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Saturday, July 16, 2011

Today’s Survey Question – 07/16/2011

Will You Be Attending Church Tomorrow?

Why 2012 Is Shaping Up To Be An “Anybody But Obama” Election

These words appeared in this newspaper under a headline reading “Obama is heading for a one-term presidency” less than two months after the president took the oath of office:

“There won’t be a second Obama term if he doesn’t admit that, no matter how adroitly he wraps himself in Reaganesque rhetoric, Leviathan is no better suited for 2009 than it was in 1933 for FDR …

“But that’s not the main reason Obama’s prospects for gaining a second term in 2012 are already fading faster than a Maine RINO can forget what being a Republican means. Obama is making himself the symbol of what’s wrong with Washington rather than being the agent of change in Washington.”

At that point in March 2009, Washington was awash in controversy over Obama’s economic stimulus program and dazzled by the spontaneous eruption of Tea Party protests across the nation.

READ MORE …

Mark Tapscott is the Editorial Page Editor of the Washington Examiner.

Republican Show and Tell All

A lot of conservatives are having fun at President Obama’s expense after his latest gaffe. In the midst of testy debt-limit negotiations, Mr. Obama told House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, “Don’t call my bluff.”

The first rule in bluffing is to keep it a secret that you’re bluffing. So, technically speaking, that’s like a con man saying, “Don’t give any weight to the fact that I’m lying.”

And while I do think Mr. Obama is not telling the truth about a great number of things, conservatives should look closer to home if they want to criticize impolitic truth-telling.

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Jonah Goldberg is editor-at-large of National Review Online and a visiting fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.

Romney Has Big Cash Lead

Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney holds a big lead in cash on hand in the Republican presidential primary, according to figures released Friday by most presidential campaigns. Romney’s $12.7 million in cash reserves tops Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann ($3.6 million), former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty($2 million), and former House speaker Newt Gingrich, who had $322,000 on hand and more than $1 million in debt. Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas), who both raised more than $4 million in the second quarter, has yet to announce cash-on-hand totals. Former Utah governor Jon Huntsman does not have to file, because he announced his campaign so late in the quarter. President Obama's campaign had more than $37 million cash on hand.

from The Fix @ the Washington Post

Seaford Man Arrested on Child Porn Distribution Charges

A 34-year-old Seaford man faces charges of dealing in child pornography after officers from the state’s Child Predator Task Force raided his apartment Thursday.

David R. Milbourn Jr., of the 23000 block of Atlanta Road, was charged with five counts, said Jason Miller, spokesman for the state Attorney General’s Office.

Task force officers seized computers and other digital media. A preliminary examination revealed several video files containing child pornography, Miller said.

The arrest was prompted by an investigation on the Internet.

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Judge Rules Police Violated Rights of Harford Activists

A federal judge has ruled that police in Harford County violated the constitutional rights of seven demonstrators who staged an anti-abortion display along a state highway near Bel Air three years ago.

When motorists complained about the graphic nature of the posters, the state police ordered the demonstrators, members of the Alliance Defense Fund, to leave the county. Police then arrested the group members, saying they had failed to obey a lawful order.

The ruling, issued Thursday in U.S. District Court, said police infringed on the group's right to free speech. The judge also upheld the group's claim that the arrests violated due process.

Soon after the incident, the state dropped charges, which included loitering and disorderly conduct. The case will now proceed to a jury trial for the assessment of damages only.

from Mary Gail Hare @ the Baltimore Sun

Drunken Boater Crashes Vessel Into Jetty

The operator of a sportsfishing boat was charged with drunken boating after he crashed his 36-foot vessel into the rock jetty at the Ocean City inlet last Thursday.

According to Maryland Natural Resources Police Sgt. Art Windemuth, the custom boat, Anger Management, struck the south jetty off the northern tip of Assateague Island around 10 p.m. Aboard the vessel were the owner and operator, Earnest J. Kasner of Belle Harbor, N.Y., and a mate.

The Coast Guard sent boats to the scene from its Ocean City station as did the NRP. Kasner and the mate were picked up by the Coast Guard and Kasner was taken by ambulance to Atlantic General Hospital in Berlin with non-life threatening injuries, Windemuth said. The mate was not injured.

