USA DOUBLE CROSSED-SOLD OUT BY POLITRICKSTER CABAL
THIS PERTINENT SECTION BELOW OF THE INTERNATIONAL FORECASTER DATED WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2011, CONFIRMS A USA TENDER TO CHINA-A WRITTEN AGREEMENT GRANTING AN OPTION TO EXERCISE EMINENT DOMAIN WITHIN THE USA, AS COLLATERAL FOR CHINA’S CONTINUED PURCHASE OF US TREASURY NOTES AND EXISTING US CURRENCY RESERVES.
Put simply, the feds have now actually mortgaged the physical land and property of all citizens and businesses in the United States. They have given to a foreign power, their Constitutional power to “take” all of our property, as actual collateral for continued Chinese funding of US deficit spending and the continued carrying of US national debt.
This is an unimaginable betrayal of every man, woman and child in the USA. An outrage worthy of violent overthrow.
Sources at the United States Embassy in Beijing China have just CONFIRMED to me that the United States of America has tendered to China a written agreement which grants to the People’s Republic of China, an option to exercise Eminent Domain within the USA, as collateral for China’s continued purchase of US Treasury Notes and existing US Currency reserves!
The written agreement was brought to Beijing by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and was formalized and agreed-to during her recent trip to China.
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DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Libya Oil Production To Shut Down Completely
LONDON, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Oil production in Libya is expected to shut down completely and could be lost for a prolonged period of time, Bank of America Merrill Lynch said on Thursday.
'We expect Libyan production to be shut down completely and we might lose sweet crudes from Libya for a prolonged period of time,' Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst Sabine Schels told Reuters.
Schels said that the world faced the prospect of real supply shock in which the loss of 1.6 million barrels per day of sweet oil could potentially trigger a steep rise in prices and force a sharp reduction in demand to balance the system.
'Some of the supply can be replaced with Saudi light crude and some from SPR, but if the disruption is prolonged, we will need demand to drop to balance the system,' Schels said.
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'We expect Libyan production to be shut down completely and we might lose sweet crudes from Libya for a prolonged period of time,' Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst Sabine Schels told Reuters.
Schels said that the world faced the prospect of real supply shock in which the loss of 1.6 million barrels per day of sweet oil could potentially trigger a steep rise in prices and force a sharp reduction in demand to balance the system.
'Some of the supply can be replaced with Saudi light crude and some from SPR, but if the disruption is prolonged, we will need demand to drop to balance the system,' Schels said.
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OCPD MAKES ARREST IN PHARMACY BURGLARY WITH HELP OF RxPATROL®/CRIME STOPPERS TIP
The Ocean City Police Department teamed up with RxPATROL/Crime Stoppers on February 4, 2011 to ask for the public’s assistance in investigating this pharmacy burglary. A cash reward of up to $2,500 was offered for information that could help the police with their investigation. The cash reward is donated by pharmaceutical company Purdue Pharma L.P., which developed and funds RxPATROL.
Freeman was arrested by the Ocean City Police Department on February 8, 2011 and charged with nine counts of burglary, three counts of theft, malicious destruction of property, possession of controlled dangerous substance and possession of paraphernalia.
After being seen by an Ocean City District Court Commissioner, Freeman was transferred to Worcester County Jail
City Successful In Court On Waste Water Treatment Plant Issues
Salisbury Mayor James Ireton, Jr. announced today that the City‘s motion, which will permit its suit against the engineering firm that designed the recent improvements to the Salisbury Waste Water Treatment Plant to be filed in Wicomico County Circuit Court, was granted. This decision by Federal Circuit Court Judge Legg had been pending since September when the City filed its motion to dismiss the suit from Federal Court in Baltimore and file it in Wicomico County. “This is a significant step in this lawsuit,” states Mayor Ireton. “It will be less expensive to try this suit in the Circuit Court for Wicomico County than would have been the case if we had to try the case in Baltimore. This decision also allows the suit to proceed now that we know in which court it will be tried.”
The City has sued O’Brien and Gere, the engineering firm that designed the improvements to the wastewater treatment plant that were intended to enable the plant to meet new environmental standards. These improvements have not worked as intended and, as a result, the plant has not operated as required by the Maryland Department of the Environment. The City is also suing Construction Dynamics Group, Inc., the construction manager on the project.
In a related matter, the City was also successful in being granted a stay in its law suit against MDE pertaining to a Consent Judgment issued against the City. This stay, which was granted by Circuit Court Judge Newton Jackson, will permit the City and MDE to continue to work out the terms of an amended Consent Judgment pertaining to the construction of improvements at the waste water treatment plant which are intended to bring the plant into compliance with environmental requirements. “We are grateful that the Court has granted this stay”, said Mayor Ireton. “We are awaiting a draft Consent Judgment from MDE and we will need this additional time to ensure that the Consent Judgment is fair to the City. We are grateful to MDE for joining us in requesting this stay. This is another indication of our developing partnership with MDE.”
For further information, please contact Paul Wilber, City Attorney 410-742-3176
The City has sued O’Brien and Gere, the engineering firm that designed the improvements to the wastewater treatment plant that were intended to enable the plant to meet new environmental standards. These improvements have not worked as intended and, as a result, the plant has not operated as required by the Maryland Department of the Environment. The City is also suing Construction Dynamics Group, Inc., the construction manager on the project.
In a related matter, the City was also successful in being granted a stay in its law suit against MDE pertaining to a Consent Judgment issued against the City. This stay, which was granted by Circuit Court Judge Newton Jackson, will permit the City and MDE to continue to work out the terms of an amended Consent Judgment pertaining to the construction of improvements at the waste water treatment plant which are intended to bring the plant into compliance with environmental requirements. “We are grateful that the Court has granted this stay”, said Mayor Ireton. “We are awaiting a draft Consent Judgment from MDE and we will need this additional time to ensure that the Consent Judgment is fair to the City. We are grateful to MDE for joining us in requesting this stay. This is another indication of our developing partnership with MDE.”
For further information, please contact Paul Wilber, City Attorney 410-742-3176
Washington's War & Middle East Policy Racket
US Marine Corp Major General Smedley Butler accurately described in his book, "War Is A Racket" how the American military is often forced to make war far more for Wall Street and big corporation profits than the false reasons usually provided for the conflict. While he wrote his book about World War One, his conclusion is an accurate description for the War Between the States, the Second World War as well as most wars in US history.
Today an aging king Abdulla returned home to the Saudi Kingdom now surrounded by freedom movements threatening almost every authoritarian regime in the Middle East. The government of Saudi Arabia is basically a family dynasty and the law requires that the king must be chosen from the sons and grandsons of the first king, Abdul Aziz Al Saud and the throne succession is decided by the royal family.
The royal family is promising $37 billion in handouts attempting once again to buy off the vast majority of Sunni citizens and the second class Shiite minority to protect the ruling elites. They also fear the new Facebook campaign calling for "Day of Rage" demonstrations scheduled for March 11.
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Today an aging king Abdulla returned home to the Saudi Kingdom now surrounded by freedom movements threatening almost every authoritarian regime in the Middle East. The government of Saudi Arabia is basically a family dynasty and the law requires that the king must be chosen from the sons and grandsons of the first king, Abdul Aziz Al Saud and the throne succession is decided by the royal family.
The royal family is promising $37 billion in handouts attempting once again to buy off the vast majority of Sunni citizens and the second class Shiite minority to protect the ruling elites. They also fear the new Facebook campaign calling for "Day of Rage" demonstrations scheduled for March 11.
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JMB Rock 'n' Roll Revival Opens Feb. 19, Runs through Feb. 27
Feb. 19-20 and Feb. 24-27
JMB’s 13th annual Rock & Roll Revival
Wicomico High School Auditorium
Tickets are on sale now for this annual showcase of Clipper talent. Students sing, dance, play instruments, and work in many areas behind the scenes to put on this highly successful show, which will be on the Wicomico High School Auditorium stage due to the ongoing construction at the Bennett Auditorium.
This year's show is the biggest ever. Get a preview here:
Show directors are Christie and Larry Wersen, and all proceeds benefit the JMB PTSA.
Shows will be at 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 19 and 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 20, and 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 24, Friday, Feb. 25, Saturday, Feb. 26, and 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 27.
Tickets are $15 and are available now at the PNC Bank at Beaglin Park Drive and Snow Hill Road. For ticket information, e-mail jmbrockandrollrevival@gmail.com or call Chris Wilde at 410-430-8634.
JMB’s 13th annual Rock & Roll Revival
Wicomico High School Auditorium
Tickets are on sale now for this annual showcase of Clipper talent. Students sing, dance, play instruments, and work in many areas behind the scenes to put on this highly successful show, which will be on the Wicomico High School Auditorium stage due to the ongoing construction at the Bennett Auditorium.
This year's show is the biggest ever. Get a preview here:
Show directors are Christie and Larry Wersen, and all proceeds benefit the JMB PTSA.
Shows will be at 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 19 and 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 20, and 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 24, Friday, Feb. 25, Saturday, Feb. 26, and 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 27.
Tickets are $15 and are available now at the PNC Bank at Beaglin Park Drive and Snow Hill Road. For ticket information, e-mail jmbrockandrollrevival@gmail.com or call Chris Wilde at 410-430-8634.
Salisbury Police Department Press Releases
On February 23, 2011 at approximately 2:22 pm, Officers of the Salisbury Police arrested the below listed suspect on an outstanding arrest warrant for a theft that was reported in January of 2011. At that time it was reported that the suspect had taken a number of bank deposits for personal use while working at a local corporation, instead of making the deposits into the bank. The deposits that were taken were in excess of $ 6,000.00.
ARRESTED: Stephanie Erin Mason, 25 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
CHARGES:
Theft (under $ 1,000) – 3 counts
Theft (under $ 10,000) – 2 counts
Theft scheme (under $ 10,000)
DISPOSITION: Released to Central Booking CC # 201100004834
On February 23, 2011 at approximately 5:00 pm, Officers of the Salisbury Police Safe Streets Unit were on routine patrol in the area of W. Isabella Street and observed the below listed suspect trespassing on posted residential property. As the officers approached the suspect, the suspect fled from the officers on foot.
