BluegrassBulletin.com

Nursing Home Strippers

The son of an 85 year old nursing home resident has filed suit after discovering a photo of his mother in the "rec room" stuffing a dollar bill into the waistband of a male stripper's briefs.

[My mother] has lived 85 years as a traditional Baptist, hard-working, lady . . . And now she has been defiled,” [the son] said.

[His] family also asked why his mother was holding dollar bills in her hand when her cash was supposed to be kept under lock and key in a commissary account — but was again blown off, the [lawsuit says].

The “vile” incident was done “all for the perverse pleasure and enjoyment of the Defendant’s staff,” the suit claims.

[The family's] attorneys argue she “lacks the mental and physical capacity” to protect herself. [NYPost]

In other news, Bill Clinton was in Texas last night to watch the UK and UConn cheerleaders.  He was accompanied by George W. Bush who was there to watch the basketball game.

Fallon Fundamentally Transforms Tonight Show

The Tonight Show was a part of my upbringing.  My father watched it every night.  It was a special privilege to watch it with him when I didn't have school the next day.  I actually remember Jack Paar and of course Johnny Carson.  I was never a big fan of Conan and though Leno did a great job, I stopped staying up late to watch him.

But in his last week on the Tonight Show I watched Jay Leno say goodbye.  And I watched him introduce Jimmy Fallon.  Even before the announcement was made that Fallon would follow Leno as the host of the program I had seen Fallon on his own show.  It was and is my opinion that he is incredibly talented, engaging and of course very funny.  So I watched with great anticipation as his first appearance as host of the Tonight Show debuted.  I was very disappointed.

No doubt landing that job is a great accomplishment and he had every right to celebrate it with his new audience in New York and across the nation.  But Fallon made a terrible mistake.  He made the show about him.

The Tonight Show has always been about the guests.  It is the place to showcase the talent of the guests and to make them look good.  Fallon couldn't help himself in his interview with Will Smith for example and stepped all over Smith's lines and acted up behind the desk as if people were tuning into the Jimmy Fallon show.  I wasn't.  I was tuned in to watch a new host of the Tonight Show, and I expected a gracious host who had the good sense to let his guests shine and to provide support, play straight man, add the occasional funny quip then back off and let the show be the show.  Fallon made it all about Jimmy.

I know it's an huge gold star for Jimmy Fallon to be the new host of the most revered tradition in all late night television, but even the name change is telling.  No longer is it "The Tonight Show WITH Jay Leno", it is now "The Tonight Show STARRING Jimmy Fallon".  In other-words they made Fallon the star of the show.  That is a fundamental transformation and it was evident last night.

I'd prefer that Fallon go back to what made Carson great, but then again I'm from an older generation and admittedly I don't stay up to watch anymore.  I suspect that the executives at NBC have calculated that they need a new younger audience tuning in to see a personality every night rather than a parade of notables and stars.  Okay, it's their network and they are the ones taking the gamble.

But as for me, I think that if I can't quite get to sleep and need to turn on the tube after 11:30 I'm heading over to watch Jimmy Kimmel.  And I'll bet the ratings show something very similar as soon as the shine wears off the new penny at NBC.  Unless, that is, Fallon honors the tradition as much as he says he does and makes the show about his guests and not about him.

Newcastle Beer And Their Brilliant Super Bowl Non-Ad

Okay, Newcastle beer made a commercial with Anna Kendrick.  It's being called a "pre-Super Bowl" commerecial.  Why?  Because they launched it on social media and it won't run during the Super Bowl.  Oh, and it is going viral.  Smart huh?  Here's what they had to say:

“We think the formula for creating the most epic Big Game commercial of all time is pretty simple, but when it comes down to it, we’d rather have people drink our beer while watching other companies’ ads,” said Charles van Es, senior brand director for Newcastle Brown Ale, in a press release. “And to be honest, we don’t really have the money or permission to advertise on the game either.” [HotAir]

Here it is.  ENJOY!

 

Best Buds: Budweiser New Super Bowl Ad

It's a good one.  Watch.

 

Water Water Everywhere And Not A Drop To Drink

A number of Owen County residents still have no water at all or water pressure is very low.  Some of the customers who have been restored are complaining about brown water, sediment and grit in their water and other issues.  The northern half of the county is still under a boil water advisory.

