The Pocomoke Public Eye

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

From the American Association Of Retired People

Questions and Answers from AARP Forum

Q: Where can single men over the age of 60 find younger, women who are interested in them?	A: Try a bookstore, under Fiction.
Q: What can a man do while his wife is going through menopause?	A: Keep busy. If you're handy with tools, you can finish the basement. When you're done, you will have a place to live.
Q: Someone has told me that menopause is mentioned in the bible... Is that true? Where can it be found?	A: Yes. Matthew 14:92: "And Mary rode Joseph's ass all the way to Egypt ."
Q: How can you increase the heart rate of your over-60 year-old husband?	A: Tell him you're pregnant.
Q: How can you avoid that terrible curse of the elderly wrinkles?	A: Take off your glasses.
Q: Seriously! What can I do for these Crow's feet and all those wrinkles on my face?	A: Go braless. It will usually pull them out..
Q: Why should 60-plus year old people use valet parking?	A: Valets don't forget where they park your car.
Q: Is it common for 60-plus year olds to have problems with short term memory storage?	A: Storing memory is not a problem, Retrieving it is the problem.
Q: As people age, do they sleep more soundly?	A: Yes, but usually in the afternoon.
Q: Where should 60-plus year olds look for eye glasses?	A: On their foreheads.
Q: What is the most common remark made by 60-plus year olds when they enter antique stores?	A: "Gosh, I remember these!"
SMILE, You've still got your sense of humor, RIGHT?

Hat Tip; Kack

Coast Guard Searches for 2 Missing Watermen

UPDATE: Missing watermen were located ALIVE this morning before noon in Ape Hole Creek in the Pocomoke Sound. Watermen's names have not been released yet.

CRISFIELD, Md.- The U.S. Coast Guard Station in Crisfield is looking for two watermen who have been missing since Monday.

The two watermen- both described as veteran watermen in their 60s- went out on the Tangier Sound in their 24-foot boat at around 11:30 a.m. They were reported overdue at 7:15 p.m.

A helicopter joined the search Monday night. The search resumed Tuesday morning but it is not known if the helicopter was able to continue to assist because of the rain. There is no word yet on the names of the missing watermen.

VIA: WBOC

What Was She Thinking???

N. Carolina Waitress Fired Over Facebook Gripe!

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - A North Carolina waitress is out of a job after griping on her Facebook page about the bad tip she got from a lingering table of customers.

The Charlotte Observer reported Monday that 22-year-old Ashley Johnson felt slighted after spending three hours waiting on a couple at Brixx Pizza who left only a $5 tip.

So she blasted the couple on her Facebook page while also mentioning the restaurant.

Brixx officials told Johnson a couple of days later that she was being fired because she violated a company policy banning workers from speaking disparagingly about customers and casting the restaurant in a bad light on a social network.

Johnson says she has apologized to Brixx and is looking for a new job.

www.wavy.com

Beware Of Those Nasty Little Ticks

Tick Fever and Lime Disease Numbers on the Rise

Ticks and Lyme disease have been on the rise in recent years in Virginia and the Virginia Department of Health offers tips on how to avoid them both.

It's not just hikers and outdoor enthusiasts who have been taking advantage of the beautiful spring weather in Virginia, ticks are already out in full force, too, which means an increased risk of tick-borne diseases, with Lyme disease a top concern. David Gaines is with the Virginia Department of Health.

"Lyme disease is quite common in Virginia, it didn't used to be but it's becoming quite common, and I can't say how this year is going be as compared to any other year - but we had a cold winter, but there was a lot of snow cover and that provides an insulating layer."

Gaines says that if you plan to spend time outdoors, be sure to wear long clothing and tuck your pants into your socks. Cover yourself with insect spray that works for ticks. Check for ticks immediately and if you find one, remove it promptly with tweezers. In some cases, early symptoms of Lyme disease include a large circular rash at the site of the tick bite, accompanied by chills, fever, headache, fatigue, stiff neck, swollen glands, and joint pain.

www.shoredailynews.com

Have You Tried The "Babycake" Yet?

The "taste" test is the final test for baker and partner Shannan Johnson of the Bay Queen Galley and Bakery in Pocomoke City. Above, a red velvet BabyCake is tested by, from left, John Riggi, Johnson, Dustin Johnson and Mary Ann Riggi, Johnson's partner. (Milt Savage photo)

POCOMOKE CITY -- When a bakery was added to the Bay Queen Galley earlier this spring, it wasn't long before one item started flying off the shelves of the small Market Street cafe.

While brownies and lemon bars and cookies lined the counter, customers skipped over the standard treats, said MaryAnn Riggi, who co-owns the cafe. It seemed people couldn't get enough of the bakery's miniature Smith Island cakes, affectionately known as BabyCakes.

"The BabyCakes have kind of taken over," Riggi said. "We are a bakery, but we really seem to be the BabyCake bakery."

Although other things can be made to order, Shannan Johnson, the Bay Queen's baker, is responsible for providing a steady supply of at least 10 flavors of the five-layer, two-serving version on the Maryland state cake.

"She does other things, but at the moment those cakes have been the thing," Riggi said. "You have to go with what works, and the public wants the cakes."

Riggi and her husband John opened the Bay Queen Galley in the fall of 2009. The cafe serves both hungry passersby and caters for the river cruise boat that shares its name.

"We've been running the tour boat for four years," Riggi said. "We started by using local restaurants, but we couldn't guarantee the product was consistent."

But when they opened the Market Street cafe, serving sandwiches and coffee, the couple felt they needed more to lure people in and away from the convenience of nearby fast food restaurants. At the time, the galley was selling Smith Island cakes provided by a distributor, but Riggi said it seemed she never had the flavors people wanted.

"Everybody wanted banana, but banana doesn't have a good shelf life, so I thought maybe we should bring on a baker," she said.

