Attention

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

Saturday, June 29, 2013

COLLEGE STUDENT ARRESTED & THROWN IN JAIL AFTER BUYING…BOTTLED WATER

It should have been just a simple trip to the grocery store to buy bottled water, cookie dough and ice cream for a sorority event.

Instead, six plainclothes officers swarmed University of Virginia student Elizabeth Daly, who was ultimately arrested and spent the night and next afternoon in jail, the Charlottesville Daily Progress reported.

What happened? The officers — men and a woman — were state Alcoholic Beverage Control agents who suspected the 20-year-old walking to her car that night had just bought a pack of beer. One agent jumped on the hood of her SUV and Daly said one drew a gun. Panicking and not knowing who they were, she tried to get away.

“They were showing unidentifiable badges after they approached us, but we became frightened, as they were not in anything close to a uniform,” Daly said in a written account of the April 11 incident.

More 

Water Rescue In Ocean City

Ocean City Fire units have just cleared the scene of a water rescue in the bay involving a boater struck by a propeller. Units arrived at 94th st & the bay to find a vessel approx. 1 mile out in the bay, DNR arrived on scene and transferred the pt. to awaiting fire & ems crews at 94th st. The pt was packaged on location and flown to PRMC via Maryland State Police - Aviation Command Trooper 4.

Surveillance vs. Infrastructure: When A Country Falls Apart

What characterizes the beginning stages of an empire in decline? Is it war, famine, disease, moral decay, or all of the above? There is perhaps no clear formula or single event that can be used to pinpoint when a civilization begins to fall and yet, it must seem obvious to many living at the time.

So, let's ask the question: How about the U.S.? Is it on the verge of falling apart?

Given what I'm about to say, I think we all need to take this question seriously.

To understand the fate of our nation, we can easily compare the following two things: The amount of taxpayer money used to invest in things that, without question, we'll all need and use for years to come, i.e. roads, bridges, dams, clean drinking water, etc – that is, our infrastructure – versus the amount of taxpayer money used by the government for creating a massive worldwide surveillance machine.

Just think about that for a moment.

Needless to say, I don't need to tell you much about recent leaks regarding the NSA. If you've been watching the news, you may know that billions are being spent each year on developing a hi-tech surveillance network to collect, record, and potentially track or predict you and others across the globe.

More

68 Senators Vote to Create Incentive for Employers to Hire Amnestied Immigrants Over U.S. Citizens

The immigration bill passed by the Senate Thursday afternoon would give some employers a financial incentive to employ "registered provisional immigrants" (illegal immigrants granted legal status) instead of U.S. citizens.

As the Washington Examiner's Philip Klein recently reported: "Under Obamacare, businesses with over 50 workers that employ American citizens without offering them qualifying health insurance could be subject to fines of up to $3,000 per worker. But because newly legalized immigrants wouldn’t be eligible for subsidies on the Obamacare exchanges until after they become citizens – at least 13 years under the Senate bill – businesses could avoid such fines by hiring the new immigrants instead."
 
More

Why Eating Carbs May Lead To Stronger Food Cravings

Refined carbohydrates such as corn syrup could trigger food cravings not unlike the cravings that drug addicts experience, new research suggests.
The findings, which are published today (June 26) in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, suggest that the quick spike and subsequent crash in blood sugar that comes after eating highly processed carbs activates reward and addiction centers in the brain.

The study was small and looked only at overweight and obese men, but if the findings can be replicated in a larger population, they would imply that avoiding refined carbohydrates is a good weight-loss strategy because people would avoid not only the calories, but the strong cravings they induce.

"Refined carbohydrates seem to be able to provoke food cravings many hours after consumption, at least in susceptible people," said study co-author David Ludwig, the director of the New Balance Foundation Obesity Prevention Center in Boston. "Limiting these foods could help overweight people avoid overeating."

More

NFL SAYS NO TO OBAMA ADMINISTRATION

Despite being encouraged by the federal government to help promote President Barack Obama’s health care law, an NFL spokesman on Friday said the league has “no plans” to work with the White House regarding the implementation of “Obamacare.”

The Department of Health and Human Services has reportedly reached out to the NFL — as well as the NBA and MLB — to help pitch the health care overhaul to its audience, particularly younger Americans. Earlier this week, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the NFL and a “variety of sports affiliates” had been “enthusiastically engaged” with the administration regarding the idea.

