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Opinion

  • Don't rely on rumor or fear...

    Ballard W. Cassady Jr.

    Kentucky Bankers Association

    On behalf of Kentucky's banking industry, and on behalf of the Kentucky Bankers Association's member banks and thrifts doing business in Kentucky, I want to take an opportunity to address consumer concerns and, hopefully, to alleviate fears and answer questions.

  • It's not always bad to be slow

    Sometimes it's good to take it slow. And we're not talking about dancing ... or ketchup.

    Kentucky has often been laughed at for being the stereotypical slow and backward state. People in larger cities have made fun of us for being "behind the times."

    Well, today's real estate market has proven that being slow is sometimes a good thing.

  • What's best for America

    There have certainly been a lot of disturbing headlines in the news this political season, and much of it is coming not from TV, newspapers or the Internet, but from my own friends and neighbors. During the past year, I have personally heard the following things being said:

    "That Mormon could never be my president."

    "I don't think it's a woman's place to be president, but I'd rather vote for her than that other one."

    "Barrack Hussein Obama would surrender Iraq to Iran as the very first thing he would do. How can you doubt that?"

  • We need to get along

    Economic development and tourism are two vital initiatives for any community. And because of that, agencies for both should work together to improve the appearance, opportunities and perceptions of our county.

    Tourism is what brings people to Taylor County. The Economic Development Authority brings industry, and with that comes jobs. Combine the two together ... and people can stay in our community permanently.

    It's a shame that there appears to be a tense working environment between the two. They should have open communication, especially working so close together.

  • Booster clubs make all the...

    Due to federal and state budget cuts, school boards are being forced to make tough decisions about which extracurricular activities will receive the greater portion of even smaller slices of the budgetary pie.

    And it's unfortunate for school leaders to be put in the position of forcing the programs to seek alternate forms of funding.

  • We'll take all the new...

    Most of us could all agree that economic development is important to our community.

    Since Fruit of the Loom and Batesville Casket Co. abandoned our town a decade ago, we were left with picking up the pieces of what was left.

    But we picked up those pieces and have actually been able to diversify our local businesses, with the addition of Amazon.com and others.

  • Man of the Year does much to serve...

    Each year in June, the Central Kentucky News-Journal honors Taylor County men with a special section. The newspaper also asks for help from the community in choosing one man, in particular, who excels in his family, career, community and church.

    Residents send in their nominations for Taylor County Man of the Year and then a committee of News-Journal staff members chooses a winner based on those nominations.

    This year's honoree is Ben Martin.

    The decision was a difficult one for the judges. There were more than 10 different men nominated.

  • Davis shines in Kentucky All-Star...

    Tim Davis has coached the Kentucky All Stars to a split - and nearly a sweep - in their annual basketball all-star series vs. Indiana.

    Kentucky was in a tailspin, having lost eight straight and 18 of the last 20 before Davis guided them to a 95-78 blow-out win in Louisville on Sunday after dropping an 83-82 decision in Indianapolis the previous Friday.

  • The fairest of them all

    Summertime. The word alone conjures up visions of ice cream, fishing, swimming, picnics ... and county fairs.

    Kentucky is famous for its county fairs. And now that it's back in full swing, the Taylor County Fair continues to get bigger and better.

    This past Saturday marked the first events for this year's fair - the annual Taylor County Youth Horse Show and Tommie Johns Memorial Championship Horse Show. Tomorrow, fairgoers will start with dairy and goat shows, and Saturday features a beef show and - new this year - a corn hole tournament.

  • Maybe paper ballots will be better?

    Back to the Future. That's not just a movie title anymore. Now, apparently, it's going to be our voting system.

    As a story on last Thursday's front page explains, the County has approved the use of paper ballots for the November General Election. Federal money pays for voting machines, and counties can choose the system that works best for them.

    Taylor Fiscal Court has approved the purchase of machines that will scan paper ballots - ballots a lot like those we used years ago.

  • What kids want

    What has turned out to be a really good day for kids has also turned out to be a really good marketing tool for Taylor County and Green River Lake.

    Hundreds of kids (and with kids come parents) descended on Green River Lake on Saturday as the local chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation sponsored its 2008 Kids Outdoor Day.

    It's almost an accomplishment of monumental proportions - coordinating activities on the waterfront, in the pavilion area at Green River Lake State Park and at Camp Kentahten. It was hot, but the kids didn't seem to mind.

  • Relay for Life exceeds goal

    This year's Relay for Life not only topped last year's fundraising total, organizers says it beat the group's goal by more than $6,000.

    Wow!

    Combined with more than $50,000 from the St. Baldrick's cancer fundraiser in March, the total Campbellsville and Taylor County has raised for cancer research is awesome.

    Cancer affects all of us in one way or another, whether it's through ourselves or a family member. It's up to all of us to support the effort to find a cure.

  • Help make cancer a distant memory

    Cancer touches all of us, plain and simple. If only it was as simple to cure it.

    As the second leading cause of death in the U.S., cancer will affect all too many of us. We each have a risk - experts say half of all men and a third of all women will be diagnosed with some form of the disease.

    As scary as those numbers are, each year it seems as if cancer researchers have some good news for us.

  • City's budget statement...

    Has anybody been thinking what we've been thinking, that they'd like to have the Mayor and the City Council's help balancing our budgets?

    In a time when making ends meet seems like the struggle of a lifetime, the City approved a budget that, among other things, includes a 5 percent pay increase for all full-time employees.

    Before someone accuses us of eating "sour grapes" let it be known that the CKNJ Editorial Board holds no animosity for our fine City workers. We believe a financially strong municipality sends a good message to its constituents.

  • Memorial Day turns out to be...

    At Monday's ceremony honoring Taylor County war dead and those who have served and are still serving, the Junior ROTC from North Hardin High School performed a "Prisoner of War/Missing in Action/Missing Man" ceremony.

    No other editorial comment is necessary but to allow you to read the script as read that day:

  • Economic development needs to go...

    I think we could all agree that economic development is important to our community.

    Since Fruit of the Loom packed up its underwear and Batesville Casket Co. its caskets nearly a decade ago, developing the local economy has been one of our few salvations.

    One would think that hasn't changed. Economic development should be job No. 1 on everyone's mind.

    However, local governments can't seem to agree.

  • Road to the future is paved with...

    This week and next mark the official end of childhood for area high school seniors. They'll be considered "grownups" now.

    Sure, they have the summer to look forward to ... sunny days at the lake, sleeping late, last flings with their friends, but, for many, the dog days of summer are the last of the carefree times.

    Adulthood is now staring them in the face.

  • Like it or not, alcohol sales have...

    If one particular issue would split the opinion of voters in Campbellsville, we suspect alcohol might be it.

    The lead-up to this year's primary was about as tame as it could possibly get. Even though we witnessed way more letters opposing alcohol than approving of it, we suspect that there were a number of people who never really let their feelings be known until they stepped behind the curtain on Tuesday and punched "yes" or "no" on the referendum question about the sale of alcoholic beverages in restaurants.

  • It's time to perform your...

    Tomorrow is Kentucky's Primary Election. And it's up to us to see that those who we believe will do the best job get the most votes.

    Of course, without many local races, officials don't expect a large turnout. However, County Clerk Mark Carney said he believes we'll have a better turnout locally than the state as a whole.

    Apathy certainly won't get us where we need to be.

  • Budget cuts hit schools

    Parents, brace yourselves. State budget cuts are already slicing deep, and it's going to take a lot more than a few stitches to repair the wounds.

    This fall, your children will be affected.

    Schools across Kentucky are being required to slash their budgets. And that means fewer teachers and educational programs for our students.