Latest / Springfield Sun / 8.27.26
Transcript
- 0:00Speaker 1: We now turn to the Springfield Sun to bring you
- 0:03Speaker 1: news from in and around Washington County. Your reader today
- 0:07Speaker 1: is Amy Jones-Timney. We begin with the edition dated Wednesday,
- 0:13Speaker 1: August 26, 2026. As a reminder, Radio Eye is a
- 0:19Speaker 1: reading service intended for people who are blind or have
- 0:23Speaker 1: other disabilities that make it difficult to read printed material.
- 0:30Speaker 1: WC School Board Experiences Position Changes by Jenna George. As
- 0:36Speaker 1: the school year is officially back in full swing, the
- 0:39Speaker 1: school board is meeting to discuss more topics which will
- 0:42Speaker 1: be addressed over the course of the semester. A new
- 0:46Speaker 1: board member was appointed at the meeting. Jennifer J. Chesser
- 0:49Speaker 1: will now be taking over for District 2, where Jeremy
- 0:53Speaker 1: Thompson previously resided. Chester will fill in for the remainder
- 0:57Speaker 1: of the term, which was vacated by Thompson during his resignation.
- 1:02Speaker 1: For the appointment of the newest board vice chair, current
- 1:05Speaker 1: board member Ray Canterbury was selected for this role. Canterbury
- 1:10Speaker 1: was also appointed to the board legislative liaison position. These
- 1:15Speaker 1: new positions for Canterbury come to a head following Thompson's
- 1:18Speaker 1: choice to step down. meaning these roles will be concrete
- 1:22Speaker 1: for Canterbury for the remainder of Mr. Thompson's term. The
- 1:28Speaker 1: upcoming Memorial Bench and its dedication was one of the
- 1:31Speaker 1: listed items on the agenda, and it was determined that
- 1:34Speaker 1: this dedication will happen once the new fields open on
- 1:37Speaker 1: the school ground. Along with the new fields, the school
- 1:42Speaker 1: district anticipates that they will officially be completed come mid-September.
- 1:48Speaker 1: Though the fields will be completed and ready, the bleachers
- 1:51Speaker 1: will not be able to be installed until the beginning
- 1:54Speaker 1: of November due to a manufacturing change occurring during the
- 1:58Speaker 1: construction process. The next school board meeting will be at
- 2:01Speaker 1: the TEL Center at 6 p.m. on September 14, 2026.
- 2:08Speaker 1: Commander's First Game of the Season This is a photo
- 2:13Speaker 1: of the commander playing Anderson County. a tackle being made
- 2:19Speaker 1: by a Commander's player. The caption says, Washington County's Toby O'Reilly, 34,
- 2:25Speaker 1: stopped Anderson County's Coleman Boggs during the first quarter of
- 2:31Speaker 1: Friday's game. The photo is by John Herndon. And now
- 2:37Speaker 1: for the story. Commanders fall to Bearcats in the season opener.
- 2:41Speaker 1: Washington County was limited offensively. as much-improved Anderson County won
- 2:46Speaker 1: 33-7 in a high school football season opener between the
- 2:51Speaker 1: two teams on Friday, August 21. Anderson County claimed a
- 2:55Speaker 1: win for a season opener for the first time since 2019.
- 2:59Speaker 1: The Commanders visited the Bearcats for a non-district matchup. Washington
- 3:05Speaker 1: County faced a deficit at the conclusion of each quarter.
- 3:08Speaker 1: Anderson County led 33-0 before Washington County reached the end
- 3:13Speaker 1: zone and scored a slim touchdown during the final period.
- 3:17Speaker 1: The commanders scored via the ground. Washington County absorbed the
- 3:21Speaker 1: loss after defeating Anderson County 21-14 in a 2025 high
- 3:26Speaker 1: school football opener. Teams from across the area and throughout
- 3:30Speaker 1: the state competed in the opening week of the 2026
- 3:34Speaker 1: high school football season. The Commanders have additional regular season
- 3:38Speaker 1: games scheduled versus Bethlehem, Marion County, Western Hills, Danville, W.E.B.
- 3:44Speaker 1: Du Bois, Thomas Nelson, Shawnee, Lexington Christian Academy, and Bardstown.
