Salisbury News Delivers

While some visitors sent in messages earlier, (I didn't produce) ragging on me as to why I was showing the Salisbury Panara Bread in an Ocean City article, here's the new Store that openes tomorrow. I'm not so sure why it makes such a difference but you can't say we don't deliver.

YOUR Wicomico County Tax Dollars Hard At Work!

Click on image to enlarge. I found this image in the February edition of the Metropolitan Magazine. Ray Lewis Is So Proud, Isn't He?

An Anonymous Commenter Questioned Andy Harris

If environment and the Chesapeake Bay is anywhere on a voter's priority list, they won't vote for Harris. He has an openly hostile record towards efforts to protect the Bay and supported efforts to develop the Blackwater Wildlife Refuge.

In fact, he has even received hundreds in campaign contributions from the developer, Duane Zentgraf.

Andy Harris has a long record of taking a common sense approach to improving the environment. He has opposed open bay dumping of dredge spoils, opposed a landfill near unicorn lake, and has repeatedly voted to protect endangered species just to name a few examples of Andy's environmental record.

The Blackwater issue was not about the environment, it was about local control and changing the rules retroactively. Local decisions should be made at the local level. Local elected officials are elected to deal with zoning issues as well as numerous other things.

The local elected officials approved the development near Blackwater. A State Senator not from the area wanted to overrule the decisions those local officials made because he did not like the local officials decision.

Not only did the Democrats want to overrule local control, but they also wanted to change the rules after the fact. That is patently unfair. If an individual abides by all of the rules, they should not be changed after the fact.

Two questions were presented to legislators in Annapolis when considering the bill were not whether they liked the development or opposed it, they were:

1) Should politicians who are not elected by the local citizens whom the development will have a direct impact on impose their will on the local residents?

2) Should the state change the rules retroactively on someone who has already followed all of the current rules?

Andy believes philosophically that the best decisions are made at the local level where the politicians are the most accountable. Andy also believes it is unfair to retroactively change the rules.

Four Clues Your Community Is Facing Urban Deterioration

This is a great article by the Times Ledger. GO HERE

GOP Must Be United!

I have to face this everyday; the GOP has been on a loosing streak both in the State of Maryland and across the U.S and it is time for a turnaround. How can the GOP do this? Uniting under our principles and sticking together is the only way. These two facets are true for any political party. Anyone can respect an individual who believes in their principles and practices them in wanting to improve their Country/County/City. After all, everything boils down to philosophical differences in how to achieve the best.

When "Republicans" endorse another party's candidate it weakens the party and its goals. Voting for the opposing party will not lead to proper representation for the National Party and the First Congressional District. Let's take a look at the two scenarios. The First Congressional District was drawn up to elect a Republican Candidate. The Eastern Shore alone had 60% plus of the vote for Ehrlich and Bush and that’s Republican to say the least. The 1st is best represented by a Republican Congressman and that is clearly reflective of the type of people there. The results of the primary election showed that the Republicans of the 1st wanted a highly Conservative individual to represent them.

Secondly as a National Party the GOP requires every vote that it can muster to advance our vision for the Country because we are outnumbered. It will not look pretty when a predominately conservative district sends a Democrat to Washington to aide the Republican Party. And you know what, that support will not be there from a Democrat! Bottom line, sending a Democrat will only hurt the GOP. My Presidential choice was Mitt Romney. Just because he is out of the race does not mean I am going to endorse Hillary or Obama. I still want the best Republican left for the office and I will support that candidate. Above all I will support whatever is best for the GOP. In this area the best thing Republicans can do is to support what is best for the GOP. To do so is not to endorse a Democratic for Congress!

Lets stick together on this one guys and do what is best for the GOP!

Crybabies for Kratovil

In a totally expected development, a staff member of Rep. Wayne Gilchrest (?-1) has formed a group calling themselves "Republicans for Kratovil". It appears that reporter Joe Gidjunis and the management of the Daily Times have signed up to be the group's ad hoc publicity committee. Why else would they bother to give a rump group of nominal Republicans (or closeted Democrats) in Kent County such prominent coverage?

