Illinois
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Small Soldiers sends wrong message about utility lines

A disturbing scene in the film Small Soldiers prompts a warning to parents about the dangers of electric utility poles and lines.

In the film, the main characters kill mutant toy soldiers by producing an electromagnetic pulse that destroys computer chips in the toy soldiers' heads. The pulse is created by shorting out two distribution transformers mounted on a utility pole in the main character's neighborhood.

In one scene, a teenage boy climbs a utility pole, crawls over the cross arms and stands on the service-wire insulators. When he puts the toy soldier between the two transformers, a huge explosion throws the boy off the pole. Miraculously, he falls uninjured some 30 feet to the ground. Apparently intended to provide some protection during the incident, the boy in the scene is wearing yellow rubber gloves — the type found under many household kitchen sinks, not the properly insulated type used by linemen.

In reality, such actions would be tragic, as illustrated in separate incidents both occurring on Long Island recently. In one incident, a teen suffered burns over about 75 percent of his body, while climbing up a pole and onto a transformer. In the other, a 10-year-old boy was killed when he tied a doorknob to a piece of wire and threw the weighted object over a power line.

Illinois electric cooperatives urge parents and teachers to discuss with children the actual — and potentially deadly — consequences of playing around utility poles and lines. For more safety information, or to arrange for a safety talk by a qualified safety instructor, contact your local cooperative.

Shortage of housing for elderly persists In Illinois

In rural Illinois, there is a growing shortage of affordable housing which can be reversed by private entrepreneurs and the development of a trained work force.

The shortage is especially acute for the elderly, notes Sheldon Keyser, coordinator for Rural Development, an arm of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Rural Development funded 11,000 new homes in the last year, 60 percent of them for senior citizens.

"New construction, when it does occur, is far more elaborate housing which exceeds the needs and pocketbook for retirees and young families," said Keyser.

"There appear to be opportunities for new entrepreneurs who want to get in to the home building business and for development of training programs for building trades," said Keyser. "Rural Illinois still has higher unemployment than our urban counterparts. This also offers opportunity for finding employment for those able-bodied persons on welfare."

Rural Development can support the effort, Keyser said, but local partnerships must be the primary movers in resolving the problem. For more information, contact Keyser at (618) 327-8822, e-mail him at skeyser@rurdev.usda.gov/ or visit the Rural Development web site at www.rurdev.usda.gov/il/index/html.

Dates of note

9/17-20, Illinois Historic Preservation Conference, Elgin. The theme for this, the 19th annual conference, is "Preservation & Progress at the Urban/Rural Edge." Sponsored by the Landmarks Preservation Council of Illinois & the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. (312) 922-1742.

9/28-30, Business Retention and Expansion Master Consultant Training Program, Carbondale. Sponsored by the Southern Illinois University (Carbondale) Office of Economic and Regional Development. (618) 536-4451.

10/10, Getting Started in Aquaculture, Carbondale. Sponsored by the Southern Illinois University (Carbondale). Registration is limited and required by Oct. 2. (618) 536-4451 or e-mail skohler@siu.edu.

The Best of Illnois
  The best things come in small packages

"Being the oldest and smallest co-op in Illinois, I would have to say the best thing about our cooperative is the professional and dedicated people who operate Farmers Mutual Electric Company (Geneseo, Robert L Delp, manager) — people who really know the meaning of cooperation and respect. What America needs more of, real people."

Editor's note: We're still interested in what you care about, write and tell us what's best about your electric cooperative. If we use your remarks, we'll send you a small token of our appreciation. Send your prose to: Illinois Currents, Illinois Country Living, P.O. Box 3787, Springfield, IL 62708 or e-mail them to aiecinfo@fgi.net.

6  ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING SEPTEMBER 1998

Phone service for low-Income homes

Two new programs, called Link Up and Lifeline, are making telephone service more affordable for low-income households.

Beginning in January under a provision of the Federal Telecommunication Act of 1996, eligible low-income households will be able to receive financial assistance to help cover the cost of basic local telephone service.

Link Up helps pay the installation charge for telephone service. This federally funded program will pay half (up to $30) of the cost to install local telephone service. Under the Universal Telephone Service Access Program, supported by voluntary contributions from throughout Illinois, Link Up participants may also be eligible for an additional $10 toward installation.

Lifeline provides up to $5.25 to help pay the monthly charge for local telephone service. This also is a federally funded program available to qualified low-income consumers.

For more information, contact your local telephone service provider, or the consumer services division of the Illinois Commerce Commission, (217) 782-7663.

When Nature Calls

The crunch of leaves under your feet, the sounds of nature all around you, the smell of . . . well, never mind. Just when you though you'd seen it all in photography collections, along comes Nature Calls: The History, Lore, and Charm of Outhouses.

The book was written by Dottie Booth who photographed rustic architectural wonders of bygone days. Touted as a "bucolic reminder of less technological times," the book explores interesting, if useless, facts. Among the trivia is nomenclature (chapel of ease, comfort station, and reading room, just to list a few of the, er, nicer ones), presidential and celebrity outhouses, and tales of bears in outhouses.

Get your privy primer for $12.95 from Ten Speed Press, P.O. Box 7123, Berkeley, CA, 94707, or call (510) 559-1600.

Illinois co-op takes lead In Y2K dilemma

Adams Telephone Co-Operative was one of only two cooperatives participating in a Y2K roundtable discussion sponsored by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in Washington, D.C., recently.

Y2K is shorthand referring to the problem expected to surface in 2000 for computer systems and software using a two-digit abbreviation for the century. Many computer systems, when developed, used only the last two digits of a year. For example, "1998" is shortened to "98." So, what happens when computers read only "00" for the year 2000? The assumption will be that it is 1900. This could literally shut down computers that operate everything from elevators to bank accounts to your own personal VCR. (Y2K should not affect word processing and desk-top publishing software that does not use date abbreviation.)

Jim Broemmer, Adam's Y2K coordinator, represented the co-op at the meeting, "Wireline Telecommunications Networks and the Year 2000 Problem," conducted in June. Other participants in the discussion included major telecommunication users, carriers, and manufacturers.

Adams has formed an internal Y2K task force to investigate all hardware and software for Y2K compliance. This applies to all hardware and software currently in use as well as all future purchases. The task force is contacting all of its vendors to obtain Y2K assurances and performance of testing procedures.

Home electrical accidents down

The number of deaths in the United States by electrocution from consumer products decreased 48 percent between 1983 and 1993, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). In 1983, 400 people died as a result of electrocution in the home; in 1993 that figure was 210. The downward trend can be attributed to safer products.

8 ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING SEPTEMBER 1998