The couple spent the winter searching for the perfect baker. Riggi and her husband were on a diet at the time, so they wanted someone who could produce such a good cake that they could not help but finish the whole thing.

Then Johnson came along.

"She has such a passion," Riggi said. "She's a wonderful baker -- but her passion when she talks about baking, she gets goosebumps.

More importantly, Riggi added, when she tried one of Johnson's cakes, "I took one taste and walked away with the plate. That was it."

But while the cakes were good, the cafe found that people weren't interested in buying a big one.

"If you are a single person or a couple, you don't want to buy a whole Smith Island cake and have it sitting around the house," she said.

So Johnson, an Eastern Shore native, experimented with miniaturizing it. The BabyCake was born.

At five layers -- much higher and it will fall over, Riggi said -- the cakes cost $5.95, come in 10 different flavors including lemon, strawberry, peanut butter, chocolate, cookies and cream, key lime pie and red velvet, and are the perfect size for two people. Buy two, and Riggi will tell you you've got twins.

As for which flavor is the best, Riggi said she can't really say.

"Everyone has their flavor," she said. "It changes for me. (Johnson) will make a new flavor and shove it in my mouth first thing in the morning and that will be my new favorite.

www.delmarvanow.com

Monday, May 17, 2010

Sick Whale Euthanized Off Coast Of North Carolina

HATTERAS, N.C. (WAVY) - A Coast Guard boat crew responded to reports of a stranded whale off Hatteras Inlet, N.C., Saturday afternoon.

The whale was identified as a 20 to 30-foot humpback whale.

A Coast Guard boat crew from Hatteras Inlet transported members from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Virginia Aquarium, University of North Carolina at Wilmington, and veterinarians from North Carolina State University to administer aid to the whale.

Veterinarians determined that whale had to be euthanized. It will be taken to a location off Hatteras Inlet on Monday.

http://www.wavy.com/

Here are some facts we may have forgotten about this type of whale:

Humpback whales are known for their magical songs, which travel for great distances through the world's oceans. These sequences of moans, howls, cries, and other noises are quite complex and often continue for hours on end. Scientists are studying these sounds to decipher their meaning. It is most likely that humpbacks sing to communicate with others and to attract potential mates.

These whales are found near coastlines, feeding on tiny shrimp-like krill, plankton, and small fish. Humpbacks migrate annually from summer feeding grounds near the poles to warmer winter breeding waters closer to the Equator. Mothers and their young swim close together, often touching one another with their flippers with what appear to be gestures of affection. Females nurse their calves for almost a year, though it takes far longer than that for a humpback whale to reach full adulthood. Calves do not stop growing until they are ten years old.

Humpbacks are powerful swimmers, and they use their massive tail fin, called a fluke, to propel themselves through the water and sometimes completely out of it. These whales, like others, regularly leap from the water, landing with a tremendous splash. Scientists aren't sure if this breaching behavior serves some purpose, such as cleaning pests from the whale's skin, or whether whales simply do it for fun.

They can weight up to 40 tons and grow the size comparable to a bus. Status is endangered.

www.nationalgeographic.com

Eastern Shore News Hosts Spelling Bee

ONLEY --The Eastern Shore News Spelling Bee will be held Tuesday, May 18, at Nandua High School at 7 p.m.

The competition is open to students from Eastern Shore schools from the fifth to eighth grades. Anyone is invited to attend. Admission is free.

Prizes include a savings bond, dictionaries, MP3 player, digital camera and subscriptions to the Eastern Shore News.

Henry Hollandsworth of Onancock, son of Dr. and Mrs. Thomas Hollandsworth, won the bee last year and will be participating again as a sixth grader.

The 25 students who will be participating include:

Accawmacke Elemen-tary -- Tevion Morake, grade 5.

Arcadia Middle --Melissa Maher and Jaquan Persinger, grade 6; Tabitha Thornes and Tiffany Trader, grade 7; La'Quan Nock and Cadeem Baines, grade 8.

Chincoteague Elemen-tary -- Tristan Binder.

Kegotank Elementary --Destiny Hicks, grade 5.

Kiptopeke Elementary -- Morgan Doughty, grade 5; Myles Taylor, grade 6; Colton Collins, grade 7.

Metompkin Elemen-tary --Chelsi Shreaves, grade 5.

Nandua Middle --Henry Hollandsworth and Leslie Ibarra, grade 6; Isaac Taylor and Princeton Jenkins, grade 7; Amanti Boggs and William Barrett, grade 8.

Northampton High --Tyler Combs and Dara Bright, grade 8.

Occohannock Elemen-tary --Jada Johnson, grade 5; Dontae Weatherly, grade 6; and Chelsea Hall, grade 7.

Pungoteague Elemen-tary -- Sharod Myers, grade 5.

Shore Christian Academy --Dawson Melody, grade 5.

www.easternshorenews.com

Saturday Night Shooting In New Church

According to Sheriff Larry Giddens, on Saturday, May 15 at approximately 11:01 p.m., the Accomack County Sheriff's Office received a report of shots fired at a party on Rantz Street in New Church. Further investigation revealed that three persons had been shot as a result of the gunfire and two of the three victims were transported by Bloxom Ambulance to Shore Memorial Hospital and later transferred to Sentara Norfolk General where they are listed in stable condition. The third victim was treated on the scene by Oak Hall Rescue. The suspects fled the scene prior to deputies' arrival.

The victims injured during this incident consist of a 17 year old juvenile, whose name was not released, and two adults. The adults injured were Alnisa Crosland, age 22 of Berlin, MD and Mike Harmon, age 37 of New Church.

The Accomack County Sheriff's Office was assisted by the Virginia State Police and the Onancock, Parksley, Bloxom, and Hallwood Police Departments.

