Attention

The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not represent our advertisers

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Problems With Sbynews.com

Currently we're having issues with the Host of www.sbynews.com. If you know of anyone experiencing difficulties getting to this Blog go to www.sbynews.blogspot.com. We FIRED that Host today and are in the process of relocating it elsewhere. I'm told some Middle Eastern Company bought them out and they're screwing everything up. Sorry for the problems and hopefully it will be back to normal within the next 24 hours.

United Propane Update

Joe......Update......

I called United Propane, and asked what my fillup charge would be, and they told me that since I had no activity on my account in 12 months or more, they would charge us....."she said don't be alarmed, it's because you have had no activity, and you are at the bottom bracket of customers who "abuse" their use.............."
$7.15 a gallon!!!!!

This letter was not sent to us intentionally, only because they recently had an audit, and the "big guy" picked the people that were to get these letters. (the ones who had no activity on their account in 12 months or more) We did not need them to come out and fill us up. I said abused?!?!?! Are you kidding me..i use it when I need to, and I conserve the rest. She goes on to explain to me she did not mean to say abuse..that's for people who have vacation homes and so on and so forth. So if you have a vacation home you only use a few months of the year, you are a abuser of their policy!!

We used wood over the winter, and what ws used was from our stove. I then asked her....So I don't have to pay $600usage fee? She informed me that it had not been applied to my account yet. I told her if it gets applied to my account, the tank would be sitting by the curb for them to pick up immediately, and she could eat it, propane and all. She said mam, calm down. I actually was calm.....But just wait, If I see that billed to my account, they will see a pissed off country woman!!! I'll keep you updated. A representative is going to call me in the morning......yeah right.

Thanks for letting me vent Joe!

Fernando Guerrero Holds Press Conference Today


Trainer/Manager Hal Chernoff and Fernando Guerrero met today with all of the Local Press to discuss his upcoming fight Saturday night in Tunica, Mississippi against Fernando Barajs. The two will leave tomorrow to fly down South against a 4-1 Professional Fighter who's a right handler. I asked Fernando how he felt going up against other Professional Fighters who's records aren't as good as his own? He replied, people tend to forget that I have 146 amateur fights under my belt as well, so you never know just how many fights these other Fighters have. One punch can make the entire difference.

I then asked about the plausibility of ESPN coming to Salisbury and they stated that the dates are all working for the Civic Center, the Promoter, now it's up to ESPN to work it into their schedule. We're talking about August 15th of 2008, just a few weeks away.

We should have some kind of answer very soon if ESPN can work it into their schedule and I'm talking about knowing some time this evening or tomorrow. As soon as we know we'll pas it along.

So here's the big question Folks. IF Fernando, Hal & ESPN can in fact work out this date for a televised event, will YOU support it? I'm told the tickets could be as low as $15.00 each. Will you go? Will you bring your kids, friends and family members?

The reason I'm pushing this is because if ESPN were to see a strong local support, they'd consider holding far more events right here at home. Let's show these two our support. Let me know what you think?

Fernando is currently undefeated at 8 wins, ZERO losses!

Beware Of White Van

If you live in Nithsdale, beware of a newer white van with a spare tire and cover on the back of it.

Friends of ours had their dogs up barking at 4:30 AM and as they let them out the front door, something was up. This white van was sitting in front of their home. Later this morning they were talking to a neighbor and they saw a man get out of the van and walk up to their home, across their grass. He happened to be out early in the morning jogging.

The next thing they knew, e-mail messages were going around to neighbors mentioning vehicles being broken into. Our friend believe they were looking to take their dogs. Yes, they happen to own one of our Champion Bred Dogs.

So be on the lookout for a white van, fairly new. No lettering on it.

FREE GAS

Courtesy of the Daily Times! That's right Folks. Head to the Gordy Mart at Nanticoke Road and Rt. 50 and you'll see a guy standing on the corner with a sign stating they're giving away FREE GAS.

Disclosure: I have NOT been up there but I can assure you that they want a 1 year, perhaps 2 year subscription to the Daily Times and then they'll give you $20.00 worth of FREE GAS?

Believe me, you're paying for it. SUCKERS!!!!!

Kids Klub Summer Camp Launches Carboard Boat Race Tomorrow

Cardboard boat races will launch on Friday, July 24th

Kids Klub Camp locations will compete to be the first cardboard boat champ!

