1 of 12 Innovative Projects Selected in Maryland
Rockville, MD, April 26 – Governor Martin O’Malley announced today that the City of Salisbury will receive a $24,812 clean energy grant to replace 69 lighting fixtures at the oldest operating firehouse in the community and make additional safety and energy efficiency improvements. The lighting replacement plan is one of 12 projects across the state selected by the Maryland Clean Energy Center to receive funding assistance supplied by the US Department of Energy through the Maryland Energy Administration.
"These award recipients truly represent an investment in the talents and skills of our people," said Governor O’Malley. "I’d like to congratulate them for their hard work and recognize the Maryland Clean Energy Center for demonstrating a commitment to building our shared energy future. Together, we can continue to make Maryland a leader in clean energy by establishing vital partnerships, providing resources and incentives for our families and workforce, creating jobs and fueling innovation."
The grant will fund replacement of 69 traditional lighting fixtures in Salisbury Fire Station #2 at 801 Brown Street with energy-efficient high performance lighting and long-lasting CFL bulbs. The new lighting is expected to save over $6,000 in energy and maintenance costs every year, and to provide a brighter, safer environment for the firefighters. Additional safety improvements to the firehouse, which has been in operation since 1930, will include the installation of 4 ceiling cord reels offering better electrical connections in the apparatus bay and living quarters.
Salisbury’s Fire Chief Jeff Simpson said, "The Salisbury Fire Department is extremely fortunate to have the support of Governor O’Malley and the Maryland Clean Energy Center to improve the energy efficiency and safety of the Brown Street fire station. The investment will enhance our operational capability and reduce the amount of taxpayer money used to power the facility."
Awards were also granted to clean energy demonstration projects in public facilities across the state, including a geothermal energy system to increase heating, ventilation and cooling (HVAC) efficiency at the Fair Hill Nature Center in Cecil County; upgraded HVAC systems and lighting in the Riverdale Park Town Hall in Prince George’s County; retrofitting Easton traffic signals with light-emitting diodes (LED) bulbs in Talbot County; installation of solar panels on the roof of the Edmonston Town Hall in Prince George’s County; replacement of 92 old lighting fixtures with energy-efficient LED bulbs in the Hagerstown public parking garage in Washington County; replacement of 127 outdated lighting fixtures at Morningside Park Senior Housing in Howard County; and a hydroelectric power plant for the Frostburg public water system in Allegany County. One of the 12 awards is awaiting further approvals; award funding for all projects is subject to timely fulfillment of all grant requirements.
"The board of the Maryland Clean Energy Center approved a dozen awards that demonstrate the incredible range of clean energy solutions and innovations that are occurring in Maryland," noted the Center’s Executive Director I. Katherine Magruder. "With just under half a million dollars in federal funding, we are helping counties and municipalities across the state implement effective, efficient clean energy solutions that show the way to a cleaner, greener future."
DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Afterbirthers Demand To See Obama's Placenta
WASHINGTON–In the continuing controversy surrounding the president's U.S. citizenship, a new fringe group informally known as "Afterbirthers" demanded Monday the authentication of Barack Obama's placenta from his time inside his mother's womb. "All we are asking is that the president produce a sample of his fetal membranes and vessels—preferably along with a photo of the crowning and delivery—and this will all be over," said former presidential candidate and Afterbirthers spokesman Alan Keyes, later adding that his organization would be willing to settle for a half-liter of maternal cord plasma. "To this day, the American people have not seen a cervical mucus plug, let alone one that has been signed and notarized by a state-certified Hawaiian health official. If the president was indeed born in the manner in which he claims, then where is his gestation sac?" Keyes said that if Obama did not soon produce at least a bloody bedsheet from his conception, Afterbirthers would push forward with efforts to exhume the president's deceased mother and inspect the corpse's pelvic bone and birth canal.
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Will Wicomico Taxpayers Pay a Higher Rate?
By now we all know that Wicomico County Executive Rick Pollitt has proposed a $0.05 per hundred increase in the county’s real property tax rate. This would also filter down as increases for businesses that pay the personal property tax (including a tax on inventory). Before Pollitt’s proposed rate increase can take effect, one of two things must happen:
- The Wicomico County Council must approve a budget which includes all or part of the rate increase.
- The Council could do what they did last year … punt and refuse to pass a budget. This would mean that Pollitt’s proposed budget becomes law.
Option #2 really isn’t an option. If the council chose to punt this year, the entire responsibility for this rate increase should fall squarely on their shoulders. We elected our council members to lead, and to legislate; not hide under a bushel. That leaves option #1 – approving a budget that may include a higher real property rate.
It is unlikely that council will identify sufficient cuts to eradicate Pollitt’s entire rate increase. Pollitt’s budget bill is not a line item budget. Despite the fact that Wicomico County has adopted the same accounting system – MUNIS – that is used by the city of Salisbury, Wicomico council members do not receive the same level of detail that is available to Salisbury council members. This leaves council in the unenviable position of not having adequate information to propose enough specific cuts to keep rates at their current level.
One position that has been mentioned time and again as possibly unnecessary is that of Public Information Officer. Under Pollitt’s budget bill, council can cut dollars from the office of the County Executive but has limited say as to where Pollitt actually applies those cuts. Ditto in the case of building inspectors. The county currently employs three (3), but there is little to no current construction in Wicomico County. Do we really need three?
In addition to possibly unnecessary positions, it is difficult for council members to identify wasteful spending because of the lack of detailed information they receive. In addition, many of us forget that council members are PART TIME citizen legislators. They simply can’t have 10 hour budget meetings every day in the month of May.
What can citizens do? First, you can attend the council’s budget hearing on May 3rd. The meeting will be in the Midway Room of the Wicomico Youth and Civic Center and begins at 6:30 PM. If you want to see cuts in the county’s budget, recommend SPECIFIC cuts. It’s easy to say that there is tons of money wasted at the Board of Education or in Pollitt’s office. We need to tell council WHERE we should make those cuts. Sadly, it is even more difficult for citizens to propose specific cuts due to the lack of detail from the county and the Board of Ed. The second thing that you can do is to encourage your council members in cutting the budget. Every program has a constituency. There are always people asking that more money be spent on this program or that one (or that a program be spared from cuts). The third thing that citizens can do is ask council to DEMAND more detail from Pollitt’s office. That may mean purchasing more software. It just may mean a little more work in the Finance Department. Regardless, we owe it to ourselves to have our council members (and us) receive adequate information.
Do you want to pay a higher tax rate? If not, it’s time to pitch and offer specific and constructive ways to cut the county budget.
Chesapeake Bay Health Declines In 2010, Analysis Finds
WASHINGTON - The health of the Chesapeake Bay declined in 2010, a new scientific analysis finds.
The nation's largest estuary received a C-minus on this year's report released by the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science. The 4 percent decline is the first in four years.
Two major storms -- one on Jan. 27, 2010 and the other on March 15, 2010 -- contributed to the ranking, which was down from 2009's grade of C.
"While efforts to reduce pollution have been stepped up in recent years, nature overwhelmed those measures in 2010 and temporarily set the bay back a bit," said UMCES-EcoCheck scientist Heath Kelsey, in a news release.
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The nation's largest estuary received a C-minus on this year's report released by the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science. The 4 percent decline is the first in four years.
Two major storms -- one on Jan. 27, 2010 and the other on March 15, 2010 -- contributed to the ranking, which was down from 2009's grade of C.
"While efforts to reduce pollution have been stepped up in recent years, nature overwhelmed those measures in 2010 and temporarily set the bay back a bit," said UMCES-EcoCheck scientist Heath Kelsey, in a news release.
More
A Press Release From Senator Jim Mathias
Today, the three surviving Mayors of Ocean City, Senator James N. Mathias, Jr., current Mayor Rick Meehan and former Mayor Roland “Fish” Powell, along with wife, Jeannie Powell, are attending the funeral service for former Maryland Governor William Donald Schaefer. The funeral will be held at Old St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 233 N. Charles St., Baltimore, 11 a.m. The entombment is at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens, 200 E. Padonia Road, after the service.
Senator Jim Mathias said, “I am ever grateful for the contributions made by Governor Schaefer. Being born and raised in Baltimore then moving almost forty years ago to the Eastern Shore, I witnessed his dedication to all areas of our great state. Governor Schaefer truly served as an inspiration by his commitment of service to all people. God bless him and may he rest in peace.”
Mayor Rick Meehan added, “Governor Schaeffer was a true friend to Ocean City and the Eastern Shore."
Former Mayor Roland “Fish” Powell said, “Governor Schaeffer made the trip to the Eastern Shore and Ocean City a real pleasure with his Reach the Beach program, and kept us safe with beach replenishment".
So Much For Being Better Off Than Most States
Maryland ranks 44th in percent job growth over the past year
ANNAPOLIS, MD – New numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show Maryland ranks near the bottom of all states when it comes to job creation. According to Maryland Republican Party Chairman Alex X. Mooney, Governor O’Malley and the Democrat led legislature’s tax-and-spend polices are moving Maryland backward, while other states reap the rewards.
“These numbers indicate what we and the historic number unemployed Marylanders already knew – Governor O’Malley is all talk when it comes to job creation,” Mooney said. “Instead being better off than other states as O’Malley claims, the truth is, Maryland is floundering at the bottom.”
The numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show Maryland has created only 5,400 jobs in the period from March 2010 through March 2011. The numbers when compared to other states puts Maryland at a dismal 44th in percent change from a year ago. When compared to neighboring states, Maryland ranks below all but West Virginia in total jobs created over the last year and dead last in the percent change in new jobs.
