Transcript

10.30.25 · The Mountain Eagle

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Speaker 1: Now we turn to the Mountain Eagle to read news
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from Whitesburg. Your reader today is Bill of an Arsenal.
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We will begin with the edition dated October twenty ninth,
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twenty twenty five, which the publishers have donated to RADIOI
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as reminder. RADIOI is a reading service intended for people
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who are blind or have other disabilities that make it
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difficult to read printed material. The first story is Here's
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what happens to your body when clocks fall back by
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an hour. It's time for most of America to move
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clocks back. On Sunday. Daylight Saving Time ends in the
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US at two am Local time, which means setting your
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clock back an hour. Standard time will last until March eighth,
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when we will again spring forward with the return of
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daylight saving time. That spring time change can be tough
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on your body, but the fall change should be easier
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to adjust to. Most countries don't make time changes. It's
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mostly in North America and Europe. In the US, Hawaii
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and Arizona stick with standard time year round. Plan on
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a glorious extra hour of sleep as most of America
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falls back into standard time, but make sure to get
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outside for some morning sun too. It'll help your body
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clock reset faster. Daylight Saving Time ends at two am
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Local time Sunday, which means you should set your clock
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back an hour before you go to bed. Standard time
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will last until March eighth, when we will again spring
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forward with the return of daylight saving time. There's a
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lot of grumbling about the twice a year time changes.
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The spring switch tends to be harder, losing that hour
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of sleep. We allegedly recover in the fall, but many
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people also mourn falls end of daylight saving time when
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days already you're getting shorter and moving the clocks can
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mean less daylight after school or work for exercise or
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outdoor fun. Some health groups, including the American Medical Association
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and American Academy of Sleep Medicine, have long urged adopting
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standard time year round. New research from Stanford University agrees,
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finding that switching back and forth is the worst option
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for our health. The study showed sticking with either time
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option would be a bit healthier, but they found permanent
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standard time is slightly better because it aligns more with
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the sun and human biology what's called our circadian rhythm.
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The best way to think about it is as if
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the central clock were like a conductor of an orchestra,
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and each of the organs were a different instrument, said
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Jamie Zeitch, who codirects Stanford's Center for Sleep and Circadian Sciences.
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More light in the morning and less at night is
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key to keeping that rhythm on schedule all the instruments
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in sync. When the clock is regularly disrupted by time
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changes or other reasons, he said, each of the body's
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organ systems, such as the immune system, just works a
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little less well. Most countries do not observe daylight saving time.
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For those that do, mostly in North America and Europe.
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The date that clocks are changed varies in the US Arizona,
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and they don't change and stay on standard time. Here's
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what to know about the twice yearly ritual. How body
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reacts to light. The brain has a master clock that
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is set by exposure to sunlight and darkness. This circadian
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rhythm is a roughly twenty four hour cycle that determines
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when we become sleepy and when we're more alert. The
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patterns change with age, one reason that early to rise
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youngsters evolve into hard to wake teens. Morning light resets
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the rhythm by evening levels of a hormone called melatonin
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begin to surge, triggering drowsiness. Too much light in the evening,
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whether from later time, outdoors, during daylight saving time, or
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from artificial light like computer screens, delays that surge and
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the cycle gets out of sync, and that circadian clock
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affects more than sleep, also influencing things like heart rate,
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blood pressure, stress, hormones, and metabolism. How do time changes
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affect sleep? Even an hour change on the clock can
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throw off sleep schedules, because even though the clocks change,
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work and schools, dark times stay the same. The spring
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change to daylight saving time can be a little rougher,
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as darker mornings and lighter evenings make it harder to
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fall asleep on time. Those first few days have been
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linked to increases in car crashes and even an uptick
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in heart attacks. Some people with seasonal effective disorder, a
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type of depression usually linked to the shorter days and
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less sunlight of fall and winter, may struggle too. Many
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people easily adjust, like how they recover from jet lag
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after traveling, but a time change can add pressure on
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shift workers whose schedules already are out of sync with
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the sun, or those regularly sleep deprived for other reasons.