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Krauthammer: Call His Bluff

President Obama is demanding a big long-term budget deal. He won't sign anything less, he warns, asking, "If not now, when?"

How about last December, when he ignored his own debt commission's recommendations? How about February, when he presented a budget that increases debt by $10 trillion over the next decade? How about April, when he sought a debt-ceiling increase with zero debt reduction attached?

All of a sudden he's a born-again budget balancer prepared to bravely take on his own party by making deep cuts in entitlements.

Really? Name one. He's been saying forever that he's prepared to discuss, engage, converse about entitlement cuts. But never once has he publicly proposed a single structural change to any entitlement.

Hasn't the White House leaked that he's prepared to raise the Medicare age or change the cost-of-living calculation?

Anonymous talk is cheap. Leaks are designed to manipulate. Offers are floated and disappear.

Say it, Mr. President. Give us one single structural change in entitlements. In public.

As part of his pose as the forward-looking grown-up rising above all the others who play politics, Obama insists upon a long-term deal.

And what is Obama's definition of long-term? Surprise: An agreement that gets him past Nov. 6, 2012.

Nothing could be more political. It's like his Afghan surge wind-down date. September 2012 has no relation to any military reality on the ground. It is designed solely to position Obama favorably going into the last weeks of his re-election campaign.

Yet the Olympian above-the-fray no-politics-here pose is succeeding. A pliant press swallows the White House story line: the great compromiser ("clearly exasperated," sympathized a Washington Post news story) being stymied by Republican "intransigence" (the noun actually used in another front-page Post news story to describe the Republican position on taxes).

The meme having been established, Republicans have been neatly set up to take the fall if a deal is not reached by Aug. 2. Obama is already waving the red flag, warning ominously that Social Security, disabled veterans' benefits, "critical" medical research, food inspection -- without which agriculture shuts down -- are in jeopardy.

The Republicans are being totally outmaneuvered. The House speaker appears disoriented. It's time to act. Time to call Obama's bluff.

A long-term deal or nothing? The Republican House should immediately pass a short-term debt-ceiling hike of $500 billion containing $500 billion in budget cuts. That would give us about five months to work on something larger.
More here

“Today Show” Coming to Rehoboth on July 22nd

The national spotlight is once again set to shine on Rehoboth Beach.

The “Today” show will do a live broadcast 10 a.m., Friday, July 22, at the Boardwalk and Rehoboth Avenue. Anchors Hoda Kotb and Kathy Lee Gifford will do the broadcast.

City Manager Greg Ferrese said “Today” show producers contacted the city about doing the broadcast. It is the latest in a series of honors for the city. Rehoboth was named a five-star beach for its water quality by the National Resources Defense Council and its Boardwalk was named the 6th best in the country by National Geographic magazine.

Mayor Sam Cooper joked, “The city must be doing something right.”

from Ryan Mavity @ the Cape Gazette

SUSPECTED DRUG DEALER ARRESTED AFTER RUNNING OVER OCPD BIKE OFFICER

On July 16, 2011, at approximately 1:47 am, Ocean City Narcotics Detectives assisted by both plainclothes and uniformed patrol officers attempted to place an individual under arrest for Distribution of Controlled Dangerous Substance to an undercover OCPD Detective.

During the arrest, the suspect identified as Michael Joseph McGovern, 30, of Williamsport, PA, fled from officers in the area of 19th Street and the Boardwalk. A lookout for McGovern was broadcast over the police radio.

Uniformed OCPD bike patrol officers located McGovern as he was attempting to leave the area in his vehicle. Officers were able to get to McGovern while he was entering his vehicle; however a struggle took place inside the vehicle with officers on both the passenger and driver’s side.

During the struggle McGovern managed to start his car and put it in reverse, striking and dragging the bike officer who was on the driver’s side and just missing the officer who was on the passenger side. The bike officer who was dragged on the driver’s side by McGovern’s vehicle eventually was able to escape by falling outside the vehicle and under the
driver’s side door, which was still open.