“Maryland is loosing the battle with our neighbors to compete for jobs and grow our economy,” said Mooney. “O’Malley and the Democrat controlled legislature continue put tax hikes and more bureaucratic red tape over job creation, and these dismal job numbers are the result.”
O’Malley’s jobs rhetoric, out-of-touch with reality:
February’s jobs report shows that Maryland employers continue to outperform the rest of the nation. (Governor O’Malley, “Statement from Governor Martin O'Malley on the Gain of 8,100 Jobs in February,” Press Release, 3/25/11)
Last month’s jobs report shows Maryland continues to add jobs at twice the rate of the rest of the nation…. we continue to see signs of job creation and economic growth that indicate we are coming through this national recession more quickly than other states.” (Governor O’Malley, “Statement from Governor Martin O'Malley on the Gain of 2,100 Jobs in November,” Press Release, 12/17/10)
Since January, as many other states have struggled to come through this national recession, Maryland employers have added 40,600 jobs to the payrolls. (Governor O’Malley, “Statement from Governor Martin O'Malley on the Addition of Nearly 6,000 Jobs in Maryland Last Month,” Press Release, 11/23/10)
Our ability to sustain job growth, which is now triple the rate of the rest of the nation. (Governor O’Malley, Statement from Governor Martin O'Malley on Hundreds of Additional Jobs Gained, Press Release, 8/20/10)
But Governor O’Malley is right about one thing:
“In this fight, there will be some states that lose, and some states that win… (Governor O’Malley, “Governor Martin O'Malley Convenes Forum on Jobs and the New Economy,” Press Release, 12/20/10)
And Maryland is losing the jobs fight:
Maryland ranks 44th in the nation for percent change in job growth from March 2010 through March 2011; last among neighboring states. Pennsylvania (1.37%), Delaware (1.37%), Virginia, (1.02%), Washington D.C. (0.76%), West Virginia (0.71%), Maryland (0.22%). (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, http://link.sc.states.gop.com/?65-1542-3078-125-12641, Accessed 4/25/11)
Maryland ranked 38th in the nation for annual employment gains through the end of the first quarter. (G. Scott Thomas, “Maryland adds 5,400 jobs in the past year,” Baltimore Business Journal, 4/25/11)
Maryland ranks 38th in the nation for jobs created from March 2010 through March 2011, second to last among neighboring states. Jobs created: Pennsylvania (76,500), Virginia (37,000), Delaware (5,600), Washington D.C. (5,400), Maryland (5,400), West Virginia (5,300). (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, http://link.sc.states.gop.com/?65-1542-3078-125-12641, Accessed 4/25/11)
Marylanders and businesses fleeing to work in other states:
Employers in the state cut 5,900 jobs in March, but nearly 12,000 more Marylanders were working… That apparent contradiction – fewer jobs, more workers — could be the result of a growing number of people commuting to jobs outside the state. (Jamie Smith Hopkins, “Fewer jobs in Maryland, but more people working,” Baltimore Sun, 4/19/11)
Salisbury Police Department Press Releases
On April 26, 2011 at approximately 8:52 am, Officers of the Salisbury Police arrested the below listed suspects on outstanding arrest warrants for an assault that occurred on April 24, 2011. On that date, the Salisbury Police responded to the area of Maryland Avenue and Light Street for the report of an assault. Upon arrival the officers met with an adult female and an adult male that had been assaulted by a number of suspects after a verbal altercation. The female victim advised that she and the male victim were walking on Maryland Avenue and became involved in a verbal argument with the suspects, who were in a vehicle. As a result of the argument, the suspects exited the vehicle and assaulted the victims with a beer bottle and by kicking and punching. Both victims had to be transported to the Peninsula Regional Medical Center for treatment. The male victim was hospitalized for head injuries and was released on April 26. The female victim was treated and released. Detectives investigated the assault and were able to positively identify the below listed suspects. There will be additional arrests.
ARRESTED #1: Daryl Anthony Turner, 21 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
ARRESTED #2: Carl Jeffrey Yarns, 25 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
ARRESTED #3: Lotasha Renee Purnell, 34 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
CHARGES (All):
First degree assault
Second degree assault
Reckless endangerment
Conspiracy to commit first degree assault
Conspiracy to commit second degree assault
DISPOSITION: All released to Central Booking CC # 201100015659
On April 26, 2011 at approximately 5:30 am, Officers of the Salisbury Police received a call to respond to the area of Alvin Avenue for the report of a subject tampering with motor vehicles. Upon arrival the officers met with a witness who gave the officers a description of a subject observed attempting to make entry into a vehicle. The officers were able to locate the suspect who was positively identified by the witness and arrested. A further investigation revealed that the subject had made entry into two (2) vehicles on Buena Vista Avenue and South Park Drive.
ARRESTED: Donzell Haywood Henry, 46 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
CHARGES: Rogue and Vagabond (2 counts)
DISPOSITION: Released to Central Booking CC # 201100015818
On April 26, 2011 at approximately 2:57 pm, Officers received a call to respond to a residence on Smith Street for the report of a burglary. Upon arrival the officers checked the residence and found the below listed suspects inside. Contact with the owner revealed that the suspects did not have permission to make entry into the residence, which was supposed to be vacant. There was no theft from the residence.
ARRESTED #1: Randolph Carlton Young, 48 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
ARRESTED #2: Woodrow (nmn) Snyder, 38 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
CHARGES (Both): Fourth degree burglary
DISPOSITION: Both released to Central Booking CC # 201100015885
On April 26, 2011 at approximately 7:59 pm, Officers of the Salisbury Police received a call to respond to the Walmart Department Store on North Salisbury Boulevard for the report of a shoplifter. Upon arrival the officers met with store security who advised that store personnel had observed the below listed suspect take housewares from the store without making any attempts at payment. The property was recovered and returned to the store.
ARRESTED: Angel Sommers Church, 44 years of age Delmar, Maryland
CHARGES: Theft (under $ 100)
DISPOSITION: Released to Central Booking CC # 201100015918
ARRESTED #1: Daryl Anthony Turner, 21 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
ARRESTED #2: Carl Jeffrey Yarns, 25 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
ARRESTED #3: Lotasha Renee Purnell, 34 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
CHARGES (All):
First degree assault
Second degree assault
Reckless endangerment
Conspiracy to commit first degree assault
Conspiracy to commit second degree assault
DISPOSITION: All released to Central Booking CC # 201100015659
On April 26, 2011 at approximately 5:30 am, Officers of the Salisbury Police received a call to respond to the area of Alvin Avenue for the report of a subject tampering with motor vehicles. Upon arrival the officers met with a witness who gave the officers a description of a subject observed attempting to make entry into a vehicle. The officers were able to locate the suspect who was positively identified by the witness and arrested. A further investigation revealed that the subject had made entry into two (2) vehicles on Buena Vista Avenue and South Park Drive.
ARRESTED: Donzell Haywood Henry, 46 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
CHARGES: Rogue and Vagabond (2 counts)
DISPOSITION: Released to Central Booking CC # 201100015818
On April 26, 2011 at approximately 2:57 pm, Officers received a call to respond to a residence on Smith Street for the report of a burglary. Upon arrival the officers checked the residence and found the below listed suspects inside. Contact with the owner revealed that the suspects did not have permission to make entry into the residence, which was supposed to be vacant. There was no theft from the residence.
ARRESTED #1: Randolph Carlton Young, 48 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
ARRESTED #2: Woodrow (nmn) Snyder, 38 years of age Salisbury, Maryland
CHARGES (Both): Fourth degree burglary
DISPOSITION: Both released to Central Booking CC # 201100015885
On April 26, 2011 at approximately 7:59 pm, Officers of the Salisbury Police received a call to respond to the Walmart Department Store on North Salisbury Boulevard for the report of a shoplifter. Upon arrival the officers met with store security who advised that store personnel had observed the below listed suspect take housewares from the store without making any attempts at payment. The property was recovered and returned to the store.
ARRESTED: Angel Sommers Church, 44 years of age Delmar, Maryland
CHARGES: Theft (under $ 100)
DISPOSITION: Released to Central Booking CC # 201100015918
Welcome To Salisbury, Maryland
I just wonder how long it would take Code & Compliance to force you to cut back your shrubs, (photo just above) into the roadway? Never mind a roadway like Rt. 50.
Perhaps their waiting for someone to hit those shrubs so they can fine you for destruction of city property?
Salisbury Maryland All American City, COME ON NOW!
I took these photos yesterday and quite frankly it broke my heart. So what needs to be done about it. Many have asked me when I publish things like this I should at least attempt to try and provide a solution to the problem.
Well, for starters we supported Jim Ireton as Mayor with the hope he'd see the blight in Salisbury, (outside his attacks on SAPOA) and do somehing about it. After all, what you're seeing is the City's responsibility. Shouldn't the lead by example first?
There are a couple of ways I'd attack this head on. First, I'd start a Downtown property owners association. I'd ask each property owner to pony up $100.00 a month to maintain just the grounds.
Secondly, I'd ask citizens, (at their will) to make donations, (especially every Third Friday) to maintain the Downtown Plaza. I'd work with the Volunteer Firefighters to encourage them to build PRIDE back into our Downtown Main Street area. I'd ask the Police Chief if she'd be willing to bring in low risk prisoners or even work release prisoners to also help maintain the Downtown area.
