No helmets for chariots

Why don’t the new downtown parking enforcement officers wear helmets when they’re zipping around downtown on their chariots?

Carlton Chenault, an outrider with LEXPARK showed off the new Chariot on Main Street in Lexington, Ky., Thursday, July, 3, 2008.

Gary Means, executive director of the Lexington Fayette County Parking Authority explains: the three-wheeled vehicle that the enforcement officers use are not prone to tipping over like a bicycle or motorcycle, so consequently are more stable. After a discussion between the staffs of the parking authority and Republic Parking (who actually employs the outriders), it was decided that the vehicles are safe enough to not require a helmet. Kentucky state law only requires protective headgear for anyone under the age of 21,  has an instructional permit or has had their motorcycle license for less than one year. Operators of three-wheeled vehicles are not required to wear a helmet. Republic Parking has experience with other cities using the vehicles and has not any problems operating the chariots without a helmet.

Can cheese be organic, artisan and self-sustaining?

Lately, I have been seeing some familiar words used in somewhat new ways. My old dictionaries are not very helpful. Can you clue me into the current usages? The words are: organic, artisan and self-sustaining.

Check with Sharon Thompson’s blog today to see what she has to say about the safety of Kentucky produced food.

Organic is used to describe everything from beets to boots. For food labeling, the United States Dept. of Agriculture has a certification program called the National Organic Program. The Organic Foods Production Act of 1990, part of the 1990 Farm Bill, was intended to establish standards governing agriculture products and production to assure consumers of consistency in the meaning of organic. The process for acquiring the organic label is detailed in this act. According to the act, organic food must be “produced and handled without the use of synthetic chemicals.” The USDA program also regulates some textiles which can be labeled organic, depending on the content of the fiber.

The online Merriam-Webster dictionary defines self-sustaining as “maintaining or able to maintain oneself or itself by independent effort.” The USDA has quite a lot of information about sustainable agriculture. As it pertains to agriculture, sustainable describes farming systems that are “capable of maintaining their productivity and usefulness to society indefinitely. Such systems… must be resource-conserving, socially supportive, commercially competitive, and environmentally sound.” [John Ikerd, as quoted by Richard Duesterhaus in "Sustainability’s Promise," Journal of Soil and Water Conservation (Jan.-Feb. 1990) 45(1): p.4. NAL Call # 56.8 J822] The University of Kentucky College of Agriculture sponsored a conference last March, “Land, Food & Culture: Creating Sustainability Where You Live.”

Sustainable agriculture was also addressed in the 1990 Farm Bill. Under that law, “the term sustainable agriculture means an integrated system of plant and animal production practices having a site-specific application that will, over the long term:

• satisfy human food and fiber needs;
• enhance environmental quality and the natural resource base upon which the agricultural economy depends;
• make the most efficient use of nonrenewable resources and on-farm resources and integrate, where appropriate, natural biological cycles and controls;
• sustain the economic viability of farm operations; and
• enhance the quality of life for farmers and society as a whole.”

Artisan foods, often cheese or bread, are typically produced in small facilities from materials grown in the region often using locally developed recipes. According to the Marin (California) Independent Journal, “Another growing trend is to make the cheese with certified organic milk. Artisan cheesemakers not only come up with the recipes for their cheeses, they also oversee every aspect of production. Some, such as the Giacomini family of Point Reyes and the Straus family of Marshall, can call their creations single herd cheeses because they know every cow that produces the milk that goes into the cheeses.” The U.S. Slow Food movement and Kentucky Slow Food is supportive of artisan food products.

Headquarters for Obama and McCain

Where are the headquarters for Barack Obama and John McCain? Thanks

John McCain’s campaign doesn’t have a Kentucky headquarters, but the state is served by the Mid-Atlantic regional campaign office based in Northern Virginia, which can be reached at (703) 650-5793. A limited supply of yard signs and bumper stickers are available at the Republican Party of Kentucky state headquarters in Frankfort, said spokeswoman Andi Johnson.

The Barack Obama campaign had a Lexington office during the primary, but it’s now closed. The Chicago office is the main campaign headquarters for Obama. Contact: (866) 675-2008; Obama for America, P.O. Box 8102, Chicago, IL 60680

To keep up with the latest Kentucky political happenings, check Kentucky.com’s Pol Watchers: Covering Kentucky Politics.

Tuskegee Airmen highway

Why is I-75, as you come into Fayette County, named for the Tuskegee Airmen?

LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER
Copyright © 2007, Herald-Leader
Saturday, August 11, 2007
SOURCE: By Jim Warren Jwarren@herald-Leader.Com

THE ROAD TO GLORY
I-75 STRETCH HONORS TUSKEGEE AIRMEN<

Frank Walker of Richmond, at among fellow Tuskegee Airmen during a sign dedication ceremony for the naming of I-75, on Aug. 10, 2007

Frank Douglas Walker didn’t get much credit around his hometown of Richmond when he returned from World War II, after flying 50 combat missions as a member of the now famous Tuskegee Airmen.
Back then, Walker said, few people had any idea who or what the Tuskegee Airmen were.
So it was a particularly special moment for Walker yesterday, when the 23-mile stretch of Interstate 75 in Fayette County was dedicated as the “ Tuskegee Airmen Memorial Trail.”
During ceremonies at the Aviation Museum of Kentucky at Blue Grass Airport, Walker and fellow Tuskegee Airmen Julius Calloway of Louisville and John Leahr of Cincinnati helped unveil one of the signs that will mark the trail. Some signs already are up on the highway.
“It means a whole lot,” Walker, 88, said. “I’m proud of it.”
Kentucky thus becomes the first state to officially name a roadway honoring the black fliers who made history more than 60 years ago, said state Rep. Reginald Meeks, D-Louisville, who sponsored legislation in the Kentucky General Assembly to make the highway naming possible.
Meeks said the stretch of I-75 in Fayette County was selected because the state aviation museum is here and because several of the airmen were from Central Kentucky. Another factor: Noel Parrish, a white Army officer from Versailles, was the first commander of the base at Tuskegee, Ala., where the black fliers trained. Parrish’s widow sent flowers for yesterday’s ceremonies.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt, responding to pleas by civil rights groups, authorized an “experimental program” to train blacks as military pilots at the Tuskegee Institute starting in 1941. Eventually, almost 1,000 black pilots won their wings.
The Tuskegee Airmen went on to become one of the most decorated American air outfits of the war, overcoming not only attacks by enemy planes but racial discrimination in the military and at home. This year, the airmen were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian award Congress can give.
Ron Spriggs of Nicholasville, who researches and prepares historical exhibits about the program, said that all those who served at Tuskegee, including pilots, ground crews and support personnel, are considered members of the airmen.
It’s unclear just how many came from Kentucky. But Spriggs said that, in addition to Walker and Calloway, these at least are known:
Frank Weaver of Louisville, William Cornish of Lexington, Morris Washington of Prospect, Washington Ross of Ashland (now living in Detroit), Harold Alston of Paducah and Alvin LaRue of Louisville. Herbert Glenn of Paducah died recently, Spriggs said.
“We are here to celebrate, to honor and pay our respects to our Kentucky sons … who so well represented the best ideals of this country in its darkest days,” Meeks said.
“We owe you so much,” he told the three airmen on hand yesterday, “far more than we could ever repay.”
Reach Jim Warren at (859) 231-3255 or 1-800-950-6397, Ext. 3255.

Cool art downtown

What is the story behind the mural on the side of the building on E. Short St. between DeWeese and Esplanade?

Thanks

The Herald-Leader wrote about the newly created mural on Saturday, June 18, 2005. The artist is Britt Spencer, who won a contest sponsored by Thomas & King and the Lexington Arts and Cultural Council. Spencer, then 21, is a graduate of Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia. Several of his friends and family were at the 2005 unveiling, including Georgia Henkel, his sixth-grade art history teacher while he was at the School for the Creative and Performing Arts in Lexington. As of December 2007, Spencer is a children’s book illustrator in Los Angeles.

First, Hebrew, TaNaK, or Old

Recently, the Herald-Leader quoted a professor from Lexington Theological Seminary who was identified as a “Professor of First (Old) Testament.” Is the New Testament now the “Second Testament”? Is this some kind of PC thing? What are the reasons for the change? Who’s doing it?

According to a 1994 article from the Associated Press, the debate about what to call the first 39 books of the Bible is not new.

From the 1994 article: “Five Bible scholars were asked what they call the first 39 books of the Bible. One said The First Testament, another the Hebrew Scriptures. A third called the collection the Hebrew Bible, and a rabbi referred to it as the TaNaK, an acronym for the Hebrew words Torah, Nebi’im and Kethubim. Only one called the books by the name understood by most Americans: The Old Testament.”

The Chicago Tribune addressed the issue in 2007 when a reader suggested the newspaper replace the name Old Testament with “Hebrew Bible” or another term such as “First Testament” or “Early Scriptures.”