- 3:51Speaker 1: Washington County is scheduled to host Bethlehem for its home
- 3:54Speaker 1: opener in the 2026 high school football season on Friday,
- 3:58Speaker 1: August 28. The Washington County-Bethlehem game is slated for kickoff
- 4:03Speaker 1: at 7.30 p.m. There is another photo that is part
- 4:09Speaker 1: of this story. It says Washington County quarterback Thomas Routian
- 4:14Speaker 1: unleashes a pass at Anderson County Friday night, photo by
- 4:17Speaker 1: John Herndon. And another photo by John Herndon, Washington County's
- 4:21Speaker 1: Elijah King returns the opening kickoff at Anderson County on
- 4:26Speaker 1: Friday night. And now turning to some other news from
- 4:32Speaker 1: the area. Drive Sober Campaign Runs Through Labor Day by
- 4:37Speaker 1: Tom Latet, Kentucky Today. There is an image that says
- 4:43Speaker 1: drive sober or get pulled over. The Kentucky Office of
- 4:47Speaker 1: Highway Safety reminds travelers to plan ahead for a safe
- 4:51Speaker 1: and sober ride home to keep roads safe as Kentuckians
- 4:54Speaker 1: celebrate the unofficial end of summer during the upcoming Labor
- 4:58Speaker 1: Day weekend. The Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign
- 5:02Speaker 1: runs through September 7th as part of a broader effort
- 5:05Speaker 1: the Transportation Cabinet is making along with law enforcement to
- 5:09Speaker 1: improve highway safety by discouraging impaired driving. This Labor Day,
- 5:14Speaker 1: let's all do what's right and look out for our
- 5:16Speaker 1: neighbors by making smart decisions that keep everyone safe on
- 5:20Speaker 1: the roadway, Governor Andy Beshear said in a formal statement.
- 5:24Speaker 1: Do not drink and drive. Put the phone down, buckle up,
- 5:28Speaker 1: and drive the speed limit. Too many crashes and tragedies
- 5:31Speaker 1: on our roadways can be prevented by taking simple steps
- 5:35Speaker 1: that ensure everyone makes it home safely. Although impaired driving
- 5:40Speaker 1: enforcement is a year-round effort, crashes tend to increase over
- 5:44Speaker 1: holiday weekends. The Kentucky Office of Highway Safety is joining the...
- 5:52Speaker 1: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and law enforcement agencies across
- 5:57Speaker 1: the country in the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over
- 6:00Speaker 1: awareness and law enforcement safety campaign reminding drivers to make
- 6:05Speaker 1: a plan before drinking or using impairing dose substances and
- 6:08Speaker 1: to always choose a safe and sober ride home. During
- 6:13Speaker 1: the 2025 Labor Day holiday weekend in Kentucky, there were
- 6:16Speaker 1: 69 crashes involving an impaired driver, resulting in 49 injuries
- 6:22Speaker 1: and three deaths. Reminders for drivers include, before the festivities begin,
- 6:28Speaker 1: plan a way to get home safely at the end
- 6:30Speaker 1: of the night. If you're impaired, use a ride-booking company
- 6:33Speaker 1: or taxi, call a sober friend or family member, or
- 6:36Speaker 1: use public transportation to get home safely. If you see
- 6:41Speaker 1: an impaired driver, safely pull over and contact law enforcement.
- 6:45Speaker 1: You may dial the Kentucky State Police toll-free line directly
- 6:49Speaker 1: at 1-800-222-5555 or call 911. Provide a vehicle description, license number, location, and,
- 7:00Speaker 1: if possible, direction of travel. If you know people who
- 7:04Speaker 1: are about to drive or ride volunteers, take their keys
- 7:08Speaker 1: and help them make other arrangements to get to their
- 7:10Speaker 1: destination safely. Wear a seatbelt. It is not only the law,
- 7:15Speaker 1: but it is also the best defense against an impaired driver.
- 7:20Speaker 1: Buckling up helps prevent injury and death if you are
- 7:24Speaker 1: involved in a crash. Maxwell Christian celebrates 200th anniversary. There
- 7:31Speaker 1: is a photo of a man in a church along
- 7:34Speaker 1: with other family members looking at old pictures and scrapbooks.
- 7:39Speaker 1: The caption says, Macville resident Edwin Young looks through some
- 7:42Speaker 1: of the extensive display of church memorabilia during the 200th
- 7:47Speaker 1: anniversary celebration at Macville Christian Church. Photo by John Herndon.