McGovern then became involved in a short vehicular pursuit, before bailing out of his car on the west side of Coastal Highway in the area of Marlin Drive. Officers continued to pursue McGovern on foot and determined that he had jumped in the water way/canal in the area of 21st Street and the bay.

McGovern was tracked north to the 28th Street area by OCPD personnel, who were assisted by the Maryland State Police Aviation Unit, the U.S. Coast Guard and the Department of Natural Resources Marine Unit.

Police eventually located McGovern at 4:38 a.m., in a condominium at 413A Eagle Drive.

McGovern was taken into custody. As a result of McGovern’s actions one OCPD bike patrol officer was injured and transported to Atlantic General Medical Center. The officer was treated for injuries to the hand and arm and released.

McGovern is being held at the Ocean City Public Safety Building and is awaiting an initial appearance before an Ocean City District Court Commissioner.

McGovern is being charged with the following:
- 2 Counts Distribution of a Controlled Dangerous Substance
o Marijuana and Ecstasy (MDMA)
- Leaving the scene of a personal injury accident
- 1st Degree Assault
- 2nd Degree Assault
- Assault on a Law Enforcement Officer
- Resisting Arrest
- Fleeing and Alluding
- Reckless and Negligent Driving

HISTORICAL COMMENTS BY GEORGE CHEVALLIER

Hitting the Road

The N.Y., P. & N. railroad station in 1905.

          My grandfather, Albert L. Disharoon, said very little about his early years, probably because there wasn’t too much variety in his life. His formal education ended in 1904 when he was 15 years old and still in the fifth grade. He then began a life of hard work that would last for some 63 years when he finished building his last house at age 78. His first job was working for his father on the family farm. Apparently his father had a way of dispensing punishment with what my grandfather called a buggy whip. He was made to lean over a railing and, when his father struck him he said he could see his own blood spurt from the wound on his stomach. One day, when he was 16, he took the whip from his father before he could touch him, pushed him down a flight of stairs and told him he was the last man that was ever going to lay a hand on him. That night, he left home for good,
         
He walked the two miles to Salisbury by way of Anderson Road (now Pemberton Drive) and went to the railroad station. The railroad station in 1905 was the N.Y., P. & N. Station (New York, Philadelphia and Norfolk) and was located on the West side of the tracks about 200 yards South of where the Union Station is today. He inquired of the station attendant when the next train was coming through. He said he didn’t care at the time whether it was heading North or South. The attendant told him that the only train going through that night was an express going South, to which my grandfather replied, “I didn’t ask what it was, I asked when it was coming through.”

Around 9:30 that night he took a chance that could have ended his life before it started. He said the train was going 30-35 mph as it approached the station. The attendant told him he could never catch it, but he hadn’t figured on my grandfather’s desperation and determination. As the train approached, he began running down the platform and was positioned to make his move when the train’s box cars passed close to him. He often told me that when he grabbed the ladder attached to one of the box cars he knew that if he didn’t hang on he would have been thrown under the train and killed. The jolt he got when he was snatched up by the speeding train separated him from his prized derby hat and relieved him of all the buttons on his leather jacket. But, hang on he did. He was now heading South, with no hat, and only the clothes of his back and $4.35 in his pocket. He said his hat had his name in the hatband and one of his family ended up with the hat. When he finally came home for good in 1910, the hat wasn’t returned to him and he never had much to do with his family for the rest of his life. He stayed on that train until he finally got off in Pee Dee, South Carolina.

(This is part 1 of a 7 part story of my grandfather’s life – part 2 next week)

Frederick County Struggles Over Privatization

If Frederick increasingly is known for its trendy restaurants and shops, its historical roots remain a part of its fabric, from a City Hall built on the site of an early protest against British rule to a mall and minor league baseball team named after hometown hero Francis Scott Key.

Now, another revolution could be fomenting as Frederick County considers a radical change to the way it does government business: It is debating whether to outsource many of its public services to private business, road maintenance and parks and recreation programs, budgeting in the finance department and Central Booking at the jail. Should that happen, the county of 233,000 residents would become the largest U.S. jurisdiction to privatize what have traditionally been services provided by public employees.