I'd demand that every property owner or their tennants sweep in front of their buildings on a daily basis. Being so passive by sitting idle waiting for Public Works to do it is just wrong.
I'd take a small portion of the $100.00 a month fee from property owners and reward the property of the month. Treating the Downtown area wth such a care free attitude is one main reason the Downtown is failing.
Why would someone like Starbucks want to come there if this is what they get to see every day! While there are plenty of other corporations I could use as an example, you get the drift.
Sooner than later the Downtown Plaza will lose its biggest cheerleader, Anne Taylor. Quite frankly, she's given up and I can't say as I blame her. Every single year promisses are made, discussions are held and what happens, absolutely nothing.
My answers may not be the best answers out there but at least its a start. If YOU have any ideas, please, I welcome each and every one of them. No matter what though, something needs to be done starting yesterday.
Are Our Public Officials Blind?
That being said, most of you see and know what the price of gas is on Rt. 13 either at the north or south ends of Salisbury. If gas prices are REGULATED, why are these stations $ .20 to $ .25 cents per gallon higher?
I spoke to a friend of mine yesterday who was blown away that Sam's Club was $ .25 cents per gallon less than what he was paying. He lives towards the west side of town. He also has a 35 gallon tank in his vehicle. That's a $8.75 saving per tank full.
We elect these politicians to PROTECT and SERVE, yet what are we really getting? At the price of gas per gallon, I personally believe its time they do their job and stop this out of control practice.
Today's Survey Question
do you now believe he was born in Hawaii?
Gas Mileage
Joe-
A while back you ran a post on gas prices, and a commenter talked about pumping gas more slowly-- that gas is designed to expand and become vapor, so air mixes with it easily, and you'll get more actual gas my pumping more slowly.
I took the advice and began to pump my gas much more slowly. I pump at a rate of .1 gal/second (which makes it easy to get it right-- just watch the pump and count "one-thousand-one, one-thousand-two," etc).
My gas mileage has gone up by 1.5 - 2 MPG. That might not seem like a lot, but on a 20-gallon fillup, it's another 30-40 miles I can drive. It can really add up over time.
I haven't done anything else that would significantly affect the mileage. I'm just getting more gas and less air as I pump it.
It PAYS to read Salisbury News!
Jim
A while back you ran a post on gas prices, and a commenter talked about pumping gas more slowly-- that gas is designed to expand and become vapor, so air mixes with it easily, and you'll get more actual gas my pumping more slowly.
I took the advice and began to pump my gas much more slowly. I pump at a rate of .1 gal/second (which makes it easy to get it right-- just watch the pump and count "one-thousand-one, one-thousand-two," etc).
My gas mileage has gone up by 1.5 - 2 MPG. That might not seem like a lot, but on a 20-gallon fillup, it's another 30-40 miles I can drive. It can really add up over time.
I haven't done anything else that would significantly affect the mileage. I'm just getting more gas and less air as I pump it.
It PAYS to read Salisbury News!
Jim
Chicken Auctioneer--What's My Line
Editors Notes: This is great! A Must See for Salisbury residents.
Want A U.S. Passport? Were You Circumcised?
Proposed questionnaire gets personal for applicants who can't supply birth certificate
Were you baptized or circumcised? Who was present when you were born? Where did your mother work? These are sample questions that applicants may be asked to answer on the proposed biographical questionnaire for a U.S. passport.
The questionnaire, boingboing reports, is intended for people seeking a U.S. passport but who cannot supply a birth certificate.
The U.S. State Department — the federal agency that processes passports — anticipates more than 74,000 respondents. It also estimates the form will take 45 minutes to complete.
Some see that figure as far-fetched.
NJ Official: Carl Lewis Can't Run For State Senate
ENTON, N.J. — New Jersey's top election official ruled Tuesday that nine-time Olympic gold medalist Carl Lewis is ineligible to run for state Senate because he failed to meet the four-year state residency requirement for candidates seeking elected office.
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Olympian failed to meet four-year residency requirement, says secretary of state
Wisconsin Dems Using Dirty Tricks To Fight Recall Effort
The Wisconsin Republican Party has charged that Democrats were engaging in a dirty trick campaign to suppress the recall effort against Democratic state senator Dave Hansen.
In a statement on its blog, the Wisconsin GOP said that Democrats phoned people who signed a petition to recall Hansen, only they altered the caller ID so that it appeared the calls were coming from "BayCare Aurora" -- a local Green Bay hospital.
“It’s disgusting that the Dems would use a fake call from a hospital to trick people into answering their phones – only so they could harass and intimidate them into saying they did not sign a recall petition,” Mark Jefferson, executive director of the Republican Party of Wisconsin, said in the statement. “People who received that call may have feared the worst – an unexpected call from a hospital can bring terrible news about a loved one. The Democrats’ intent was obviously to confuse and upset people, hoping they would be disoriented and easily tricked into saying they had not signed a recall petition.
Read more
In a statement on its blog, the Wisconsin GOP said that Democrats phoned people who signed a petition to recall Hansen, only they altered the caller ID so that it appeared the calls were coming from "BayCare Aurora" -- a local Green Bay hospital.
“It’s disgusting that the Dems would use a fake call from a hospital to trick people into answering their phones – only so they could harass and intimidate them into saying they did not sign a recall petition,” Mark Jefferson, executive director of the Republican Party of Wisconsin, said in the statement. “People who received that call may have feared the worst – an unexpected call from a hospital can bring terrible news about a loved one. The Democrats’ intent was obviously to confuse and upset people, hoping they would be disoriented and easily tricked into saying they had not signed a recall petition.
Read more
Bring Federal Labor Law Into The 21st Century
A New York Times headline in January told the story: "Union membership in U.S. fell to 70-year low last year." The actual numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics were even more dismal than suggested by the headline: Whereas at its peak in the mid-1950s, nearly 40 percent of all employed Americans were union members, by 2010, it had fallen to a mere 11.9 percent, counting both public- and private-sector employment. In the private sector alone, a mere 6.9 percent of all workers were unionized, the lowest in more than a century. Also notable here is that in 2009, for the first time ever, more than half of all union workers were employed by tax-funded local, state or federal governments rather than profit-driven private businesses.
These trends became evident at the same time that union leaders had unlimited access to what were most likely their most sympathetic president and Congress ever, in great part because the labor chieftains spent nearly half a billion dollars on behalf of Democratic incumbents and candidates in the 2006 and 2008 elections. With President Obama and a Democratic Congress, unions appeared certain to get their No. 1 legislative priority -- card check, which would have abolished secret ballots in workplace organizing elections. With card check as law and Obama putting labor favorites in all the key positions at the Department of Labor and National Labor Relations Board, surely the decline in union membership would be reversed.
Instead, card check is a dead letter, and about all that labor has left is a bunch of Obama appointees who are determined to grab as much power as possible via the federal bureaucracy. Nowhere is this more evident than at NLRB, where board member and former union lawyer Craig Becker has pushed the union regulatory agenda to radical new extremes.
More here
These trends became evident at the same time that union leaders had unlimited access to what were most likely their most sympathetic president and Congress ever, in great part because the labor chieftains spent nearly half a billion dollars on behalf of Democratic incumbents and candidates in the 2006 and 2008 elections. With President Obama and a Democratic Congress, unions appeared certain to get their No. 1 legislative priority -- card check, which would have abolished secret ballots in workplace organizing elections. With card check as law and Obama putting labor favorites in all the key positions at the Department of Labor and National Labor Relations Board, surely the decline in union membership would be reversed.
Instead, card check is a dead letter, and about all that labor has left is a bunch of Obama appointees who are determined to grab as much power as possible via the federal bureaucracy. Nowhere is this more evident than at NLRB, where board member and former union lawyer Craig Becker has pushed the union regulatory agenda to radical new extremes.
More here
Leggett Plans To Fight Feds Over Illegal-Immigration Program
Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett says he would pursue legal action against the Obama administration if the federal government forces Montgomery to implement a deportation program for violent illegal immigrants.
The federal government is requiring all local jurisdictions to comply with the Secure Communities program by 2013, with Montgomery joining as soon as September, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
The program requires local detention centers to send inmates' fingerprints to a national database that helps federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement identify and deport illegal immigrants.
"I'm opposed to it," Leggett told The Washington Examiner on Tuesday. "The problem for us now -- the challenge is -- what kind of legal authority we have if they decide that's what they want to do."
Leggett said ICE has not contacted his office regarding a deadline for implementation. If the agency does, he will begin exploring legal options to fight the program, such as an appeal, "if one is available," he said.
"I just don't think what the federal government is doing is in our best interest," he said, defending the county's current system for identifying violent illegals.
Read more
The federal government is requiring all local jurisdictions to comply with the Secure Communities program by 2013, with Montgomery joining as soon as September, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
The program requires local detention centers to send inmates' fingerprints to a national database that helps federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement identify and deport illegal immigrants.
"I'm opposed to it," Leggett told The Washington Examiner on Tuesday. "The problem for us now -- the challenge is -- what kind of legal authority we have if they decide that's what they want to do."
Leggett said ICE has not contacted his office regarding a deadline for implementation. If the agency does, he will begin exploring legal options to fight the program, such as an appeal, "if one is available," he said.
"I just don't think what the federal government is doing is in our best interest," he said, defending the county's current system for identifying violent illegals.
Read more
Kuhner: Obama’s Black Nationalism
Is President Obama a black nationalist? This goes to the heart of his presidency - and partly explains why Mr. Obama is losing the broad middle of America.