- 7:53Speaker 1: And this article is by John Herndon, minister of Macville
- 7:57Speaker 1: Christian Church. Macville Christian Church celebrated its 200th anniversary on
- 8:02Speaker 1: August 16th with 86 people packing the buildings for a
- 8:06Speaker 1: great day of worship and fellowship. Jim Cooper, who served
- 8:11Speaker 1: Maxwell for 12 years, delivered a powerful message, Back in
- 8:15Speaker 1: the Boat. Cooper currently serves as minister of Indian Hills
- 8:18Speaker 1: Christian Church in Danville. Christian country music artist Steve Bridgman
- 8:24Speaker 1: encouraged the congregation with some of his hit songs, such
- 8:27Speaker 1: as Jesus Loves Me and his current single, Sunday Shoes
- 8:31Speaker 1: and Muddy Boots. Guests traveled great distances to celebrate God's
- 8:35Speaker 1: work at Maxwell and to renew old friendships. We felt
- 8:39Speaker 1: like part of the extended family of Maxwell Christian Church.
- 8:43Speaker 1: With each new church member we met, we felt welcomed
- 8:46Speaker 1: in Maxwell and had a sweet fellowship, said Kathy Schlaff,
- 8:50Speaker 1: a retired missionary who journeyed from Hamilton, Ohio, to be
- 8:54Speaker 1: part of the celebration. Fast father of the late Fred
- 8:58Speaker 1: Whitaker said, served as a minister at Mackville from 1999
- 9:02Speaker 1: to 2003. Other guests traveled from as far away as Toledo, Ohio,
- 9:08Speaker 1: and enjoyed an extensive display of church history and memorabilia.
- 9:13Speaker 1: That shows that the church has made an impact on them,
- 9:16Speaker 1: current member Justin Hatchett observed. The church has gathered at
- 9:20Speaker 1: its current location since 1860 and continues to meet in
- 9:24Speaker 1: the building erected in 1905. While there have been some
- 9:28Speaker 1: changes and additions to the structure, the building's distinct features
- 9:32Speaker 1: continue to impress. Sandy Carey, who became a member of
- 9:36Speaker 1: the church earlier this year, remembers visiting Maxwell Christian's Vacation
- 9:41Speaker 1: Bible School. Even as a young child, I was so
- 9:44Speaker 1: impressed by the sanctuary and with the unique architecture, sloped floor,
- 9:50Speaker 1: and the beautiful and distinctive curved pews. But Maxwell's ministry
- 9:57Speaker 1: is about people. Carey shared that he was originally drawn
- 10:00Speaker 1: to the church's emphasis on youth. With two young grandchildren
- 10:04Speaker 1: to raise, one with special needs, it was very important
- 10:08Speaker 1: for me to be at a church with a solid
- 10:10Speaker 1: children's program, he said. Maxwell Christian has a legacy of
- 10:14Speaker 1: many avenues of service in Washington County and Central Kentucky.
- 10:19Speaker 1: Being invited to a church anniversary meant coming home, Fapp said.
- 10:24Speaker 1: It was part of our heritage, generation after generation, that
- 10:28Speaker 1: we cherish. Current member Charlotte Seville, a lifelong member of
- 10:33Speaker 1: the church, agreed and looked forward to the church's future.
- 10:37Speaker 1: Macville Christian Church is not the white building that stands
- 10:41Speaker 1: in the curve on Main Street in Macville, she said.
- 10:44Speaker 1: It is the group of people who meet there to
- 10:46Speaker 1: worship and praise God. For 200 years, it has been
- 10:49Speaker 1: the goal of those people to share the love of
- 10:52Speaker 1: Jesus with others. We will strive to show Jesus to
- 10:56Speaker 1: those around us. Let's see, taking a look at some
- 11:01Speaker 1: obituaries from the area. Richard D. Ricky Dino Dean, age 69,
- 11:07Speaker 1: of Willisburg, passed away at 10.10 p.m. Tuesday, August 11, 2026,
- 11:11Speaker 1: at his home. Funeral services were Wednesday, I'm sorry, Saturday,
- 11:18Speaker 1: August 15, at the Willisburg Church of God of Prophecy.
- 11:22Speaker 1: Carrie and Son Funeral Home was in charge of the arrangement.