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About one in three US adults sleep less than the
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recommended seven plus hours nightly, and more than half of
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U s teens don't get the recommended eight hours plus
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on week nights. Chronic sleep deprivations is linked to heart disease,
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cognitive decline, obesity, and numerous other problems. How to prepare
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for the time change in both fall and spring. Changing
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bedtimes by as little as fifteen minutes a night in
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the days before the change can help ease into it,
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but sunshine in the morning is critical to helping reset
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your circadian rhythm for healthful sleep. If you can't get
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outdoors sit by windows, Will the US ever get rid
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of the time change? In Congress, a bill named the
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Sunshine Protection Act that proposes making daylight Saving Time permanent
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has stalled in recent years. The next story is state
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joins suit hoping to force White House to fund SNAP.
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Two thousand, five hundred sixty three households in Letcher County
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in danger of losing food stamps. Kentucky has joined twenty
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four other states and the District of Columbia in a
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lawsuit demanding that the Trump administration transfer SNAP Supplemental Nutrition
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Assistance Program benefits to people in the program as scheduled
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on Saturday, Governor Andy Basheer said Tuesday, the administration has
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said food stamp benefits will not be sent out November first,
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leaving families, the homeless and the elderly facing hunger as
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Thanksgiving approaches. Because of the government shutdown, SNAP benefits, commonly
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known as food stamps, are suspended indefinitely. President Donald J.
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Trump has prohibited states from paying vendors to keep the
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program afloat, and the US Department of Agriculture announced this
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week that it will not tap into emergency funds to
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fill the gap. Our president should be focused on fighting hunger,
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not causing it. Yet, the unlawful suspension of SNAP benefits
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is going to cause more than forty million Americans and
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almost six hundred thousand Kentuckians, many of which are children,
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to go without food, said Governor Bisheer. My faith teaches
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me that food is life giving and meant to be shared.
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From the miracle of fishes and loaves to the last Supper,
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we are called to feed and care for each other,
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and the Trump administration prohibiting SNAP benefits is wrong. One
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in eight households in Kentucky receive SNAP benefits, and two thousand,
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five hundred sixty three households in Lectri County receive SNAP benefits,
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totaling about five thousand people. The average household that qualifies
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for SNAP receives three hundred eighteen dollars a month in benefits.
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In addition, the cut would remove nearly eight hundred sixteen
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thousand dollars from the economy in Leccher County in November,
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most or all of which would be spent at Lectric
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County grocery stores. Basher, a Democrat, said the state does
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not have the money to pick up the benefits that
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the federal government doesn't pay because there is no guarantee
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the state will be reimbursed once the federal government opens
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back up, and the Republican led General Assembly placed a
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cap on the amount of money the governor can spend
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during a declared emergency. Despite the significance of this funding
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and its ability to fight hunger, the Trump administration has
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prohibited the federal government from paying out SNAP benefits for
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November or states from paying money to the vendors to
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pay out benefits. The governor's communications director, Scotty Ellis said
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in a prepared statement, the Commonwealth would need approximately one
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hundred six million dollars per month to pay SNAP benefits
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to all beneficiaries who qualify due to legislation passed by
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the General Assembly in twenty twenty four, which places a
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new seventy five million dollar annual cap on in emergency
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spending when a governor declares a state of emergency. The
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path pursued in Virginia would not be a viable option
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in Kentucky barring widespread support from the General Assembly, and
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there's still no guarantee the federal government would pay the
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state back for stepping in and filling the gap for
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our families who need it. Ellis said the state will
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begin processing benefits as soon as the federal government reopens.