This means that water is not fit for human consumption and should not be used to drink, for cooking or for washing dishes.

Representatives from the Kentucky American Water Company serving Owen County have said that they are working hard to restore full service after a water main break last Tuesday.  Several other breaks were identified and repairs continue.  KAWC says that the outage is due to the extremely cold weather which swept through the area for a few days.

A number of unanswered questions still remain concerning the water company's inability to deal with this clearly foreseeable event.  As one of the engineers for the new treatment facility in Owen County said, cold weather is known to heave the ground and cause breaks.  But the weather forecast for the below zero temperatures was made several days in advance and yet not all of the storage tanks along the main lines were filled in advance of the arrival of the cold weather.

The old Owen County water treatment plant had an output capacity of about 1.44 million gallons per day.  County wide consumption has remained pretty steadily below the output capacity with actual output being a little more than half of the plants ability.

Kentucky American Water Company says it expedited the connection of its new 16 inch main from the Hardin Station plant on US 127 at the Owen/Franklin county lines to the old Owen County water plant in the midst of this "emergency" in order to meet the needs of the community.

Some county officials say a complete investigation is in order to determine the truth behind the excuses Kentucky American Water has given for the extended disruption in service which crippled the county, its people, farms and businesses for over a week.

It is hoped that the complaint filed against KAWC with the Public Services Commission will result in at least one investigation and provide some preliminary answers to the residents of Owen County.

Owen County Still Suffering Water Outage

A major water main break on Tuesday which disrupted water service to much of Owen County Kentucky was still causing major problems Thursday morning.  According the the county Facebook page the effort to refill the system is being hampered by new leaks in the "spider web" of lines crossing the territory.

"The water system will continue to be filled throughout the evening, so some areas may not regain water service until at least the morning. Why is this the case? The current treatment plant has a pumping capacity of about a million gallons of water per day. As the plant attempted today to fill tanks (the Fairgrounds tank holds approximately half a million gallons of water, for example), as well as a spiderweb of pipes throughout the county, various leaks and breaks throughout the day, prompted by the extreme temperatures, leaked out some of the water trying to fill the system, delaying progress. Crews worked throughout the day to identify and fix leaks/breaks, and the breaks appear to have slowed down, allowing greater progress to be made on restoring water in the system."

This explanation raises a serious question about the ability of Kentucy American Water to respond to an emergency break as happened on Tuesday.  Main lines serving customers and pressure tanks extend more than 10 miles beyond the break site.  Those lines and tanks hold a lot of water.  Where did it go?

If the pumping capacity of the entire system is only 1 million gallons a day how did those lines and tanks stay filled before if one tank near the break holds 1/2  million gallons alone?

Obviously storage of water and pressure to deliver it along with the usage by customers isn't a volume which is being provided by output of the pumping facility.  Does the company provide back-flow valves which prevent loss pressure and use of stored water in parts of the system not directly affected by breaks?

Kentucky American built a brand new facility on the Owen/Franklin county line which opened in 2010.  According to their announcement the plant can treat 20 million gallons of water per day.  But, even though the plant is in Owen County, the water is going elsewhere.

"The controversial $164 million project includes a plant that can treat 20 million gallons of water a day and a 31-mile underground pipeline that carries the water to the northeast edge of Fayette County.

The utility says the plant is expected to meet Lexington's water needs, with restrictions only in the worst droughts, for 20 to 30 years.

The plant started operating Sept. 20. For now, it is treating about 6 million gallons of water a day, said Linda Bridwell, the Kentucky American engineer who was in charge of building the plant and pipeline.

Most of that water is going to the utility's customers in Scott, Bourbon and Harrison counties, and in north Lexington, she said. The rest of Lexington is getting water from treatment plants on the Kentucky River in southeast Fayette County, and on Richmond Road. Those two plants have a combined capacity of 70 million gallons a day." [Kentucky.com]

So why is a plant, sitting in Owen County with a 20 million gallon capacity per day which has been operational since 2010 unable to serve its customers in Owen County allowing a health and hygiene emergency to extend for days due to a single water main break?

These questions deserve answers but more than that, they deserve a solution.

It's an election year in Kentucky and those who want an office need to address these concerns.