Anyone with information concerning this crime is asked to contact the Accomack County Sheriff's Office at 787-1131 or 824-5666.

www.shoredailynews.com

Mail Ends Up In Garage Of Postal Carrier

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The United State Postal Service has recovered approximately 20,000 pieces of mail — some of them more than a decade old — from a Philadelphia postal carrier's garage.

Special Agent Scott Balfour says it took three mail trucks to remove the letters. The carrier worked in the city's Bustleton neighborhood.

Balfour says some of the mail dates back to 1997.

Postal officials say they recovered the mail on April 28 and it was being delivered to customers this week.

Balfour wouldn't comment on what prompted the investigation but says the carrier hadn't been to work since February.

Postal officials haven't identified the carrier. Balfour says they're still trying to find the man so they can question him.

www.dailypress.com

The outcome of this should be quite interesting.

Suffolk, Va. Woman Recovering After Being Struck By Lightening

SUFFOLK — A Suffolk woman is recovering from injuries suffered from being struck by lightning Sunday morning.

Suffolk Police said the 25-year-old woman touched a metal gate while she was letting her dogs out around 4:30 a.m. near her home on Ruritan Boulevard.

Her husband found her lying on the ground not breathing and with no pulse, police said. He performed CPR until she started breathing on her own. Medics arrived and took her to Sentara Obici General Hospital.

Doctors list her in stable condition, police said.

www.dailypress.com

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Speak English Only, Small NY Towns Decree

Some small towns in New York have thrust themselves into a big dispute centered around the racially charged issue of "English-only" ordinances.

The community of Easton is expected to pass a law next month requiring all town business to be conducted in English, joining the towns of Argyle and Jackson, which recently passed similar laws.

"For too long, the federal government has shirked its duty by not passing English as the official language of the United States," the man who proposed the Jackson law, Town Councilor Robert Meyer, told The New York Times.

The moves come as Arizona faces boycotts for passing legislation cracking down on illegal immigrants.

The response to Jackson's new law from the New York Civil Liberties Union was immediate. The organization said the measure, adopted in March after a 3-1 vote by the municipal board, violates state and federal law, and it is threatening to sue on the grounds that it infringes on local people's rights.

"The English language is not under attack in Jackson or anywhere else in the state or country," said Melanie Trimble, director of the ACLU's regional chapter.

In a letter to the board, the civil liberties group said the law would prevent a town official from saying "mazel tov," the Jewish toast, at a wedding ceremony, London's Daily Telegraph reported today.

Jackson, which is near the Vermont line, has a population of about 1,700, including a few Hispanic farm workers.

Meyer denied that the measure was prejudicial, but added that when people move to another country to improve their lives, they should adapt. "We shouldn't be adapting ourselves to your ways," he said.

The town supervisor, Alan Brown, who voted against the measure, said, "The law would play to some people's prejudices, and I don't think that's a good thing."

VIA: AolNews

Jay-Z'S Show Me What You Got, Spectral Tarsier

This is soooo fitting

What the heck is a spectral tarsier? Wikipedia says it's a tiny carnivorous primate and YouTube says it's the next Jay-Z. If you don't believe me, check out this video of an adorable, big-eyed tarsier rocking out to one of the rapper's hit singles, "Show Me What You Got."

I don't know what mad genius decided this animal and this song would be a perfect match, but it is! The tarsier really does look like it's saying "Woo!" "HEY!" and "Uh-huh!" Admittedly, this is probably the easiest part of any Jay-Z song, but even if the tarsier loses to the Jigga-man in rapping ability, it totally wins in cuteness. Sorry, Jay. At least you've still got Beyonce.

DIRECT LINK HERE

URLesque

Circus Returns To Eastern Shore Virginia

ONANCOCK -- The circus is coming to town on Monday and Tuesday, after several years went by without the traditional form of traveling live entertainment making a stop on Virginia's Eastern Shore.

The Lewis and Clark Circus -- a one-ring, European-style circus featuring traditional acts such as trapeze artists, acrobats, clowns and animal acts with tigers, camels, horses and llamas -- will set up its big yellow-and-red-striped tent at the old Onancock School property on College Avenue.

It will be this circus' first trip to the Eastern Shore. The South Carolina-based circus, which dates to the 1960s, travels as far north as Pennsylvania and across into Ohio each season.

The circus will offer shows on Monday and Tuesday. There will be a 7 p.m. performance Monday and two shows on Tuesday, at 5 and 7:30 p.m.

The circus' 100-by-70-foot big top seats 900. Lewis and Clark Circus also features a midway with a petting zoo, face-painting and a giant slide. Camel and pony rides will be offered for an additional fee. These attractions open one hour prior to showtime.

The Lewis and Clark Circus bills itself as bringing to audiences "five generations of experienced family-oriented fun" -- with performers like Armando the juggler, the Ayala family, trapeze artist Miss Elizabeth and a clown named Jose Jose.

"It's a good, family-type show," said spokesman Albert Buchanan.

Tickets can be purchased up to 24 hours prior to the first show day on the circus' website, http://www.lewisandclarkcircus.com/.

Free childrens' tickets coupons are being distributed in locations throughout the area or can be printed out from the website.

Adult tickets are $10 plus a service fee if purchased in advance online, or $15 at the gate. Students 15-16 are $8 and children 14 and younger are free with the coupon and an accompanying adult or $5 without a coupon.

www.easternshorenews.com

Top 10 Passwords You Should Never Use

If you chose an easy-to-remember password, such as your user name or even the word "password," we advise you to change it right away. Easily guessed passwords can compromise your personal identity, privacy and financial accounts.

Researchers from the University of Maryland's A. James Clark School of Engineering in College Park have quantified how frequently unsecured computers are the victims of hacker attacks.

Here's the shocking news: On average, they happen to each unsecured computer every 39 seconds -- that's more than 2,000 times a day.