On Easter, Mr. Obama and his family attended Shiloh Baptist Church in Washington. The liberal press corps made much of the fact that the church was founded in 1863 by freed slaves. Yet the church’s pastor, the Rev. Wallace Charles Smith, is a race-baiting black nationalist. He is a more polished version of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, a longtime pastor of Mr. Obama’s.
Mr. Smith lacks the bombast of Mr. Wright but peddles the same philosophy of racialism, grievance-mongering and black victimology. In one of his recent sermons, Mr. Smith argued that institutionalized racism continues. “Anytime a swimming club can deny membership to students simply because they are African-American or Hispanic is an indication that Barack’s presidency does not solve the question of justice in this nation,” he said.
Really? Where and at what institutions are blacks and Hispanics denied access to swimming pools? This is a figment of Mr. Smith’s imagination.
He further stressed that segregation was not really eradicated; rather, it has simply morphed into a more subtle system of racial oppression through conservative talk radio and widespread opposition to affirmative action.
“Now Jim Crow wears blue pinstripes and goes to law school and carries fancy briefs and cases,” Mr. Smith said. “And he doesn’t have to wear white robes anymore because now he can wear the protective cover of talk radio or can get a regular news program on Fox.”
He even compared Rush Limbaugh to the Ku Klux Klan and the White Citizens’ Council. In other words, conservatives - Mr. Obama’s critics - are incorrigibly racist and seek to perpetuate a watered-down form of apartheid. For Mr. Smith and many others on the left, disagreeing with racial quotas is not only wrong, but evil - a manifestation of deep-seated intolerance and bigotry.
The opposite is true: Conservatives are the true heirs of the civil rights movement. They believe in a colorblind society and equality under the law. This is why affirmative action is so pernicious. It has created a racial spoils system whereby groups are systematically pitted against one another: Ethnic revanchism - the obsession with identity - is rampant. Merit no longer is the primary basis for many hiring decisions, university admissions or government contracts. Race, gender and (increasingly) sexual orientation are the new standards.
More here
On Easter, Mr. Obama and his family attended Shiloh Baptist Church in Washington. The liberal press corps made much of the fact that the church was founded in 1863 by freed slaves. Yet the church’s pastor, the Rev. Wallace Charles Smith, is a race-baiting black nationalist. He is a more polished version of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, a longtime pastor of Mr. Obama’s.
Mr. Smith lacks the bombast of Mr. Wright but peddles the same philosophy of racialism, grievance-mongering and black victimology. In one of his recent sermons, Mr. Smith argued that institutionalized racism continues. “Anytime a swimming club can deny membership to students simply because they are African-American or Hispanic is an indication that Barack’s presidency does not solve the question of justice in this nation,” he said.
Really? Where and at what institutions are blacks and Hispanics denied access to swimming pools? This is a figment of Mr. Smith’s imagination.
He further stressed that segregation was not really eradicated; rather, it has simply morphed into a more subtle system of racial oppression through conservative talk radio and widespread opposition to affirmative action.
“Now Jim Crow wears blue pinstripes and goes to law school and carries fancy briefs and cases,” Mr. Smith said. “And he doesn’t have to wear white robes anymore because now he can wear the protective cover of talk radio or can get a regular news program on Fox.”
He even compared Rush Limbaugh to the Ku Klux Klan and the White Citizens’ Council. In other words, conservatives - Mr. Obama’s critics - are incorrigibly racist and seek to perpetuate a watered-down form of apartheid. For Mr. Smith and many others on the left, disagreeing with racial quotas is not only wrong, but evil - a manifestation of deep-seated intolerance and bigotry.
The opposite is true: Conservatives are the true heirs of the civil rights movement. They believe in a colorblind society and equality under the law. This is why affirmative action is so pernicious. It has created a racial spoils system whereby groups are systematically pitted against one another: Ethnic revanchism - the obsession with identity - is rampant. Merit no longer is the primary basis for many hiring decisions, university admissions or government contracts. Race, gender and (increasingly) sexual orientation are the new standards.
More here
Sowell: The Trump Card
The boomlet for Donald Trump as a Republican nominee for President of the United States ought to be a wake-up call for Republican candidates and Republican Party leaders alike.
Why has Trump surged ahead of other Republican candidates and potential candidates in the polls? It is not likely that his resurrection of the issue of Barack Obama's birth certificate has aroused all this support.
The birth certificate issue does more political damage to Obama's critics than to the president himself, because it enables the media to paint those critics as kooks. Nor are Donald Trump's political positions such as to create a stampede to his cause.
Radio talk show host Mark Levin has rebroadcast Trump's varied and mutually contradictory statements on political issues and personalities over the years. It was a devastating revelation of Trump's "versatility of convictions," to use a phrase coined long ago by Thorstein Veblen.
What Trump has that so many other Republicans are so painfully lacking is the ability and the willingness to articulate his positions clearly, forcefully and in plain English. Too many Republicans talk like the actor of whom a critic once said, "he played the king like he was afraid that someone else was going to play the ace."
Donald Trump is dangerous in at least two senses. If, by some tragic miracle, he should become the Republicans' candidate for president in 2012, that would be the closest thing to an iron-clad guarantee of a second term in the White House for Barack Obama.
That would be a huge setback for the Republicans-- and, far more important-- a historic catastrophe for this country.
Why Republicans seem not to understand the crucial importance of putting the same time and attention into articulating their positions as the Democrats do is one of the enduring mysteries of American politics.
It was obvious that the Democrats coordinated their talking points and catch-phrases-- "social justice," "tax cuts for the rich," etc.-- even before the overheard and recorded statements of Senator Chuck Schumer about Democrats' plans to repeatedly use the word "extreme" to characterize Republicans.
But how many Republican catch-phrases can you remember? Republican rhetoric tends to range from low key to no key.
Nor is there much evidence that Republicans have asked themselves how the left-wing of the Democratic Party gained such ascendancy in recent years, in a country where millions more people identify themselves as conservative than identify themselves as liberals.
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Why has Trump surged ahead of other Republican candidates and potential candidates in the polls? It is not likely that his resurrection of the issue of Barack Obama's birth certificate has aroused all this support.
The birth certificate issue does more political damage to Obama's critics than to the president himself, because it enables the media to paint those critics as kooks. Nor are Donald Trump's political positions such as to create a stampede to his cause.
Radio talk show host Mark Levin has rebroadcast Trump's varied and mutually contradictory statements on political issues and personalities over the years. It was a devastating revelation of Trump's "versatility of convictions," to use a phrase coined long ago by Thorstein Veblen.
What Trump has that so many other Republicans are so painfully lacking is the ability and the willingness to articulate his positions clearly, forcefully and in plain English. Too many Republicans talk like the actor of whom a critic once said, "he played the king like he was afraid that someone else was going to play the ace."
Donald Trump is dangerous in at least two senses. If, by some tragic miracle, he should become the Republicans' candidate for president in 2012, that would be the closest thing to an iron-clad guarantee of a second term in the White House for Barack Obama.
That would be a huge setback for the Republicans-- and, far more important-- a historic catastrophe for this country.
Why Republicans seem not to understand the crucial importance of putting the same time and attention into articulating their positions as the Democrats do is one of the enduring mysteries of American politics.
It was obvious that the Democrats coordinated their talking points and catch-phrases-- "social justice," "tax cuts for the rich," etc.-- even before the overheard and recorded statements of Senator Chuck Schumer about Democrats' plans to repeatedly use the word "extreme" to characterize Republicans.
But how many Republican catch-phrases can you remember? Republican rhetoric tends to range from low key to no key.
Nor is there much evidence that Republicans have asked themselves how the left-wing of the Democratic Party gained such ascendancy in recent years, in a country where millions more people identify themselves as conservative than identify themselves as liberals.
More
Rove Lauds Gov. Scott Walker On Unions
Karl Rove, a Republican strategist, told a crowd at the University of Wisconsin Monday that Gov. Scott Walker was doing the right thing in pushing to limit the collective bargaining powers of public employees.
He heaped praised on the Republican governor, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Tuesday.
“Your governor did an extraordinarily courageous thing by standing up," Rove told a crowd of hundreds.
Proposals similar to Walker's already have gained traction in other states, Rove said.
"Every state's facing the same issue," he said.
For decades municipalities and school districts across the country have "basically bought the peace" when they couldn't offer pay raises by increasing benefits that won't have to be paid for until long after local officials have left office, he said.
Read more
He heaped praised on the Republican governor, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Tuesday.
“Your governor did an extraordinarily courageous thing by standing up," Rove told a crowd of hundreds.
Proposals similar to Walker's already have gained traction in other states, Rove said.
"Every state's facing the same issue," he said.
For decades municipalities and school districts across the country have "basically bought the peace" when they couldn't offer pay raises by increasing benefits that won't have to be paid for until long after local officials have left office, he said.
Read more
Senate Republicans To Conrad: No Budget Blitzkrieg
Top Budget Committee Republican Sen. Jeff Sessions and his colleagues on the panel are telling Democratic Chairman Kent Conrad not to ram his budget down their throats.
The lawmakers say Conrad ought to allow at least three days to consider the high-profile budget and bring the proposal before an open process in committee, allowing amendments.
“In recent years, budgets have been presented, marked up and passed out of committee in less than 48 hours—with hardly any time for the public or committee members to read, much less analyze, the resolutions’ content,” says an April 26 letter from the group.
