Wait Until You Hear This, Ireton Does It Again!

It was only October 2, 2012 when I drafted an article about the Mayor being asked by the City Council to go to the County Executive and ask about a newly proposed piece of property in the City but owned by the County for a new Skate Park. The article was titled:

Will Mayor Ireton Ask Nice?

Salisbury News has been a place in which local citizens could come to in order to not only see the truth or the other side of everything else the local MSM published, we have also attempted to educate the public as to just who plays what roll in local government. Again, the Mayor is administrative and the Council is legislative. 

Considering there is a Grant involved in this project and a multitude of other projects, the Mayor got himself in deep doo doo not that long ago, (if you'll recall) representing himself as the legislative body when they signed off on a FEMA Grant for 12 Firefighters. 

Now, if you'll recall from the above titled article, the Council requested the Mayor's Office to go to Pollitt and strike a deal. While we worried if he'd do so in good faith, the Mayor, (behind the Council's backs) went ahead and moved forward with yet another, (administrative) Grant for this skate park without the Council's knowledge, AGAIN. 

I am told the City Council Members were NOT aware he had made this move and he did so for the original location in which the Council pretty much said NO to. 

Now, I'm not saying that Rick Pollitt said yes or no to jim but here's what I do know, the Council wasn't informed of the County's position either. A few County Council Members thought it was a nice idea but didn't have the background knowledge to know if it was possible. 

Ladies & Gentlemen, I truly do not understand Mayor Jim Ireton and his ways. It would seem he has a habit of doing the opposite of the Council's wishes and produce Press Releases in order to attempt to make the City Council look bad, or a "Council of No's".

Your local media publishes whatever the Mayor wishes and quite frankly you are not seeing the truth and or both sides. 

Jim Ireton is unhealthy for Salisbury and that's all there is to it. He has no interest in any kind of unity. His hatred towards Terry Cohen and Debbie Campbell quite frankly is sickening. He is following the lead of the former Tilghman Administration and he/they desperately want YOU to believe it's all the Council's fault. They want Debbie Campbell removed from the Council and they want things back to the way they had it when Barrie Tilghman, Mike Dunn, Lynn Cathcart and Gary Comegys were in office.

As your next Mayor I would never pull such stunts. I want and encourage the input and wisdom of this Council's experience. I will RESPECT the fact that the Mayor's position is administrative and not legislative. The Council will be fully aware of where the Mayor's Office is heading and I will seek the advice and encouragement of the City Council. 

It's not Joe Albero's election to lose, it's the citizen's election to lose. 

Texas Mom Gets 99 Years For Gluing Toddler To Wall, Beating Her

A Texas mother who super-glued her 2-year-old daughter's hands to a wall and beat her over potty training problems was sentenced Friday morning to 99 years in prison, a Dallas County felony records department district clerk said.

Elizabeth Escalona, 23, will be eligible to ask for parole in 30 years. She pleaded guilty in July to a charge of first-degree injury to a child, a crime punishable by anywhere between probation and life in prison.

"This mom was pure evil, and her children are better off without her," prosecutor Eren Price said after a judge delivered Friday's sentence. "Her five kids now have a chance to lead a productive life."

Escalona’s attorney said that the sentence was excessive and that an appeal would be filed,

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It's-Time-For-Hillary-Clinton-To-Testify-About-What-Happened-In-Libya

The House Oversight Committee hearings on Benghazi threw so much dust in the air, that it’s now impossible to know what happened when four Americans, including the American Ambassador to Libya, were killed.  It looks, increasingly though, like somebody is lying.  The question is who, and why.

We were told from the start that the attacks were a spontaneous response to an obscure anti- Muslim video on YouTube; that Libyans went to the American consulate to demonstrate against the video, and things got out of hand.  But there was no “spontaneous” demonstration, there wasn’t even a demonstration.   It was a sophisticated military attack on the Consulate, which the State Department learned about and was following in real time.  Yet videos show there were never any demonstrators, so why did everyone from the UN Ambassador to the Secretary of State claim otherwise?

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Troopers Respond To Dog Attack

Location: Argonne Avenue, north of Main Street (St. Rt. 4), Stanton

 

Date of Occurrence: Friday, October 12, 2012, at 4:15 p.m.

 

Resume:

 

Stanton – Delaware State Troopers responded to reports of two dogs attacking people in Stanton today. 

 

On October 12^th at approximately 4:15 p.m., a Trooper responded to the area of Argonne Avenue and Main Street (St .Rt. 4) in Stanton for reports of two dogs attacking a mail carrier and citizens who were attempting to help him.