There was never a question of the Daily Times' support for Gilchrest. In all fairness, they should have. Hardly an enclave of conservatism, our local paper had the perfect candidate in Gilchrest - liberal on social and environmental issues, moderate on fiscal and defense issues. Unfortunately for them, but not for the people of the First District, their shining knight was showing signs of tarnish and lost.

Now they appear to be linking arms with a group led by paid Gilchrest staff to push the candidacy of Queen Anne's States Attorney Frank Kratovil. Why? The answer is a simple one. If Andy Harris wins in November, their beliefs will have been repudiated.

I have stated several times that Andy Harris was the best candidate running the worst campaign. That's not entirely true, but Gilchrest certainly ran a better race than Harris'. Andy Harris was and is, BY FAR, the best candidate in this race. He best represents the beliefs of the vast majority of voters in the First District. Is the environment important? Of course it is. Is it more important to the majority of voters than taxes? Illegal immigration? Government spending? The war on terror? National defense? No. Harris is in sync with the majority of First District voters on all of these. Unfortunately for Harris, his media consultants appeared to have only two arrows in their quiver (fiscal policy and immigration) and allowed the message to degenerate.

Now we have a small group of Gilchrest supporters who have swallowed the Kool-Aid and have disavowed the GOP because they lost a primary. Fair enough, this is America. Now the rubber has hit the road for Gilchrest and his senior staff. Will he repudiate the actions of one staffer, and dismiss her, or will he remain silent? Rep. Gilchrest should consider if this is the legacy that he wants to leave.

Some may argue that Gilchrest has no control over the actions of his staff. The very fact that Karen Willis (founder of Crybabies for Kratovil) is prominently identified as a "Gilchrest aide" may infer that Gilchrest supports these efforts. Does Gilchrest want to leave Congress as a statesman, or as an embittered loser who is using tax dollars (through paid staff) to provide aide and comfort to the very candidate that he had hoped to oppose in November.

cross posted at Salisbury News

Technorati Tags: Maryland, politics, Andy Harris, Wayne Gilchrest, Frank Kratovil, GOP, Democrat, conservatism, Daily Times, Gannett, fiscal policy, government spending, taxation, envirnoment

Rt. 50 Bridge Into OC This Morning

Clearly the Rt. 50 Bridge going in and out of Ocean City is still under construction and quite a few people are upset. You see, they weren't informed of this stage of construction. Everyone thought that once it was shut down, that would be it. NOPE! They are going to resurface the Bridge, (as shown above) and 50% of it will be closed for quite some time. Rt. 90 still may be your best bet during rush hour.

The Daily Times Is Trying To Influence An Election

Did you happen to catch today's front page, headline news? "Gilchrest backers give GOP push to Kratovil"

The power of suggestion by the title alone places The Daily Times in a very sad and beat up position. They go on to say:

"I'm deeply saddened that Wayne didn't make it through the primary," Willis said. "I've found lots of people who feel the same way. I'm just trying to get behind Mr. Kratovil to continue to have 1st District representation from a thinking person." This isn't fleeting support from Willis. She's worked for Gilchrest for nearly his entire career in Congress, and she doesn't support Baltimore County Sen. Andy Harris' more conservative views, whether it be Iraq or the economy.

GO FIGURE! An employee of Gilchrest who just lost their job is upset because her Boss was beat.Oh, let's take it one step further, the Daily Times got beat too. So why are they bitter? Because Greg Bassett's Wife could perhaps be out of a job as well. This is politics Folks. Wayne did next to NOTHING to campaign for this past election, seriously. Kratovil has absolutely NO EXPERIENCE.

It's no wonder this Country is falling apart. Newspaper get out there and put out headlines like the one above and brain wash people into believing everyone is joining the fight against Andy Harris.

IMO, Andy Harris doesn't need to go out and beg for a vote. He's a gentleman that will earn votes because he's the right man for the job. IF the Daily Times doesn't like him because he beat out Wayne Gilchrest, take your beating and go away. Don't come back all bitter because once again, THE PEOPLE SPOKE OUT AND VOTED FOR ANDY.