The officers engaged in a foot chase and during the foot chase the suspect dropped an object, which was retrieved by one of the pursuing officers and found to be a handgun. After a substantial foot chase, the suspect was apprehended. The suspect was found to be prohibited by age to possess a handgun.
ARRESTED: Derrick Alan Jones, 20 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
CHARGES:
Trespassing
Handgun on person
Possession of a firearm by prohibited person
Possession of ammunition by prohibited person
DISPOSITION: Released to Central Booking CC # 201100006843
On February 24, 2011 at approximately 2:00 am, Officers of the Salisbury Police received a call to respond to the Monkey Barrel Bar and Grill for the report of a fight in the parking lot. Upon arrival the officers did not observe a fight occurring but did observe a second fight begin. The officers separated the two (2) parties engaged in the altercation, listed below, and while arresting the suspects, the officers were assaulted by other subjects. The officers were struck a number of times, however the suspects were able to flee from the area without apprehension. The original two (2) suspects were taken into custody. This investigation is continuing with regards to the suspects that assaulted the officers. The Salisbury Police received assistance while dispersing the crowd from the Maryland State Police, the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office, the Fruitland Police Department and the Salisbury University Police.
ARRESTED #1: Brandi Rochelle Evans, 21 years of age Princess Anne, Maryland
ARRESTED #2: Sterlin Lamont Mason, 22 years of age Brandywine, Maryland
CHARGES (Both):
Second degree assault – 2 counts
Disorderly conduct
Resisting arrest
Obstructing and hindering an investigation
DISPOSITION: Both released to Central Booking CC # 201100006912
ARRESTED: Stephanie Erin Mason, 25 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
CHARGES:
Theft (under $ 1,000) – 3 counts
Theft (under $ 10,000) – 2 counts
Theft scheme (under $ 10,000)
DISPOSITION: Released to Central Booking CC # 201100004834
On February 23, 2011 at approximately 5:00 pm, Officers of the Salisbury Police Safe Streets Unit were on routine patrol in the area of W. Isabella Street and observed the below listed suspect trespassing on posted residential property. As the officers approached the suspect, the suspect fled from the officers on foot.
The officers engaged in a foot chase and during the foot chase the suspect dropped an object, which was retrieved by one of the pursuing officers and found to be a handgun. After a substantial foot chase, the suspect was apprehended. The suspect was found to be prohibited by age to possess a handgun.
ARRESTED: Derrick Alan Jones, 20 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
CHARGES:
Trespassing
Handgun on person
Possession of a firearm by prohibited person
Possession of ammunition by prohibited person
DISPOSITION: Released to Central Booking CC # 201100006843
On February 24, 2011 at approximately 2:00 am, Officers of the Salisbury Police received a call to respond to the Monkey Barrel Bar and Grill for the report of a fight in the parking lot. Upon arrival the officers did not observe a fight occurring but did observe a second fight begin. The officers separated the two (2) parties engaged in the altercation, listed below, and while arresting the suspects, the officers were assaulted by other subjects. The officers were struck a number of times, however the suspects were able to flee from the area without apprehension. The original two (2) suspects were taken into custody. This investigation is continuing with regards to the suspects that assaulted the officers. The Salisbury Police received assistance while dispersing the crowd from the Maryland State Police, the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office, the Fruitland Police Department and the Salisbury University Police.
ARRESTED #1: Brandi Rochelle Evans, 21 years of age Princess Anne, Maryland
ARRESTED #2: Sterlin Lamont Mason, 22 years of age Brandywine, Maryland
CHARGES (Both):
Second degree assault – 2 counts
Disorderly conduct
Resisting arrest
Obstructing and hindering an investigation
DISPOSITION: Both released to Central Booking CC # 201100006912
Saudi Student Arrested In Plot To Bomb Bush Home
Saudi national Khalid Ali-M Aldawsari allegedly bought supplies for an IED
U.S. authorities have arrested a 20-year-old Saudi national on charges he tried to use a weapon of mass destruction and potentially targeted former President George W. Bush, the Justice Department said Thursday.
FBI agents arrested Khalid Ali-M Aldawsari, who was admitted into the United States in 2008 on a student visa, in Texas on Wednesday. The Justice Department accuses him of purchasing chemicals and equipment to make an improvised explosive device.
Aldawsari, a student at South Plains College near Lubbock, allegedly referred to Bush's Dallas home as a "tyrant's house" and possibly contemplated using dolls to conceal the explosives, the statement said.
Obama's Mystery Links To Gadhafi Uncovered
Prez fails to call for dictator's removal despite reports of attacks on citizens
JERUSALEM – As pressure mounts on the White House to intervene to stop Moammar Gadhafi's bloody crackdown in Libya, many commentators have been wondering why Barack Obama has been cautious in his criticism of the dictator after the U.S. president so fervently supported the removal from office of U.S. ally Hosni Mubarak of Egypt.
But Gadhafi has been tied to Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Obama's spiritual adviser for more than 23 years.
The Libyan dictator also has financed and strongly supported the Nation of Islam and its leader, Louis Farrakhan. Obama has ties to Farrakhan and his controversial group.
So far, White House officials have called for an end to the violence but have seemingly ruled out any unilateral action in Libya. Despite Gadhafi's reported ordering of massacres that reportedly have killed hundreds of civilians in recent days, Obama hasn't called on Gadhafi to leave office.
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JERUSALEM – As pressure mounts on the White House to intervene to stop Moammar Gadhafi's bloody crackdown in Libya, many commentators have been wondering why Barack Obama has been cautious in his criticism of the dictator after the U.S. president so fervently supported the removal from office of U.S. ally Hosni Mubarak of Egypt.
But Gadhafi has been tied to Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Obama's spiritual adviser for more than 23 years.
The Libyan dictator also has financed and strongly supported the Nation of Islam and its leader, Louis Farrakhan. Obama has ties to Farrakhan and his controversial group.
So far, White House officials have called for an end to the violence but have seemingly ruled out any unilateral action in Libya. Despite Gadhafi's reported ordering of massacres that reportedly have killed hundreds of civilians in recent days, Obama hasn't called on Gadhafi to leave office.
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Salisbury City Council Forum Is As Boring As Watching Paint Dry
The AFP Hosted a City Council Forum last night moderated by Bill Reddish. Talk about annoying! Reddish took the show LIVE on his radio program that created a humming noise so loud you actually couldn't hear the candidates answers. Now maybe if you were listening to it on the radio, maybe then you could hear it without that obnoxious sound but being there was truly painful.
The questions weren't very challenging and as a moderator should, follow up questions, (especially in this case) were a necessity. You can't ask questions about the City's finances and allow several candidates to respond with, "We need to tighten our belts." It was like watching the Miss America Pageant and a contestant saying they want world peace!
Nevertheless, I'm sure time was important as the radio show probably only had a certain time slot for this event. That's unfortunate because quite frankly many people grew tired and bored.
The three top candidates were Terry Cohen, Tim Spies and Muir Boda. Their answers were on topic and precise. I debated over attending last night, especially when this event was competing with American Idol AND Survivor. I screwed up and made the wrong choice. I should have stayed home but here we are.
All that being said, IF you think your candidate of choice is a sure winner in this primary election, think again. It would be my guess that this will be the lowest voter turn out in the history of any City Council election. Make sure you get out and vote. The Daily Times, WBOC and WMDT didn't seem to show up and most candidates are slacking when it comes to delivering their platform to the media.
Maybe the NAACP Forum tonight will liven things up but I think I'll stay home and watch the grass grow in my front yard. It could actually be more exciting.
Oil Approaches $120 On Libya
Feb. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Oil climbed, approaching $120 a barrel in London, on concern Libya’s uprising is reducing shipments from Africa’s third-biggest producer. The Swiss franc strengthened to a record, while U.S. stocks fluctuated after jobless claims fell more than economists estimated.
Brent crude jumped 3.2 percent to $114.76 a barrel at 2:43 p.m. in London, and traded as high as $119.79, while April futures topped $103 in New York. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was little changed, and the Stoxx Europe 600 Index slid 0.4 percent. The franc gained as much as 1 percent to 92.41 centimes per dollar. The 10-year Treasury note yield declined four basis points. Wheat slipped 0.7 percent.
Brent has soared 19 percent in the past month, adding to inflation, as protests across the Middle East toppled Tunisia’s Zine el Abidine Ben Ali and Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak. The rebellion against Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi may have shut 1 million barrels of daily oil output, according to Barclays Capital.
“Forecasts for oil to reach $200 a barrel are starting to surface and if oil can go ballistic on any further fire in the Middle East, the aftermath will be probably be dramatic for the world economy,” Olivier Jakob, managing director at Petromatrix GmbH, a Zug, Switzerland-based researcher, said in a report.
Oil pared gains after a Saudi Arabian official said his country and other OPEC nations including those in West Africa are able to replace any lost Libyan oil.
Wis. Stalemate: Deal Struck, Cops Sent To Dem Homes
Assembly agreement follows marathon session and more than 42 hours of debate
MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin Democrats in the state Assembly agreed to a deal in the pre-dawn hours Thursday to limit debate and reach a vote, perhaps by midday, on a bill taking away public workers' collective bargaining rights.
Meanwhile, Republican leadership in the Senate dispatched police officers to the homes of some of the 14 Democratic lawmakers who have been on the run for a week to avoid voting on the proposal, to compel them to return.
The early-morning action Thursday was designed to force a vote on Republican Gov. Scott Walker's bill that has made Wisconsin the focus of a multiple state effort to curb union rights. The Assembly deal announced shortly after 6 a.m. followed more than 42 hours of debate that began Tuesday morning.
Somerset County Sheriff's Office Press Release
Audra Katherine Catlin of Crisfield, Criminal summons served 2-18-11 regarding theft less than $500.00 and uttering a bad check. Catlin was later released back to Detention Center staff pending trial.
Durand Steven Carter of Salisbury, arrested 2-22-11 on three warrants regarding failing to appear in court. Carter was later released after posting bond.
Amorie Mae Shreaves of Westover, criminal summons served 2-23-11 regarding theft over $500.00. Shreaves was later released pending trial.
Daniel Wilson Collins Jr. of Fruitland, arrested 2-23-11 on a warrant regarding violation of probation. Collins was later held on a $35,000 bond.
Toyota, Smarter Than The Average Bear!