On Friday, Brian McCarthy, vice president of communications at the NFL, said in an email that the league has responded to letters from members of Congress.

More 

What Adderall Does To Your Body

Wall Street lore is always describing the relationship between bankers and cocaine, but the truth is there's a new drug in town. Adderall is taking its new position as the Street's favorite upper — it's less of a party drug, and more of a 'cope with your job after the party' aid.

So what is Adderall and why does it make people more efficient?

We put together some facts on what this amphetamine (yes, that's what it is) does to your body. Yes, it can help you get through that Excel spreadsheet, but there's a more sinister side to this story. Canada pulled the drug off the shelves in 2005 because it was believed to be the source of 20 deaths over ten years, according to NPR.

So know what you're dealing with.

MAJOR BLOW FOR ZIMMERMAN PROSECUTORS? SEE WHAT ONE NEIGHBOR TESTIFIED THAT COULD SPELL TROUBLE

A neighbor of George Zimmerman, who had perhaps the best view of the struggle between the neighborhood watch volunteer and Trayvon Martin, testified at Zimmerman’s murder trial Friday that it appeared the teen was striking Zimmerman while straddling him.

However, Jonathan Good said he did not see anyone’s head being slammed into the concrete sidewalk, which Zimmerman has said Martin did.

Zimmerman has claimed that he fatally shot 17-year-old Martin last year in self-defense as the Miami-area teen was banging his head into the concrete sidewalk behind the townhomes in a gated community.

More 

RUSH LIMBAUGH: ‘WAIT UNTIL THE REPUBLICAN PARTY HEARS ABOUT THIS’

A caller from Lubbock, Texas, on Friday told conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh that some illegal immigrants in his area don’t want amnesty because it means federal income tax and fiercer competition for cheap labor.

“Today I went out and was doing some ag’ work on some of the farms out here and got to talking to some of these guys, asking them about what they think about this. And they’re very, very concerned,” the caller said. “A lot of them were telling me, ‘Well, we really don’t want to become United States citizens.’”

He went on: “There’s two things that they brought up that really scared me. They do not want to become United States citizens. I said, ‘Why not?’ They’re afraid that the United States government is going to take so much taxes out of their paychecks once they have to pay into the federal income tax.”

“Are you kidding me on this?” Limbaugh replied.

“I am dead serious. They do not want to become American citizens,” the caller said.

More 

America Will See Its Worst Race Riot Yet This Summer

Yes, the George Zimmerman trial here has thousands of African-Americans getting ready for some serious bloodletting.

I don’t want to make idle and dire predictions but this nation has never been so divided and racially sensitive. Or African-American President took sides on this case at the very beginning. That ratified a George Zimmerman guilty verdict in the minds of millions.

There’s just one little problem, and that is the murder case should have never been filed. It was filed purely for political reasons despite the fact that it was a simple justifiable homicide.

Zimmerman was the block watch lookout program and followed a suspicious Trayvon Martin after he used an improper entrance to a gated community. Zimmerman was acting at the eyes and ears of the Sanford Police Department. Martin did not like being followed and knew that he could easily beat up the out-of-shape Zimmerman and did so.

The force was unequal and Zimmerman was getting his head pounded on the concrete sidewalk. Zimmerman was fighting for his life when he removed his Kel-Tec pistol and put a round into Martin’s chest.

The Sanford Police Department investigated the shooting and had no probable cause to arrest Zimmerman who regrettably cooperated with them fully. They made no arrest.

More

Gettysburg's Anniversary To Be Marked By Events, Re-Enactors

What do you wear to Pickett's Charge?

If you're a spectator, lots of sunscreen. But if you're a Civil War re-enactor, try 20 pounds of wool and at least as many pounds of authentic gear, including a full canteen to battle the heat of July in Gettysburg.

For the next eight days, spectators and re-enactors from around the country and even the world will descend on central Pennsylvania to mark the 150th anniversary of this pivotal battle. They'll have three chances to relive not only Confederate Maj. Gen. George Pickett's failed attack but also fighting at the Wheat Field and Cemetery Ridge. And Abraham Lincoln will present his Gettysburg Address at 11 a.m. for four straight days, even though that didn't actually take place until November.

 More

Secrets And Lies

Every credit has its debit, every positive its negative. So for every secret there must be a lie, and every lie must be kept secret.