I personally believe it's pitiful that Gannett Publications would allow such BS but you know what, this is exactly why Newspapers are crumbling and people are no longer believing what they read there any more. We see it time and time again right here on this Blog.

If this is what it will take for Kratovil to win the Eastern Shore, so be it. I personally won't go out kicking and screaming after the fact. I'll laugh at those Eastern Shore Americans who voted once again because a Newspaper said Kratovil is the man. OK, PROVE IT THEN. Show your readers just what makes Kratovil a better politician than Andy Harris? Sell ALL of us on why we should change parties and vote for him?

Men's High School Basketball Tourney Action

A lot of local mens basketball teams are in action tonight seeking the State Crown. Get out and support your student athletes! The big games tonight will be the Pocomoke Crisfield game and North Caroline at Wicomico.

2A

#8 North Caroline at #1 Wicomico @ 7pm
#6 Parkside at #3 Easton @ 7pm
#7 Bennett at #2 Elkton @ 7pm

1A

#8 St. Michaels at #1 Snow Hill @ 6pm
#6 Crisfield at #3 Pocomoke @ 6:30pm
#7 Washington at #2 Cambridge @ 6:30pm

2A bracket - www.mpssaa.org/assets/wintersports/boysbasketball/2aboys.pdf
1A bracket - http://www.mpssaa.org/assets/wintersports/boysbasketball/1aboys.pdf

Civic Center RV & Outdoors Show

Our friend Buryvoter took this cool shot last weekend at the RV Show at the Civic Center. It reminds me of a Fish Market in China.

At What Point Do You Decide To Take It Down?

Over the past couple of years I have been following this particular barn on Rt. 50. Each time I show it, it's that much closer to falling over. Well, she's definitely a leaner now and she's about to go. The question is, does Wicomico County do something about this to assure no one gets hurt, or do they leave it up to the property owner and his/her good judgment?

It won't be long though. This puppy is about to go.

The Duvall Family Supports Andy Harris

While old man Duvall continues to show he's losing his marbles, the Duvall Family CLEARLY proves they too have divided from Billy and endorse Andy Harris for Congress, end of story.

Panara Bread Opens In West Ocean City

You know, I thought for once, I'm going to copy some news from the Daily Times for once. Why, because I actually think this is ridiculous that the Daily Times has spent days announcing a Panara Bread will be opening. These guys must be expected to be some big time advertising spenders down the road?

Although I'm happy for our friends over in Worcester County, filling up free ad space for yet another "CHAIN" spells out what kind of community we've become. We had dances, coffee shops and all sorts of fun advertised here late last week for some "COMMUNITY" fun. That's what the Daily Times should be filling up their space with. Anne Taylor had a Art Show with live music last week, NOTHING in the Daily Times.

How about that Grapevine today, eh? You just can't stop kicking a man when he's down, can you Greg? That's OK, he'll remember that for life. I'm confident the Daily Times believes they have enough power to overthrow the States Attorneys Office with enough outcry and influence to sway the minds of the proper people who would make such a decision. It also shows the hatred from Mayor Tilghman towards Davis Ruark and how she'll stop at nothing to get people to send out hateful messages about Davis, yet she's been accused, (even in a Court Room) of drinking and driving herself. Hell, there's enough Firefighters out there that could allegedly back that statement too.

Nevertheless, the Daily Times was as thin as its ever been as they're back to normal after only one day of celebration. OK guys, I've been in the printing business for more than 25 years. My personal opinion, the paper sucked yesterday. You know it and I know it. Even the paper itself was faded, making it even harder to read. When you go to a News Stand the next time, look at the USA Today and then the Daily Times. Speaking of bread, after $6.5 million on a new Press, you guys have no clue what you're doing.

The only ones who don't care about the quality are my dogs who pee and poop on it each and every day. It's cheaper than piddle pads!

Wicomico County Landfill Update

There have been several people asking what the most recent update is on the investigation going on in Wicomico County and the Landfill.

WBI & the WCSO have interviewed most of the people they feel necessary for the moment. One of the main problems has been, man power. These interviews and investigations require many Officers traveling to individual houses and even returning to get even more answers to their questions.

