You wanted proof that Jim King was lying his skinny ass off (he lost like 800 pounds – copycat!) when he said he had a good working relationship with Greg Fischer? Here’s your proof. [C-J/AKN]

Greg Fischer is set to interview candidates for police chief this week. Will he select the best candidate? Don’t hold your breath. [FOX41]

We’re still loosely alarmed that these are the people in charge of making sure the University of Louisville Hospital isn’t a nightmare. [The 'Ville Voice]

Louisville needs more places like Capital Cellars in Frankfort. [H-L]

There is some sort of open house thing for Valentine’s Day on East Market Street. [Consuming Louisville]

Not all of New Albany is a disaster. The community came together to help this family who lost their home in a family. [WAVE3]

Even Business First is noting that Greg Fischer, Jim King and other councilcritters don’t have a good working relationship. [Business First]

Dear Joni Jenkins: Why are you allowing these fools to rob banks in Shively?! [WHAS11]

Wondering how the state’s top two political parties are spending their wads of cash? Take a look at year-end report highlights from the Federal Election Commission. [Page One]

That crazy constable guy is getting arraigned today. What will go down? Will this story ever go away? [WLKY]

Sometimes it’s tough to believe that raw milk is still illegal. To the point that law enforcement will raid your joint to seize the milk. Thank goodness we don’t drink real milk. [H-L]

We love us some Proof and 21C but let’s not pretend that proof is the best place to eat in all of Louisville. [Zagat]

Gregory O’Bryan, the guy accused of killing Andrew Compton, is due in court for a pre-trial hearing today at 8:45 A.M. [What Happened To Andrew?]

Wow. We thought the mainstream could do better than a whitewash when it came to Bud Shart… Schardein. But, uh, nope, obviously not. Wow wow wow. [C-J/AKN]

This is also how the story is being told on local television stations. Three sentences that mentions nothing of the scandal, nothing of that $200,000 bonus for being corrupt, nothing of the problems the city faces. Wow. [WAVE3]

Oh, wait, here’s a four sentence story about Schardein’s “retirement” from the Metro Sewer District. [WLKY]

Fortunately, there are a few media outlets in Louisville that won’t let the city forget what really went down with that scandal. [WFPL]

Do America’s infrastructure problems go beyond crumbling roads and bridges? [HuffPo]

On a scale of 1 to Greg Fischer on the day he gets to leave office, how excited are you that Time Warner has been given the go-ahead to purchase Insight Communications? [FOX41]

Publisher of A Kentucky Newspaper, Arnold Garson, is retiring on March 2. You knew this was just a temporary dumping ground for him. Did he even bother putting Kentucky plates on his vehicle? [Deep Newspaper Thoughts]

The head of Metro Parks got to drive drunk in a city vehicle and still kept his job. So why should we expect little issues involving metal detectors to be resolved with ease? That department is at least as screwed up as Metro Animal Services. [WHAS11]

There was a giant drug bust in Jack Conway’s backyard this week, right as he started talking again about how he’s cut off the pill supply from Florida. [Page One]

The Bourbon Women Association is apparently a thing and it has some sort of $25 event series coming up. It’s bourbon, so we obviously had to mention it. [Business First]

What’s happened with LMAS since then?

What has improved?

Not a damn thing.

EMS workers in Louisville aren’t the only ones getting the shaft by their superiors. This headquarters in Taylorsville is a hot mess. [FOX41]

The Federal Communications Commission approved the sale of Insight to Time Warner. And just like that, well, you know the drill. Bend over. [Business First]

Retribution is the new way of life in Greg Fischer’s Metro Government. Well, it’s the continuation of Jerry Abramson’s Metro Government. But this will be forgotten because Greg is a “nice guy” who was in the room when another guy punched holes in an ice plate. [The 'Ville Voice]

Tonight the Metro Councilcritters will ask the Commonwealth’s Attorney to investigate that crazy constable who shot a woman. [WAVE3]

Now Indiana State Senators are saying talk of an Amazon distribution center in Jeffersonville is merely speculation. Funny how that turned around. [WFPL]

One of the parents who sued Jefferson County Public Schools over the student assignment plan is running for the seat vacated by Larry Hujo. [WHAS11]