(Salisbury, MD) What could you create using only cardboard, duck tape, decorations and your imagination? Children from Wicomico Recreation, Parks & Tourism’s summer camp program Kids Klub are using these materials to make floating boats. The boats will be launched during the inaugural Cardboard Boat Race tomorrow, July 25 in the Richard Hazel Pool at Billy Jean Jackson Park beginning at 10:45am.

Each of the seven Kids Klub camp locations will come together tomorrow to show-off their creations and compete for bragging rights. Each camp location created a cardboard craft for the competition and decorated it to reflect the weekly theme of their camp. Camp themes include pirate week, spy week and beach week. Each boat will be powered by paddles and kid power—making for a great race to the finish line.

Kids Klub Summer Escape is a weekly, daytime summer camp for children 5 through 13 years old. Two weeks of camp are remaining and open for enrollment for $120 per week. A multiple-child discount is available. For more information on Kids Klub Summer Escape please contact Program Director Andy Kitzrow at 410-548-4900 ext. 109 or email akitzrow@wicomicocounty.org.

Dear Abby

Dear Abby,

I am a crack dealer in Salisbury, Maryland, who has recently been diagnosed as a carrier of HIV virus. My parents live in Pocomoke. One of my sisters lives in Pittsville and is married to a transvestite. My father and mother have recently been arrested for growing and selling marijuana. They are financially dependent on my other two sisters, who are prostitutes in Princess Anne.

I have two brothers: one is currently serving a life sentence at ECI for the murder of a teenage boy in 1994. My other brother is currently in jail awaiting charges of sexual misconduct with his three children.

I have recently become engaged to marry a former prostitute who lives in Hebron. She is a part time 'working girl'.

All things considered, my problem is this. I love my fiancé and look forward to bringing her into the family. I certainly want to be totally open and honest with her. Should I tell her about my cousin who supports Obama for President?

Signed,
Worried About My Reputation
Doug

United Propane Gets Into The We're Gonna Screw You Act


Joe,

Isn't that special, A penalty for conserving energy. We could no longer afford to heat our home with propane, and decided to use wood as our main source, and have propane for backup. This was done out of necessity, and now they want to penalize us for it. But the funny thing is, I was planning to order propane for the tank soon, and now I am so pissed off, I am going to dig the tank up, and send it back. F**K You United Propane!

I don't know what other people think, but propane is an expensive form of heating. Neighbors of mine have had problems with United Propane as well. They tried to overcharge an elderly neighbor of mine, with a rather high invoice from an auto fill. Upon checking prices against other companies, at that time, they were overcharging by $0.40 a gallon! Has anyone had similar dealings??

Phones in Church

A man in Topeka, Kansas decided to write a book about churches around the country.

He started by flying to San Francisco and started working east from there. Going to a very large church, he began taking photographs and making notes.

He spotted a golden telephone on the vestibule wall and was intrigued with a sign, which read "Calls: $10,000 a minute." Seeking out the pastor he asked about the phone and the sign. The pastor answered that this golden phone is, in fact, a direct line to heaven and if he pays the price he can talk directly to GOD. The man thanked the pastor and continued on his way.

As he continued to visit churches in Seattle, Denver, St. Louis, Chicago, Milwaukee, and around the United States, he found more phones, with the same sign, and the same answer from each pastor.

Finally, he arrived at the Eastern Shore of MD; upon entering a church in Cambridge, behold - he saw the usual golden telephone. But THIS time, the sign read "Calls: 35 cents."

Fascinated, he asked to talk to the pastor. "Reverend, I have been in areas all over this country and in each church I have found this golden telephone and have been told it is a direct line to Heaven and that I could talk to GOD, but in the other churches the cost was $10,000 a minute. Your sign reads only 35 cents a call. Why?"

The pastor, smiling benignly, replied, "Son, you're on the Eastern Shore of MD now. This is God's Country. It's a local call."

University of Maryland Mistake Spreads Social Security Numbers

Carrie Wells, The Examiner
Jul 18, 2008 9:56 AM (6 days ago)College Park
Social security numbers for more nearly 24,000 students at the University of Maryland were inadvertently printed on the mailing labels for a parking brochure, the Department of Transportation Services said in an email to students today.


To read the rest of this article, please click on the link below:

http://www.examiner.com/a-1493751~University_of_Maryland_mistake_spreads_Social_Security_numbers.html

The $800,000.00 Fire Boat!