The proposal, launched by an all-Republican Board of County Commissioners that after last year's elections took on a more conservative, smaller-government cast, has created an uproar. More than 500 county residents and employees descended on Winchester Hall in Frederick, the seat of the county government, for a public hearing on the proposal last week — the first of several scheduled for this month — with most opposing it, and vocally so.

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Profound Deficiencies Plague Debt Limit Talks

Team Obama’s debt-limit negotiating position is fueled by a central non-sequitur, a core myth, and a spectacular oversight. Correcting these deficiencies would help Democrats and Republicans drain America’s Olympic pool of red ink without drowning the economy in tax hikes.

First, the idea that the federal debt ceiling must be raised in order to lower federal indebtedness is the logical equivalent of a high-speed train derailment. Debt-soaked American consumers do not beg credit-card companies to hike their borrowing limits. Instead, they freeze their credit thresholds and pay their debts, ideally until their finances are back in black.

Obama’s insistence on raising the debt limit is like saying, “You are right, MasterCard. I am tapped. So, I will forego theater tickets and skip my annual ski trip. Now, please raise my limit by $5,000.”

Congress should not hike the debt limit, period. The staggering sum of $14.3 trillion should remain the Everest of U.S. financial irresponsibility from which Uncle Sam must descend. This will be arduous, but far healthier than climbing into ever-more-vertiginous debt and triggering an all-consuming avalanche of unpayable bills.

Furthermore, the notion that leaving the debt limit intact will trigger default is another monstrous lie designed to bamboozle the American public and cow Republicans into retreat. As with a credit card, default requires neglecting one’s bills rather than respecting a debt cap. If Visa refuses to augment a customer’s credit line, default only occurs if he stops making minimum payments.

America must do this.

For Fiscal Year 2011, Treasury expects $2.23 trillion in revenues, from which it must pay bond holders $213 billion in interest. As Senator Pat Toomey (R – Pennsylvania) explains, if Treasury can manage this, America will not default.

Read more here

David Limbaugh: GOP Should Call Obama's Bluff

Ordinarily, I'd have difficulty grasping the magnitude of arrogance driving President Barack Obama in budget negotiations that could determine the survival of our nation, but after several painful years of observation, I've come to expect it from him.

Obama's personality type does not well handle opposition, so when House Majority Leader Eric Cantor refused to budge on Obama's unreasonable demand that the GOP agree to raise taxes during these economic hard times, which would not raise revenues, Obama blew up and "stormed out of the room."

Cantor suggested that the parties opt for a short-term deal to avert the debt ceiling deadline, but Obama adamantly refused. "Enough is enough," said Obama. "I've reached my limit. This may bring my presidency down, but I will not yield on this."

Why is it acceptable for Obama to be overtly uncompromising but express outrage that his GOP opposition is unyielding? It's as if he's saying, "How dare you be as intransigent as I'm being."

Obama also warned Cantor, "Don't call my bluff." Notice all the I's and my's in Obama's threatening language. Did anyone ever tell this narcissistic man "no" before he became president?

He acts as though the United States is his personal chattel to do with as he pleases, and no one (including members of the co-equal legislative branch) and nothing (including the Constitution) dare get in his way. He masquerades as a mere bystander in all this instead of the primary mover in accelerating this financial catastrophe and the primary obstructer of the reforms necessary to avert it.

Such petulance isn't Obama's only unbecoming conduct concerning these negotiations. He recently attempted to horrify seniors that their Social Security payments would be withheld if Republicans didn't compromise.

Obama knows better than that. Reaching the debt ceiling wouldn't prevent the government from spending money, only from spending more than it takes in, which means it could decide which payments to honor and which to forgo.

It is past time that Republicans take the gloves off and man their offensive battle stations. Obama's constant assumption of the offense and the Republicans' deferential defensive positioning create the illusion that Obama has more power than Congress and that he is not mainly culpable in the events giving rise to this impasse.

Republicans, choose your spokesman (Rep. Paul Ryan would be a good choice), and call daily pressers to make your case instead of always ceding that turf to Obama. In charge of the purse, you have every bit as much right to speak out on fiscal matters as does Obama. Then begin passing your reform bills over and over again, forcing the Democratic Senate and Obama to reject them.

