[imgbelt img=rand.jpg]Rand Paul (above) is running for a Kentucky seat in the U.S. Senate, but sometimes he seems to have only a vague knowledge of the Commonwealth, especially rural communities.Yesterday, Paul said he doesn’t think the drug problem in Eastern Kentucky is “a real pressing issue.” That’s news to Letcher County Sheriff Danny Webb, who says that 95% of what he deals with — from theft to murder to domestic violence — begins with drugs. In particular, Eastern Kentucky has a huge problem with prescription drug abuse. The Republican congressman from the region, Hal Rogers, has made drug abuse a primary focus of his attention. • The venerable Bill Minor, who has been covering Mississippi for more than half a century, has a great tale from the 1950s. Sex, murder, gambling, prison and, eventually, freedom — this story has it all. • The U.S. Department of Agriculture sees a good corn crop in 2010, a record harvest, in fact. All this despite flooding that is still a problem in the Midwest. • Monsanto announced that it was cutting the price on its Roundup Ready 2 corn and soybean seeds. The company said competition with DuPont is forcing it to cut prices in the hopes of increasing market share. Monsanto hasn’t increased its share of the seed market for corn and soybeans for the last two years.The U.S. government is investigating Monsanto for antitrust violations in its domination of the seed business.