This is the currency of power today. Fiat truth.

We are not allowed to have any secrets any more. And yet those who insist they must know the truth about us, who spy upon us to extract our secrets, tell us. in return, only lies.

It is a dangerous, corroding imbalance of power, because lies, like debts, compound.

Living the lie

We all know the famous Goebbels quote,
“If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it.

More

Conservative Backlash Greets US Immigration Bill

Conservatives have drawn a bull's eye on the immigration bill passed by the US Senate, insisting the landmark measure will fail as is and vowing political retribution against Republicans who voted for it.

The bipartisan immigration reform bill passed 68-32 in the Senate Thursday with support from 14 Republicans, many of whom now face accusations they let down conservatives opposed to legislation that lays a pathway to citizenship for 11 million undocumented people.

Those lawmakers, including high-profile figures like Senator Marco Rubio, "will have to go back home and explain the votes they cast, and explain to their constituents why it's not amnesty, even though it is," Dan Holler of Heritage Action, a lobbying arm of the conservative Heritage Foundation, told AFP on Friday.

More 

10 NFL Stars Who've Been Charged With Horrible Crimes

On Wednesday, June 26, New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez was charged with the murder of his acquaintance, Odin Lloyd.

The NFL player, who had recently singed a five-year contract with his team (which included a $12.5 million signing bonus), was escorted out of his house in handcuffs as the world watched in dismay.

But this is just the latest crime-related scandal for the NFL, a league that's been plagued with a slew of crimes ranging from DUIs to domestic violence and, of course, murder.

Here is a list of 10 other NFL stars, all convicted or accused of terrible crimes, whose promising careers were arrested (pun intended) once justice caught up to them.

More

Face Transplant Patient Celebrates Life In Public

His story is both tragic and amazing. A Virginia man who had a face transplant in Baltimore has a new outlook on life.

As Kai Jackson reports–a life that he’s now more comfortable living in public.

It was groundbreaking surgery when Richard Norris had a face transplant in March 2012.

A historic procedure, according to the doctors who performed it at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore.

More 

Star Witness Rachael Jenteal: I Can't Read That Letter Explaining What Happened to Trayvon Martin That Night Even Though I Supposedly Wrote It

She's a star witness because she's the only witness to contradict George Zimmerman's claim that he stopped following Trayvon Martin. The defense suspects she's making this all up-- that she had nothing important to tell police, which is why she never bothered contacting them.

At some point, weeks later, the Martin family contacted her. She now explains her failure to step forward with critical information in a homicide case by saying she expected police to contact her, because that's what always happens on First 48 (one of those crime documentary news magazine shows).

"Don't you watch First 48?" she asked a defense attorney when pressed on this claim. As if she thought the attorney's knowledge of police procedure came from the same place hers (allegedly) did.

More

The Obama Supporter Beauty Pageant

Polygamists Celebrate Supreme Court Marriage Rulings

The Supreme Court’s rulings in favor of same-sex marriage Wednesday were greeted with excitement by polygamists across the country, who viewed the gay rights victory as a crucial step toward the country’s inevitable acceptance of plural marriage.

Anne Wilde, a vocal advocate for polygamist rights who practiced the lifestyle herself until her husband died in 2003, praised the court’s decision as a sign that society’s stringent attachment to traditional “family values” is evolving.

“I was very glad… The nuclear family, with a dad and a mom and two or three kids, is not the majority anymore,” said Wilde. “Now it’s grandparents taking care of kids, single parents, gay parents. I think people are more and more understanding that as consenting adults, we should be able to raise a family however we choose.”

“We’re very happy with it,” said Joe Darger, a Utah-based polygamist who has three wives. “I think [the court] has taken a step in correcting some inequality, and that’s certainly something that’s going to trickle down and impact us.”

State Policy Causes Headaches For Resort Towing Operations

You can pick your friends, and you can pick your nose, but you can’t pick your tow truck.

At least not anymore, under a Maryland law that has proven to be particularly onerous to Ocean City’s seasonal demand for vehicle removal.

“It’s the dumbest law I’ve ever seen,” said Igor Conev of Mann Properties, the island’s largest building management firm that has gone through considerable headaches over the policy.

Late last year, the state amended its vehicle code to require that towing signs in publicly-accessible lots feature the name and phone number of the towing company that will be used to remove any unauthorized vehicles, as well as where the vehicle can be recovered and notice that it must be available 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Requirements for signs’ visibility and wording were also further specified.