Hackers use a string of common passwords and user names to penetrate unsecured PCs. If you thought you were being clever by using your user name as your password, note this: Fully 43 percent of all password-guessing attempts simply re-entered the user name.

The top 10 most common passwords:
1. Your user name
2. Your user name followed by 123
3. 123456
4. password
5. 1234
6. 12345
7. passwd
8. 123
9. test
10. 1

On TV and in film, hackers have been portrayed as people with grudges who target specific institutions and manually try to break into their computers. But in reality, study leader Michel Cukier says, "Most of these attacks employ automated scripts that indiscriminately seek out thousands of computers at a time, looking for vulnerabilities. Our data provide quantifiable evidence that attacks are happening all the time to computers with Internet connections. The computers in our study were attacked, on average, 2,244 times a day."

The team set up weak security on four Linux computers with Internet access, then recorded what happened as the individual machines were attacked. They discovered the vast majority of attacks came from relatively unsophisticated hackers using "dictionary scripts," a type of software that runs through lists of common usernames and passwords attempting to break into a computer.

The top 10 most common user names:
1. root
2. admin
3. test
4. guest
5. info
6. adm
7. mysql
8. user
9. administrator
10. oracle

What do hackers do once they gain access to your computer?
This was the most common sequence of actions:
-- Check the accessed computer's software configuration.
-- Change the password.
-- Check the hardware and/or software configuration again.
-- Download a file.
-- Install the downloaded program.
-- Run the downloaded program.

What are the hackers trying to accomplish?
"The scripts return a list of 'most likely prospect' computers to the hacker, who then attempts to access and compromise as many as possible," Cukier says. "Often they set up 'back doors' -- undetected entrances into the computer that they control -- so they can create 'botnets,' for profit or disreputable purposes."

A botnet is a collection of compromised computers that are controlled by autonomous software robots answering to a hacker, who manipulates the computers remotely. Botnets can act to perpetrate fraud or identity theft, disrupt other networks or damage computer files, among other things.

VIA: AOLDiscover

NASCAR: Kyle Busch Romps to Victory in Dover Nationwide Race

Kyle Busch had little serious opposition Saturday as he dominated and won the Nationwide series race at Dover International Speedway.

His fourth victory of the year in the Nationwide race series came despite a late restart, a five-car crash that caused a red flag and finally a green-white-checkered finish.

"Well, let's see if it's our week to win," Busch said before the extended finish. And it was for Busch even though the last three leaders before a green-white-checkered finish in Nationwide races failed to win. He was also leading in the truck race Friday before a final restart, and failed to win when he ran out of gas.

Busch led 191 of the 203 laps and won going away -- crossing under the checkered flag at least 25 car lengths ahead of Ryan Newman. Jamie McMurray was third, followed by Reed Sorenson and Jason Leffler.

"We've been fast here a lot at Dover," Busch said in victory lane. "We've had great race cars. We've been kinda snake bit. But today was a good day for us. We were good all day. Came off pit road strong and everything. We just held our own."

"I knew we had a great race car, and if we could just get through the restarts and not have anybody turn me sideways," we'd win, Busch said afterward.

Most of the action in the race came at the end. Clint Bowyer was rear-ended by Hamlin on one of the late restarts. Bowyer spent little time stewing on pit road, driving right back out on the track and into Hamlin, turning him sideways.

Bowyer's retaliatory hit got him instantly parked by NASCAR and ordered to the sanctioning body's transporter for a post-race discussion. His race was over and Hamlin's was spoiled. Bowyer finished 25th, Hamlin was 12th.

"I just clipped him on the way by. It was nothing intentional," Hamlin said. "I just misjudged it, barely. It's hard to blame it on not running these cars a lot, but I just didn't know how close I was.

"I'm sure he was frustrated, but I don't fault him. I'm sure I'd be frustrated, too. It's hard to say he's in the wrong."

The race was red-flagged for 11 minutes, 43 seconds with less than 10 laps remaining after the accident left fluid and mangled cars all over the track.

Trevor Bayne limped away from his car after the accident and went to the hospital.

"It seems like we can always find something in the last 10 laps to get a caution," Busch said.

"It got exciting for everybody at the end," Newman said, laughing.

"I hope that they don't penalize Clint Bowyer," McMurray said. "That's what every race car driver wants to do. You don't want to hurt anybody, but when someone takes you out of a race like that and you have no chance of finishing, and they're still going to finish, that is just the best gratification that a guy can have."

Read More HERE at Motorsports Fanhouse

Va. Gov. Declines To Intervene In Execution

Gov. Bob McDonnell has turned down a request to intervene in Thursday's scheduled execution of Darick Demorris Walker, leaving the U.S. Supreme Court as his last hope to avoid death by injection.

Walker, 37, was convicted in 1998 of shooting two men to death in Richmond in front of loved ones. State law permits the death penalty for someone who commits two premeditated murders within three years.

Walker's lawyers have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to grant a stay of execution so it can consider his appeals. He is set to die by injection Thursday at 9 p.m. at the Greensville Correctional Center in Jarratt.

Walker was convicted of the Nov. 22, 1996, slaying of Stanley Beale, 36, and the June 19, 1997, slaying of Clarence Elwood Threat, 34. Both men were shot to death after their apartment doors were kicked in.

In a prepared statement yesterday, McDonnell said, "Walker's attorney recently submitted a letter listing the reasons why I should intervene in this execution. I have read the letter and considered the reasons set forth.

"Walker's trial, verdict and sentence have been reviewed by state and federal courts, including the Supreme Court of Virginia, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court," McDonnell said. "I find no compelling reason to set aside the sentence that was rendered by the jury and imposed and affirmed by the courts."

In papers filed with the U.S. Supreme Court, Walker's lawyers contend his joint trial for the unrelated murders, "exposed him to the serious risks that two weak cases would bolster one another, and that the jury might convict based on a presumed propensity for crime."