 

When the Trooper arrived at the scene, he observed the two dogs attacking a smaller dog being walked by a 51-year-old Newport woman. In order to end the attack, the Trooper fired his Divisional issued handgun, striking one of the dogs, ending the attack.

 

The mail carrier, a 55-year-old male from New Castle, was transported to Christiana Hospital to be treated for multiple wounds from the dog bites. The 51-year-old woman from Newport refused treatment at the scene for a dog bite to her upper body.

 

Both dogs involved in the attacks were captured by the Kent County SPCA and provided with veterinary treatment. The dog that was attacked remained with its owner.

 

The Kent County SPCA is investigating the attacks. All questions about the status of the dogs and the possibility of criminal charges should be directed to the Kent County SPCA.

Employers Look To Skip ObamaCare

Some businesses — including McDonald's and the owner of Red Lobster — consider how best to avoid ObamaCare's employer mandate, which is set to take effect in 2014.

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Bartender Arrested For Selling Marijuana

During the summer of 2012, Ocean City Police Narcotics Unit received anonymous tips regarding a female dealing Marijuana and prescription narcotics while bartending at Crab Cake Factory, 12000 Coastal Highway.

On September 28, 2012, OCPD narcotics detectives concluded a six week undercover drug distribution investigation with the arrest of Jill Lauren Spinnenweber, 34, of Ocean View, Delaware. 

During the investigation, undercover detectives were able to purchase a quantity of suspected marijuana from Spinnenweber outside the rear entrance of the Ocean City business, as well as a second occasion also in Ocean City at a different location. 

Spinnenweber has been charged with two counts of distribution of marijuana and two counts of possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute marijuana.  Spinnenweber was seen by an Ocean City District Court Commissioner and was released after posting a $25,000 bond.

Laurence Pope Replaces Ambassador Chris Stevens

The new State Department point man for Libya has arrived in Tripoli to take control of the embassy. Laurence Pope, a career foreign service officer returning from retirement, replaces Ambassador Chris Stevens, who was killed in an attack on a compound in Benghazi last month. Pope speaks Arabic and served the State Department for 31 years. He was ambassador to Chad and director of counter-terrorism. Pope will serve as charge d'affairs until the Obama administration nominates a new ambassador.

Happy 237th Birthday, U.S. Navy!

On Saturday, October 13th, the United States Navy turned 237 years old. On this date in 1775, our Founding Fathers passed legislation to create the Continental Navy, which at the time consisted only of two ships to counter Britian's vastly superior forces. Today, the U.S. Navy is an unparalleled power on the high seas with most advanced weapons and technology, ready to face down any challenge the 21st century has to offer. 

As we celebrate the Navy's birthday, we are reminded of the bravery of our men and women who are currently serving both at home and abroad. I reflect back on my own 22 years of service in the Naval Reserve and the Navy Medical Corps with immense pride.

GO NAVY!

Propagandist For State-Run Media Wants Even More Of Your Mone

I speak of course of Ken Burns, the $50,000/speech (according to Forbes) PBS civil servant/documentary film maker. In response to Mitt Romney’s critique of PBS during the first presidential debate, Burns authored a long defense of PBS in the October 10 edition of USA Today. The first thing Burns does in his article is to inadvertently admit that the main purpose of his work for PBS is to serve as a propagandist for state power over the citizens. His boasts of the popularity of his documentaries also prove that taxpayer subsidies to PBS are a waste of money.

In his first paragraph Burns recalls how he assisted the military/industrial complex in its propaganda efforts by producing a documentary called "The War" (about World War II) and making a special trip to West Point to "motivate" the cadets with film clips. He then boasts that many of the West Point cadets admitted that they decided to apply to West Point because of an earlier Ken Burns state-subsidized propaganda film, The Civil War. Good job, Ken! Keep those taxpayer subsidies rolling!

Burns really lets the cat out of the bag in the next paragraph where he quotes a U.S. Army Major named Sullivan Ballou, who wrote his wife during the "Civil War" about why he thought the war was being fought. It was not to free the slaves but to defend the Lincoln regime in Washington, D.C. "American civilization now leans on the triumph of the government," he wrote, and "I am willing . .. to lay down all my joys in this life, to help maintain this government . . ." What a job the military propagandists of his day must have done on the hapless Major Ballou (assuming that the letter is authentic).