Now DON'T tell me the Fire Chief and Deputy Fire Chief aren't asking for a $800,000.00 Fire Boat!

YOU Firemen should take a good hard look at what they have put into the Budget while lying to ALL of you!

This makes me sick to my stomach! You know what Taxpayers, you get what you voted for, a bunch of liars! The evidence doesn't lie!

You Can't Make This Up?

Sure you can, if your name is Bill Duvall. Duvall, who must have made a legal career never arguing before a judge or jury, has become the "King of Straw". Rather than argue an actual point with evidence, he simply loves to build up a straw man and attempt to beat it down.

Today is one more case in point. Duvall has joined "Bigots for Kratovil" and attacked Maryland Sen. Andy Harris because a consultant he hired appears to be gay. I hope that Bill doesn't find out about any black or Hispanics Andy may have hired - it would be a Duvall trifecta.

Duvall appears to use the bigoted rantings of Bud the Blogger as some type of evidence. I can only assume that he hopes any readers who are even moderately literate don't click to read this tripe. I know that is his hope when he criticizes a recent poll taken for Harris.

Bill uses an article from the Examiner to infer that the poll is flawed. Unfortunately for Duvall, and Kratovil, the only criticism of the poll's methodology comes from Frank Kratovil's campaign manager - Tim McCann. If the worst he can do is criticize the sample size, trust the poll numbers. A sample size of 300 is fairly normal for a congressional poll - except for benchmark polls (a larger sample) and tracking (often a sample size of 250 - 300 or less).

Of course, what can you expect? He has a hard time criticizing Harris' core issues. What's left? One vote that Harris supposedly made in the Maryland senate, the fact that Andy goes to church on Sunday and his pollster appears to be gay. Something tells me Harris will win by a landslide.

cross posted at Delmarva Dealings

DEATH OF MAN ACTING ERRATICALLY IN CAROLINE CO. INVESTIGATED

(Ridgely, MD) – Maryland State Police are investigating the death of a man apparently from Virginia who died while police were preparing to take him for an emergency evaluation.

The man is identified as Raymond H. Bartles, Jr., 43, whose last known address was in Woodbridge, Virginia. Bartles was pronounced dead this afternoon at the Easton Memorial Hospital.

The preliminary investigation by Maryland State Police Homicide Unit investigators indicates that at about 1:00 p.m. today, a Natural Resources Police corporal was patrolling north on Rt. 312, north of Ridgely, when he was apparently notified by someone who reported a man, later identified as Bartles, who was acting strangely along the road. While the individual was talking with the corporal, Bartles is reported to have run at the corporal while he was still in his patrol car. Bartles is said to have tried to get into the patrol car and was acting erratically. The corporal called for a backup and a Caroline County deputy responded.

Bartles reportedly lay down on the ground on his own and when the deputy arrived, the two officers handcuffed him while the corporal began to make arrangements to take Bartles for an emergency evaluation. When the two officers tried to assist Bartles off the ground, his body went limp. The officers called emergency medical services, which arrived within minutes to transport him to the hospital.

There was no reported physical altercation between either the corporal or the deputy on the scene and Bartles. Bartles had no visible signs of trauma on his body. He is reported to have made no complaints to the officers of any medical distress, nor shown any signs of distress prior to going limp. His body has been transported to the Office of the State Medical Examiner in Baltimore for an autopsy.

Investigators contacted Bartles’ closest family member, who is a sister living in Western Maryland. She reported her brother was employed as a transient carnival worker who wandered extensively. She said he had recently been hospitalized in Florida for an extended period of time due to multiple medical conditions.

Further investigation found that sometime before 7:50 a.m. today, deputies from the Queen Anne’s County Sheriff’s Office had been called to the truck stop on Rt. 304 in Centreville for a complaint involving Bartles. When deputies arrived, they observed no criminal actions and cleared the scene.

Shortly after 7:50 a.m. today, Maryland State Police from the Centreville Barracks were dispatched to the 700-block of Ruthsburg Road, not far from the truck stop, for a report of a suspicious man who appeared to be homeless. Additional investigation by the trooper determined the man, later identified as Bartles, had trespassed at a residence on Ruthsburg Road. The trooper arrested Bartles and charged him with trespassing.