Steve Beshear says shutting down pill mills is a top legislative priority. But it most certainly wasn’t in 2008, 2009, 2010 or 2011. Even Jack Conway was talking about how bad the pill problem was and complaining about how the governor wouldn’t have anything to do with alleviating the problem. [H-L]

Your state political parties spent big at the end of 2011. You can guess which party is more fiscally stable at this point. [Page One]

Brave Patriot Marilyn Parker got endorsed by Metro Council Republicans. Here’s your proof that Louisville’s Metro Council Republicans are dumber than Kentucky Democrats by a mile. DUMB AS HELL. [C-J/AKN]

Wait, four MORE people were arrested in J-town in a big drug bust? What the heck is going on in that part of town? [WLKY]

The Metro Parks employee who called 311 about Mike Heitz’s drunk driving was suspended about a week later.

Then he was fired.

Interesting how that works, isn’t it?

Guy drives drunk in a taxpayer-owned vehicle putting countless lives at risk and he gets to keep his high-paying job.

Parks worker gets canned for texting (hello? Parks employees tweet from their personal accounts all day long – do I need to post screenshots?) and for cursing near the son of the assistant Parks director’s nephew (Storch claims he threatened him but the nephew wrote in a statement that he merely cursed near him). And allegedly because he had a second job (he didn’t have one).

Retaliation much?

Possibility City!

No, it’s not so much rumor as it is reality. We have lots of documents backing things up. But why give the local paper a free story without any work involved?

We love watching Greg Fischer make public appearances with campaign finance crooks who, well, fleece veterans. [C-J/AKN]

Wow, Robert White allegedly ordered a forensic search of his new office’s computers and then demoted a captain in reaction to a letter that contained concerns about him. [Denver Post]

You’ve read and heard all about the Indiana Secretary of State getting indicted for committing all kinds of voter fraud. But you probably haven’t heard much about Ruth Ann Palumbo, a Democratic legislator in Frankfort who is doing the very same thing with absolutely no consequences. [Page One]

The murder trial(s) of Jeffrey Mundt and Joseph Banis are crazy and people in Old Louisville are still freaked out. What a disaster. [FOX41]

Amazon is expected to build a massive distribution center in Jeffersonville. This is amazing news for the Louisville area. Not even on the jobs front – but for people who like getting stuff quickly. [C-J/AKN]

Wow, Louisville, this is a whole new level of nasty. Repeatedly vandalizing a memorial for a murder victim. [WAVE3]

Yep, we can all still roll our eyes at this Louisville Orchestra argument that continues to play out in the press. [Business First]

Nearly $10million in FEMA funds are being spent to buy up homes in flood-prone areas in the West End. [WHAS11]

Attica Scott says she’s ready to defend her first district Metro Council seat, which she won via appointment. [WFPL]

New Albany po-leece say crime is down in that Southern Indiana city because the Sherman Minton is closed. Roll your eyes really hard at that one. [WLKY]

Jim Mims, after a serious public shaming (Greg Fischer, too), had a change of heart on Occupy Louisville. But they forgot to notify the Occupy folks. [WFPL]

Hurry and put up that pay wall, Gannett, so your first quarter earnings can fall another 33%. Hurry up! [C-J/AKN]

Steve Bittenbender filed to run for the 37th District State Senate seat. That’s the seat Democratic embarrassment Perry Clark currently holds. Will it float? [SoS]

Sorry, John David Dyche, regardless of what Jim King puts out in his front, he does not have a great working relationship with Greg Fischer. In fact, he doesn’t even have a good working relationship with his former staffers, campaign staffers or most of the people who advised him until recently. [C-J/AKN]

This New Albany cop who spewed racist rhetoric now says his comments weren’t racist and is appealing his suspension. [FOX41]

A judge in Frankfort will today decide on the filing deadline in the redistricting mess. [H-L]

Will Louisville win that tastiest town thing in Southern Living? Probably not and all kinds of people will freak out about it because it’s obviously the end of the world. Greg Fischer will even issue a release about it and talk about it on Twitter and Facebook. [WAVE3]

Nashville is working to attract international tourists. Louisville doesn’t even work to attract tourists in its own state. [Business First]

Robert White’s son was arrested again and everyone is losing their mind over it. Apparently, it’s even more important than that tasty town contest. [WHAS11]

