy usuage anyday", when Mother Earth has a "fever", does she have a mother to take care of her like all children do?

Czech President Calls EnviroMENTAL Extremism The New Communism.

Czech President Vaclav Klaus

Picture from Wikipedia

The Czech President, Vaclav Klaus, considers enviroMENTAL extremism to be the new Communism, this according to WorldNetDaily. Mr. Klaus said that it is the "biggest threat to freedom, democracy, the market economy and prosperity". He said free-market principles needs to formulate public policy.

When he compares Communism to this new threat, he should know. He lived under Communism for most of his life, and he claims that himself. The Czech Republic should feel honored to have such a European statesman leading them. I don't know how Mr. Klaus stands on numerous other issues, but on the issues of freedom, the free market, and enviroMENTAL extremism, HE'S GOT THE NAIL HIT ON THE HEAD! Go Klaus and go Czech Republic!

Cookeville, Tennessee Elementary School Makes Transition After Fire

The Hooper Eblen Center in Cookeville, Tennessee, is the home of Tennessee Tech basketball and the main offices for the university's athletic program. This is the scene at the arena on Monday, March 19, 2007 as students from Jere Whitson Elementary School nearby began a week of classes here. The elementary school was destroyed by fire on Saturday morning, March 17, 2007.

The scene inside the Eblen Center on Monday morning, March 19, 2007 as students from the burned Jere Whitson Elementary School make the transition and begin a week of classes here. Starting the week of March 26th, the students will begin a split day of classes in another nearby elementary school.

All pictures courtesy of WTVF-TV Nashville, Tenn.




Students from the fire-ravaged Jere Whitson Elementary School made the transition Monday morning after a fire destroyed their school Saturday morning.

The faculty of the school, and nearly 400 students moved to the campus of nearby Tennessee Tech University for a week of classes. Most classes are being held in the Hooper Eblen Center, an arena that holds the main offices for the university's athletics program, and is better known as the home arena for Tennessee Tech men's and women's basketball.

The transition seemed to go well under the circumstances, and aid poured in from all across the community. Local churches, radio stations, businesses, individuals, and others took up school supplies and other items for the people of Jere Whitson. Tennessee Tech is lending the facilities to the school for this week, and is taking up donations of school supplies. Chartwells, the managers of the university's food services, has set up a lounge area inside the Eblen Center for teachers and faculty of the school.

Starting next week, the Jere Whitson staff and students will begin a split day with students and staff from the nearby Sycamore Elementary. Sycamore students will study from 7 AM until 12 noon, while the students of Jere Whitson will study from noon until 5 PM. This will be the setup for the foreseeable future.

The investigation is underway to determine the cause of the fire. So far, it is believed the blaze was accidental. A widely believed reason is that of faulty wiring in the older wing of the building, which was built in the 1950s. That was the section of the building where the fire apparently started, and it suffered the greatest damage.

The staff of the school likely have suffered the worst loss. Many teachers had personal book collections and other items inside which were destroyed. On a brighter note, many were glad that the school's American flag, and photographs of Mr. and Mrs. Jere Whitson were salvaged from the school. Mr. Whitson was an important early leader of the Cookeville community during the late 1800s and the early 1900s. He was the principle founder of Tennessee Tech and donated the land for Jere Whitson Elementary School during the 1920s.

For more on this story, visit the links below.

Herald-Citizen - Cookeville, Tenn.
Jere Whitson makes transition
Meeting Thursday for Whitson, Sycamore parents

WTVF-TV Nashville, Tenn.

Elementary School Destroyed By Fire In Cookeville, Tennessee

Jere Whitson Elementary School in Cookeville, Tennessee before the fire that tore through a nearly 55-year-old section of the building early Saturday morning, March 17, 2007.
Photo courtesy of Jere Whitson Elementary School







A firefighter from the Cookeville Fire Department helps to battle the blaze Saturday morning, March 17, 2007 at Jere Whitson Elementary School in north Cookeville, Tennessee. The inferno will leave nearly 400 students without a permanent place to learn for the time-being.
Photo courtesy of WTVF-TV Nashville, Tenn.