In addition, Walker's lawyers say authorities improperly withheld evidence that could have challenged the credibility of a key witness. Beale's 13-year-old daughter, who told police she heard but did not see the shooter, testified that she saw Walker shoot her father.

Walker's lawyers did not learn of the girl's earlier statements until after the trial.

Walker also argues that he is mentally retarded and therefore ineligible for the death penalty. A split panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals held that Walker had not proved that he fit the legal definition for mental retardation.

Danielle Spinelli, one of Walker's lawyers, said this month, "We very strongly believe that the death penalty may not legally be imposed in Mr. Walker's case in light of his documented mental deficiencies and the pervasive constitutional violations that occurred during his trial and sentencing."

The Virginia attorney general's office is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to allow the execution, arguing that Walker already has had a "staggering" number of appeals.

www.timesdispatch.com

Portsmouth Mayor Still Faces Another Recall

PORTSMOUTH

As momentum built in late July 1987 to bounce him from office, Mayor James Holley went on the offensive.

The city's first black mayor told a church audience that the people seeking his ouster - many of them influential black residents - were trying to "destroy the dream."

Three weeks later, when organizers submitted more than 10,000 signatures to force a recall election, two attorneys stood by Holley, mounting a legal challenge as some 90 supporters rushed to review the signatures.

In seven days, Holley's followers documented 16,157 problems, more than one for every name.

Almost a quarter century later, Holley is facing another recall. Again defiant, this time it appears he is fighting on his own.

Joe Wright, a civic leader from Cavalier Manor, was among those who actively opposed the last recall. He remembered going door to door and helping a committee that had its own headquarters. Wright said he'd help again if the mayor asked. Holley, 83, hasn't.

"I'm not going to say he's by himself, but the people are not as fired up about it, because most of the people really think it's time for him to step down," Wright said.

Still, Wright said he thinks Holley has enough support to keep him in office if a recall election is set.

Catherine D. Hendricks, 91, was among those who signed the challenges that one of Holley's lawyers filed against the 1987 recall signatures.

"I haven't heard one word, really, of trying to help him at all," she said of the latest effort. "Nobody has said anything to me."

Two residents, Robert Marcus and Delores Knight, submitted 8,775 names on May 6 to trigger the latest recall initiative. To force a recall election, they need about 6,700 to pass muster as the legitimate signatures of registered voters.

Circuit Judge Dean W. Sword Jr. has set a hearing for May 27 to rule on the signatures, which are under review in the registrar's office.

Holley has filed a legal challenge, this time on his own. The two lawyers who made his case in court in 1987 have died. Last week, Holley said he did not have an attorney.

The latest recall effort started last summer after Holley's assistant at City Hall reported that the mayor had verbally abused her and ordered her to do personal tasks for him on city time.

The other six City Council members fined Holley $2,500 and asked him to retire. He declined.

Holley was successfully recalled in 1987. He ran again and was re-elected in 1996.

The 1987 movement grew partially out of comments he had made during a heated exchange over the future of I.C. Norcom High School. Some black community leaders asked Holley to intervene and stop the school from closing. He refused, and he said he felt the group sent political threats his way for doing so.

Holley responded, according to newspaper accounts, by saying, "I pretty much got you where you are.... You won't be satisfied until you have a white mayor and all the City Council persons up here are white for another 200 years."

An effort to recall Holley began in earnest after he was implicated in a hate-mail campaign against several of the people who opposed Norcom's closing.

The commonwealth's attorney at the time, Johnny E. Morrison, concluded that Holley's fingerprints were found on some of the letters. Holley denied involvement and was never charged. Morrison is now Portsmouth's chief circuit judge.

Several of those who wanted to keep Norcom open included Louise Lucas, who is now a state senator, and Kenneth Melvin, now a circuit judge. Lucas said recently she is trying to stay out of the latest recall effort.

www.hamptonroads.com

Must Hussein Obama Lie About Everything?

Ya know there are lies and then there are liars...... Hussein Obama is a liar. Does he think the American public are stupid? Does he think we have absolutely no memory?

In his speech at Hampton University he states;

"And meanwhile, you're coming of age in a 24/7 media environment that bombards us with all kinds of content and exposes us to all kinds of arguments, some of which don't always rank that high on the truth meter. And with iPods and iPads and Xboxes and PlayStations none of which I know how to work"

"Truth meter"? Maybe he better check his own "truth meter" as I'm sure it's off the scale.

While Hussein Obama was in campaign mode he ran the most tech savvy campaign in history with twitter tweets, facebooks, etc.

Then after he was elected by ACORN with all the absentee ballots and dead people votes with his addiction to his personal Blackberry he insisted on using a Blackberry which he could not and would not part with despite security concerns, so it had to be modified by the secret service at a astronomical cost to the tax payers.

He also says he has an I-Pod and he graciously presented the Queen with an I-Pod last year as a gift . He also gave 25 DVD's to Gorden Brown.

I could go on and on but you get the picture, he just cannot tell the truth.

Just follow the below video and article.

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President Obama at Hampton University @ Yahoo! Video

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The geek-in-chief has a problem with technology. Who knew?

President Obama -- whose campaign was an online juggernaut and whose love of all things comic book, Star Trek and most recently Avatar is well-documented -- went on a tear against gadgets and gizmos over the weekend, telling a graduating class in Virginia to beware the vice of video games and portable music players.

He used the speech to warn that new media and new technology are "putting new pressure on our country and on our democracy." And that's not all ... The president told the assembled throng he doesn't know how to use any of those products.

"You're coming of age in a 24/7 media environment that bombards us with all kinds of content and exposes us to all kinds of arguments, some of which don't always rank that high on the truth meter," Obama said during the commencement address at Hampton University on Sunday. "And with iPods and iPads and Xboxes and PlayStations -- none of which I know how to work -- information becomes a distraction, a diversion, a form of entertainment, rather than a tool of empowerment, rather than the means of emancipation."