“We therefore request that the proposed budget resolution, the Chairman’s mark for fiscal year 2012, be released and posted online no less than three days before we first meet to mark-up the budget so that every member of the Committee, and the public at large, can have a better chance to consider the proposal and ask questions about it,” the letter says.
The issue is important because Conrad’s budget could incorporate an agreement by a bipartisan group of senators negotiating a long-term spending deal. The group, in classic Washington parlance, is called the “gang of six.”
But how the group’s proposal will fare in the Senate, let alone in the House, remains in question since almost no details are known about what they’ll propose.
The issue is uncertain because Conrad’s budget may not reflect the gang of six’s agreement at all. Senate insiders aren’t sure exactly what he’ll do.
The letter from the Republicans, then, is a preemptive shot across the bow declaring GOP senators won’t be cowed into submission on any agreement without fully vetting it first.
The timeframe demanded in the letter also matches the House Republicans’ “72 hour rule,” which requires bills to be posted online for three days before they’re voted on.
Sessions and the other senators in the letter say the time is critical to evaluating the proposal.
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The lawmakers say Conrad ought to allow at least three days to consider the high-profile budget and bring the proposal before an open process in committee, allowing amendments.
“In recent years, budgets have been presented, marked up and passed out of committee in less than 48 hours—with hardly any time for the public or committee members to read, much less analyze, the resolutions’ content,” says an April 26 letter from the group.
“We therefore request that the proposed budget resolution, the Chairman’s mark for fiscal year 2012, be released and posted online no less than three days before we first meet to mark-up the budget so that every member of the Committee, and the public at large, can have a better chance to consider the proposal and ask questions about it,” the letter says.
The issue is important because Conrad’s budget could incorporate an agreement by a bipartisan group of senators negotiating a long-term spending deal. The group, in classic Washington parlance, is called the “gang of six.”
But how the group’s proposal will fare in the Senate, let alone in the House, remains in question since almost no details are known about what they’ll propose.
The issue is uncertain because Conrad’s budget may not reflect the gang of six’s agreement at all. Senate insiders aren’t sure exactly what he’ll do.
The letter from the Republicans, then, is a preemptive shot across the bow declaring GOP senators won’t be cowed into submission on any agreement without fully vetting it first.
The timeframe demanded in the letter also matches the House Republicans’ “72 hour rule,” which requires bills to be posted online for three days before they’re voted on.
Sessions and the other senators in the letter say the time is critical to evaluating the proposal.
More
In Search Of Petro-Villains
The Delegator-in-Chief has announced the creation of yet another inert task force, this one forced upon the attorney general and tasked with examining the role of “traders and speculators” in skyrocketing gasoline prices. Technically this “working group,” as the administration is calling it, is a sub–task force of the extant Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, and will include representatives from the FTC, CFTC, FRB, SEC, USDA, etc. Presumably, when the group finishes its work at some indefinite point in the future, its findings will be carefully reviewed by a commission, which will then issue a handsomely bound report to a czar, who will finally inter it in a filing cabinet.
What is causing high gasoline prices? Increased demand associated with the global economic recovery and (greater than average) Mideast instability certainly play their part, as does the continued control of a major portion of proven petroleum reserves by OPEC, a paradigmatic cartel whose very raison d’être is market manipulation. But the operant cause here, the main event to which this speculator business is a sideshow, is the man himself: President Obama, and his say-one-thing-and-do-another energy policies. He demagogues on oil speculators because he can’t — he won’t — do anything else.
Explain away an economic calamity as the byproduct not of bad policies, but of evildoers gaming the system, and find a group rich and unpopular enough to fit the bill; the rhetoric comes from page one of the Obama playbook and recapitulates the sorry formula we saw at work in his deficit speech. (Thus the president sneaks into a weekly YouTube address on the topic of fuel prices a perfect non sequitur about government subsidies to rich oil companies. There are many good reasons to end this bit of corporatism, but it is exactly wrong to suggest it will redound to the benefit of consumers at the pump in the near term.)
Behind the doublespeak, the reality is that President Obama’s favored policies do nothing to ease fuel prices, and more damning still, he doesn’t care. In 2008, when the national average was last peaking above $4 per gallon, candidate Obama made it clear that while he would have preferred a “gradual” increase, he saw ever-higher petroleum prices as a necessary antecedent and augur of our immaculate, green-energy future. And even now, as oil in the Gulf of Mexico sits and waits for new permits and the EPA scuttles the latest effort to tap the estimated 27 billion barrels of crude sitting below Alaska’s north Arctic coast, the president assures us that “what’s driving oil prices up right now is not the lack of supply. There’s enough supply.”
We agree, there is enough supply to meet current demand: at $4 dollars a gallon, and beyond.
More from NRO
What is causing high gasoline prices? Increased demand associated with the global economic recovery and (greater than average) Mideast instability certainly play their part, as does the continued control of a major portion of proven petroleum reserves by OPEC, a paradigmatic cartel whose very raison d’être is market manipulation. But the operant cause here, the main event to which this speculator business is a sideshow, is the man himself: President Obama, and his say-one-thing-and-do-another energy policies. He demagogues on oil speculators because he can’t — he won’t — do anything else.
Explain away an economic calamity as the byproduct not of bad policies, but of evildoers gaming the system, and find a group rich and unpopular enough to fit the bill; the rhetoric comes from page one of the Obama playbook and recapitulates the sorry formula we saw at work in his deficit speech. (Thus the president sneaks into a weekly YouTube address on the topic of fuel prices a perfect non sequitur about government subsidies to rich oil companies. There are many good reasons to end this bit of corporatism, but it is exactly wrong to suggest it will redound to the benefit of consumers at the pump in the near term.)
Behind the doublespeak, the reality is that President Obama’s favored policies do nothing to ease fuel prices, and more damning still, he doesn’t care. In 2008, when the national average was last peaking above $4 per gallon, candidate Obama made it clear that while he would have preferred a “gradual” increase, he saw ever-higher petroleum prices as a necessary antecedent and augur of our immaculate, green-energy future. And even now, as oil in the Gulf of Mexico sits and waits for new permits and the EPA scuttles the latest effort to tap the estimated 27 billion barrels of crude sitting below Alaska’s north Arctic coast, the president assures us that “what’s driving oil prices up right now is not the lack of supply. There’s enough supply.”
We agree, there is enough supply to meet current demand: at $4 dollars a gallon, and beyond.
More from NRO
Obama Silent As Syrian Death Toll At 400; Tanks Shoot Civilians
Human rights activists estimate that Syrian President Bashar Assad’s force have killed more than 400 protesters as tanks roar through city streets while U.S. President Barack Obama remains relatively silent.
American observers are asking out loud why the voice of Obama President Obama, who turned his back on Mubarak, is barely heard as Assad’s tanks shoot at civilians in Daraa and surround Banias.
“It's not yet clear if America wants President Assad to step down,” reported ABC’s Meredith Griffiths. An eyewitness told her that Syrian soldiers and police “won't even let you get first aid to them and the ambulances; they're being shot at by security police.”
The Obama administration, which last month called Assad a "reformer” and has tried to “engage” Syria away from Iran, has said only, “We continue to look for ways and are pursuing a range of possible policy options, including targeted sanctions, to respond to the crackdown in Syria.” However, American sanctions on Syria already have been in place for several years.
President Obama has relied on rhetoric, after weeks of relative silence. On Friday, Obamas said that “The United States has repeatedly encouraged President Assad and the Syrian government to implement meaningful reforms, but they refuse to respect the rights of the Syrian people or be responsive to their aspirations."
“As the casualties mount, liberals in America are wondering where their champion of human rights, President Obama, has disappeared to,”wrote Stephen Brown for FrontPage Magazine. “He was front and center in the Egyptian crisis, and even sent American warplanes to bomb the murderous dictatorship in Libya. But so far in Syria, Obama has only condemned the violence in conjunction with other world leaders, calling the Assad regime’s actions ‘“outrageous.’
“But why such a milquetoast response to the client regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran, a world sponsor of terror? Why are Egyptian allies (Mubarak) and Libyan gadflies (Qaddafi) treated more aggressively, and more swiftly than a regime, whose fall might actually benefit American interests?
More here
American observers are asking out loud why the voice of Obama President Obama, who turned his back on Mubarak, is barely heard as Assad’s tanks shoot at civilians in Daraa and surround Banias.
“It's not yet clear if America wants President Assad to step down,” reported ABC’s Meredith Griffiths. An eyewitness told her that Syrian soldiers and police “won't even let you get first aid to them and the ambulances; they're being shot at by security police.”
The Obama administration, which last month called Assad a "reformer” and has tried to “engage” Syria away from Iran, has said only, “We continue to look for ways and are pursuing a range of possible policy options, including targeted sanctions, to respond to the crackdown in Syria.” However, American sanctions on Syria already have been in place for several years.
President Obama has relied on rhetoric, after weeks of relative silence. On Friday, Obamas said that “The United States has repeatedly encouraged President Assad and the Syrian government to implement meaningful reforms, but they refuse to respect the rights of the Syrian people or be responsive to their aspirations."
“As the casualties mount, liberals in America are wondering where their champion of human rights, President Obama, has disappeared to,”wrote Stephen Brown for FrontPage Magazine. “He was front and center in the Egyptian crisis, and even sent American warplanes to bomb the murderous dictatorship in Libya. But so far in Syria, Obama has only condemned the violence in conjunction with other world leaders, calling the Assad regime’s actions ‘“outrageous.’