This is the wet dream of Steve Beshear and Greg Fischer. The absolute tops for them. You know they’re aching to pull this stunt. [Mother Jones]

Wait, would you rather people be so drug/high that they fall asleep at a restaurant or while driving away from the restaurant, like Greg Fischer’s official parks guy could have done? [WLKY]

We discussed it at the time but there’s nothing like hearing directly from those people in the belly of the beast:

I was surprised to read the letter of Jan 22, 2012 regarding recent changes to Metro Animal Services. As the Metro Animal Services Volunteer Coordinator from August 2009 until November 2011, I took pride in soliciting, training and working with all LMAS volunteers at both facilities. The writer is the owner/founder of a local pet food company that comes to the shelters once a year to give the dogs a holiday treat. I’m not sure this self described “longtime volunteer” has spent much time witnessing the daily shelter conditions or interacting with staff.

Her observations of a cleaner kennel with healthier animals might have been due to the fact that the management was aware of her upcoming visit and sent out a press release on Dec. 21 announcing the fact. The media was even invited to attend for a photo op. Current management is obsessed with projecting a public image of cleanliness and order, at the expense of more pressing issues, such as animal health and getting the dogs and cats out alive. While appearances are subjective, numbers are not, and the numbers coming out of LMAS are a depressing read that prove nothing much has changed for the animals.

In 2010, under Wayne Zelinsky, LMAS euthanized 56% of all animals it took in. For the first 7 months of 2011, under two additional Interim Directors, the euthanasia rate was 40%. In the first three months after Justin Scally took over, the euthanasia rate soared to 59%, higher than the previous 7 months or anytime in the previous year. In fact, in just those first three months, Mr. Scally presided over the deaths of 1,233 cats and 438 dogs.

Adoptions are a similarly dismal story. In 2010, 16% of all animals that entered the shelter were adopted. For the first 10 months of 2011, 18% of all animals that entered the shelter were adopted, but this moderate 2% increase was at a new $2.5 million facility on Newburg Road. In light of this moderate increase I think it is fair to ask why the Manslick Road shelter is not staffed with personnel that will serve potential adopters there and not insist they drive across town to see a dog or cat they can adopt immediately.

I agree with the writer that the staff has worked hard at cleaning the shelter, but at what real cost? The shelter is understaffed and volunteers are discouraged from helping if staff cannot scrutinize their every move. If LMAS Management would concentrate on solving the real problems, they wouldn’t have to spend such an inordinate amount of time worrying about public perception. The image problems would solve themselves.

Karen Dickson

Dickson sent that as a response to the AKN but it obviously wasn’t published.

What was that, again, about the Legislative Ethics Commission not being under the direct control of the good old boys in Frankfort? [John Cheves]

Bob Gunnell needs to focus on paying back the $400,000 or whatever he stiffed the IRS for. Maybe focus on his bankruptcy and walking out on Peritus – which is fighting to get what it’s owed from him, apparently – before he tries to keep it up with this bit of killing sidewalks on Brownsboro Road. And opponents declined to go to the forum last week not because the project is moving forward but because Bob got his ass handed to him and he has egg all over his face. [FOX41]

Oh, look, it’s Claudia Coffey doing a story about the Brownsboro Road sidewalk. Wouldn’t it be a good idea for her to disclose the fact that she knows Bob Gunnell personally when doing a slanted story like this? [WHAS11]

Will Jeffersonville ever stop flushing all of its poop into the Ohio River? [WFPL]

Lonnie Napier can’t read or use the Google so there’s no way for him to realize that welfare drug testing doesn’t work. What does work, though, is testing legislators for drug use. Someone needs to file that as an amendment ASAP. [WKYT]

Have you seen how much money taxpayers pony up for silly “studies” every year? Millions upon millions. [Page One]

You can’t even go to St. Matthews without cold getting robbed. Better pack your pepper spray, meemaw. [WAVE3]

Actors Theater opened some downtown apartments for visiting artists. This will be a good thing for Louisville, right? [Business First]

Here’s more on that large drug ring that was arrested in J-town last week. [WLKY]

David Whitlock is proof that Louisville doesn’t need outdated constables, right? [84WHAS]

And look at this.

People in other parts of the country are taking action against their terrible animal shelter leadership.

Will someone here step up?