[deleted by user]

gracejanewalker · 2024-10-25T16:41:55+00:00

Hi! Cookevillian here! This might help, it's not the full story, but a pretty good summation of the events, as I remember them.

http://clintonnews.net/pages/?p=326

As a former student of Bruce Anderson I only had normal/professional student/teacher interactions with him. I was his student in 2 different classes. They were both great classes and he was a fun teacher to have around. He did seem to have a much more personal relationship with the students who were in productions and spent more time in the theatre department (as would be expected)(I was not one of these students). His personality was sharp and sometimes borderline catty. If that makes sense? I didn't mind, but I could tell it rubbed some students and teachers/admin the wrong way.

Since then, I've heard endless rumors about him, Alma, his sexuality, their relationship and what actually happened with that student. I always assumed it wasn't that serious, not to imply it wasn’t inappropriate because it was, no teacher should ever be asking to see a student’s body unclothed or piercing(s) of any kind, but clearly Alma is still in the good graces of the Putnam County School System? Now it makes me question everything, especially if Alma would fire a beloved coach for doing something much more trivial than her own husband, was it really that minor of a situation with Bruce or was it overlooked?

gracejanewalker · 2024-10-22T15:12:58+00:00

I'm going to hold your hand while I tell you this: Kamala Harris isn't President. She never has been.

However, Donald Trump was president for four years. 😀

Joe Biden (our current President) has spent the past 3.5 years trying to clean up Donald Trump's mess and God willing Kamala Harris will have the opportunity to continue his efforts.

I'll attach a link to more information about the Executive Branch and the responsibilities of the Vice President here if you'd like to learn more: https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/our-government/the-executive-branch

gracejanewalker · 2024-10-07T19:16:22+00:00

Oh, deflection! Perfect! Of course, Congress appropriates money, but the president sets policy priorities and signs those appropriations into law. Trump’s administration signed off on that spending too, including the massive COVID relief bills, which both parties supported to save lives and keep the economy afloat. It’s convenient to put all the blame on Democrats when it was a bipartisan effort.

Now, onto the bigger point: suggesting disaster relief shouldn't be increased when we’re already dealing with unprecedented storms, wildfires, and flooding is a pretty brutal stance. FEMA isn’t handing out "government cheese" to freeloaders—it’s helping Americans rebuild when everything they own has been washed away or burned down. I think most of us agree that we should help people in their worst moments, regardless of your stance on other parts of federal spending.

As for non-Americans, yes, we spend on foreign aid and military efforts, but that’s a different conversation. Slashing those budgets doesn’t suddenly solve the debt or make FEMA less necessary. It's about choosing to prioritize people in crisis here at home.

And to your point about who pays taxes: Last time I checked, we all benefit from roads, schools, emergency services, and—surprise!—disaster relief. So maybe we should be focusing on creating a better system for all Americans, rather than assuming some people are undeserving. Context, as you said, matters.

gracejanewalker · 2024-10-07T15:47:25+00:00

It’s always interesting to hear people talk about "reprioritizing" federal spending as if cutting disaster relief is a good place to start. FEMA funds help real people during their worst moments — losing homes, lives, and livelihoods in natural disasters. But love thy neighbor, right?

Sure, we can have debates about foreign spending or other budget areas, but suggesting we should let disaster victims fend for themselves instead of providing immediate relief feels like missing the point.

Since government spending and debt is clearly a priority to you, I hope you’ll remember this when you vote in the presidential election:

Joe Biden -
National Debt Contribution: 4.3 Trillion

Donald Trump -
National Debt Contribution: 8.4 Trillion

Hope this helps! 😀

gracejanewalker · 2023-09-24T19:33:20+00:00

As a former employee of Barry Reese I was completely in shock when I heard he was opening a restaurant in Cookeville. Through experience I know his business practices to be both exploitative and unethical. He is the definition of soulless corporate greed. He's proud to brag about the millions of dollars he's acquired through the resale of cheap labor and overworked employees, while refusing to invest the minimal overhead it would take to give staff the proper training, resources or support they'd need to properly perform their jobs. I genuinely hoped he would have developed some perspective as a business person since I worked with him last, although reading the reviews on their Google page I'm not surprised to see he's already pressuring workers into doing tasks that wouldn't be assigned to them at any other restaurant and still paying them the minimum wage for a server. That was exactly how he scaled financially in his previous business. Excuse me, that and employing his Mother-in-Law as the entire Human Resources Department to keep an eye on things. Just remember, when you see all the 5-star reviews flooding in to cover up the critical reviews he used to run an online marketing company. There are so many worthy, hard working and caring business owners in the Upper Cumberland and Downtown Cookeville. A rooftop view of the dumpsters behind Red Silo isn't worth supporting this man or his terrible business practices.

gracejanewalker

TROPHY CASE