“But why such a milquetoast response to the client regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran, a world sponsor of terror? Why are Egyptian allies (Mubarak) and Libyan gadflies (Qaddafi) treated more aggressively, and more swiftly than a regime, whose fall might actually benefit American interests?
More here
Five Truths About Planned Parenthood
As the 2012 budget battles began, Clare Coleman, CEO of the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association, took to the pages of the Washington Post. In a piece called “Five Myths about Planned Parenthood,” she argued that defunding the organization was an ignoble goal for members of Congress looking to cut the bloated federal budget.
She said she wanted to address “misperceptions” about the abortion-industry giant. She was joined in her goal on the front page of the Washington Post by reporter Sandhya Somashekhar, who painted a picture of Planned Parenthood that minimized the role abortion plays at the organization’s health-care affiliates.
In presenting Planned Parenthood as mainly focused on prevention, Ms. Coleman neglects to mention several statistics, gleaned from the organization’s own annual reports and fact sheets, that illustrate its heavy (and increasing) involvement in abortion, as well as its practices that routinely place women’s health and safety secondary to its own bottom line.
While the Washington Post declined to present an alternative to the Planned Parenthood way of thinking, there are a multitude of other facts to consider. To add to the discussion of whether Planned Parenthood should continue to be funded, let’s consider five truths about an industry that receives more than $360 million in taxpayer subsidies annually.Read the facts..
She said she wanted to address “misperceptions” about the abortion-industry giant. She was joined in her goal on the front page of the Washington Post by reporter Sandhya Somashekhar, who painted a picture of Planned Parenthood that minimized the role abortion plays at the organization’s health-care affiliates.
In presenting Planned Parenthood as mainly focused on prevention, Ms. Coleman neglects to mention several statistics, gleaned from the organization’s own annual reports and fact sheets, that illustrate its heavy (and increasing) involvement in abortion, as well as its practices that routinely place women’s health and safety secondary to its own bottom line.
While the Washington Post declined to present an alternative to the Planned Parenthood way of thinking, there are a multitude of other facts to consider. To add to the discussion of whether Planned Parenthood should continue to be funded, let’s consider five truths about an industry that receives more than $360 million in taxpayer subsidies annually.Read the facts..
The Embarrassed Superpower
When Barack Obama said he’d conduct our affairs with more humility, little did we know he meant he’d humiliate us.
He is allowing a vicious little tin-pot dictator to fight us to a standstill in Libya without bestirring himself to do much of anything about it. His latest initiative is to fly two unmanned drones over Libya to send a signal to Moammar Qaddafi about our seriousness. He must have thought sending three unmanned drones — strong letter to follow — would have been unduly harsh.
Obama launched the war with an unconditional demand that Qaddafi’s forces leave Ajdabiya, Misrata, and Zawiya. After an initial American barrage, Obama outsourced the war to Britain and France, regardless of their ability to make good on his own demands. In an interview the other day, the president noted that the war was becoming a stalemate on the ground, as if he were an analyst at the Council on Foreign Relations commenting on a matter with which he had no direct connection.
Obama’s America is a country whose commander-in-chief makes highly conditional suggestions in the guise of unconditional demands, whose allies can’t count on it, whose interests and values are negotiable. It is the embarrassed superpower, wishing away its unparalleled influence and seeking to hide behind euphemism and multilateral fictions. (It’s not “a war” in Libya, and besides it’s NATO, not us, fighting to a draw.)
When protests broke out in Syria, a country run by an Assad family mafia that has facilitated the killing of American soldiers in Iraq, Obama could barely summon a harshly negative statement when the regime began shooting people. Elsewhere in the Middle East, the so-called Arab Spring is a decidedly ambiguous affair. It is toppling flawed U.S. allies, with no guarantee anything better will replace them. In Syria, it’s much simpler: A ruthless anti-American regime seeks its survival by firing live ammunition at funeral-goers.
More here
He is allowing a vicious little tin-pot dictator to fight us to a standstill in Libya without bestirring himself to do much of anything about it. His latest initiative is to fly two unmanned drones over Libya to send a signal to Moammar Qaddafi about our seriousness. He must have thought sending three unmanned drones — strong letter to follow — would have been unduly harsh.
Obama launched the war with an unconditional demand that Qaddafi’s forces leave Ajdabiya, Misrata, and Zawiya. After an initial American barrage, Obama outsourced the war to Britain and France, regardless of their ability to make good on his own demands. In an interview the other day, the president noted that the war was becoming a stalemate on the ground, as if he were an analyst at the Council on Foreign Relations commenting on a matter with which he had no direct connection.
Obama’s America is a country whose commander-in-chief makes highly conditional suggestions in the guise of unconditional demands, whose allies can’t count on it, whose interests and values are negotiable. It is the embarrassed superpower, wishing away its unparalleled influence and seeking to hide behind euphemism and multilateral fictions. (It’s not “a war” in Libya, and besides it’s NATO, not us, fighting to a draw.)
When protests broke out in Syria, a country run by an Assad family mafia that has facilitated the killing of American soldiers in Iraq, Obama could barely summon a harshly negative statement when the regime began shooting people. Elsewhere in the Middle East, the so-called Arab Spring is a decidedly ambiguous affair. It is toppling flawed U.S. allies, with no guarantee anything better will replace them. In Syria, it’s much simpler: A ruthless anti-American regime seeks its survival by firing live ammunition at funeral-goers.
More here
Md. Lawmakers Create Petition Drive To Repeal Tuition Law
ANNAPOLIS, Md. - In an effort to repeal one of the most divisive laws passed during the last legislative session, a group of Republican Maryland lawmakers announced a petition drive to force a referendum on in-state tuition breaks for illegal immigrants.
"We find that that's wrong. We find that it's worth the effort to try to give the citizens of Maryland a chance to vote on that and see what they think about it," says Minority Leader Delegate Anthony O'Donnell, R-Calvert.
Under the in-state tuition measure, undocumented students who have attended Maryland high schools for at least three years, and whose families pay state taxes, would be able to pay in-state tuition rates at community colleges. After 60 credit hours, the studen could then transfer to a four-year state college for the in-state rate.
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"We find that that's wrong. We find that it's worth the effort to try to give the citizens of Maryland a chance to vote on that and see what they think about it," says Minority Leader Delegate Anthony O'Donnell, R-Calvert.
Under the in-state tuition measure, undocumented students who have attended Maryland high schools for at least three years, and whose families pay state taxes, would be able to pay in-state tuition rates at community colleges. After 60 credit hours, the studen could then transfer to a four-year state college for the in-state rate.
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YouTube To Rent New Movies On Demand
A conga line of anonymous sources continue to spill ambitious plans for YouTube, which reportedly not only wants to stock its virtual shelves with live sports and original entertainment programming, but also on-demand streaming rentals of new movies.
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Should You Walk Away From Your Mortgage?
It's considered a given of home ownership that allowing your home to go into foreclosure is a last resort, something that you only do after you've exhausted all other options. However, according to new information from credit-scoring firm Fair Isaac Corp. (FICO), more homeowners are intentionally choosing foreclosure — or "strategic default" — and that those borrowers tend to be pretty savvy consumers.
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Calculate And Track Your Gas Mileage With Fuelly
The best way to save money on gasoline is to use less of it. You can do that by driving less, and by being more conscious of your car's gas mileage. Fuelly is a handy little web application that's easy to use from your smartphone, or your computer. It tracks your gas purchases and mileage over time and calculates miles per gallon overall and per tank.
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Will Women's Clothing Sizes Ever Be Standardized?
The good news: clothing manufacturers have figured out (again) that perhaps they should standardize women's clothing sizes. The bad news: multiple companies are working on different systems, so this standardization won't be standardized any time soon.
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US Diplomats & Staff Get Off For Royal Wedding
The Royal Wedding will mean a day off for U.S. diplomats in the United Kingdom. The Washington Post reports most embassy staffers will enjoy a shorter work week in honor of the Royal nuptials. Prince William and Kate Middleton are getting married this Friday. Many diplomats already had Monday off because of Easter. U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom Louis Susman, is scheduled to attend the wedding as the official representative of the U.S. government. No other U.S. officials and no foreign heads of state are invited to the wedding.
Navy Jet Drops Piece Of Missile On VA. Beach Truck
A piece of a missile fell off a Navy jet, striking a truck in a Virginia Beach shopping mall parking lot. The Navy says the training missile's wing fell from the Navy fighter jet as it flew back from a routine mission. Military.com reports, nobody was in the truck, nobody was hurt, and the truck was only slightly damaged. The incident is under investigation.
FAA Fires Another Air Traffic Controller For Sleeping
A third air traffic controller has been fired for napping on the job. The Federal Aviation Administration says that since March, five incidents of sleeping on the job have surfaced, along with one of an air controller watching a DVD movie. And a plane carrying the first lady had to abort a landing. Still, on-the-job naps should be considered as part of a plan to address fatigue by air traffic controllers, airline pilots and others who work overnight shifts. That, according to a National Transportation Safety Board member, who cites studies that show short naps of between 20 and 30 minutes refresh workers suffering fatigue and help them remain alert when they return to their duties. FAA officials have said the recommendations are being reviewed.
