Today's Feature

Discussed Propane Tanks.

Fire Chief John Cooper was present at Tuesday’s Public Works Committee meeting to discuss a proposed ordinance that would ban larger sized propane tanks within the City limits. Cooper told the committee that current international BOCA and gas codes can allow the Fire Chief the authority to prohibit the use of propane within City limits for the purpose of safety and public welfare. Cooper recommended to the committee the idea of adding a City code that would prohibit the above ground propane tanks for residential use.

Committee chair Tom Flanigan asked if there were any tanks currently in use in the City. Cooper said that there weren’t any that had been approved, but that there had been inquiries in the past. The committee discussed the language that would be necessary for the ordinance to achieve its goal; focusing primarily on size restrictions so that propane tanks would still be legal for barbecue grills. 30 gallon tanks were discussed as a possible maximum legal size.

Cooper told the committee of the risks of the large tanks in the cases of line breaks or punctures to the tanks themselves.

"I don’t want a 500 gallon tank sitting in a yard," said Cooper. "If it catches on fire you’re going to lose 2 houses, not just one."

The committee was favorable to the ordinance proposal and approved a motion to refer it to the Public Safety Committee for further review. Chief Cooper said he will be in attendance at the next Safety Committee meeting.

Small Business World Series.

News release

The Carthage Chamber is hosting a unique opportunity for member businesses to showcase their goods. The Chamber’s first-ever Small Business World Series is being planned for Thursday, August 30 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. The outdoor business-style expo will be held at the historical Rock Stadium located inside Carthage Municipal Park.

For a minimal fee, Chamber members can set-up a tailgate display on the baseball field to promote their business to event attendees. The local school athletic programs will provide event assistants (in uniform) to aid in various areas throughout the event and concessions will be offered in true tailgate style. Prizes will be awarded to the Most Team Spirited, Best Tailgate Exhibitor and Most Valuable Participant, so get your pom-poms out and your spirit voice ready.

For businesses interested in participating in the Chamber’s first-ever Small Business World Series, simply download, fill-out and return the attached SBWS Registration Form to the Chamber office by Friday, August 24. (Note: There are various levels of participation.)

For additional information, call Debra at 358-2373.

For instance, I never realized how little I question the ever’day decisions I make. Apparently the question "why" should accompany any action, especially if it curtails the freedom of movement for those under three feet in height.

I also discovered that the "why" is usually just because I figure it oughta be that way. The real challenge is makin’ up an excuse that actually sounds reasonable to a three year old. I still fall back on the old favorite "you might hurt yourself." I’ve found that sendin’ ‘em to their parents usually works pretty well until they start tellin’ ‘em to "go ask grandpa."

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

Click & Clack Talk Cars
By Tom and Ray Magliozzi

Dear Tom and Ray:

Hey guys, I found an error in your otherwise good column. The subject was placement of weight in the trunk to make more-effective traction for a rear-wheel-drive car. You stated that the best place to put the weight is directly on top of the drive axle. Sorry, but that is wrong. The most effective place is as far aft as you can put the weight. Let’s say you have a car with a 110-inch wheelbase. If you put a 100-pound weight directly over the axle, the rear wheel load goes up 100 pounds. But if you put the weight 40 inches aft of the axle, the rear wheel load goes up 100 x (110+40)/110 = 136 pounds. Of course, the front axle load goes down by 36 pounds, but that is less than 2 percent of its load - which is negligible. It will be interesting to see how you weasel out of this one! Keep up the good work. - John.

TOM: John, you think this is a tough one to weasel out of? You misunderestimate us, my man!

RAY: Actually, you are technically correct. But the reason we recommend putting the weight over the axle was stated in our original column.

TOM: With the weight behind the rear axle, you lift weight off the front axle. Since the front axle is key in both steering and stopping, we don’t think that’s a good idea.

RAY: You consider it negligible, but when does it become not-negligible? If you put 200 pounds of weight in your theoretical car, now you’ve reduced the weight over your steering and braking wheels by 4 percent.

TOM: On the other hand, by putting the weight directly over the rear axle, or as close as possible, you add weight to the rear of the car without lifting the front wheels off the ground.

RAY: Or better yet, just stay home when it snows. Surely we can all agree on weaseling out of work, can’t we, John?