This meant a complete replacement of all signs to meet the new standards. But that has turned out to be the least of the problem.

More 

Gay Marriage (Cartoon)


Casino To Start Serving Alcohol Until 4 A.M.

BERLIN -- While the Casino at Ocean Downs has been open 24 hours a day for over a month now, its allowance to keep the bar open at the facility until 4 a.m. created through compromise legislation during the 2013 General Assembly session begins next week on July 1.

In May, the Casino at Ocean Downs gained approval from the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency to remain open 24 hours a day, seven days a week throughout the summer season until Sept. 30 and the facility has been open around the clock ever since. Until now, however, the casino on Route 589 near Ocean Pines has been closing its bar operation at 2 a.m. just as all other liquor license holders in Worcester do.

However, that changes next week when the Casino at Ocean Downs is allowed to keep its bar operation up and running until 4 a.m. The Casino at Ocean Downs earlier this year attempted to gain approval for 24-hour bar operation, but during the Maryland General Assembly session this year, a compromise was reached on proposed legislation connected to the county’s Department of Liquor Control (DLC) and its relationship with the licensees in Worcester.

More 

Democrat John Barrow HAMMERS OBAMA For His 100 Million Dollar African Vacation

So wait, does this mean John Barrow is a racist now or that only applies to Republicans who criticize Obama?

Georgia Democrat John Barrow took to the floor of the House of Representatives on Friday afternoon to critique the price of President Obama’s forthcoming trip to Africa, as its putative price tag is roughly the equivalent of the sequester-induced spending cuts in the state of Georgia.

“Very soon thousands of folks in my district in Georgia, and even more across the state, will be furloughed as a result of the budget sequester,” Barrow said. “Studies have shown that the sequester will cost the Georgia economy approximately $107 million. Meanwhile, reports circulated this week that President Obama’s upcoming trip to Africa will cost the taxpayers nearly $100 million.” (Note: this is actually the highest end of the estimate, which projected a cost ranging from $60-$100 million.)

“Mr. Speaker, no one here questions the need for security for our Commander-in-Chief,” Barrow continued. “But we do question the need for such expensive trips when so many folks across the country are being forced to cut back because Congress can’t get its act together.”

More

Quality Of Life Index Puts Maryland 12th, Behind Virginia And Delaware

Maryland ranks 12th for overall quality of life out of the 50 states, according to a report released this week.

The study, published by the nonprofit, nonpartisan collaborative encyclopedia Ballotpedia, examined 19 different indices to determine quality of life from 1992 to 2012.

Neighboring states Virginia and Delaware both made the Top 10 rankings for overall quality of life, with Virginia at 7 and Delaware at 10. The state with the highest aggregate ranking was New Hampshire, and the worst performing state was Mississippi.

More 

Public Opinion Leads, Politicians Follow

On Dec. 1, 1955, a churchgoing woman of character refused to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery, Ala. Many credit Rosa Parks’ courageous action that day with launching the civil rights movement. While I have great respect for what Ms. Parks did that day, however, she did not start the civil rights movement. The movement began long before, and public opinion led the way.

Rosa Parks’ role was to serve as a catalyst converting the shifting public opinion into meaningful action. Martin Luther King Jr. then gave voice to that movement and made it an essential part of our national heritage.

We know that public opinion moved first because Rosa Parks had done the same thing on the same bus line 12 years earlier. But in 1943 nothing happened. Neither her community nor the nation was ready.

Between 1943 and 1955, there was massive change. Jackie Robinson broke the Major League Baseball color barrier by playing for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Black soldiers came home from World War II and were not going to settle for the way things had been. The then-new technology of television turned a national spotlight on the Jim Crow South. That’s what laid the groundwork for the heroism of Rosa Parks. Even after she acted, it took a decade before Congress acted.

More

City Scrambling To Halt Bdwk. Stench As Restrooms Unfinished

Everyone knows that a certain substance rolls downhill – both in reality and in metaphor.

But it appears that the literal gravity of poo has caused something else to roll uphill to City Hall, as the city has been fielding a number of complaints about the stench emanating from the waylaid restroom project on the Boardwalk.

The malevolent miasma generated Saturday night when the substitute portable toilets were pumped out allegedly cleared the entire plaza at North Division Street, including the deck at iconic Tony’s Pizza.