- 11:27Speaker 1: Jerry Allen Masters, age 77, of Maxwell, Kentucky, passed away
- 11:32Speaker 1: at 6.34 a.m. Sunday, August August 16, 2026, at the
- 11:37Speaker 1: Springview Hospital in Lebanon. Funeral services were held on August
- 11:43Speaker 1: 20 at the Carey and Son Funeral Home, who was
- 11:46Speaker 1: in charge of the arrangement. Betty Lee Harden Weekly, age 83, Portland, Oregon,
- 11:52Speaker 1: formerly of Louisville, Kentucky, and raised in Washington County, passed
- 11:56Speaker 1: away on August 20, 2026, in Portland. Funeral services will
- 12:02Speaker 1: be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, August 29th at Pleasant
- 12:06Speaker 1: Grove Presbyterian Church in Springfield. Cary and Son Funeral Homes
- 12:11Speaker 1: is in charge of the arrangements. Frankie Lee Robinson Mattingly,
- 12:16Speaker 1: age 78 of Willisburg, passed away on Monday, August 10th,
- 12:21Speaker 1: 2026 at her home. Funeral services were August 14th at
- 12:25Speaker 1: Cary and Son Funeral Homes, which was in charge of
- 12:29Speaker 1: the arrangements. Mackville Boosters. Summer vacations are coming to an end.
- 12:35Speaker 1: School is beginning. Time to see old friends and make
- 12:39Speaker 1: new ones. The Kentucky State Fair, August 20th through the 30th,
- 12:43Speaker 1: is a great place to showcase Kentucky products. There are
- 12:47Speaker 1: fall sports, and our farmers are harvesting crops. A busy
- 12:52Speaker 1: time of year for everyone. Boosters had 25 present with
- 12:57Speaker 1: three new friends, Bonnie Fay, Debbie Warner, and Delores Smith.
- 13:01Speaker 1: We enjoyed one of our favorite meals of roast beef,
- 13:04Speaker 1: mashed potatoes, gravy, corn, sliced tomatoes, and cantaloupe, apple cobbler,
- 13:09Speaker 1: and ice cream for dessert. David Walden, pastor at Maxwell Methodist,
- 13:13Speaker 1: delivered the devotion. He brought his wife, Lee Ellen, with him.
- 13:17Speaker 1: She purchased a cookbook and was going to try some
- 13:20Speaker 1: new recipes. Come visit anytime. Call Pam if you plan
- 13:24Speaker 1: on coming. 859-481-1196. Cookbooks are $ 8. 00. Winners of bicycles given
- 13:33Speaker 1: away at the Backyard Kids DBS at Maxwell Baptist were
- 13:37Speaker 1: Clara and Lydia Wheeler. Added to our prayer list for
- 13:41Speaker 1: healing were Carrie Nelson and Linda Mast. Sympathy to the
- 13:45Speaker 1: families of Ricky Dean and Jerry Masters. Congratulations to Robbie
- 13:50Speaker 1: Poland on his retirement from Springfield State Bank. Thank you
- 13:55Speaker 1: for your service and commitment to Springfield and Washington County residents.
- 13:59Speaker 1: We hope you have a healthy and happy retirement with
- 14:02Speaker 1: your family and friends. Enjoy. Make plans now for your
- 14:06Speaker 1: entries in the Harvest Homecoming events on September 19th. A
- 14:10Speaker 1: new event this year is a marble swap. Come enjoy
- 14:14Speaker 1: the food, fun, and fellowship in Mackville. Yates qualifies for
- 14:20Speaker 1: All-A Classic Boys Golf State Tournament. Washington County golfer Nash
- 14:25Speaker 1: Yates has qualified for the All-A Classic Boys Golf State Tournament.
- 14:31Speaker 1: Yates shot an 81 in the fifth region All-A Classic
- 14:34Speaker 1: at Campbellsville Country Club on Thursday, August 20th. His performance
- 14:39Speaker 1: in the regional event allowed him to earn a bid
- 14:41Speaker 1: to the All-A Classic Boys Golf State Tournament, which will
- 14:45Speaker 1: be held in Richmond on Sunday, August 30th. As a team,
- 14:50Speaker 1: Washington County compiled a score of. 353 to in the
- 14:54Speaker 1: fifth region, all A Classic. The additional competitors for Washington
- 14:59Speaker 1: County in the fifth region, all A Classic, were David Currico, 88,
- 15:04Speaker 1: Charlie Coulter, 90, Grant Coulter, 94, and Weston Wingfield, 107.
