Apparently, I am not the only one to think that law enforcement around here is problematic. The Federal government seems to have reached a similar conclusion and tried to arrest a Pulaski county constable for corruption.
https://www.policeone.com/officer-shootings/articles/fbi-agent-shot-ky-constable-arrested-in-ongoing-corruption-probe-8SM7rRL6rwNi2EmT/
In true hillbilly fashion, the arrest did not go peacefully, with a minion of Pulaski county trading shots with an FBI agent. The fact that there were shots fired brings the question of what was the Pulaski county constable thinking? After all, one of his neighbors has already stated that the FBI identified themselves before the shooting started. Of course pre-dawn FBI raids aren't really appreciated in the hills, but still, what did he hope to gain? Being the hills, if he had managed to break contact with the FBI, he could easily have gone to ground. After all, the local law enforcers would probably have ignored his presence, just like they ignore all the drug manufacturers and smugglers. Was this his plan? After all, most sane people wouldn't shoot first after being told that the people outside were with the FBI. Did he not hear them and just respond to armed men outside? This implies that he was worried about more than being arrested, which makes you wonder just what he was into that made him so paranoid. Did he think he was being arrested on more serious charges and shooting was the best option? I can see someone letting something like that slip. The people here love nothing more than creating drama.
Of course, we will never know the truth. The only thing we will know is that the FBI tried to arrest a Pulaski county constable and he responded with gunfire, only stopping when he was hit. Such are the law enforcers in the hills.
Saturday, March 7, 2020
Friday, February 28, 2020
Why?
The other day I was nearly bit broadside by a county road truck. The main reason for this was because said state employee was doing 70 mph on a country road. For those of you who don't like English measurements that's 112 kph.
Why was the road truck out there in the first place? Well, the county I live in is divided into 2 parts by the Cumberland river. Half of the county on the south side and half on the north. All, and I mean all or the services are in the south. To get to the north side, you need to spend 1 hour driving through the surrounding counties to get to a bridge. I understand why he was speeding. He was trying to single handedly cover an entire county that was an hours drive from his base. That doesn't justify his reckless driving, but it does explain why it happened.
There must have been a good reason for him to be there. There was. He needed to clear the roads after the snowstorm the night before.
Why was the road truck out there in the first place? Well, the county I live in is divided into 2 parts by the Cumberland river. Half of the county on the south side and half on the north. All, and I mean all or the services are in the south. To get to the north side, you need to spend 1 hour driving through the surrounding counties to get to a bridge. I understand why he was speeding. He was trying to single handedly cover an entire county that was an hours drive from his base. That doesn't justify his reckless driving, but it does explain why it happened.
There must have been a good reason for him to be there. There was. He needed to clear the roads after the snowstorm the night before.
The ice you see is on my windshield. As you can see by all the snow, they needed to get the snow plows out and running or no one would have been able to get anywhere. And yes, this is the road that the truck driver though 70 mph was justified on.
Saturday, February 22, 2020
Can't Even Give It Away
I've been contacting local churches to see if they know of any homeless people who would want to live in my house in Albany for free in exchange for maintenance. At least then I wouldn't have the squatters and I might be eligible for a tax write off. Both good things. I got responses, but as soon as they found out the address, they disappeared. I guess being a car bum is preferable to living in that neighborhood.
Friday, February 21, 2020
Strange Rituals
The people of the hills have some strange rituals. Kentucky is one of the only states where people still stop for funerals. If you are driving in Kentucky and see a funeral procession on the other side of the road, you generally pull over and wait for the procession the pass. On a side street or a 2 lane road, this is a quaint custom, however, the people from the hills of Kentucky tend to carry most things to the level of stupid.
The other day, I was driving in to work. My route takes me on a typical interstate. You know the type. 2 lanes separated by a median strip and then another 2 lanes. The average speed is 70mph. Let's make this more interesting and also say it was raining heavily.
That's the set up. Now imagine a funeral procession coming down the opposite side of the freeway. A vehicle in front of me, seeing that the procession was close and knowing not to stop would be rude, hits his brakes and starts to pull off the highway. The truck behind him, seeing the person in front of him stopping and not wanting to be left out of the herd, locks up his brakes. Then they realize where they are, hit the gas, and try to drive around the other vehicle. Meanwhile, I get to experience the hydroplaning lifestyle and wonder what the idiots in front of me are going to do to further block the roadway.
Fortunately. it all worked out well, but seriously, you don't stop for funerals on an interstate. That's just stupid.
The other day, I was driving in to work. My route takes me on a typical interstate. You know the type. 2 lanes separated by a median strip and then another 2 lanes. The average speed is 70mph. Let's make this more interesting and also say it was raining heavily.
