Bankruptcy Up

Its another sign of the times.

CNN Money: Bankruptcy filings surge to 1 million - up 29%

The data also showed that filings for Chapter 7 rose 36% to 615,748 in the 12 months that ended June 30.

Chapter 7 bankruptcy is designed to give individual debtors a "fresh start" by discharging many of their debts. Under Chapter 7 a filer's assets minus those exempted by his home state are liquidated and given to creditors first in line for repayment, while the rest of his debts are cancelled.

The following article comes from January 30, 2008 and it is relevant -

Knox News: Tennessee households lead nation in bankruptcy filings

Tennessee had the highest number of bankruptcy filings per household of any state last year.

A new report from the National Bankruptcy Research Center shows that one in every 59 households filed for bankruptcy in 2007.

Recall that Tennessee is a proud red state.

My apologies to Red State Reader for excerpting so 'liberally' from their site.

This is just too good. Myths about Tennessee:

Myth: Moonshine corn liquor is big business in Tennessee.
Fact: Cannabis long ago replaced moonshine as Tennessee’s largest cash crop, although meth labs have gained ground in recent years. Most analysts trace the decline of the moonshine industry to the prevalent use of car radiators (which contain significant amounts of lead) as improvised distillers.

Myth: You can marry your sister at the age of 13.
Fact: This is a common misconception that couldn’t be further from the truth. You can only marry your cousin, and you must both be 16. Unless you have a court order.

Myth: On the average, women in Tennessee earn less than their male counterparts.
Fact: Anyone who knows anything about labor laws knows that this is simply not true. As prescribed by Federal law, waitresses, receptionists, and secretaries all make exactly the same minimum wage in Tennessee as they do in any other state regardless of gender.

Myth: Women’s rights activists are battling a bunch of senile old white guys in the Tennessee Legislature who want to restrict women’s reproductive rights.
Fact: The proposed anti-abortion amendment would allow a different group of senile old white guys, namely judges, to also make decisions about a woman’s reproductive rights.

Myth: It is legal in the state of Tennessee to shoot a proud bitch at large.
Fact: Actually, it turns out this one is true. Tennessee Code Title 44, chapter 8.411 specifically states that “Any person crippling, killing, or in any way destroying a proud bitch that is running at large shall not be held liable for the damages due to such killing or destruction.”

Myth: The Confederate Flag is still a revered symbol of the Old South and proudly displayed by homeowners and pickup truck drivers all over the state of Tennessee.
Fact: The flag in question is the Confederate Battle Flag, or more accurately the Confederate Navy Jack, not the flag of the Confederate States of America. It represents the struggle for liberty and freedom from federal interference in states’ rights. It has nothing to do with the 19th century Southern agricultural economy that exploited human slavery for profit. All these self-righteous critics of the South need to get their facts straight. At least that’s what all the guys with paintings of Jefferson Davis on their living room walls tell me.

Myth: Racial prejudice and bigotry are still prevalent in Tennessee.
Fact: Tennessee celebrates racial and ethnic diversity. Lawn jockeys are available in either whiteface or blackface at the merchandise outlets in Pigeon Forge, an East Tennessee tourist Mecca that caters to a sophisticated and culturally diverse demographic from Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina.

Myth: Southern Baptist is the predominant religion in Tennessee.
Fact: Tennessee embraces religious freedom. There are plenty of regular Baptists and even a few Methodists, too. One way you can tell the difference between Baptists and Methodists is that Methodists will acknowledge one another at the liquor store.

Myth: Many school systems across the state forbid teaching evolution in favor of teaching the King James Bible version of creation.
Fact: This is propaganda spread by Episcopalians. Public schools in Tennessee offer a well-rounded biology curriculum based on the New Living Translation and the New American Standard versions of the Bible in addition to the King James version.

Myth: Tennessee has a regressive tax system that favors the wealthy at the expense of the poor.
Fact: The liberal tax-and-spend people would like you to believe this. But the fact is that Tennessee’s tax system is fair. Everyone, rich or poor, pays exactly the same 9.75% sales tax on groceries and clothing for their kids. A lottery ticket costs the same $1 for the richest guy in Bell Meade or the poorest working single mom living in public housing. The wheel tax imposed by many counties across the state is the same for the Bell Meade guy’s new Mercedes Benz as it is for that single mom’s fifteen-year old beater Toyota. And nobody has to pay income tax. What could be fairer than that?