Hold The Presses
President Obama has signed an executive order, giving legs to a winning SAVE award idea. Federal agencies must cancel print subscriptions to the federal register - the government's own journal of official activities. The White House says 4,700 fewer editions will be printed, saving the government at least $4 million a year. The winning idea comes from Federal Bureau of Prisons employee Trudy Givens of Wisconsin. She was honored by the President at a SAVE awards ceremony last month. The SAVE awards gather money saving suggestions from rank-and-file feds all over the country.
Panetta To Pentagon, Petraeus To CIA
Administration sources say President Barack Obama plans this week to name CIA Director Leon Panetta to replace Defense Secretary Robert Gates, and Gen. David Petraeus, now running the war in Afghanistan, would take the CIA chief's job.
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Read Full Story
Rep. Ron Paul Announces Presidential Exploratory Committee
Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) is expected to announce on Tuesday that he is forming a presidential exploratory committee, according toThe Des Moines Register. The libertarian leaning Republican Congressman ran for president in 2008 and was fueled by grassroots support, though he ultimately did not clench the nomination. His son, Rand Paul, was elected to the United States Senate representing Kentucky despite having no political experience.
Study: Enviro-Light Bulbs Can Cause Cancer
According to a recently released German study, the supposed "environmentally friendly" compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFL's), are reported to have "cancer causing chemicals" that are sent out when the light is switched on, reports London's Daily Telegraph:
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Their report advises that the bulbs should not be left on for extended periods, particularly near someone’s head, as they emit poisonous materials when switched on.Peter Braun, who carried out the tests at the Berlin's Alab Laboratory, said: “For such carcinogenic substances it is important they are kept as far away as possible from the human environment.”
The bulbs are already widely used in the UK following EU direction to phase out traditional incandescent lighting by the end of this year.But the German scientists claimed that several carcinogenic chemicals and toxins were released when the environmentally-friendly compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) were switched on, including phenol, naphthalene and styrene.
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Backdoor Bailouts: Banks Play Shell Game With Taxpayer Dollars
The Federal Reserve propped up banks with big infusions of cash during the depths of the financial crisis in 2008 and 2009. Banks that took billions of dollars from the Fed then turned around and loaned money back to the federal government. It was a sweet deal for the bankers. They received interest payments on the government securities that were up to 12 times greater than the Fed's rock bottom rates, according to aCongressional Research Serviceanalysis conducted for Sen. Bernie Sanders.
"This report confirms that ultra-low interest loans provided by the Federal Reserve during the financial crisis turned out to be direct corporate welfare to big banks," Sanders said. "Instead of using the Fed loans to reinvest in the economy, some of the largest financial institutions in this country appear to have lent this money back to the federal government at a higher rate of interest by purchasing U.S. government securities."
The Federal Reserve claimed at the time that the emergency loans were needed so banks could provide credit to small- and medium-sized businesses that desperately needed money to create jobs or to prevent layoffs. "Instead of using this money to reinvest in the productive economy, however, it appears that JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and Bank of America used a large portion of these near-zero-interest loans to buy U.S. government securities and earn a higher interest rate at the same time, providing free money to some of the largest financial institutions in this country," Sanders said.
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"This report confirms that ultra-low interest loans provided by the Federal Reserve during the financial crisis turned out to be direct corporate welfare to big banks," Sanders said. "Instead of using the Fed loans to reinvest in the economy, some of the largest financial institutions in this country appear to have lent this money back to the federal government at a higher rate of interest by purchasing U.S. government securities."
The Federal Reserve claimed at the time that the emergency loans were needed so banks could provide credit to small- and medium-sized businesses that desperately needed money to create jobs or to prevent layoffs. "Instead of using this money to reinvest in the productive economy, however, it appears that JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and Bank of America used a large portion of these near-zero-interest loans to buy U.S. government securities and earn a higher interest rate at the same time, providing free money to some of the largest financial institutions in this country," Sanders said.
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MALE BODY FOUND IN SUSQUEHANNA RIVER IDENTIFIED
(PIKESVILLE, MD) – The male body found in the Susquehanna River south of the Conowingo Dam last week has been positively identified, but investigators have found no connection between him and Phylicia Barnes, whose body was recovered more than three miles upriver on the same day.
The body has been identified as Darryl Harper, 53, of Richmond, Va. Members of the Maryland State Police Forensic Sciences Division Latent Print Unit notified investigators late yesterday they had matched fingerprints from the body with prints entered in the National Crime Information Center database for missing persons.
The cause and manner of death for Harper have not been identified at this time. Further tests are being conducted by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
When the positive comparison of prints was made, State Police investigators contacted officials in the Richmond Police Department to assist with notifying Harper’s wife and to obtain further information. It was learned Harper’s wife reported him missing on April 15, 2011. Harper’s wife told investigators she and her husband had lived in Cheektowaga, New York until November 2009, when they moved to an apartment in Cockeysville, Md. They lived there until February 2011, when they moved to Richmond.
Harper’s wife said her husband left Richmond in early March 2011, to travel to their former apartment in Cockeysville to pick up items. She said she received a call from her husband in mid- March and that was the last time she talked with him.
Mrs. Harper told investigators a relative in the Harrisburg, PA area had called to tell her Darryl Harper had checked himself into a hospital in East Penn, PA, on the Susquehanna River, on March 25, 2011, requesting help with mental health issues. Police learned he stayed in the hospital one night. According to Mrs. Harper, her husband told a relative in March he was going to jump off a bridge. She said her husband had attempted suicide in 2006.
Maryland State Police investigators are continuing to review information concerning Darryl Harper. However, neither they nor Baltimore Police homicide detectives have found anything that would connect him to Phylicia Barnes or her disappearance. The investigation is continuing.
The body has been identified as Darryl Harper, 53, of Richmond, Va. Members of the Maryland State Police Forensic Sciences Division Latent Print Unit notified investigators late yesterday they had matched fingerprints from the body with prints entered in the National Crime Information Center database for missing persons.
The cause and manner of death for Harper have not been identified at this time. Further tests are being conducted by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
When the positive comparison of prints was made, State Police investigators contacted officials in the Richmond Police Department to assist with notifying Harper’s wife and to obtain further information. It was learned Harper’s wife reported him missing on April 15, 2011. Harper’s wife told investigators she and her husband had lived in Cheektowaga, New York until November 2009, when they moved to an apartment in Cockeysville, Md. They lived there until February 2011, when they moved to Richmond.
Harper’s wife said her husband left Richmond in early March 2011, to travel to their former apartment in Cockeysville to pick up items. She said she received a call from her husband in mid- March and that was the last time she talked with him.
Mrs. Harper told investigators a relative in the Harrisburg, PA area had called to tell her Darryl Harper had checked himself into a hospital in East Penn, PA, on the Susquehanna River, on March 25, 2011, requesting help with mental health issues. Police learned he stayed in the hospital one night. According to Mrs. Harper, her husband told a relative in March he was going to jump off a bridge. She said her husband had attempted suicide in 2006.
Maryland State Police investigators are continuing to review information concerning Darryl Harper. However, neither they nor Baltimore Police homicide detectives have found anything that would connect him to Phylicia Barnes or her disappearance. The investigation is continuing.
DART Announces 11th Annual Transit Poster Contest Winners
Wilmington -- DART First State announced today the winners of its 11th Annual Statewide Transit Theme Poster Contest. Seven winners will receive gifts and prizes from DART First State and one of its Business Partners, the Wilmington Blue Rocks.
Over 375 students from 14 schools and after-school programs statewide participated in the contest, depicting their vision of theme this year, Bike To The Bus. Students researched the bus service and its various destinations and learned of the benefits of riding transit in Delaware. Students from 6th through 12th grade were invited to participate. A First Place Winner from each grade was chosen along with an overall Grand Prize Winner.
The Grand Prize Winner this year is Maddy Deaton, a 9th Grader at Wilmington Christian in Hockessin. The artwork of Maddy will be placed on all DART First State buses statewide and her artwork will also be featured on our website, DartFirstState.com and in the DART newsletters.
The 1st Place Winners by grade are: Sherry Kumar, 6th Grade, Fred Fifer Middle School, Mrs. Savage; Jenni Todd, 7th Grade, Caravel Academy, Ms. Hess; Anneli Wingertz, 8th Grade, Sanford School, Ms. Ball; Maddy Deaton, 9th Grade, Wilmington Christian School, Mrs. Barrick; Shane Lee, 10th Grade, Wilmington Christian School, Mrs. Barrick; Rebekah Wood, 11th Grade Wilmington Christian School, Mrs. Barrick; and Josh Murphy, 12th Grade, Polytech High School, Mr. McMullen.
Over 375 students from 14 schools and after-school programs statewide participated in the contest, depicting their vision of theme this year, Bike To The Bus. Students researched the bus service and its various destinations and learned of the benefits of riding transit in Delaware. Students from 6th through 12th grade were invited to participate. A First Place Winner from each grade was chosen along with an overall Grand Prize Winner.
The Grand Prize Winner this year is Maddy Deaton, a 9th Grader at Wilmington Christian in Hockessin. The artwork of Maddy will be placed on all DART First State buses statewide and her artwork will also be featured on our website, DartFirstState.com and in the DART newsletters.
The 1st Place Winners by grade are: Sherry Kumar, 6th Grade, Fred Fifer Middle School, Mrs. Savage; Jenni Todd, 7th Grade, Caravel Academy, Ms. Hess; Anneli Wingertz, 8th Grade, Sanford School, Ms. Ball; Maddy Deaton, 9th Grade, Wilmington Christian School, Mrs. Barrick; Shane Lee, 10th Grade, Wilmington Christian School, Mrs. Barrick; Rebekah Wood, 11th Grade Wilmington Christian School, Mrs. Barrick; and Josh Murphy, 12th Grade, Polytech High School, Mr. McMullen.