“It was terrible. It chased away a lot of our customers,” said Lisa Russo, whose family founded the popular slice joint decades ago. “The smell lingered for about 45 minutes to almost an hour, too.”

 More

Another White House Play Date With Muslim Jihad

Forget Paula Deen. There are far more dangerous bigots and poisonous haters spoiling the American landscape. They cook up violent rhetoric and murderous plots against our troops, our citizens and our allies 24/7. And they have direct access to the White House.

Earlier this week, the indefatigable Investigative Project on Terrorism blew the whistle on the Obama administration’s latest flirtation with Muslim jihad. Sheikh Abdullah bin Bayyah bragged on his website that he had met with Team Obama on June 13. IPT reported that bin Bayyah was invited by National Security Council official Gayle Smith “to learn from you and we need to be looking for new mechanisms to communicate with you and the Association of Muslim Scholars.”

Someone associated with bin Bayyah deleted his website reference to the meeting, but the Internet is forever. The White House has now ‘fessed up to the confab. According to Fox News, a senior official spun the troubling event as a discussion about “poverty, global health efforts and bin Bayyah’s own efforts to speak out against al-Qaida.”

More

Assateague Welcomes New Foal, Expects Another Soon

ASSATEAGUE -- The wild pony herd’s newest edition has been quietly getting its legs under it in a remote area at the national seashore.

The latest addition to Assateague’s famed pony herd, with its rather sterile early moniker N9BFQ-GL, was birthed on Assateague sometime in mid-May. The sorrel foal was the first new edition to the wild pony herd in 2013 after a relative baby boom in 2012 when three new ponies were born in the span of a little over two months.

The new foal was berthed by Harmony, officially registered as N9BFQ-G, in a remote part of the island far away from the north end, where Tuesday’s excitement surrounding the discovery and detonation of over 100 pieces of World War II ordnance took place, according to Chief of Interpretation and Education Rachelle Daigneault. Thus far, the foal appears to be thriving although the wild herd is largely left on its own unless illness or injuries occur.

More 

Three Excellent Craft Beers From Our Blind Taste Tests

Craft beer is touted as the "it" beverage, the new wine, and becoming more popular even as domestic lager sales have slowed. So Consumer Reports' experts conducted blind taste tests of 23 craft ales and lagers and found three that were excellent and 10 more that were very good. Tough job, but somebody had to taste and tell.

An American craft brewer is small, independent and traditional, and produces 6 million barrels a year at most, according to the Brewers Association. But craft beers are supposed to be free from substantial ownership by a non-craft brewer, yet some don't fit that description. There are more than 2,400 U.S. breweries and only several dozen aren't defined as craft brewers, says the association.

Craft beer is typically made with traditional ingredients although brewers may add ingredients for interest and highly original names for distinctiveness—Dogfish Head, Shock Top and Shiner, to name a few. For excellent ale consider the top-rated Stone IPA. Our experts found that it's very fragrant, with floral, fruity and juniper notes from the added hops. Next was Dogfish Head 60-minute IPA, which has a great mix of malt and hop notes and is more intense than most. The third was Samuel Adams Hopology Collection Latitude 48 IPA, which has fruity and malty notes. Five of the ales we tasted were very good.

The best lagers were very tasty but not quite complex or intense enough to be rated excellent by our tasters. Five are recommended, including the top-rated Brooklyn Lager and Samuel Adams Boston Lager.

See the results of our craft beer taste tests for all the details. And to make sure you truly enjoy your beer, here are a few tips from our experts and Restaurant-Hospitality.com, which serves the trade.

More

Smoke Detector Law Takes Effect

OCEAN CITY – The Ocean City Fire Marshal’s Office is spreading the word on a new state law effective July 1 that will enforce smoke detectors to be updated and placed on every floor of a residence by the year 2018.

House Bill 1413/Senate Bill 969, Public Safety-Fire Protection and Prevention Residential Smoke Alarms, has been passed and goes into effect on July 1.

The law requires homeowners to disclose whether the smoke detectors are over 10 years old and whether they use a 10-year sealed battery as required under Maryland law by 2018. The notice will be added to the current Seller Property Condition Disclosure Forms.

The legislation also requires homeowners to update smoke detectors to newer sealed battery systems if the smoke detectors are battery operated and are over 10 years old or malfunction when tested. Smoke detectors that are hard-wired are also required to be updated every 10 years or when those systems malfunction. Finally the legislation requires that at least one smoke detector be located on every floor of a residence by 2018.