While Bartles was in Maryland State Police custody, troopers attempted to find a homeless shelter or some other assistance for him, but were unable to do so. Troopers took Bartles to a court commissioner for a bond hearing at about 11:30 a.m. The commissioner refused to hold Bartles on a temporary commitment and released him on his personal recognizance. Troopers reported Bartles appeared to be in good health.

At about 12:00 p.m. today, the same Natural Resources Police corporal notified the Centreville Barracks that he was out with Bartles at the intersection of Rt. 213 and Rt. 301. The corporal reported Bartles was a traffic hazard. Another trooper from the Centreville Barracks arrived on the scene with NRP corporal.

Bartles told the trooper he was trying to reach Easton and was on his way to the Bay Bridge Tunnel. Due to the repeated times Bartles was walking in traffic, the trooper felt it best to transport Bartles to the Caroline County line on Rt. 309 where he could then walk legally and more safely to Easton. The trooper dropped Bartles off at that location shortly before 12:30 p.m. He did not detect any type of medical distress being experienced by Bartles at that time.

The Maryland State Police Homicide Unit was requested to conduct this investigation by the Natural Resources Police. The investigation is continuing.

Comcast Screwed You Yesterday, Now DMO Is About To Screw You Today!

Joe:

This week I received my proposed oil budget from DMO for this coming year. To my amazement, it was over double the previous year (600 + per month). This is just for heating and hot water and does not include electricity.

I am curious to see if any of your readers have faced the same fate and how they are going to cope with it. I am sure it affects propane and natural gas customers too. I am looking into other heating methods and am curious what others think.

Thanks.

Robertson Advocates Israel Striking Iran Before The 2008 Election

Pat Robertson is at it again... he is advocating attacking Iran as a way to bring about Armegeddon (that means the end of the world as we know it) . You know we have a lot of issues that we have to deal with right now... I don't need this one as well!


Wednesday 23rd July, 2008

On yesterday’s edition of The 700 Club, Christian broadcaster Pat Robertson sharply criticized the “moderate tone” the Bush administration has allegedly taken toward Iran and its nuclear weapons program. Robertson advocated that Israel look out for the “survival of its nation” and “make some kind of a strike” against Iranian nuclear facilities. He also predicted that it will likely happen before the 2008 elections:

But nevertheless, I think we can look in the next few months for Israel to make a strike — possibly before the next election — because I think George Bush — to use the term an “amber light” — he’s given the amber, the yellow light, saying, “Caution, but go ahead.”

Robertson’s predictions often turn out to be wrong. In 2004, Robertson claimed that the Lord told him it would “be like a blowout” re-election for President Bush. (Bush ended up receiving just 51 percent of the vote.) In 2006, he incorrectly predicted that “the outcome of the war and the success of the economy will leave the Republicans in charge.”

He does, however, have an inside track into the Bush administration. Last year, Robertson’s Regent University estimated that one in six of its graduates were employed in government work. Approximately 150 served in the Bush administration.

Today, top McCain surrogate Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) is also talking to controversial Pastor John Hagee’s organization. In 2006, Hagee declared:

The United States must join Israel in a pre-emptive military strike against Iran to fulfill God’s plan for both Israel and the West… a biblically prophesied end-time confrontation with Iran, which will lead to the Rapture, Tribulation, and Second Coming of Christ.

Other members of the right wing have also been unifying around the idea of striking Iran before Bush leaves. Both John Bolton and Bill Kristol have made the same argument.

To an Irishman it Seems Like a No-Brainer

An Irish Quandary

An email from Ireland to their brethren in the States...a point to ponder despite your political affiliation:

We, in Ireland, can't figure out why people are even bothering to hold an election in the United States.

On one side, you have a pants wearing lawyer, married to a lawyer who can't keep his pants on, who just lost a long and heated primary against a lawyer who goes to the wrong church who is married to yet another lawyer who doesn't even like the country her husband wants to run.

Now...On the other side, you have a nice old war hero whose name starts with the appropriate 'Mc' terminology married to a good looking younger woman who owns a beer distributorship.

What in the Lords name are you lads thinking over there in
the colonies??

Welcome To Barrieland

I've lived in Salisbury about 12 years. We once had trash pickup twice a week.
Most anything reasonable could put out for collection.

A few years later, rates climbed; it was changed to weekly (hardly enough for
many families). Collectible items were restricted and special fees were charged.

Now, not only is the service more costly, at times our trash cans are left in
the street.