- 15:13Speaker 1: Now turning to some briefs for the area. Dementia Caregiver
- 15:17Speaker 1: Support Group. A new Dementia Caregiver Support Group will be
- 15:21Speaker 1: meeting on the first Monday of each month from 1030
- 15:25Speaker 1: to 1130 a.m. at the Washington County Extension Office. This
- 15:30Speaker 1: support group is designed to provide a safe, supportive environment
- 15:34Speaker 1: to allow family members, friends, caregivers, and other interested individuals
- 15:39Speaker 1: to meet regularly for mutual support and to exchange coping
- 15:42Speaker 1: skills with one another in matters relating to Alzheimer's disease
- 15:47Speaker 1: and dementia. Our support groups are free and open to
- 15:51Speaker 1: the public. Springfield Water and Sewer Update. Beginning this month
- 15:57Speaker 1: in August, the Springfield Water and Sewer will hold their
- 16:00Speaker 1: public meetings on the second Wednesday of each month, beginning
- 16:04Speaker 1: at 3.30 p.m. instead of 5 p.m. Adult Hobby Group.
- 16:09Speaker 1: The Washington County Hobby Group will meet Wednesday, September 2nd
- 16:13Speaker 1: at 6 p.m. at the Washington County Extension Office. Bring
- 16:17Speaker 1: your current project and join us for fun and fellowship.
- 16:21Speaker 1: All are welcome. Contact Sheila Smith for more information. Let's see.
- 16:27Speaker 1: I'm trying to make sure that these are up to
- 16:30Speaker 1: date for you. Summer sausage class. The Washington County Extension
- 16:35Speaker 1: Office will be offering a summer sausage making class on Thursday,
- 16:41Speaker 1: September 10th. The cost of the class is $ 15 and
- 16:44Speaker 1: there are a limited number of spots available. To secure
- 16:48Speaker 1: your spot, Call the Extension Office today at 859-336-7741 to
- 16:56Speaker 1: get registered. 2026-27 4-H Clubs. Enrollment for the upcoming 4-H
- 17:03Speaker 1: year will open on September 1st. If your youth was
- 17:06Speaker 1: enrolled this past year, please pledge your email for instructions
- 17:10Speaker 1: on how to re-enroll. New members should email their name, school,
- 17:15Speaker 1: and grade to cara.lewis at uky.edu. That's K-A-R-A dot L-E-W-I-S
- 17:26Speaker 1: at uky.edu to receive an enrollment. The Washington County Extension
- 17:34Speaker 1: Office has a new website. Please visit us at extension.mgcafe.uky.edu
- 17:45Speaker 1: slash washington. to stay up to date on all the
- 17:49Speaker 1: latest news and events happening in the Extension Office. The
- 17:53Speaker 1: Washington County Extension Office will host a field to festival
- 17:57Speaker 1: event on Friday, October 9th from noon to 2.30. There
- 18:01Speaker 1: will be activities including pumpkin chunking, exploding pumpkins, inflatables, family games, prizes,
- 18:09Speaker 1: and lots of educational opportunities. Please stop by and see
- 18:13Speaker 1: all the fantastic fall Extension events. everyone is welcome to
- 18:17Speaker 1: this free event. A brand new free little library has
- 18:22Speaker 1: been set up at the Washington County Extension Office. The
- 18:25Speaker 1: library sits at the corner of the building just in
- 18:28Speaker 1: front of the Monarch Way Station and Outdoor Discovery Club Gardens.
- 18:32Speaker 1: Please stop by to grab a new read or drop
- 18:35Speaker 1: off a gently used one. The 4-H Country Ham Auction
- 18:39Speaker 1: will once again be held during the Farm to City Breakfast,
- 18:43Speaker 1: which kicks off the Sorghum Festival in August. or I'm sorry,
- 18:46Speaker 1: October 2nd, 8 a.m. Tickets will go on sale soon
- 18:50Speaker 1: at the Washington County Extension Office. Everyone is welcome to
- 18:54Speaker 1: bid on the remarkable 4-H Club hams that have been
- 18:58Speaker 1: curing in the 4-H Club's very own ham house all summer.
- 19:03Speaker 1: The Washington County Extension Office will host the second annual
- 19:06Speaker 1: Scarecrow Showdown. Any business, family, club, or organization interested in
- 19:11Speaker 1: participating will please contact Taylor Graves at 859-336-7741 or via
- 19:18Speaker 1: email at taylor.graves at uky.edu. That's T-A-Y-L-O-R dot G-R-A-V-E-S at uky.edu.
