The LuLac Edition #258, July 5th, 2007

PICTURE INDEX: NEW CLASS

PHOTO OF LUZERNE COUNTY

COMMISSIONERS

DOME DOINGS

Look for some new action under the County Courthouse dome this month. With the addition of Rose Tucker to te Board of County Commissioners, you'll see a few things discussed in July. The Board essentially slowed down a bit in June to get Mrs. Tucker up to speed on issues facing the county.

POST FOURTH NEWS

The day after the fourth of July is a lot like the day after New Year's Eve. A lot of noise and booze consumed gives way to reflection on what happened on the big day. My girl Sharipova lost at Wimbledon but another event on Coney Island brought out throngs of people.

DOG DAY AFTERNOON

In a gut-busting showdown that combined drama, daring and indigestion, Joey Chestnut emerged Wednesday as the world’s hot dog eating champion, knocking off six-time winner Takeru Kobayashi in a record-setting yet repulsive triumph.
Chestnut, the great red, white and blue hope in the annual Fourth of July competition, broke his own world record by inhaling 66 hot dogs in 12 minutes — a staggering one every 10.9 seconds before a screaming crowd in Coney Island.
“If I needed to eat another one right now, I could,” the 23-year-old Californian said after receiving the mustard yellow belt emblematic of hot dog eating supremacy.
Kobayashi, the Japanese eating machine, recently had a wisdom tooth extracted and received chiropractic treatment due to a sore jaw. But the winner of every Nathan’s hot dog competition from 2001 to 2006 showed no ill effects as he stayed with Chestnut frank-for-frank until the very end of the 12-minute competition.
Once the contest ended, the runner-up suffered a reversal — competitive eating-speak for barfing — leading to a deduction from his final total. Kobayashi finished with 63 HDBs (hot dogs and buns eaten) in his best performance ever.

HOT DOGS SAFE IN FORTY FORT

Forty Fort Borough revised their ordinance regarding backyard grilling. The revision includes regulations for the use of portable fire pits and fireplaces. In the previous ordinance, outdoor fire pits and tiki torches were banned.
“The only thing that was allowed was a grill, which had to be approved by the code enforcement officer or the fire chief,” Council President Joseph Chacke said.
Chacke said the previous ordinance also prohibited the use of a grill on a deck or under an overhanging roof. The new ordinance allows the use of a grill on a deck, as long as there is a fire extinguisher within five feet of the fire, and a minimum of six feet of clearance from the fire to the bottom of the ceiling or roof is required.
Fire pits and fireplaces must be assembled according to manufacturer’s instructions and be a minimum of four inches above the floor or ground, and a minimum of four feet from any tree lawn, sidewalk, street and alley. They are also required to be a minimum of eight feet from any structure, or a minimum of three feet from any structure provided there is an appropriate fire extinguisher as mentioned. The complete ordinance is available for review at the borough building.

STATE SLOWDOWN???

Every year, it's the same thing with the Governor and the State Legislature. The Legislature is of course living up or down to its reputation of being the most overpaid and non efficient bunch of people entrusted with government in the country. The state government began sending letters Tuesday to nearly 25,000 employees advising them of furloughs beginning next week as a budget stalemate dragged through a third day and showed no sign of ending soon.
Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell, appearing in the reception room at his Capitol office, said he is willing to hold up the budget and order furloughs if it means getting massive new funding for transportation and alternative energy, and passage of measures to cut health care costs. I predict this thing will be resolved very soon. Governor Ed doesn't want all the gambling revenue going down the drain.


IOWA POLITICS

In Iowa yesterday, the state was treated to Presidential candidates dropping by. Iowa, which I believe has way too much of a say in picking our President had visits from both Dems and Reps for a fantastic fourth. Fourth of July virtually everywhere is about fireworks, flags, firetrucks and floats. In Iowa Wednesday, people eyeing the White House also were in the mix. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton walked hand in hand with her husband Bill in a sunny, postcard-perfect holiday parade in this north-central lakeside town.
Iowa is among the earliest presidential delegate-selection states, and some 10,000 people were expected here. Many White House aspirants already have crossed these highways, visited the farms and broken bread in the coffee shops, in the earliest-ever jockeying for the parties’ presidential nominations. Veterans led Wednesday’s parade, which included a float featuring a woman dressed as a gold Statue of Liberty. Sen. Clinton followed closely, causing a long wait between floats. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney also marched — further back.
In Waterloo, Iowa, Sen. Clinton took President Bush to task, saying he has run the nation into debt, forcing it to borrow from other countries and from social programs to fund the war in Iraq. Meanwhile, Sen. Barack Obama, who also was campaigning in Iowa, said he likes and respects former President Clinton but thinks the American people want fresh ideas in the current race for the White House.