The US Government desperately tried to defame Toyota last year during the Cash For Clunkers campaign where they wanted to push American manufactured vehicles over foreign vehicles but Toyota came fighting back with a 0% financing and their sales went through the roof. So much so, dealer lots were literally empty of new products.
In this case, Toyota will again come out of this by being pro active and not reactive. They will invite more than 2 million people back to their Dealerships to see if they have after market floor mats. The way I see it is, if they do, it's an instant sale of a set of Toyota mats instead. Looks like a win/win to me. Who knows, maybe you'll need an oil change while your there too.
Funny how this was announced, (once again) today where the MSM broke the news that GM has enjoyed their very first profit since 2004!!!!! Very predictable.
An In-Depth Look At US Congressman Allen West, (R- FL)
Lieutenant Colonel Allen West (US Army, Retired) represents one of the most intelligent, reasoned, thoughtful members of the new congressional class. His insight into education, military operations and the threat of Islam will serve the U.S. well.
Look for his star to continually ascend as he works from his new position as a public servant to make America once again a safer, fiscally sound, honorably led government and one respected by the entire world.
Colonel West was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia and is the third of four generations of military servicemen in his family.
His parents instilled in him a very basic principle-- love of God and Country.
According to a sworn statement West gave to military investigators, his unit received a tip on August 8, 2003, that insurgents were plotting to assassinate him.
On August 21, 2003, based on West's order, soldiers snatched Hamoodi from the police station, hauling him to a military detention center.
His ever-so-politically-correct detractors point to the incident below in an attempt to cast a negative cloud over a brilliant and distinguished career.
Hamoodi claimed that his first interrogator, an Egyptian woman, told him that she'd kill him if he didn't talk, then kicked him in the leg. West says that when he arrived at the facility, his interrogators told him that Hamoodi "was not divulging any information. I was concerned for the impending safety of my soldiers and myself."
Arriving at the interrogation room, West approached Hamoodi, took out his gun, and chambered a round. He placed it in his lap with the gun barrel facing Hamoodi. "I had drawn out my pistol as a means of conveying a threat to him for the seriousness of wanting the information," West told investigators.
Hamoodi still didn't give West or the soldiers the information they wanted, either because he wasn't part of the assassination plot or because he was being an uncooperative witness.
When that didn't work, West admitted to pushing Hamoodi's head into a clearing barrel full of sand, which is typically used for clearing weapons.
West then put his gun into the same barrel, near Hamoodi's head and fired.
Lt. Col. West immediately put himself on report. Legal proceedings were brought against him-- West's lawyer, Neal Puckett, recommended that the charges against his client be dismissed.
West claimed that the tactic worked. "Mr. Hamoodi came forth with names, location, and method of attack." The attack was to occur near the Saba al Boor police station with rooftop snipers from Fallujah, after Hamoodi signaled to them which Humvee contained West.
Soldiers set up surveillance in hopes of catching those involved in the ambush, which was supposedly scheduled for the next day; the assassination attempt was subsequently aborted.
In 2004, when it was time to retire from more than twenty years of service in the US Army, he brought his wife and two young daughters to Broward County, Florida, where he taught high school for one year.
Still wanting to serve his country, he returned to Afghanistan as an advisor to the Afghan army, an assignment he finished in November 2007.
Allen West received his Bachelors degree from University of Tennessee and Masters degree from Kansas State University, both in political science.
He also holds a Master of Military Arts and Sciences from the US Army Command and General Staff Officer College in political theory and military operations.
"Education is the great equalizer," he says. "With a good education, any child in America can live his dream."
Continue reading
Look for his star to continually ascend as he works from his new position as a public servant to make America once again a safer, fiscally sound, honorably led government and one respected by the entire world.
Colonel West was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia and is the third of four generations of military servicemen in his family.
His parents instilled in him a very basic principle-- love of God and Country.
According to a sworn statement West gave to military investigators, his unit received a tip on August 8, 2003, that insurgents were plotting to assassinate him.
On August 21, 2003, based on West's order, soldiers snatched Hamoodi from the police station, hauling him to a military detention center.
His ever-so-politically-correct detractors point to the incident below in an attempt to cast a negative cloud over a brilliant and distinguished career.
Hamoodi claimed that his first interrogator, an Egyptian woman, told him that she'd kill him if he didn't talk, then kicked him in the leg. West says that when he arrived at the facility, his interrogators told him that Hamoodi "was not divulging any information. I was concerned for the impending safety of my soldiers and myself."
Arriving at the interrogation room, West approached Hamoodi, took out his gun, and chambered a round. He placed it in his lap with the gun barrel facing Hamoodi. "I had drawn out my pistol as a means of conveying a threat to him for the seriousness of wanting the information," West told investigators.
Hamoodi still didn't give West or the soldiers the information they wanted, either because he wasn't part of the assassination plot or because he was being an uncooperative witness.
When that didn't work, West admitted to pushing Hamoodi's head into a clearing barrel full of sand, which is typically used for clearing weapons.
West then put his gun into the same barrel, near Hamoodi's head and fired.
Lt. Col. West immediately put himself on report. Legal proceedings were brought against him-- West's lawyer, Neal Puckett, recommended that the charges against his client be dismissed.
West claimed that the tactic worked. "Mr. Hamoodi came forth with names, location, and method of attack." The attack was to occur near the Saba al Boor police station with rooftop snipers from Fallujah, after Hamoodi signaled to them which Humvee contained West.
Soldiers set up surveillance in hopes of catching those involved in the ambush, which was supposedly scheduled for the next day; the assassination attempt was subsequently aborted.
In 2004, when it was time to retire from more than twenty years of service in the US Army, he brought his wife and two young daughters to Broward County, Florida, where he taught high school for one year.
Still wanting to serve his country, he returned to Afghanistan as an advisor to the Afghan army, an assignment he finished in November 2007.
Allen West received his Bachelors degree from University of Tennessee and Masters degree from Kansas State University, both in political science.
He also holds a Master of Military Arts and Sciences from the US Army Command and General Staff Officer College in political theory and military operations.
"Education is the great equalizer," he says. "With a good education, any child in America can live his dream."
Continue reading
As Oil Prices Soar, Congress Yawns
Where's the Congressional Outrage?
As the price of crude oil breaks $100 per barrel, the highest price since 2008, Americans are sure to feel the impact in their pocketbooks, which is why it's all the more strange that not a single member of Congress appears to have called on the Obama administration to either halt stockpiles into the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve or to release some of the reserves into the system. There appear to be no calls for a gas tax holiday, either, or any other immediate legislative remedy that has, in the past, been trumpeted in the face of soaring oil prices.
Back in 2008, as prices jumped above the $100 mark, lawmakers of all stripes came together to force the Bush Administration to halt stockpiling into the government reserve, a 1970's era creation after the oil embargo. This time around, so far - radio silence. Crickets. Where's the outrage?
"We can't immediately think of any House or Senate member who is calling for a release of oil from the SPR," said Bill Wicker, spokesman for the Senate Energy Committee. The panel, chaired by Sen. Jeff Bingaman did hold a hearing recently on the energy outlook at which the New Mexico Democrat did note, "Fortunately, it appears unlikely that the political turmoil will result in major disruptions in oil production or transportation. That's my impression, at least at this time. However, I note that whenever geopolitical events remind us of our vulnerability to world oil supply disruptions, it is a spur for us to consider energy policies that help to reduce that vulnerability."
Wicker also told Fox, "In addition to closely and carefully monitoring the situations in Africa/Middle East and in world oil markets, (the committee) is continuing to consider all of its legislative and oversight options."
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Oil Breaks $100/Barrel In Over Night Trading
Oil broke $100/barrel once again in overnight trading and right now is trading up $2.87 per barrel and is priced at $100.97/barrel. At these levels one wonders if the US will ever reap an economic recovery as it looks as though there is no end in sight for prices of crude to stabilize. World demand is escalating, US is anti-drilling - (NMBY syndrone) - and yet our President still believes we can stuff solar and wind into our gas tanks.
Here at SBYnews we have been warning our readers about the impending consequences for political neglect of our citizenry. That's about all we can do until our population finally decides they have had enough and takes the matter into the poll booth.
So for now - buckle up - because the ride is going to be a rough one.
A Letter To The Editor
Regardless of your feelings about unions: HOW are the teachers obtaining a dr's sick slip on the street corner to cover absences due to their protesting instead of being in school, still receiving pay, some bragging about their actions on national TV going to deal with a student who presents them with an suspicious doctor slip, permission slip, signed report card?
Secondly, what about the elected legislators WHO ASKED FOR THE JOB, still receiving pay, some bragging on TV and who didn't want to take the TEST and follow the legislative process? Is it a case of "if you don't do it my way, I'm picking up my clothes, packing them, and leaving! AND I won't be back until you do it my way!?"
These are terrible examples to be setting for our students; it is already hard to teach them to do the "right" thing instead of the "easy" thing. They learn this very quickly. Is it a case of "don't do as I do--do as I say!?" What are these people thinking??
"They" say the priority is education; and if this is the case, the students are better off with all new teachers and the legislators playing hooky should be impeached (couldn't be any worse off.) We all need to demonstrate accountability and responsibility.
I am not bashing teachers, many of my friends are excellent teacher who go beyond the norm to help educate.
Also I was raised in a union family, and my personal experience has included both sides of the fence.....union, non union, management, and governmental civil service. We all have the right to protest, but there is a right way to do things. We should work together to achieve the best for the employer, employees, and the people who receive the service. I guess I was raised with a different set of ethics.
Just my opinion:
Jill from Eden
Malkin: Fleebaggers--The New Cut-And-Run Democrats
First lady Michelle Obama said, “Let’s Move!” Who knew Democratic politicians in Wisconsin and Indiana would take her literally?
Faced with stifling debt, bloated pensions, and intractable government unions, liberal Midwestern legislators have fled those states — paralyzing Republican fiscal-reform efforts. Like Monty Python’s Brave Sir Robin and his band of quivering knights, these elected officials have only one plan when confronted with political hardship or economic peril: Run away, run away, run away.
Scores of Fleebagger Democrats are now in hiding in neighboring Illinois, the nation’s sanctuary for political crooks and corruptocrats. Soon, area hotels will be announcing a special discount rate for card-carrying FleePAC winter convention registrants.