 More

Shooting in Ocean City

At approximately 2:30am this morning in the area of 19th Street and Philadelphia Ave in Ocean City a fight broke out between a group of males. Multiple shots were fired. One subject taken to PRMC for treatment. Shooter is in custody after jumping into the bay. Ocean City fire department dive team on scene on Marlin Drive searching for weapons.

IRS Update

The Internal Revenue Service inspector general is disputing a major claim made by the agency's new acting director. The director, Danny Werfel, told lawmakers that IRS' tax exempt unit held up both liberal and conservative groups applying for tax-free status. But IG Russell George said only a fraction of liberal applicants were held up, while 100 percent of conservative applications were delayed. The counter accusations came during a House Ways and Means Committee hearing. Democrats on the committee are criticizing George for his original report, which left out details about the scrutiny of progressive groups.

Wor. County seeks $367, 521 grant for school security officers

Worcester County has applied for a grant for school safety for the upcoming school year.

The $367,521 grant would cover the salaries of 11 part-time school security deputies, portable radios and protective vests. The county would have a cash match of $144,309 for fringe benefits.

The application for the Byme Memorial Justice Assistance Grant was submitted June 2013 to the Governor’s Office of Crime Control and Prevention.

The deputies will provide security within all 13 public schools in the county. The increased security is the direct result of the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut last year.

More 

HISTORICAL COMMENTS BY GEORGE CHEVALLIER 6-29-13


Settling Down in Salisbury

When my grandfather finally arrived back in Salisbury in 1910, he never had a chance of leaving again. He married my grandmother in 1911 and began a life fighting prejudice and the establishment. As you can see by the picture of my grandmother, taken when she was just 16, a lot of men would suffer many indignities to win her heart. She was not only Catholic but Irish-Catholic at that. This was in an era when the Methodists and Baptists looked down upon anyone of any other faith. So much so that he couldn’t find anyone to hire him for 15 years.

He once painted a house for a man and couldn’t collect his money for the job. He showed up one Saturday morning and set up a pitch pot. For anyone not familiar with pitch, it is the black, sticky coating that is heated up to a liquid and applied to a roof before shingles are nailed on. When the pitch was being heated to attain its liquid state, the man came running out of the house demanding to know what he thought he was doing. He informed the man that he was going to put pitch on his paint. If the man paid him for the paint it would be his paint and my grandfather could not put anything on it. The man was furious as he went in the house and returned with the money that he owed my grandfather.

He picked up odd jobs until he had enough money to build his own 2 ½ story house. This he did at 703 Gay St. (in Oct., 1952, the city changed all the house numbers in Salisbury and it became 307 Gay St.)

While building his house he missed work for the only time in his life. He was never sick and this was the only time he was injured. It seems he was putting on the slate roof one morning and fell off the roof. A trip to the hospital entailed having the broken leg set and a cast applied. After this interruption, he returned to the house that very afternoon and proceeded to finish the roof. His determination was unmatched by any man I ever knew.

Once he finished building his own house in 1924 and people saw that he could build a fine house, he never had any trouble finding work after that. The only change he made was he started to build commercial buildings because he said the money was better and on time. In Salisbury, he is responsible for many buildings that can be observed today. He built the Perdue plant on Cypress St. for Swift & Co., the Cannon Building, the Colonial Building, the building on Mill St. for the old Martin & Swartz Co., the original Penny’s and the Country House on E. Main St. for Manhattan Shirt Co.. The last large project was the Howard Johnson Restaurant and Motor Lodge on Route 13 North. He also rebuilt Benjamin’s after a fire in the 1930’s. He had the salvage rights to Benjamin’s and hauled out everything he could before he razed it and began rebuilding. The only two departments that had not been completely destroyed were the “linen” and “glassware” departments. I spent my youth in the 1940’s and 1950’s drinking out of Duncan Miller sandwich pattern glasses and I was grown before I knew they made towels in any color except white.

(This is part 7 of a 7 part story of my grandfather’s life. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I recalled in writing it)

Berlin Historic Festival Announced

BERLIN -- The first-ever Berlin Historic Festival will be held along Main Street on Saturday, July 6 from 11:30 a.m.-4 p.m.

