BIG BLUE……STUPIDITY

Once again, after proclaiming how much it wants and needs the support of the Big Blue Nation, UK has acted to scorn them…needlessly.

I am not privy to those negotiations, but why in the world would UK give away rights to let local TV stations (and others thru out the Commonwealth) carry Big Blue Madness???

Now remember, I worked 15 years for channel 27, but I write as a UK fan…I know UK had to give the rights to its sports games away to establish the SEC network, but the Madness is not a game. Sure, SEC and ESPN would love to have those rights...we are the Notre Dame of college basketball, but..in doing so, UK acted against the best interest of its fans..forcing them, in many cases,  to pay to see the Madness they once got for free.

Makes no sense to this fan, and I hope members of the BBN will let UK’s Athletic Director, Mitch Barnhart know their fury..maybe, maybe next year will be different.  It should be.

BTW, aren’t we all proud of the UK Football Cats?  Not only did they play a great game against #1 last week..but, a fact glossed over by many, both UK and Miss State played with very, very few penalties..something you don’t ordinarily see in such a hard fought game.

Congrats to all the football Cats, too!

I'm just sayin'...

GRAY MOUNTAIN: THE NEXT BIG THING

Best seller author John Grisham is about to raise hackles all over Kentucky.   His new novel, Gray Mountain, based on a review I read,  is most definitely anti Big Coal.

So it is likely to become entangled in our civic discussions---and our politics. Since neither Senate candidate, to their discredit, has been answering reporters’ questions on serious issues, it is likely we are about to see something like this:

The C-J editorial board will ask Grimes if she has read the book. Since she probably doesn’t have much time on the campaign trail to read novels, she may hesitate to answer, and the Board will pounce. "Why won’t you tell us if you have read Gray Mountain?”

NBC will dispatch a team to follow her at several stops, shouting their question. "Have you read Gray Mountain?” Again, and most unwisely, she seldom stops to answer these questions, so Chuck  Todd will proclaim, "I think she has disqualified herself from a library card anywhere in Kentucky.”

You have been warned.

I'm just sayin'...

Our "Secret" Ballot

We take it for granted today, but as with so many of our freedoms it was hard won..and Kentucky figured in its history.

“Secret” ballots..casting your vote in private...was a movement of the mid19th century..in France, and Britain and especially Australia. Before that many countries had systems which allowed the rulers to pressure the voters into voting their way. One was the “Oral” vote, so obviously subject to mob pressures..and yet, Kentucky was the last state to give up the oral vote in `1891. (To its credit, Louisville was the first city in the U-S to adopt the “Australian secret ballot” that same year. U-S presidential elections didn’t have secret nationwide ballots until 1894.

I get many calls by “pollsters” and “surveys” and I tell them all..happy to give you my views on issues but I will NOT tell you who I will vote forever-- (if I’ve decided)..and I am appalled that many people talk to exit pollsters and  tell them who they voted for...if they are truthful about it.

All this by way of background for the really outrageous way some in the media have been piling on Alison Grimes for refusing to say if she had voted for Obama. Her reasons may be ultra-political, given his low, low ratings in Kentucky…but it is also her right as an American.

That she was even asked by the Courier-Journal editorial board makes me wonder if they understand and appreciate this right we have. And the piling on by other reporters was even worse. 

NBC’s political reporter Chuck Todd was quoted that her refusal “disqualifies her” from being Senator. That’s an opinion; reporters are not supposed to express opinions in their reporting. Back to Journalism 101, Mr. Todd.

Senator McConnell was asked if he voted for Nixon. He said he did. That’s his choice and his right. 

So Mitch voted for Tricky Dick. Nixon the Crook. Nixon the only U.S. president to resign---in disgrace. And this is better than voting for Obama???

This blog is not an endorsement for any candidate; it is an endorsement for our secret ballot—and for keeping it that way!

I'm just sayin'...

WHETHER REPORT:

Severe storms came to Kentucky this week..as they have in past weeks and will come again in future weeks.

Early reports are “good”..no loss of life, no serious injuries.

At least 3 EF-1 tornadoes have been confirmed, with winds doing major property damage in several counties. As usual, “mobile homes” probably suffered the most.

Weather-casters universally urged mobile home dwellers to leave..to seek shelter in more substantial buildings. What a damning indictment! These homes are basically unsafe in serious storms. Yet, given our terrain and income levels, we know such homes are popular. Outlawing them is not a possibility.

But why do we keep on resisting various safety measures which are available for such homes, especially “straps?”  These are heavy metal devices around the homes, anchored securely in the ground. Would they protect the homes from all storms? No.  Would they limit damages and possibly save lives?  Yes.

So why do we equivocate?

The legislature should pass laws requiring such straps in the future. But there doesn’t seem to be a glimmer of hope for such passage. I would guess this is due to the political clout of the “manufactured homes” industry..tho it flies in the faces of helping our citizens.

If Frankfort won’t do it, maybe Lexington's Urban County Council…and other city councils throughout our state..should impose such safety rules on future purchases.

For those storms will come again. 

Next time we may not be so lucky.

I'm just sayin'...