Question: Will the White House count the economic stimulus from the mass Democratic exodus to Illinois as jobs “saved” or “created”? More important question: How much are taxpayers being charged for these obstructionist vacations?
The White House and Beltway Democrats have paved the way for subverting deliberative democracy, of course. If only Republicans in Wisconsin and Indiana had followed the Obama/Pelosi/Reid model and rammed their behind-closed-doors-crafted legislative agenda through in the middle of the night on a holiday weekend, the Fleebaggers wouldn’t be on the lam today.
But GOP legislators just don’t roll that way. It’s Democrats who cut and run — abroad in wartime and at home in crisis.
More
Faced with stifling debt, bloated pensions, and intractable government unions, liberal Midwestern legislators have fled those states — paralyzing Republican fiscal-reform efforts. Like Monty Python’s Brave Sir Robin and his band of quivering knights, these elected officials have only one plan when confronted with political hardship or economic peril: Run away, run away, run away.
Scores of Fleebagger Democrats are now in hiding in neighboring Illinois, the nation’s sanctuary for political crooks and corruptocrats. Soon, area hotels will be announcing a special discount rate for card-carrying FleePAC winter convention registrants.
Question: Will the White House count the economic stimulus from the mass Democratic exodus to Illinois as jobs “saved” or “created”? More important question: How much are taxpayers being charged for these obstructionist vacations?
The White House and Beltway Democrats have paved the way for subverting deliberative democracy, of course. If only Republicans in Wisconsin and Indiana had followed the Obama/Pelosi/Reid model and rammed their behind-closed-doors-crafted legislative agenda through in the middle of the night on a holiday weekend, the Fleebaggers wouldn’t be on the lam today.
But GOP legislators just don’t roll that way. It’s Democrats who cut and run — abroad in wartime and at home in crisis.
More
Illinois May Seek Federal Guarantee Of Pension Bonds
Illinois, which plans to sell $3.7 billion of pension bonds next week, may seek a federal guarantee on retirement-system debts if its unfunded liabilities can’t be eliminated, according to budget documents.
Illinois's pension plans have an unfunded liability estimated at over 60%, the documents show. Governor Pat Quinn disclosed the potential need for a federal guarantee of pension debt in his $35.3 billion general-fund budget on February 16, without going into specifics.
"Significant long-term improvements will come only from additional pension reforms, refinancing the liability and seeking a federal guarantee of the debt," the document said. Or the state may raise its annual contributions, it said.
Kelly Kraft, a spokeswoman for Quinn, didn't immediately respond to an e-mail seeking comment. Colleen Murray, a spokeswoman for the Treasury Department, didn't immediately respond to a call seeking comment.
The documents underline Republicans' concern in Washington that US taxpayers may be forced to bail out public-employee pensions that have failed to set aside enough money to pay for the promised benefits. Asset values of state pension plans fell to about 76% of obligations in 2009 from 82% in fiscal 2008, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Republicans, who control the US House of Representatives, are backing a bill that would require state and local pensions to use more conservative assumptions than they do now to report the size of their liabilities to the federal government. The measure has drawn fire from organized labor and public officials, who say it is a way to attack unions by making their retirement benefits look unsustainable.
The estimates of the size of the shortfalls in public pension plans vary because of different methods used for calculating the costs of future benefits. The Pew Center on the States estimated last year that state pensions had $1 trillion less than needed to cover promised payments by the end of their 2008 budget years.
A study released in October by Joshua Rauh and Robert Novy- Marx, who teach finance at Northwestern University and the University of Rochester, respectively, said state and local pensions have unfunded liabilities of about $3.6 trillion, if their returns on assets were projected using Treasury discount rates to adjust for risk.
More here
Illinois's pension plans have an unfunded liability estimated at over 60%, the documents show. Governor Pat Quinn disclosed the potential need for a federal guarantee of pension debt in his $35.3 billion general-fund budget on February 16, without going into specifics.
"Significant long-term improvements will come only from additional pension reforms, refinancing the liability and seeking a federal guarantee of the debt," the document said. Or the state may raise its annual contributions, it said.
Kelly Kraft, a spokeswoman for Quinn, didn't immediately respond to an e-mail seeking comment. Colleen Murray, a spokeswoman for the Treasury Department, didn't immediately respond to a call seeking comment.
The documents underline Republicans' concern in Washington that US taxpayers may be forced to bail out public-employee pensions that have failed to set aside enough money to pay for the promised benefits. Asset values of state pension plans fell to about 76% of obligations in 2009 from 82% in fiscal 2008, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Republicans, who control the US House of Representatives, are backing a bill that would require state and local pensions to use more conservative assumptions than they do now to report the size of their liabilities to the federal government. The measure has drawn fire from organized labor and public officials, who say it is a way to attack unions by making their retirement benefits look unsustainable.
The estimates of the size of the shortfalls in public pension plans vary because of different methods used for calculating the costs of future benefits. The Pew Center on the States estimated last year that state pensions had $1 trillion less than needed to cover promised payments by the end of their 2008 budget years.
A study released in October by Joshua Rauh and Robert Novy- Marx, who teach finance at Northwestern University and the University of Rochester, respectively, said state and local pensions have unfunded liabilities of about $3.6 trillion, if their returns on assets were projected using Treasury discount rates to adjust for risk.
More here
Pawlenty: Wis. Dem Senators Should Be Fired
Fox News’ Neal Cavuto asked Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty his reaction to the legislative standoff in Wisconsin, and what should be done about the 14 Democratic senators who refuse to vote on what they have labeled a union-busting bill – and their claim that in not doing so, they are just doing their jobs.
“When you raise your right hand and you look the people of Wisconsin or the country in the eye and say that you’re going to uphold the Constitution and uphold your duties, and then the first time you have something that isn’t going to your way, you skedaddle, like a little ninny, out of the state,” Pawlenty said. “It is a dereliction of duty, and they should be removed from office. It’s preposterous. This is not ‘Fantasy Island,’ Neil.
“The governor of Wisconsin has the opportunity and the responsibility to propose legislation. That is what he has done,” he added. “It is clearly within his legal and constitutional rights and opportunities. He is in Wisconsin. He’s doing his job. And when these folks stare a challenge in the face, the first thing they do is cut and run? I mean, give me a break.
“I think, at a minimum, the recall effort should go forward and get those public officials recalled for abandoning their responsibilities and their posts,” Pawlenty continued. “And I think it is really important that America, and all of us who believe in the need to restructure government, stand with [Gov. Scott] Walker, stand with Wisconsin.
More here
“When you raise your right hand and you look the people of Wisconsin or the country in the eye and say that you’re going to uphold the Constitution and uphold your duties, and then the first time you have something that isn’t going to your way, you skedaddle, like a little ninny, out of the state,” Pawlenty said. “It is a dereliction of duty, and they should be removed from office. It’s preposterous. This is not ‘Fantasy Island,’ Neil.
“The governor of Wisconsin has the opportunity and the responsibility to propose legislation. That is what he has done,” he added. “It is clearly within his legal and constitutional rights and opportunities. He is in Wisconsin. He’s doing his job. And when these folks stare a challenge in the face, the first thing they do is cut and run? I mean, give me a break.
“I think, at a minimum, the recall effort should go forward and get those public officials recalled for abandoning their responsibilities and their posts,” Pawlenty continued. “And I think it is really important that America, and all of us who believe in the need to restructure government, stand with [Gov. Scott] Walker, stand with Wisconsin.
More here
CBO Raises Its Stimulus Cost Estimate, Again
Congress‘ chief scorekeeper has again raised the cost estimate of President Obama‘s two-year-old economic-stimulus program, calculating it will end up costing taxpayers $821 billion — or $34 billion more than originally projected.
And the economic boost from the added government spending is beginning to wear off, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said in a new report Wednesday.
House Republicans sought to cancel several billion dollars in unspent stimulus money as part of the $61 billion in spending cuts they passed Saturday, and Republicans on both sides of the Capitol have introduced legislation to try to reclaim other money or audit what was actually spent.
“The Department of Energy alone had $39 billion in stimulus money — all, I might say, borrowed — $9 billion more than its entire budget. It was a recipe for waste, a scatter-gun approach that raised many public expectations, but in the end provided few achievements and fewer yet jobs,” said Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen, New Jersey Republican, in the debate last week.
But Democrats said the remaining stimulus funds should be spent.
Estimates for the actual cost of the stimulus have changed dramatically, rising from the initial $787 billion price tag to reach $862 billion, then falling to $814 billion and now ticking back up to $821 billion.
More
And the economic boost from the added government spending is beginning to wear off, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said in a new report Wednesday.
House Republicans sought to cancel several billion dollars in unspent stimulus money as part of the $61 billion in spending cuts they passed Saturday, and Republicans on both sides of the Capitol have introduced legislation to try to reclaim other money or audit what was actually spent.
“The Department of Energy alone had $39 billion in stimulus money — all, I might say, borrowed — $9 billion more than its entire budget. It was a recipe for waste, a scatter-gun approach that raised many public expectations, but in the end provided few achievements and fewer yet jobs,” said Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen, New Jersey Republican, in the debate last week.
But Democrats said the remaining stimulus funds should be spent.
Estimates for the actual cost of the stimulus have changed dramatically, rising from the initial $787 billion price tag to reach $862 billion, then falling to $814 billion and now ticking back up to $821 billion.
More
Red Cross Flag Raising Ceremony At The GOB
As is the case each year, March is “American Red Cross Recognition Month.” Wicomico County Executive Richard M. Pollitt, Jr., and Salisbury Mayor James Ireton will kick off this year’s observance by raising the American Red Cross flag on the Government Office Building Plaza at 12:15 P.M. on Friday, February 25th. The public is encouraged to attend.
John Culp, Director of the Lower Shore Red Cross, will present the flag to Executive Pollitt and Mayor Ireton prior for the official raising. The organization serves Wicomico, Worcester, Somerset, Accomack and Northampton Counties. Mr. Culp pointed out that Wicomico County accounts for 35% of the Red Cross’ emergency calls annually. Culp said that the Red Cross provides emergency assistance to individuals and to the military. “We also do a lot of training in emergency skills such as CPR, First Aid and swimming instruction. Last year we provided training to 5,000 people,” he continued.
