We ordered a new server from Dell back in January, and it got delayed three times but finally shipped yesterday.

It appears to be a widespread problem. Apparently, computer manufacturers and component suppliers who scaled back production during the economic crisis/recession are now struggling to keep up with growing demand.

Dell has also postponed the planned closure of their Winston-Salem manufacturing facility because of increasing demand.

That all sounds like good news to me.

(Thankfully we're not desperate for a new server, and not trying to build out a new data center with dozens or hundreds of servers.)

In Session: Tennessee Politics:

"Because of my time on the campaign trail, I know that Kim grasps the connection between jobs and sustainability and that we cannot afford to waste time. Kim is clearly determined to lead Tennessee into the Green Economy, and that is why I am endorsing her candidacy and making an immediate contribution," Cammack said.

(By way of ACK)

On a related note, the McMillan campaign has set a goal of 1000 donors by March 31st. More info...

Swift action by the DOJ:

WASHINGTON —The Department of Justice announced today that it will require Election Systems & Software (ES&S) to divest voting equipment systems assets it purchased in September 2009 from Premier Election Solutions Inc. in order to restore competition. The assets to be divested include the means to produce all versions of Premier's hardware, software and firmware used to record, tabulate, transmit or report votes, including the Assure 1.2 system, and a license to better serve disabled voters. The department said that today's settlement will restore competition in voting equipment systems in the United States and that, without the divestiture, the acquisition would result in higher prices, lower quality and a reduced incentive to innovate.

The Department of Justice's Antitrust Division, along with nine state attorneys general, filed a civil antitrust lawsuit today in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., alleging that the transaction harmed competition.

More...

PREVIOUSLY: Voting machine monopoly?

At the park yesterday.

Posted at KNS
this afternoon.

LVG

Sunshine in New Mexico

Can we steal this?

Meet Sasha, our new baby pupster. She's a three-month old Miniature Schnauzer. She was adopted by an out of state family from a local breeder about a month ago. The family has two kids and they became very attached to Sasha, but one of the kids has asthma and was having reactions so they had to return her.

It's a very sad situation for the other family, but she has found a good home with us and we promised to take good care of her. They named her, and we had other ideas for our next puppy's name, but we sort of like Sasha so I think we will keep it.

Who needs feminists or the era? Women have been controlling men's actions from birth throughout life. Apparently it's our fault that we're not better at it.

Dang, we women just can't do anything right.

h/t tgw

ESPN:

Alyssia Brewer scored 15 points and No. 4 Tennessee rolled to a 68-49 victory over Vanderbilt on Saturday in the Southeastern Conference tournament semifinals.

The Lady Vols (29-2) have won 13 straight to move within one victory of a sweep of the SEC regular-season and tournament championships, something they've accomplished six times. They'll play Kentucky or Mississippi State for the title on Sunday night.

Congrats to the UT Women's Basketball team. The SEC Championship game will be on ESPN2 tomorrow, Sunday March 7th at 6:30PM. Go Vols!

UPDATE: UT v. Kentucky for SEC Women's Basketball Championship

The senators proposed Senate Bill 3128, which will require students to take a minimum of 14 credit hours instead of 12 to qualify as full-time. If passed, the bill will take effect July 1, 2011.

I wish McCord would just go home now and not wait to retire next year.

Our family pays college tuition in TN and depend on that full time student status to keep our kids on our health plans. It is hard enough trying to find open classes to meet the 12 credit hour mark. What is this proposed change really about?

WVLT: Elvin Roy Ragsdale, the 82-year-old father of Knox County Mayor Mike Ragsdale, died early Saturday morning.

I'm finally getting some time to peruse the latest MTSU Poll.

The first thing that jumps out is that 73% could not name one single candidate for governor. It's early yet (the primary is 152 days away) but as of January the candidates had already raised over $13 million. So somebody's paying attention. Let your imagination run wild as to who.

Kim McMillan, Democratic candidate for Governor of Tennessee, was in Knoxville on Friday night at the Knox County Democratic Party Headquarters along with Chip Forrestor, head of the Tennessee Democratic Party. They were both given a warm greeting by the gathering of Knoxville Democrats. Kim gave a strong speech supporting economic and educational growth in Tennessee. When an enthusiastic supporter pointed out that she was also a woman, Kim eagerly answered her by stating that she wanted people not to vote for her only because she was a woman but because she was the candidate with the best ideas and experience who also happened to be a woman, the only woman in the gubernatorial contest.

Saturday, Kim will deliever the keynote address at the monthly meeting of the Boyd Cloud Democratic Club. All Democrats are invited to attend. If you missed Kim on Friday, please join us:

Boyd Cloud Democratic Club
Kim McMillan - Keynote
Saturday Morning, March 6, 2010
8:00am
Shoney's on Western Avenue
4410 Western Avenue
Knoxville, TN 37921

The City is inviting individuals, organizations, and groups to sign up as volunteers to monitor a park, report needed repairs, as well as do cleanups and repair projects.

More info in the city press release...

My friend and former neighbor Leon took advantage of last Saturday's beautiful weather to hike to Abrams Falls with a small group. He has just posted these photos.

Wow. Unbelievable. And the guy is unapologetic. Maybe the Tennessee Hospitality Association board will be unapologetic when they fire him.

UPDATE: Swell. Story goes national. AP: E-mail compares first lady to Tarzan's Cheeta

A couple of weeks ago I started noticing a bunch of Kroger recalls for soup and dip mixes because of possible salmonella contamination. Then Giant Foods and several other brands. I suspected there might be a common denominator

The FDA has traced the problem to a single manufacturer in Nevada that makes "Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein." (Not sure which is worse for you - "hydrolyzed vegetable protein" or salmonella.)

Anyway, here's the FDA database with all the food-like products known to be affected at this time. Fortunately there are no reported illnesses or outbreaks so it was apparently caught in time.

It's scary to think about how one contaminated product from one company can make its way into so many consumer food products.

As Metulj said in an earlier comment, "eat in season and as local as you can get!"

The press release...

The "news" report...

Not that there's anything necessarily wrong with that. They're called "press releases" for a reason. At least somebody's getting paid to write. And rewrite.

Seen at Wendy's last night. There was a similar notice at Subway that also mentioned green peppers.

AP: Frigid Fla. winter is bad news for tomato lovers

(Click image for larger view)

A camouflaged woodpecker sapsucker at Maloney Rd. Park. We think it's a Hairy Woodpecker? (Or, as noted in comments, a Yellow Bellied Sapsucker.)