The damage is evident at Jere Whitson Elementary School in Cookeville, Tennessee on Saturday, March 17, 2007 after a fire ripped through the building, one of the oldest school buildings in Putnam County.
Photo courtesy of WTVF-TV Nashville, Tenn.
Photo taken by WTVF-TV viewer Rhonda Tomsic of Cookeville





Hooper Eblen Center, the home of Tennessee Tech University basketball and the offices of Tennessee Tech athletics. It will be a temporary home of the nearly 400 students who previously studied at the now-gutted Jere Whitson Elementary school just a few blocks away in north Cookeville, Tennessee. The school was destroyed by an early morning fire on Saturday, March 17, 2007. The students will study here for at least a week, until a better long-
term plan is decided for the students and faculty.
Photo courtesy of Tennessee Tech University




A crisis struck my home city of Cookeville, Tennessee Saturday morning as fire tore through Jere Whitson Elementary School, one of the six elementary schools in this small city of nearly 30,000 people.

No one was in the building at the time of the fire, which shot flames 40-50 feet in the air, according to eyewitnesses.

The fire began around 5 A.M. on Saturday morning and quickly spread through much of the oldest wing of the building. The school is one of the oldest in Putnam County and dates back to the 1920s.

The fire destroyed the wing with administrative offices, the computer lab, and the music room. This section of the building was gutted by the blazing inferno, of which there is no officially-known cause. The fire is being investigated. An expected cause is that of the heating system. Maintenance workers may have entered the building early to turn on the heat during this chilly weekend in the Midsouth region. Schools in Putnam County were on break the last two weeks and are scheduled to return Monday. Heating is probably the frontrunner at this time in considering causes for the fire.

The fire will now displace nearly 400 students who previously studied at Jere Whitson. The most pressing question now regards where to house that number of students, as well as the teachers who will be educating them.

Putnam County school officials met in an emergency meeting Saturday afternoon to discuss the question. It was decided that the students and faculty will meet temporally at the Hooper Eblen Center, an arena on the campus of my university, Tennessee Tech. The Eblen Center is the home for Tennessee Tech men's and women's basketball, as well as the home of offices for Tennessee Tech athletics, various Tech coaches and the Sports Information department. The students and faculty will use the basketball arena, locker rooms, and the Eagle's Nest, a meeting area on the upper floor of the Eblen Center. They are expected to be there for at least a week, until more permanent quarters are found. A likely scenario would have the students going to the five other Cookeville elementary schools, straining the student population the community has been working to solve over the past several years.

It is an honor to see my university ready to serve the community in a time of crisis for them. I myself am patriotic to Cookeville, and I want to see my fellow Cookevillians helped and made more comfortable in a time of need. It will be a test of patience, though, over the next week or so for both those of Jere Whitson, and those of the Tennessee Tech university community. For those of us who like to, or need to, use the Eblen Center on a regular basis, those privileges will be put on hold. The "Hoop" will now only be open to those from Jere Whitson or those with a pass designating that you must work at the arena. I, personally use the "Hoop" regularly to do homework, to meet people from the community walking around the concourse of the arena, and to meet with Sports Information, of whom I do some work with. The "Hoop" will re-open to the general public and students in a week or later, depending on when a more permanent location is found for the students, all in kindergarten to fourth grade.

Tennessee Tech has a strained parking situation, as most universities do. This will have an effect on this condition, as well. The commuter parking lot near the Eblen Center will have less spaces for commuting students during this period. Traffic will dramatically increase around the arena and the entrances to the university nearby. The University has already encouraged us to avoid entering the campus in those areas until further notice.

This will prove to be a good smaller example of how people react to a crisis today in America and how they are able to recover and re-build the infrastructure after a sudden disaster. I believe Americans react well. Just look to 9-11 and Mississippi, as well as parts of Louisiana after Katrina. America stood strong and re-built. This is a smaller disaster, although it is considerable here in our community. We are in the Bible Belt, and I believe the people of Cookeville, particularly in the north part of our great town, are ready to tackle this new challenge.