- 19:35Speaker 1: This year's Scarecrows will be displayed around the Extension Office
- 19:39Speaker 1: and will be drive-through viewable. Dennis Morgison, horticulture agent for
- 19:46Speaker 1: the Washington County Extension Office, will host a fall floral arrangement.
- 19:50Speaker 1: class on Friday, October 9th, beginning at 1 p.m. There
- 19:55Speaker 1: is a $ 5 charge and you must RSVP by Monday,
- 19:58Speaker 1: October 5th by calling 859-336-7741. Springfield Rotary invites you to
- 20:09Speaker 1: our Rotary Park Grand Opening and America's 250 Celebration on Saturday,
- 20:14Speaker 1: August 29th. A kids' fishing tournament starts at 10 a.m.
- 20:18Speaker 1: and food trucks will serve lunch starting at 11. Our
- 20:21Speaker 1: Grand Opening ceremony and ribbon cutting is at noon. Music
- 20:26Speaker 1: by Stingray starts at 12.30. Kayak races are at 1 p.m. Cornhole, Waterslide,
- 20:32Speaker 1: and Bouncy House inflatables are available all day. the community
- 20:37Speaker 1: is invited to join in the celebration. Representatives from Kentucky
- 20:42Speaker 1: State University's forage testing crew will be at the Washington
- 20:45Speaker 1: County Extension Office on Friday, October 9th. They will be
- 20:49Speaker 1: demonstrating how hay is sampled and processed for forage testing.
- 20:54Speaker 1: This is a free event open to the public beginning
- 20:57Speaker 1: at noon. BQCA sessions will take place, that's Beef Quality
- 21:03Speaker 1: and Care Assurance, on September 8th at the Washington County
- 21:07Speaker 1: Extension Office at 10 a.m. and 5.30 p.m. You must
- 21:11Speaker 1: RSVP for these classes by calling the Extension Office at 859-336-7741.
- 21:21Speaker 1: Washington County Extension is also offering two sessions of pesticide
- 21:26Speaker 1: training on September 12th. Please call the Extension Office at
- 21:30Speaker 1: 859-336-7741 to register for the 1 p.m. or 6 p.m. class.
- 21:39Speaker 1: The Washington County Extension Council will be at noon on
- 21:42Speaker 1: October 12th. Members of the board and council are encouraged
- 21:47Speaker 1: to attend. The Washington County Extension Office will once again
- 21:51Speaker 1: host a card-making workshop on October 6th at 1 p.m.
- 21:56Speaker 1: Please call the Extension Office at 859-336-7741 to register for
- 21:58Speaker 1: the class. There is a $ 15 supply charge. Farm to
- 22:09Speaker 1: City Breakfast. The Washington County Fair Board and the Washington
- 22:12Speaker 1: County Extension Office will host the annual Farm to City
- 22:16Speaker 1: Breakfast to kick off the Sorghum Festival at 8 a.m.
- 22:20Speaker 1: on October 2nd. Boone Brothers USA will be the guest speaker,
- 22:25Speaker 1: sharing information about the Doe Depot to be parked at
- 22:28Speaker 1: the Washington County Extension Office. That's at 245 Corporate Drive
- 22:32Speaker 1: in Springfield. Tickets are $ 15 and can be purchased at
- 22:37Speaker 1: the Extension Office. Have an announcement? Announcements in the brief
- 22:42Speaker 1: section are free. Email them to editor at thespringfilledsun.com by
- 22:51Speaker 1: 5 p.m. the Friday before you would like it to run.
- 22:57Speaker 1: The Sense Test by Ken Begley. I love artificial intelligence.
- 23:03Speaker 1: It is an incredible tool for gathering information, brainstorming, and
- 23:06Speaker 1: getting quick advice. But using AI comes with a massive
- 23:10Speaker 1: underlying risk. If you ask it about a subject you
- 23:14Speaker 1: know absolutely nothing about, you are gambling with the results.
- 23:19Speaker 1: The danger is that you cannot run a sense test
- 23:22Speaker 1: on what the robot spits back out at you. A
- 23:25Speaker 1: sense test is that gut check moment where you look
- 23:28Speaker 1: at an answer and ask, does this actually make sense
- 23:31Speaker 1: based on what I already know? If you don't have
- 23:34Speaker 1: baseline knowledge or if you don't frame your question correctly,
- 23:38Speaker 1: AI can confidently hand you a wildly incorrect answer. I
- 23:43Speaker 1: frequently test AI with highly complex financial scenarios. These prompts
- 23:48Speaker 1: involve multiple sentences packed with numbers and a financial background.