How odd that anyone would equate the killing of some 850,000 Americans (the latest estimate of "Civil War" deaths), the bombing, burning, and destruction of entire cities, the mass killing of tens of thousands of civilians, the rape, pillage and plunder of thousands more, the suspension of Habeas Corpus and imprisonment of tens of thousands of Northern civilians, the shutting down of hundreds of opposition newspapers in the North, military conscription, the daily execution of deserters (by the Lincoln regime), and the rigging of Northern elections as "civilization." And how odd that anyone would think that the secession of a state (or states), under the correct belief that the union of the founding fathers was a voluntary union, would somehow "destroy" the government in Washington. In fact, the government in Washington grew exponentially after the Southern states seceded, fielding the largest and best-equipped army in world history up to that point.

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Government In America!

The central achievement of the American Revolution was to demote government to a role of cop on the beat. The monarch stopped being the sovereign; the citizen became sovereign instead. Self-government became an aspiration for all people not just rulers.

The idea became prominent, at least for a while, that government's proper role is to secure the natural rights of the citizenry. There was nothing there about a nanny or a regulatory state. John Locke, who identified the most principled version of the classical liberal conception of government, argued that since in "the state of nature" – i.e., prior to civilized society – some people may pose a serious threat to others, a system of laws is needed so as to mark everyone's sphere of authority, a region within which one is in full charge and which others must respect instead of trespass upon.

One's life is the beginning of this sphere; one's liberty follows as does one's private property. What a
government is needed for is to keep these safe, to secure the rights to life, liberty, property and whatever
derives from these. That is the point of government, nothing else. It is a vital function since without it
criminal conduct would very likely go unchecked. But like referees at a sports event, government isn't
meant to get involved in the game, only to make sure it goes on peacefully, with everyone's sovereignty
secured.

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Are Voters Tired Of The Race Card?

If you are sick and tired of seeing politicians and others playing the race card, or if you are just disgusted with the grossly dishonest way racial issues in general are portrayed, then you should get a copy of Ann Coulter's new book, "Mugged." Its subtitle is: "Racial Demagoguery from the Seventies to Obama."

Few things are as rare as an honest book about race. This is one of the very few, and one of the very best.

Many people will learn for the first time from Ann Coulter's book how a drunken hoodlum and ex-convict, who tried to attack the police, was turned into a victim and a martyr by the media, simply by editing a videotape and broadcasting that edited version, over and over, across the nation.

They will learn how a jury -- which saw the whole unedited videotape and acquitted the police officers of wrongdoing -- was portrayed as racist, setting off riots that killed innocent people who had nothing to do with the Rodney King episode.

Meanwhile, the people whose slick editing set off this chain of events received a Pulitzer Prize.

Even the Republican President of the United States, George H.W. Bush, expressed surprise at the jury's verdict, after seeing the edited videotape, while the jury saw the whole unedited videotape. Even Presidents should keep their mouths shut when they don't know all the facts. Perhaps especially Presidents.

Innumerable other examples of racial events and issues that have been twisted and distorted beyond recognition are untangled and revealed for the frauds that they are in "Mugged."

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QUOTES OF THE DAY 10-13-12

“If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.”
― Mark Twain

“The reason I talk to myself is because I’m the only one whose answers I accept.”
― George Carlin

“The pure and simple truth is rarely pure and never simple.”
― Oscar Wilde

“When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they can seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it–always.”
― Mahatma Gandhi

“Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored.”
― Aldous Huxley, Complete Essays 2, 1926-29

“A thing is not necessarily true because a man dies for it.”
― Oscar Wilde

“There are three types of lies — lies, damn lies, and statistics.”
― Benjamin Disraeli

“The unexamined life is not worth living.”
― Socrates

“In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
― George Orwell

POPULAR TUNISIAN CHILDREN’S MAGAZINE SHOWS KIDS HOW TO MAKE…A MOLOTOV COCKTAIL

Children’s television programs and magazines are known for teaching young people valuable life lessons. From the ABCs to the basic tenets of sharing, these instructions help shape young, impressionable minds. But in Tunisia, the first nation to experience the transformational Arab Spring, the power and influence of “Qawz Quzah,” a popular children’s periodical, is being used to teach kids how to make Molotov cocktails.

For those unfamiliar with these devices, here’s a basic definition: “a crude bomb made of a bottle filled with a flammable liquid (as gasoline) and usually fitted with a wick (as a saturated rag) that is ignited just before the bottle is hurled.” As startling as this may seem, in a recent issue, this is exactly what “Qawz Quzah,” which translates to “Rainbow” in English, instructed children ages five through 15 to concoct.