Five street scenes, presented by The Ocean Pines Players, will begin at noon in front of The Atlantic Hotel, Berlin and continue throughout the day. The first vignette will be Berlin’s Mayor Gee Williams welcoming and greeting the first mayor of Berlin, John William Pitts and his wife, and in return, Mayor Pitts presents Mayor Williams with a key to the Town of Berlin.

Eleven historic craftsmen will be on hand to demonstrate their skills and some may even sell their wares. These include quilters, weavers, tinsmith, glassblower, blacksmith, spinner, rug hooker, basket weaver, leather worker, broom maker and a rug braider. These crafts people will be on hand throughout the day to demonstrate and talk with visitors.

More 

THANK YOU For Yet Another Incredible Record Breaking Week

This past week we enjoyed yet another record breaking week in both hits and comments.

What makes Salisbury News the #1 Political and Influential Website in Maryland and Delaware year after year, YOU!

YOU participate by making comments, (agree or disagree) but more importantly there are many of YOU that send us articles/topics/pictures YOU find the most interesting. 

After the Mayoral Election I had many state representatives contact me and say, you know you have a lot more influence with Salisbury News than you would have ever had as Mayor of Salisbury. This is very true. While I felt compelled to at least step up to the plate and offer an alternative, YOU continue to help us make an incredible difference here on our Eastern Shore.

I am fortunate enough to get calls, e-mail messages and in many cases the opportunity to meet face to face with many of our elected officials from around the state. I have been able to share what wisdom I have to open minded officials who take that information and use it to create, (in their own way) a better life for all of us. 

The other day we produced a press release about the Safe Streets program. Let me assure you, I spoke directly with Governor O'Malley about this particular issue, (crime) several years ago and guess what, he listened. He was not aware, (at the time) of the statistics we provided, proving crime was a lot worse than any other media source provided. So together we can and do make a difference. 

Enough pressure has been placed on elected officials to watch them step down and now, (better) people fill many shoes for former department heads as well. Some were good choices, some were bad but even many of them have now been replaced. 

Together, (with your help) we do make a difference. The situation with PRMC is not sitting Idle. I know for a fact many of the issues brought forth in a Letter To The Editor has made a HUGE difference. Even other corporations like Royal Farms responded in a positive way. Heck, we've now witnessed WBOC follow our lead by announcing lost pets to help reunite them with their owners.

I need YOU to know, (or perhaps be reminded) of just some of the things YOU and I have accomplished over time. I encourage YOU to continue sending links to articles, Letters to the Editor, (with or without your names) photos and tips. YOU do have an outlet to express your concerns and quite frankly you are not going to get a larger local audience than Salisbury News.

Put my e-mail address in your phone. You can do so by doing the following. Rather than putting in a phone number, put in alberobutzo@wmconnect.com instead. If your on the scene and take a picture you can easily send that picture right to my e-mail address. You can store my cell number as well, (410-430-5349) and send it there if you like. 

Together we can continue to provide news and information in REAL TIME. Just when we're all feeling we don't have a say in what is going on in local or even national politics, your wrong. Don't you think for a second our local representatives aren't listening. Trust me when I tell you, I get enough phone calls and e-mail messages from all of them, I know we're making a difference. Heck, I ran into Rudy Cane yesterday and even he was telling me he read a certain article we provided and the impact it made on him. Governor O'Malley flat out told me in front of WBOC, WMDT and the Daily Times, "When I want to know what's going on on the Eastern Shore I go to Salisbury News".

So I/We thank you for participating. Have a great weekend! 

Feds To Protect “Endangered” Mouse

American taxpayers will be tremendously relieved to know that the U.S. government is hard at work trying to get official endangered status for a wild mouse with an unusual eight to nine month hibernation period that contributes to the species’ vulnerability.

It’s called the New Mexico meadow jumping mouse and the feds want to designate it a critical habitat protected under the Endangered Species Act, the 1973 law signed by President Richard Nixon to protect species from extinction as a “consequence of economic growth and development untempered by adequate concern and conservation.”

The federal government’s list of more than 1,300 threatened or endangered species includes more than 700 plants, hundreds of invertebrates, more than 100 fish as well as dozens of birds, mammals and reptiles. Among them are the Florida panther, American crocodile, brown bear, Mexican bobcat, Florida manatee, California condor, ivory-billed woodpecker and small tooth sawfish.

More