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As the governor shared in his update last week, his
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hope is that folks in d C will understand the
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American people are not a negotiating tool, reopen the government
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and stop making non partisan issues like health care and
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fighting hunger political. Ellis said Electric County Food Pantry doubled
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its food for this month in anticipation of the increased
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number of families in need. The nonprofit agency has opened
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Tuesday through Friday and delivers food once a month to
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different communities in the county. Vicky Holbrook, who runs the program,
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said she tries to put staples such as potatoes, mac
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and cheese and other items commonly used in the boxes
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of food, but the pantry might or might not always
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have them. She said meats had been particularly hard to
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get this month. The pantry is getting fish such as pollock, shrimp,
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and cod, but still little meat. I went two weeks
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and couldn't get any mac and cheese. She said. The
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pantry has started to get more ready to eat foods
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also because there are several clients who are homeless and
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have no place to cook. I'm always big about having
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things like that boloney and peanut butter because of people
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who don't have any way to cook. Holbrook said. I
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ordered more boloney today. Holbrook said some people have worried
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that their other benefits will be cut if they use
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the pantry, but it does not ask any questions about
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the amount of money someone makes. Proof of income is
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not our forms anymore, she said. We don't ask them that.
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She said some people who are single get as little
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as twenty five to twenty eight dollars a month in snap,
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and even that amount will be missed if it's cut
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this weekend. Joining Governor Bursheer in filing this lawsuit are
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the governors of Kansas and Pennsylvania, and the attorney's General
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of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada,
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New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington,
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and Wisconsin. Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman, a Republican, is
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not involved in the suit. The next headline is man
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allegedly stole fourteen thousand dollars in guitars amps. The Electra
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County Sheriff's office has charged a van with receiving stolen
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property after recovering more than fourteen thousand dollars worth of
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stolen musical instruments and equipment. Sheriff Billy Jones said the
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guitars and amplifiers were stolen when someone cut a hole
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in the back of East Kentucky music traders at Ermine
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in the early morning hours of October twentieth and stole
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several guitars and at least two amplifiers. After the Sheriff's
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department got a tip on whom might have the instruments,
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they knocked on the door of Michael Brandon Mays, twenty
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eight of Jeremiah and then got a search warrant. Jones
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said his department served the warrant early on October twenty
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second and located the stolen goods in Maze's residence. Police
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arrested Mays and charged him with receiving stolen property valued
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at ten thousand dollars or more and possession of drug
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paraphernalia serve two probation violation warrants. Mays is being held
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in the Leccher County Jail. And the next story is
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school board hires first chief. A retired Kentucky State Police
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lieutenant is the Leccher County School District's first chief of police.
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Superintendent Denise Jance introduced Jackie Joseph to the Board of
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Education Monday nine. She will be responsible for forming a
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department that will provide school resource officers for the district.
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Jenkins Independent School District has its own police department in Kentucky,
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school police officers must be graduates of a police academy
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with an active Police Officer Professional Standard certification, and they
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must be certified as school resource officers. They have full
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police powers when they are owned school property and can
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coordinate investigations with local agencies. All schools in the state
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are required to have a school resource officer, but Letcher
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County has never had a resource officer at more than
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one school. Electra County Sheriff's Department currently provides a deputy
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at Letcher County Central High School, but that will change
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when the Electri County School's police department gets up and running.
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Sheriff Billy Jones, a retired Nicholasville police officer who served
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as school resource officer at LCCCHS before being promoted to sheriff,
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said current SORO Deputy Alan Burns, will be given the
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choice of returning to the Sheriff's department as a road
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deputy or moving over to the school police department. Joseph
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is a nineteen ninety eight graduate of Whisburg High School
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and applied to join the Kentucky State Police on her
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twenty first birthday in March two thousand and two, three
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months after receiving her associate degree from Southeast Community College.
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She retired from the Kentucky State Police this July why
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as one of two lieutenants at the Hazard Post, where
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she transferred in twenty eighteen. Joseph is married and has
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a child attending West Weisburg Elementary School. Joseph is a
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native of Letcher County and a daughter of Gloria Rogers
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and the Lake Jack Rogers of u Z. The next
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story is Gabby's Fishing Fever by Greg Gabby Caudle. Bass
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fishing at its best right now, go cast a line.