It's time that the president and party who are creating the mess were put back on their heels and exposed for their wanton fiscal destruction.

Read more

Tuna Plentiful As Maryland Tournament Begins

As the Ocean City Tuna Tournament gets under way, the right blend of ocean temperatures have drawn yellowfin and bluefin species in great numbers, fishermen and scientists say.

That's good news for anglers who will compete for hefty cash prizes during the fishing tournament, which begins today. Last year, the boat bringing in the heaviest total weight received $162,000, and the boat hooking the single heaviest tuna -- at 79 pounds -- received $64,000.

At this time of year, bluefin tuna often head north for colder seas, but swaths of cold water have kept them near Ocean City, said Marty Gary, the assistant director and fisheries ecologist for the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Fisheries Service. The opposite is true for yellowfin tuna, which are enjoying warmer water from the Gulf jet stream, farther out at sea, he said.

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Don't Ask Don't Tell

In response to a request from the Obama administration, a federal appeals court is allowing the military to temporarily continue its "don't ask, don't tell" policy for openly gay service members.

UNITED STATES FLAG



We are not far from the end folks. We can't take much more political correctness.

This picture was taken at the AZ state capitol. This photo was taken at a rally at the state capitol yesterday.

The news will not show it and the Capitol Police and Homeland Security would not let Americans or any of the Veterans that were there do anything about it.

My husband and his friends were threatened to be arrested and were told they would be booked under federal charges if they did anything.

I am sending this to you so that you in turn can start Emailing it to everyone on your list. It is totally uncalled for and people need to see it. This is not about politics and rhetoric, it is about a direct threat to our country.

Those of you that don't live in Arizona will maybe get a chance to see the other side of what the news is telling you. If this offends you greatly, then I have truly accomplished what I set out to do. I understand that sometimes we don't see eye to eye on certain things, but that is the right our forefathers fought for.

I am an American before I am anything else. For those of you who choose to dismiss this: If you believe that this is okay I believe you are a traitor to this country and everything it stands for. I am not a racist and I am not a Nazi, this has nothing to do with race, it has to do with respect to the country that is continually taking you in and turning a blind eye to your agenda.

Homeland Security was designed to identify and defend America from Terrorist acts yet yesterday it let illegal and legal citizens of this country desecrate the Flag. People were spitting on it, stomping on it and burning it with cigarettes.

One soldier who had just returned from Iraq tried to grab the flag and was thrown to the ground by the Capitol Police and Homeland Security.

It amazes me how many people will stand against the American People while all the while prospering from our system and our government.

O’Malley Says He’ll Try Harder on Same-Sex Marriage

Gov. Martin O'Malley said Friday he will push harder for a same-sex marriage measure in Maryland next year if it mirrors legislation that passed in New York after changes were made to protect religious freedom.

"I think we can learn from what they did," O'Malley, a Democrat, said while attending the National Governors Association meeting in Salt Lake City. "One of the things we're looking at in the drafting is how their clauses with regard to religious freedom were different from ours. That might improve our efforts. And I certainly plan to be very active in support of it, and we'll have other announcements in upcoming months."

O'Malley said he is talking with a broad coalition that has formed around the issue.

    Gay marriage legislation passed the Maryland Senate this year but stalled in the House of Delegates. The House sent the bill back to committee after it was determined it was a few votes short.

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    Found Puppy Gets Adopted

    This puppy has gone to a good home. Thanks for all your help and all the phone calls we received.

    Man Shot By Cop Pleads Guilty to Attempted Murder

    Marvin Jefferson Mitchell, the Berlin man who was shot by an Ocean City police officer as he was stabbing his estranged wife in a resort apartment in December, pleaded guilty last week to attempted first-degree murder.

    Mitchell, 28, entered an Alford plea last Friday in Circuit Court in Snow Hill. In an Alford plea, the defendant does not admit guilt but concedes that there is enough evidence for a conviction. It is treated like a guilty plea.

    On Dec. 20, 2010, Mitchell was shot by Ocean City Cpl. Rick Wawrzeniak after the officer came across Mitchell stabbing his estranged wife in an apartment on 82nd Street in front of the couple’s two young children. Mitchell survived the shooting, and was charged with attempted murder, burglary, assault and weapons charges. His wife survived.