Owen County Water Outage May Soon Become Serious Emergency

Kentucky American Water Company has attributed several water main breaks yesterday and today to the extremely cold weather which hit Owen County.  A major break in the middle of Owenton was repaired late on Tuesday and two more breaks on Wednesday are reportedly repaired, according to the Owen County Facebook page.

However, many parts of the county are still without any water at all, and while efforts to address drinking water concerns have so far included a boil water advisory and promises to provide free bottle water at some specified locations larger more emergency circumstances are looming.

Owen County is home to thousands of head of livestock which are finding natural sources of water such as ponds, creeks and springs, frozen solid.  Water for these larger livestock herds is now unavailable putting them at serious risk.

In addition business disruptions due to lack of water have continued for two days now with no clear indication of when water will once again be flowing.  In a fragile economy this problem could have serious consequences for small businesses.  Restaurants and grocery stores unable to open cannot rotate stock and may lose food due to expiration.  The schools are closed, industries are closed and paychecks are being affected.

In addition residential customers are not only inconvenienced by the lack of drinking water but are unable to flush toilets, take showers, clean clothing, clean dishes and provide basic home hygiene.  This is particularly hard on families with small babies and those at the local hospital and nursing facilities.

While Kentucky American is, according to their reports, merely waiting for the water tanks to refill, demand for water by customers across the board is apparently draining what water is being put into those tanks faster than they can fill them. 

Citizens have been advised to not use any water at all until the tanks are filled but a call to the local office reveals that there is no predictable time frame in which restoration of normal water service can be guaranteed.

It is quite clear that the Owen County water outage may soon become a health emergency among the general population and a serious risk to the lives and well being of the county's substantial livestock population, and God forbid there is a fire in this relatively remote rural community.  Tankers of water from surrounding areas would hardly arrive in time to save much.

Considering that Kentucky American certainly has flow meters that can measure the progress at their tanks one would think a better prediction would be forthcoming, at least enough to allow people to make alternate plans if the delays are going to extend beyond a few hours.  It has already been two days, and now they say, they do not know when the end will be in sight.

Serious Arctic Blast Could Spell Large Scale Damage

A significant blast of very cold air coming in behind a warm and rainy weather pattern could produce a heavy accumulation of ice tonight causing widespread power outages repairs of which could be hampered by more freezing weather and snow which will fall on top of the ice on Friday, according to the weather service.

Areas to be affected are identified on the maps below.  Those of us in the Ohio Valley will not be spared the ice and sleet but may only get a couple inches of snow. [Weather.com]

Congress Tackles Patent Trolls

From the Electronic Frontier Foundation:

Thank you, patent trolls. Today, we are one giant step closer to real patent reform in the United States. Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), along with a broad bipartisan coalition, has introduced the Innovation Act of 2013, comprehensive legislation that, if passed, would severely limit trolls' ability to continue their trolly behavior.

What changed? Well, the tech community learned how to better make its voice heard in D.C. (Remember SOPA?) This American Life focused two full hours (here and here) on patent trolls. And brave members of Congress, like Rep. Peter Defazio, got in front of the issue by introducing bills like the SHIELD Act.

But, really, the trolls have done all the hard work for us. They targeted app developers for using generally available technology. They sued small city governments for using bus tracking software. They went after businesses for using scan-to-email technology and the kind of WiFi routers you would buy off the shelf at Best Buy.

Thank you, trolls. You didn't only get our attention, you got the attention of Rep. Goodlatte, along with other congressional leaders, the FTC, and even the President. We're going to be working hard to make sure that not only is your 15 minutes of fame over, but so too is your entire business model.

I'd say addressing these kinds of abuses could make Congress' rating go up a bit, that is of course unless the patent trolls sue the polling companies over their polling software.

Related articles

Anti-'Patent Troll' Bill Introduced In Congress

Bipartisan bill could mean the end of patent trolling

New bill targets the patent trolls that hold us hostage

Finally, a bill to end patent trolling

Finally, a win against patent trolls

Don't Feed Your Pets Chinese Dog Treats

The FDA has issued a warning regarding dog treats made in China.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) continues to caution consumers about a potential association between the development of illness in dogs and the consumption of chicken jerky products. The products—also called chicken tenders, strips, or treats—are imported from China. FDA continues to receive complaints of sick dogs that their owners or veterinarians associate with eating chicken jerky products.

Apparently there have been over 600 deaths attributed to the product.