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It is most definitely fall. We're getting some frost in
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the mornings and it's warming up in the daytime. This
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is one of my favorite times of the year to
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be on the lake. If you enjoy good bass fishing action,
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then you will want to get out on the water
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all you can during this time of year, when bass
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will move very shallow and close to shoreline and cover.
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The main reason for this is because the schools of
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baitfish also go shallow as the weather cools, game fish
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like bass will follow them and feed up for the
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coming winter. Bass are much more active now and will
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be until it turns very cold. Now is a good
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time to use shallow running baits. You can fish at
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faster retrieves. Colors that resemble natural shed are good. Colors
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like white, silver, and black also work well. Bass will
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strike hard at baits close to or on the surface.
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Crank baits and spinner baits work well to cover a
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lot of water faster and find active feeding bass. During
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this time of year. You will also hear and see
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some big bass breaking the surface feeding on schools of baitfish.
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This makes top water fishing a good choice and an
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exciting way to fish for bass in the fall. This
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is the time of year that brings some explosive strikes
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and baits like buzz baits and top waters can make
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for some exciting fall bass fishing. So fish shallow, cover water,
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and use natural colored baits and do some great fall
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bass fishing. The next story is Social Security benefit increase
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averages fifty six dollars per month. The Social Security Administration's
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annual cost of living adjustment will go up by two
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point eight percent in twenty twenty six, translating to an
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average increase of more than fifty six dollars for retirees
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every month. Agency officials announced the benefits increase for nearly
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seventy one million Social Security recipients will go into effect
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beginning in January, and increased payments to nearly seven point
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five million people receiving supplemental Security income will begin on
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December thirty first. The cost of Living adjustment, or COLA
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for retirees and disabled beneficiaries is financed by payroll taxes
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collected from workers and their employers up to a certain
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annual salary, which is slated to increase to one hundred
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eighty four thousand, five hundred dollars in twenty twenty six
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from one hundred seventy six thousand, one hundred dollars in
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twenty twenty five. Recipients received a two point five percent
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cost of living boost in twenty twenty five and a
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three point two percent increase in their benefits in twenty
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twenty four, after a historically large eight point seven percent
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benefit increase in twenty twenty three brought on by record
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forty year high inflation. The smaller increase for twenty twenty
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six reflects moderating inflation. The agency will notify recipients of
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their new benefit amount by mail in early December. Some
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seniors say increase isn't enough. Some seniors say the cost
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of living adjustment won't help much and their ability to
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pay for their daily expenses. Linda D's, an eighty year
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old Florence, South Carolina resident, said it does not match
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the affordability crisis we are having right now. D's, a
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retired information systems network operations specialist, moved to South Carolina
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from New York in twenty twenty two to be closer
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to family. She says her monthly rent has increased by
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four hundred dollars in the past two years. She listed
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other items that have become more expensive for her in
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the past two years, including auto insurance and food. If
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you've been into the supermarkets lately, you will notice how
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prices are going up, not down, she said. D's is
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not alone in feeling that costs are getting out of control.