The magazine, itself, didn’t seem very interested in hiding what the purpose for the device was either. According to NBC News, a translated line from the article reads, “(A Molotov cocktail) is an improvised weapon that is often used in riots and acts of sabotage because it is easy to make and use” (the startling article appeared in a section of “Qawz Quzah” called “Knowledge Corner”).

The inclusion of the Molotov cocktail in the kids magazine is particularly troubling, as Tunisia — despite electing a transitional government headed by the Islamist Ennahda party — is still facing religious division and infighting. Aside from the horror associated with teaching children violent mechanisms, there’s also the issue of instability and the notion that the magazine is potentially fueling continued chaos.

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SuperPACs

When it comes to outside election spending this year – you ain't seen nothing yet. A new report by Open Secrets reveals that non-Party SuperPACs and "dark money" groups with mystery donors have spent more than a half billion dollars this election cycle – more than the total amount of spending by non-party groups in every election since 1990 COMBINED. 

And most of that money is not being used in the Presidential election – it's being used in Congressional and state races where it doesn't take much money to sway an election and the media markets are cheaper. But here's the thing – the majority of spending this year is still likely to come. According to historical precedents – most spending occurs in the final weeks before the election, meaning voters are about to be hit with a tidal wave of TV ads financed by unknown corporate donors. According to some estimates – total outside election spending will be well into the billions before it's all said and done.

Private Prisons Are A Bad Idea

Last year – the state of Ohio sold one if its state prisons to the Corrections Corporation of America – the largest private prison corporation in the nation. But a new audit released this week by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction reveals that under private management – the prison is being woefully mismanaged. The audit revealed that the prison is failing to meet state standards when it comes to sanitation, food quality, hygiene, and several other areas. Also according to the audit, inmates were not notified what to do in case of a fire emergency, laundry and cell cleaning services were unavailable, inmates in the infirmary were neglected, and many prison cells were over-occupied. But the Corrections Corporation of America is still making a lot of dough – as it gets paid every time it receives a new inmate to lock up. Meanwhile taxpayers who were told that selling off state prisons would save them money are starting to see that it was a bad deal as studies show that private prisons actually cost taxpayers more than state prisons.

Walmart Workers Are On Strike

In a dozen cities across the nation on Tuesday, dozens of Walmart workers walked off the job to protest what they say are the company's attempts to "silence and retaliate against workers for speaking out for improvements on the job." From Dallas to Seattle, Chicago to Washington, DC, Los Angeles to Miami – employees of the retail giant staged the first ever strike against the company in its history. Walmart workers do not belong to a union – but the walkouts were planned by OUR-Walmart – an organization of workers backed by the United Food and Commercial Workers Union. More actions are planned today at Walmart's annual investor meeting in Arkansas. It's important to remember – that the six heirs to the Walmart fortune are worth a combined $90 billion – which is as much as more than 40% of the nation combined. Many Walmart workers, on the other hand, are paid minimum wage.

SGA Seeks Job Sites For 'I Love Salisbury' Oct. 27

Some 300 Salisbury University students are expected to help clean up public, private and non-profit properties during the fifth annual “I Love Salisbury” event Saturday, October 27. Students gather in Red Square to pick up supplies at 10 a.m. They then report to cleanup sites through 3 p.m. SU’s Student Government Association sponsors the event. Individuals and non-profits seeking assistance should fill out an online request for m at www.salisbury.edu/campusgov/sga/signups.htm by Monday, October 15.

WCSO Press Releases 10-13-12

Incident: Escape 
Date of Incident:   7 October 2012 
Location: 411 Naylor Mill Road, Salisbury, MD 
Suspect: Stephen James Wilson, 21, Hebron, MD 
                                             
Narrative: On 7 October 2012 at 10:20 AM, a deputy from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office
served an arrested warrant on Stephen Wilson that charged him with Second Degree Escape. The warrant
was obtained on 7 October 2012 after Wilson failed to report to the Wicomico County Detention Center
on 5 October 2012 by 7 pm to begin serving a period of incarceration.
Wilson was processed in the Central Booking Unit and taken in front of the District Court Commissioner.
After an initial appearance, the Commissioner detained Wilson in the Detention Center without bond.
Charges: Escape 2nd Degree

Incident: Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol 
Date of Incident:   8 October 2012 
Location: 35000 block of Tingle Road, Pittsville, MD 
Suspect: Trent Logan Hitchens, 21, Millsboro, DE 
                                             