The Tribune’s Public Editor replied:

“Getting rid of the term Old Testament would stir some controversy and, more to the point, it may be confusing to many readers. The Tribune’s stylebook, a guide for consistency and fairness, is silent on the term Hebrew Bible, but language is dynamic and change is a constant at newspapers. More on this later.” Apparently, the newspaper has not changed its style.

Research in Nexis.com (a database of hundreds of newspapers, magazines and journals), “First Testament” is rarely used. “Old Testament” is found much more often.

A thorough change

When did the word thoroughbred become a proper noun,
i.e. Thoroughbred?  What is the rationale and history behind the
change?  Did someone or some industry push for it?   I see it used
one way (uncapitalized) in some newspapers, but capitalized in others
(especially the Herald-Leader).  What’s the scoop?

From Brian Throckmorton, Herald-Leader copy desk chief: Horse people have occasionally complained that we don’t capitalize thoroughbred. Our style has been to lowercase it, possibly because the entry in our dictionary is lowercase, and the stylebook’s rule on animal breeds is to follow the dictionary. For instance, appaloosa is lowercase, but Standardbred is capitalized. Looking into the definitions for thoroughbred, however, one sees that the dictionary capitalizes this one: “any of a breed of light horse developed by crossing Arabian and Turkish stallions with English mares; it is bred primarily for racing.” So, on that basis and out of respect to the large chunk of our readers who are involved with horses, we’ll begin capitalizing Thoroughbred, starting now. … As always, we will avoid applying the term Thoroughbred to animals other than horses. If some exotic case does call for bending that rule, we would lower-case it, per the dictionary: “Sydney said all her dogs are thoroughbred mutts.”

What to do with a Herman’s Hermits album

With today’s emphasis on reorganizing and simplifying our homes, we’d like to begin that process, but are wondering how to dispose of certain types of items. We would like to recycle or donate most of the unneeded items instead of discarding them.

Are there organizations or businesses which would take “classic” items such as: CDs, cassette tapes, and vinyl records, hardcover and paperback books?

Doug Tattershall, media relations coordinator for the Lexington Public Library, said Friends of the Library will accept all kinds of donations like cds, tapes, as well as hardcover and paperback books. The Friends operates the Book Cellar in the lower level of the Central Library, and is open year-round. Donors can also drop off materials at all the locations of the Lexington Public library. All of the donations benefit the library.


The Lexington Public Library Web site has more details about donating.

And, by the way, Peter Noone and Herman’s Hermits, are appearing in Reno, Nevada, at Hot August Nights, scheduled for Aug. 4-10.

Re-named golf course and new signs

When will the name be changed (for the former Picadome golf course) on the sign on South Broadway at Parkway Drive?

According to Mike Fields, director of golf for the Lexington Parks and Recreation department, the signage has changed. An image of Brewer and signs are on the pillars next to the main sign, at the main entrance on South Broadway. They have also changed the score cards and the signs on the golf carts. The sign in front of the club house won’t change.

Herald-Leader columnist John Clay wrote June 24,2007, GOLF PAYS TRIBUTE TO A GREAT FRIEND about re-naming the course.

Really, don’t call me

I have a question about the Kentucky Attorney General’s No Call List, to which I added my telephone number a few years ago. Lately I seem to be getting a lot of solicitation calls, particularly fund-raising calls, from which I thought I was being shielded. Also, during the primary season, I was inundated with pre-recorded political calls. Does the No Call List even exist anymore and, if so, what are its limitations?

From the Kentucky Attorney General: As of June 26, 2007, the Kentucky No Call List will be maintained by the National Do Not Call Registry. According to the Registry, phone numbers are on the no call list permanently. The Federal Trade Commission, which manages the Registry, has helpful information explaining the details of who can call and who cannot. Among those who are permitted to call: political organizations.

From the FTC:

“Because of limitations in the jurisdiction of the FTC and FCC, calls from or on behalf of political organizations, charities, and telephone surveyors would still be permitted, as would calls from companies with which you have an existing business relationship, or those to whom you’ve provided express agreement in writing to receive their calls.

“Political solicitations are not covered by the TSR (Telemarketing Sales Rule) at all, since they are not included in its definition of ‘telemarketing.’ Charities are not covered by the requirements of the national registry. However, if a third-party telemarketer is calling on behalf of a charity, a consumer may ask not to receive any more calls from, or on behalf of, that specific charity. If a third-party telemarketer calls again on behalf of that charity, the telemarketer may be subject to a fine of up to $11,000.”