This timeshare uses a ton of water—but that's actually good for you!
Hi! I’m Daniel Wagner from the Patriot Punk Network, giving you the latest Tennessee news in 3 minutes or less.
This is our Today in Tennessee Segment brought to you by Comfort Kings!
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Let's go!
Round 1
Washington County school board member Keith Ervin is now facing assault charges after an April school board meeting where video shows him touching a student board member, calling her "hot," and asking what school she goes to.
The student spoke out for the first time at a meeting earlier this month, saying Ervin's actions "were not only unwelcome, but sexist and derogatory"
A week after the initial incident, the board called a special session and unanimously voted to censure Ervin.
Now he's been criminally charged with assault based on the physical contact captured on video.
So here's the question:
Despite how you feel about what he said—and yeah, it's creepy—does this justify an assault charge?
Is touching someone's arm and making an inappropriate comment now criminal assault, or are we watching the weaponization of the legal system against people who give us the ick?
Round 2
Knox County Commission spent a meeting discussing data center regulations and walked away with… absolutely nothing binding.
They brushed off a temporary moratorium for 30 days to rewrite the language, then sent the whole issue to Knox-Knoxville planning for future study.
Translation: the door stays wide open while the county "studies" the problem.
But the real story wasn't what commissioners said—it was what KUB said.
KUB Vice President Aaron Gill didn't show up to address concerns over grid strain or infrastructure risks.
Instead, he pitched data centers like a sleezy timeshare, arguing that large industrial users help spread fixed costs and could even benefit rates.
Cool—except residents who just lived through TVA's rolling blackouts might remember being told to lower their thermostats while the system was supposedly protected by interruptible contracts.
KUB also admitted it can't track private well usage by data centers, meaning the publicly reported water numbers might not tell the whole story.
Bitdeer's Knoxville operation—which accounted for 9.4% of KUB's total electric sales in 2023 —has already started converting power capacity into AI data centers.
Personally, I think data centers can be great for Tennessee. But when the framework, contracts, and power capacity are already locked in before the public even gets a say, and your utility is out here selling instead of planning, you've got a transparency problem—not an infrastructure problem.
That's 2 rnds down and one to go
Round 3
Humphreys County Sheriff's Office is currently hunting for Benjamin Schloesser, who's wanted on a list of charges that reads like a felony bingo card: [pause to read].
Last Thursday, deputies tried pulling him over to serve those warrants.
Instead, Schloesser fled, forced another vehicle off the road in a near head-on collision—sending that driver to the hospital with injuries—then bailed from his car and disappeared into the woods.
He's still at large and presumed armed and dangerous.
Surprisingly, many are praying for him, hoping he finds God and gets sober; a bit different temperature from the standard pitchforks and torches commentary.
Others are pointing out he's been struggling with addiction for years and deserves compassion.
Addiction is real, and recovery is hard.
But compassion for someone's struggle doesn't erase accountability for their actions.
Schloesser didn't just make bad decisions—he actively put lives at risk, including kids.
That was your Tennessee news roundup.
For more deep dives into local stories, watch the Patriot Punkcast on Rumble every Sunday and Wednesday at 7pm CST. Thanks for checking out our TITS — see you Monday!
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