Maybe the president threw that line in to make John McCain, his former e-mail illiterate opponent, feel better. But Obama disavowing technology is kind of like Donald Trump saying he can't make change.

The president has a known addiction to his BlackBerry (a.k.a. BOTUS -- Blackberry of the United States), which he could not and would not part with when he entered the White House, despite security concerns. He admitted "clinging" to it last year -- kind of like voters who "cling" to guns and religion.

He also owns an iPod, meaning that he knows how to use one -- unless he depends on the Secret Service to hit the shuffle button while he's out jogging.

He told The Associated Press after Michael Jackson died that "I still have all his stuff on my iPod." During the campaign, he revealed his playlist to Rolling Stone, which at the time included a lot of Jay-Z and Bob Dylan. And he once found the iPod a device befitting royalty. He gave one to Queen Elizabeth II as a gift when he visited London last spring.

Rewind some more.

Obama's campaign had a huge presence on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter, using 24/7 media to reach his army of supporters at a moment's notice. The Black Eyes Peas' Will.I.Am cut a music video in his honor that tore through YouTube.

And as for Obama's supposed distaste for video game consoles, Obama's campaign bought ad space shortly before the 2008 election in 18 video games. Anyone burning rubber through the Xbox Live version of "Need for Speed: Carbon" at the time would have come across a digital billboard telling them about early voting.

The day after Obama told Hampton University grads to watch out for technology, the White House used Flickr, Twitter, Facebook and WhiteHouse.gov to promote his nomination of Solicitor General Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court.

Article VIA: FoxNews

Man charged with assaulting 70 year old man for driving too slowly

A Swisher man has been charged for punching a 70-year-old man because he didn’t like his driving.

Police reports indicate Brandon J. Poulson, 22, was driving behind a man and his wife 1400 block of Greencastle Road in Swisher on March 27 around 12:48 a.m. when Poulson began yelling and cursing at the man for “driving like an old man.”

The man pulled over to let Poulson pass, but Poulson pulled alongside the man and got out of his truck, police said. The man got out of his car and was immediately struck in the head and face several times, causing a large cut on the top of his head, above his left eye, and swelling and bruising to both ears. The cut on the man’s head required numerous staples and the cut above his eye required stitches.

Poulson admitted to striking the man in the face several times because he was upset with the way he was driving. He was charged with willful injury causing bodily injury, a class D felony.

Poulson was being held in the Johnson County Jail Tuesday morning on a $10,000 cash-only bond.

VIA: gazetteonline

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Ripken, Jr. To Help Raise Funds For Shock Trauma

BALTIMORE -- Cal Ripken Jr. will add his star power to a fundraising effort for the University of Maryland Medical Center and its Shock Trauma Center.

The former Baltimore Oriole is being named honorary chairman of the campaign. The campaign's chairman, former state Sen. Francis X. Kelly, is a longtime friend of Ripken's.

The fundraising effort was set to kick off Thursday at a groundbreaking ceremony for a nine-story trauma/critical care building.

The building, set to open in 2013, will be the first major expansion of Shock Trauma since it opened in 1989. The project is slated to get $50 million in state funds over several years.

Officials said the expansion is needed because demand for services is expected to increase. Already, Shock Trauma serves nearly 8,000 patients a year in a building originally designed for 3,500.

www.wbaltv.com

This is How Hussein Obama Got Elected

This video shows exactly how the typical liberal thinks and it was those people that put Hussein Obama in office.

Like I have said many times before "liberalism is a mental disorder" and here's the proof.

DIRECT LINK HERE

Autistic Boy Charged with Making Terroristic Threats in Stick Figure Drawing

Teen drew two stick figures, one with gun

FULTON COUNTY, Ga. (MyFOX ATLANTA) - A Fulton County mother was outraged Wednesday that her autistic son was suspended and charged with a felony over a picture he drew. The 14 year old is a student at Ridgeview Charter School in Atlanta.

Shane Finn's mother said he was in a special needs class when he drew a picture of two stick figures, and one had a gun.

The eighth grade boy's picture depicted a stick figure with a gun that was labeled "me." The figure was shooting another figure that had his teacher's name above it.

The picture led to Finn being suspended, and he is now facing criminal charges.

"They've pressed felony charges for terroristic threats," said the teen's mother, Karen Finn. "It's that sweeping zero tolerance and I think it's ridiculous."

Finn said her son drew the picture on the page of a school assignment where his teacher would easily see it. Finn says her son doesn't really understand why he's in trouble. Finn said her son is autistic and has the mental capacity of a third grader.

"It really breaks my heart because he's a really nice kid and this is obviously from his disability. He really doesn't have a good way of expressing anger, frustration," Finn said.

Finn said she wasn't proud of the picture her son drew, but she said the punishment was much too severe.

"I think there needs to be some sort of common sense used with the school system. That a 14-year-old autistic boy who does not understand what he's done or what he's drawn, has an IQ of 75 should not be charged with a felony. It's outrageous," Finn said.

School authorities could not say much about the student because of privacy laws, but they did confirm that Shane will face a tribunal and is being charged with making terroristic threats.

VIA: MyFox

78-Year-Old Arkansas Man Fights to Keep Pet Pig

An Arkansas man has asked a judge to decide the fate of his arthritic pet potbellied pig, Joker.

Less than a week after Wilferd Kallhoff, 78, moved to a subdivision in Mountain Home, Ark., police told him the pig had to go because the city prohibits hogs and other farm animals, the Baxter Bulletin reports.

A trial is set for June 29.