Narrative: On 8 October 2012 at 2:10 AM, a deputy from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office located
an unattended Chevrolet Trailblazer in a soybean field off Tingle Road in Pittsville. The vehicle had
driven through the field approximately 150 yards before coming to a stop. Inside the unattended vehicle,
the deputy observed an empty Budweiser box and an empty Budweiser can. After checking the area, the
deputy located the driver in the front yard of a nearby residence. After concluding that this individual,
Trent Hitchens, was the driver that left the Trailblazer in the soybean field, the deputy began a battery of
field sobriety testing. During the testing, Hitchens performed poorly which led to his arrest for DUI.
During processing, Hitchens refused to submit to a breath test.
Hitchens was transported to the Sheriff’s Office where he was processed. Hitchens was released upon the issuance of citations.
Charges: Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol

Incident: Assault 
Date of Incident:   6 October 2012 
Location: 1000 block of East Road, Salisbury, MD 
Suspect: Stephanie A. Jones, 51, Salisbury, MD 
                                             
Narrative: On 6 October 2012 at 6:53, a deputy from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office responded
to a reported physical altercation at a residence in the 1000 block of East Road in Salisbury. Upon arrival, the deputy met with a male victim who was suffering from a laceration to the head. The male victim identified his assailant as his live in girlfriend of the last five years, Stephanie Jones. During the
investigation, the male victim informed the deputy that an argument began between the victim and an
intoxicated Jones culminated with Jones hitting the victim in the head with a plastic broom.
During a subsequent interview, Jones admitted striking her boyfriend in the head but thought she used the
dustpan.
The deputy placed Jones under arrest and transported her to the Central Booking Unit where she was
processed and taken in front of the District Court Commissioner. After an initial appearance, the
Commissioner detained Jones in the Detention Center in lieu of $25,000.00 bond.
Charges: Assault 2nd Degree

Incident: Assault 
Date of Incident:   5 October 2012 
Location: Northwood Drive, Salisbury, MD 
Suspect: Thomas Wayne Cannon, 39, Mardela Springs, MD 
                                             
Narrative: On 5 October 2012 at 6:45 PM, a deputy from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office
arrested Thomas Cannon in connection with an assault that occurred in a bar on Northwood Drive on 26
September 2012 at approximately 9 pm. Cannon and several other subjects allegedly became involved in
an argument over $20 when Cannon is accused of assaulting two individuals that he was arguing with.
Both victims stated that Cannon knocked them to the ground while essentially overpowering and
assaulting them. One of the victims responded to PRMC for treatment of multiple contusions.
Upon arrest, the deputy transported Cannon to the Central Booking Unit where he was processed and
taken in front of the District Court Commissioner. After an initial appearance, the Commissioner held
Cannon in the Detention Center in lieu of $10,000.00 bond.
Charges: Assault 2nd Degree

Piers Morgan Gets Tough With DWS On Libya

Yesterday, Congress held a hearing into exactly what happened in Libya, and who knew what and when. Boy Wonder Jay Carney had a few problems answering questions from Jake Tapper and others as to the Obama administration’s response. Debbie Wasserman Schultz had even more problems

(The Blaze) Appearing as a guest on Piers Morgan’s CNN show, DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz did her best to defend the Obama administration’s handling of the deadly 9/11 terrorist attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi. She also tried to explain away the trove of misinformation that was circulated by the White House in the days following the attack that left U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans dead.
Morgan began by pointing out the obvious.
“It was very clumsily handled,” he said about the response to the Libya assault. “Was it scandalously handled? Should heads roll?”
After rolling her eyes and shaking her head, Schultz said that President Obama knew Ambassador Stevens personally, which had nothing to do with Morgan’s question whatsoever.
She continued: “What we need to do when the United States has been attacked, when Americans have been killed while serving our country; we don’t need to have Mitt Romney and the Republicans in Congress taking their first instinct, being to take cheap political shots–”
“Let me stop you there,” Morgan interrupted. “Because it’s not about Mitt Romney or what he did…what’s equally inappropriate though is the suggestion that Ambassador Rice and others made public statements which were deliberately misleading in the sense of blaming this video when in fact it has to be known after four or five days that it was much more likely to have been a terrorist attack that had been plan.”

