.....Advertisement.....
.....Advertisement.....

Opinion

  • We congratulate: The nanny who...

    You have read and probably even seen so much about Alyson Myatt, the young woman who saved the little boy from the fire last week.

    She rushed through the flames barefoot in one of those rare acts of heroism that all of us wonder if we have within us.

    The world is filled with unsung heroes – you probably know many of them – but there are few whose deeds are so bold, so brave and so remarkably pure of heart.

  • You just can't beat the State...

       Here, on St. Patrick’s Day, the green you see is not just from the Irish among us but is worn on the faces of hundreds of other communities across Kentucky.

  • What we think: Examination of CUB...

    The state and the FDIC’s investigation into Citizens Union Bank’s lending practices seemed appropriate and mindful of the bank’s customers.

    If you have invested your money in one of the most stalwart institutions in our community, you want to know that it is being protected with every ounce of regulation that can be mustered. You appreciate the vigilance.

    The bank’s CEO, Billie Wade, and its president, David Bowling, were candid in their responses to the inquiry, though they kept private the inner workings of problem loans.

  • SOUDER: When the cure is worse...

    If you watch the national news or listen to talk radio, you know that the hot issue for the last several weeks has been “health care reform.” Or is it “health insurance reform?” If you don’t know for sure, it’s only because the terms keep changing. 

  • What we think: Enforcing high...

    We like the fact that Triple S Planning & Zoning is flexing a bit of muscle in trying to remove junky cars and substandard images of Shelby County from the gaze of our citizens and visitors.

    We like that the commission is not only setting and communicating standards but also is enforcing them consistently and stringently. That’s what we expect of this commission – to preserve the best parts of our county – and enforcing the codes is equally as important as setting them.

  • We congratulate: Rockets for run to...

    As you read this, the Shelby County Rockets already may have played one and be done in the state high school basketball tournament.

    We certainly hope that isn’t true – and we don’t expect that it will be – but there’s a 50-50 chance that we must respect.

    That said, the accomplishment of this group of seniors at SCHS has been amazing and incredibly motivating.

  • A new prescription for health-care...

    Today, please hold my hand, sing “Kumbaya” and come along as I jump wide-eyed and lucidly into the shark-infested depths of discussing health care and its potential reform.

    Yes, this is a discussion that has been evolving for decades.

    Yes, it is moving at a pace that only the 3-toed sloth can appreciate.

  • What we think: County must take...

    The request last week by Shelby Christian Church that Shelby County Fiscal Court issue bonds to assist in refinancing its auditorium caught us by surprise.

    We admit we never had heard of a church making such an arrangement with a governmental body, and though we were relieved to learn this has happened many times and presents no conflict, we remain a bit quizzical about its viability.

  • We congratulate: Montell's...

    “Ladies and gentlemen, stand and cheer, your state representative, Brad Monteellllllllllll.”

    If we were going to announce the name of one of our elected leaders in an introduction before a sports event, it might sound something like that, depending upon the sport and the venue.

    Or how about this?

    “OK class, let’s take roll…. Mr.  Montell?”

    “He has a game today.”

    “Oh, Mr. Montell is absent.”

  • Freedom's just another day,...

     So the University of Louisville’s chapter at Freedom Hall comes to a hopefully rousing “the end” this weekend.

    Nothing better than a signature victory over the top-ranked team to conclude your lease at a place that has housed about as many champions as any building east of Pauley Pavilion.

  • SOUDER: In defense of the Good (...

    Last week, as I was considering what to write in this week’s column, I thought perhaps I should write about the merits of KY Senate Bill 142, which encourages Bible literacy classes in our public schools.

    Then I opened last Saturday’s Courier Journal and saw its predictable editorial denouncing the Senate’s passage of the bill and lamenting the fact that it would likely also pass in the House.

  • MY WORD: Climate issues aren&...

    In every society, on nearly every issue, there are going to be skeptics. There will be critics, cynics and people who just want something to oppose. That’s just how the world works.

    However, just because you oppose something, you disagree with an issue, or you don’t like the people talking about it, that is no reason to deny there’s a problem to begin with.

  • MY Word: KCCT transfer legislation...

    There is a continuous struggle faced by many Kentucky Community and Technical College students. These students take lower-division level transfer classes  taught by highly qualified faculty who have an expertise in teaching and learning, only to discover later that that the degree requirements have changed at the other institution.

     Determining which community college classes will transfer to a 4-year university shouldn’t be so difficult for students.

  • EARLIER: What we think: Ramps on I-...

     

    The report recently of the mounting number of accidents on Interstate 64 east of Shelbyville reminds us of the significant need we have for improvements to our primary artery.

    Simply put, two lanes in either direction through Shelby County are not sufficient.

  • What we think: Shelby County lost...

    This was a sad week for Shelby County, because we lost two people who had devoted so many years to improving the lives of our young people.

    Mary Simmons and Mitch Bailey served in different ways, but their impacts were felt by generations of students who needed a little additional inspiration.

    Ms. Simmons devoted herself to the Dorman Center, where students with special needs of all types were given a chance to be loved and to learn.

  • What we think: Wills' sentence...

    Call us perplexed about the decision Friday of Senior Judge Steve Mershon to let admitted thief Jody Wills off with less of a sentence than we had expected.

    Call us perplexed because Ms. Wills admitted to the 37 counts against her and accepted the state’s offer of a 10-year sentence rather than risk going to jail for decades.

    Call us perplexed as to why she gets to spend 9 months in the Shelby County Detention Center on work release.

    Call us perplexed that her accepted, 10-year sentence was reduced to those terms plus 5 years of probation.

  • The thought of spring training can...

    Here’s an upfront promise: There will be no use today of that four-letter S-word. Not a chance.

    And I mean the one that rhymes with grow.

    I can avow that because of a phone call I received from an old buddy in Florida the other day, a call that warmed my heart, brought sunshine to my foreboding sky and probably melted a little of that white precipitation beneath my feet.

  • SOUDER: Promote global warming...

    As you may have heard, according to news reports last Friday, there was measurable snow on the ground in all 50 states. There was some question about whether there was snow on the top of any of the mountains in Hawaii, but because there is some there occasionally, it made a good headline.

    However, what you may not have known is that, according to global warming “experts,” all of our recent snow should have been impossible.

  • We congratulate: Jewish, Masonic...

    The recent announcement that Jewish Hospital Shelbyville and Masonic Home Shelbyville both were rated 5-star nursing homes was a significant moment for our community.

    You surely know that nursing homes are among the most scrutinized and criticized of our health-related facilities. There is a terrible legacy of neglect and corruption in homes across America, and we as citizens always are concerned that our loved ones are well taken care of in their moments of greatest need.

  • We watch the weather whether we...

    It’s Monday evening, and I’m typing this with one eye on the window and the other on the constantly changing weather forecast.

    Yes, that means I have no eyes on my typing, which would bring joy to the heart of Mrs. Paul Fry, who taught me how to push the keys on an old manual upright, but it also means you’ll have to understand if the words come out runtogether, misspelt or even spacd stranjely.