This is a hardship for some elderly residents, an annoyance for others and even
a traffic hazard, since at times parking spaces are full of trash cans so that
when a resident returns, he or she must park elsewhere or stop in the street to
return the can to the curb.

I recall an ordinance requiring residents to put their cans back away from the
walk before early the morning after pickup. Apparently, we must do this -- but
the city can leave them anywhere.

I have spoken to the city about this. Once they did respond for awhile, but
once again they are leaving them in the street.

Last week another truck came through after the trash collection.

I politely asked if the driver was going to leave the cans in the street, to
which he replied that they would put them back after they were done.

We pay for services -- not attitude. Many cities have a tight budget -- we all
do -- but in Salisbury, residents seem to have no say in quality or cost of
services.

Unless, of course, you have an inside track to City Hall, in which case you can
get curves on a straight road (see Isabella Street).

Eric Jarrett

Salisbury

Eric, that would be called a FOB!

SALISBURY POST OFFICE NEEDS EVALUATION

Today I went into the Salisbury Post Office like I normally do, and once again, took-a-step back in time. I don't want to sound like a chronic complainer but I still cannot believe that the Postmaster had the self-serve kiosk carted off.

The kiosk alone saved the Post Office valuable man-hours. The post office lobby kiosk could serve the public 24hours and 7 days a week. It was quick, efficient, streamlined and saved customers the agony of having to stand-in-line.

You could weight your mail, key in the zip code, swipe your credit card . . .and bingo. . .out comes the postage stamp. All with no assistance. How much easier does it get.

So what does our local Postmaster do . . . carts the machine off and out of the lobby. It's as if Salisbury went into the Stone Age.

I hope that if there was one thing Andy Harris can fix once he gets into office is to bring back the 20th Century into our US Post Office. If the Post Master refuses. . . he needs to get rid of him or her to.

Please Andy. . . I hope you're listening!

Congress Is Looking At Police Spying

GO HERE to read the Baltimore Sun atricle.

COMCAST SUBSCRIBERS: Get Ready to Pay the "PAC 14 Tax"



Here is the document that has been drafted for signature by both Salisbury's Mayor Barrie Tilghman and Wicomico County Executive Rick Pollitt. Apparently the plan has been approved by a so-called "Transition Team" that was assembled and acted with little or no public disclosure at the request of the three "partners" in PAC-14: the City of Salisbury, Wicomico County and Salisbury University.

For names of members of the Transition Team see --

http://sbynews.blogspot.com/2008/07/pac-14s-transition-task-force-revealed.html

This is a message beings sent around Salisbury today and yesterday.

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE.

Viewpoint from a Soldier on Obama in Afghanistan

Received this from a reader this morning whose boy was in Afghanistan when Obama blew in.

This is Jeff's first hand view of Senator Obama.

Hello everyone,
As you know I am not a very political person. I just wanted to pass along
that Senator Obama came to Bagram Afghanistan for about an hour on his
visit to 'The War Zone'. He got off the plane and got into a bullet proof vehicle,

got to the area to meet with the Major General (2 Star) who is the commander here at Bagram.

As the Soldiers where lined up to shake his hand he blew them off and
didn't say a word as he went into the conference room to meet the General. As he
finished, the vehicles took him to the ClamShell (pretty much a big top
tent that military personnel can play basketball or work out in with weights)
so he could take his publicity pictures playing basketball. He again shunned the
opportunity to talk to Soldiers to thank them for their service.

So really he was just here to make a showing for the American's back home
that he is their candidate for President. I think that if you are going to
make an effort to come all the way over here you would thank those that are
providing the freedom that they are providing for you.

I swear we got more thanks from the NBA Basketball Players or the Dallas
Cowboy Cheer leaders than from one of the Senators, who wants to be the
President of the United States. I just don't understand how anyone would
want him to
be our Commander-and-Chief. It was almost that he was scared to be around
those that provide the freedom for him and our great country.

If this is blunt and to the point I am sorry but I wanted you all to know
what kind of caliber of person he really is. What you see in the news is
all fake.

In service,
CPT Jeffrey S. Porter
Battle Captain
TF Wasatch
American Soldier

American by birth
MARINE
by the grace of God

Semper Fi

For The Record


If you look at the bottom of the center of this photo you'll see the gap between my building to the right and my neighbor to the left. It's only a matter of time before their building will be resting support wise on my building, if you'll look at the top where the gap is only an inch or two away. I wonder how that will work down the road? Any Engineers out there want to throw in their two cents?