For more on the "Crisis in Cookeville", please visit the following coverage from media outlets.

Herald-Citizen, Cookeville, Tenn.
MAIN STORY - Cause unkown
Students will go to TTU, Sycamore

WTVF-TV, Nashville, Tenn.

WSMV-TV, Nashville, Tenn.

The Tennessean, Nashville, Tenn.

WBIR-TV, Knoxville, Tenn.

Journalists And The North American Union

A quick word regarding the North American Union and the mainstream press and bloggers who are debunking the NAU as a "conspiracy theory". Why are these guys and girls even giving time to the story. If it is a "conspiracy theory", it shouldn't even have time on the airwaves of outlets such as Fox News and the talk-radio stations. I suppose that either these "truth"-bringers are blind or they are trying to cover up the issue as they cover the backs of the elitists working to create the NAU.

Another thing to the reporters and news writers, QUIT SPENDING THE MAJORITY OF YOUR COVERAGE ON HUMAN-INTEREST STORIES! I, for one, will change the channel from MSNBC or Fox to C-SPAN or CNBC when either of the two previous channels blab on about Anna Nicole Smith or Michael Jackson or the Homicidal Astronaut or O.J. Simpson. It always throws me for a whirl how there are so many crucial stories to our country that aren't reported, and these wacko stories get so much airtime. Maybe if journalists would start to look closer at the North American Union, maybe they would find an interesting story to put on the airwaves. At least it would be a better story than the "Homicidal Astronaut".

Tom Tancredo At CPAC

Here is Tom Tancredo at the Conservative Political Action Committee last weekend. As you can see from the first video, he had supporters there. Even better, he received a standing ovation. Be sure you know that these are not three videos of the same kind. This is a three-part series of the same speech. Without further ado, Mr. Congressman Tom Tancredo

CNN's Dobbs On The North American Union

I have hit a jackpot of videos on YouTube showing clips from CNN's Lou Dobbs Tonight that report on the creation of a North American Union. I have just found out tonight how to post videos on this blog, so expect to see more videos here, especially on Tancredo and on the North American Union. I want to post more of Dobbs's NAU videos, so expect to see a whole lot more on the subject here.

Colmes Needs To Watch This Video On The NAU

It looks like Colmes's words are contradicting the pictures on this video. He might be interested in watching this video to see for himself just how important this North American Union issue is. After all, a picture is worth a thousand words. Well, at least more than the blabbing of Alan Colmes.

OVERDUE: Eastern Kentucky Takes OVC Men's Crown, SEMO Wins Women's Pennant

I am overdue on reporting the results of the 2007 O'Reilly Ohio Valley Conference Mens and Womens Basketball Tournament, so here are the results. EKU and Southeast Missouri would eventually win the tournaments. All games were held at the Gaylord Entertainment Center in Nashville, Tennessee.

MENS SEMI-FINALS

#1 AUSTIN PEAY 65, #5 SAMFORD 55
The Governors had to fight off another opponent, this time the Samford Bulldogs, to advance to the OVC Championship. Peay led 35-30 at the half, but the Bulldogs would go on a 12-0 run to take a 42-35 lead with 11:18 left on the clock. Peay then had an 11-2 run of their own, taking a 48-44 lead with 7:11 left. The Govs held on the rest of the way to advance to Saturday's championship.

#2 EASTERN KENTUCKY 57, #3 TENNESSEE TECH 54
This was a closely fought contest which the Colonels would eventually find a way to win. EKU held off the Golden Eagles, who fought fiercely in a losing effort. TTU would hold six-point leads twice through the first half and went to the break up 27-25. EKU came out taking its lead with not even three minutes into the final half's clock, and would hold a tight grasp on that lead all the way through. The Colonels held a 47-38 lead with 8:40 to go in regulation, but Tech would fight back. The Golden Eagles would hit four from the charity stripe late to cut the EKU lead to just three with over a minute left. With a half-minute left, TTU put in a shot to cut the score Colonels lead to one. Eastern Kentucky finally would hold off Tennessee Tech to advance to the championship against Austin Peay Saturday.


MEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 EASTERN KENTUCKY 63, #1 AUSTIN PEAY 62
In an upset bid, the regular season champ Govs were stunned by the Colonels as Eastern Kentucky claimed the 2006-07 OVC Championship. Peay tried to deal with cold hands, as they failed to get a shot in the bucket for nearly 10 minutes in the second half. The Govs held a one-point lead with just seconds on the clock, when EKU's Josh Taylor found an opening and drove to the basket and put up Eastern's winning points with just 2.9 left on the clock. Those two points were Taylor's only points of the game. EKU will now wait for all the other conference tournaments to finish and will get ready to play in the NCAA Tournament. Austin Peay will wait and hope for an NIT bid.



WOMEN'S SEMI-FINALS

#1 SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 57, #4 SAMFORD 51
The top-ranked Redhawks continued their bid for a repeat against the Bulldogs. Sonya Daugherty led SEMO with 21 points. Veronica Pike led Samford with 18 points and Alex Munday chipped in 15 points in the losing effort. SEMO now heads to their second-consecutive OVC Championship game.

#2 MURRAY STATE 66, #6 UT-MARTIN 65 (OT)
The Murray Racers controlled the tempo from the get-go, leading 18-6 with 10:59 on the clock in the first half. MSU had as much as a 24-12 lead, but Nicole Holman put in consecutive three shots to bring Martin to within three, down 24-21. Murray held a 26-24 advantage going into the break at the half.

Murray still controlled the advantage, leading by 38-33 with 15:48 in regulation. Martin wasn't ready to die, however, and found themselves on an 8-0 run, taking a 41-38 lead. MSU soon got back in the swing, but the lead would wobble between both teams until regulation would end with an 57-all knotted score.

Martin hit two charity shots to take the early overtime lead, and would lead most of the way until the Racers began to fight back with 2:25 left on the overtime clock. Murray would face a struggle the rest of the way, but held on to a victory and will face top-ranked SEMO in the women's championship on Saturday.


WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 62, #2 MURRAY STATE 60
The Redhawks survived a surprisingly close matchup against the Racers to become the OVC's women's representative in the NCAA Tournament for the second-straight season. SEMO's Lachelle Lyles made the layup with 6.5 seconds left to put the 'Hawks up by the final margin.
MSU lagged by 16 points at their worst, and was behind by double digits through most of the second half. The Racers came back to tie things up at 60 with 16.7 seconds left, but just could not complete an upset bid. Murray will now return to Kentucky and prepare for next season.

WRKO Poll Attracting Attention For Tancredo

This response on WRKO-AM's website shows that the strong Tancredo showing in their poll is attracting attention. A look at all the different responses shows a number of enthusiastic Tancredo voters and supporters. I do not know where a lot of these respondents live, but the fact that this radio station is in the heart of liberal land makes this poll seem significant to me. Some respondents have written that they have changed their registration from Democrat to Independent, just to vote for the Tanc! See the responses to the poll with this link.

POLL SHOWS TANC WITH 85% OF VOTE! PLEASE JOIN THE CROWD IN THIS ONE!

An online Presidential preference poll done by WRKO-AM in Boston shows Colorado Congressman Tom Tancredo with 85% of the total vote. This goes to show the conservative power of talk radio, as the highest Democrat on the list is Senator Hillary Clinton with an astounding 1 PERCENT OF THE VOTE! After Tancredo, the No. 2 is Former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, with 3% of the total vote. The poll doesn't say how many have responded, but the number is certainly at 100, but likely greater, as you can't get a fraction of a person to vote in a poll. Several of the candidates are polling at 1%, and it would take a fraction of a person if the vote count was below 100.

