Today’s 93.9 Programming Note: While speculation is swirling around town that Tom Jurich was the undoing of 93.9 the Ticket, it’s curious to hear  the dated music coming out of the station today. Seems like Cumulus would have had some sort of programming plan ready before firing its sports lineup.

Butts Out: If you didn’t know, today’s the Great American Smokeout, in which smokers are encouraged to try and quit for a day. Used to get a lot more attention, didn’t it?

Don’t Go Low: There’s an actual organized campaign to get young urban males to pull their pants up. The group’s leader will address the Metro Council tonight. [C-J]

Drive On, Gas is Cheap: Who’d a thunk you could get a gallon of gas for $1.74 in Louisville. [C-J]

No Mercy : The guys cheating the VA out of benefits have a special place in hell, according to Jake. He’s right. Big scandal ahead. [Page One]

Whirlybird Update: Somebody’s lost track of the city’s controversial helicopter, or so it sounds from the WAVE promo. [WAVE]

This morning, Gov. Steve Beshear, the only individual who could conceivably stop it, said he’s not inclined to take any action to do so.

So news crews from every TV station in town, and from Cincinnati, Lexington and Paducah, are on their way to western Kentucky. The crew from WLKY, with reporter Ben Jackey, has already left, in fact, to be there when Chapman gets the lethal cocktail tomorrow night. WLKY will be reporting from the site beginning at Noon tomorrow, and it will be from the middle of a cluster of satellite trucks at the site.

The state allows nine media members to witness the execution. They’re selected by a lottery, though some of the spots are mandated in the law. Here’s the list of media scheduled to be witnesses:

Brett Barrouquerre, Associated Press

Jason Riley, Courier-Journal

Carrie Weil, WAVE-TV

Paul Miles, Kentucky News Network

Keith Farrell, WWKY (Providence)

Mark Kennedy, WKYT-TV (Lexington)

Kelley Warrick, Gallatin County News

Bill Estep, Lexington Herald-Leader

Bill Bartleman, Paducah Sun

In addition, Chapman has the option of selecting up to three witnesses, but he’s already declined. Each victim is entitled to three witnesses as well. WLKY’s Jackey is an alternate.

His appearance is sponsored by the local chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. It starts at 6, and wine and appetizers will be served.

Garson has been at the helm of the C-J since August. He came to the C-J from South Dakota, where he was publisher of Gannett’s Argus Leader. Gannett, as you know, is preparing for a company-wide reduction in work force of 10 percent. [Ville Voice]

Anybody got a question you want to ask Arnold?

The result was announced at a meeting in the Old Jail Building, where about 40 people showed up. The meeting followed an August meeting in which the decision was delayed for 90 days.

At the meeting, members of the South End Investment Group, which wants to redevelop the property, presented a new plan that would preserve the historic building’s structural integrity and allow development on the property, which is across the street from Iroquois Park. Any plan, now that the building has Landmark status, would have to go through the city’s Architectural Review Committee.

The building dates to 1902, and local legend has it that Elvis Presley once played the dance hall in the 1950s. It’s been closed since 2003.

This is depressing news for the city, not because we’re losing another wonderful independent restaurant choice, but because it’s just the latest distressing news for downtown development.

Melillo’s joins a flurry of dowtown businesses closing, especially in the East Market corridor, beginning with Park Place and Browning’s at Slugger Field. Another upscale restaurant on Market, Primo, didn’t make it, and Jennica’s is closing at the end of this month.

There’s some good news. 732 Social is still planning to open in the Green Building. It’s being developed by Stephen Ton, the man behind the popular Basa Vietnamese restaurant on Frankfort.

ZAPPED: $48 million in tax incentives from state government may not be enough to get that ZAP car manufacturing plant built in Simpson County, especially after a major investor pulled out.  Of course, Randall Waldman, CEO of Integrity Manufacturing, has a suspect reputation in the auto industry. [Herald-Leader]

The Wine Battle: Seriously, the arguments against the state allowing wine sales in grocery stores are lame. Good for state wineries, good for consumers. Just a few liquor store owners protecting their turf stand in the way. [WAVE]

Ramsey-ized: WHAS-TV’s Melissa Swan went to Nashville to talk with financial guru Dave Ramsey, an idea that should do much for the station’s ratings — and for Ramsey’s business. The station went all out by bringing in financial counselors to the station. [WHAS]

Jobs for Journalists: In Newark, a reporter and photo editor have been re-assigned to the mailroom, while a Colorado paper is encouraging staffers to work as valets at a company party.