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    Pending Court Action Forces Sussex Council to Watch Words

    Sussex County Council has approved the appointment of its president to a committee without specifically stating what action the committee will take.

    Following a June 28 executive session to discuss pending litigation, council reconvened and voted 5-0 to appoint Council President Mike Vincent, R-Seaford, to a conciliation committee. In addition, on a motion from Councilman Vance Phillips, R-Laurel, council amended the motion to allow Vincent to invite other council members to participate on the committee.

    Conciliation is part of the process used under the Fair Housing Act by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to bring parties together to attempt to mediate a complaint. The only recent action against Sussex County involving a housing complaint was one filed by Diamond State Community Land Trust over the denial of a subdivision application for its New Horizons community near Laurel.

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    Details of Somali Terrorist Recruitment in Minneapolis Revealed in Court Documents

    A group of Minneapolis-area Somalis, including some who traveled to their homeland to allegedly take up arms against the Ethiopian army, held secret meetings in 2007 to plan the trips, created fake itineraries to fool family members and challenged one another about their commitment, prosecutors contend in a court filing.

    The document was filed this week in advance of a trial for one man accused of being part of the conspiracy.

    It sheds new light on how the recruiting operation worked in Minneapolis and how some of the men arrived at safehouses in Somalia, where they received AK-47s and weapons training.

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    Editor’s Choice – 07/16/2011

    These were the five (5) best, or most important, posts for July 15th, as judged by the editors of Salisbury News.

    Readers’ Choice – 07/16/2011

    These were the most popular posts for July 15th, judged by the most approved comments.

    Don't Forget To Visit The Farmer's Market In Downtown Salisbury TODAY

    Word of the Day – 07/16/2011

    cyrenaic

    (adj.) pertaining to hedonism; belonging to an ancient school of philosophers that believed physical pleasure to be more worthy of pursuit or knowledge (after Aristippus of Cyrene, who founded the school in the 4th century B.C.)

    from Rare Words II by Jan and Hallie Leighton; copyright 2008: Levenger Press

    Quote of the Day – 07/16/2011

    “'Tis better to be silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt.”

    - Abraham Lincoln (attributed)

    from

    Today’s Weather – 07/16/2011

    for Salisbury, MD -

    Today -
    Mostly sunny. High 87F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph.

    Tonight -
    Mostly clear. Low 67F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph.

    Tomorrow -
    Plentiful sunshine. High 87F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph.

    Astronauts Fix Second Failed Computer on Shuttle

    The pilots on NASA's last space shuttle flight fixed another one of their main computers Friday after it failed and set off an alarm that shattered their sleep.

    NASA declared all five of Atlantis' primary computers to be working, pending evaluation of the latest shutdown.

    Computer failures like this are extremely rare in orbit, said lead flight director Kwatsi Alibaruho. The two problems appear to be quite different, he noted. The first was caused by a bad switch throw; the second possibly by cosmic radiation.

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    Property Owner FOIA’s Dewey Beach About Development

    A property owner in Dewey Beach is trying to find out what town officials are saying behind closed doors. Michael Durkos sent a Freedom of Information Act request to Dewey Beach Town Council, Town Manager Diana Smith and Town Attorney Glenn Mandalas July 7.

    Durkos requested that the town produce all information and correspondence relating to Smith's May 2 denial of an appeal to the town's board of adjustment. Durkos and his wife, Ann Durkos, were two of 15 property owners who signed the March 25 appeal.

    The appeal questioned the legality of an agreement between the town and developer Dewey Beach Enterprises to redevelopment the Ruddertowne site. The appeal requested a hearing before the Dewey Beach Board of Adjustment to possibly overturn the agreement. Smith denied the appeal May 2, and she did not forward the appeal to the board.

    Durkos said Smith and council have failed to explain why the appeal was denied for several months. "The public, and particularly, the voters of Dewey Beach, deserve answers, and I am invoking the Freedom of Information Act to unveil the secrecy," Durkos wrote.

    READ MORE …