The City Council will hold it’s regular meeting tonight at 7 p.m. in City Hall Chambers. The Council is scheduled to vote authorizing a ballot to be submitted at the April 6th general election. The question is whether or not the municipality of Carthage shall elect 5 council members who shall reside in and be elected by the voters of their respective wards. The remaining five council members would be elected at large by all qualified voters of the City.

Also on the agenda is an Ordinance authorizing a special use permit for a bed and breakfast at 901 Grant Street.

City Administrator Tom Short asked that this special use permit be denied at last week’s Public Works meeting. Short stated to the Committee that the living space was approximately 1000 square feet short of the required 3500 of above ground level living space.

The Council is scheduled to give authorization to City Clerk Lynn Campbell to publicize notice of election Ward 1 council seat vacated by Council Member Mike Harris. Harris resigned last week due to recent residency requirements clarified by City Attorney David Mouton.

The fact that former Council member Mike Harris won’t be votin’ on tonight’s Council bill to put the "at large" question on the ballot will not in itself effect the outcome. Harris has been against the change in the way Council members are elected since it was first brought up.

Needin’ six votes to pass an ordinance, four of the remainin’ nine members will need to vote against to shut down the attempt. The same number, plus the phantom Harris vote, would have been needed if all ten members were votin’.

The disadvantage for the aginners is the sometimes influential arguments that Harris has put forth in previous discussions.

Since Harris has now filed as a candidate for Second Ward, where he lives, he has a good chance of returnin’ to the fold.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

by

McCune- Brooks Hospital

TO YOUR GOOD HEALTH

By Paul G. Donohue, M.D.

Back Pain Has Many Causes

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I am 43, and this is the year that has turned me into an old man. My back hurts, and I can do only a fraction of the things I used to do. My doctor says I have to tough it out. He told me to take Advil, and it has helped some. Should I try resting in bed? — D.H.

ANSWER: Low back pain strikes just about everyone. The average age for its appearance is 40, so you fit right in. Telling you to do nothing more than take Advil, your doctor must not have detected anything that could lead to permanent problems.

The causes of low back pain are numerous. The cushioning disks that are sandwiched between two backbones are often the source of pain. They have a jellylike core that can push through the tough cartilage that serves as the outer wall of the disk. When it does, it often impinges on a nerve, and that hurts. Arthritis of the backbone joints is another cause. Back muscles and ligaments are other sources of back pain.

Bed rest is a bad idea. If the back hurts so much that all movement is torture, then one or two days of bed rest can lessen the pain. Staying in bed any longer leads to weakness of back muscles and loss of bone calcium.