Joker, a Swedish potbellied pig who weighs about 200 pounds, is a well-mannered pet, Kallhoff tells Paw Nation. He spends his days inside a four-foot-high chain-link pen in the backyard, sleeps on blankets in the garage, and never barks, bites or leaves the property. The animal likes children, especially when they feed him popcorn, and never wallows in mud, Kallhoff said. He never eats table scraps (being limited to popcorn, bananas and pig feed).

"I'm not saying he smells perfect, but he doesn't smell any worse than a dog does," Kallhoff said.

Kallhoff spoke with an official at City Hall to make sure his pet was allowed before moving to Mountain Home a few weeks ago from the city of Salem. "She said you can't have hogs," he said. "It doesn't say anything about potbellied pigs. She said 'As long as nobody complains, I guess it will be OK.'"

But Kallhoff had barely moved in when a neighbor reported the pig in the yard to City Hall. The police gave him five days to find Joker a new home.

Mountain Home Police Chief Carry Manuel said the law doesn't differentiate potbellied pigs from hogs or make an exception for pets.

"In this part of the country, hog and pig are basically the same thing," he told Paw Nation. "We have to act accordingly through points of law, and it's prohibited by city ordinance."

Joker, the runt of his litter, has been with Kallhoff since birth in California, when Kallhoff and his late wife, Myrtle, had a business raising and selling pet pigs.

"He was just so cute, he became one of the family," Kalhoff said.

The pig used to sleep in the dining room -- each night, Kalhoff would cover him with blankets like a child -- but these days, Joker sleeps in the garage because Kalhoff's lady friend would prefer not to have the pig in the house.

As pot-bellied pigs have grown popular as pets, owners in several states have succeeded in getting zoning laws changed to allow them, according to Pigs4Ever.com, a site for potbellied-pig owners. In 2008, city leaders in Kissimmee, Fla. struck a compromise between owners of Vietnamese potbellied pigs, and their neighbors, by enacting a limit of two potbellied pigs per household, with the requirement that the pigs must be kept indoors.

Mountain Home Mayor David L. Osmon was sympathetic to Kallhoff's plight but said there was nothing he could do unless the City Council decides to change the law, which has been on the books for decades.

"If the City Council wants to change that law, I'll sign the ordinance," Osmon said.

In the meantime, Kallhoff says he won't second-guess the judge, but he worries what will happen to Joker. While losing the pig would be "like losing a child," Kallhoff said, he can't pick up and move again.

"If he tells me I have to get rid of him, I guess, as bad as it will hurt, I'll have to do it," Kallhoff said. "I would probably have to have him euthanized because I don't think anybody would take care of him the way I do."

VIA: PawNation

Strawberry Shortcake Sale

The women of Emmanuel Episcopal Church announce a

Fundraising Strawberry

Shortcake Sale

Saturday May 15, 2010

1:00 PM until 4:00 Pm in the church Parish Hall

You can eat in or carryout this "all homemade, fresh dessert delight".

For directions or more information call the church - 757-824-5043

Stepfather Beat Boy To Death

How do small children "fall through the cracks"? This child made it clear that he did not want to go stay with his mother. And why, oh, why do adults do these terrible, nightmarish things to their OWN innocent children.......or even make excuses for why it happened?!! This child was sent to Utah by a Virginia judge even though the child did not want to go...............

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - The Utah man held in the slaying of his 4-year-old stepson beat him for days before the boy died, then used a hammer to disfigure his face and teeth before burying his body in the mountains, according to police records released late Wednesday.

The body of Ethan Stacy, wrapped in plastic, was unearthed by police Tuesday.

Interview summaries filed by Layton police detectives documented increasingly harsh treatment of the boy during his short time in Utah. A Virginia judge had sent the boy to Layton for a summer visit with his mother just 10 days before his death, police said.

Investigators said they obtained photographs and video images of Ethan's worsening condition from his mother's cell phone, starting more than a week ago.

The injuries resulted from the stepfather, Nathanael Sloop, "engaging in a systematic and progressively more violent pattern of abuse toward Ethan," detectives wrote in interview summaries. The documents say Sloop was angry with the child and "tried everything" to discipline him; however, they don't say why the boy was being disciplined.

Sloop, 31, acknowledged hitting the boy, which caused his face to swell, and leaving him in a locked bedroom May 6 while the couple went to get married in Farmington, about 10 miles away, according to the probable cause statements used to support arrest warrants and detention in jail.

Sloop and the boy's mother, Stephanie Sloop, 27, feared his injuries would alert authorities if they took him along to the courthouse wedding, the documents state.

"This pattern of behavior and abuse was done in a manner that was recklessly indifferent to the child's welfare," police wrote.

Stephanie Sloop told police she did not seek medical help for Ethan because she was afraid Nathanael Sloop "would harm her," Detective Brooke Plotnick wrote.

The couple told police they found Ethan dead in his bed Sunday morning, and that Nathanael Sloop buried him later that day.

Stephanie Sloop told investigators she bought two cans of lighter fluid for Nathanael Sloop to burn the body before it was buried. The reports didn't say whether that was actually done.

The stepfather disfigured the boy's face and teeth "in an effort to defeat or delay identification," detectives concluded in their reports.

Prosecutors said they expect to file charges against the couple Friday. Nathanael Sloop was arrested on suspicion of aggravated murder. He and the mother face additional charges of desecration of a corpse, along with felony child abuse and obstruction of justice, police said.

Chief Deputy Davis County Attorney David Cole said prosecutors are awaiting the results of an autopsy conducted Wednesday.

The Sloops are being held at the Davis County jail.

Attorney Richard Gallegos, who has represented Nathanael Sloop in previous criminal cases, did not return a message Wednesday. It was unknown if Stephanie Sloop had an attorney.

Nobody answered a phone at the Sloops' apartment Wednesday, and a message wasn't returned.

Stephanie Sloop initially told officers that Ethan wandered away from their apartment complex late Monday, but that was just a ruse aimed at covering the couple's tracks, Lt. Garret Atkin said.