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Polling from the AARP shows that older Americans are increasingly
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struggling to keep up in today's economy. The poll states
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that only twenty two percent of Americans over a D
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fifty agree that a cola of right around three percent
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for Social Security recipients is enough to keep up with
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rising prices, while seventy seven percent disagree. That sentiment is
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consistent across political party affiliations, according to the AARP. In
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Jesus case, the MIT Living Wage Calculator estimates that an
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adult living alone in Florence, South Carolina would spend per
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year ten thousand, one hundred eighty four dollars for housing,
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three thousand fifty three dollars for medical expenses, and three thousand,
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eight hundred and thirty nine dollars for food. The CEO
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of AARP said the COLA is a lifeline of independence
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and dignity for tens of millions of older Americans, but
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even with the annual inflation gauged boost in income, older
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adults still face challenges covering basic expenses. Social Security Administration
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Commissioner Frank Busy Kiano said in a statement Friday that
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the annual cost of Living adjustment is one way we
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are working to make sure benefits reflect today's economic realities
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and continue to provide a foundation of security. Emerson's Sprick,
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the Bipartisan Policy Center's Director of Retirement and Labor Policy,
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said in a statement that cost of living increases can't
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solve all the financial challenges households face or all of
22:27
the shortcomings of the program. The latest COLA announcement comes
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as the Social Security Administration has been navigating almost a
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year of turmoil, including the termination of thousands of workers
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as part of the Trump administration's efforts to shrink the
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size of the federal workforce. Trump administration officials have also
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made statements they later walked back that raised concerns about
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the future of the program. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessantz said
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in July that the Republican and innstration was committed to
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protecting Social Security, hours after he said in an interview
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that a new children's savings program President Donald Trump signed
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into law is a backdoor for privatizing Social Security, and
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in September, Bisignano had to walk back comments that the
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agency is considering raising the retirement age to shore up
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Social Security. Raising the retirement age is not under consideration
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at this time by the administration, Bisignano said at the
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time in an emailed statement to the Associated Press. I
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think everything's being considered, will be considered, Bissingyano said in
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the statement when asked whether raising the retirement age was
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a possibility to maintain the old age program's solvency. Efforts
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to boost benefits for seniors. In addition, the Social Security
23:51
Administration faces a looming bankruptcy date if it is not
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addressed by Congress. The June twenty twenty five Security and
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Medicare Trustees Report states that Social Securities trust funds, which
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cover old age and disability recipients, will be unable to
24:10
pay full benefits beginning in two thousand thirty four. Then
24:15
Social Security would only be able to pay eighty one
24:17
percent of benefits. Social Security benefits were last reformed roughly
24:23
forty years ago, when the federal government raised the eligibility
24:27
age for the program from sixty five to sixty seven.
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While a permanent solution for shoring up the benefits program
24:34
has not been passed into law, both the Trump and
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Biden administrations have recently signed into law new benefits for retirees,
24:43
which are expected to boost their finances. The Trump administration,
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as part of Republicans Tax and Spending Bill, gave tax
24:53
relief to many seniors through a temporary tax deduction for
24:57
seniors aged sixty five and over, which to all income,
25:01
not just Social Security. However, those who won't be able
25:05
to claim the deduction include the lowest income seniors who
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already don't pay taxes on Social Security, those who choose
25:13
to claim their benefits before they reach age sixty five,
25:17
and those above a defined income threshold. Additionally, former President
25:22
Joe Biden in twenty twenty four repealed to federal policies
25:28
the windfall Elimination provision and the Government pension Offset that
25:32
previously limited Social Security payouts for roughly two point eight
25:36
million people, including largely former public workers. These measures have
25:42
accelerated the insolvency of the program. Sprick at the Bipartisan
25:47
Policy Center said there have been long standing questions about
25:51
whether benefits are adequate for low income seniors, which should
25:55
inspire urgency among policy makers to work toward broader reforms
26:00
instead of ignoring social securities, long term solvency and The
26:05
next story is Vaught's views by Larry Vought. Du bot
26:10
is the leader of this UK team. The first time
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Greg Williams, the father of Kentucky freshman Cam Williams, saw
26:18
Mode du Botti at a UK summer camp, he knew
26:22
who the team's leader was going to be. There was
26:25
just something about the way he carried himself. He had
26:28
a commanding presence about him and certainly passes the loop test.
26:31
To be a team's leader, Greg Williams, said, Kentucky coach
26:35
Mark Pope believes some players are born with leadership capability
26:39
and others develop leadership skills. He just wants to make
26:43
sure he has leaders on his team, Pope said. Diuboate,
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as six foot seven, two hundred and twenty pound transfer
26:50
from Alabama, has his own little unique cadence when it
26:54
comes to leadership. I think he's going to be a
26:57
physical leader on our team. I think he's going to be,
26:59
in some ways a really great emotional leader for our team,
27:04
Pope said. And this concludes the reading of The Mountain Eagle.
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Your reader has been buil of an arstale. Now please
27:12
stay tuned for continued programming on behalf of everyone here
27:16
at radio. I thank you for listening, and have a
27:19
good day.