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Obama Campaign Helps Voter Vote In Two Different States

The White House Disinformation Campaign On Libya

Baseball Game, Dodgeball Tournament Saturday, Oct. 13 To Benefit Students

Saturday, Oct. 13

Benefit Baseball Game for Austin Knarr

Shorebirds Stadium

The Shorebirds Youth will take on the Fruitland Force at 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 13, in a benfit game at Shorebirds Stadium. Proceeds from the game will go to benefit Austin Knarr, a Bennett Middle student diagnosed last year with Crohn’s disease in his stomach and small intestine. Crohn’s disease claimed Austin’s father when Austin was just a young boy, and now Austin has been coping with many tests, treatments, medications and daily joint pain that limits his ability to enjoy playing the sport he loves most, baseball. Austin and his family have worked tirelessly to raise more than $10,000 to donate to the CCFA (Crohn’s Colitis Foundation of America) in hopes a cure will be found. The game at Shorebirds Stadium will honor Austin and his fight against Crohn’s disease, and donations accepted at the gate will help offset the medical expenses he and his family have incurred. Gates open at 1 p.m.

Guy Nabbed At LAX In Body Armor Thought He’d Get Past Officials With Bag Full Of Weapons

We’re not sure exactly how this guy was planning on getting past airport security, decked out as he was in body armor and flame retardant leggings and carrying a laundry list of air travel no-no’s in his checked luggage: a smoke grenade, three leather-coated black-jack billy clubs, a collapsible baton, a full-face respirator, several knives and a hatchet. You know, no big deal.

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Camaro Owner Claims He Recorded Mechanics Joy Riding In His Car Then Blaming Him For Damage

A Camaro owner in South Carolina say he had previously had questionable experiences with getting his car repaired at the local Chevy dealership, so when he took the car in to have its grinding gears checked out, he left an audio recorder in the door pocket. What he claims to have recorded has the Internet up in arms.

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Winter Is Coming, And This Year It’ll Be Cold Enough To Increase Your Home Heating Bills

Wrap up in that bear fur, Jon Snow: Winter is coming and this year it’s going to be a lot less friendly than it was last year. The federal government says American households are going to use more heating fuel this winter than last year because temperatures are going to actually be cold, instead of the balmy weather much of the country experienced last year. Makes sense.

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HISTORICAL COMMENTS BY GEORGE CHEVALLIER

The Great Oil Strike

The Wicomico Oil and Gas Company was incorporated in the state of Delaware in 1913 and issued $300,000 in preferred and common stock. They had plans to sink 10 wells on a leased acre of land between Pittsville and Parsonsburg, Md.

     

The first well was to be driven on the land of George Meade Maddox. The next one was to be built one quarter of a mile from Parsonsburg on the land of S. P. Parsons.

     

Drilling was in the hands of  Flint and Strother of Clarksburg, West Virginia.  The oil proved to be elusive but natural gas was found and piped into houses at Parsonsburg. The story is that one Sunday the people returned from church to find their kitchens flooded. Water was coming through the gas pipes.

     

Thus ended the venture of several local investors whose dreams of becoming “oil barons” are only now remembered by a couple of worthless stock certificates and two photographs turned into post cards. The photographs were taken by W.T. Watson, 125 Main St., Salisbury, MD. The stock certificates were a grim reminder to my grandfather, Albert L. Disharoon, that what seemed to be too good to be true, probably was. He swore off stocks for the rest of his life. 

      

You can also note from one of the postcards that a piece of machinery was from F. A. Grier & Sons, a well known Salisbury firm.

          

These are examples showing two very different hobbies. I have collected Salisbury memorabilia for a long time and can find things from Salisbury that help me lift the history of Salisbury to another level. I have many other post cards and these are collectible because they picture scenes around Salisburythat are available nowhere else. Stock certificates are collectible to me if they are from a Salisburycompany or are signed by or are made out to someone from Salisbury. Sometimes these are the only record of the company’s existence.

Whistleblowers

Employees in the intelligence community have been singled out by the White House for whistleblower protection. President Barack Obama signed a policy directive that aims to prevent retaliation against people who point out waste, fraud and abuse in the 17 intelligence agencies. The directive gives those agencies until July 2013 to update their personnel policies. The director of national intelligence has a year to issue guidance on precisely what disclosures will be protected. The House recently passed a bill to overhaul whistleblower protections, but it omitted employees of the intelligence community.

You've Got To Be Kidding

Why did Veterans Affairs employees who went overboard on two conferences last year receive bonuses? Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) wants to know. The ranking Republican on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs has asked the department for answers. According to a report by the inspector general, the VA spent on average $2,500 on bonus awards for each of 17 event-planners. The staff spent more than $760,000 on promotional items, a parody video and other questionable expenses related to the conferences.