That's the set up. Now imagine a funeral procession coming down the opposite side of the freeway. A vehicle in front of me, seeing that the procession was close and knowing not to stop would be rude, hits his brakes and starts to pull off the highway. The truck behind him, seeing the person in front of him stopping and not wanting to be left out of the herd, locks up his brakes. Then they realize where they are, hit the gas, and try to drive around the other vehicle. Meanwhile, I get to experience the hydroplaning lifestyle and wonder what the idiots in front of me are going to do to further block the roadway.
Fortunately. it all worked out well, but seriously, you don't stop for funerals on an interstate. That's just stupid.
Sunday, February 16, 2020
Return to Stupid
I went back to my house in Albany the other day to clear some junk out. I had meant to bring a truck load of garbage to the dump, but that was not to be.
Since I don't have a pickup truck, the plan was to rent a U-Haul van to move the old furniture and construction debris, but that was not to be.
I've rented U-Haul vans before. The procedure isn't too complex. That is until you get to the hills. You see the local nobility thinks they should just sit back while everyone else does the work and then gives them money for the privilege. Consequently, I arrived at a deserted group of storage buildings to pick up the truck. The rental company told me to call when I arrived there. Silly me. I thought that meant they lived next door, and when I arrived, they'd come over in 5 or 10 minutes to hand over the vehicle. No such thing. When I called, they told me the key was in the back of the truck. Well, there was only one U-Haul truck so it wasn't too hard to find. Of course it was backed against the wall of a storage unit and the freezing rain the previous night had frozen the door shut. It soon became obvious that the door wasn't going to budge without some serious work. Added to the fact that I would have had to do said work with about 1 foot of free space, it did not seem like a good idea. After a few minutes of telling the rental agent that the door was stuck and receiving the same response of "the keys in the back", I told them to forget it. They then told me that they could come out in 3 days to fix the problem and I could get the truck then. Yeah, right.
So far, typical hillbilly efficiency.
Of course by this time I has attracted the attention of a neighbor's dog, who decided that I didn't belong there. Now I got to deal with a snapping, frothing at the mouth dog. Fortunately, I've dealt with such types before, so I managed to convince the dog that I was in charge, and we parted amicably with the dog wanting to play. Of course, I wasn't feeling too happy about hillbillies by this time.
Since I was in the area anyway and I had help coming, I figured that I should go to my house and at least put all the garbage in the barn.
As I approached my house, the neighbor from hell pulled into the left hand lane of the road to check his mail. Did he do it because he saw me coming, or was he just clueless? Who knows? Anyway, I came to a stop and waited for him to get his mail and drive on, but he refused to budge, so I had to drive around him. No big deal, but I was batting 1000 with the hillbillies this day. It was really annoying.
The spooky part came after I pulled into my driveway and was taking some tools out of my car. There was a lot of barking and when I looked up, there was the neighbor from hell driving slowly by and checking me out with another neighbor's dogs snapping at his tires.
Here's a picture of said neighbor watching me through binoculars. This happens to be a good day, but I've seen him stand outside and watch like this in the pouring rain for 45 minutes. Why 45 minutes? Because that was when I was done doing what I was doing, and staying there to see how long he'd stand there seemed pointless.
Why not call the law? You're looking at the law. Yes, Clinton County Kentucky made someone with a criminal record a deputy jailer. Not quite the same as a deputy sheriff to be sure, but still spooky in a small town when you have one behaving like this.
I was just lucky that I had someone over to help me move stuff or who knows what stories he would have made up. That's the lesson for today. Never go anywhere in Appalachia without a witness.
Those of you who get to move stuff out of your old house and take it to the dump. Can rent a truck to do so, and have a neighbor who is nice enough to help, count yourselves lucky. In other parts of the country, even throwing out old mattresses can get complicated.
Since I don't have a pickup truck, the plan was to rent a U-Haul van to move the old furniture and construction debris, but that was not to be.
I've rented U-Haul vans before. The procedure isn't too complex. That is until you get to the hills. You see the local nobility thinks they should just sit back while everyone else does the work and then gives them money for the privilege. Consequently, I arrived at a deserted group of storage buildings to pick up the truck. The rental company told me to call when I arrived there. Silly me. I thought that meant they lived next door, and when I arrived, they'd come over in 5 or 10 minutes to hand over the vehicle. No such thing. When I called, they told me the key was in the back of the truck. Well, there was only one U-Haul truck so it wasn't too hard to find. Of course it was backed against the wall of a storage unit and the freezing rain the previous night had frozen the door shut. It soon became obvious that the door wasn't going to budge without some serious work. Added to the fact that I would have had to do said work with about 1 foot of free space, it did not seem like a good idea. After a few minutes of telling the rental agent that the door was stuck and receiving the same response of "the keys in the back", I told them to forget it. They then told me that they could come out in 3 days to fix the problem and I could get the truck then. Yeah, right.
So far, typical hillbilly efficiency.