Executive Pollitt said, “The American Red Cross Lower Shore Chapter is vitally important to everyone in Wicomico County. They keep us safe when they teach us how to swim or react to emergency situations. They help us when an emergency disrupts our lives. I look on them as a wing of the county’s Emergency Services Department. One truly impressive part of the Red Cross operation here is that it is largely a volunteer organization with over 200 persons offering their services. We are proud to fly the Red Cross flag during the month of March.”
Mayor Ireton commented, “In a crisis, this community has so many angels that we count on. The American Red Cross Lower Shore Chapter represents the best of those angels. With over 200 people offering their time and service, largely volunteers, it is an honor to join with County Executive Pollitt in raising the American Red Cross flag at the Government Office Building.”
Indiana Lawmakers Pass Immigration Bill
The Indiana senate passed a sweeping immigration bill that echoes Arizona's tougher measures on illegal immigrants and despite opposition from some of the largest employers and business groups in the state.
The measure, passed on Tuesday night by a vote of 31-18, would allow state and local police to ask a person stopped for infractions like traffic violations for proof of legal residency if the officer has a "reasonable suspicion" they may be in the country illegally.
Another provision would call for, with some exceptions, the use of English only in public meetings, on Web sites and in documents.
The bill still needs to be adopted by state's House of Representatives, where opponents say they will now turn.
The vote "was a key step in the legislative process," the bill's author Sen. Mike Delph said in a statement, adding that the bill will "send a clear message that Indiana will no longer be a sanctuary for people who are in our state and country illegally because of our federal government's failure to act on illegal immigration."
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The measure, passed on Tuesday night by a vote of 31-18, would allow state and local police to ask a person stopped for infractions like traffic violations for proof of legal residency if the officer has a "reasonable suspicion" they may be in the country illegally.
Another provision would call for, with some exceptions, the use of English only in public meetings, on Web sites and in documents.
The bill still needs to be adopted by state's House of Representatives, where opponents say they will now turn.
The vote "was a key step in the legislative process," the bill's author Sen. Mike Delph said in a statement, adding that the bill will "send a clear message that Indiana will no longer be a sanctuary for people who are in our state and country illegally because of our federal government's failure to act on illegal immigration."
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Tennessee Joins States Looking To Yank Fed Reins
Tennessee has joined the list of states looking to yank the reins on the federal government's expansion into what more and more state lawmakers are considering their own prerogatives.
"We have to smack their hand a little to get it out of the cookie jar," state Sen. Stacey Campfield told WND today after confirming that he and state state Rep. Matthew Hill have launched Tennessee's version of a national nullification bill.
WND reported just days ago that Arizona and Montana were the first two states to introduce the proposals to set up standing state commissions to review "all existing federal statutes, mandates, and executive orders" to determine their constitutionality.
The results would be recommendations to state lawmakers whether any particular federal plan should be "nullified" in that state.
Read more
"We have to smack their hand a little to get it out of the cookie jar," state Sen. Stacey Campfield told WND today after confirming that he and state state Rep. Matthew Hill have launched Tennessee's version of a national nullification bill.
WND reported just days ago that Arizona and Montana were the first two states to introduce the proposals to set up standing state commissions to review "all existing federal statutes, mandates, and executive orders" to determine their constitutionality.
The results would be recommendations to state lawmakers whether any particular federal plan should be "nullified" in that state.
Read more
WH: Obama's Silence On Libya Due To "Scheduling Issue"
"This is a scheduling issue.
The president will meet with Secretary of State Clinton this afternoon.
We will have something to say out of that meeting.
If possible, the President will speak this afternoon or tomorrow," White House press secretary Jay Carney said of President Obama's lack of response to the crisis in Libya.
Video
The president will meet with Secretary of State Clinton this afternoon.
We will have something to say out of that meeting.
If possible, the President will speak this afternoon or tomorrow," White House press secretary Jay Carney said of President Obama's lack of response to the crisis in Libya.
Video
Indiana State Rep: Right-to-Work About Jobs
GOP state Rep. Jerry Torr says a bill to make Indiana a right-to-work state – which has been greeted by massive protests and fleeing Democrats, similar to events in Wisconsin – is about new jobs, won’t cost the state any money, and unlike the Badger State legislation, is directed at private employees.
Torr also told Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren he believes the bill, which he sponsored, is not a union buster – and actually would benefit organized labor.
“As you probably know, there are 22 right-to-work states. A right-to-work law merely means that an employee can't be forced to pay union dues as a condition of employment,” Torr said. “I believe, personally, it actually strengthens the union, as do many union members who support the bill, because it makes the union leadership more responsive to the rank-and-file members.
“If the union leadership knows that members don't have to pay dues … they have to keep the members happy,” he added. “When you have a chance to explain it to union members, some of them are supportive. But the main reason I'm pursuing this legislation is because we know it's the one thing we can do in Indiana that doesn't cost us anything that will bring jobs to Indiana. And with 9.5 percent unemployment, that's the number one thing constituents are telling us – they want us to … bring jobs to Indiana.”
More here
Torr also told Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren he believes the bill, which he sponsored, is not a union buster – and actually would benefit organized labor.
“As you probably know, there are 22 right-to-work states. A right-to-work law merely means that an employee can't be forced to pay union dues as a condition of employment,” Torr said. “I believe, personally, it actually strengthens the union, as do many union members who support the bill, because it makes the union leadership more responsive to the rank-and-file members.
“If the union leadership knows that members don't have to pay dues … they have to keep the members happy,” he added. “When you have a chance to explain it to union members, some of them are supportive. But the main reason I'm pursuing this legislation is because we know it's the one thing we can do in Indiana that doesn't cost us anything that will bring jobs to Indiana. And with 9.5 percent unemployment, that's the number one thing constituents are telling us – they want us to … bring jobs to Indiana.”
More here
Indiana GOP Leader: No Compromise With Absent Dems
Indiana's House speaker said Wednesday he won't concede to Democrats who fled the state to block contentious labor and education proposals — a strategy employed first last week in Wisconsin, where a legislative stalemate continues.
Like the Wisconsin Senate Democrats, most Indiana House Democrats fled to neighboring Illinois in an effort to block votes on what they viewed as threatening legislation, denying the chamber the quorum needed to conduct business.
Democrats want Republicans to drop efforts to push a voucher bill that would direct taxpayer money to private schools and a so-called "right-to-work" bill that prohibits union membership from being a condition of employment.
House Speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, said he talked to House Minority Leader Patrick Bauer, D-South Bend, by phone on Wednesday morning.
"As Rep. Bauer started going through his list, I just told him that we weren't going to concede to a list of demands, and that he needed to get back here," Bosma told reporters.
He said he told Bauer if those requirements weren't acceptable, "Have fun in Illinois."
House Democrats want Republicans to drop the voucher bill, but Bosma said he would not negotiate to take items off the House agenda.
"The negotiation takes place on the floor of the House," Bosma said. "This isn't the old back room deals that Rep. Bauer's used to cutting."
Read more
Like the Wisconsin Senate Democrats, most Indiana House Democrats fled to neighboring Illinois in an effort to block votes on what they viewed as threatening legislation, denying the chamber the quorum needed to conduct business.
Democrats want Republicans to drop efforts to push a voucher bill that would direct taxpayer money to private schools and a so-called "right-to-work" bill that prohibits union membership from being a condition of employment.
House Speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, said he talked to House Minority Leader Patrick Bauer, D-South Bend, by phone on Wednesday morning.
"As Rep. Bauer started going through his list, I just told him that we weren't going to concede to a list of demands, and that he needed to get back here," Bosma told reporters.
He said he told Bauer if those requirements weren't acceptable, "Have fun in Illinois."
House Democrats want Republicans to drop the voucher bill, but Bosma said he would not negotiate to take items off the House agenda.
"The negotiation takes place on the floor of the House," Bosma said. "This isn't the old back room deals that Rep. Bauer's used to cutting."
Read more
DOJ Shirking Duty In Not Defending DOMA, Critics Say
The Obama administration’s decision not to defend the Defense of Marriage Act is a case of a politicized Justice Department picking and choosing which laws to defend, critics said Wednesday.
Nevertheless, White House spokesman Jay Carney said Wednesday, the administration “had no choice” but to drop its defense, separate from President Barack Obama’s opposition to the law.
Jordan Sekulow, attorney and director of policy for the American Center for Law and Justice, said the administration had a choice.
“This was political spin,” Sekulow told CNSNews.com. “This is existing federal law. It is getting tougher and tougher to defend in the current environment. But it is the law of the land. I am certain the administration will keep fighting the challenges to Obamacare. You don’t get to pick and choose which laws to defend.”
The federal Defense of Marriage Act, signed into law in 1996 by President Bill Clinton, defines marriage as between one man and one woman. It also prohibits one state from being required to recognize a “same-sex marriage” from another state.
Attorney General Eric Holder sent a letter to Congress Wednesday stating that the Obama administration would no longer defend the law.
Holder’s letter said the administration will continue to enforce the law until a court rules otherwise. However, critics argue that it is generally the Justice Department’s obligation to defend the laws enacted by Congress and the president regardless of an administration’s position.
Chris Gacek, senior fellow of regulatory policy at the Family Research Council, a conservative advocacy group, also said the Justice Department is neglecting its duty.
“Federal courts haven’t struck down the law yet,” Gacek told CNSNews.com. “As the Department of Justice, you should give the benefit of the doubt to statutes passed by Congress, not back out of defending them.”
He added, “The DOJ is becoming the Wisconsin Democrats. Does anybody in government want to do their work or just run away?”
Only a member of Congress would have standing to step forward to defend the law now that the Obama administration has opted out, Sekulow said. But the administration dropping the case this late puts Congress in a precarious spot.
“This puts members of Congress in an awkward position this late into the case to start defending the law,” Sekulow told CNSNews.com. “My guess is that this was decided long ago to make it more difficult for members of Congress to obtain counsel to defend it.”
More here
Nevertheless, White House spokesman Jay Carney said Wednesday, the administration “had no choice” but to drop its defense, separate from President Barack Obama’s opposition to the law.
Jordan Sekulow, attorney and director of policy for the American Center for Law and Justice, said the administration had a choice.
“This was political spin,” Sekulow told CNSNews.com. “This is existing federal law. It is getting tougher and tougher to defend in the current environment. But it is the law of the land. I am certain the administration will keep fighting the challenges to Obamacare. You don’t get to pick and choose which laws to defend.”
