Opinion

As immediate relief needs are assessed in the wake of the devastating earthquake in Haiti, many Americans are looking for ways to help by donating to a charity. The BBB Wise Giving Alliance warns that, as occurred following the tsunami in 2004 and Katrina in 2005, fraudulent charities will likely emerge to try and scam donations from well-meaning Americans.

Nearly two weeks ago I submitted a two-year budget proposal that included a bold new way to help fund, on a recurring basis, shared priorities like education and jobs, a way that eschewed the tax increases and destructive cuts being espoused by some legislative leaders.

As I had predicted, my proposal was met with a chorus of angry responses in some quarters, and the posturing and rhetoric was as stiff as it was unhelpful in moving the discussion forward.

In fact, some legislators declared my budget “dead” even before they examined it.

Budgets must originate in the House of Representatives, so it’s our job to write a spending plan for the House to approve.

It takes a lot of work, especially since we will need to make cuts this year and that is always difficult.

But we will pass a budget and send it to the Senate.

HILLVIEW - Just close your eyes and listen.

There is no need to have any DNA or paternity tests.

Just close your eyes and listen.

There is no doubt that Dr. Praveen Arla is the son of Dr. Mohana Arla.

And it’s not because of how they say it...it’s because of what they are saying.

Praveen has recently joined his father’s medical practice in Hillview and Lebanon Junction. It’s a natural to enter a field he’s known his entire life.

But the young doctor said he went into the field with his eyes wide open.

To borrow an old sports clique, there have been times over the years that one may have attended a hockey game and a Shepherdsville City Council meeting broke out.

When you have emotional topics such as alcohol sales and adult entertainment, the discussions can get quite heated.

On Monday night, the issue of Sunday alcohol sales was on the agenda.

With a packed crowd, 13 individuals chose to speak to the council.

Each speaker did an excellent job presenting their points. And the audience listened to each one.

Each year I prepare a questionnaire so that people can voice their opinions on matters that might come before the General Assembly. As previously reported, the number of responses this year was very high.

I write the questions well in advance of the session to give time for mailing things out and to allow time for people to mail them back. This year I also suggested faxes or emails; a whole lot of folks took advantage of that.

    Valentine’s Day can be costly, not only to our pocket books but also our environment. Think green this Valentine’s Day.

    These tips will help you treat your pocket book and the Earth right on this romantic night:

    FRANKFORT - One of the most lasting traditions in Kentucky history is the now-annual “State of the Commonwealth” speech that the governor gives in early January to the General Assembly and, thanks to KET, a statewide audience.

    On Wednesday, Governor Steve Beshear kept that tradition alive with remarks that reflected recent successes the state has had - and the challenges we face in the next two years.

Bullitt County government has two options in light of the recent state audit of its financial records for the past fiscal year.

Leadership can simply say we’ll do better and try to meet the standards outlined.

Or leadership can aggressively look at the issues raised in the audit and tackle some larger matters.

We expect the leaders of this county to do the latter.

In the recent audit released by Crit Luallen’s office, the county’s financial records were not in tip-top shape.