Police searched overnight and said that by midday Tuesday, the Sloops had revealed the location of Ethan's body. The search then moved 20 miles away to a spot off a wooded trail in Wolf Canyon, which borders the Powder Mountain ski resort, about 40 miles northeast of Salt Lake City.

Ethan's biological father told The Associated Press police gave him details on the slaying Wednesday.

"I can't talk right now. I just got the horrible news, talking to prosecutors," said Joe G. Stacy of Tazewell, Va.

A relative says Ethan didn't want to spend the summer with his mother.

"Ethan did not want to even talk to (his mother) on the phone. She'd call and he'd say, 'I don't want to talk to her,"' Freida Stacy, Joe G. Stacy's stepmother, told the Deseret News of Salt Lake City.

Stephanie Sloop told police Ethan was vomiting, lethargic and refusing to eat for three days before his death. She also said that on Friday, she found Ethan badly burned from his feet to his buttocks from hot bath water, and that she suspected Nathanael Sloop was responsible.

At another point, the couple forced the child to drink two 16-ounce bottles of water, a 16-ounce bottle of Kool-Aid and a glass of orange juice over two hours, police said. They also gave him Motrin and Benadryl to ease his facial swelling and pain.

Utah State Courts records show that between 2000 and 2003, Nathanael Sloop had several convictions, including for criminal mischief, disorderly conduct and drug possession. In 2003, he served 30 days in jail for one drug possession charge and received a six-month suspended sentence for another.

No criminal history was found for Stephanie Sloop.

www.wavy.com

Friday, May 14, 2010

Find out if your PC can run Windows 7

The Office of the CIO has learned of an email scam that is infecting computers with a Trojan horse program disguised as software that determines whether PCs are compatible with Windows 7.

The subject of the email is "Find out if your PC can run Windows 7,” and the body reads “This software scans your PC for potential issues with your hardware, devices, and installed programs, and recommends what to do before you upgrade." The email text echo’s legitimate verbiage from Microsoft’s Web page.

Users who try to install the attached, zipped file end up with a back-door Trojan horse program on their computer. Once a victim has installed the software, criminals can pretty much do whatever they want on the PC. Please do not open this email or attachment. As always, the best practice is to open email only from known recipients.

Hat Tip; Eric

Unresponsive Tree Worker Rescued by Firefighters

SUFFOLK - —Firefighters in Suffolk rescued a tree worker on Wednesday afternoon after the man had become dehydrated and unresponsive while 60 feet off the ground.

The emergency crew responded around 4:30 p.m. to a location on Carolina Road after the 40-year-old man grew weak while working with a chain saw in a pine tree. When firefighters arrived, the man was unresponsive and was attempting to hold onto the tree and his safety ropes.

Firefighters used a ladder truck to reach the man and bring him down. Debbie George, spokeswoman for the city, said the rescue took about 30 minutes.

The man was treated at the scene but declined to be transported to a hospital.

www.wtkr.com

7th Annual Household Hazardous Waste Collection A Huge Success

On Saturday, May 8 nearly 100 Eastern Shore citizens lined up at the Mother Earth Day Festival on Chincoteague to drop off nearly 3.5 tons (7,326 pounds to be exact) of household hazardous material for proper disposal by Care Environmental Corporation, of Landing, New Jersey. Saturday's successful effort brought in the most hazardous waste in the history of the event.

A variety of materials were brought in for proper disposal including old paint, stale fuels, pesticides, flammable aerosols, oxidizers, batteries, and asbestos shingles. In addition, nearly 200 pounds of reusable paint was collected and donated to the Eastern Shore Food Bank.

The Eastern Shores landfills are not engineered to handle these materials and hazardous wastes that illegally enter the landfill could potentially threaten the health of Eastern Shore residents. Hazardous wastes also tend to accumulate around everyones homes over time creating unnecessary health and safety risks at home. Every quantity of hazardous waste brought in through the collection program ensures that that waste will not pollute our water resources on the Eastern Shore and endanger the quality of our water and our health.

For tips on safer use, storage, and disposal of all types of household hazardous waste please contact Curt Smith with the Accomack-Northampton Planning District Commission and visit the A-NPDC on the web at www.a-npdc.org and on Facebook. Next years collection is currently scheduled to be held in Northampton County.

The event was sponsored by Accomac and Northampton Counties, the Eastern Shore of Virginia Ground Water Committee, the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program, the A-NPDC, the Chincoteague Cultural Alliance, the Chincoteague Chamber of Commerce, Kiwanis Club of Chincoteague, the Chincoteague Natural History Association, Spangler Construction, and the Eastern Shore Soil & Water Conservation District.

www.shoredailynews.com

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Bill Clinton offers himself as lottery prize to pay off Hillary’s debts

There are many ways to pay off campaign debts — cajoling phone calls, begging letters — but Bill Clinton believes that he has come up with a better method to wipe out the financial obligations outstanding from his wife’s failed presidential bid.

He is raffling himself. In an e-mail sent to millions of people who supported Hillary Clinton’s White House campaign, the former President asks: “How would you like the chance to come up to New York and spend the day with me?” For those who would like the One-Day-With-Bill prize, an online donation of as little as $5 (£3) will buy them the chance.

By 2007, seven years after leaving the White House, the Clintons had earned a combined $109 million (£73 million) through speaking engagements and bestselling memoirs. Even so, apparently they would prefer American voters to settle Mrs Clinton’s remaining $771,000 debt rather than paying it themselves.

“Hillary’s campaign still has a few vestiges of debt that I know she would like to see paid in full. Will you reach out today to help Hillary this one last time?” Mr Clinton asks. In her marathon battle against Barack Obama Mrs Clinton’s debts peaked at $25.2 million. More than $13 million of that she lent to her own campaign — a huge sum that she will never recoup.

VIA: Timesonline