The federal Defense of Marriage Act, signed into law in 1996 by President Bill Clinton, defines marriage as between one man and one woman. It also prohibits one state from being required to recognize a “same-sex marriage” from another state.
Attorney General Eric Holder sent a letter to Congress Wednesday stating that the Obama administration would no longer defend the law.
Holder’s letter said the administration will continue to enforce the law until a court rules otherwise. However, critics argue that it is generally the Justice Department’s obligation to defend the laws enacted by Congress and the president regardless of an administration’s position.
Chris Gacek, senior fellow of regulatory policy at the Family Research Council, a conservative advocacy group, also said the Justice Department is neglecting its duty.
“Federal courts haven’t struck down the law yet,” Gacek told CNSNews.com. “As the Department of Justice, you should give the benefit of the doubt to statutes passed by Congress, not back out of defending them.”
He added, “The DOJ is becoming the Wisconsin Democrats. Does anybody in government want to do their work or just run away?”
Only a member of Congress would have standing to step forward to defend the law now that the Obama administration has opted out, Sekulow said. But the administration dropping the case this late puts Congress in a precarious spot.
“This puts members of Congress in an awkward position this late into the case to start defending the law,” Sekulow told CNSNews.com. “My guess is that this was decided long ago to make it more difficult for members of Congress to obtain counsel to defend it.”
More here
GOVERNOR MARTIN O’MALLEY TO CONTINUE “MARYLAND FORWARD” SERIES WITH FORUM ON THE WATERSHED IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
ANNAPOLIS, MD (February 24, 2010) – Governor Martin O’Malley will join leaders and stakeholders in environmental protection, water quality, and the Chesapeake Bay for an important discussion on Maryland’s Bay Restoration and the Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP), with a focus on the Choptank River. The Governor will facilitate a discussion with attendees on how a cleaner, healthier Bay impacts our ability to be a winner in the new economy.
Following the State of the State address, Governor O’Malley announced a series of “Maryland Forward” local policy forums to advance many of those initiatives, serving as a continuation of the “Maryland Forward” forum series before the 2011 Inauguration. Today’s forum continues a series of smaller groups of local stakeholders throughout the 2011 legislative session focused on specific policy areas that will help Maryland be a winner in the new economy, protect our neighborhoods, and create jobs.
WHAT: Governor O’Malley to convene the “Maryland Forward” forum on the Watershed Implementation Plan
WHEN: TODAY, Thursday, February 24, 2011
12:30 p.m.: Forum sessions begin
1:00 p.m.: Governor O’Malley will deliver a presentation and facilitate discussion
WHERE: Calhoon MEBA-Engineering School 27050 St. Michael’s Road
Easton, MD 21601
Easton, MD 21601
Undercover TSA Agent Makes It Through Full-Body Scanners With Gun In Her Undies
Here's a behind-the-scenes look at Security Theatre: An undercover TSA agent was able to slip through the full-body scanners at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport with a handgun stashed in her undies... And not just once, but five times.
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Four Bankers Charged With Helping U.S. Taxpayers Hide $3 Billion
The latest news in the federal government's crackdown on taxpayers (or rather, people who are supposed to be paying taxes) with offshore bank accounts: Four bankers from Credit Suisse Group have been indicted on charges of aiding tax evaders in hiding around $3 billion in assets.
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Defense Of Marriage Act Without Defense Of Its Own
After deciding the Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional, President Obama has ordered the Justice department to stop defending it in court.
A Letter To The Editor
Teacher Salaries
Teachers' hefty salaries are driving up taxes, and they only work 9 or10 months a year! It's time we put things in perspective and pay them for what they do - babysit! We can get that for less than minimum wage.
That's right. Let's give them $3.00 an hour and only the hours they worked; not any of that silly planning time, or any time they spend before or after school. That would be $19.50 a day (7:45 to 3:00 PM with 45 min. off for lunch and plan-- that equals 6 1/2 hours).Each parent should pay $19.50 a day for these teachers to baby-sit their children. Now how many students do they teach in a day...maybe 30? So that's $19.50 x 30 = $585.00 a day. However, remember they only work 180 days a year!!! I am not going to pay them for any vacations.
LET'S SEE....
That's $585 X 180= $105,300 per year. (Hold on! My calculator needs new batteries).
What about those special education teachers and the ones with Master's degrees? Well, we could pay them minimum wage ($7.75), and just to be fair, round it off to $8.00 an hour. That would be $8 X 6 1/2 hours X 30 children X 180 days = $280,800 per year.
Wait a minute -- there's something wrong here.
There sure is!
The average teacher's salary (nationwide) is $50,000. $50,000/180 days= $277.77/per day
30 students=$9.25.
6.5 hours = $1.42 per hour per student: a very inexpensive baby-sitter and they even EDUCATE your kids!) WHAT A DEAL!!!!
Monsanto Shifts ALL Liability To Farmers
Farmers like genetically modified (GM) crops because they can plant them, spray them with herbicide and then there is very little maintenance until harvest. Farmers who plant Monsanto's GM crops probably don't realize what they bargain for when they sign the Monsanto Technology Stewardship Agreement contract. One farmer reportedly 'went crazy' when he discovered the scope of the contract because it transfers ALL liability to the farmer or grower.
"GROWER'S EXCLUSIVE LIMITED REMEDY: THE EXCLUSIVE REMEDY OF THE GROWER AND THE LIMIT OF THE LIABILITY OF MONSANTO OR ANY SELLER FOR ANY AND ALL LOSSES, INJURY OR DAMAGES RESULTING FROM THE USE OR HANDLING OF SEED (INCLUDING CLAIMS BASED IN CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE, PRODUCT LIABILITY, STRICT LIABILITY, TORT, OR OTHERWISE) SHALL BE THE PRICE PAID BY THE GROWER FOR THE QUANTITY OF THE SEED INVOLVED OR, AT THE ELECTION OF MONSANTO OR THE SEED SELLER, THE REPLACEMENT OF THE SEED. IN NO EVENT SHALL MONSANTO OR ANY SELLER BE LIABLE FOR ANY INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES."
G. Edward Griffin, author of 'The Creature From Jekyll Island', and numerous other books and documentary films, and Anthony Patchett, retired assistant Head Deputy District Attorney, Los Angeles County Environmental Crimes/ OSHA Division explain the consequences of the Monsanto contract in the video below.
GO HERE to see more.
GO HERE to see more.
Republican Governors Back Away From Scott Walker-Style Plans
According to the AFL-CIO NOW blog, not all Republican governors agree with Republican Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's plan to eliminate collective bargaining rights except in the case of wages for public-sector unions. Says Pennsylvania's Republican Gov. Tom Corbitt: "We’ll begin negotiations with the public-sector unions and anticipate we’ll conduct those in good faith." Also, notes Republican Florida Gov. Rick Scott: "My belief is as long as people know what they’re doing, collective bargaining is fine."
Indiana Official Wants "Live Ammunition" Used Against Wisconsin Protesters
A right-wing Indiana deputy attorney general called for the use of violence against protesters in Wisconsin on his personal Twitter account, Mother Jones reports. In reply to a Mother Jones staff tweet about "a report that riot police might soon sweep demonstrators out of the Wisconsin Cpitol Building - something that didn't end up happening," Jeff Cox tweeted Saturday night to Mother Jones' official Twitter account that the police should use "live ammunition." Given Cox's history of violent language, Cox's statements are under review by the attorney general's office.
Same-Sex Marriage Clears First Senate Test
Measure could go to final passage Thursday
The state Senate gave preliminary approval to a bill that would allow gay and lesbian couples to marry, with members voting 25 to 22 in favor of the legislation after a relatively brief and focused debate.Though lawmakers had braced for a session that might run from the morning deep into the evening, opponents put forward only 11 amendments, and a vote on the bill came shortly before 1 p.m. The margin was a strong signal that the chamber would approve the legislation in a final vote, which could come as early as Thursday.
"I feel great," said Sen. Jamie Raskin, the Montgomery County Democrat who shepherded the bill through Wednesday's debate. "There is a historic quality to what just happened."
The bill has emerged as the highest-profile legislation of the 2011 session. The handful of senators who had not declared how they planned to vote became the targets of intense lobbying from both supporters and opponents.
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Woman Struck, Killed By School Bus Son Was Driving
TANEYTOWN — Maryland State Police say an 84-year-old woman was struck and killed when a school bus driven by her son hit her while it was backing into his driveway.
Virginia Hammond was flown to Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore after Wednesday morning's accident, where she died.
Troopers say 60-year-old Ronald Hammond had finished his morning route and was backing the school bus into his driveway when Virginia Hammond walked behind the vehicle and was hit.
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Virginia Hammond was flown to Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore after Wednesday morning's accident, where she died.
Troopers say 60-year-old Ronald Hammond had finished his morning route and was backing the school bus into his driveway when Virginia Hammond walked behind the vehicle and was hit.
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Johns Hopkins Under Fire For Using Animals In Doctor Training
Former health secretary, animal-rights group file complaint with city prosecutor
A former state health secretary and a physicians group that supports animal rights are calling on the city prosecutor to investigate the Johns Hopkins University's School of Medicine, claiming it illegally uses live animals to train surgeons.Martin Wasserman and his wife, Barbara, both physicians and both Hopkins alumni, and the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine say the practice violates the state's animal cruelty law.
"JHU regularly violates Maryland law by [causing] students to inflict unnecessary suffering or pain on an animal," said the letter sent Wednesday to State's Attorney Gregg Bernstein. "No statutory exemption allows JHU to subject animals to cruelty."
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Growing Up Without A Cell Phone
If you are 36, or older, you might think this is hilarious!
When I was a kid, adults used to bore me to tears with their tedious diatribes about how hard things were. When they were growing up; what with walking twenty-five miles to school every morning....Uphill... Barefoot... BOTH ways...yadda, yadda, yadda
And I remember promising myself that when I grew up, there was no way in hell I was going to lay a bunch of crap like that on my kids about how hard I had it and how easy they've got it!
But now that I'm over the ripe old age of forty, I can't help but look around and notice the youth of today. You've got it so easy! I mean, compared to my childhood, you live in a damn Utopia! And I hate to say it, but you kids today, you don't know how good you've got it!