Dam Bridge


Hey Joe, this is a shot of the new bridge they are building to bypass cars going over the Hoover damn, taken from the the top of the Hoover Damn. They say soon traffic over the damn will be non-existent when this road get gets done.

Question of the Day, Thur 7/24

This question brought to you by Ben:

During your teenage years, who did you have a crush on? Real life or celebrity? Did your real-life crush know you had a crush on him/her? Did you ever meet your celebrity crush? Write to them? Have a signed poster on your wall?

(Ben's answer was: Ms. Eckard-real life. Lauri Partridge 'til Playboy entered into the reading collection-celebrity)

Danielle A. Vollmar Of WBOC Was Involved In Rt. 90 Bridge Accident


*Worcester County* –The Maryland Natural Resources Police (NRP) has charged a Rockville man in the Sunday morning, July 6, boating accident that occurred in Assawoman Bay at the Route 90 Bridge in Ocean City.

After consultation with the office of Worcester County State’s Attorney Joel J. Todd, NRP charged Scott Howard Shepard, 32, of Rockville with operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol, operating a vessel while impaired by alcohol, operating a vessel while impaired by drugs, and/or combination of drugs and alcohol, operating a vessel in a reckless or dangerous manner, negligent operation of a vessel, failure to maintain a proper lookout, and operating a vessel at unsafe speed for conditions. Shepard was released on his signature. A court date of Sept. 26 has been scheduled for Shepard in Worcester County District Court.

Shepard was operating a 2007 21-foot fiberglass ski boat at 1 a.m. when he struck a bridge abutment on the Route 90 Bridge. NRP along with the Ocean City Fire Department and the U.S. Coast Guard responded to the scene in heavy fog conditions. Several Ocean City fire fighters, who responded to the scene in their personal boats, rescued all ten occupants from the water.

The following passengers were transported to Peninsula Regional Medical Center; Brenden Shepard, 26, of Rockville remains hospitalized, Danielle A. Vollmar, 23, of Lansdale, Pa. was treated and released.

The following passengers were transported to Atlantic General Hospital and were treated and released; Kendel L. Droppa, 25, of Reisterstown, Holly L. Rudigier, 27, of Columbia, Jason R. Baumann, 31, of Silver Spring, Todd Newell, 26, of Rockville and Glenn Shepard, 38, of Deland, Fla.

The remaining occupants, Melissa Shepard, 27, of Deland, Fla., Blake Newell, 27, of Silver Spring and Scott Shepard were treated at the scene.

The Route 90 Bridge was closed to vehicle traffic until Maryland State Highway inspectors determined the bridge to be safe for travel. The Ocean City Fire Department, Ocean Pines Police Department, Worcester County Sheriff's Office, Maryland State Police, Maryland State Highway Administration and the U.S. Coast Guard assisted NRP with the incident.

Danielle was injured seriously enough that she has not been able to be on WBOC as a Meteorologist, in case you hadn't noticed. Many months ago I shower THIS ARTICLE showing Heather Zara from WBOC being arrested for a DUI by the Maryland State Police. Guess who the passenger was that had to take a Taxi home because she was too intoxicated to drive Heather's car home? You guessed it, Danielle Vollmar. Apparently the WBOG Staff is still playing hard and they haven't learned their drinking and driving habits will catch up with them.

We wish Danielle a quick recovery and very honestly Danielle, I can only hope you'll learn from yet another horrible experience and learn partying is NOT good for your health or future.

Today's Wildlife Photos



I took these pix at Assateague while hanging out on the beach. There were so many horses on the beach that day. These pix were taken with my cell phone so they may not be of good quality but i've been encouraged to send them in to you.

My Last Post

Everyone,

I would like to say it has been a privilege to write on Salisbury News for the past half year. I have accepted a job which will take me out of Salisbury for who knows how long and also will limit me on the topics that I could write about. It's time to get ready for this new chapter of my life, spend time with friends and family, and put my life together a bit before I leave.

All I can hope that I have done some service to the community, that I have lived in for the past six years, which resulted in some type of change, reform, or awareness for us all. I also hope you all enjoyed some of my satire, pictures, and general comments.