Party Up, Snow’s Coming. And a cold front.

Instead of Dave and Scott: There are infomercials airing on the CW this morning. Just so you know.We’ve asked, and it’s not been determined whether the Cincinnati Reds will have a radio home in Louisville next season.

Tomorrow, MSD is finally removing a rusted, cream-colored Volkswagen Beetle from Beargrass Creek that’s been there since at least 1979.

And a local business is inviting the public to come and watch, have some coffee and see the car come out of the water. According to the C-J, it’s been a stop on environment education canoe trips on the Creek for years.

MSD is using the parking lot of Eyedia, a consignment shop on Mellwood Ave., for its equipment. Diane and Martha Neal of Eyedia sent an e-mail invite to customers inviting them in for the event, starting at 10 in the morning.

However, when it came to voting on charitable contributions, the Council voted to cut the amount it gives to charities, from $112,500 to $45,000.

Now, you tell me if this makes sense. According to the C-J story, Mayor Clay Foreman said the bonuses, which amount to just $26,000, should be continued because “employees have received bonuses each year for many years and have come to count on them.”

Former mayor Daniel Ruckriegel said there had been bonuses since before he was mayor, and he served 19 years.

The logic of giving bonuses for that reason escapes me. I always thought bonuses were a reward for good work, a way to spread for management to spread the wealth and promote morale in good times. So they’re giving them because they’re expected, because those employees are counting on them?

It’s just $26,000, so there’s no reason to make a big deal of it, even though more than that amount was cut from contributions to Jeffersontown Area Ministries and TARC.

That’s right, J-town gives money to TARC, not what you’d normally consider a charitable organization. And there’s no evidence that TARC bases any of its service decisions on how much it gets in contributions from  the city government. A month ago, I called TARC to find out why it gets contributions from Jeffersontown, and whether the city is rewarded, but never got a satisfactory answer. But let’s watch and see if the reduced contribution level brings about any service changes in J-town.

Oh, Yeah, that boycott is over: You can go back to drinking bourbon, according to the online gambling proponents behind a boycott of Kentucky products. After recent court events postponed the state’s seizure of domain names related to Internet gambling, the boycott was called off. And Jenny Woo can stop checking the underwear of the men she dates. Just read it. [Gambling911]

Stereotypes Gone Wild: ESPN did a casting call for a promotional spot — and wanted some specific characters to epitomize certain schools. It created a bit of a brouhaha in the sports world after USA Today published the memo that called for a typical Louisville fan who was short and Hispanic, with a desire to race thoroughbreds. Many other schools were treated with less kindness, like Tennessee.

Money in Debt: Most popular sweeps topic –the economy. WHAS is the latest to promote a package of stories on getting out of debt. Melissa Swan’s fronting this one, which includes an interview with Dave Ramsey. His advice, of course, is not to get in debt. Too late for a lot of us, Dave. [WHAS-TV]

Salary Squabble: Rather than spending time interviewing random people about how much they wanted raises, I wish WAVE would have named names of some of the people who got raises of up to 51 percent, then gone out and tried to interview them. Running a lame statement from Jody Richards is not what we’d call hustling. [WAVE]

Sports Radio: Today you can get your fill of ESPN Radio on 1450 AM. And soon there will be classic rock on 93.9, former home of The Ticket. The C-J relegated the news to Angie Fenton’s column. No word yet on the future, if any, of Dave and Scott, Bob and Will and others from TheTicket.

Logic tells you that this is a tax increase, and it’s coming from City Hall.

It gets nearly $20 million in dividends for the city most years.A Metro Council committee has invited the Water Company to come and explain the rate increase in December.

Here are the names of the Water Company board members: Wendy Welsh, Gerald Martin, Margaret Leavell Harris, Marita Willis, Ed Crooks and Tandy Patrick.  You should get in touch with them and ask why they’re following along with the rate plan.

Ben Jackey of WLKY is talking about this with Francene on WHAS Radio right now.