1) I mean, when I was a kid we didn't have the Internet. If we wanted to know something, we had to go to the damn library and look it up ourselves, in the card catalog!!
2) There was no email!! We had to actually write somebody a letter - with a pen! Then you had to walk all the way across the street and put it in the mailbox, and it would take like a week to get there! Stamps were 10 cents!
3) Child Protective Services didn't care if our parents beat us. As a matter of fact, the parents of all my friends also had permission to kick our ass! Nowhere was safe!
4) There were no MP3's or Napsters or iTunes! If you wanted to steal music, you had to hitchhike to the record store and shoplift it yourself!
5) Or you had to wait around all day to tape it off the radio, and the DJ would usually talk over the beginning and @#*% it all up! There were no CD players! We had tape decks in our car. We'd play our favorite tape and "eject" it when finished, and then the tape would come undone rendering it useless. 'Cause, hey, that's how we rolled, Baby! Dig?
6) We didn't have fancy crap like Call Waiting! If you were on the phone and somebody else called, they got a busy signal, that's it!
7) There weren't any freakin' cell phones either. If you left the house, you just didn't make a damn call or receive one. You actually had to be out of touch with your "friends". OH MY GOSH !!! Think of the horror... not being in touch with someone 24/7!!! And then there's TEXTING. Yeah, right. Please! You kids have no idea how annoying you are.
8) And we didn't have fancy Caller ID either! When the phone rang, you had no idea who it was! It could be your school, your parents, your boss, your bookie, your drug dealer, the collection agent... you just didn't know!!! You had to pick it up and take your chances, mister!
9) We didn't have any fancy PlayStation or Xbox video games with high-resolution 3-D graphics! We had the Atari 2600! With games like 'Space Invaders' and 'Asteroids'. Your screen guy was a little square! You actually had to use your imagination!!! And there were no multiple levels or screens, it was just one screen.. Forever! And you could never win. The game just kept getting harder and harder and faster and faster until you died! Just like LIFE!
10) You had to use a little book called a TV Guide to find out what was on! You were screwed when it came to channel surfing! You had to get off your ass and walk over to the TV to change the channel!!! NO REMOTES!!! Oh, no, what's the world coming to?!?!
11) There was no Cartoon Network either! You could only get cartoons on Saturday Morning. Do you hear what I'm saying? We had to wait ALL WEEK for cartoons, you spoiled little rat-bastards!
12) And we didn't have microwaves. If we wanted to heat something up, we had to use the stove! Imagine that!
13) And our parents told us to stay outside and play... all day long. Oh, no, no electronics to soothe and comfort. And if you came back inside... you were doing chores!
And car seats - oh, please! Mom threw you in the back seat and you hung on. If you were lucky, you got the "safety arm" across the chest at the last moment if she had to stop suddenly, and if your head hit the dashboard, well that was your fault for calling "shot gun" in the first place!
See! That's exactly what I'm talking about! You kids today have got it too easy. You're spoiled rotten! You guys wouldn't have lasted five minutes back in 1970 or any time before!
Regards,
The Over 40 Crowd
When I was a kid, adults used to bore me to tears with their tedious diatribes about how hard things were. When they were growing up; what with walking twenty-five miles to school every morning....Uphill... Barefoot... BOTH ways...yadda, yadda, yadda
And I remember promising myself that when I grew up, there was no way in hell I was going to lay a bunch of crap like that on my kids about how hard I had it and how easy they've got it!
But now that I'm over the ripe old age of forty, I can't help but look around and notice the youth of today. You've got it so easy! I mean, compared to my childhood, you live in a damn Utopia! And I hate to say it, but you kids today, you don't know how good you've got it!
1) I mean, when I was a kid we didn't have the Internet. If we wanted to know something, we had to go to the damn library and look it up ourselves, in the card catalog!!
2) There was no email!! We had to actually write somebody a letter - with a pen! Then you had to walk all the way across the street and put it in the mailbox, and it would take like a week to get there! Stamps were 10 cents!
3) Child Protective Services didn't care if our parents beat us. As a matter of fact, the parents of all my friends also had permission to kick our ass! Nowhere was safe!
4) There were no MP3's or Napsters or iTunes! If you wanted to steal music, you had to hitchhike to the record store and shoplift it yourself!
5) Or you had to wait around all day to tape it off the radio, and the DJ would usually talk over the beginning and @#*% it all up! There were no CD players! We had tape decks in our car. We'd play our favorite tape and "eject" it when finished, and then the tape would come undone rendering it useless. 'Cause, hey, that's how we rolled, Baby! Dig?
6) We didn't have fancy crap like Call Waiting! If you were on the phone and somebody else called, they got a busy signal, that's it!
7) There weren't any freakin' cell phones either. If you left the house, you just didn't make a damn call or receive one. You actually had to be out of touch with your "friends". OH MY GOSH !!! Think of the horror... not being in touch with someone 24/7!!! And then there's TEXTING. Yeah, right. Please! You kids have no idea how annoying you are.
8) And we didn't have fancy Caller ID either! When the phone rang, you had no idea who it was! It could be your school, your parents, your boss, your bookie, your drug dealer, the collection agent... you just didn't know!!! You had to pick it up and take your chances, mister!
9) We didn't have any fancy PlayStation or Xbox video games with high-resolution 3-D graphics! We had the Atari 2600! With games like 'Space Invaders' and 'Asteroids'. Your screen guy was a little square! You actually had to use your imagination!!! And there were no multiple levels or screens, it was just one screen.. Forever! And you could never win. The game just kept getting harder and harder and faster and faster until you died! Just like LIFE!
10) You had to use a little book called a TV Guide to find out what was on! You were screwed when it came to channel surfing! You had to get off your ass and walk over to the TV to change the channel!!! NO REMOTES!!! Oh, no, what's the world coming to?!?!
11) There was no Cartoon Network either! You could only get cartoons on Saturday Morning. Do you hear what I'm saying? We had to wait ALL WEEK for cartoons, you spoiled little rat-bastards!
12) And we didn't have microwaves. If we wanted to heat something up, we had to use the stove! Imagine that!
13) And our parents told us to stay outside and play... all day long. Oh, no, no electronics to soothe and comfort. And if you came back inside... you were doing chores!
And car seats - oh, please! Mom threw you in the back seat and you hung on. If you were lucky, you got the "safety arm" across the chest at the last moment if she had to stop suddenly, and if your head hit the dashboard, well that was your fault for calling "shot gun" in the first place!
See! That's exactly what I'm talking about! You kids today have got it too easy. You're spoiled rotten! You guys wouldn't have lasted five minutes back in 1970 or any time before!
Regards,
The Over 40 Crowd
MARYLAND AWARDED GRANTS TO FOSTER HUNGER-FREE COMMUNITIES
USDA announces new initiatives to end hunger in America
ANNAPOLIS, MD (February 23, 2011) - Maryland is one of eight states that will receive federal assistance in the fight to end childhood hunger in America. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack today announced a series of new initiatives aimed at helping communities increase food access by promoting coordination and partnerships between public, private and non-profit partners. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will be investing $4.98 million in grants to 14 communities in eight states to end hunger and improve the nutrition of low-income Americans. Secretary Vilsack informed Governor Martin O’Malley of Maryland’s grant award during an afternoon conference call.
“I’d like to thank Secretary Vilsack and President Obama for their leadership and commitment to ending childhood hunger even in tough times,” said Governor O’Malley. “These funds will help us protect our most vulnerable Marylanders. Together, with our federal partners, we can conduct outreach campaigns, raise awareness, and expand access to nutritious meals in and out of school.”
The 14 Grantees are located in New York, New Jersey, California, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington and Maryland. In September, the Maryland Partnership to End Childhood Hunger applied for a Hunger-Free Communities Grant through the USDA/Food Nutrition Service (FNS) in the amount of $923,812 over a two year period. The Governor’s Office for Children (GOC) will serve as lead agency on the grant, and will work with members of the Maryland Partnership to implement the proposed scope of work.
The grant includes eight counties in Maryland that were selected based on hunger assessments performed by the Partnership, which revealed that many at-risk children are not accessing the full range of available food and nutrition programs and resources. The eight focus counties are Allegany, Anne Arundel, Caroline, Carroll, Dorchester, Frederick, Garrett and Montgomery. Maryland’s Hunger-Free Communities outreach program will focus on three areas: increasing access to and providing information regarding the Food Supplement Program, increasing participation in in-school and out-of-school time nutrition programs and expanding access to nutritious food for families with children. There are more than 152,000 children in Maryland living in poverty. An estimated 207,000 children do not have ready and reliable access to food.
In November of 2008, Governor Martin O’Malley established the Partnership to End Childhood Hunger in Maryland with Share our Strength and GOC. The Maryland partnership includes community groups, activists and food programs working together to identify children at risk of hunger, and ensure they have nutritious food where they live, learn and play. Governor O’Malley was the first Governor in the nation to commit to ending childhood hunger by 2015 and has made Childhood Hunger one of his 15 administrative priorities. As a result, Maryland is one of four grantees that are at the implementation stage for the Hunger-Free Communities Grant program.
Congress created the Hunger Free Communities Grant Program as part of the 2008 Farm Bill, with support from Bread for the World, Share Our Strength and other anti-hunger groups. USDA's Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) oversees the administration of 15 nutrition assistance programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the child nutrition programs, that touch the lives of one in four children in America each year.
Today 11am: Farm Bureau Sues, Activists/Farmers Respond
Advocates, Farmers to Expose Influence of Agribusiness Giants
New Report to Detail Efforts to Fight Clean Water Protections
WHAT
Environment Maryland will release a new study on the political influence of major agribusiness companies and their efforts to undermine laws that protect rivers, streams, and treasured waterways like the Chesapeake Bay. The report, Growing Influence: the Political Power of Agribusiness and the Fouling of America’s Waterways, includes an analysis of data from Maryland and throughout the country. Advocates, farmers, and legislators will detail examples of environmental policy and enforcement getting blocked by agribusiness interests.
Agricultural pollution is one of the main causes of poor water quality in the Chesapeake Bay and other waterways throughout the country. The American Farm Bureau Federation has filed suit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to prevent them from enforcing the Clean Water Act. Meanwhile Congress is considering budget amendments that would tie the hands of federal agencies and restrict them in carrying out their responsibilities under existing laws.