I would like to thank Joe for this opportunity and wish the best for him and the rest of the SBY News contributors. It has been worth while and keep a good thing going!

Thank you to all who have sent me emails, posted responses, and talked to me since I've been aboard. It is much appreciated and I hope it has helped.

Special thank you out to everyone at The Shorebirds; Chris, Captain Jim, and everyone in the Press Box for allowing me to come out and cover the games. It's awesome to be in a press box and this sports junkie had a blast. Again thank you and you guys run a great ship there for everyone in Delmarva!

I would happily come back to contribute in the future, but at this juncture, prudence and practicality states that I should concentrate on doing the best that I can on my job with my full attention.

Best Wishes To All

Nick

Amazing What A Little Light Can Do?

Normal Lighting.



Added light.



I showed my friend who is an photography/art major and she said it reminded her of Troy Paiva who used unique lighting via gels to get unique takes on shots. He's good and the pics are worth checking out.

Motivational Poster of the Day



What do you think the Motivational Text should say?

Shogun is On Point

If you haven't been to Shogun on the corner of College and South Division you're missing out. Though a relatively small establishment, Shogun boasts a nice selection of Sushi at affordable prices $3.50 to $8.50, without sacrificing quality. Sushi comes out on wooden trays decorated with confectioners glaze for visual appeal and a sweet compliment.

Shogun also has Udon, which is a thick noodle soup, as well as Teriyaki which are both good. Prices are from $7.50 to $16.50 and are generous portions. Shogun also has apps, soups, and salads.

Take out or dine in, this is worth the trip

TIMBERRRRRR


The City's Parking Garage continues to show signs of neglect and age, even though it's not that old. Maybe I should have said, POOR WORKMANSHIP? Kind of like the new Station 16!

Is School Choice a Silver Bullet?

Eric Luedtke of Free State Politics asserts that conservatives consider vouchers a "silver bullet". A few weeks ago my call for merit pay (hardly an original idea) was claimed as some sort of conservative silver bullet.

No one on the right that I am aware of has made such a claim. Whether it be vouchers, a comprehensive program of school choice, the institution of teacher accountability, or merit pay - all (and more) are part of a comprehensive solution to improve our public schools. This sure beats the hell out of the NEA's solution: tax people more, spend more money, don't demand any objective results.

Personally, I could care less about a child's "self-esteem" as long as he or she can read, write and cipher. Nothing improved my middle son's "self-esteem" more than earning the highest grade in his first math class this summer at Salisbury University; or being one of the top two or three in his second, and much larger class. (BTW - He just finished his junior year in high school and had to repeat both pre-algebra and algebra a few years back.) Nothing builds "self-esteem" like hard work and study; something that our current public schools have either forgotten or chosen to ignore.

Back to school choice -
The notion that competition is somehow bad, or won't work, is to be expected from people like Luedtke, and organizations like the NEA, who honestly don't believe that the free market works. If money follows the child, then the best schools will be rewarded and the poor performing schools will suffer. They scream bloody murder when they are tagged as socialists, but that is exactly what they are. Sorry Eric, calling a spade a spade is not argumentum ad hominem.

My Red Maryland colleague Brian Griffiths slams Luedtke's arguments against vouchers. I certainly couldn't do as well and I even wonder if our colleague Mark Newgent could do better. If you care about education and are intellectually honest, I hope you take time to thoroughly read Brian's post AND the Heartland Institute's pamphlet on school choice.

As someone who had children in both public and private schools (I still have two in private school) I neither claim that public schools are the bogey man nor that private schools will be the salvation of our nation. What I do claim is that our public education system needs drastic reform and that the NEA and its membership have a vested interest in keeping the current failed structure in place.

While I support unionism and the right to organize, we must accept the fact that the NEA (and its siblings) share a sizable portion of the blame for our failed education system just as our industrial unions share the blame in the failure of our nation's auto, steel, rubber, and ..... industries. Since they are not willing to be part of the solution we need boards of education with the courage to impose solutions upon them.

It took the NEA 30+ years to wreck our system of public education. It will take quite a while for a comprehensive solution to bear fruit in individual districts. School choice is but one part of that solution; but a solution none the less.

cross posted at Delmarva Dealings

SMKC Training Classes Schedule


The Salisbury Maryland Kennel Club is a fantastic group of people offering all sorts of training for each and every one of your Pets wants and needs. Click on the image above to enlarge and do consider their services listed above.