Opportunities To Support Our Students And Schools
Friday, April 29
James M. Bennett High Sophomore Class Spaghetti Dinner
James M. Bennett High School
James M. Bennett High School's Sophomore Class is hosting a Spaghetti Dinner from 6-8 p.m. Friday, April 29 in the brand new JMB cafeteria. Come enjoy sauce provided by Restaurant 213. Entertainment will feature Rock ‘n’ Roll Revival performers, a silent auction and a 50/50 Raffle. Bring your family and join us for only $7 a person. Tickets may be purchased at the door on the night of the dinner. 410-677-5141.
James M. Bennett High Sophomore Class Spaghetti Dinner
James M. Bennett High School
James M. Bennett High School's Sophomore Class is hosting a Spaghetti Dinner from 6-8 p.m. Friday, April 29 in the brand new JMB cafeteria. Come enjoy sauce provided by Restaurant 213. Entertainment will feature Rock ‘n’ Roll Revival performers, a silent auction and a 50/50 Raffle. Bring your family and join us for only $7 a person. Tickets may be purchased at the door on the night of the dinner. 410-677-5141.
"Working Together For Children" Teacher Of The Year Special Now Airing On PAC 14
The 2011 Wicomico Teacher of the Year special edition of "Working Together for Children" will air at 7:11 a.m. and 9:48 p.m. Wednesday, April 27 on PAC 14 (Comcast Channel 14). The show will also air at 6:30 p.m. Thursdays and noon Saturdays throughout the next month, and at other times as scheduled.
The 50-minute show features the 2011-12 Wicomico Teacher of the Year, Chad Pavlekovich of Salisbury Middle School, as he is named Wicomico’s top teacher, celebrates with his school the next morning, and is interviewed by Working Together host Aaron Deal, himself a former Wicomico and Maryland teacher of the year.
The show celebrates all 27 semifinalists for 2011-12 Teacher of the Year, giving insight into what they love about teaching and taking viewers into their classrooms. Viewers will also learn about this year's Friend of Education Award winner, PAC 14.
"Working Together for Children" airs regularly at 6:30 p.m. Thursdays and noon Saturdays; check the Programming grid at www.pac14.org or the daily listings in The Daily Times for additional showtimes. PAC 14 also streams its programming live on its web site at www.pac14.org, so viewers can visit the web site to "tune in" on line when the show is on the air. Please call 410-677-4529 or e-mail fwilson@wcboe.org for information.
The 50-minute show features the 2011-12 Wicomico Teacher of the Year, Chad Pavlekovich of Salisbury Middle School, as he is named Wicomico’s top teacher, celebrates with his school the next morning, and is interviewed by Working Together host Aaron Deal, himself a former Wicomico and Maryland teacher of the year.
The show celebrates all 27 semifinalists for 2011-12 Teacher of the Year, giving insight into what they love about teaching and taking viewers into their classrooms. Viewers will also learn about this year's Friend of Education Award winner, PAC 14.
"Working Together for Children" airs regularly at 6:30 p.m. Thursdays and noon Saturdays; check the Programming grid at www.pac14.org or the daily listings in The Daily Times for additional showtimes. PAC 14 also streams its programming live on its web site at www.pac14.org, so viewers can visit the web site to "tune in" on line when the show is on the air. Please call 410-677-4529 or e-mail fwilson@wcboe.org for information.
Highlighted Events This Week In Wicomico Schools
Wednesday, April 27
Superintendent’s Open Door Session
Board of Education Office
A Superintendent’s Open Door Session will take place Wednesday, April 27 from 4-6 p.m., in the Administrative Conference Room at the Board of Education Office. The Open Door Sessions are opportunities to meet one-on-one with Superintendent of Schools Dr. John Fredericksen to discuss any issue, idea or concern. No appointments are made: Anyone interested in meeting with the superintendent should come to the Board office that day and sign in. The final Superintendent Open Door Session for this year is scheduled for May 25. 410-677-4495.
Thursday, April 28
Office of Special Education’s Annual Transition Night
At James M. Bennett High School
The Office of Special Education, in collaboration with the Division of Rehabilitation Services, will be holding our Annual Transition Night on Thursday, April 28. It will be held in the Clipper Cafe in the new James M. Bennett High School from 6-8 p.m. Students and families will be able to meet with Adult Service Providers and local colleges to discuss services and supports after high school. 410-677-4430.
Thursday, April 28
Financial Literacy Seminar
Hosted by the Wicomico County Branch of the NAACP
The Wicomico County Branch of the NAACP will host a Financial Literacy Seminar at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 28 and St. Paul AME Zion Church on Delaware Avenue in Salisbury. Dr. Geri Mason will be the speaker. “You don’t have to become a financial planner to handle your financial affairs,” Dr. Mason says. “Just a few basic steps can help put you in charge of your finances.” The seminar will include values clarification, establishing goals, calculating net worth, developing a spending plan, and organizing records. The event is open to the public. For more information please contact Mary Ashanti at 410-543-4187 or 410-430-1896.
Friday, April 29
Wicomico Middle Walk-a-thon for Cystic Fibrosis
Salisbury City Park
Wicomico Middle School invites all Wicomico schools, staff members and students to participate in a Walk-a-thon for Cystic Fibrosis from 3:30-5:30 p.m. Friday, April 29. The walk will take place in Salisbury City Park, across from the school. Donations of $3 are requested, and will be collected at the park. This event is sponsored by Students for Service at Wicomico Middle School. 410-677-5145.
Friday, April 29-Saturday, May 7
33rd annual Wicomico County Student Art Show
Wicomico County Library
The 33rd annual Wicomico County Elementary & Secondary Student Art Show, featuring more than 1,000 works from students in every Wicomico school, opens Friday, April 29, at the Wicomico Public Library in Salisbury. Art teachers have elected 20 to 50 pieces per school, including paintings, drawings, photographs and sculpture, to represent the creative efforts of Wicomico students. Art teachers will install the exhibit in the lobby and throughout the children's side of the library. The exhibit will be available for viewing during library hours through Saturday, May 7. The library is open 10 a.m.- 5 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, and 12-8 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday. The library is closed on Sunday. A reception for student artists and their families will take place from 7-8:30 p.m. Friday, May 6. For information about the Wicomico County Student Art Show, please call Gary Beauchamp, supervisor of Music/Visual Art and Special Projects, at 410-677-4573.
Superintendent’s Open Door Session
Board of Education Office
A Superintendent’s Open Door Session will take place Wednesday, April 27 from 4-6 p.m., in the Administrative Conference Room at the Board of Education Office. The Open Door Sessions are opportunities to meet one-on-one with Superintendent of Schools Dr. John Fredericksen to discuss any issue, idea or concern. No appointments are made: Anyone interested in meeting with the superintendent should come to the Board office that day and sign in. The final Superintendent Open Door Session for this year is scheduled for May 25. 410-677-4495.
Thursday, April 28
Office of Special Education’s Annual Transition Night
At James M. Bennett High School
The Office of Special Education, in collaboration with the Division of Rehabilitation Services, will be holding our Annual Transition Night on Thursday, April 28. It will be held in the Clipper Cafe in the new James M. Bennett High School from 6-8 p.m. Students and families will be able to meet with Adult Service Providers and local colleges to discuss services and supports after high school. 410-677-4430.
Thursday, April 28
Financial Literacy Seminar
Hosted by the Wicomico County Branch of the NAACP
The Wicomico County Branch of the NAACP will host a Financial Literacy Seminar at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 28 and St. Paul AME Zion Church on Delaware Avenue in Salisbury. Dr. Geri Mason will be the speaker. “You don’t have to become a financial planner to handle your financial affairs,” Dr. Mason says. “Just a few basic steps can help put you in charge of your finances.” The seminar will include values clarification, establishing goals, calculating net worth, developing a spending plan, and organizing records. The event is open to the public. For more information please contact Mary Ashanti at 410-543-4187 or 410-430-1896.
Friday, April 29
Wicomico Middle Walk-a-thon for Cystic Fibrosis
Salisbury City Park
Wicomico Middle School invites all Wicomico schools, staff members and students to participate in a Walk-a-thon for Cystic Fibrosis from 3:30-5:30 p.m. Friday, April 29. The walk will take place in Salisbury City Park, across from the school. Donations of $3 are requested, and will be collected at the park. This event is sponsored by Students for Service at Wicomico Middle School. 410-677-5145.
Friday, April 29-Saturday, May 7
33rd annual Wicomico County Student Art Show
Wicomico County Library
The 33rd annual Wicomico County Elementary & Secondary Student Art Show, featuring more than 1,000 works from students in every Wicomico school, opens Friday, April 29, at the Wicomico Public Library in Salisbury. Art teachers have elected 20 to 50 pieces per school, including paintings, drawings, photographs and sculpture, to represent the creative efforts of Wicomico students. Art teachers will install the exhibit in the lobby and throughout the children's side of the library. The exhibit will be available for viewing during library hours through Saturday, May 7. The library is open 10 a.m.- 5 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, and 12-8 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday. The library is closed on Sunday. A reception for student artists and their families will take place from 7-8:30 p.m. Friday, May 6. For information about the Wicomico County Student Art Show, please call Gary Beauchamp, supervisor of Music/Visual Art and Special Projects, at 410-677-4573.