WHEN
11:00 AM, Thursday, Feb. 24
WHERE
Lawyer’s Mall, in front of State House
100 State Circle, Annapolis, MD 21401
VISUALS
Backdrop of State House
WHO
Sen. Roger Manno, Maryland State Senate, District 19
Del. Tom Hucker, Maryland House of Delegates, District 20
Carole Morison, Farmer and Activist (former chicken grower for Perdue Farms, Inc.)
Michael Tabor, Farmer and Activist
Ruth Berlin, Executive Director, Maryland Pesticide Network
Tommy Landers, Policy Advocate, Environment Maryland
CITY COUNCIL AGENDA
FEBRUARY 28, 2011 6:00 p.m.
Government Office Building Room 301
Times shown for agenda items are estimates only.
6:00 p.m. CONVENE – LORD’S PRAYER – PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
6:04 p.m. ADOPTION OF AGENDA
6:07 p.m. CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION – Mayor James Ireton, Jr.
Elliott Neal White
6:10 p.m. CONSENT AGENDA – City Clerk Brenda Colegrove
February 14, 2011 minutes Resolution No. 2031 - approving appointment of Brian J. Raygor to the Zoo Commission
Resolution No. 2032 - accepting donation of mobile data terminals from Salisbury Fire Department, Inc., Salisbury Fire Department Inc., Company No. 1 and Salisbury Fire Company No. 2 Inc. volunteer corporations
6:13 p.m. AWARD OF BIDS – Internal Services Director Pam Oland
6:20 p.m. PUBLIC HEARING/ADOPTION – City Attorney Paul Wilber
Ordinance No. 2138 - 2nd reading - reallocation of FY07 bond proceeds for the purpose of financing, reimbursing or refinancing costs relating to one or both of the projects identified as Beaverdam Drive Bridge and Isabella Street water/sewer/road improvements
Resolution No. 2033 – approving terms/conditions for FY07 bond proceeds
Ordinance No. 2139 - 2nd reading - reallocation of FY08 bond proceeds for the purpose of financing, reimbursing or refinancing costs relating to the repair and/or replacement of the Beaverdam Drive Bridge
Resolution No. 2034 – approving terms/conditions for FY08 bond proceeds
6:40 p.m. PUBLIC HEARING – City Attorney Paul Wilber
Ordinance No. 2140 - FY11 General Obligation Bond issuance (7,700,000) for the Riverwalk Repairs, E. Main Street Water Valve, Isabella Street Water, E. Main Street Sewer, Lift Station Pump Replacement, N. Division Street Sewer, Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrade projects and costs of issuance
6:50 p.m. RESOLUTION – City Administrator John Pick
Resolution No. 2035 - adopting a Capital Improvement Plan for FY2012 - FY2016
7:00 p.m. PUBLIC COMMENTS
7:15 p.m. ADJOURN
Copies of the agenda items are available for review in the City Clerk’s Office Room 305 – City/County Government Office Building 410-548-3140 or on the City’s web site http://www.ci.salisbury.md.us/
The City Council reserves the right to go into closed session as permitted under the Annotated Code of Maryland 10-508(a)
Proposed agenda items for March 14, 2011 (subject to change)
Public Hearing - Ordinance No. 2137 - authorizing Word of Life Center to operate a church at 504 Delaware Avenue in an Industrial District as required by Section 17.72.040K of the Salisbury Municipal Code Ordinance No. 2140 - 2nd reading - issuance (7,700,000) for the Riverwalk Repairs, E. Main Street Water Valve, Isabella Street Water, E. Main Street Sewer, Lift Station Pump Replacement, N. Division Street Sewer, Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrade projects and costs of issuance
Government Office Building Room 301
Times shown for agenda items are estimates only.
6:00 p.m. CONVENE – LORD’S PRAYER – PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
6:04 p.m. ADOPTION OF AGENDA
6:07 p.m. CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION – Mayor James Ireton, Jr.
Elliott Neal White
6:10 p.m. CONSENT AGENDA – City Clerk Brenda Colegrove
February 14, 2011 minutes Resolution No. 2031 - approving appointment of Brian J. Raygor to the Zoo Commission
Resolution No. 2032 - accepting donation of mobile data terminals from Salisbury Fire Department, Inc., Salisbury Fire Department Inc., Company No. 1 and Salisbury Fire Company No. 2 Inc. volunteer corporations
6:13 p.m. AWARD OF BIDS – Internal Services Director Pam Oland
6:20 p.m. PUBLIC HEARING/ADOPTION – City Attorney Paul Wilber
Ordinance No. 2138 - 2nd reading - reallocation of FY07 bond proceeds for the purpose of financing, reimbursing or refinancing costs relating to one or both of the projects identified as Beaverdam Drive Bridge and Isabella Street water/sewer/road improvements
Resolution No. 2033 – approving terms/conditions for FY07 bond proceeds
Ordinance No. 2139 - 2nd reading - reallocation of FY08 bond proceeds for the purpose of financing, reimbursing or refinancing costs relating to the repair and/or replacement of the Beaverdam Drive Bridge
Resolution No. 2034 – approving terms/conditions for FY08 bond proceeds
6:40 p.m. PUBLIC HEARING – City Attorney Paul Wilber
Ordinance No. 2140 - FY11 General Obligation Bond issuance (7,700,000) for the Riverwalk Repairs, E. Main Street Water Valve, Isabella Street Water, E. Main Street Sewer, Lift Station Pump Replacement, N. Division Street Sewer, Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrade projects and costs of issuance
6:50 p.m. RESOLUTION – City Administrator John Pick
Resolution No. 2035 - adopting a Capital Improvement Plan for FY2012 - FY2016
7:00 p.m. PUBLIC COMMENTS
7:15 p.m. ADJOURN
Copies of the agenda items are available for review in the City Clerk’s Office Room 305 – City/County Government Office Building 410-548-3140 or on the City’s web site http://www.ci.salisbury.md.us/
The City Council reserves the right to go into closed session as permitted under the Annotated Code of Maryland 10-508(a)
Proposed agenda items for March 14, 2011 (subject to change)
Public Hearing - Ordinance No. 2137 - authorizing Word of Life Center to operate a church at 504 Delaware Avenue in an Industrial District as required by Section 17.72.040K of the Salisbury Municipal Code Ordinance No. 2140 - 2nd reading - issuance (7,700,000) for the Riverwalk Repairs, E. Main Street Water Valve, Isabella Street Water, E. Main Street Sewer, Lift Station Pump Replacement, N. Division Street Sewer, Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrade projects and costs of issuance
Friday Night Live – Slim DeNunn & The High Rollers
WHAT: free concert
WHO: Everyone is welcome to attend.
WHEN: Friday, March 18th 7:00 p.m.
WHERE: Wicomico Public Library, Room 1
SALISBURY, MD – February 23, 2011 – The free concert series known as Friday Night Live returns for the spring season with Slim DeNunn & the High Rollers performing Blues, Rock-n-Rhythm-n-Roll at the Main Library in Room 1 on Friday, March 18th at 7 p.m.
The venue can be accessed through the Circle Avenue entrance across from the public parking lot. Those needing special assistance will be directed to the main entrance for the elevator.
Friday Night Live is made possible by a grant from the Peter and Judy Jackson Music Performance Fund, a grant from the Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore and a grant from the Salisbury Wicomico Arts Council, awarded by the Maryland State Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts.
For more information on this event or other library services, visit us on the web at www.wicomicolibrary.org or call 410-749-3612. Events and classes are free and open to the public.
Wicomico Public Library: Supporting Learning, Building Community, Enriching Lives
City To Hold Ribbon Cutting Ceremony: Beaglin Park Dam Upgrade TODAY
Mayor James Ireton, Jr. is pleased to announce the ribbon cutting ceremony for the Beaglin Park Dam Upgrade Project. This project includes the installation of sheet piling to increase the capacity of the dam to withstand flood events larger than the 50% probable maximum flood. The dam, built in 1976, is upstream of approximately 240 commercial and residential buildings, 22 roads, and the Salisbury Zoo. The dam is classified as high hazard by the Maryland Department of the Environment.
This project is made possible through a $49,999 grant from Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE), using funds allocated by the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009.
The ribbon cutting ceremony is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. on February 24, 2011, at the Beaglin Park Dam. The dam is located at the intersection of Beaglin Park Drive and South Park Drive.
This project is made possible through a $49,999 grant from Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE), using funds allocated by the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009.
The ribbon cutting ceremony is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. on February 24, 2011, at the Beaglin Park Dam. The dam is located at the intersection of Beaglin Park Drive and South Park Drive.
Warm Weather Is Approaching: Come Out To Enjoy Upcoming Bus Trips
(Salisbury, MD) Exciting adventures await with Wicomico Recreation, Parks & Tourism’s upcoming bus trips. A Day in New York offers the perfect getaway for two, or you can have a day of fun with friends on the eastern shore.
The Day in New York bus trip is just that, a day where you can enjoy all the sites and shopping you please. You may even wish to enjoy a Broadway show. The bus will be leaving the Wicomico Youth & Civic Center Saturday, April 16 at 6:30am and arriving back at 11:30pm. The cost is $59.00 per person and includes transportation and bus driver’s tip.
On Friday, June 10 enjoy lunch at the Phillip Morris Inn, a cruise on the Tred Avon River and Layton’s Chance Winery Tour and Tasting. The bus will leave the Wicomico Youth & Civic Center at 10:00am to start off with an enjoyable lunch at the Phillip Morris Inn located in Oxford, MD. Travelers will then be off to a history/nature cruise aboard the Dockside Express. To top off this eventful day, there will be a winery tour and sampling at Layton’s Chance Winery and Vineyards. Arrive back at 6:00pm. The cost is $87.95 per person and includes transportation, lunch, boat cruise, winery tour, tasting and snacks, tax and all gratuities.
Registration is currently being accepted for both bus trips. To register, visit the Wicomico Youth & Civic Center Box Office Monday through Friday from 8:00am to 5:00pm or visit www.WicomicoRecandParks.org to register online. For more information on bus trips or to obtain a complete listing of upcoming bus trips please contact Karen McInturff at (410) 548-4900 ext. 113 or email kmcinturff@wicomicocounty.org.