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Columns

  • Hope springs eternal

    I recently spent an evening in Miller Park covering the Campbellsville 11- year-old Little League All Star baseball team in a matchup against Adair County. Becky Cassell, the News-Journal editor, wants me to have a well-rounded internship covering many different events, so I drew this assignment since the sports editor, Bobby Brockman, was on vacation.

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  • New state laws coming our way

    There are several new state laws set to go into effect next week.

    As usual, the Legislative Research Commission sends out a press release that provides a short synopsis of some of the more pertinent laws passed during the most recent General Assembly.

    And also as usual, there are several that are long overdue.

    Here are a few of the ones that caught my attention. All go into effect on July 15.

    - Amusement park safety. SB 203 will require more frequent inspections of amusement park rides and prevent anyone younger than 18 from operating the rides.

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  • R U serious?

    I never knew "texting" was a hobby.

    Apparently it's a pretty popular one, according to the contestants vying for this year's Miss Pre-Teen Taylor County Fair title.

    Nearly half of those contestants listed sending text messages as one of their hobbies, along with swimming, spending time with friends and family and going shopping.

    I also enjoy spending time with friends and family and will never pass up a trip to any mall ... but texting? As a hobby?

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  • We learned from the very best

    "An all-around newspaper man should be able to write a poem, weigh corn, discuss the tariff, umpire a ballgame, preach the Gospel, beat a lawyer, report a wedding, saw wood, describe a fire, make a dollar do the work of ten, shine at a soiree, address a horticultural society, measure calico, abuse the liquor habit, test whiskey, subscribe to charity, go without meals, attack free silver, defend bimetallism, sneer at snobbery, wear diamonds, invent advertisements, overlook scandal, praise prize babies, delight pumpkin raisers, administer to the afflicted, heal the disgruntled, fight to t

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  • People crave public record

    Well, the results are in. In March, we asked readers to weigh in on the subject of public records.

    Do you read them? How interested are you in reading about them? Which of them are you more interested in?

    From speeding tickets, misdemeanors and indictments to marriages, divorces and land transfers, the News-Journal publishes a multitude of public records. And in the past few years, we have had to devote additional space for the same information we have always published.

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  • The truth beats speculation

    A recently published column by a Kentucky Press Association Hotline attorney shed light on something that is commonly misunderstood - the release of the names of juveniles who appear in court records.

    The simple answer is that news organizations are protected by the First Amendment and by Kentucky law from any liability for publishing the contents of court documents.

    That's the simple answer. There are always more complex issues to weigh.

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  • Advertising pays dividends

    "The codfish lays ten thousand eggs,

    The homely hen lays one.

    The codfish never cackles

    To tell you what she's done.

    And so we scorn the codfish,

    While the humble hen we prize,

    Which only goes to show you

    That it pays to advertise."

    -Anonymous

    A recent story in the Courier-Journal reminded me why we publish a newspaper - not that I'd forgotten.

    A 29-year-old candidate for Jefferson County District Judge made the news (which can also sometimes be good) because she bucked the trend on the experience-o-meter.

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  • Teens show a lot of 'Insight'

    All too often, teens think that grownups don't believe they have anything to say that's important. After working with local teenagers on a monthly teen page called Insight, I can tell you this: That is simply not true.

    Steroid use by athletes. Abortion. Experiments on animals. Discrimination. Holiday shopping. Myspace. Politics. Technology. Games. Sportsmanship. You name it, and this year's Teen Board has covered it.

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  • Will superdelegates fly?

    Kentucky's primary election is over, but the dust still hasn't settled.

    Shuffling through the vote counts the morning after the election was a somewhat disheartening experience for this reporter. Kentuckians came out in droves to vote, nearly doubling the pre-election turnout predictions. That's great, but that's not the problem.

    Hillary Clinton easily won the Kentucky Democratic presidential primary race. Barack Obama is claiming an overall victory. Clinton isn't conceding. The race, though the primaries are nearly over, is apparently still very much underway.

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  • Hair today, gone tomorrow

    We've tried bribery. We've begged. We've pleaded. All to no avail. After all of our years together, she's leaving us.

    Yep. My family's hairstylist is retiring.

    We're panicking. And it's not just me; the kids are in a tizzy, too. With the exception of a handful of occasions when our schedules didn't mesh, no one else has ever cut our hair.

    Now, if you're a man reading this, you likely won't understand our dilemma. "What's the big deal?" you're thinking. But I can pretty much anticipate the thought from many women: "Oh, you poor girl. I feel for you!"

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