Of course by this time I has attracted the attention of a neighbor's dog, who decided that I didn't belong there. Now I got to deal with a snapping, frothing at the mouth dog. Fortunately, I've dealt with such types before, so I managed to convince the dog that I was in charge, and we parted amicably with the dog wanting to play. Of course, I wasn't feeling too happy about hillbillies by this time.
Since I was in the area anyway and I had help coming, I figured that I should go to my house and at least put all the garbage in the barn.
As I approached my house, the neighbor from hell pulled into the left hand lane of the road to check his mail. Did he do it because he saw me coming, or was he just clueless? Who knows? Anyway, I came to a stop and waited for him to get his mail and drive on, but he refused to budge, so I had to drive around him. No big deal, but I was batting 1000 with the hillbillies this day. It was really annoying.
The spooky part came after I pulled into my driveway and was taking some tools out of my car. There was a lot of barking and when I looked up, there was the neighbor from hell driving slowly by and checking me out with another neighbor's dogs snapping at his tires.
Why not call the law? You're looking at the law. Yes, Clinton County Kentucky made someone with a criminal record a deputy jailer. Not quite the same as a deputy sheriff to be sure, but still spooky in a small town when you have one behaving like this.
I was just lucky that I had someone over to help me move stuff or who knows what stories he would have made up. That's the lesson for today. Never go anywhere in Appalachia without a witness.
Those of you who get to move stuff out of your old house and take it to the dump. Can rent a truck to do so, and have a neighbor who is nice enough to help, count yourselves lucky. In other parts of the country, even throwing out old mattresses can get complicated.
Wednesday, February 12, 2020
Stupid Republicans
This blog takes us to the entire Commonwealth, not just the hills and hollers.
Recently, Kentucky voted out its Republican governor. Of course, the democrats saw this as a victory for themselves. In actuality, it just proved that the Republicans are so stupid that they can snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. It's kind of like watching Joe Biden's clone.
Let's explore what Matt Bevin did to lose.
1) He tried to reform the teacher's pension plan. Granted, it needed reforming, but, in the Appalachian part of the state, teaching is one of the main get out of poverty cards. The pay is poor, but against this was a great pension plan and vacation time. At least the teachers can still count on the vacation time.
2) He insulted the rural folk, claiming their schools took too many snow days and they were weak. Sorry Matt. You live in a flat part of Kentucky with road crews. A large part of the state has 20 degree grades leading to hairpin curves where the county road department thinks waiting for spring is the appropriate response to snow. Show some consideration.
3) He went to the counties bordering Ohio and told them he was going to put tolls on the bridges.
4) He put a 6% tax on services. Now Kentuckians have to pay an extra 6% for haircuts and car repairs. Thanks a lot. That really helped the economy.
As you can see, not really a conservative platform.
Why bring this up? Because now another Republican is trying to get a 25% tax passed on vaping products in order to protect the children. Kentucky has an very high smoking rate, so the Republican response is to put a 25% tax on vaping?
There are a lot of stupid Republicans out there.
Recently, Kentucky voted out its Republican governor. Of course, the democrats saw this as a victory for themselves. In actuality, it just proved that the Republicans are so stupid that they can snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. It's kind of like watching Joe Biden's clone.
Let's explore what Matt Bevin did to lose.
1) He tried to reform the teacher's pension plan. Granted, it needed reforming, but, in the Appalachian part of the state, teaching is one of the main get out of poverty cards. The pay is poor, but against this was a great pension plan and vacation time. At least the teachers can still count on the vacation time.
2) He insulted the rural folk, claiming their schools took too many snow days and they were weak. Sorry Matt. You live in a flat part of Kentucky with road crews. A large part of the state has 20 degree grades leading to hairpin curves where the county road department thinks waiting for spring is the appropriate response to snow. Show some consideration.
3) He went to the counties bordering Ohio and told them he was going to put tolls on the bridges.
4) He put a 6% tax on services. Now Kentuckians have to pay an extra 6% for haircuts and car repairs. Thanks a lot. That really helped the economy.
As you can see, not really a conservative platform.
Why bring this up? Because now another Republican is trying to get a 25% tax passed on vaping products in order to protect the children. Kentucky has an very high smoking rate, so the Republican response is to put a 25% tax on vaping?
There are a lot of stupid Republicans out there.
Wednesday, February 5, 2020
Thank You Wal Mart
Just when you think you have seen it all and can cope with Appalachia, you get a new surprise.
I went to remove the tire on my car the other day, but it was a bit more difficult than expected. I eventually removed the lug nuts on my tire, but what you see above is the amount of force required to do so. The last people to touch the tires were Wal Mart about 6 months ago when they changed the tires. That would be the Wal Mart in Monticello, Kentucky. It's sad. I had this tire wrench for over 30 years. It survived MG's, SUV's, and compact cars. It's been all over the country. It survived the Yukon territory. It survived Alaska. It didn't stand a chance against the hillbillies of Eastern Kentucky.
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