- 23:52Speaker 1: At the end, I ask for a recommendation. Recently, I
- 23:56Speaker 1: spent half an hour crafting a scenario for a friend.
- 23:59Speaker 1: The AI's initial response shocked me. It outlined a highly
- 24:03Speaker 1: destructive financial plan that was the exact opposite of my
- 24:07Speaker 1: actual investment strategy. Because I am a former IRS agent
- 24:12Speaker 1: and have decades of experience in taxes and accounting, my
- 24:16Speaker 1: internal sense test immediately flagged the advice as bogus. I
- 24:20Speaker 1: wouldn't have followed it in a thousand years. When I
- 24:24Speaker 1: reviewed my original prompt, I realized I had accidentally left
- 24:27Speaker 1: out two critical pieces of personal data. Once I added
- 24:31Speaker 1: those facts, the AI completely reversed course. It told me
- 24:35Speaker 1: to ignore its previous suggestion and confirmed that my original
- 24:39Speaker 1: strategy was found. Does this mean AI is bad? Not
- 24:43Speaker 1: at all. In fact, it proved its worth by pointing
- 24:46Speaker 1: out that a specific mutual fund held was better suited
- 24:50Speaker 1: for a retirement account rather than the taxable account it
- 24:54Speaker 1: was currently sitting in. I took that advice, made the change,
- 24:58Speaker 1: and saved money. On another occasion, I caught the AI
- 25:03Speaker 1: in making a mistake regarding Kentucky personal income taxes. I
- 25:07Speaker 1: asked a follow-up question, feeding it the correct state tax law.
- 25:11Speaker 1: To my surprise, the AI admitted the error, thanked me
- 25:14Speaker 1: for the verified information, and stated it would use it
- 25:17Speaker 1: for future responses. We are actively participating in its learning process.
- 25:23Speaker 1: When you know the subject matter, the tool is remarkably accurate.
- 25:26Speaker 1: I even use it for small home and auto repairs.
- 25:30Speaker 1: If my car acts up, I type in a highly
- 25:33Speaker 1: detailed explanation of the symptoms and it gives me a
- 25:36Speaker 1: precise diagnostic checklist. I am frequently too dumb to fix it,
- 25:40Speaker 1: but at least I know what's going on. The creative
- 25:43Speaker 1: side is just as mind-blowing. The other day, a guy
- 25:46Speaker 1: fed a few facts about my sister-in-law into an AI program.
- 25:51Speaker 1: And second, it wrote custom country music lyrics, generated a
- 25:56Speaker 1: vocal track, and dubbed a full backing band. Dang, it
- 26:00Speaker 1: was a good song. But beware, AI can pass on
- 26:05Speaker 1: incredibly inaccurate information with the exact same confidence as its
- 26:10Speaker 1: factual data. then again, humans do the same thing. It
- 26:14Speaker 1: is amazing how often people shovel absolute garbage into our ears,
- 26:18Speaker 1: and because we lack experience in that specific area, we
- 26:22Speaker 1: believe them. Humans will feed you bogus information with a
- 26:26Speaker 1: straight face, total confidence, and a sharp suit. Interestingly, AI
- 26:31Speaker 1: can actually help you filter out human garbage too. Whenever
- 26:35Speaker 1: I read a news site or a blog post, whether
- 26:38Speaker 1: I agree with the content or desperately want it to
- 26:41Speaker 1: be false, I ask the AI a simple question. Is
- 26:44Speaker 1: this source of information reliable? Frequently, it will flag biased
- 26:50Speaker 1: or untrustworthy outlets, breaking down whether a writer skews heavily
- 26:55Speaker 1: to the political left or right. AI is an extremely
- 26:59Speaker 1: powerful asset, but like any high-powered tool, it is only
- 27:04Speaker 1: as safe and effective as the person operating it. If
- 27:07Speaker 1: you don't know the terrain, don't let the robot drive.
- 27:12Speaker 1: This concludes excerpts from recent editions of The Springfield Sun.
- 27:16Speaker 1: Your reader has been Amy Jones-Timoney. On behalf of everyone
- 27:21Speaker 1: here at Radio Eye, thank you for listening. Keep on listening,
- 27:25Speaker 1: and have a good day.