Also, because of Tanc's surge in the poll numbers, The Feinburg Faceoff that WRKO puts up has included the Congressman. Here is the link to WKRO's site where you can see what I'm talking about. I believe you must vote in the poll to see results. Although I don't think that Tancredo's support nationwide is at 85%, I don't think is true support, or at least the people that agree with him, is at 2% either.

A Look At The First Major Storm Outbreak Of 2007

Scenes from Enterprise, Alabama, where the worst of Thursday's storm damage was experienced. The above picture shows a damaged classroom in the Enterprise High School, where five people lost their lives. In the bottom picture, one of the town's streets is shown to be clogged with power lines, trees and other debris. Pictures courtesy of WTVF-TV, Nashville, Tennessee

The major dangers of the storm outbreak seem to be over, but not before leaving a trail of devastation and death.

In Kansas, Linn County suffered some damage to a power substation and several houses and barns on Wednesday night. I understand that several injuries were reported here.

Missouri bore the brunt early. A portion of Interstate 35 in Kansas City was down to one lane Wednesday because of flooding problems. A seven-year-old girl was killed early Thursday in near the southeastern Missouri town of West Plains. Three other members of her family were injured when their mobile home was shredded by a twister. In the state's southwestern area, the town of Caulfield was hit as well. Mobile homes, houses and service stations were among the structures damaged by possibly three tornadoes that touched down early Thursday morning.

Alabama was far and away the worst hit by the outbreak. Two different towns saw large amounts of damage. The hardest hit was the town of Enterprise, where six people were killed. Five of those deaths were at Enterprise High School, which was right in the crosshairs of the funnel. The school was about to let out because of the weather, but as one newsman put it the tornado got there first. The high school was the most noted building destroyed, but a large part of the town of 20,000 was damaged by the storms. One other death in Alabama was reported in Wilcox County, where a lot of buildings were damaged as well. Tornadic thunderstorms pushed through Birmingham and Tuscaloosa in the afternoon, but no notable damage seems to have been reported from these.

In Georgia, the death toll has reached three as the storms that brought havoc to Alabama advanced eastward. The Sumter Regional Medical Center in Americus was blasted by the storm, killing two people in the process there. The town lost all its ambulances in the damage, and the city of Albany, which is 35 miles away, sent some that way. It is not yet known whether the fatalities were hospital patients. This all happened around 9 PM CT. A tornado blew through Taylor County, near Albany, killing one and injuring at least four.

Please keep all the people affected in your thoughts and be sure to say a prayer or two for them. They are going through very difficult times and they need all the help they can get. My God bless all these people who have lost loved ones and livelihoods. The Conservative Statesman wants to let the people affected in Alabama, Georgia, Missouri and Kansas know that we stand with you in your time of heavy trial.

The Weather Channel and CNN are thanked for providing information used in this report.

BREAKING STORM NEWS: Eight reported dead in Alabama

Reports just coming in(4:20 PM CT) are saying that eight are dead in Enterprise, Alabama after an apparent tornado tore through through. All those fatalities appear to be from the town's high school, which took a direct hit and still has people trapped in it. The town's business district and the hospital also took a direct hit. Another fatality is being reported in Wilcox County, Alabama. Storms are still affecting the Midsouth and the Deep South. The total number of fatalities so far appears to be at 10. Keep aware if you are in the path of these potentially deadly storms.

STORM UPDATE: Major Severe Weather Outbreak Is Under Way

The storm outbreak has already become deadly in Missouri, where a seven-year-old girl has been killed and numerous people are being reported missing, all in the town of Caulfield, in the southern portion of the state. At this time (11:50 CST), a severe thunderstorm watch spans a great portion of northern Illinois and northern Indiana. Tornado watches are the big story, spanning from the Ohio Valley to the Gulf Coast. Tornado warnings are out for nearly a dozen counties in Mississippi and Alabama. The threat focus is now shifting from the Midwest to the Ohio Valley, Midsouth and the Deep South. However, the Midwest could still be affected by severe weather. We're keeping our eyes on it.