Once completed they have to regroup at the Sheriff's Department and compare notes and see where everyone's stories bring them. No doubt they'll look at these notes and have to go out and interview these people again.

That being said, considering the size of this investigation, nothing is going to happen overnight. I want to make this very clear as well. I am NOT an investigator and I simply spoke to one individual referencing this matter and this is the IMPRESSION I got from that conversation.

I wanted to bring something to the table to let everyone know that this will take time. No one is going anywhere and they want to make sure they cover all their bases. When I come to learn more I'll certainly share it.

I had a brief conversation with Jim Finneran today and Jim used to be a Reporter back in the 70"s in Salisbury and he said, we had more happen in one weekend here in Wicomico County than we used to see in an entire year back when I was a Reporter.

I started thinking about what he said and all I could think of was how the Salisbury Police Department has the same amount of Officers on their Staff then they did back in 1984! Things are a bit ass backwards in Salisbury AND Wicomico County. As the population grows and these municipalities expand, so does the tax base. This means we should have a Police Officer for a certain amount of people, similar to a Congressman for every 450,000 people.

Find a happy medium and simply set it in the taxpayers minds that this is what's necessary and crime will go do. In the mean time, Salisbury and Wicomico County are simply a glutton for punishment.

The Downtown Plaza Is A Disaster!

Mayor Barrie Tilghman has proven once again that she couldn't care less about the Citizens of this City and instead partners with Developers who get kick backs, (developer reimbursements) and are the center of ALL attention here in Salisbury.

Not only is there trash everywhere, just go down there and look at what the dingbat did. They took away almost every Trash Can there was down there. You know how I know this besides being there to see it? I picked up all that trash you're seeing, confident there was a trash can near bye to throw it in. Low and behold, I went to throw it away and ALL of the cans were gone.

Who was the Idiot who came up with that idea? You see, many have complained that the people living in the apartments were filling up the trash cans almost instantly, so they took ALL of the cans away. Now the trash lies all over the place, planters are knocked over and let me assure you, I was there for hours yesterday and not one Police Officer came by and saw the planter knocked over. I'm not suggesting this is a big crime or anything of that sort. However, someone knocked it over and while this may be small, it grows from there. The more they can get away with, the worse it's going to get. Especially of no one is around to stop them. I know, how about a camera on the Plaza Chief?

Anyhow, hopefully Jim Caldwell sees this mess and gets his crew in there to straighten things up? Salisbury is falling apart under the current leadership, both in the Mayor's Office AND the SPD.

A Letter By A Florida Teacher... A Teacher Speaks

This is a subject close to my heart. Do you know that we have adult students at the school where I teach who are not US citizens and who get the PELL grant, which is a federal grant (no pay back required) plus other federal grants to go to school?

One student from the Dominican Republic told me that she didn't want me to find a job for her after she finished my program, because she was getting housing from our housing department and she was getting PELL grant which paid for her total tuition and books, plus money left over.

She was looking into WAIT which gives students a CREDIT CARD for gas to come to school, and into CARIBE which is a special program (check it out - I did) for immigrants and it pays for child care and all sorts of needs while they go to school or training. The one student I just mentioned told me she was not going to be a US Citizen because she plans to return to the Dominican Republic someday and that she
'loves HER country.'

I asked her if she felt guilty taking what the US is giving her and then not even bothering to become a citizen and she told me that it doesn't bother her, because that is what the money is there for!

I asked the CARIBE administration about their program and if you ARE a US Citizen, you don't qualify for their program. And all the while, I am working a full day, my son-in-law works more than 60 hours a week, and everyone in my family works and pays for our education.

Something is wrong here. I am sorry but after hearing they want to sing the National Anthem in Spanish - enough is enough.

Nowhere did they sing it in Italian, Polish, Irish (Celtic), German or any other language because of immigration. It was written by Francis Scott Key and should be sung word for word the way it was written. The news broadcasts even gave the translation -- not even close. Sorry if this offends anyone but this is MY COUNTRY